Highest drop 100m (2x70m ropes minimum)
9 hours
Public access
Some pleasant waterfalls interspersed with boulder hopping. The drawcard is two 100m+ waterfall sequences in a row.
Start of the canyon (topomap link): https://www.topomap.co.nz/NZTopoMap?v=2&gpx=https%3A%2F%2Fdrive.google.com%2Fuc%3Fexport%3Ddownload%26id%3D10Mb4TWfCrqQWEPlUOGd6CiT8kWH3if7O
Carpark (Google Maps link): https://goo.gl/maps/M9vzysNgiDRMGhHq6
Rock: Greywacke
Anchors: Two 10mm stainless tru-bolts with ring hanger and natural
Approach time: 1hr30mins to the base, 2hrs up the side,
Descent time: 4hrs
Back to your car time: 1hr30mins
Approach by car: Drive up SH73 and park at the Deception footbridge.
Access: Public access
Approach on foot: Race the runners training for the Coast to Coast up the Deception until you hit Spray Creek 6km up the valley.
Head up the spur on the southern side (True Left) of Spray Creek. This is very steep in places, and there are some small bluffs to avoid, but it does flatten off. Keep to the spur on the canyon rim for the first few hundred metres.
At around 720m, start sidling up and across to pick up the canyon’s edge until around 820m. Keep going until you can see the canyon, descend a short distance until it gets too steep, then rap from a tree for the last 30m into Spray Creek. This should bring you to the top of R1.
Canyon descent description: There is not much boulder hopping between the waterfall sections. Bring additional webbing to replace natural anchors and a spanner to tighten bolts.
R0 30m TL – 785m after 30m abseil into Canyon off tree at 815m . E1488573 N5256912
https://www.topomap.co.nz/NZTopoMap?v=2&ll=-42.832674,171.636593&z=15
R1 15m TR – Two bolt anchor
R2 15m C – Rock thread
R3 15m TR – Two bolts anchor
R4 20m TL – Tree
R5 20m TL – Two bolt anchor
R6 60m TL – Single bolt handline leads to a two bolts anchor
R7 30m TR – Two bolt anchor
R8 70m C – Two bolt anchors on a ledge
Notes for R8
1: If you have 70-meter ropes, getting you to the bottom in one go is tight. This is not a problem for everyone but the last person, as you must manage the rope for edges (bleed the rope). The last person down needs to be on a double rope. A rock bollard is around 10 meters from the bottom, so the last person may need to reconfigure, build an anchor, and pull some rope to get down. Be prepared.
2: The pitch has a significant edge going into a 50m free-hanging abseil. Use a normal amount of friction for rappelling, as it’s easy to have too much.
3: An alternate way down: Trees are on the True Right of the last falls and have been used by the first descent team to get down with 70m ropes successfully.
See the Topo, which is attached as a picture.
Commitment/Escapes: It is potentially escapable at several spots on the true left.
First descent: John Harris, Tom Johns, Andy Hall. 22 November 2020
Some more images by Nola Collie here: https://www.facebook.com/100000793172239/posts/8953471104689240/?rdid=jmwM2jVpRFGI6avM
Images courtesy of John Harris.
