Canyoneer Lower Salome Creek (The Jug) Tonto National Forest, AZ

Jun 05, 2020 — Lower Salome Creek (aka The Jug) has been a long-anticipated debatably-technical canyon. It served as a good starting canyon for us on a multi-day AZ canyon trip, and was more fun and pretty than we thought it would be. It's also fairly popular since you probably don't need technical gear to descend it, though it's recommended. We parked at the trailhead and followed an obvious trail down to the west rim of The Jug, where a social trail took us north, paralleling the canyon for a bit before we entered the watercourse.

A bunch of fun slides, full swimmer sections, and rock-hopping had us giggling the whole time. We were also thrilled water was still flowing this late in the year, even if it wasn't particularly heavy. Sections of The Jug narrow up a bit, but it's mostly pretty open. The only section that deserves mention is a 20-foot jump that some of our group opted to rappel instead (myself included, I am terrified of jumping). However, the jump isn't really the scariest part - to get to the jump, a static line has been placed to aid in traversing a slippery ledge. Photos below will help clarify, but either you have to jump, rappel, or go back. It's this section that people consider the "technical" element of The Jug, and the reason it's likely not even more popular of a spot. Shortly after this "technical" crux, and a couple of swimmers, we exited the mouth of The Jug.

I should note that I normally bring my DSLR on all my hikes, but The Jug was a completely wet experience and I was sure I'd break it. So, the photos below are particualrly poor quality since they're from an action camera. I'd rather have bad photos than no photos, though!

While The Jug was very fun, it's easily accessible and non-technical (for those willing to do the jump). If you're looking for a more adventurous outing within Salome Creek, check out Upper Salome Creek (The Grotto), which we did a couple of years later.