San Rafael Swell, Moab, 4 Corners, and surrounding areas

I have been fortunate enough to make the trek down to the Moab area 5 of the last 6 years and haven't gotten sick of it yet. This year my wife Sam and I were able to take almost a week and a half off and we had one heck of a time.

Day 1: Thursday 10/24

We hit the road early with a goal of making it to the Idaho side of Bear lake. We would eventually make it there after about 16 hours of driving but not without a quick stop in Twin Falls to check out Shoshone Falls:



The falls were definitely worth the detour. We made it to Bear Lake late in the evening so we didn't get to see the surrounding areas but were treated to a great view when we woke up the next morning.



Day 2: Friday 10/25

We took a slightly longer route to get to the San Rafael Swell because I wanted to drive through Wyoming but still made it there in quick enough time. After a quick fuel stop in Green River, UT we headed east on I-70 to the Temple Mountain Road exit and got started on our exploring of the San Rafael Swell. We ended up running Fix-It Pass and found the one and only camping site in the area.



I wasn't able to find much information on the trails in the swell but I figured I wanted to run Fix-It Pass and The Devils Raceway. Fix-It Pass really wasn't all that exciting but the views were great. The following day we ran into some rangers and they told us that had they not brought some excavators through there a couple weeks back, I probably wouldn't have made it.

 

Day 3: Saturday 10/26

We took in the beautiful morning views and proceeded on to the Devil's Racetrack. The Devil's Racetrack had way more technical spots than Fix-It Pass did and made for a fun morning trail back to I-70. There was still nothing too crazy in there but still a great trail with absolutely beautiful views.







There was one fairly off camber spot that made me stop and think before I proceeded.



Shortly before finishing the trail you drive past Dutchman Arch. Maybe not quite as impressive as some of the arches you'll see in the national park but still, to be the only people there makes it all the better.



After arriving back at the trailhead and airing up, we headed back in the direction of Moab. We stopped for fuel at the north end of town and then headed west down the 128 in the direction of Dewey (top of the world trailhead). We weren't planning on running Top Of The World but instead I had found a spot on google earth over by Hotel Mesa in the Delores Triangle area right on the Colorado River. The one catch of getting there - you have to cross the Delores River. I was up for it!



To make this place even better, the campsite had a boatload of firewood already stocked and waiting to be burned. Needless to say, this was my wife's favorite campsite. Utah was experiencing record lows this week so the big fire made a difference at night.

 

Day 4: Sunday 10/27

After a peaceful breakfast at our awesome campsite on the river we packed up and started heading back to the highway. There wasn't much in the plans today other than making it to the Moab Aquatic Center for some $5 showers. We took the long way back into town by way of Onion Creek. I had never done this trail before but read positive things about it. All in all it was a scenic trail and I counted 27 creek crossings but it wasn't anything more than a 2wd trail. It was easy to see that a road grader of some sort had just gone through the whole place recently. I suppose its a good thing to keep the roads maintained but it definitely took some of the fun out of it.





After making it through Onion Creek and taking our showers in town we headed out to Hell Roaring Rim over by Mineral Point. I had done part of this trail five years ago by accident and was curious to see what the rest of it was like. I think it's only rated a 3 for difficulty but there were definitely some optional lines and obstacles that even I didn't try. Due to strong winds that night we had to forego the scenic campsite in favor of a more sheltered place to camp.

We had to put a constant effort into keeping my 7 lb poodle Rocky warm on this trip, especially on this night!



DAY 5: Monday 10/28

That was our coldest night yet! To make up for it we packed up quickly, headed into Moab, and bought a sit down breakfast at The Peacetree. So nice. I didn't have any wheeling planed for this day but rather a bunch of highway driving. After breakfast we fueled up and headed down south the the four corners monument. I had been curious about this place since I was a kid.



We once again took the long way to get there so we could stop by Lowry Pueblo in Canyons of the Ancients National Monument. This place was out in the middle of nowhere but worth the drive if you are into seeing ancient ruins.



Canyons of the Ancients was a last minute decision for us and because of that, we didn't really know what we were getting into. If I could do it all again I would have instead gone to Hovenweep National Monument as it looks like there is a little more there. Maybe next year..

After the four corners monument (glad to check that off the list, probably won't ever bother going back) we headed back up north to Blanding, UT for fuel and then east to the Comb Wash campground. For anyone ever staying in the area - this was an awesome campground! Beautiful views and there was nobody there.

 

Awesome trip man! How do you like your trashagroo?

 

Looks awesome my parents always run devils racetrack in their rzrs. I’ve always wanted to hit it in my taco. Gotta get armored up a little first I reckon.

