Bonzai trip through Southern UT and CO

raoulduke101

New member
My work schedule is such that planning trips far out is difficult, but occasionally something gets canceled or postponed and I have a few free days. This very thing happened the last weekend of September. I had just purchased a new-to-me '17 200 Series Land Cruiser, so I decided to seize the opportunity and take the rig out west for a "sea trial" of sorts. The first step on these trips is to find a willing accomplice, because they are just more fun when you can share the experience with good company. I knew this was going to be a challenge because I literally put the trip together on about 24-hours' notice. My usual accomplice, my son, was in school and could not accompany me. Nevertheless, a good friend with a flexible schedule and understanding wife agreed to accompany me on a 5-day blitz through UT and Colorado. I called him Wednesday evening and told him I could be ready to leave the following afternoon on Thursday. He agreed, and by 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, 9/26, we were headed west on I-10 from San Antonio.

My original plan was to make Roswell, NM around 1:00 a.m. and then camp for a few hours in the Mescalero Sand Dunes just outside town. We made great time to NM and, rolling past the Dunes, we both felt great and decided to press on through the night, alternating drivers to burn through the less scenic parts of the drive. After switching off every 100 miles or so, we made Gallup, NM just as the sun was beginning to rise. It was about 95 degrees when we left San Antonio, and the cool, crisp 55-degree morning in Gallup was a welcome change. We provisioned up at Wal-Mart and began heading north toward Utah.

We made Bluff, UT by around 10:00 a.m. on Friday, stocked up on beer (albeit 4.0% beer) and ice, and pushed onward. My buddy had never been to Southern Utah before, so I figured that a trip up the Moki Dugway would be a good introduction into this awesome landscape.


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After climbing the Dugway, our goal was to explore some of the canyons in the area. We found a suitable one that involved a number of small stream crossings, but it was pretty tight and I immediately suffered my first bit of fender rash. Not quite ready to beat up my rig yet, I decided to turn around and start heading further west.

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Our next stop was the Hite Marina for one last fuel top-off and a quick look at Lake Powell.

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From Hite, we left the pavement and headed into Glen Canyon NRA. I had a campsite reserved closer to the Maze District for the following evening, but we had no reservations or firm plan for this night. GCNRA did not disappoint.

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After a few miles, we found a campsite with great views that suited us just fine.

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The winds began to kick up as the sun went down. Having gotten very little sleep the past night, we each decided to turn in early. I was asleep by 9:00 p.m.

To be continued....
 
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Mooneywa

New member
I too have a '17 200 and wussed out and got some Michellin LTX MS2s instead of some beefier tires like KO2s. Looks like your stockers are doing well on this trip and I'm interested to see how they worked out.
 

raoulduke101

New member
DAY 3: SATURDAY, 9/28/19.

The wind flapping my tent awoke me early, and I was greeted with a beautiful sunrise over the desert. We broke camp and began to head north.

Even in its fully stock condition, the Cruiser proved to be extremely agile and capable over the obstacles we encountered on the way to the overlook.

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The overlook was incredible. I really want to come back here and spend a few days exploring the canyon floor.

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After a few hours exploring the overlook, we headed back toward the Flint Trail and onto our campsite for the night. The Flint Trail switchbacks were considerably steeper and more challenging than I expected, but the 'Cruiser tackled it without so much as spinning a tire. The craw control feature came in handy for this section. I can see why the park recommends that those descending the switchbacks wait to make sure it is clear before starting the descent. Turning around or even backing up on this section of trail would be quite nerve rattling.

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After topping out on the switchbacks, we headed for our campsite for the evening. The view was typical of any cliffside site in GCNRA--simply awesome.

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The wind had really picked up at this point, so a cliffside campsite was not an option. We ended up retreating back a hundred meters or so in the shelter of a few juniper trees. Even with the trees serving as a wind block, the gusts still came through and made for a somewhat uncomfortable evening. Cooking dinner was a challenge with the wind gusts, but we were able to prepare a couple of ribeyes on the griddle. After the sun went down, we were treated to an awesome lightning show to our west in the Henry range.

The wind rattled our tents all night, and I got very little sleep. Blowing dust seeped in through the bug mesh in my tent and coated everything inside in a fine, orange powder.

Up next--Day 4.
 
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raoulduke101

New member
I too have a '17 200 and wussed out and got some Michellin LTX MS2s instead of some beefier tires like KO2s. Looks like your stockers are doing well on this trip and I'm interested to see how they worked out.

The stock Dunlops did amazingly well. I fully expected that I would have to use my plugging kit, but I made it through the entire trip without any flats or punctures. The next trip on the books is to Big Bend National Park and Big Bend Ranch State Park, both notorious for shredding tires. I'll withhold judgment until I'm back safely from that trip. After that, it should be time for the BFGs.
 

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