2022 Spring Adventure Recap

East Central and SouthEast Utah
May 16-20, 2022

On this adventure, we had nine 4×4 vehicles: 4 Jeep Gladiators, 2 Jeep Wrangler JK Unlimiteds, 2 Jeep Wrangler TJ Unlimiteds and a Jeep Grand Cherokee WJ. We started and ended this adventure in Moab, Utah

On Day 1 we left Moab, Utah to run the Shafer Trail in Canyonlands National Park, with at stop at Thelma and Louise Point. From there we headed over to see Dead Horse Point. After that we ran Hurrah Pass, and finished out the day with a delicious camp meal of Lasagna with green beans and salad, and for dessert we had chocolate cherry upside down cake!

Day 2 started with a fantastic breakfast of corned beef hash and eggs. Then we moved on to run the Chicken Corners trail, and then on to run the long Lockhart Basin trail, where we ran into a couple of obstacles and needed to do some significant winching. Later we set up camp at what we’ve affectionately nicknamed Johnny Bravo Camp, and had some amazing Salisbury Steak for dinner. Dessert was chocolate chip cookies and ice cream, which really hit the spot after a hot day on the trails.1

Day 3 started at Johnny Bravo Camp with a favorite 4Xploring breakfast of Cowboy Waffle Bake. We then continued on the Lockhart Basin trail until we made our way to pavement for a little while. We gassed up at the Needles Outpost before moving on to the Jeep Badge of Honor trail called Elephant Hill in the Needles District of Canyonlands National Park. This trail has some interesting challenges, including a switchback you have to drive *backwards* down, and a couple of very tight squeezes to get through. We had reservations to camp in the park, where we had an awesome dinner of Carnitas el Diablo.

 
Day 4 was particularly…interesting. And unique. But memorable! It started out normally enough with a stellar breakfast of blueberry pancakes and sausages before leaving camp to explore more of Utah. However, we weren’t 100 yards out of Canyonlands National Park when the blue Safari LJ had an electrical problem which caused the engine to shut down, and after an hour or so of attempting to troubleshoot the problem, the only recourse we had was to tow it back to civilization. The problem? An obstacle called Bobby’s Hole Dugway, which is a long, STEEP climb with lots of soft sand and big boulders to have to wind around. After about 3-4 hours of a WHOLE lot of towing and winching, we *finally* got Safari LJ to the top. From there the group separated: most towed it to the nearest town of Blanding, while a couple high tailed it to Moab to get the truck and trailer and bring them back to Blanding. At that point we said goodbye to Safari LJ as it began its journey to Cheyenne for eventual repairs, while the rest set up camp near Blanding for the night. But at least we got to enjoy a fabulous dinner of Chopped Chae!

Day 5 was a return to normal. After another awesome breakfast, this time of 5-Layer Bake, we traveled along the top of Comb Ridge for several miles. Then we stopped to visit San Juan Hill, where the Mormon pioneers struggled to get their oxen and wagons up a steep and rocky hill after having endured the brutal Hole in the Rock trail for months. Then it was on to River House Ruin, an ancient Native American dwelling in the side of a cliff overlooking the San Juan river.

At this point the group split up. Bob, Mary, Chris and Beth left for Flagstaff, Arizona to attend the Overland Expo West event, while the rest headed East to run the Montezuma Canyon road, which has many ancient petroglyph and dwelling areas, perhaps most notably Three Kiva Pueblo, which you can climb down inside via a ladder. After Montezuma Canyon, we headed back to Moab to officially end Spring Adventure 2022.

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2022 Spring Adventure Recap