Desert Expedition II, Moab Trip Report

[Martinjmpr]

Q. How do you eat an elephant?

A. One bite at a time!

So, after typing up about 15 single-spaced pages (don't worry, I'll edit!) and going through the 758 photos I took with two cameras, I'm finally ready to post the report.

However, like that elephant-eating thing, I'm going to take this one in small bites, so here goes:

Day 1, Tuesday, April 17th:

Here I am, all packed and ready to leave! Mods I made specifically for this trip include the addition of a Yakima rack using the Yakima Landing Pads and Control Towers for a quick and easy on/off, the two RotoPax 3 gallon gas cans, the Scangauge II to replace my Ultra-Gauge, and the Garmin Nuvi 256 GPS unit to augment (but not replace) my ancient Magellan Meridian, which itself was relocated from a suction-cup mount to a RAM-ball mount attached to the dash with double-sided mounting tape.

View of the Scangague from my dash. Set up to show TFT (Transmission temperature), DTE (Distance to Empty, my de facto fuel gauge), MPG (instant MPG), and AVT (tank-average MPG.)

I will do a supplemental report that deals with the equipment I used and how well it did/didn't work.

So, to start, I rolled out of home at 0725 on Tuesday, April 17th. Met w/Michael at parking area West of Denver and suggested he go over via Loveland Pass. I took the direct route to Grand Junction, arriving well ahead of our scheduled 2pm meeting time. I took the opportunity to fill the truck and the two RotoPax gas cans, and to top off my food and ice at Wal Mart.

After about an hour, I located Michael pretty easily. His truck is hard to miss!

Scott joined us about 3pm. We shopped, talked and then drove together. Although originally we'd planned on meeting in Green River, the decision was made to meet up with Ted and Brian in Moab rather than Green River. We drove into Moab via I-70 and then UT (Cisco Road.) The views in the canyon were amazing.

We Met with Brian, Jim (Brian’s dad) and Ted (and Harley!) in Moab. Had dinner at pretty decent BBQ restaurant, the Blue Pig. Although I'd thought we'd camp the first night, it was dark by the time we got done eating. Scott, Brian, Jim all decided to motel it, but Ted, Michael and I scouted for a campsite. As we could not find one after dark, we stayed at the rest area that’s near the Hole in the Rock Gas station 12 miles South of Moab. I was happy to discover that the 4runner is a half-decent “stealth camper” for one person!


Day 2, Wednesday, April 18th:

We woke early to the sound of diesel engines starting and stopping (this was a rest area, after all!) and drove to Moab for breakfast. We topped off with gas at City Market, and then had breakfast at the Jailhouse grille. BTW, for those who might need to know, City Market Opens at 0600!

We then drove to Canyonlands Island In The Sky visitor center via UT 313 (paved route.) On the way we passed by Horsethief/Mineral Bottom road (our return route) on the way up.

At the visitor center, we picked up our backcountry permits and confirmed our campsite locations. We also got last minute road and weather info. Ranger went over rules, had Scott and I sign statements that we understood and agreed.

From there, went to start of Shafer Trail switchbacks, aired down. It was an incredible drive down the switchbacks to the start of the trail – Potash Road jct, the official beginning of White Rim Trail (WRT.)

Drove out, very nice drive along WRT. Stopped for lunch around noon. Picnicked on a ledge perched almost 1,000' above the river below:

The road zigzags back and forth past a whole bunch of "cuts" in the rock, meaning that it was very common that I'd be heading one way and the rest of the guys would be on the opposite side of a gorge heading the other way.

These are our two Explorers. Ted on the left and Brian on the right.

Scott, bringing up the rear.

We reached the campsites at Airport by 2:30. These Campsites very dispersed – even though the rest of our group was at the closest campsite (Airport D) we couldn’t see or hear them from our site. Airport A and B were even further away, about ¼ mile. Campsites were very large and flat. There was a pit toilet for each 2 campsites making porta-potties unnecessary.

