Spur Canyon

Spur is an excellent half‑day limestone canyon found in a surprising and somewhat unexpected location. Originally discovered and first descended in the early 2000s by Jeff Baird, the canyon remained largely undocumented for many years. Spur features a mix of attractive, sculpted limestone formations and relaxed stretches of easy canyon walking between obstacles. This balance makes it an enjoyable, approachable canyon that still delivers plenty of aesthetic appeal.

Drive East from Lovell, WY on Alt Highway 14 over Bighorn Lake. Turn North on John Blue Road, following the dirt road up John Blue Canyon. High Clearance 4WD is required. Navigate the network of two tracks on a GPS app (not google) to Park at (44.97233, -108.21981). Continue down the old road as your vehicle allows. Hike down the road a short ways, then depart it at (44.96882, -108.22271) to follow the ridge down to the right and walk into the drainage at (44.96929, -108.22847).

R0: 30' rope from a tree DCL or bypass by downclimbing 20' DCR or skirting further around DCL. DC: 15' around a boulder DC: 10' after crawling along the shelf DCL to avoid water in a pothole. R1: 55' from a juniper higher DCR. This is the 'first mandatory rappel' and the juniper was chosen to avoid debris at the pourover. R2: 40' from a slung boulder in a rock stack landing dry, but followed by wading through a Pool nearly waist deep Pool knee deep Pool waist deep Log Jam able to climb up, but the back side was unsecure. Step onto the wall DCR into a higher escape gully DCR. A juniper provides a 55' rappel back into the canyon. Walk beneath a Log Jam suspended overhead Log Jam climb up and over R3: 35' from a loop around a horn DCR to negotiate a 6ft tall undercut Pool stem wide to avoid Walk under the cave formed by a large section of the limestone wall, which separated DCL and connected with the canyon wall DCR. Check out the reservoir, but return to upclimb DCR to get up onto the roof of the cave. A few 4th class moves with good hand holds and tacky limestone grip provide escape from the canyon where Spur meets the reservoir.

Contour South following game trails and head uphill slowly regaining elevation in the second gully. Intersect the old two track and follow this back to the parking location.