White Rim Road?

[7.62M43]

Wanting to take my 2000 Toyota 4Runner (new for me) on it's "maiden voyage" to the White Rim Road in Canyonlands National Park in a few weeks (march 19-25). My daughters will be going with me (13yo twins) so I don't want to get into anything too wild. Will this be a good "first time out" trip with them? Any specalized equipment I should be thinking about taking just in case?

[cruiseroutfit]

The 4Runner itself should be fine. Spring on WRT (and SE Utah in general) can be a bit iffy, if we get a freak snow they can/do close the White Rim or at least the switchbacks for a day or two at a time. On the flip side if it warms up in a hurry and the river comes up to high, they have to close the route due to flooding. As far as gear, recovery gear, all the tools/spares you feel you will need and spare fuel in case you do get 80 miles in and have to retreat the way you came in.

[7.62M43]

I grew up in Los Angeles, and spent a lot of time in the Mojave as a kid - so I know how fast things can change (good or bad) in the desert. I have the basic recovery tools (shovel, hilift jack with an ORK attachment, chain, rope, etc.) and more important a good 12v compressor. I plan on carrying 15 gal. of spare fuel and extra fluids (both for vehicle and us). Sounds like the gear I have and some common sense (most important in my book, but lacking more and more these days) should work.

Thanks!

[Moody]

The road is fairly mellow, as long as your truck is in a solid and reliable condition, you probably won't need to go crazy with a bunch of spare alternators and such. I would suspect you'll be fine with a single 5 gallon fuel can. I will be down there the 23-26th of March. What sites do you have?

Specialized equipment? Camera. Two, preferably.

There is a great book, 'A Naturalists Guide to the White Rim' (or something along those lines) that is nice to have along. I enjoy reading through it as I travel the road.

Enjoy it out there.

[adventureduo]

Can i ask an additional question from a trailer guys point of view? I heard that the switchbacks were tight and you have to do a 3 point turn to maneuver through with a regular 4-wheel drive. Is it possible to get a trailer through this section if you're not afraid to work hard to accomplish it? We have this trail on the books for 2012 and would like to know.

[ExpediT-100n]

Can i ask an additional question from a trailer guys point of view? I heard that the switchbacks were tight and you have to do a 3 point turn to maneuver through with a regular 4-wheel drive. Is it possible to get a trailer through this section if you're not afraid to work hard to accomplish it? We have this trail on the books for 2012 and would like to know.

My truck is about as long as a Chevy Tahoe and I have run this road twice with my children. Only once did I have to do a 2 point turn and that was because I was not paying attention. With a trailer, it would be a bit more work.

[cruiseroutfit]

I wouldn't hesitate to do the WRT with a trailer. fwiw

[BigSwede]

If you don't think you can make it down the switchbacks, all is not lost... you can go back to Moab after getting your permits etc. and approach via Potash Road instead of going down the switchbacks. Call that "Plan B".

[WeeJeep2]

Can i ask an additional question from a trailer guys point of view? I heard that the switchbacks were tight and you have to do a 3 point turn to maneuver through with a regular 4-wheel drive. Is it possible to get a trailer through this section if you're not afraid to work hard to accomplish it? We have this trail on the books for 2012 and would like to know.

We did it towing our Horizon in 2009. The main switchbacks down and back, (Schafer and Mineral Bottom) are fairly wide and accomodate two way traffic. It looks worse in the photos you see than in real life. There is one tight turn out towards Hardscrabble hill, (running clockwise) that turns up through some ledges. It was a one forward and back to get the trailer through. It's all in tight and not exposed to a large drop off so it dosen't have a high fear factor, at worst you back into the rock. There are plenty of sections where wider is not better, but the extra length of the trailer wasn't an issue.

[adventureduo]

Great to hear. Thank you for the feedback guys and i apologize for the hi-jack.