Re: Goldstrike Status

One week ago Dec. 3 I visited Gold Strike canyon and this is what I saw and learned.
I arrived at the trailhead parking lot @ 12:00 the parking area was clean of any trash, except some one had made a fire ring at the place I usually park. So I took the boulders and threw them up hill and picked up a small amount of trash.
As I started down the trail a group of mostly women were leaving with large backpacks and sleeping bags. Just before I got to where the springs are I met a guy named Paul who is an organizer for Meet up.com hiking club was leaving. He said he saw a large amount of trash down in the canyon, However as I left the canyon my 30 gallon trash bag was only half full.
This was the first time I had not been to this canyon for seven weeks. I usually visit this canyon @ once a week. So when I got to the first pools I was shocked. Because the large pool has dried up completly. The upper cave pool was less than 1 foot deep. The source pool was @ 4 inches below where it is damed up. It is leaking out of the sides of it's dam faster than it flows in. The temp there was 94.5 degrees. Not warm enough to enjoy for long. The outside air temp was 64.7 degrees.
All temps were from the center of the pools near the surface.
The Private pool about 100 feet below the big pool dam and behind a big boulder on the left was terrific at 102.3 degrees. It is still full but the flow was slower than before, it is still @ 3 feet deep.
When I got to the lower cave pool I had it to my self. I picked up a small amount of trash there. Mostly what was left was a lot of candles an candle wax. In the cave pool it was 101.9 degrees. In the cave the temp was 103.3 degrees. I spent @ 45 minuets there and was ready to see the rest of the canyon.
When I got to where the water fall is I usually look into the cave below there but as I rounded the corner I saw a couple making love there. So I pretended not to notice and hiked on. As I got just above where the next series of pools are 2 guys and a girl were heading up the trail , so I told them about the couple near the water fall to which they chuckeled.
There is a pool there that I dug out @ 1 year ago. I call this pool the new pool It is @ 4 feet wide and @ 8 feet long. And @ 5 feet deep. Previously it was always @ 98-99 degrees warm. But on this day it was 103.1 degrees. Very nice and clean and relaxing.
After that I went to the hot waterfall. The temp there at the 6 foot high level was 105.5 degrees. I let this fall massage my neck for about 15 minuets.
The I went further to the pool near the Colorado River. Some one had put a lot of the boulers that make up the dam into the pool. It was only @ 2 feet deep. The temp was105.7 degrees. So I started throwing the boulders out and near the dam again. A lot of boulers were in the spring where the source is. The temp there was 109.9 degrees.
After about 15 minuets of this I noticed a guy with 2 10 year old girls coming to the pool. So I lowered myself into the pool so as not to offend them with my nakedness. The guy looked familiar but I could not place him. He asked If it was ok to join me. I said it was but that I was naked. He said he knew me and striped off his clothes and got in. The 2 girls came up and announced that I was Joe the hot springs maintainence man. I did not reconize Dan because he had shaved all of his body hair off. I had not seen them in the canyon in over 1 year.
He said that they had come in his boat up the river to camp there and were meeting his wife and the other girls parents and little brother in @ 1 hour. The girls got naked and got in too We all got rocks out of the pool for @ 15 minuets. Dan asked me to help him get his tent out and put it up so I did.
I had left my clothes at the hot waterfall so I went to the river naked. The girls were laughing at this so I asked them what was funny? They thought you could not be naked there. So, I said no one was there but us so no one would know but us. After a while they to got naked and asked Dan if they could stay naked too? He said he did not care. After we set up the tent we went to the hot water fall and played like children.
At the hot water fall is a pool that a guy named Rex has been working on for the past year. It is water from the waterfall mixed with the creek water. I gave my themometer to the girls to take the temps. The water changed rapidly. They said it was from 101-102 degrees there.
Then we went to the pools up hill and the grotto pool was 104.7 degrees.
After this the girls were telling me that I should camp out with them. They had extra food and blankets. They were insisting I stay. I explaind that I had a 2 month old grand son that I had to visit with. They did not want me to leave however.
They said that since they met me that they always brought trash bags with them and always took the trash out of the canyon. I told them they were doing a very good job and thanked them for their help and that I was proud of them. Then I left.