ORTB 5yr Anniversary Event Planning

[mikekey]

BTW, Dont' get in a rush to post this. http://www.nps.gov/cany/planyourvisit/b ... ermits.htm

If we're camping there first, we need to take a few factors into account. Reservations must be made, you are limited to where you can camp, there is a vehicle fee and a park entrance fee.

We should tell people to just buy the $80 national parks pass.

Unless we want to camp on BLM land on either end of the rim, that's free.

I could really use the Roadie's input here if he knows otherwise I'll have to research it again. Originally we where going for Island in the sky.

[mikekey]

How is this 5 pages long and the only other guy trapped in FL with me who complains about this state almost as much as I do hasn't said one peep about this?

[The Roadie]

Michael has wheeled with and without me. When I plan it, success happens. On his own, the Pinyon Squeeze Denial happens. So I think he's just in silent trust mode.

[mikekey]

I am thinking maybe we should stick with the basics and do the White Rim for the first day, and head towards the maze and needles district. There are 10 back country sites from which we could reserve from 7 miles from the start of the Shafer trail to 77 miles away.

http://www.nps.gov/cany/planyourvisit/whiterimroad.htm

If doing the white rim is good, I'll post up the thread.

[DirtyBacon04]

HAHAHA!

I haven't posted much simply due to the lack of possibility of participating. It makes me sad thinking about not going... My truck is FAR from ready, and not sure how my new employers would like me taking 2+ weeks off...

I'm tryin to convince myself to do it anyways, especially since i was considering moving out there.

My quick math is showing travel time of 6 days (total) + 4 days of wheeling/camping. total of 10-11 days with 3 days of buffer/JustInCase/unwind time 2 weeks should about cover it... But then it limits my potential of going to my family's annual lobster trip to the Keys.... Hmmmm decisions...

[mikekey]

3 Days to get there? How many stops you planning on making? Getting a hotel and sleeping for 8 hours each night? lol. Take Thursday, Friday off, meet with us on Sat. take of the whole week, leave thurs, home by Sunday, rested and ready for Monday.

You have 7 months to fix your axles.

[DirtyBacon04]

I dont have an a-driver. my google-fu is showing 30 hours drive from wildwood to moab. Thinkin 10 hrs per day, i suppose if i cut my sleep time, i could make it in 2.5 days...
7 months, i know i could get my axles fixed, but I'm hopin to have more things complete by then

Plus, lobster season starts in august... conflicting vacations

[NC_IslandRunner]

I dont have an a-driver. my google-fu is showing 30 hours drive from wildwood to moab. Thinkin 10 hrs per day, i suppose if i cut my sleep time, i could make it in 2.5 days...
7 months, i know i could get my axles fixed, but I'm hopin to have more things complete by then

Only 10hrs a day? I've done 16-18/day solo.

[mikekey]

Come on soldier up. Drive 14/16 hrs take a 2 or 4 hr nap, keep driving.

[DirtyBacon04]

Come on soldier up.

What's that mean? I dont understand...

[DirtyBacon04]

I dont have an a-driver. my google-fu is showing 30 hours drive from wildwood to moab. Thinkin 10 hrs per day, i suppose if i cut my sleep time, i could make it in 2.5 days...
7 months, i know i could get my axles fixed, but I'm hopin to have more things complete by then

Only 10hrs a day? I've done 16-18/day solo.

[djthumper]

Come on soldier up.

What's that mean? I dont understand...

Suck it up Marine! I know you have driven more than 10 hours a day.

[mikekey]

[The Roadie]

1) Let's not pressure folks into doing unsafe things.

2) The White Rim Trail was amazingly scenic, but the camp sites sucked. I would be fine in a RTT but ground tents for a group on those exposed, treeless sites just didn't seem like a good idea. And high winds could make for a miserable worry-filled night about tents blowing off the edge. There was a story on ExPo about a toilet enclosure tent that got launched into the canyon by high winds. I did WRT in one LONG and hard-driving day, which could have been made easier by camping closer to the trail the night before.instead of on the other side of town.

[mikekey]

The White Rim Trail was amazingly scenic, but the camp sites sucked. I would be fine in a RTT but ground tents for a group on those exposed, treeless sites just didn't seem like a good idea. And high winds could make for a miserable worry-filled night about tents blowing off the edge. There was a story on ExPo about a toilet enclosure tent that got launched into the canyon by high winds. I did WRT in one LONG and hard-driving day, which could have been made easier by camping closer to the trail the night before.instead of on the other side of town.

That was the problem we had with Airport. Horrible camping spot. With a lighting storm blowing in across the rim, after had had our share for the day it just didn't look like it was going to work. I can confirm there was no where at Airport to secure a ground tent. All of the camp sites where solid rock.

I will say, for about 90% of the day we didn't see another vehicle. We saw a total of 3 other people the whole day.

And the views were spectacular. The White Rim is pretty long with a lot of side trails of various difficulty. We almost got stuck heading down to the Colorado river.

If we are in Moab there aren't going to be campsites with trees however. I didn't get a look at the camping when we were in the Needles district, I'd have to look at my books.

But unless someone starts offering some suggestions.....

I mean we could go do the Beef Basin, which is a simple easy starting path to the weekend. It's MLM land so camp anywhere for free. I'm out of suggestions until I start reading.

[mikekey]

How about the Moab Rim, since so many here are so hard core and extreme: http://www.traildamage.com/trails/index.php?id=68

It's on BLM land.

[mikekey]

Poison Spider Mesa too.

Make that TECORE Rock climb look like preschool





Guess I could look outside the parks too.

[fishsticks]

Don't post pics like that. You're making me want to consider towing again.

[The Roadie]

I stayed in the BLM Big Bend Campground northeast of town right on the Colorado River. Plenty of trees, but not overhanging most of the sites. But the sites are separated by 5-6 ft tall bushes that serve to break the wind. First come first serve, but popular.

[mikekey]

Let's get this hammered out, so far it looks like

Rory, Myself, Jason are def in, Roadie are you in?

Second, how do we want to start the first day off and where do we want to camp? If we can answer this by the end of this week, let's get the thread posted so folks can start thinking about it. We can figure out all the other details later.

No one wants to drive to Utah and then decide what to do.