Canyonlands Winter 2013

trackhead

Adventurer
Not to pile on (so ignore this now), but sinuhexavier, there is maybe something being missed in all this.

I didn't know you were a pro shooter. I didn't think of it, actually. I thought, rather, that you were someone who knew some pretty cool things.

That said I can appreciate not giving out some locations. Instead, maybe a suggestion for some other areas (that are probably just as stunning to someone like me from the east) would be possible.

So that's the thing. Planning a trip is hard when you don't have anything to go on. Google Earth and all is fine (and I've found plenty of trails that way) but Canyonlands is a pretty big place. Hope I get out there again soon.

You want those views in that photo, and you're coming from the East, on I-70? Ok, do that, then turn south off of I-70 @ Thompson Springs. Follow the road south, towards Arches NP. From there, follow Salt Valley road, then consider crossing HWY 191 and head West, towards the Dubinky/Green River area (Blue Hills, Dubinky Road). Follow that to the Merrimac/Seven Mile Rim area. Pop out on 313, drop down Long Canyon, follow Potash to the White Rim. Alternatively, follow I-70 to Green River, turn south on Lower San Rafael Road, cruise west to Temple Mountain Road and head up Temple Wash. Then maybe head north a bit, then back east towards Black Dragon Wash, descend Black Dragon. From there, maybe get a burger in Hanksville, but follow Black Burn Draw Road instead of the highway. Once in Hanksville, head towards the Henry Mtns on Sawmill Basin Road. Head south for a while, then cut across the road to Poison Springs Cyn/Rd. Follow this to Sunset Pass and into the south end of the Maze. Exit the Maze to Hite. At Hite, follow Horse Tanks Road east, cross the highway and head down to Lake Powell via Good Hope Bay and Blue Notch RD. Drop into the wash, and exit this amazing place via Radium King. Pop out on 95, head east to Comb Wash, go north and end up in Blanding. Go east of Blanding to Montezuma Canyon, head north and pop out in Monticello. From Monticello head into Canyonlands, follow the well known route to Elephant Hill through Beef Basin. Then out to the east and north on Lockhart back to Moab.

That's over a 1000 miles of dirt and sand, with one river crossing and some quick sand. Most of it is mellow, one section near Lake Powell is not and you might want a winch, a buddy, and some sense of adventure.

That should keep you busy for a while. Have fun.
 
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john101477

Photographer in the Wild
That's over a 1000 miles of dirt and sand, with one river crossing and some quick sand. Most of it is mellow, one section near Lake Powell is not and you might want a winch, a buddy, and some sense of adventure.

That should keep you busy for a while. Have fun.

Might be the best thing ever said on ExPo.
 

sinuhexavier

Explorer
Food

The food for this trip was different than most vehicle based journeys I've done in the past... With the backpacking component we need light food with high calorie content.

I've found that Trader Joes carries most if not all of the shopping list.

Breakfast:
coffee + tea The Starbucks Instant packs are great for this...
instant milk
instant oatmeal
muesli + granola
dried fruit
bagels
butter

Daytime:
Stoned Wheat Thins are pretty indestructible if you leave them in the box
cheese
hard salami
beef jerky
cashews, almonds
oriental mix
chocolate


Dinner:
Soups, Top Ramen or Miso.
precooked rice
coucous
tuna, chicken in packets
cookies
hot chocolate
whiskey

Pretty basic and unglamorous. Due to weight we will only have two bush buddy stoves so we'll be heating water quite a bit. But considering the sun goes down at 5:35 and doesn't rise again until 7:30 we'll have plenty of time to kill. I try to make it to at least 9PM before sacking out.
 

NM-Frontier

Explorer
That sounds like a super time, I can't wait to see some of the pics from this! Say warm and thanks for sharing.:sombrero:
 

digitaldelay

Explorer
Looks like a fun trip! I would have replied earlier, but your food list prompted me to go have a snack. :drool:

What do you think your pack weight will end up being? Are you carrying much water or just going to melt snow along the way?

Have a great trip!

Jason
 

sinuhexavier

Explorer
Looks like a fun trip! I would have replied earlier, but your food list prompted me to go have a snack. :drool:

What do you think your pack weight will end up being? Are you carrying much water or just going to melt snow along the way?

Have a great trip!

Jason

No idea at the moment... 50-60lbs probably... Not unbearable.

Water will be easy, most of the pot holes will be full and plenty of snow.
 

Frostymug

Observer
Sounds like a fun trip. I hope you have tested the Bush Buddy stove in winter conditions. If you plan on melting snow for water you maybe serious disappointed.

Cliff
 

sinuhexavier

Explorer



Left the Overland Journal offices and drove north through Navajo Nation and caught some of Chip Thomas' Painted Desert Project. Chip is a doctor/artist/photographer that lives on the reservation and brings in artists from all over the world to paint the buildings, water towers and debris around the Navajo Nation.


Rolled into Page, AZ to see the coal plant that's polluting the whole basin. Is it weird that an area that has a population hovering at 10k would have smog?




The roads through the Escalante National Monument were in above average condition for this time of year. Where the snow had melted it was pretty greasy, but otherwise it was amazing only seeing two other people in 70 miles of dirt road.




We fed the chickens and did some chores around the ranch before getting into the meat of our packing. Tomorrow we head out for the next two weeks, so I won't be able to update this. If you want to keep up, you can follow my blog or my instagram which will be updated from the two places we get cell service.
 

trackhead

Adventurer
Rolled into Page, AZ to see the coal plant that's polluting the whole basin. Is it weird that an area that has a population hovering at 10k would have smog?

It seems weird, but much of the burden for California electricity is placed on rural Utah/AZ populations by way of coal fired generation stations.

Smog adds that special touch to lake Fowell.

And most of it's power is used to pump fresh water for the CAP program to 80% of Arizona residents.

We like to smugly turn a blind eye to our own industrial needs, and bury them in rural areas where we don't need to face reality.
 

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