After everyone parted ways, Sarah and I decided to keep hanging out. She ditched all her plans in Phoenix, because it's not easy to voluntarily leave the beauty of southern Utah. We wanted to do something technical but were aware of our limitations. So, we chose Goblin's Lair at Goblin Valley State Park. An easy hike on a well-defined trail with just one rappel.
Goblin Valley is such a unique place. I love looking at the hoodoos and imagining what they look like. Despite the maze of rock formations, it was easy to find our "canyon." It isn't even really a canyon, more like some scrambling with a cool rappel at the end. We found ourselves at that rappel all too soon. I think we were both a little nervous. Sarah is very new to canyoneering, and I'm somewhat experienced, but used to having someone check my work when I set up rappels. We couldn't see the ground from the top of the 100 foot rappel, so we decided to throw down much more rope than we thought we'd need and tie some webbing to the pull side of the rope to ensure that it would be long enough.
(Looking up at the ceiling of the goblin's lair)
Sarah went first and immediately exclaimed how beautiful it was. And once I got on rope and lowered myself over the edge, I agreed. What a cool space!
That 100 feet felt really high, so I tried not to look down. I think we were both feeling quite pleased with ourselves when I reached the bottom. Sarah went to pull the rope, and... it was stuck. Wouldn't budge. We laughed and laughed because it really wasn't that big of a deal; we'd just have to hike back and get it. And this is why we chose a canyon with only one rappel. Sticking a rope was not the end of the world in this scenario. But as we hiked back, it was making me crazy trying to figure out what could have caused it. I didn't see anything up there that might have been a problem!
(This is what the entrance to the cave looks like from the outside)
I got a little bored while waiting for Sarah to retrieve the rope and took some selfies. (I waited a little ways up the canyon in case she needed help climbing up anything.)
Turns out the carabiner got stuck in the rope groove. We must have hit it just right when we started pulling the rope.
Anyway, having to go back and get our rope was embarrassing, but not a big deal. Such a beautiful place to spend the day!
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