- Jun 9, 2002
- 9,535
- 0
Well as I sit and consider the epic adventure, now some 3 days in the past I still am in awe of the wonder of the desert southwest and what God has wrought in the rock. Additionally, I am humbled by the many contributions (known and unknown) to the success of this adventure.
First the Thank You’s ...
Rodzilla - Rod went above and beyond to kindle the flame of knowledge, providing many ride suggestions and information regarding Moab and the surrounding area. Rod, thanks again and we need to meet and ride some of Moab together.
CJ Rider - For first mentioning the possibility of even going to Moab, by pointing out that Moab is ONLY 6 hours from Albuquerque. And for keeping the fire stoked in the best tradition of DRN, providing ride info and tantalizing photos of the wonders that awaited our arrival.
VintageDirt - Mr. Baca allowed me to park my trailer in his driveway (to the consternation of the local neighborhood association president) for two nights. The goal was three nights but a 7:00ish AM visit by the local bluehair vigilante convinced us it was time to move the trailer, so that brings me to ..
MamaDirt - Wes’s mother was gracious enough to allow me to move the trailer to her driveway on short notice. Parking the trailer in her drive was followed by tour of the Baca Mansion with appropriate notation of photos of Wes as a young man. Negotiations will soon be underway for publication rights of said photos. She is obviously quite proud.
tx246 and strsfan2 - Gene and Jeff are two of the finest riding partners I could have asked for. Gene went out of his way to make sure that we always managed to conquer all obstacles, often manhandling many if not all of the bikes over them with our less experienced help. Additional thanks to both Gene and Jeff for always being humorous and laughing at our many predicaments that we found ourselves in. These guys are the stuff memories are made of.
Additionally I want to thank the pioneers that visited Moab in the dim past, forging the way for those of us that have followed and lastly ...
I want to thank DRN and everyone here for being part of the family and making memories like these possible. Almost every weekend there are memories being made somewhere in the DRN world and it is safe to say the sun never sets on DRN.
Thanks one and all and now on to the ride report ...
Day Zero - May 12th
Day zero consisted of me running around Albuquerque picking up last minute odds and ends, Jeff and I shopping for food and finally getting on the road after picking up Gene at the airport about 7:30PM. Day zero stretched until we shut down the truck besides the Colorado River about 4~5 miles north out of Moab about 2:00 AM on Day One.
Day One - May 13th
After rising quickly as the traffic along 128 passed within mere feet of our heads, we grabbed breakfast at the Moab Diner and plotted the days activity. A couple of cups of 100 proof coffee and I was ready for anything. Deciding to take the day easy we headed north to the parking area for Klondike Bluffs trailhead. We burned a fair amount of the morning sorting out gear and rejetting the 200 for the 5000 foot elevation, but we managed to be on the trail heading out by 11ish.
Klondike Bluffs Trail - The start of this trail (because of where we parked) started with about 2~3 miles of easy fire roads. Reaching the gate for the trail, we found a wide single track style trail with numerous lines that eventually tightened into one line as we approached the hills bordering Arches National Park. One last little challenge and we found ourselves at the border of the park and a fence with a personnel gate. A hike of ½ mile rewarded us with our first view of the park. After many photo-ops we reversed our path and returned to the truck for a break in the shade. Noting a large area to the south of the Klondike Bluffs trail we headed out again to see what we could find. We soon stumbled onto the ...
Sovereign Trail system and found some challenging single track and a great little ATV loop that was very new and not grooved for ATVs which allowed us to open the bikes up. This entire loop reminded me of Moonrocks this spring without the whoops. Great stuff and much of it negotiable in 5th gear at half or more throttle. Big uphills followed by blind downhills added greatly to the pucker factor. As the sun was falling on day one we tallied up about 50 miles total for the days ride, not bad for one experienced rider and two wantabees.
A quick trip to the City Market procured ice and dinner and we soon found ourselves happily stuffed and snoozing in space 46 on aisle 3 of the Moab KOA campground.
Day Two - May 14th
Morning dawned on three tired and sore campers (we slept on the floor of the trailer) but coffee and breakfast got us up and stirring, looking for new challenges for the day. Again heading north, we targeted the opposite side of 191 and the daunting prospect of the ...
