Utah

Salt Lake City

August 2024

View from our hotel.

We went to the Blue Iguana Restaurant in the heart of downtown. Delicious meal.

In August 2022 we took delivery of our Escapod teardrop camper just outside of Salt Lake City.

Bonneville Salt Flats

Silver Island Mountains

We camped in the Silver Island mountain range, which lies at the west perimeter of the Great Salt Lake Desert. The southeast flank of the range is on the northwest border of the Bonneville Salt Flats.

Salt Flats of the Great Salt Lake Desert

Batman owning the high ground overlooking the Bonneville Salt Flats

Our Campsite For The Night

Moab

August 2024

Petroglyphs

The large area of cliff wall by the Colorado River along Potash Road is where we found the Potash Road Petroglyphs. There is a lot of petroglyphs scattered along the cliff. Some are up high, others are low to the ground.

Location: About 10 miles outside of Moab. Take US 191 north, to UT 279 south. The rock art and cliff will be on the right. There is signage for the Petroglyphs which are just past the Wall Street rock climbing area. 38.54467, -109.60008

Jeep Trails

We explored a wide variety of trails during our visit to Moab. Shortly after we arrived a local recommended we start at Fins 'N' Things. His advice couldn't have been more perfect. We needed to learn about the capabilities of our rig on the sandstone slickrock domes, bowls and fins. You see a capable offroad vehicle handles very differently on the petrified dunes -- "slickrock" -- of Moab. We did things with our Jeep Rubicon in Utah that we would never try on the East Coast. The slickrock formations formed in Moab when ancient sand dunes harden into stone and the overlying material erodes away. Slickrock grips like sandpaper.

All the trails we drove are highly recommended, especially if you are just starting out with offroad 4x4 travel.

Fins 'N' Things

38.58163, -109.50022

This one-way trail is a little more than 9-miles long. It offers a wide variety of obstacles you and your vehicle will want to overcome. Make sure you bring a spotter with you. Most obstacles include a bypass if you're not up for the challenge. Bring plenty of water and maybe a bag lunch because you will be on this trail for several hours. It’s that much fun.

Long Canyon Trail

38.54489, -109.76401

We were treated with outstanding views from top to bottom on Long Canyon Road. It’s a fairly wide gravel road except through Pucker Pass, where it narrows and gets steep. This approximately 10-mile trail starts at the Poison Spider Mesa trailhead and goes through rugged terrain, including steep climbs and descents, narrow ledges, and rocky obstacles. It us through through scenic canyons, over slickrock formations, and past towering rock formations.

Onion Creek Trail

38.72419, -109.35580

Locals will tell you Onion Creek Trail is one of Moab's most pictpicture. We must say it did not disappoint. There were somewhere in the neighborhood of 15 water crossings (all were easy), deep gorges, and towering rock formations. If you visit Moab be sure to put this trail on your list.

Shafer Trail

38.47150, -109.81149

This unforgettable trail is an eye dropping and heart stopping backcountry unpaved road with hairpin turns that cause white-knuckle driving and colorful language. Located in Canyonlands National Park, the breathtaking scenery of Shafer Trail is unsurpassed. At least that is what we thought. Every turn during our day trips to Moab was met with spectacular new views, unique wildlife, and amazing history.

We visited the Moab desert in August! Was it hot? You bet it was. But, it wasn't as bad as you might think. We would drive many Jeep trails during the day with the air conditioning on full blast, keeping us and the dog very comfortable. Our evenings at basecamp on the cliffs of Canyonlands were very different. Right around 7:30 PM each night the temperature would drop to 72°F (22°C) with a light breeze. This happened every night. The stars come out and the satellites zoom by. Our evenings in Moab were sensational.

Mexican Mountains

The erosion of the multi-colored sedimentary rocks of the eastern San Rafael Swell form the Mexican Mountain Wilderness. There are numerous trails back in this area ranging from easy to extremely difficult and everything in between. There are dispersed campsites to be found in this area. We found the higher we travelled up into these mountains, we could avoid the sprinter vans that appear near dusk looking for a place to hand out.

Night Skies

Designated a Gold-Tier International Dark Sky Park, the highest designation for darkness, Canyonlands and Arches National Parks offer up amazing star gazing every night. We were simply blown away by how bright the Milky Way looked. If up are stargazer, astrophotographer, or astrophysicists -- this is the place to be.

The Moab desert, including Canyonlands and Hovenweep National Monument, is covered in a black, crunchy, knobby crust called a biological soil crust or biocrust. This crust is made up of a community of microscopic organisms, including algae, fungi, lichens, bryophytes, and cyanobacteria, that bind the soil together. The crust is 2–5 inches deep and can be found on sandy red soil.

Our basecamp in a remote location outside of Moab overlooked Marlboro Butte. This buet is where the original Marlboro cigarette commercial was made.

View of the Colorado River near Dead Horse Point along Potash Road to Moab.

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