The M~U~D Trip Report: 1000 Miles of Utah Dirt

Elephant hill trail needs little introduction. It is a fantastic trail and another revisit by Mike and I from 2012. The parking lot is always full of hikers and bikers and such. Rangers are always there making sure that no one takes a vehicle in that isn't equipped for the journey and more importantly has a permit to go it. They only give out 24 day use permits a day to 4wd vehicles for this trail.


The ranger stopped us and check our permits, let us know the road conditions, and more importantly. Told us the traffic we had in front of us.


IMG_1872 by mike digirat, on Flickr


“You guys looks pretty well outfitted and in good rigs.” said the ranger eye our Tacoma's.


“Well, not our first rodeo and actually our 2nd time here to Elephant hill!” I replied cheerfully.


“Ah well then you know whats going on. We just so you know, there is a stock jeep just ahead of you. He should be okay, seemed to have a bit of experience under his belt but first big trail. More importantly though there is a guy in a big ol'4runner. Also bone stock. We told him we weren't sure he'd come out without some battle scars but he went for it anyways. You'll probably catch them in no time.”


We thanked them for the info. Slapped it in 4Lo. And climbed up to the top of the cliff.


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Whereupon we hit traffic already.


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The 4runner had two buddies out spotting for him. That thing looks brand spankin new! Like the bought that afternoon, drove it off the showroom floor, said “fuck it! MOAB!” and came to do Elephant hill! Haha!


They were going very slow and having to pick lines very carefully.


I chatted the the jeep fella while we waited.


IMG_1874 by mike digirat, on Flickr


He seemed like a nice guy, but didn't have much experience and he asked about the trail.


I told him about the tight switch back just below and how you have to back down it. Then about the rockier hill later down the trail and Devils Pocket squeeze.


I knew we would want to get around them at some point since his wife was already spotting him on this smoother slick rock stuff. And hoped he would be nice enough to let us by when the time came.


While we were waiting, the 4runner moved over to let the jeep by.


M~D~U-17.jpg by Monte Nickles Photos, on Flickr


I jumped back in the truck thinking he'd let us all by


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I was wrong though. Once the jeep past the 4runner, he went back to work on navigating the rocking down hill section.


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So mike caught back up and we waited again.


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Finally with enough wiggle room, we set off down the switch back


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Thankfully, the pull out where you turn the right way around after backing down the switch back was very large. The 4runner folks were kind enough to let us by at this point.


While I waited for Mike I poked fun at them.


“That thing looks brand new! You drive from the showroom floor to here?” I said with grin.


“ha! No it's acutually 2 years old!”


“wow, in great shape. Probably won't be after this!”


“Nah, we can get him through it. We've both done it a few times but he has never driven it so we decided to come down make a trip out of it.”


“well good luck! Have fun and thanks guys!”


“You bet, you guys have some nice rigs!”

“Thanks!”


With the Jeep no where in sight, we figured we would be good to go!


M~D~U-23.jpg by Monte Nickles Photos, on Flickr

M~D~U-24.jpg by Monte Nickles Photos, on Flickr


This is honestly one of my favorite trails ever. It has a bit of everything in it. Go fast sandy spots, ledges, some big rocks, switchbacks, backwards wheeling, a nice hike, killer views..what more could you want?


It was also here, that I let Devin take the wheel to get some good rock crawling under her belt.


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This meant I could take photos of some of the cool canyon walls that you snake in and out of on the trail.


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Then we got to the big rocky hill, Mike had to do some uh...”buissness” so Devin and I got a headstart on the hill.


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I don't have any photos of this sadly as I stayed in the truck to talk Devin through it. But she made it to the top no problem!


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Only dinged the tow hook of all things and the skid a bit haha


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We met another couple just past the crest of the hill in a well built Jeep.


“I see we aren't the only crazy ones back here” laughed the lady.


“Heck no! Having a blast!” I said as we puttered by.


The views down here as always awesome. Its pretty confusing with all the canyons everywhere you wonder how people found their way back in the day.


M~D~U-34.jpg by Monte Nickles Photos, on Flickr


Then we came to the Devils Pocket. Which is were we caught up to the red jeep we had seen before.


For some reason he had driven his front axle up on the side and was tipping his cab within an inch of the opposite wall. His wife was telling him to stop and back up. He was screaming at her what to do next....


Stressful vacation..


Anyways, I told him to stop and listen to his spotter, he needed to just back up and keep his wheels were she told him to put them. Reluctantly he listened after I walked away. And he made it through no problems.


Much to Devins disapproval. I stayed out of the truck and let her drive through it herself.


M~D~U-35.jpg by Monte Nickles Photos, on Flickr

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Not quite sure Frankenstein would fit...so maybe its good we brought Igor this time.


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Mike drove through no problems as well, just skimming his driver side mirror a touch.


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Now we were behind the jeep and had hoped he would let us by.


After passing several good spots to allow us. He finally caved and let us pass him.


