Moab (Rope Swing & Medieval Chambers) February 23-25, 2018

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I know I was down here the previous weekend, but Moab is just too good to stay away. This trip was a little different from my usual trips. The people I was with opted to do AirBnB the two nights we were there which was fine with me. I am usually a really cheap guy when it comes to trips. I'm all about pinching pennies and maximizing adventure. Between 10 people though, the two nights at the condo ended up being about $20 per person. We all got to the condo pretty late and just crashed for the night. The following morning, after the usual morning activities, we took off to our first destination: the Medieval Chambers rappel route. This route has a few down climbs and two rappels, both of which are spectacular. The Medieval Chamber is awesome. Morning Glory Arch is phenomenal. Morning Glory Arch is listed as the 5th largest arch/natural bridge on the UGS website, so getting to rappel over it is pretty cool.

One of the downclimbs.
Into the chamber I go.
      
One of the guys coming down.

Getting ready for the Morning Glory rappel.



Firemans belay.

        
Looking into Negro Bill Canyon. Now Grandstaff Cayon
for the politically correct.

Rappelling through the natural bridge.

The hike out was a little over a mile from what I remember. Nothing too strenuous and very beautiful. The whole route from top to bottom took us a little over 4 hours to do with 10 people. At the bottom, we crammed into a 5 seater Subaru and drove back to the top of the route to pick up the other vehicle.

Full view of Morning Glory Arch.

With the rappel behind us, we wanted something with even more adrenaline. On a previous trip, I had done the Looking Glass Arch rappel/ rope swing. I mentioned it and everyone was immediately on board. We grabbed some lunch in town then drove South about 25 miles to the rock. One of the other experienced rock climbers headed up the fin on the East and set up the rope. We rappelled down the spent about 2 hours just swinging around and having fun.

On top of Looking Glass Rock.


                                                         
Attached is a video of us swinging in the dark.

We got in late, soaked int the hot tub, then hit the sack. Sunday morning we loaded up the cars, and on our way out of town hiked to Corona Arch. Then we had lunch on the bank of the Colorado River.

Corona Arch
We got home in the early afternoon Sunday. Great action packed trip!

Location: Negro Bill Canyon, Moab, UT 84532, USA

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