Nice evening, gorgeous sunset and then a bit of clouds and rain. It was still cloudy by the time we got to bed.

TO BE CONTINUED...

 

[1leglance]

oh man I hate "to be continued"
this is a great writeup and is bringing me some serious memories and a strong desire to return to the area

very much looking forward to more, thanks for taking the time to let us share your adventure

 

[mjmcdowell]

Martin..... You are the master at posting trip reports!!! All of it got me thinking about this awesome trip we just took! Can't wait for more of the "bites" stay safe, Michael

 

[Martinjmpr]

Day 3

Day 3, Thursday, April 19th:

No great sunrise, cloudy overcast. Breakfast and then departed just after 9am. We knew this would be a long day, about 45 miles for some of us and 52 for the rest (split campsite night.)

Here we were just after the sun broke through the clouds as we were leaving:

Mellow drive along the rim. Saw rock climbers at Washer Woman Arch. The gorgeous scenery continued:

Stopped for a photo at the White Crack turnoff, that was the southernmost “point” (or 6 o'clock) of our WRT journey. From that point instead of following the right bank of the Colorado we were following the Left bank of the Green.

Still very mellow until we got to some steep climbs and narrow shelf roads. This was a precursor of things to come. We came across several groups of mountain bikers and their support team in pickup trucks packed with gear. At the base of Murphy Hogback, we waited for a couple of hikers to finish climbing the narrow trail. They waved at us and told us to come on up, so I led the way. The drive was very steep and a little spooky with a huge drop off on the driver's side! I got up to the top of Murphy Hogback and then continued on, figuring the others would be right behind me. I went to the campsites that are at the far (Northern) end of Murphy Hogback and figured it would be a good spot for a lunch break. I waited. And waited. And waited. Mountain bikes came by, as did their support vehicles, but nobody from our group.

Finally, Ted pulled in, with the rest of the group behind him. Apparently they got stuck behind some of the other vehicles and it took a while for them to make it up the narrow shelf road that ascended the hogback.

We ate a leisurely lunch on the rock ledge above the Murphy Hogback descent, and several other vehicles came through along with a couple of mountain bikes. We were also watched by an obviously well-fed crow that seemed to appear any time anybody had food out!

Then came the descent – pretty intimidating in appearance, it turned out to be a piece of cake in practice. From that point on, the road resumed its typical course of winding in and out around the many deep “cuts” into the plateau.

We passed the Candlestick campsite, where the majority of the mountain bikers were camped and continued on until we reached Potato Bottom at about 3:30 in the afternoon – actually quite a bit earlier than we expected, seeing as how it was 48 hard miles from Airport! At that point, Michael, Scott and I made camp and Ted, Brian and Jim continued on over Hardscrabble Hill to their campsite at Labyrinth.

The Potato Bottom camp was obviously just that – a “bottom” , that is to say, a part of the old riverbed and as such it was covered with a fine, silty dust. Nevertheless there were actually a couple of shade trees and there was even a short hiking trail down to the river. Unfortunately, there was no direct river access because the Green River was so low it was probably 10' below the overhanging bank.

We set up camp and relaxed after a long day behind the wheel. While we were setting up camp, an FJ Cruiser pulling a big, long tent trailer came by our camp from the opposite direction we were traveling (that is, coming from the Mineral Bottom side of White Rim.) They seemed confused about the location of their campsite, and turned around after they passed us. They stopped and asked us if we knew where Potato Bottom A campsite was, and we told them it was down the road they'd just come back from, necessitating another turnaround for them. Didn't look like fun turning that rig around (apparently the rest of our group had an even less pleasant encounter with this couple on the far side of Hardscrabble Hill, but I'll let them tell you about that.) We enjoyed a gorgeous sunset and a warm night.

This was pretty much my standard camp setup. The large white table really helped me keep things off the ground.

Scott's Taj Mahal setup, complete with awning and tent! Very nice!

TO BE CONTINUED...