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We were almost out of the rocky parts, when Mike took a different line that was harder. No big deal I thought and directed Devin around the larger ledge.


Mike meanwhile, tried doing something out of his rigs capabilities nearly..



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he was stuck. Hi centered on his rear diff.


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Was looking pretty damn tippy..


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But was an easy fix.


“Lock the front!” I yelled.


Mike did and The Red Head crawled out of the situation no problem.


“Oh my God how did he not just roll over!” said Devin


“I donno” I laughed, “but he didn't!”


Thank god..


After that slightly eye opening experience, we kept on going, keen to stay ahead of the jeep.


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Which wasn't hard, especially once we hit the sand.


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It is always nice to get a break from the rock were you can fly down the road at a good clip.


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We made it to the big pull out where the short hike to the confluence overlook takes place. Perfect spot for lunch, there is even a picnic table and bathroom!


The jeeper caught up a bit later and we invited him to sit in the shaded table to eat lunch. He just walked away though and setup further down.


While we were eating another couple came down to claim the white parked jeep. They were very cheerful and very interested in our toyotas and tents as they were thinking of switching to one. We were happy to chat for awhile while eating our lunch.


With a fresh belly of food. It was time to hike to the overlook. This was a big deal for Mike. He is no spring chicken anymore but he knew he wanted to do it and had done it four years earlier. He was going to do it again.


He even brought seperate shoes for the occasion.


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Mike and his hiking shoes were going to the overlook!


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The trail isn't super long and doesn't have a major elevation change. So if you do this trail, you should really consider doing this hike. It is short and not too hard. Unless you are from sea level and no spring chicken, then it can be a tall order. But you can do it if Mike can!


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And trust me, at the end of the hike. It is well worth it.


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The joining of the two mighty powers at be in the area. The Green Rive and The Colorado. We had been following them and crossing them the entire trip. These two rivers are the life blood of a HUGE area. It is incredible to see what they have done to the place to get to the Gulf. Which amazingly, it never reaches anymore..


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Many folks take a different trip and perspective on the rive by floating down it living on the banks.


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I think it is just incredible how you can see the different waters combining.


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We still had a long ways to go though to get back to Devins Lane to head out the south entrance of the park to find camping on BLM so we could not linger too long.


On the walk out, we encountered a young fellow who was “not from these parts” again. He asked us if the two trucks were ours.


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“you bet!” we replied.


He then asked if he could get a ride back to vistor center.


Crap.


He looked hot but not parched of water or near fatigue or anything. We told him we weren't going that way actually, and we didn't really have any open seats. I had pulled my rear ones to help pack and Mikes was full to the brim with gear.


He said no worries! And kept on hiking to the overlook.


We felt terrible about this though. And were talking about ways in which to help him on the way down.


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Some of the only “wildlife” we saw while in Utah.


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We decided to leave a bottle of water for him at the table. On our way out we met a large group of hikers and told them we had left water for that young man. They said they would get it too him and we went on our way as it didn't seem like a life or death emergency to radio authorities.


I took the helm back on Igor and we drove the rest of Elephant hill rather quickly.


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gotta always get the poser shots when you can!


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Stuffed!


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Getting scruffy looking after 8 days with no shower.


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Before long, we were making our way through some wash beds back to the start of the Loop. When I spotted the red jeep stopped in the trail.


Well that's odd. Surely he can't drive that slow, I thought.


Then I saw the bikers.


The wrestling with a tube when I pulled up.


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“Hey you got any electrical tape?!” asked the man from the jeep.


“Yes I do, whats up?” I replied.


“Guy popped his tires and used both his patches already. Hoping we can use some E tape to make it hole air for now.”


I radioed to Mike about it and he had some much easier to grab then I did. So I waited for him to catch up and he got it out.


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The biker was very thankful and we stuck around for a bit to make sure everything was going to be okay.


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Once we knew it was going be all good. Mike told the guy to keep the tape in case he needed it again. And we headed back to the Devils Pocket and to Devil Lane. This time the light was more spectacular.


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We made good time to the Pocket and wasted no time getting to Devils Lane.


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We and turned right before to get to the Confluence overlook. Now we would go Left.


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We had never gone this way. But man oh man. I don't think i'll ever not go this way. It was AMAZING.


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I could not stop stopping to take photos. The lighting was great. The area was so pretty. It was perfection.


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But when we did move. We got to move fast! The sand road made for good fun to stretch the legs out.


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Doesn't this just look like a crumbling castle of sorts? Or maybe a getaway retreat home for God himself..


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There is even a gateway to the castle..


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We had seen some pretty spectacular areas on this trip so far. But this place. This place was a step above. It was special.


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Around here a dirt biker came flying by heading into the park further. We thought little of it as this place just got better and better.


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The light was just too good to pass up. We were having a hay day taking it all in.


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And then this place really felt amazing. The towering walls so close together. It makes you feel small in a good way though. It was memorizing to me and calming. I could have just camped right here had we been allowed too.