Golden Spike Jeep Trail -Situated on the bluff across from Arches National Park the Golden Spike Jeep Trail offers heart stopping views off of bluffs easily 1000 feet above the valley floor towards Arches to our east. Black Diamonds and Double Black Diamonds sprinkled the last 60 percent of the route, so I began the ride by discounting our ability to ride the entire length without a gas stop. Boy did I underestimate the Medium and Medium + trails. There were many an outcrop to climb and more than a few challenges that brought us to a halt to contemplate a line through the maze. We were eventually rewarded with a stop at the edge of the rim overlooking the park below and a sun high in the sky. A conversation with a couple riding south to north (we were heading north to south) left us with a better understanding of the trail ahead and the decision to turn back while we still had fuel for the return trip. Never mind that the next 4+ miles was all Double Black. After lunch and more fuel we headed back out towards ...
Gemini Bridges Road - Don’t let anyone kid you about roads, they were often little more that goat paths that some cruel individual had originally traversed in an old M38 jeep many years in the past. This road provided many great views to the west.
Tired and ready for dinner, Gene volunteered and we dined on some of the best butterfly porkchops I have ever had the pleasure of eating.
Day 3 - May 15th
Saturday dawned with the renewed purpose of riding until our wheels fell off as this was it. Heading south we pulled into the parking spot for the ...
Behind the Rocks Trail - Just a mile or so up the road from the parking area the map noted a “Very difficult 4WD maneuver”. That turned out to be an understatement and it turned out to be the second obstacle of the day. Not a ½ mile from the parking area we were faced with what appeared to be a unridable object. A wall of rock 3 (or so) feet in diameter was strewn and stacked across the entire trail and sprinkled liberally with loose rock and sand. Approaching 20 feet in total height, it left us hunting a way to get the bikes to the top. Twenty minutes of studying, cursing and prodding got us to the top with many hours of daylight ahead. Now on to the “Very difficult 4WD maneuver” Rounding a bend, I was faced with a bottomless pit covered with rubber from the many attempts made by jeeps on the face. The path dropped 30 (or more) feet only to rise almost as quickly back to the same height we currently inhabited. While I looked for the bridge across the creek bottom Gene found another route to the bottom and off we went. The hill was soon 2 and 0 in the lead with the two strokes losing the battle for the title of “King of the Hill”. As has been said, the third time is the charm and in this case it was as Gene rode my 400 up the gnarly hill from a heretofore unseen angle that conquered the hill and brought Gene the title of “King of the Hill”. The celebration was short-lived as we had only made maybe a mile and a half in an hour, so it was off to Picture Frame Arch. A nice cool breeze, and shade awaited us at the arch. Heading west again, we continued along the ...
Kane Creek Canyon Rim Trail and the fabulous views of Kane Springs Canyon and Trail below. The trail became quite rocky and at some point I contacted Mother Earth with my expansion chamber on the 200 (although at that point undetected) and began the process of making my bike a mess with spooge. Stopping at an overlook we watched a truck slowly traversing the trail below, all the while listening to his stereo like it was next door. Gene and Jeff both recognized the artist/tune although I have to admit I hadn’t a clue.
Returning to the truck, we discovered the errors of my ways and spent a couple of hours beating the pipe back into submission with a ball pien hammer and a chunk of 4x4 I found in my truck. Not prefect, but close enough we headed out to ...
Kane Creek Canyon Trail - Totally unlike anything else encountered at Moab, this trail left me wishing we had started there that morning. It was beautiful and full of life like many hidden areas of the desert. The trail wound along the southern face of the trail, crawling up, over and around boulders in its path until rejoining the stream trickling through the bottom of the canyon. All the while, I noted, another trail followed the creek along the northern edge of the canyon. This memory proved to be important as we encountered two more seemingly insurmountable rock formations and the lower trail cut out one on the return trip. A race against sunset pitted us against time and we finally stopped and reversed course at 7:00 PM, racing the loss of sunlight back to the truck. One last short spurt down Highway 191 as the last rays of sun faded left us tired and satisfied with the days ride, wishing only that we had seen more of the canyon.
Wendy’s served up dinner as we were all too tired to consider cooking and it was off to bed.
Day Four - May 16th
While Gene packed the trailer (he is heading back in a month with his wife and kids) Jeff and I completed a whirlwind tour of Arches National Park. The scenery is without compare and well worth the time (actually way more than the slightly over two hours that we spent). 11 Am found us hitched up and on the road back to civilization.
Regrets: I regret not getting OnAnySunday’s message on Saturday. Just south of Amarillo on 287, my phone woke up to the fact I had a message. Sorry Wally, we will plan better next time. Another regret is not being able to share the time with a bigger group of buddies. This is a must ride and if you don’t have it on your list of places you have to go ... (trust me on this) ADD IT!