 

[1leglance]

really great writeup and the pics are helping with that feeling of being there.
Very glad to hear the route is open all the way through as we had to do an in & out when I was there....now I want to go back even more.

Looking forward to the rest of the story.

 

[Martinjmpr]

Day 4

Day 4, Friday, April 20th:

We woke to a gorgeous sunrise shining on the red rock towers on the opposite side of the river. We got up and made breakfast with our friend the black crow watching over us to see if we’d drop any food. We figured that the 7 miles to Labyrinth camp over Hardscrabble Hill would take us 30 to 45 minutes, and we wanted to be rolling from Labyrinth by 9, so our plan was for us to leave our camp by 8am which should put us into Labyrinth by 8:30 or 8:45 at the latest, which would make it easy to depart as a full group by 9.

Well, there’s an old saying about the “best laid plans of mice and men.” Only in this case it was the men who made the plan and the mice who wrecked it!

We had pretty much done with breakfast and Michael and I were just about packed up. Scott and Laura had taken their tent down and were loading up the back of Scotts truck, when Scott spied a pair of beady little mouse eyes watching him from the bed of his truck! On the day before he mentioned that some of his bread looked like it had been ‘nibbled through’, but we figured it must have just been rubbing up against something in his food bag – surely a mouse wouldn’t stow away on a moving truck, right?

Of course, Scott’s little furry stowaway ran off as soon as it was seen, so Scott cursed and began unloading his truck so as to be able to serve an eviction notice to the 4 legged squatter. Scott was busy piling his gear onto a tarp and I went over to see if I could help. I looked into the bed of the truck, which still had a spare tire and some other gear, and the little guy popped his head out and looked at me! I said “there he is!” and a second later, I said “and there’s his little friend!” as a second mouse had poked his head out of a different part of the truck. Scott swore again and continued unloading the truck.

After Scott chased both of the rodents out, he discovered the way they’d entered: Through an opening under one of the upper bed rails. As he was sealing up that entry way, damned if he didn’t see yet another mouse (although Scott thinks this may have been one of the recently chased-out mice running back in to the truck.)

Finally, after an hour of unpacking, peering into the recesses of the bed, and making sure his gear was mouse-free, Scott re-packed and we headed out, although by this time it was about 9:30, a half hour after we were supposed to meet the rest of the group at Labyrinth.

The trip from Potato Bottom to Labyrinth was amazing. Right after Potato Bottom the road ascends through some incredibly tight switchbacks and climbs several rock ledges on its way up Hardscrabble Hill.

The road is very narrow here so if you’re in a group, it’s a good idea to send one vehicle ahead to make sure the road is clear before the rest of the group comes up. There are several places along here that offer stunning vistas of the Green River valley.

We descended the far side of Hardscrabble which offered a great view of the campsite below.

I shot some pics of the other guys coming down Hardscrabble.

After that the road twisted through some rock formations and then went across a sizeable section of soft sand that was obviously a part-time creek bottom (though it was bone dry when we went through it.) After that we got to the Labyrinth camp and met up with the rest of the group. By this time it was about 10:30 and we were all feeling a need to get into Moab to replenish our food, water and ice supplies (at least those of us who didn’t have the foresight to have refrigerators!) The road from Labyrinth was mild and scenic, as it meandered along the left bank of the Green.

Near Mineral Bottom we saw the rather awesome switchbacks that ascended up to the top of the plateau. These are the same switchbacks that washed out in August of 2010, and the trail did not reopen until March of 2011.

I saw this interesting band of lighter colored rock in the middle of a large sandstone slab.

On the way up I spotted what turned out to be the remains of a car off of one of the switchbacks – does anybody know the story behind this?

