Trellis Canyon is a very special place to me, one of the most special in the entire park. In some ways, I consider it to be my own private world, a place so isolated and unknown that most people have never even heard of it. There is a long story behind my visit to Trellis Canyon, so I will try to start from the beginning. While carefully reading Michel Digonnet's great book 'Hiking Death Valley', I came across his brief mention of Trellis Canyon on page 390. On that page, he said three words about it, which were that Trellis Canyon was "well worth exploring". Digonnet also revealed the location of Trellis Canyon on the maps which he included in his book. Being that Trellis Canyon was a part of Tucki Mountain, it caught my attention. The main reason is that the Tucki Mountain canyons are among my favorite canyons in the park. Now that I've had a chance to fully explore Black Point, Stretched-Pebble, Lower & Upper Mosaic, Grotto, and Little Bridge Canyons, I can definitely say that they stand out in my mind for their great narrows and composition. Thus, I figured that I would find more of the same great things in Trellis Canyon. Digonnet further told me that he first came across the name of the canyon in a geology book by Hunt and Mabey called 'Stratigraphy and Structure, Death Valley, California', which was published in 1966. He added that one reason he recommended it in his book was that it was similar in setting and geology to other nearby canyons which he had visited, and it was very remote and hardly ever explored. (Note: Click here to see a mention of Trellis Canyon in writing from that 1966 book.)
I first began thinking about exploring Trellis Canyon about six months before I did the actual hike. One of the first things I realized was that it would be an extremely long and difficult journey. The starting point for the hike would be at the Salt Creek parking area. From there, it would be necessary to navigate through the Salt Creek Hills and then up a long canyon fan which leads to the mouth of Trellis Canyon. This part of the journey alone would be about 5 1/2 miles long, which means there would be 11 miles of hiking that needed to be done which didn't include seeing the actual canyon. The question was, how much energy would that leave for going into the canyon, and would we be able to do justice to the canyon once we got there? The answer proved to be a resounding yes, as Daria and I started out one morning and pushed ourselves to hike as fast as we could towards the canyon mouth. We arrived at the beginning of Trellis Canyon about 2 1/2 hours later. Once inside, this was our world to discover, as there was no information or maps anywhere which had details of what to expect in Trellis Canyon. About one mile in, we reached a junction, with the main canyon continuing to the right. Shortly after that, we entered the 1st set of narrows. The first thing we observed about the canyon before the narrows was that it had a lot of fluted mud cliffs, somewhat reminiscent of Nemo Canyon. From the narrows on, we observed that the canyon had more quick twists and turns than any other canyon we had ever hiked in Death Valley. And the narrows were long and thrilling to walk through. Over halfway through the 1st Narrows, we encountered a 12 foot dry fall that was somewhat challenging to climb. At this point, Daria decided to stop and wait for me in the canyon. She probably could have climbed it and continued with me, but it had been a long hike of 8 miles one way already, so she decided to rest for a while. I climbed over the 12 foot dry fall using some decent holds on the right side and continued until I exited the 1st narrows. The canyon then opened up briefly, but soon entered a 2nd set of narrows. Once again, Trellis Canyon began its continuous twisting and turning, which made progress exciting every step of the way. In the 2nd Narrows, I passed by an interesting polished flat slab canyon wall, and then came into a room-like area where my journey ended. In this room-like area, there were a couple of dry falls, high cliffs all around, and plants growing out of the walls, which is something I had observed earlier in the canyon. The 15 foot dry fall which needed to be climbed to continue farther up canyon was a little bit too risky for me. A technical move is required which is similar to the part where you have to get around the chockstone in Red Wall Canyon. Thus my journey ended here in the Trellis Room of Trellis Canyon, after a hike of nearly 9 miles one way. There is probably a bypass somewhere outside of the Trellis Room but that search would have to be left for another day.
Why do I call this place the Trellis Room? In fact, to take this question a little bit further, 50 years ago or more, why was this canyon named Trellis Canyon? I don't have the answer to that and I don't think anybody else does either, so that leaves me to speculate. There are not many definitions for the word "trellis", but here is one of them-- "A structure of open latticework, especially one used as a support for vines and other creeping plants." One of the things I had noticed earlier in the canyon (you will see this in one of my pictures down below and in the logo above) and to a lesser degree in what I call the Trellis Room, is that vine-like trees and plants were growing in strange ways out of the canyon walls. The vertical walls are almost structured at times to provide support for the growth of these vine-like trees and plants. So in line with the definition, maybe somebody else noticed this long ago and named the canyon Trellis. Whatever the reason, Trellis Canyon is a great place. What makes it more special to me is the fact that besides myself and Daria, no other people are known to have hiked the canyon in the past decade. One person (a park ranger) did hike Trellis Canyon during the 1990s, but we became the first known people in the decade of the 2000s. (Note: The Google Earth map below shows my route through Trellis Canyon on my hike. Click on it to enlarge for a better view).