Until Next Time!
First the Thank You’s ...
Rodzilla - Rod went above and beyond to kindle the flame of knowledge, providing many ride suggestions and information regarding Moab and the surrounding area. Rod, thanks again and we need to meet and ride some of Moab together.
CJ Rider - For first mentioning the possibility of even going to Moab, by pointing out that Moab is ONLY 6 hours from Albuquerque. And for keeping the fire stoked in the best tradition of DRN, providing ride info and tantalizing photos of the wonders that awaited our arrival.
VintageDirt - Mr. Baca allowed me to park my trailer in his driveway (to the consternation of the local neighborhood association president) for two nights. The goal was three nights but a 7:00ish AM visit by the local bluehair vigilante convinced us it was time to move the trailer, so that brings me to ..
MamaDirt - Wes’s mother was gracious enough to allow me to move the trailer to her driveway on short notice. Parking the trailer in her drive was followed by tour of the Baca Mansion with appropriate notation of photos of Wes as a young man. Negotiations will soon be underway for publication rights of said photos. She is obviously quite proud.
tx246 and strsfan2 - Gene and Jeff are two of the finest riding partners I could have asked for. Gene went out of his way to make sure that we always managed to conquer all obstacles, often manhandling many if not all of the bikes over them with our less experienced help. Additional thanks to both Gene and Jeff for always being humorous and laughing at our many predicaments that we found ourselves in. These guys are the stuff memories are made of.
Additionally I want to thank the pioneers that visited Moab in the dim past, forging the way for those of us that have followed and lastly ...
I want to thank DRN and everyone here for being part of the family and making memories like these possible. Almost every weekend there are memories being made somewhere in the DRN world and it is safe to say the sun never sets on DRN.
Thanks one and all and now on to the ride report ...
Day Zero - May 12th
Day zero consisted of me running around Albuquerque picking up last minute odds and ends, Jeff and I shopping for food and finally getting on the road after picking up Gene at the airport about 7:30PM. Day zero stretched until we shut down the truck besides the Colorado River about 4~5 miles north out of Moab about 2:00 AM on Day One.
Day One - May 13th
After rising quickly as the traffic along 128 passed within mere feet of our heads, we grabbed breakfast at the Moab Diner and plotted the days activity. A couple of cups of 100 proof coffee and I was ready for anything. Deciding to take the day easy we headed north to the parking area for Klondike Bluffs trailhead. We burned a fair amount of the morning sorting out gear and rejetting the 200 for the 5000 foot elevation, but we managed to be on the trail heading out by 11ish.
Klondike Bluffs Trail - The start of this trail (because of where we parked) started with about 2~3 miles of easy fire roads. Reaching the gate for the trail, we found a wide single track style trail with numerous lines that eventually tightened into one line as we approached the hills bordering Arches National Park. One last little challenge and we found ourselves at the border of the park and a fence with a personnel gate. A hike of ½ mile rewarded us with our first view of the park. After many photo-ops we reversed our path and returned to the truck for a break in the shade. Noting a large area to the south of the Klondike Bluffs trail we headed out again to see what we could find. We soon stumbled onto the ...
Sovereign Trail system and found some challenging single track and a great little ATV loop that was very new and not grooved for ATVs which allowed us to open the bikes up. This entire loop reminded me of Moonrocks this spring without the whoops. Great stuff and much of it negotiable in 5th gear at half or more throttle. Big uphills followed by blind downhills added greatly to the pucker factor. As the sun was falling on day one we tallied up about 50 miles total for the days ride, not bad for one experienced rider and two wantabees.
A quick trip to the City Market procured ice and dinner and we soon found ourselves happily stuffed and snoozing in space 46 on aisle 3 of the Moab KOA campground.
Day Two - May 14th
Morning dawned on three tired and sore campers (we slept on the floor of the trailer) but coffee and breakfast got us up and stirring, looking for new challenges for the day. Again heading north, we targeted the opposite side of 191 and the daunting prospect of the ...
