Desert Expedition II, Moab Trip Report
- Thread starter Martinjmpr
- Start date
mjmcdowell
Explorer
Martinjmpr
Wiffleball Batter
The report continues! Day 5!
Day 5, Saturday, April 21st:
After a windy night, we woke up and had breakfast (yummy chorizo burritos!) and then packed up. Our plan was to hit Arches NP and see what we could find. We drove along Salt Valley until we hit the park boundary, where we all stopped for pictures.
When I tried to start my truck again, it wouldn't start. No clicks or groans, just nothing when I turned the key. I'd had this problem a few times before when running the Scangauge and couldn't figure it out. I popped the hood open to look and that's when Ted noticed the huge buildup of white gunk on my battery terminals. I disconnected the Scangauge tried to tighten down the battery terminal, and then tried to start the truck again – it fired right up.
We headed into the park until we got to the turnoff for Tower Arch. We took the road until it hit the rock ledge and then, after some discussion, decided not to risk it, as we didn't think some of the vehicles would be able to get up over the ledges. We then went on into the park to the Devil's Garden parking area. Unfortunately, we didn't realize that this was the beginning of “National Park Week” and in addition to being a nice, sunny, warm day, the park was offering free admission. As a result, the parking lot was a zoo and the Devil's Garden area looked like Grand Central Station.
This was one of the less crowded parking lots!
As usual, Harley was curious about everything around us:
We did get out and hike around a bit at some of the huge arches and other weird rock formations, though. The kids seemed to love this area, it looked like a huge sandbox to them!
After deciding we didn't want to deal with the crowds, we headed out and explored a couple of other arches before stopping for lunch near the Delicate Arch viewpoint.
Delicate Arch, as featured on just about every billboard in the Moab area, along with the UT license plate:
Our parking area, down a dirt road, gave us a little bit of a break from the crowds (look straight above Brian's truck on the left side of the picture and you can see Delicate Arch in the background):
Following that, we headed out to the Visitor Center where we stopped to cool off and discuss where we wanted to go next. Scott, Laura, Michael and I decided we would go back to our previous campsite in the Salt Valley Road area while Ted, Brian, Jim and Sib went on to explore Hurrah Pass and Chicken Corners.
One thing to point out, for anyone visiting Arches NP, is that the visitor center has a “water station” outside where visitors are encouraged to refill their water containers. They can even accommodate large, multi-gallon containers.
Scott, Laura, Michael and I then headed back to our same campsite up along Salt Valley road. We only got one “visitor” on Saturday night, a late model Pathfinder that actually drove into the middle of the camp while we were eating, then,without anyone getting out or even rolling down a window, the Pathy turned around and drove out. However, it was even windier on Saturday night than it was on Friday. Michael had set up his home-built awning to give himself shelter from the brutal sun, and left it up at night. At 5am, after the flapping woke him up (and me, too!), Michael got up and disassembled the awning.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Day 5, Saturday, April 21st:
After a windy night, we woke up and had breakfast (yummy chorizo burritos!) and then packed up. Our plan was to hit Arches NP and see what we could find. We drove along Salt Valley until we hit the park boundary, where we all stopped for pictures.
When I tried to start my truck again, it wouldn't start. No clicks or groans, just nothing when I turned the key. I'd had this problem a few times before when running the Scangauge and couldn't figure it out. I popped the hood open to look and that's when Ted noticed the huge buildup of white gunk on my battery terminals. I disconnected the Scangauge tried to tighten down the battery terminal, and then tried to start the truck again – it fired right up.
We headed into the park until we got to the turnoff for Tower Arch. We took the road until it hit the rock ledge and then, after some discussion, decided not to risk it, as we didn't think some of the vehicles would be able to get up over the ledges. We then went on into the park to the Devil's Garden parking area. Unfortunately, we didn't realize that this was the beginning of “National Park Week” and in addition to being a nice, sunny, warm day, the park was offering free admission. As a result, the parking lot was a zoo and the Devil's Garden area looked like Grand Central Station.
This was one of the less crowded parking lots!
As usual, Harley was curious about everything around us:
We did get out and hike around a bit at some of the huge arches and other weird rock formations, though. The kids seemed to love this area, it looked like a huge sandbox to them!
After deciding we didn't want to deal with the crowds, we headed out and explored a couple of other arches before stopping for lunch near the Delicate Arch viewpoint.
Delicate Arch, as featured on just about every billboard in the Moab area, along with the UT license plate:
Our parking area, down a dirt road, gave us a little bit of a break from the crowds (look straight above Brian's truck on the left side of the picture and you can see Delicate Arch in the background):
Following that, we headed out to the Visitor Center where we stopped to cool off and discuss where we wanted to go next. Scott, Laura, Michael and I decided we would go back to our previous campsite in the Salt Valley Road area while Ted, Brian, Jim and Sib went on to explore Hurrah Pass and Chicken Corners.
One thing to point out, for anyone visiting Arches NP, is that the visitor center has a “water station” outside where visitors are encouraged to refill their water containers. They can even accommodate large, multi-gallon containers.
Scott, Laura, Michael and I then headed back to our same campsite up along Salt Valley road. We only got one “visitor” on Saturday night, a late model Pathfinder that actually drove into the middle of the camp while we were eating, then,without anyone getting out or even rolling down a window, the Pathy turned around and drove out. However, it was even windier on Saturday night than it was on Friday. Michael had set up his home-built awning to give himself shelter from the brutal sun, and left it up at night. At 5am, after the flapping woke him up (and me, too!), Michael got up and disassembled the awning.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Martinjmpr
Wiffleball Batter
Day 6:
Day 6, Sunday, April 22nd:
We decided we wanted to see the Devil’s Garden area but didn’t want to have to work our way through a huge crowd, so we made a plan to be out of our campsite by 8am.