I first began thinking about exploring Trellis Canyon about six months before I did the actual hike. One of the first things I realized was that it would be an extremely long and difficult journey. The starting point for the hike would be at the Salt Creek parking area. From there, it would be necessary to navigate through the Salt Creek Hills and then up a long canyon fan which leads to the mouth of Trellis Canyon. This part of the journey alone would be about 5 1/2 miles long, which means there would be 11 miles of hiking that needed to be done which didn't include seeing the actual canyon. The question was, how much energy would that leave for going into the canyon, and would we be able to do justice to the canyon once we got there? The answer proved to be a resounding yes, as Daria and I started out one morning and pushed ourselves to hike as fast as we could towards the canyon mouth. We arrived at the beginning of Trellis Canyon about 2 1/2 hours later. Once inside, this was our world to discover, as there was no information or maps anywhere which had details of what to expect in Trellis Canyon. About one mile in, we reached a junction, with the main canyon continuing to the right. Shortly after that, we entered the 1st set of narrows. The first thing we observed about the canyon before the narrows was that it had a lot of fluted mud cliffs, somewhat reminiscent of Nemo Canyon. From the narrows on, we observed that the canyon had more quick twists and turns than any other canyon we had ever hiked in Death Valley. And the narrows were long and thrilling to walk through. Over halfway through the 1st Narrows, we encountered a 12 foot dry fall that was somewhat challenging to climb. At this point, Daria decided to stop and wait for me in the canyon. She probably could have climbed it and continued with me, but it had been a long hike of 8 miles one way already, so she decided to rest for a while. I climbed over the 12 foot dry fall using some decent holds on the right side and continued until I exited the 1st narrows. The canyon then opened up briefly, but soon entered a 2nd set of narrows. Once again, Trellis Canyon began its continuous twisting and turning, which made progress exciting every step of the way. In the 2nd Narrows, I passed by an interesting polished flat slab canyon wall, and then came into a room-like area where my journey ended. In this room-like area, there were a couple of dry falls, high cliffs all around, and plants growing out of the walls, which is something I had observed earlier in the canyon. The 15 foot dry fall which needed to be climbed to continue farther up canyon was a little bit too risky for me. A technical move is required which is similar to the part where you have to get around the chockstone in Red Wall Canyon. Thus my journey ended here in the Trellis Room of Trellis Canyon, after a hike of nearly 9 miles one way. There is probably a bypass somewhere outside of the Trellis Room but that search would have to be left for another day.
Why do I call this place the Trellis Room? In fact, to take this question a little bit further, 50 years ago or more, why was this canyon named Trellis Canyon? I don't have the answer to that and I don't think anybody else does either, so that leaves me to speculate. There are not many definitions for the word "trellis", but here is one of them-- "A structure of open latticework, especially one used as a support for vines and other creeping plants." One of the things I had noticed earlier in the canyon (you will see this in one of my pictures down below and in the logo above) and to a lesser degree in what I call the Trellis Room, is that vine-like trees and plants were growing in strange ways out of the canyon walls. The vertical walls are almost structured at times to provide support for the growth of these vine-like trees and plants. So in line with the definition, maybe somebody else noticed this long ago and named the canyon Trellis. Whatever the reason, Trellis Canyon is a great place. What makes it more special to me is the fact that besides myself and Daria, no other people are known to have hiked the canyon in the past decade. One person (a park ranger) did hike Trellis Canyon during the 1990s, but we became the first known people in the decade of the 2000s. (Note: The Google Earth map below shows my route through Trellis Canyon on my hike. Click on it to enlarge for a better view).
The pictures in this Trip Report are also available for viewing in a slideshow format. Click the button on the left to watch the slideshow. This allows for viewing larger images with an autoplay option and a full screen option. The pictures may also be viewed in the standard Trip Report format by scrolling down below.
