A couple of Sundays ago I made a quick trip to Nine Mile Canyon to hike up a side-canyon called Blind Canyon. The purpose of the trip was to scout a route up a ridgeline for a future trip, but while I was in the area I hiked about 1.5 miles up Blind Canyon. I drove on a two-track a short distance up the canyon until the road became pinched out between a cliff and the watercourse and hiked from there. I didn’t spot any rock art in the lower canyon, but soon came to a short dryfall that I couldn’t climb. I backtracked a bit and stacked a few rocks in order to climb a ledge so I could bypass the dryfall on one side.

Oh, hay.

Lower Blind Canyon

Overhang in Blind Canyon

Dryfall and boulder that requires a bypass on the left

Bypassing the dryfall

The canyon widened above the dryfall. I passed a spring with flowing water but still found no evidence of rock art or habitation in this middle section of the canyon. Around the next few bends the canyon walls were lower, with fewer cliffs, showing little promise for what I was searching for. I turned around and, near the mouth of the canyon, checked out a small fork that actually held a couple of small petroglyphs. On my way down the narrows were cast in much warmer light as the afternoon sun sank lower.

Blind Canyon above the narrows

Spring water flowing in Blind Canyon

My turnaround spot

Blind Canyon narrows

Blind Canyon narrows

Blind Canyon narrows

Petroglyph in lower Blind Canyon

Petroglyph in lower Blind Canyon

This was my second time scouting for a possible route up a nearby ridge that seems to hold something interesting that I spotted in Google Earth, but I still wasn’t able to find a certain route up from the bottom. I think next time I’ll just have to wander my way up the ledges and cliff bands to see if it looks any better up close.
Photo Gallery: Blind Canyon