On the way in, Scott had a scary incident on the washboard road and nearly flipped his Ranger, but as I wasn’t there I’ll let him tell you about that.
We got to Devil’s Garden by 9 and the contrast could not have been greater from the day before: Where Saturday had been hot and crowded, Sunday morning the parking lot was nearly deserted and cool. Scott, Laura and I hiked in to see Landscape Arch (the longest arch in the park at about 325’) while Michael stayed in the parking area.
Landscape Arch is amazing and well worth the .8 mile hike!
We spent roughly an hour hiking and taking photos, and the park was beginning to ‘crowd up’ (and heat up!) by the time we got back to the parking lot. So, since we had seen most of the arches the day before, we went straight to the Visitor Center to fill our water jugs and then into Moab, where the plan was to spend the morning shopping for souveniers and restocking on groceries and gas, and then to meet at 3pm to head South and find a campsite for the night.
We had lunch at a nice restaurant in town and then split up to do our shopping and sightseeing, with a rendezvous time of 3pm at City Market. I managed to swing by the local drug store, too, to pick up extra socks and a towel (which I’d forgotten to pack!) After that, I headed straight to City Market to restock with ice and water. To my dismay, my ice, which I had just replenished on Friday, was nearly gone again. This time I decided I would get a block even if it meant I had to move some things like beer and soda out of the cooler.
We reassembled at the City Market (which was becoming like a 2nd home to us) and headed South. Brian thought he knew of some nice (free) BLM campsites. We headed South on US 191 until we got to the turn-off for Behind the Rocks, just before the Hole-in-the-rock rest area. There are a number of BLM campsites in this area, free to use for the first person to get to them. Many of the ones close to the pavement were occupied, often by groups of RVs with dirt bikes and ATVs. After checking out a few of the empty sites, we ultimately selected one that was in a relatively open (but also relatively flat) area and made our camp there.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Day 6, Sunday, April 22nd:
We decided we wanted to see the Devil’s Garden area but didn’t want to have to work our way through a huge crowd, so we made a plan to be out of our campsite by 8am.
On the way in, Scott had a scary incident on the washboard road and nearly flipped his Ranger, but as I wasn’t there I’ll let him tell you about that.
We got to Devil’s Garden by 9 and the contrast could not have been greater from the day before: Where Saturday had been hot and crowded, Sunday morning the parking lot was nearly deserted and cool. Scott, Laura and I hiked in to see Landscape Arch (the longest arch in the park at about 325’) while Michael stayed in the parking area.
Landscape Arch is amazing and well worth the .8 mile hike!
We spent roughly an hour hiking and taking photos, and the park was beginning to ‘crowd up’ (and heat up!) by the time we got back to the parking lot. So, since we had seen most of the arches the day before, we went straight to the Visitor Center to fill our water jugs and then into Moab, where the plan was to spend the morning shopping for souveniers and restocking on groceries and gas, and then to meet at 3pm to head South and find a campsite for the night.
We had lunch at a nice restaurant in town and then split up to do our shopping and sightseeing, with a rendezvous time of 3pm at City Market. I managed to swing by the local drug store, too, to pick up extra socks and a towel (which I’d forgotten to pack!) After that, I headed straight to City Market to restock with ice and water. To my dismay, my ice, which I had just replenished on Friday, was nearly gone again. This time I decided I would get a block even if it meant I had to move some things like beer and soda out of the cooler.
We reassembled at the City Market (which was becoming like a 2nd home to us) and headed South. Brian thought he knew of some nice (free) BLM campsites. We headed South on US 191 until we got to the turn-off for Behind the Rocks, just before the Hole-in-the-rock rest area. There are a number of BLM campsites in this area, free to use for the first person to get to them. Many of the ones close to the pavement were occupied, often by groups of RVs with dirt bikes and ATVs. After checking out a few of the empty sites, we ultimately selected one that was in a relatively open (but also relatively flat) area and made our camp there.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Martinjmpr
Wiffleball Batter
Day 7:
Day 7, Monday, April 23rd:
After a surprisingly calm night (no wind at all, even though we were camped in a pretty exposed area) we enjoyed a great pancake breakfast. Ted showed us his very cool Cadac Safari Grill and used it for the pancakes as well as the bacon.
We were scheduled to meet Gary, our last group member, in Monticello this morning at 10, so we all made sure we were ready to roll by 9am. Once we rolled into the small town, we started looking around, and I spotted Gary's bright-red FX-4 Ranger with its distinctive Wildernest topper at the local visitor's center. We pulled into the parking lot to meet with Gary and discuss our plans, and I took this opportunity to take a short trip over to the local grocery store since I was on the last sputtering bits of fuel in my last propane tank (I had tried to buy fuel in Moab but every place I went to was out of the small 1 gallon propane cans.) Fortunately, the little store had some propane and I got water and sun block as well, and then headed back to join the group, still exploring the little visitor's center/museum and talking with Gary.
Finally we reassembled and headed out of Monticello. We were headed to a trail that Brian was familiar with that would take us out of the hot, dry desert and into the cool mountains on our way to Comb Ridge. We went a few miles on the pavement as the road ascended sharply up into the Abajo Mountain range. Finally, we turned onto a Forest Service road and as the road continued to climb, we started encountering more and more snow on the side of the road and mud in the middle.
It was quite a switch from the hot and dusty desert driving we'd done around Canyonlands and Arches! As the road continued to climb, I noticed that my GPS showed our elevation going above 9,000'. At this point there was at least 1' of snow on either side of the road, and many parts of the road bed that were in shadow from the pine trees also had snow as well as deep mud. The higher the road climbed, the deeper it went into the forest and the more prevalent the snow and mud was. Finally, we stopped. I walked up ahead to where Brian and Jim were and I could see he had stopped at the point where the only tracks penetrating the snowy road were obviously quite old.
