IntrepidXJ's Adventure Weblog

After finally getting my Jeep trail ready again (new head gasket, oil pan, rear main seal, oil filter o-rings, front wheel bearing, driver’s seat, windshield and a fresh coat of paint on the front bumper) and realizing I had not gone out exploring in my Jeep for two months, it was time for me to get out again. What better place to go than Moab?

I decided to stick to the Island Area northwest of Moab for this trip. Bright and early Saturday morning Amanda and I hit the road and made out way to the Horsethief campground just off of Highway 313. After setting up camp we made our way over to the Dellenbaugh Tunnel. The last time I was at this tunnel was in 2007, however I was short on time that trip and didn’t get to explore too much.

After finding two geocaches near the tunnel we turned around and headed back and stopped to check out and photograph this water-carved wash nearby.

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I got a new piece of camping gear from Cabela’s today. The Trekker Fold-A-Privy.

We set it up in our living room and it took only 5 seconds to pop up. Very easy I have heard that some people have had trouble when taking it back down. On my first try it only took about 30 seconds to take back down. It was very simple. Now to try it out in the field!

Here’s a couple of pictures from this weekend to hold you over until I have a chance to make a full trip report later this week

Also, if you haven’t already checked it out, the SPOT tracking page seems to have worked well while we were away this weekend, and it tracked my location pretty well. Check it out at the ‘SPOT Me’ link at the top of this page.

The new SPOT in action…sending our OK message and campsite coordinates

I added a ‘SPOT Me’ page to my website located in the bar across the top. This page contains a link to my shared SPOT page where you can follow my track when I am out travelling. It will also contain my previous locations for the last 7 days.

Amanda and I are headed out to Moab this weekend and plan to have our SPOT tracking on, so feel free to check out the shared page this weekend to see how well it works!

I added a new page last night to my website here called ‘GeoStats’ These are my current geocaching stats of caches I have found. I’m hoping my geocaching is going to be picking up this year, so keep an eye on those stats, as they are kind of interesting (well, at least to me they are).

You can find the link to the new GeoStats page in the menu bar across the top, or by clicking the link below:

I received this harder to find book the other day; Coyote’s History of Moab written by Jose Knighton.

My SPOT Messenger showed up today! I already activated it and tried a test message which worked great so far. I should be able to give it a thorough testing this weekend in Moab

Hopefully I will be able to get a new page on my website soon so you can see where I am at when I’m traveling, so stay tuned for that, too.

Finally! New head gasket, oil pan, rear main seal, oil filter o-rings, front wheel bearing, driver’s seat, windshield and a fresh coat of paint on the front bumper……my Jeep is ready to hit the trails again. Time to get out and do a lot of exploring to make up for the last month!

Stay tuned for lots of photos

Salt Creek Canyon (Moab, UT)

Salt Creek Canyon is a short trail in the Needles section of Canyonlands National Park. It used to be a much longer trail that you could take to see Angel Arch, however in July 2004 the National Park Service closed much of the trail to motorized travel. The only section of the trail still open leads to the Peekaboo campsite. Peekaboo is a small campsite, but also very nice. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a place to camp in the Needles district.

Much of the Salt Creek Canyon trail is deep soft sand with a few sections of deep water (depending on recent rains). Horse Canyon, another trail located in the Needles district is also accessed from this trail. If you are planning on checking out this trail or camping at Peekaboo, make sure you get a permit from the visitor’s center first. You will also need to get the combination to the padlock so you can access the trail. The NPS does limit the number of vehicles that can drive this trail each day.

If you were hoping to check out Angel Arch, you will need to park your vehicle near the Peekaboo campground and hike the remaining 7 miles to the arch.

Please feel free to leave your comments and post your pictures from Salt Creek Canyon below.

Salt Creek Canyon KML Track
(Right click and ‘Save Target As’)

Open file above in Google Earth.

Pole Canyon Rim (Moab, UT)

Pole Canyon Rim consists of a network of two-tracks just to the Northwest of the Top of the World trail. It is not a popular trail and is a great place to get away from the crowds. Much of the trail is easy, but there are a few moderate rocky sections.

There are a couple of overlooks that offer some great views over the Colorado River, Professor Valley and the Richardson Amphitheater. Heading back towards Entrada Bluffs Road you are also greeted with great views of the Dome Plateau area.

Please feel free to leave your comments and post your pictures from Pole Canyon Rim below.

Pole Canyon Rim KML Track
(Right click and ‘Save Target As’)

Open file above in Google Earth.