Moab Off The Beaten Path

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There is a geyser to the south of town and it is worth a nice trip. Green River is 70 miles northwest of Moab and easily reached via highway driving. The road to Crystal Geyser is another trip. It requires going through the old missile base of Government, and the roads are not maintained, but passable. Located about 9 miles from main street in town.
The geyser is of cold water-so you can touch it. The rust colored forms are from such mineral rich soils in the underground. It spews up every 12-16 hours, and I did not get to see that, but a little trickler is close by. The travertine means rust terraces, and the surface around the geyser is rippled in a wonderful setting.

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There are a lot of roads that branch off of the main road in town. They all led to the out country and it is rugged, rough, and bumpy in many areas. It is really called a desert in this part of Utah, and is dry to prove it, except for along the Green River running through town and beyond.

Fossil Point is about 13 miles south of town, and located in a barren hot, dry plateau with some gray hills peaking up. The road is not too bad to travel until the last couple of miles. I went past the designated area for a bit, and it does get worse form there. Four wheel drive is helpful. Green River is about 70 miles from Moab, and easy drive to get there in less than an hour.

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SAn Rafael has been a place least known probably in the whole country. This is the last of an untapped area of the US. It still has many areas that have not been thoroughly explored. Around it, are some designated places to see. It is called Castle Country and has high peaks that get snow in winter, and desert badlands that really are bad to travel in some places. The area was once ranched more, but tough weather and terrain detered people form settling in numbers since early 1800's. There are to be 2,000 miles of road going through this area that spreads out for around 500 square miles, but few are passable with a normal highway vehicle; you need 4x4or motor bike.

It would be about 70 miles from Moab. Green River is also a spot to visit that is on US 70. Some hiking and driving tours are staged from here. There are only two roads without use of 4 wheel drive, and each travel along the fringe of the more rugged areas.

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Off Highway 191 north of Moab, turn onto Entrada Bluffs Road by the Old Dewey Bridge. This looped trail, rated a 4 on a scale of 10, will take 3 to 4 hours to complete. It is taken mostly for it's scenic value...offering one of the most dramatic overlooks of the Moab area.

But, wheelers will not be disappointed. Once on the loop, there are many rock ledges and shelves to climb on your way up to the top. Body damage is possible.

The view is incredible. Once at the overlook, the trail loops back to the beginning.

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Though this trail is in Kane Springs Canyon, this trail is known as Kane Creek Canyon. This 13.7 mile trail takes you to the floor of Kane Creek Canyon, crossing the creek many times. Allow 3 or 4 hours once on the trail.

Enjoy the break from the Moab heat as you cross the creek, surrounded by trees. Then, a steep, rather difficult, narrow photogenic shelf is your route out of the canyon.

This trail used to be rated a 5, but was upgraded to a difficulty level of 6 due to erosion. This year, it's pushing a 7. Certain areas around the creek have washed out parts of the road, or left the trail with extreme obstacles.

We really enjoyed the trip down into the canyon, looking at multi-colored cliffs all around us. It was dry when we started the trail, and unfortunately, the creek was nothing more than puddles in places. This area is dangerous as flash floods could come at any time...keep your eye on the sky.

Most of the trail is rocky and off-camber, but the shelf on the way out is the most difficult the trail has to offer. Steep tiers of rock along the cliff side require careful tyre placement. It began to rain as we ascended the shelf, but made it out unscratched (almost...our guide hit a boulder and scratched the side of his truck really good).

This trail certainly was great off road fun and very photogenic. Must try it again in the spring...when the creek is full.

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Steel Bender rates a 7 on a difficulty scale of 1 - 10. It provides numerous obstacles, only a couple not having bypasses. As put by a popular trail guide book, this trail is a real "bumper-thumper."

Most of the trail is uneven, rocky lines with large rock obstacles. The trail is NOT for stock vehicles. Popular obstacles on this trail include "The Wall", "The Fall" and "Witches Step", as well as water crossing and numerous tall ledges. High ground clearance, excellent articulation and lockers are recommended.

We had a great trail leader who was a fabolous spotter and got every truck (even stock trucks) through the most difficult spots. I believe only one vehicle broke on axle during the trip.

The trail begins and ends in Mill Creek Canyon and measures 14.9 miles. Allow 5 to 6 hours to complete, more if you have a large group.

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Technically, Hell's Revenge rates a 4 on a difficulty rating of 1 to 10. The trail gets it's name not just from the petrified sand dunes resembling a frozen sea of hell fire, but also because it is not for the faint of heart. The trail is NOT intended for stock vehicles or novice drivers. Low gearing, good articulation, high clearance, high approach and departure angles necessary, and lockers are highly recommended.

The trail is in the Sand Flats Recreation Area (fee applies...$6.00 for 3 days) and as you climb these sandstone hills, you can look out over miles of petrified dunes. The trail laid out over the horizon like a crayon line...

Allow 4 to 6 hours for this 6.9 mile trail. There are two optional loops that bring you to more difficult obstacles...such as Hell's Gate and Escalator Loop. The sandstone acts like fly paper, the grip that the tyres got on that surface was better than asphalt. Even though we climbed and descended at extreme angles, the truck never once flinched off course.

The first 100 yards, you climb up a sandstone fin, wide enough for one vehicle, and dropping on both sides. I had a panic attack right away. (I'm terribly afraid of heights). I convinced my husband to let me continue on the trail, only to face a much larger, higher, steeper obstacle. After that second panic attack, though, I was all right!

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I took a four day motor powered trip down the Colorado through Cataract Canyon. It was a powerful and relaxing experience. It was a long time ago and there are other options now, but the canyon itself can still invoke the same reverence if you let it. In the days before waterproof and digital cameras we have few pictures to remind us or provide images to others of what the experience was like. But I can still remember the sound of the rapids we camped next to, the hot sand where we ate lunch, the taste of the honeydew melon, the cooling effect of the river water, the quiet, the stars, the river camaraderie, and the exhilaration of the final three big drops. Those were some huge boulders blocking our way. Even with the motor they had us paddle to increase our speed, and I still have the image of one of the other boats whose oarsman tried to make it through without the motor and got stuck on a rock. His frantic efforts to get the motor started while perched up on top of that huge house size boulder is etched in my mind.
I am grateful for the memories