We held a quick conference and reviewed the map – we were around 9100' in elevation and the road topped out at a little over 10,000 several miles down the road. Furthermore, the way the road wound through the hills there would obviously be quite a few shady spots that might have even more snow than the 1' that was on the road in front of Brian. Based on the fact that it didn't look like the road had been run recently, we reluctantly turned around and headed back down. It was lunchtime so we enjoyed a cool, shady lunch break at the Forest Service parking area just off the paved road. I was a little bit impressed with how much mud I'd managed to throw on the side of my 4runner on a ‘desert' trip!
Heading back down towards Monticello we descended about 3,000', and got a very impressive view of the valley to the East:
After lunch we headed back to Monticello and then took US 191 down to Blanding, then turned off on UT highway 95 to get to Comb Ridge. As we were running the West side of Comb Ridge today, we ascended up the top of the ridge and then down the other side, always a dramatic drive. Just on the other side we turned off onto the dirt road of Comb Wash and pulled into a parking area to air down. After our little mountain excursion, it sure felt hot down there, probably over 80.
This is where the paved road (UT 95) crosses Comb Ridge (sorry for the fuzzy pic, I obviously need to learn how to use my fancy camera better!):
As soon as we aired down, we started down the road. The Comb Wash road is, for the most part, a wide, sandy road that offers tremendous views of Comb Ridge to the east and the rising plateau to the West. We took about an hour to traverse the ~22 miles of Comb Wash, stopping a few times for pictures.
A nice long view of Comb Ridge looking southward (our direction of travel.)
By the time we got to the end of the wash, where it intersected with US 163, it was nearly 4pm and we had to figure out where to go for the night. Brian had a great book with lots of interesting places, so he suggested we cross 163 and continue to the South, towards the San Juan river, which was only about 5 miles from where we stood.
The road to the south, which I've seen called “San Juan hill”, was one of the most fun parts of the entire trip! It starts as a meandering dirt road that wanders in and out of the bed of the wash (which was bone dry), but then goes up a couple of steep climbs. Near the end, it loops around and goes over a truly spectacular rock ledge and steep climb that requires both 4wd and low range. We stopped there to assess the road, but decided pretty quickly that we could get over it without any trouble, even Michael, who has no lift and a bull bar that cuts into his approach angle somewhat.
Michael going up San Juan hill:
After that short climb, we meandered a bit, crossed the very end of Comb Ridge again and dropped into a nice little flat spot near the river that had a fenced-off historical site called “The Rincone” (the corners.) This is the remains of an old trading post from the 19th century, situated at a site that was then a popular crossing site on the San Juan River that marks the Northern boundary of the Navajo reservation.
This was an odd formation. Looks like someone took a giant ice cream scoop and scooped out a portion of the rock!
The San Juan River marks the northern edge of the Navajo Reservation in this part of Utah. The river was very low, sadly, due to the lack of moisture we've had in the mountains this Winter:
We got out, walked around, and took pictures. It was after 5 and we still needed to find a place to camp for the night. Then we thought “why not just camp here?” At first the question was asked “are we allowed to camp here?” but then we realized that it was nearly 6 pm on a Monday night, and we were in an area that was only accessible by a 4wd vehicle – and there was nothing that said we couldn't camp there, so we thought “what the hell?” Since this area had large expanses of flat, dry rock, I took the opportunity to set myself up in an area where I wouldn't have to set things down in the dirt, which was nice.
We saw a lot of these little guys running around. Some were quite large.
And some of the desert flowers were in bloom, too, which added a nice splash of vivid color:
After I set up my camp, I started wandering by some of the rocks and I saw one with what appeared to be a squiggly line on the top of it. I assumed it was just a natural characteristic of the rock itself but thought “wouldn't it be funny if that turned out to be a petroglyph?”
Well, guess what. It was a petroglyph. And as I got closer I could see there were more on the rock, faintly visible in the dying sunlight.
The rock with the petroglyph is the vertical face that you can see the side of in this picture. Notice how close it was to where I camped!
Brian and Ted had walked further down the trail and said there was an old Anasazi cliff dwelling down there, and since it was getting late, we figured we'd check it out in the morning.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Day 7, Monday, April 23rd:
After a surprisingly calm night (no wind at all, even though we were camped in a pretty exposed area) we enjoyed a great pancake breakfast. Ted showed us his very cool Cadac Safari Grill and used it for the pancakes as well as the bacon.
We were scheduled to meet Gary, our last group member, in Monticello this morning at 10, so we all made sure we were ready to roll by 9am. Once we rolled into the small town, we started looking around, and I spotted Gary's bright-red FX-4 Ranger with its distinctive Wildernest topper at the local visitor's center. We pulled into the parking lot to meet with Gary and discuss our plans, and I took this opportunity to take a short trip over to the local grocery store since I was on the last sputtering bits of fuel in my last propane tank (I had tried to buy fuel in Moab but every place I went to was out of the small 1 gallon propane cans.) Fortunately, the little store had some propane and I got water and sun block as well, and then headed back to join the group, still exploring the little visitor's center/museum and talking with Gary.
Finally we reassembled and headed out of Monticello. We were headed to a trail that Brian was familiar with that would take us out of the hot, dry desert and into the cool mountains on our way to Comb Ridge. We went a few miles on the pavement as the road ascended sharply up into the Abajo Mountain range. Finally, we turned onto a Forest Service road and as the road continued to climb, we started encountering more and more snow on the side of the road and mud in the middle.