Golden Spike Jeep Trail -Situated on the bluff across from Arches National Park the Golden Spike Jeep Trail offers heart stopping views off of bluffs easily 1000 feet above the valley floor towards Arches to our east. Black Diamonds and Double Black Diamonds sprinkled the last 60 percent of the route, so I began the ride by discounting our ability to ride the entire length without a gas stop. Boy did I underestimate the Medium and Medium + trails. There were many an outcrop to climb and more than a few challenges that brought us to a halt to contemplate a line through the maze. We were eventually rewarded with a stop at the edge of the rim overlooking the park below and a sun high in the sky. A conversation with a couple riding south to north (we were heading north to south) left us with a better understanding of the trail ahead and the decision to turn back while we still had fuel for the return trip. Never mind that the next 4+ miles was all Double Black. After lunch and more fuel we headed back out towards ...
Gemini Bridges Road - Don’t let anyone kid you about roads, they were often little more that goat paths that some cruel individual had originally traversed in an old M38 jeep many years in the past. This road provided many great views to the west.
Tired and ready for dinner, Gene volunteered and we dined on some of the best butterfly porkchops I have ever had the pleasure of eating.
Day 3 - May 15th
Saturday dawned with the renewed purpose of riding until our wheels fell off as this was it. Heading south we pulled into the parking spot for the ...
Behind the Rocks Trail - Just a mile or so up the road from the parking area the map noted a “Very difficult 4WD maneuver”. That turned out to be an understatement and it turned out to be the second obstacle of the day. Not a ½ mile from the parking area we were faced with what appeared to be a unridable object. A wall of rock 3 (or so) feet in diameter was strewn and stacked across the entire trail and sprinkled liberally with loose rock and sand. Approaching 20 feet in total height, it left us hunting a way to get the bikes to the top. Twenty minutes of studying, cursing and prodding got us to the top with many hours of daylight ahead. Now on to the “Very difficult 4WD maneuver” Rounding a bend, I was faced with a bottomless pit covered with rubber from the many attempts made by jeeps on the face. The path dropped 30 (or more) feet only to rise almost as quickly back to the same height we currently inhabited. While I looked for the bridge across the creek bottom Gene found another route to the bottom and off we went. The hill was soon 2 and 0 in the lead with the two strokes losing the battle for the title of “King of the Hill”. As has been said, the third time is the charm and in this case it was as Gene rode my 400 up the gnarly hill from a heretofore unseen angle that conquered the hill and brought Gene the title of “King of the Hill”. The celebration was short-lived as we had only made maybe a mile and a half in an hour, so it was off to Picture Frame Arch. A nice cool breeze, and shade awaited us at the arch. Heading west again, we continued along the ...
Kane Creek Canyon Rim Trail and the fabulous views of Kane Springs Canyon and Trail below. The trail became quite rocky and at some point I contacted Mother Earth with my expansion chamber on the 200 (although at that point undetected) and began the process of making my bike a mess with spooge. Stopping at an overlook we watched a truck slowly traversing the trail below, all the while listening to his stereo like it was next door. Gene and Jeff both recognized the artist/tune although I have to admit I hadn’t a clue.
Returning to the truck, we discovered the errors of my ways and spent a couple of hours beating the pipe back into submission with a ball pien hammer and a chunk of 4x4 I found in my truck. Not prefect, but close enough we headed out to ...
Kane Creek Canyon Trail - Totally unlike anything else encountered at Moab, this trail left me wishing we had started there that morning. It was beautiful and full of life like many hidden areas of the desert. The trail wound along the southern face of the trail, crawling up, over and around boulders in its path until rejoining the stream trickling through the bottom of the canyon. All the while, I noted, another trail followed the creek along the northern edge of the canyon. This memory proved to be important as we encountered two more seemingly insurmountable rock formations and the lower trail cut out one on the return trip. A race against sunset pitted us against time and we finally stopped and reversed course at 7:00 PM, racing the loss of sunlight back to the truck. One last short spurt down Highway 191 as the last rays of sun faded left us tired and satisfied with the days ride, wishing only that we had seen more of the canyon.
Wendy’s served up dinner as we were all too tired to consider cooking and it was off to bed.
Day Four - May 16th
While Gene packed the trailer (he is heading back in a month with his wife and kids) Jeff and I completed a whirlwind tour of Arches National Park. The scenery is without compare and well worth the time (actually way more than the slightly over two hours that we spent). 11 Am found us hitched up and on the road back to civilization.
Regrets: I regret not getting OnAnySunday’s message on Saturday. Just south of Amarillo on 287, my phone woke up to the fact I had a message. Sorry Wally, we will plan better next time. Another regret is not being able to share the time with a bigger group of buddies. This is a must ride and if you don’t have it on your list of places you have to go ... (trust me on this) ADD IT!
Until Next Time!