Once up at the top we were in cooler air and enjoyed the smooth dirt road all the way back to the Horsethief campground, where we stopped again. We discussed whether we’d go via pavement (UT 313) back to Moab, but since that was the way we’d come up, it wasn’t that attractive to us. Brian then suggested we take a 4wd trail back, either Gemini Bridges or Long Canyon. We ultimately decided on Long Canyon and so we headed Southeast towards Dead Horse Point. I had done Long Canyon back in 2009 in my Taco, but had been going the other way (uphill from Moab, not downhill towards Moab.) The view from the top is spectacular, although we did have to slow down a bit passing some mountain bikers who were also enjoying the trail. When we got to the fallen rock “tunnel” we stopped for pictures. I’d forgotten how rough Long Canyon was but we were still aired down so we didn’t get beat up too bad.

At the bottom of Long Canyon where it meets the paved Potash road, we stopped for lunch and to air up the tires.

It was hot and sunny, and it felt good to get out onto smooth pavement. We stopped briefly at some of the petroglyphs along Potash rd, but they weren’t as spectacular as I’d remembered, and so we pushed on to Moab to meet up with Sib and to restock our supplies.

Sib was waiting for us at the City Market in Moab and we all took our time getting resupplied. My ice had been gone since Wednesday evening (thanks to Michael letting me occupy space in his fridge, my meats didn’t spoil!) I again restocked with ice and water, gassed up and then got an iced coffee drink at the Starbucks, and after Ted was done with his laundry and Brian got his photos uploaded to the internet, we headed North again, this time intending to end up somewhere Northwest of Arches NP. From my “map recon” I knew that Salt Valley Road was all BLM land and should offer decent camping spots. Although I initially missed the turnoff for Salt Valley road (it’s not marked), we were all able to get turned around and get on track. By about 5:30 we had arrived at what was obviously a well-used primitive campsite up against the hills. The area looked like an old surface mine and there were multicolored rocks scattered all around

(after looking at a couple of examples I brought home and doing some internet research, I now believe this is Potash. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potash )

I had a few burgers and some fajita seasoning, as well as some cheese, and Scott had tortillas and fresh salsa, so we decided to make a combined meal of my “single guy burritos” (so named because when I was single I used to make this dish at least twice a week.) Scott had also picked up Chorizo (spicy Mexican sausage) in Moab as well as fresh eggs so he was planning on making his signature Chorizo Breakfast burritos for the next days breakfast.

We watched the sun set and then went to bed.

The campsite was nicely situated far enough away from Salt Valley road that we didn’t get dusted every time a vehicle drove by, but seeing as how this was a Friday night, and this was obviously a well-known campsite, we did get several “visits” from other would-be campers (or maybe teenagers looking for an out-of-the-way spot for a kegger.) None of them actually got out, mostly they just drove up far enough to see that the camp was “occupied” and then they turned around. Our latest visit came at around 11:30 pm, after everyone had gone to bed. I heard the sound of vehicles and saw the reflection of headlights bouncing around, and then heard a muffled conversation before the vehicles took off again.

TO BE CONTINUED...

 

[Ryanmb21]

Nice report, thanks for sharing it!

 

[skrillah]

Ready for the "TO BE CONTINUED..." to be continued...

 

[Martinjmpr]

Sorry, wife's in the hospital so updates may be on hold for a few days.

 

[Karma]

HI,
Sorry about your wife. Somehow I think that is more important than our curiosity. I hope everything works out well.

Sparky

 

[gwittman]

Martin, I hope it is not too serious. I have been though a lot of hospital time with my wife due to breast cancer but she has gotten through it and is healthy now. Hoping for the best for your wife.

BTW, I got your pictures and have not had a chance to look at all of them yet. I still have not started on copying my pictures but will get them to you eventually.

 

[mjmcdowell]

Martin, about your wife....

Martin, I hope and pray that your wife is out of the hospital soon and that everything is good, thinking of you in my prayers. Stay safe. Michael

 

[Funrover]

Looks like a great time was had!

 

[Tbars]

...Martin...I just saw your post for your wife...Hopefully it is nothing major but we wish the best..

 

[Martinjmpr]

Wife's back home now so hopefully the updates can resume. We had to cancel our planned Memorial Day getaway so that should give me some time, too.