It was quite a switch from the hot and dusty desert driving we'd done around Canyonlands and Arches! As the road continued to climb, I noticed that my GPS showed our elevation going above 9,000'. At this point there was at least 1' of snow on either side of the road, and many parts of the road bed that were in shadow from the pine trees also had snow as well as deep mud. The higher the road climbed, the deeper it went into the forest and the more prevalent the snow and mud was. Finally, we stopped. I walked up ahead to where Brian and Jim were and I could see he had stopped at the point where the only tracks penetrating the snowy road were obviously quite old.
We held a quick conference and reviewed the map – we were around 9100' in elevation and the road topped out at a little over 10,000 several miles down the road. Furthermore, the way the road wound through the hills there would obviously be quite a few shady spots that might have even more snow than the 1' that was on the road in front of Brian. Based on the fact that it didn't look like the road had been run recently, we reluctantly turned around and headed back down. It was lunchtime so we enjoyed a cool, shady lunch break at the Forest Service parking area just off the paved road. I was a little bit impressed with how much mud I'd managed to throw on the side of my 4runner on a ‘desert' trip!
Heading back down towards Monticello we descended about 3,000', and got a very impressive view of the valley to the East:
After lunch we headed back to Monticello and then took US 191 down to Blanding, then turned off on UT highway 95 to get to Comb Ridge. As we were running the West side of Comb Ridge today, we ascended up the top of the ridge and then down the other side, always a dramatic drive. Just on the other side we turned off onto the dirt road of Comb Wash and pulled into a parking area to air down. After our little mountain excursion, it sure felt hot down there, probably over 80.
This is where the paved road (UT 95) crosses Comb Ridge (sorry for the fuzzy pic, I obviously need to learn how to use my fancy camera better!):
As soon as we aired down, we started down the road. The Comb Wash road is, for the most part, a wide, sandy road that offers tremendous views of Comb Ridge to the east and the rising plateau to the West. We took about an hour to traverse the ~22 miles of Comb Wash, stopping a few times for pictures.
A nice long view of Comb Ridge looking southward (our direction of travel.)
By the time we got to the end of the wash, where it intersected with US 163, it was nearly 4pm and we had to figure out where to go for the night. Brian had a great book with lots of interesting places, so he suggested we cross 163 and continue to the South, towards the San Juan river, which was only about 5 miles from where we stood.
The road to the south, which I've seen called “San Juan hill”, was one of the most fun parts of the entire trip! It starts as a meandering dirt road that wanders in and out of the bed of the wash (which was bone dry), but then goes up a couple of steep climbs. Near the end, it loops around and goes over a truly spectacular rock ledge and steep climb that requires both 4wd and low range. We stopped there to assess the road, but decided pretty quickly that we could get over it without any trouble, even Michael, who has no lift and a bull bar that cuts into his approach angle somewhat.
Michael going up San Juan hill:
After that short climb, we meandered a bit, crossed the very end of Comb Ridge again and dropped into a nice little flat spot near the river that had a fenced-off historical site called “The Rincone” (the corners.) This is the remains of an old trading post from the 19th century, situated at a site that was then a popular crossing site on the San Juan River that marks the Northern boundary of the Navajo reservation.
This was an odd formation. Looks like someone took a giant ice cream scoop and scooped out a portion of the rock!
The San Juan River marks the northern edge of the Navajo Reservation in this part of Utah. The river was very low, sadly, due to the lack of moisture we've had in the mountains this Winter:
We got out, walked around, and took pictures. It was after 5 and we still needed to find a place to camp for the night. Then we thought “why not just camp here?” At first the question was asked “are we allowed to camp here?” but then we realized that it was nearly 6 pm on a Monday night, and we were in an area that was only accessible by a 4wd vehicle – and there was nothing that said we couldn't camp there, so we thought “what the hell?” Since this area had large expanses of flat, dry rock, I took the opportunity to set myself up in an area where I wouldn't have to set things down in the dirt, which was nice.
We saw a lot of these little guys running around. Some were quite large.
And some of the desert flowers were in bloom, too, which added a nice splash of vivid color:
After I set up my camp, I started wandering by some of the rocks and I saw one with what appeared to be a squiggly line on the top of it. I assumed it was just a natural characteristic of the rock itself but thought “wouldn't it be funny if that turned out to be a petroglyph?”
Well, guess what. It was a petroglyph. And as I got closer I could see there were more on the rock, faintly visible in the dying sunlight.
The rock with the petroglyph is the vertical face that you can see the side of in this picture. Notice how close it was to where I camped!
Brian and Ted had walked further down the trail and said there was an old Anasazi cliff dwelling down there, and since it was getting late, we figured we'd check it out in the morning.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Last edited:
skrillah
Adventurer
Thank you for keeping me entertained for my lunch break! This was quite an excursion!
I'm from Indiana, planning a trip out that way within the next year or so and your report has given me good inspiration for places to see and visit.
Keep it coming! Glad to hear the wife is doing better now too.
Cheers,
Kyle
I'm from Indiana, planning a trip out that way within the next year or so and your report has given me good inspiration for places to see and visit.
Keep it coming! Glad to hear the wife is doing better now too.
Cheers,
Kyle
Martinjmpr
Wiffleball Batter
Final Part of the report!
Day 8, Tuesday, April 24th:
It was another warm and calm night and a little bit ‘buggy’ for me (probably because of the close proximity to the San Juan river and some of its marshy verges.)
We did get to see a gorgeous sunrise over the rocks!
