Bluejohn Canyon (often mistakenly referred to as "Blue John Canyon") is a
slot canyon
A slot canyon is a long, narrow channel or drainageway with sheer rock walls that are typically eroded into either sandstone or other sedimentary rock. A slot canyon has depth-to-width ratios that typically exceed 10:1 over most of its length and ...
in eastern
Wayne County,
Utah
Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...
, United States. It is on
BLM
BLM most commonly refers to:
* Black Lives Matter, an international anti-racism movement and organization
* Bureau of Land Management, a U.S. federal government agency
BLM may also refer to:
Organizations
* BLM (law firm), United Kingdom and ...
land just south of the boundary of the
Horseshoe Canyon Unit of
Canyonlands National Park.
Description
Bluejohn Canyon is probably named for a 19th-century outlaw by the name of John Griffith, who reportedly kept stolen horses in the area. He had one blue eye and one brown eye and was known by the nickname "Blue John".
Though often mistakenly believed to be within Canyonlands National Park, Bluejohn Canyon is actually on BLM land southwest of the Horseshoe Canyon Unit of the park and south of the town of
Green River Green River may refer to:
Rivers
Canada
* Green River (British Columbia), a tributary of the Lillooet River
*Green River, a tributary of the Saint John River, also known by its French name of Rivière Verte
*Green River (Ontario), a tributary of ...
. The main fork of the canyon, approximately in length, runs north-northeast from the
Robbers Roost
The Robbers Roost was an outlaw hideout in southeastern Utah used mostly by Butch Cassidy and his Wild Bunch gang in the closing years of the Old West.
The hideout was considered ideal because of the rough terrain. It was easily defended, dif ...
Flats, and is a
tributary
A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drai ...
of
Horseshoe Canyon. The main fork also has several tributary canyons of its own. Traversing the entire length of Bluejohn Canyon requires technical canyoneering skills and equipment.
Bluejohn Canyon came to international attention in 2003 as the place where outdoorsman
Aron Ralston
Aron Lee Ralston (born October 27, 1975) is an American mountaineer, mechanical engineer, and motivational speaker, known for surviving a canyoneering accident by cutting off part of his right arm.
On April 26, 2003, during a solo descent of Bl ...
was forced to amputate his own right forearm with a
multi-tool
A multi-tool (or multitool) is a hand tool that combines several individual functions in a single unit. The smallest are credit-card or key sized units designed for carrying in a wallet or on a keyring, but others are designed to be carried ...
after it became trapped by a boulder. Ralston's five-day ordeal was described in his autobiography ''
Between a Rock and a Hard Place'' and was depicted in the 2010 film ''
127 Hours
''127 Hours'' is a 2010 biographical psychological survival drama film co-written, produced and directed by Danny Boyle. The film stars James Franco, Kate Mara, Amber Tamblyn and Clémence Poésy. In the film, canyoneer Aron Ralston mus ...
''.
See also
*
List of canyons and gorges in Utah
This is a partial list of canyons in the U.S. state of Utah along with any rivers, roads, and other features (such as rail lines) that pass through them.
See also
External links
{{Utah
Canyons
Utah
Utah ( , ) is a state in ...
References
External links
Canyons and gorges of Utah
Slot canyons
Landforms of Wayne County, Utah
{{Utah-geo-stub