Hades Canyon, Dante's Variation, Death Valley National Park

Death Valley canyoneering is always a great winter option when every other canyon within hundreds of miles is snow-covered. The Black Range provides great canyon options for big views and a relatively easy approach — as long as you select the canyon with a shuttle. Hades Canyon starts at the top of Dante's View — you literally get out of your car and start heading down toward Badwater Basin.

The Black Range canyons start to all blend in together after you've done over 10 canyons on this range alone. What I found of particular interest is that we encountered a lot of big rappels over 150 feet in length — quite unique compared to other Death Valley drainages. All photos by cave and canyon photographer Irina Tabarana.