We were pretty spread out so each of us was pretty much on his own for breakfast. At about 7:30 we heard the sound of an approaching vehicle and were surprised to see a little Yellow Toyota minivan driving into the camp (this is not the current minivan, this is the little truck-based van that Toyota sold in the late 80’s, and it was a 4x4. It sat on the 89-94 Toyota 4x4 pickup chassis and I think most of them were powered by the venerable 22r 4 cyl engine and had a 5 speed manual tranny.) The van didn’t stop and it had commercial markings on it, making us think it must have been some kind of organized tour group. The van passed through our camp and headed out towards the ruins that were upriver from us, and came back about a half hour later. About a half hour after that, we saw it again, coming in with what appeared to be a different group of sightseers.
By 9, we had all packed up and decided we’d just walk down to the site of the ruins, since it was a nice morning and the walk was a short one. We walked about 15 minutes to reach the ruins which are called “River House.” There is a little BLM plaque that explains a little bit about the site, and a fenced in corral that I couldn’t figure out the reason for (cattle maybe? Horses?) We spent a lot of time at the cliff house, walking in and out of the rooms but careful not to disturb anything that was left there, including old corn cobs that were in some of the cooking pits
Some of the people in our group thought these were might have been left by the Anasazi, (who departed this area nearly 1,000 years ago) and I suppose that’s possible, but my guess is that even though the Anasazi were gone, subsequent peoples in the area (including the Navajo and maybe even early European explorers) had used these dwellings for temporary shelter and so the corncobs and other debris we found were probably not more than a couple of hundred years old at most.
After that we hiked back to our vehicles and took off down the steep, rocky hill and back to US 163. We crossed Comb Ridge again on pavement and then reached the turnoff for Butler Wash, which runs along the higher, Eastern side of the ridge. Scott and I both wanted to make one more run into town for ice, so the rest of the group waited at the turnoff for us while we ran into the very tiny town of Bluff for a bag of (rather overpriced!) ice. We rejoined the group and headed North along the wash, which runs further from the ridge than Comb Wash road on the other side. With Brian in the lead, we turned off the main road after a few miles and drove a short distance to a parking area that was at the edge of a cliff. We got out and hiked down a short trail (with some treacherous drops!) until we reached “Wolf Man Panel”, a set of really incredibly clear petrogylphs. The detail of these carvings was amazing – some of them were so clear they looked like they’d been put there yesterday! And the size was considerable – the people who carved these into the rock must have had ladders propped up against the rock while they worked, that seems to be the only way they could have been made.
Scott's hand gives you a size reference
What in the world could this symbolize?
I believe the human figure in the center is the "wolf man."
Another size reference:
We continued North on Butler Wash and about at the halfway point along Comb Ridge we stopped at another parking area. This was the hike to Monarch Cave. The trail was about a mile in, and pretty easy overall, with only a few places where we had to scrabble over rocks or grab a handhold on the other side. We finally got deep into the canyon and observed a truly amazing set of cliff dwellings, set high into the East-facing rock and surrounded by sandstone walls. We hiked up to the top on the North side where we then had to walk along a precarious path, perched above a downward sloping rock face that dropped off sharply, until we got to the main part of the ruins. Obviously the Anasazi who built these dwellings wanted to make them as defensible as possible and as difficult to enter as they could.
As at River House, we found corncobs, rock chips, basket shards and other evidence of more recent occupation of the dwellings.
Hand prints were common at this dwelling.
One of the interesting things about the Monarch Cave dwellings is that there were actually remains of the mud-and-branch roofs that had been put on the top of these dwellings.
Immediately beneath the cave was a large pool, which we assumed served as both a “moat” and also as their water source (at least one theory regarding the disappearance of the Anasazi is that they left because it got too dry for them to be able to grow crops. If that’s true then it’s probably reasonable to assume that this small pool was much bigger when the Anasazi built their dwellings here between 800 – 1200 AD.)
We took photos and looked around, and then hiked back to the parking area for lunch.
We got back on the road and continued North. We passed by Fish Mouth cave because it was getting late, but marked it as someplace we might want to see again someday. Finally we reached pavement at UT-95. We headed up the road a bit to a paved parking area to air up. Once we had our tires reinflated, we continued up UT-95, past the Comb Wash turnoff we’d taken the day before, and then stopped again at a well-preserved Kiva ruin (a Kiva was a communal meeting place, large and circular.)
Shortly after that, we turned off onto UT 261, the road that runs along the top of the great plateau that would be our final campsite. We drove along until we reached the turnoff for Muley Point and the Goosenecks Overlook. We drove out to the overlook and spent a good 45 minutes or so ooh-ing and aahh-ing over the view, which takes in Valley of the Gods, the Goosnecks of the San Juan River, John’s Canyon, and, way off in the distance, the renowned Monument Valley.
We then headed back up towards where we came from, hoping to find a decent campsite for the night. Scott finally located a nice area that was big enough for all of us, and far enough away from the main road that we wouldn’t get traffic coming through. We set up with gorgeous views all around, and with a commanding view to the South.
One thing that was different about this site compared to where we’d been for the past 3: Wind! Up on top of the plateau we were exposed and it was very windy! The wind rocked our vehicles and made cooking something of a PITA but it kept the bugs down and also made for a nice, cool evening.
That night, after cooking dinner, we walked around a bit and even got my binoculars out to look at the surprising number of lights in the distance. All of the territory South of the San Juan River at this point is part of “the rez” (the Navajo nation) and we weren’t sure if the lights we saw were little towns, isolated cattle ranches or other dwellings, or maybe even mines, of which there are quite a few on the reservation. From our vantage point on top of the plateau, I could even see the lights of a small city. Though I had initially thought this might be Farmington, NM (almost 60 miles away!) after checking the direction, I realized that this must be the town of Kayenta, AZ, still a respectable 38 miles from our location and on the far side of Monument Valley!
