Kirk Creek Canyon

A lovely canyon with beautiful flowstone formations, Kirk Creek has an initial technical section in some steep narrows and slowly shallows out to a creekwalk exit. This canyon is a nice day trip, and will be easier when Nacimiento-Fergusson is open for driving. It was first descended in a very dry winter and ran class B. It does run class C at higher flows, but could be hazardous because a few of the rappels run through chutes. In low flow this canyon is suitable for beginners with competent leadership.

Park at the base of Nacimiento-Fergusson road. When the road reopens (sometime early 2024) most of the climb will be shuttleable, but in the meantime it’s open to hikers. Walk up the road until you see an opportunity to ascend to the ridgeline (approximate coordinates where we left the road to ascend the ridgeline: 35°59'41.0"N 121°28'50.0"W, although you could try going farther up the road and then cutting over). Follow the ridgeline until the slope is level enough to traverse, then walk along the faint deer trails until you reach a small drainage. Walk down this drainage to reach Kirk Creek. The approach often has dense foliage at the drainage; make sure to wear thick clothing to block prickly plants and stray branches.

The max rope length used was 150’, but could probably be reduced to 120’ by breaking up the rappels into more sections. Rappel 1: ~100'anchored off a large deadfall or a tree RDC, and leads you immediately into R2. Rappel 2: ~60' anchored off a bolt LDC (installed April 2022). If the bolt gets damaged, a smooth rock solidly embedded in the streambed could be used. From this point on, live trees and lodged driftwood make for good anchors. Rappel 3: Anchored off a dead tree in the center of the streambed, 2 stage. Rappel 4: 60' and ~?' Anchored off live trees RDC, can be multiple stages. Rappel 5: Anchored off tree. Rappel 6: Can be bypassed LDC or anchored off tree. Rappel 7: ~20' Anchor RDC. Rappel 8: ~60' Anchor off dead tree center canyon. All raps besides R2 can be fiddlesticked or double-stranded, so don’t expect any webbing pre-placed. If you can do so safely, consider using ghosting techniques to keep the canyon pristine. Some sections of the canyon contain interesting and delicate flowstone?/mud formations, so do your best to avoid damaging those as you descend.