From Oklahoma to Canyonlands NP Maze District

[waterboy222]

Exactly 1000 miles from my front door is the Canyonlands National Park in Utah. Its been on my mind for the past few years to make this trip happen. I finally was able to get away from work long enough to head west and see what all the talk was about. I was NOT disappointed, that's for SURE!

Some info from the NPS page:
http://www.nps.gov/cany/planyourvisit/maze.htm

Stopping at Gloss Mountain in the panhandle of Oklahoma for a quick photo op before everything got dirty..

 

[waterboy222]

A few hours later, we crossed the border into Texas.. I guess we skipped taking the border shot, probably due to the OU flags and dirty looks from the locals

3 states down and 2 to go!

Ticking away the miles, livin on monster and burritos..

Hour 11, coming through Wolf Creek Pass.. Weather nailed us and really slowed things down to a crawl..

After an overnighter in Durango to catch hot showers and a real meal, we finally hit Utah.. Headed to Blanding to catch hwy 95 for some scenery then on to Hanksville to fuel up for offroad..

 

[waterboy222]

Still plenty of snow up in the peaks..

73*, windows down and enjoying the view

This is where things REALLY started to get pretty.. Turning onto hwy 95 just outside of Blanding, we were in for a real treat. 129 miles of some of the most scenic highway I've ever come across. It was a thursday morning so we only saw 4 or 5 vehicles the entire way through. We really took our time on this one, more photo ops than I knew what to do with.

All these were snagged with my iphone6+, they came out OK for being a cell phone. I wish I had brought more camera gear..

 

[waterboy222]

This shot really puts into perspective how large of a cutout this was..

We hung out at this spot and threw down a couple of sandwiches and relaxed. It was really impressive watching the storms move through. Most of the precipitation turned to steam before it hit the ground. You could see for miles and miles..

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After 700 miles of pavement, we were ready for some dirt. We poked around a few of the side trails here and there to check out rock formations and overlooks. Most of the trails we picked had washouts larger than we were willing to attempt before arriving at our final destination...

Nothing like this back home, thats for sure..

 

[waterboy222]

Every turn had another canyon to stop and peer over..

A job I would't want, installing something like this! I can't imagine the commute from one side to the other before the bridge..

Us Oklahomans like our water, had to stop for a pic of the first river we came across..

Last fuel stop before we hit the trail. Filled up our extra fuel cans and reloaded the ice chest. Grabbed a couple of cheeseburgers and was introduced to "Fry Sauce". We don't have this back home. It tastes like a blend of mayo, mustard and ketchup. But it was served everywhere throughout Utah.. Pretty tasty stuff..

 

[waterboy222]

Now the real fun begins. Stopped at the entrance to Hans Flat Ranger road to air down, double check all our straps and head into the canyons. The road to the ranger station is 46 miles long. Some soft sand here and there but mostly it was so smooth it felt paved. At times we were running 50 mph just trying to click the miles off because it was getting dark FAST.

22 miles from the rangers station, we hit the 1000 mile mark. I was starting to wonder if this road was ever going to end.

 

[waterboy222]

Fast Forward a couple of hours. Somehow managed to rattle something loose and lost my nav, 12v outlets and 110v charger and my phone died.. Pulling the negative off the battery and resetting everything worked though.

After recharging the camera, this is the first shot we had that evening. One thing I didnt take into consideration with the trailer is that the back half of the jeep now sits about an inch lower than it used to. It was that 1" that was lacking when we came down from some big slick spot on the trail and flexed the tire into the fender and ripped it off. Lesson learned. I guess its time to upgrade to flat fenders anyways..

We arrived at Panorama Point about 12:30, completely exhausted. We halfway setup camp and crashed. The next morning, we were treated to the most beautiful scenery one could imagine.

The view from the tent, overlooking Glen Canyon (I think?)

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Hopefully these don't show up too large, they're just so pretty I wanted the better picture posted.

 

[waterboy222]

Best campsite I've ever had..

Incredible views from every direction

Turns out my girlfriend hid a couple of bottles of champagne in the jeep the night before we left. How in the world these didn't break or explode on the rough trail is beyond me but it was definitely a fun moment and photo opp to celebrate our trip to Utah.

The trail was much easier on the way home, considering it was uphill and DAYLIGHT

 

[waterboy222]

2 days of offroading with a pintle hitch finally wore me down. I tried everything I could to quiet the old girl down. It wasn't until I got to town that I realized the reason there was so much racket was the pintle hitch was a 2" ball and the lunette was a 2 5/16". I swapped the ball to a 2 5/16" but it didnt really make much difference in the banging. Time to upgrade to a true 3 axis hitch.

Heading back to the pavement after an incredible trip..

Wasn't a fan of the fuel prices in some of the small towns, they really got ya..

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[waterboy222]

2600 miles total. It was a great trip. Seeing the stars in that canyon is something I'll never forget. It really gave me a chance to see how the trailer would handle a rough trail. It did exceptionally well. The only thing I would do differently is trade out hitches and upgrade the shocks. Thanks for looking!

 

[mph]

I am glad you got to taste of the goodness Utah has to offer. The maze...Yep, the best in Utah in my opinion. Next time, make you drop down into the Maze proper. You will be even more amazed! Thanks for the post!

BTW...glad you got to see the best road sign in Utah...IMO.

 

[fo' runnin']

Great report and photos! Killer rig too! Would love to see it in person sometime, since we live so close to one another!

 

[Martinjmpr]

Nice report. I camped in that very spot in 2008. Gorgeous area. You do have to watch the rock ledges, though.

 

[SmoothLC]

Nice trip - come on out and stay a little longer when you have a chance. Lots of places to see and visit in this state.

 

[SDDiver5]

Awesome rig/trailer combo! I cant wait to get out to Utah and that area. Still a dream but will come true!

What was the temperature like?