Since I wasn’t sure what time I’d be leaving, I went around to each group and got addresses and said goodbye to all of them. Although I was somewhat saddened that the trip was ending, I have to admit I was glad to be heading home to my soft bed, my indoor plumbing and of course to my wonderful wife!
Day 9, Wednesday, April 25th
As expected, between the wind and the excitement about getting home, I woke up early, while it was still dark. The wind had abated some so I was able to quickly tear down my camp and pack my gear. As I was pulling out just after 6am, I saw Scott was up and about, so I chatted with him for a few minutes and then took off.
I hit the top of Moki Dugway just as the sun was starting to light up Valley of the Gods, so I got some awesome pictures. Of course, no picture can really do it justice, but then again, you could pretty much say that about our entire trip!
At the base of the dugway, I transitioned from dirt to pavement for the last time and then headed straight out towards Mexican Hat and US 163.
From there I headed back East towards Bluff, passing by both Comb Wash and Butler Wash, and crossing Comb Ridge for the 6th time on this trip. A cup of stale coffee and two gallons of gas in Bluff would get me to Cortez, a town big enough to have (relatively!) cheap gas.
Instead of taking the most direct route to Cortez, I decided to detour a little through the Navajo reservation, leaving the main road near Aneth and making my way up towards the Ismay Trading Post. The road was delightfully winding, and dotted with small settlements at regular intervals. It was a Wednesday, so the Indian kids on the Rez were all getting off the school buses and walking into the various schools I passed. Soon the road narrowed and then, without fanfare, the surface of the road changed and I saw a “Welcome to Colorful Colorado!” sign. This was also the site of the ruins of the Ismay Trading Post.
I stopped and snapped a few pictures (the last ones I took on this trip) and then continued on in to Cortez, Durango, crossed Wolf Creek Pass into Del Norte, and took the familiar US 285 on home. All in all a great trip with a great bunch of people! Now all I can do is sort through the pictures and start thinking about next year!
Total distance traveled: About 1390 miles (per GPS)
Total fuel consumed: 75.73 gallons
Overall MPG: 18.35
Total fuel cost: ~$290.00 (average per-gallon price of $3.82.)
I'll write a supplemental report about the equipment I used and how well it did or didn't work.
Just want to say thanks again to Scott, Laura, Ted, Sib, Michael, Brian, Jim, and Greg for the great time! Can't wait to get out there again!
Day 8, Tuesday, April 24th:
It was another warm and calm night and a little bit ‘buggy’ for me (probably because of the close proximity to the San Juan river and some of its marshy verges.)
We did get to see a gorgeous sunrise over the rocks!
We were pretty spread out so each of us was pretty much on his own for breakfast. At about 7:30 we heard the sound of an approaching vehicle and were surprised to see a little Yellow Toyota minivan driving into the camp (this is not the current minivan, this is the little truck-based van that Toyota sold in the late 80’s, and it was a 4x4. It sat on the 89-94 Toyota 4x4 pickup chassis and I think most of them were powered by the venerable 22r 4 cyl engine and had a 5 speed manual tranny.) The van didn’t stop and it had commercial markings on it, making us think it must have been some kind of organized tour group. The van passed through our camp and headed out towards the ruins that were upriver from us, and came back about a half hour later. About a half hour after that, we saw it again, coming in with what appeared to be a different group of sightseers.
By 9, we had all packed up and decided we’d just walk down to the site of the ruins, since it was a nice morning and the walk was a short one. We walked about 15 minutes to reach the ruins which are called “River House.” There is a little BLM plaque that explains a little bit about the site, and a fenced in corral that I couldn’t figure out the reason for (cattle maybe? Horses?) We spent a lot of time at the cliff house, walking in and out of the rooms but careful not to disturb anything that was left there, including old corn cobs that were in some of the cooking pits
Some of the people in our group thought these were might have been left by the Anasazi, (who departed this area nearly 1,000 years ago) and I suppose that’s possible, but my guess is that even though the Anasazi were gone, subsequent peoples in the area (including the Navajo and maybe even early European explorers) had used these dwellings for temporary shelter and so the corncobs and other debris we found were probably not more than a couple of hundred years old at most.
After that we hiked back to our vehicles and took off down the steep, rocky hill and back to US 163. We crossed Comb Ridge again on pavement and then reached the turnoff for Butler Wash, which runs along the higher, Eastern side of the ridge. Scott and I both wanted to make one more run into town for ice, so the rest of the group waited at the turnoff for us while we ran into the very tiny town of Bluff for a bag of (rather overpriced!) ice. We rejoined the group and headed North along the wash, which runs further from the ridge than Comb Wash road on the other side. With Brian in the lead, we turned off the main road after a few miles and drove a short distance to a parking area that was at the edge of a cliff. We got out and hiked down a short trail (with some treacherous drops!) until we reached “Wolf Man Panel”, a set of really incredibly clear petrogylphs. The detail of these carvings was amazing – some of them were so clear they looked like they’d been put there yesterday! And the size was considerable – the people who carved these into the rock must have had ladders propped up against the rock while they worked, that seems to be the only way they could have been made.
Scott's hand gives you a size reference
What in the world could this symbolize?
I believe the human figure in the center is the "wolf man."
Another size reference:
We continued North on Butler Wash and about at the halfway point along Comb Ridge we stopped at another parking area. This was the hike to Monarch Cave. The trail was about a mile in, and pretty easy overall, with only a few places where we had to scrabble over rocks or grab a handhold on the other side. We finally got deep into the canyon and observed a truly amazing set of cliff dwellings, set high into the East-facing rock and surrounded by sandstone walls. We hiked up to the top on the North side where we then had to walk along a precarious path, perched above a downward sloping rock face that dropped off sharply, until we got to the main part of the ruins. Obviously the Anasazi who built these dwellings wanted to make them as defensible as possible and as difficult to enter as they could.