Parking early in the morning at Salt Creek, which is the starting point for a hike to Trellis Canyon:
Crossing the flowing creek in order to hike through the hills on the other side:
View through the Salt Creek Hills of Trellis Canyon far in the distance. The red arrows show you the actual canyon, which cuts sharply to the south at the beginning:
Hiking up through a small drainage in the Salt Creek Hills. The ground was soft and progress was slow:
Eventually, the soft ground got harder and hiking was easier:
Steve at the high point of the Salt Creek Hills crossing, preparing to drop back down for a short time:
This perspective should give you an idea of how far it really is to the mouth of Trellis Canyon. This is not an easy hike:
Heading towards a telephone pole in the distance:
Reaching the telephone poles which stretch out in each direction:
We next aimed for the small rock outcropping in the middle right of the picture:
Phacelias and other flowers were in bloom during our March 2009 visit:
Once we reached the rock outcropping, we navigated around it to the left and were now getting very close to the canyon mouth:
A close-up of some yellow flowers that we passed by in full bloom:
Hiking up the wash as we approach the canyon mouth:
This rock outcropping marks the entrance to Trellis Canyon:
Globemallows were in bloom throughout the canyon:
Looking back down the fan toward the Salt Creek Hills and Funeral Mountains in the distance:
The early part of Trellis Canyon. It's a short walk until both walls come together and form the true canyon:
Once inside the canyon, fluted mud cliffs begin to appear at various places. Here, they are at the base of the mountainside:
A rock wall with cracks throughout rises out of the wash:
More wildflowers and fluted mud cliffs are visible:
Diagonal hillsides sloping down to the wash:
Notice the abundance of plants growing out of the wash:
Miniature slots cutting into the dirt hillside and formations:
This is the canyon split, about one mile into the canyon. The main canyon turns to the right, while the Trellis Main Side Canyon turns off to the left:
Continuing on into central Trellis Canyon:
This picture shows the vine-like trees and plants growing directly out of cracks in the vertical canyon wall. My personal feeling is that this unique characteristic is why this place was named Trellis Canyon. I only wish that I had taken more pictures of this interesting feature:
More large plants growing directly in the wash:
Looking up a nearby hillside at the red and orange colored rocks:
A short distance after the canyon split, the canyon begins to constrict:
The sun shining brightly on the canyon wall in the distance:
High up on the hillside, there were small pinnacles and rocks of varying sizes looking like they were ready to tumble over:
More mud formations (conglomerate rock) mixed in with the solid rock of the canyon wall in the next three pictures:
Getting ready to enter the 1st Narrows of Trellis Canyon:
This is a rare stretch of narrows which goes for a while without twisting and turning:
Steve resting on a rock in the middle of the canyon:
As you can see in this picture, the canyon is about to narrow down to an extreme degree:
The canyon walls closed in together with beautiful lighting in the background:
Steve in the 1st Narrows of Trellis Canyon:
More turns in the canyon. A right and then a quick left:
A close-up of the canyon wall revealing a layered texture:
Alternating regularly between shade and sun in the canyon:
On the upper left of this picture, you can see another one of the small trees growing out of the canyon wall at a strange angle, much like it would on a trellis in your backyard:
Sometimes there would only be 10 feet or less between the canyon walls:
Daria resting in the canyon. She did really well on this hike and continues to impress me with her hiking ability:
Once again, not much space between both sides of the canyon walls:
The 12 foot dry fall which proved to be our first real obstacle (other than the long distance):
Steve found some decent hand and foot holds to the right, so he climbed the 12 foot dry fall:
The 1st Narrows continued above the dry fall and remained fantastic:
There were some other minor polished dry falls which needed to be hiked up:
Exiting the 1st Narrows of Trellis Canyon and entering a wider area:
In the wider canyon, much of the terrain up on the surrounding hillsides was visible:
Looking ahead, it is evident that the canyon will be entering another gorge and set of narrows:
Around this bend, the 2nd Narrows of Trellis Canyon begin:
The 2nd Narrows were very similar to the 1st Narrows, meaning lots of quick turns and a very narrow canyon:
Lots of pretty colors on the canyon walls (you will see more of this in my pictures taken going back down canyon):
A very narrow passage between jagged canyon walls:
These huge boulders have fallen into the wash, but they are easy to walk around:
Other than the trellis-like canyon walls, this slickenside on the canyon wall is probably the most distinguishing feature:
The Trellis Slickenside is high up on the canyon walls and is almost like its own rock slab:
Continuing past the slickenside as the walls grow in height:
Every corner held great anticipation, since this canyon had never before been documented:
Climbing some small steps as the terrain briefly got steeper:
Walking directly under a massive overhanging rock:
Yet another basic dry fall to hike over and continue:
This canyon is a steep and rough area without a lot of spots where someone could climb out of the canyon to the ridge above:
Most of the wash had easy and smooth hiking on solid ground:
And finally, the hike ended here, in what I call the Trellis Room. In this room, you are enclosed by cliffs. There are three dry falls in here, which is a rarity in the park. In this picture, you can see a dry fall to the far left and far right:
This is the third dry fall of the Trellis Room, which is off to the right as you enter:
And this is the 15 foot dry fall which must be climbed in order to continue hiking up canyon. I was able to get most of the way up, but decided that the last move was too risky to try. Besides, I didn't want to keep Daria waiting as she was stranded back in the middle of the 1st Narrows:
Two pictures of Steve standing by the 15 foot dry fall which put an end to his great adventure:
And one more view of that dry fall. In the Trellis Room, there is no way to bypass this dry fall. However, I did not have a chance to carefully look farther back down canyon to see if there was a route. The nice thing about this is that it gives me a reason to return here someday:
Notice the brilliant colors of the narrows in the next two pictures taken while heading back:
One more look up at Trellis Slickenside:
Heading into some tight narrows up ahead:
About the exit the 2nd Narrows of Trellis Canyon:
Passing back through the wide open area:
View from the top of the 1st dry fall in the 1st Narrows. Since my hike of Trellis Canyon, some hikers have made it up this dry fall, while others have not. It all depends on your skill level:
A stunning section to walk through in the 1st Narrows:
Two more pictures as I met up with Daria and we hiked out of the 1st Narrows:
Back at the canyon mouth with plenty of daylight left for the hike back:
