Utah October Trip...

[AZKJ]

Beth and I are hitting the road again!!! \\/ wrc.gif \\/

We're planning a trip up to Torrey, UT during the first week of October. We'll leave Phoenix 9/29 and return on 10/5. If anyone is interested, we could consider changing the dates by a week or two as long as it's in the first half of October.

EDIT: The itinerary has changed a little. See post #7 for details.

The plan:

- Day 1: We'll leave Phoenix and drive up to Page, AZ, play around Lake Powell and spend the night.

- Day 2: Drive up to Torrey, UT via Warm Springs Rd > Missing Canyon Rd > Hole-in-the-Rock Rd > CR 12. It is a 150 mile / 3:30 hour drive, but plan on an all day trip getting to Torrey, UT. The route takes us through Glen Canyon NRA, Grand Staircase Escalante NM - Dixie NF and Capitol Reef NP... with plenty of side trips.

- Day 3 & 4: We'll explore Burr Trail, Hole-in-the-Rock Road, Smokey Mountain Road, Hell's Backbone Road and whatever side trails we come across.

- Day 5: Drive to Fredonia through the Dixie NF, exploring as we go.

- Day 6: Do the TOROWEAP OVERLOOK (Wells #1)

- Day 7: Drive back to Phoenix

- 1 night in Page, AZ
- 3 nights in Torrey, UT
- 2 nights in Fredonia, AZ

If anybody wants to take some vacation time, you're more than welcome to join us. We've been up there before and let me tell you... the scenery is something else. Everything from the desert around Lake Powell to scenic canyons, red rock cliffs and aspen forests.

If anyone plans to tag along, I'll post the motel information.

Here are a few pics from a previous trip and a map of the area...

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[indieaz]

Wife and I were originally going to plan a Utah trip along those lines in October...but we're a little short on funds (we now must attend a wedding in Costa Rica in spring...which will cost as much as 20 Utah trips). So that's probably out for now, plus we have plans to do a lift, MOAB wheels, tires and skids on the jeep before any more major offroading. Maybe next time tho.

 

[AZKJ]

Enjoy the trip and I envy you on the lift, better wheels etc. Our KJ is my wife's daily driver, so no mods in it's future.

 

[indieaz]

Enjoy the trip and I envy you on the lift, better wheels etc. Our KJ is my wife's daily driver, so no mods in it's future.

Our KJ is my wife's daily too...but she wants it lifted etc. also. She prefers the meaner look. She wanted a Wrangler...but i suggested we do the liberty since we tend to drive fairly long distances on interstates in it (which is no fun in a soft top wrangler imo).

 

[o8k]

That trip sounds fun, i will check my callender and see if i can go

 

[rkeegstra]

It does sound like a lot of fun, but Wife will be in China and I won't be able to take any time off. At some point we do want to hike "The Wave", which is around the "M" in Marble Canyon by the starting piint on your map.

Russ

 

[AZKJ]

That trip sounds fun, i will check my callender and see if i can go

Beth just informed me today that the dates are set in stone and can't be changed because of her work schedule. Also, the itinerary has changed a little...

- 1 night in Page, AZ
- 3 nights in Torrey, UT
- 2 nights in Fredonia, AZ

Here are some of the trails around Torrey and Boulder we plan on doing...

- Burr Trail,

- Hole-in-the-Rock Road,

- Smokey Mountain Road,

- Hell's Backbone Road

...and whatever else we find.

We're not doing Zion or Bryce Canyons. Instead, on the way south we're going to explore more of the Dixe NF along Hwy 12 and stay in Fredonia that night. The next day we're going to take the 60 mile dirt road (120 miles roundtrip) to the TOROWEAP OVERLOOK on the NW rim of the Grand Canyon (Wells #1) and do a few short side trails on the way back to Fredonia. We'll spend a second night in Fredonia and head home the next day.

If you or anyone else is interested, I'll send out a list of the motels we're staying at (the ones in Page are already mostly booked and going fast)....

 

[AZKJ]

Okay, we're off on our Utah Expedition - 2007. Sorry nobody could make this trip with us. I'll post pics when we get back next weekend.

Cool weather and rugged landscapes, here we come!!!

 

[rkeegstra]

Are you going to do Peek-A-Boo and Spooky off the Hole-In-The-Rock trail? Take many pics.

We are compiling a long list of things we need to see, and I am now adding a lot more specific sights in southern Utah to that list.

 

[AZKJ]

Just checking in from Utah... I found a computer at one of the hotels up here that will let me use it for a few minutes..

We haven't done anything extreme up here, but the easy trails have fantastic scenery and that makes up for it.

I'll post lots of pics when we get back to Phoenix this weekend.

Russ... no, we didn't do the Hole-in-the Rock Trail or those hikes you mentioned. We did do the short Antalope Canyon up in Page.

 

[rkeegstra]

We did do the short Antalope Canyon up in Page.

We love Antelope Canyon - we did Lower Antelope Canyon several years back, spent five hours going through it. Took over 500 pictures. Each. Including this, the only picture of me that I like:

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Russ

 

[AZKJ]

Russ, nice picture in Lower Antalope Canyon under a very low light setting....

We got back from our Utah Expedition - 2007 late this morning. Put a total of 1,250 miles on the wife's KJ in six days... about 320 miles of it was dirt.

I'll post a trip report tomorrow along with a bunch of pictures.

Wild Horse Mesa Trail (Massey & Wilson Utah Adventures #C-17)....

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[AZKJ]

As promised, the trip report and tons of pictures from our "Utah Expedition - 2007" are posted here.

Southwest Utah is a beautifull and varied place. The scenery can not be fully described in words or pictures. We'll most likely head back up there again next spring or early fall. If anyone is interested, Beth and I would be more than happy to lead another expedition up there. Now's the time to make plans and set aside some vacation time for the week long trip if you'd like to go.

Enjoy the pics....