As at River House, we found corncobs, rock chips, basket shards and other evidence of more recent occupation of the dwellings.
Hand prints were common at this dwelling.
One of the interesting things about the Monarch Cave dwellings is that there were actually remains of the mud-and-branch roofs that had been put on the top of these dwellings.
Immediately beneath the cave was a large pool, which we assumed served as both a “moat” and also as their water source (at least one theory regarding the disappearance of the Anasazi is that they left because it got too dry for them to be able to grow crops. If that’s true then it’s probably reasonable to assume that this small pool was much bigger when the Anasazi built their dwellings here between 800 – 1200 AD.)
We took photos and looked around, and then hiked back to the parking area for lunch.
We got back on the road and continued North. We passed by Fish Mouth cave because it was getting late, but marked it as someplace we might want to see again someday. Finally we reached pavement at UT-95. We headed up the road a bit to a paved parking area to air up. Once we had our tires reinflated, we continued up UT-95, past the Comb Wash turnoff we’d taken the day before, and then stopped again at a well-preserved Kiva ruin (a Kiva was a communal meeting place, large and circular.)
Shortly after that, we turned off onto UT 261, the road that runs along the top of the great plateau that would be our final campsite. We drove along until we reached the turnoff for Muley Point and the Goosenecks Overlook. We drove out to the overlook and spent a good 45 minutes or so ooh-ing and aahh-ing over the view, which takes in Valley of the Gods, the Goosnecks of the San Juan River, John’s Canyon, and, way off in the distance, the renowned Monument Valley.
We then headed back up towards where we came from, hoping to find a decent campsite for the night. Scott finally located a nice area that was big enough for all of us, and far enough away from the main road that we wouldn’t get traffic coming through. We set up with gorgeous views all around, and with a commanding view to the South.
One thing that was different about this site compared to where we’d been for the past 3: Wind! Up on top of the plateau we were exposed and it was very windy! The wind rocked our vehicles and made cooking something of a PITA but it kept the bugs down and also made for a nice, cool evening.
That night, after cooking dinner, we walked around a bit and even got my binoculars out to look at the surprising number of lights in the distance. All of the territory South of the San Juan River at this point is part of “the rez” (the Navajo nation) and we weren’t sure if the lights we saw were little towns, isolated cattle ranches or other dwellings, or maybe even mines, of which there are quite a few on the reservation. From our vantage point on top of the plateau, I could even see the lights of a small city. Though I had initially thought this might be Farmington, NM (almost 60 miles away!) after checking the direction, I realized that this must be the town of Kayenta, AZ, still a respectable 38 miles from our location and on the far side of Monument Valley!
Since I wasn’t sure what time I’d be leaving, I went around to each group and got addresses and said goodbye to all of them. Although I was somewhat saddened that the trip was ending, I have to admit I was glad to be heading home to my soft bed, my indoor plumbing and of course to my wonderful wife!
Day 9, Wednesday, April 25th
As expected, between the wind and the excitement about getting home, I woke up early, while it was still dark. The wind had abated some so I was able to quickly tear down my camp and pack my gear. As I was pulling out just after 6am, I saw Scott was up and about, so I chatted with him for a few minutes and then took off.
I hit the top of Moki Dugway just as the sun was starting to light up Valley of the Gods, so I got some awesome pictures. Of course, no picture can really do it justice, but then again, you could pretty much say that about our entire trip!
At the base of the dugway, I transitioned from dirt to pavement for the last time and then headed straight out towards Mexican Hat and US 163.
From there I headed back East towards Bluff, passing by both Comb Wash and Butler Wash, and crossing Comb Ridge for the 6th time on this trip. A cup of stale coffee and two gallons of gas in Bluff would get me to Cortez, a town big enough to have (relatively!) cheap gas.
Instead of taking the most direct route to Cortez, I decided to detour a little through the Navajo reservation, leaving the main road near Aneth and making my way up towards the Ismay Trading Post. The road was delightfully winding, and dotted with small settlements at regular intervals. It was a Wednesday, so the Indian kids on the Rez were all getting off the school buses and walking into the various schools I passed. Soon the road narrowed and then, without fanfare, the surface of the road changed and I saw a “Welcome to Colorful Colorado!” sign. This was also the site of the ruins of the Ismay Trading Post.
I stopped and snapped a few pictures (the last ones I took on this trip) and then continued on in to Cortez, Durango, crossed Wolf Creek Pass into Del Norte, and took the familiar US 285 on home. All in all a great trip with a great bunch of people! Now all I can do is sort through the pictures and start thinking about next year!
Total distance traveled: About 1390 miles (per GPS)
Total fuel consumed: 75.73 gallons
Overall MPG: 18.35
Total fuel cost: ~$290.00 (average per-gallon price of $3.82.)
I'll write a supplemental report about the equipment I used and how well it did or didn't work.
Just want to say thanks again to Scott, Laura, Ted, Sib, Michael, Brian, Jim, and Greg for the great time! Can't wait to get out there again!
gwittman
Adventurer
I have a couple pictures to add. I like this big colorful lizard near the area that we parked to go to the wolf man panel.
I continued on to the optional part of the trip after we all said our good byes. I had never been to the East section of Canyon De Chelly, so I decided to take the long way as I headed to Santa Fe. I did not have time to go down into the Canyon but took the overlook road to see as much as I could. The White House Ruin was my favorite.
