Kris is wonderful and supportive, so when I told him my birthday plans had fallen through, he took a day off work and told me to plan an adventure for us.
I carefully selected Ding & Dang Canyons, a 6-mile loop in the Swell. I did this hike by myself a few years ago and thought it would be a nice introduction to canyoneering. Just enough obstacles to make it interesting, but nothing really dangerous or technical. Most importantly, nothing too narrow. Kris is claustrophobic, but I showed him pictures beforehand and he said he was willing to try.
As soon as we entered Ding, I realized I'd made a huge mistake. Kris's eyes were on the ground, not on the canyon. He was trying not to pay attention to his surroundings. Turns out, he wasn't kidding about the claustrophobic thing. I told him I'd be okay with turning around, but he was determined to push through it.
(Entering Ding)
Ding wasn't so bad. He didn't like the narrow section, but was able to walk through it quickly. There are a few things to climb, but nothing particularly difficult.
And then we got to Dang.
There are several downclimbs in this canyon. One of the drops is probably about 10 feet, and the rest are slightly smaller. They're awkward; they're not tight elevator downclimbs, they're big chokestones that, at first glance, don't appear to have hand or foot holds. Kris was very uncomfortable with the drops, and I don't blame him. The problem was that, often, when you downclimb, you wedge yourself in a tight spot and use friction to control your descent. But for someone who's claustrophobic, that sounds highly unpleasant. I think Kris had a few mild panic attacks, and I felt terrible for putting him in that situation.
But not terrible enough to pass up an opportunity for selfies as Kris negotiated a difficult downclimb behind me.
(Kris is ready to GTFO of this canyon.)
The best part of the canyon (or the worst, if you're Kris) is the very end, where you climb off a chokestone and stem over a narrow pool of water. I think Kris looks like a badass in these pics, but I know he wasn't feeling like a badass in the moment.
My students and I were just talking about what makes someone brave. How it's not the absence of fear, it's being afraid and doing it anyway. Kris is not afraid of climbing on rocks or heights or long hikes, but he has a genuine phobia of feeling trapped in small spaces and he willingly entered a slot canyon with me. I really appreciate that he gave it a chance, and I'm okay with us not doing EVERYTHING together. I love that he's supportive of my hobby and never complains about me being gone on weekends or hanging out with other guys. The important thing to me is that we both love being outside.
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