 

The trasharoo is awesome! I've had it for several years and wont go on a trip without it now. It's great to keep the trash outside of the vehicle.

 

It was a really fun trail, and I bet you could fly through it with a side by side. If you are a careful driver you could make it through with factor skids for sure.

 

Day 6: Tuesday 10/29

Being that the Comb Wash campground is in somewhat of a canyon it took a little while for the morning sun to hit us so we got a bit of a late start. But once we got loaded up we headed over to the Natural Bridges National Monument and did a quick drive though. The place was a ghost town! The visitor center was closed and we nearly had the whole park to ourselves. There are three main natural bridges that have lookouts you can drive to, and they all have trails leading to them if you're feeling up for it.





We were planning on hitting beef basin from the east side so it just made sense to drive a couple more miles to see this national monument. After we got that out of the way we started on the part of the trip that I was most looking forward to - Beef basin starting from the east side and finishing on the west side at highway 211.

Bears Ears East and West from the distance. At the time I didn't realize that the road we were on going right in between them!



From right between them looking at the west:



I'm not exactly what elevation we maxed out at but we saw plenty of snow as we worked our way through the mountains. Nothing more than 3 or so inches but there was coverage everywhere at times.



Once we made it to Beef Basin the goal was to spend the day exploring the numerous roads and searching for ancient ruins. We found this cliff dwelling based on a mark in my gazetteer. It was tough to actually find but exciting once we did.





There were also numerous other ruins that we came across but they looked to be reconstructed so I didn't even bother snapping photos. Also if anyone was wondering if there is actually beef in Beef Basin, there is:



We finished our tour late in the day and as we were starting to set up camp some heavy winds and snow started coming in and the temperature started to rapidly drop. As much as I hate to admit this, we re packed everything before we were even fully set up and headed into Moab and grabbed a Hotel for the night. Despite feeling like I was somehow cheating, it was quite nice.

 

How did you hang your trasharoo with the tailgate down?

 

It takes a minute or two to set up but I slide the straps between the tailgate and the bed, around the bottom of the bumper, and then back up to the trasharoo...If that makes any sense.

 

I Think I understand. It kinda be the same way mounting it when the tailgate is up.

 

Day 7: Wednesday 10/30

Although I had fought my wife on the idea of a hotel the night before for a brief moment, it was quite nice to sleep in a heated room with a real bathroom all while knowing it was about 20 degrees outside. We headed over to the Moab Diner (amazing food, service, and prices!) for a quick breakfast and then against others recommendations headed south to Flat Iron Mesa. I have been curious about this trail for a number of years now but I've managed to stay away from it for fear that it is too tough of a trail - particularly while being a solo rig. Still though, curiosity got the best of me and we sought out to run it anyways. Turns out this is a fantastic trail and really isn't too difficult as long as you know what you're doing.





One of the named obstacles - Tilt-A-Whirl. It really isn't difficult but you just can't see where you are going so that adds to the fear factor a bit. For this I needed to have my wife guide me.





The next named obstacle was Easter Egg Rock. Again, nothing too crazy here but a spotter is helpful. I think this used to be a more difficult section but a group moved some materials around to make it easier? I'm not quite sure.







The third and final named obstacle was The Intimidator - a section of the trail that forces you to an off camber section that has you leaning hard passenger side with a cliff right next to you. The passenger of your vehicle can look out their window and straight down the cliff. My wife opted to not ride in the truck on this part for obvious reasons but unfortunately didn't get any photos either. I really think on this one though pictures wouldn't do it justice for how "intimidating" it is.

After about 3 hours we finished the trail and were left wondering how we wanted to spend the rest of the day. We made it through Flat Iron much quicker than we had anticipated. We ended up driving back up north to Dead Horse Point. If anyone ever has some free time and wants to check out some amazing views, this is worth it! It was especially cool to look down across the Colorado river and see some of the trails that we had been on in previous years - Hurrah Pass, Chicken Corners, Lockhart Basin, etc.



After Dead Horse Point we drove down into Kane Creek Canyon and grabbed one of the ledge campsites. I'm pretty sure we had the whole canyon to ourselves. Although I've camped here numerous times before, this is one of my favorite places to camp. Something about being in the bottom of a 2000' deep canyon is just peaceful and definitely beautiful.



I'm no photographer at all, but I had fun messing with the exposure time on my camera that night.

 

Nice pics & write up.....

The Swell is out my backdoor....when I read you went through Fix It......

