ArizonaRealCountry.com 29 September 2018 JACKS CANYON CAMPING AND CLIMBING AREA is an out of the way, lightly used camping area near Happy Jack, Arizona. Jack’s Canyon is essentially an outdoor gym. Situated in a beautiful canyon where water has carved the rock, Jack’s Canyon offers vertical to wildly overhanging routes on compact stone. The majority of the climbing is characterized by steep highly pocketed limestone/sandstone mix cliffs. Route length varies from short “bouldery” twenty foot routes to long routes around seventy feet. On vertical walls, the rock can be bubbly with edges and blocks. If you want to find fun and safe sport climbing on the Coconino National Forest, this is your place. Sport climbing, focused on movement and safety offers the opportunity for large TO SEE OUR AZ ROAD TRIP VIDEO OF HAPPY JACK, VISIT ARIZONAREALCOUNTRY.COM dynamic moves on well protected routes. Fixed anchoring systems here keep climbers safe while minimizing impact to the rock compared to traditional anchoring systems such as pitons and trees. Jacks Canyon boasts 300 routes of what some consider being some of the best sport climbing in the country. Climbing can be had year around, chasing either the shade or the sun. For the majority of the year, the weather is beautiful with the best time of year being March through May and September through November. Floods occasionally drown some of the walls and make some of the climbs inaccessible, this varies by year. Jacks Canyon is a great collaboration between the National Forest and the rapidly growing user group of rock climbers. Information: Red Rock Ranger District, 928- 203-2900 or fs.usda.gov/coconino HISTORY of Happy Jack THIS AREA WAS KNOWN AS LONG VALLEY during the early history of Arizona. In the 1900’s the forest service established the Long Valley Ranger Station. Not many people worked at the ranger station and during the winter no one remained on site since most of the residents left the area with the exception of the Fuller family. In the 1940’s their ranch became known for a weekend gathering place for rodeos and dances. These events continued for about 30 years into the 1970’s. Arizona’s largest logging industry was centered around Williams, the Grand Canyon and Flagstaff during the 1920’s, 30’s and early 40’s. When the demand for more lumber became evident logging operations moved to Mormon Lake, Barney Pasture and Sheep Springs. The road conditions made it difficult for the loggers to travel home each night so camps were built with portable housing. A local contractor (Ed Hood) and one helper could make a 12-by-14- foot cabin in a day. All were built on 8-by-10- foot stringers or beams. This enabled families to stay during working months. Logging camps were usually located near a spring or other source of water if one is available. An unused railroad was revitalized to move logs from the camps to Flagstaff. In 1947 Southwest Forest Industries established a permanent logging camp. The camp was near Volunteer Springs so that water could be hauled by truck for the residents. It was called “Happy Jack.” It was never actually determined whether the name came from “lumbers jacks” or from one very happy-go-lucky gentleman named Jack who happened to be one of the loggers. In as much as the forest service personnel dealt with the logging industry, a decision was made to move Long Valley to Happy Jack. Therefore the forest service station and the logging camp were at the same site but with a Happy Jack mailing address. It didn’t take long for the Long Valley Ranger Station to become known as the Happy Jack Ranger Station. Today, a summer camp for weekend campers is on the site of the original Happy Jack logging camp. The massive stone fireplace still stands as a monument to the time when logging was a source of income for many residents of Flagstaff. Rock Climbing at its Best