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Just after this, we hit a group of 5. 1 jeep and 4 land cruisers all headed into the park. Some of the land crusiers looked a little ill equipped for some of the rocky sections that lay ahead. But they were confident. I'm still not sure what they had planned to do for camping as its permit only in Canyon lands. But they headed in anyways.


We stopped to look back at the wondrous Needles we had just driven through.


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Now though the sun was getting real low and we needed to get out of the Park to find a nice camp spot. Plus, we weren't sure if there would be a lot of people here looking for spots like us or not. Either way, we kept going the sun blast its last rays into our eyes.


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A while later we hit the south boundary of the park.


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pretty interesting really. You can come into the entire park and pay no fees if you come this way. Its a very long road though, and not a smooth one. So I can see why they haven't bothered with manning this entrance all the time.


Not even a mile after the border we found a large campsite off the road. And it was awesome.


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Pay dirt! We even had light left to setup camp.


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The campsite saw a lot of use we could tell. There were 7 fire ring around the massive rock in total I counted. We opted to use the rather large fire ring though.


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The massive rock we were camped around was fun to explore and Devin and I did some climbing around.


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I also took full advantage of the fading beautiful light.


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It had been a great day. Some awesome terrain had be driven. We had seen some of the best views yet. Got a nice short hike in. And helped a person or two. We were rewarded with a lovely campsite with no near by neighbors. We celebrated by making steak quesadilla with Mikes Homemade salsa and his fresh tailgate guacamole. Our visit to the Needles had been a great one but we couldn't wait for more. After all, we were only about half way done.


We went to bed under the bright beautiful stars looking forward to a good nights sleep. And the many many MANY miles left to travel in our great journey across Utah.


M~D~U-134.jpg by Monte Nickles Photos, on Flickr

To be continued:

Chapter 5: Miles and Miles and Miles of Dirt

 

Well...good luck folks. That chapter ended up being a LOT more then i though. I hit my character limit for 1 post. Then i hit the 150 image limit TWICE while posting...soooooo....



Sorry to those with slow internet

But i think it's a good one!

I doubled my word doc file with this one almost. Went from 49 pages to 83 haha

 

Good God those are some awesome pics!

 

Great read! I find myself looking for the "like" button after most pictures then I remember it's at the end LOL. I would say "when does the movie come out?" but it already did with all the great pictures and your story telling. I can just picture it all in my head, even the parts that are described and not shown.

 

It was an awesome place!

haha! Yea no video. have thought about doing it. But not easily done without a few extra people and lots of extra data management and bigger file sizes..photos work for us. Unless a film crew just wants to come along then go for it haha

Glad you are enjoying it! Still lots left.

 

For some reason I don't think actual footage would be able to do your trips any kind of justification. It's hard to get candid reactions on video. People seem to act different while on camera and that's when your story telling kicks in to fill in those moments of the people you meet along the way. I really enjoy your reports because it's more about the journey than the wheeling. The wheeling just happens to be a bonus to it all LOL.

 

That's a good point actually!

And yes, that is usually the point. Just to get out, be alone, drive over a few rocks, maybe break something( ), and enjoy the sights

Thanks again for the compliments!

 

Awesome trip man. Great photos as well.

 

Awesome stuff! After getting the chance to meet you guys a few weeks ago it makes the trip reports even better. I'll just have to live vicariously through them until I can get back out there!

 

Hey! Glad you could stop in!

Yea need to get back out again! I can't wait to do the write up on the trip we met on. was so cool.

 

I lurk around this section and a few others on this forum. I'm uploading pictures from my entire trip as we speak! I thought I could keep it under maybe 100-200 photos, but I think I blew by that somewhere around Day 5... More pictures is better anyway.

 

More is always better. My last trip in August before this trip i didn't take enough, and i regret. I find i'll be editing photos and wish i had spent just the 10 seconds more to grab that one photo i thought of taking but decided not too for some odd reason.

Try really hard now to not do that and just shoot when i want too.

Did pretty good on this one. Shot around 1300ish or more (can't remember) and ended up with 880ish photos edited haha So did Mike. That's a lot of photos..haha But always worth it I think.

I have 1150ish i think from the trip I saw you on haha! But a lot of that is due to Panorama shots. But still. Quiet a bit.

Looking forward to seeing yours!!

 

Awesome writeup post as usual. One more place i haven't explored but must do!

 

Thanks man!

 

Bump to get off this page...

 

Your pictures are wonderful. We are going to Moab the first week in May and I cannot wait to see Utah. Been to Salt Lake City and Dugway for work but that's it.

 

Haven't even written the next chapter haha Will tonight though.

Thanks! We have fun with the photos!

You'll love it there! Gonna be hot by then so be ready for that!

 

its' looking like 50s at night 80s in day. can't wait.

 

I want to go back I want to go back I want to go back

Great chapter!