Then said they had a trail cat repair it....then I knew...because last time I went

around it....it was tough on a SxS....the next big T/storm (if ever) will change it again

Devil's Racetrack ? Purty knarley in the one section....you're a brave man to go it alone

Doesn't get much traffic in mid week......when I usually go.....(SxS)

Your timing was bad......that cold snap was brutal.....nice now...34* overnight/64* sunny days

Camping spots ? Plenty.....Find a fire ring with the best view ! I could point you to some more

mellow trails/roads in the future.....I'm on my Kawi SxS out & about 1-2 times a week.....

Ride 11/5......lunch spot......braughts/kraut over the fire.....cold Bud Lite....

 

See any of these guys ?

Near Fix It........? Racetrack ?

 

Great pics man! I've gone to Utah roughly the same week every year and this was by far the coldest. I should have posted up something in the Utah BS thread about the swell because I really struggled to find much information on it. I definitely plan on doing some more exploring next year though so I will keep you in mind as we get closer. And no, I don't think I saw any wildlife other that some rabbits.

 

The Desert Sheep.....are rather common....just gotta watch close for them

These guys were quite willing for photos.....

weather is perfect this week.......better go load the 'Kawi.....again......

pics.......really kool......seldom traveled area.......

 

Day 8: 10/31

Again we got a slightly later start due to being in a canyon and it taking a while for the sun to hit us. When I started my truck this morning it told me it was 20 degrees outside. Needless to say we weren't exactly jumping out of our sleeping bags that morning. I admit that I had a slightly large head after going through Flat Iron Mesa the day before with such ease so inevitably I pulled us into the Moab Rim trailhead on the way out of camp. I had tried Moab Rim two years previously only to get stuck on the first major obstacle and ended up turing around. For some reason I thought that despite having the same truck two years later, I would somehow make it up this year. Not so much. As it turned out I ended up getting stuck in the exact same spot!



To make matters worse, when I was shifting around and trying to find the right line up that ledge I somehow snapped the cable on my spare tire hoist and now had a spare tire lodged at an awkward angle under the truck. Pull two far forward and the tire would rip out all sorts of wiring and cables. Back up and the tire gets more stuck. We didn't get any really good shots of it because at the time it was quite stressful. After 10 or so minutes of messing around I finally got the tire free.



After getting the spare tire freed up and loaded into the bed of my truck I made the call to just get the truck pointed back downhill and call it good before I broke anything else. So there you go - two attempts at Moab Rim on two separate trips only to get stuck at the same spot. Maybe next year?

Being grateful that we didn't break anything else we stopped by Moab Coffee Roasters for a really good cup of coffee and debated what we were going to do next. At this point in our trip we didn't have any solid plans and were just going with the flow. We settled on Porcupine Rim in the Sand Flats Recreation area. I had done this trail about five years ago but Sam had never done it. It turned out to be way more fun than I remembered and on the way back we even linked it up with the Porcupine 4X4 trail that then hooks up to the end of Fins N Things. this was an awesome trail and I definitely recommend that everybody gives it a shot.



We finished this day off with dinner at my favorite restaurant in Moab - the Blu Pig.

Day 9: 11/01

Sadly this was our last morning in Moab. We loaded up quickly and hit the road. We had built in two days for our return so that we could stop in Elko, Nevada for a night. Why Elko? We have no idea. I guess Sam and I were curious about the city since we have made northern Nevada part of several trips in the past but we have never been to this city. We ended up staying at a pet friendly casino that evening and went out to dinner again. Nothing too exciting here - and now that we've checked the city of Elko off our list we see no reason to go back.

Day 10: 11/02

We were on the road by 3:30AM and pointed the truck north and west. 14 hours later we made it home.

We put approximately 3400 miles on the truck and the only problem we had was a broken spare tire hoist. Not bad! I tried to keep my speedometer no higher that 70mph and for the whole trip averaged just over 14mpg - that is after calculating for my larger tires.

Thanks for reading!

 

again........nice write up & pics.......

gotta have faith in your rig to be out there on your own....

I carry an ACR ResQLink locator beacon....no service contract

Six year battery life......(one time battery usage) $270 @ Amazon

I suggest one for you & your wife in your remote adventures !

Can be a life saving device if you don't have one .....

 

Not a bad Idea. I'll probably add one of these before our next trip. Back in the day when I did a bunch of backpacking and climbing I carried a SPOT with me. Not sure what exactly happened to it.

 

Awesome trip! Here is @Squeaky Penguin on Easter Egg in '16, looks like that big rock got moved over quite a bit. Used to be pretty challenging to not smash the side of the truck on the big rock. Kinda lame someone moved it to make it easier, especially since you could bypass this section.