Immaculate Canyon, Arizona

There are many canyons that feed into Oak Creek and the region around West Clear Creek. The 'I' canyons — Immaculate, Insomnia, and Illusion — are three fantastic canyons in north Arizona. We hit the trail around 8am with a late start and hiked down to the tail of the canyon. The first section was green with moss and fairly open.

On one rap we set up a redirect to help people avoid an exposed traverse. We worked down to the bigger drops leading to the final sections. Then we stuck a rope — the rope was stuck above and below the rappeller who had to downclimb to un-stick it. Finally released, we got into the cavernous lower section — the best part of the canyon, though short-lived.

Although this canyon had its moments and some nice big rappels, I would recommend it as a Sunday route. At around 7,000ft elevation there's a chance of encountering snow until early May. The other two I's — Insomnia and Illusion — I'm looking forward to visiting. Arizona has some really nice canyons.