I think it would be worth it to hire a guide and take group into the canyon sometime. When I left there I continued South West on the unmaintained dirt road that I was advised by a park official not to take. I explained I had been on some much worse roads in the past few days and my vehicle was capable. She said it went over some fairly high mountains and people get lost up there all the time. With my insistence to go on, she said well you have been warned. That gave me some concern but still wanted to go. When I got to this dirt road, I pulled over to see if my GPS showed it continuing on. While I was observing the GPS, this school bus came flying out of there at a high rate of speed. The GPS showed the road and I figured if a school bus could get through I should be able to. It was a wide road but very rutted due to being used when muddy. All I had to do was straddle the ruts and could continue at a very respectable speed. I ran through some beautiful Alpine Forrest and meadow areas. I am glad I took this route.
After Santa Fe I went on North to drive through the Rio Grande Gorge area up there. That was on pavement but was very scenic. I was so into looking at everything I forgot to take pictures. I eventually went through a large meadow area, I think is in Colorado, which has a town called Eagle Nest Lake. I think I would like to spend some time there someday. After that I headed on east toward Kansas. I could see the big thunderhead that I was driving toward and hoped it was not too serious.
The rain did come down pretty heavy when I reached it but I got no hail or severely strong wind. About 45 minutes after I got through the worst of it I got this severe weather warning on my radio about very damaging storms sighted in that area that I just went through. Apparently, I just skirted the very bad stuff.
The rest the trip to Eastern Kansas where my family lives was uneventful. On my trip back from Kansas, I decided not to take I-40 all the way home to CA. I got off onto highway 60 which runs south of I-40 through some interesting areas. My eventual goal was to enter Meteor Crater area from the south via a dirt road. I thought this dirt road would be a well maintained fairly straight smooth road. This is what I got for the first 15 miles or so.
I actually enjoyed this trek through Chavez Pass. My only concern was it would take so long getting through it that I would get to Meteor Crater too late to have time to fully take it in. It ended up being no problem. I got there shortly after 4:00PM and they don't close until around 6:30PM this time of year. I was not able to take advantage of the included guided tour (it stops at 2:30PM) but I was able to do everything else I wanted. From there, it was a night in Flagstaff and a smooth cruise home the next day.
I continued on to the optional part of the trip after we all said our good byes. I had never been to the East section of Canyon De Chelly, so I decided to take the long way as I headed to Santa Fe. I did not have time to go down into the Canyon but took the overlook road to see as much as I could. The White House Ruin was my favorite.
I think it would be worth it to hire a guide and take group into the canyon sometime. When I left there I continued South West on the unmaintained dirt road that I was advised by a park official not to take. I explained I had been on some much worse roads in the past few days and my vehicle was capable. She said it went over some fairly high mountains and people get lost up there all the time. With my insistence to go on, she said well you have been warned. That gave me some concern but still wanted to go. When I got to this dirt road, I pulled over to see if my GPS showed it continuing on. While I was observing the GPS, this school bus came flying out of there at a high rate of speed. The GPS showed the road and I figured if a school bus could get through I should be able to. It was a wide road but very rutted due to being used when muddy. All I had to do was straddle the ruts and could continue at a very respectable speed. I ran through some beautiful Alpine Forrest and meadow areas. I am glad I took this route.
After Santa Fe I went on North to drive through the Rio Grande Gorge area up there. That was on pavement but was very scenic. I was so into looking at everything I forgot to take pictures. I eventually went through a large meadow area, I think is in Colorado, which has a town called Eagle Nest Lake. I think I would like to spend some time there someday. After that I headed on east toward Kansas. I could see the big thunderhead that I was driving toward and hoped it was not too serious.
The rain did come down pretty heavy when I reached it but I got no hail or severely strong wind. About 45 minutes after I got through the worst of it I got this severe weather warning on my radio about very damaging storms sighted in that area that I just went through. Apparently, I just skirted the very bad stuff.
The rest the trip to Eastern Kansas where my family lives was uneventful. On my trip back from Kansas, I decided not to take I-40 all the way home to CA. I got off onto highway 60 which runs south of I-40 through some interesting areas. My eventual goal was to enter Meteor Crater area from the south via a dirt road. I thought this dirt road would be a well maintained fairly straight smooth road. This is what I got for the first 15 miles or so.
I actually enjoyed this trek through Chavez Pass. My only concern was it would take so long getting through it that I would get to Meteor Crater too late to have time to fully take it in. It ended up being no problem. I got there shortly after 4:00PM and they don't close until around 6:30PM this time of year. I was not able to take advantage of the included guided tour (it stops at 2:30PM) but I was able to do everything else I wanted. From there, it was a night in Flagstaff and a smooth cruise home the next day.
Brian1
Observer
Nice report Martin! It was definately a fun trip!
Michael, I received your CD, thanks!
Nope, still in New Mexico! The post-trip looked like fun! I did that same dirt road from Canyon DeChelly last year that you described and it was a very nice drive. I believe it is called Fluted Rock in some guide books due to the large rock towards the end of the trail.
Michael, I received your CD, thanks!
Nope, still in New Mexico! The post-trip looked like fun! I did that same dirt road from Canyon DeChelly last year that you described and it was a very nice drive. I believe it is called Fluted Rock in some guide books due to the large rock towards the end of the trail.
gwittman
Adventurer
Brian, I do recall seeing some referrence to Fluted Rock on that road. On my way back from Kansas and by-passing I-40, I took the advice from your dad and it was helpful. Thank him for me.
Thanks for correcting the location of Eagle Nest Lake. That will help me find it again if I ever try to go there again.
Thanks for correcting the location of Eagle Nest Lake. That will help me find it again if I ever try to go there again.
Thanks for sharing, Id have rather seen the ruins near your camp on the San Juan than Mesa Verde.... and we nearly drove by it last time! 
