Apr 09, 2021 — We agreed Purgatory Canyon was a bit underwhelming, especially compared to its neighbor Paradiso Canyon. The views from the rim above and the slickrock scenic exit were pleasant, though. There were also some fun highlights through the canyon. To reach the trailhead, we turned off UT-276 here (37.69713, -110.67133) and followed this dirt road to the rim. The road starts in great shape, but a few miles in high-clearance becomes required. There are a couple of rocky sections, but overall it's just some dips and bumps that will stop sedans. We parked at a popular ATV overlook and headed south off the rim, dropping down on slickrock and entering into Purgatory Canyon from here. There are a couple of fork options for entering the head of the canyon. We chose the western option which required a short rappel, but both lead to the same drainage.
There was some fun minor stemming and down-climbing, plus a scenic rappel that brought us into a mostly forgettable chasm where the majority of the canyon continued. There was a rappel down some blocky bits, and a cute rappel through a small tunnel created by a massive boulder. Some squiggly skinny bits brought us to a bigger rappel with an awkward lip. A short section of easy stemming led to the final rappel, ending with a small and avoidable pool within a pretty grotto.
We continued out of the watercourse and located the Class 5 scramble option for escaping the drainage system and returning to the rim, a single move on a steep slab. There are other options for getting back to the rim, but they are longer and we were content to pull the move to save the time. Once above the Class 5 escape move, we continued on Class 2 slickrock as we worked toward a weakness in the cliff band above, where a social trail led along the rim back to the trailhead.
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