MOAB and Grand Canyon

[sarguy1941]

So this summer wife and I are planning a trip across the US of sorts. We will be leaving from CNY and heading west across the northern US. We have stops planned in CO, then planning a couple days in MOAB and into the GC on Friday until Monday. From there heading East along bottom of US with stops in TX, LA and GA back home. We will be towing a CTC (5x10) and camping in addition to a hotel here and there. Other than the standard stuff I plan to bring is there anything special folks bring in the MOAB/GC area ?

For gear we will have our basic camp gear, a 2K Honda and 10 gallons of gas (still working out what to use for that). I dont want the truck over loaded and dont need to pack for a month but also dont want to be without something we really should have. Maybe I'm over thinking I'm not sure. We normally take out 35' Motorhome but that's about 5000 miles at 4 mpg.... so.... This will also allow us some time to explore with the JT.

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[Beemer533]

This sounds like a similar trip I'm planning for later this year as well, sounds like an awesome ride!

Where in Moab are planning?

For Moab at least I typically plan for 1.5 gallon per day per person for water, so depending on how long you will be out in between restocking you need to plan for a decent amount of water.

And sunscreen lol...



Where in CNY are you located? I'm in Syracuse myself.

 

[Stitchedupseats]

Loved having the dometic full of cold drinks. Definitely take some basic tools. Used the 4.5 gal fuel pax multiple times. Lots of rural areas without lots of options for fuel.

 

[AZJT]

My $0.02 on GC/AZ - 1) Water, water, water - I know this sounds like common sense, but I cannot tell you the # of times out-of-state folks show up on the local news for not being hydrated and/or having sufficient water supply during summer months. Hikers, campers, etc. - it happens to the best of'em. 2) Reservations! Whether you plan on obtaining a camping spot around GC or staying in a lodge, book well in advance. Spots were often hard to come by even before the pandemic, but even more so now, so plan well in advance.

 

[sarguy1941]

Thanks. Planning on lots of water. Been in Search and Rescue for 28 years...Plan will most likely be commercial parks as we want to leave camper for day and charge stuff while out seeing in MOAB.

Also working in reservations now. Was going to try for BLM parks but think in July having power for a fan may be good.

 

[sarguy1941]

Where in CNY are you located? I'm in Syracuse myself.

Be leaving Hector National Forest after a Search and Rescue event.

 

[Partysub]

Last year I boondocked in moab in July when it was 107 during the day. You're going to want more than a fan

 

[sarguy1941]

I know I'll want AC but dont have it in the teardrop.... see if i can retro something beforehand...

 

[notquiteflotsam]

So this summer wife and I are planning a trip across the US of sorts. We will be leaving from CNY and heading west across the northern US. We have stops planned in CO, then planning a couple days in MOAB and into the GC on Friday until Monday. From there heading East along bottom of US with stops in TX, LA and GA back home. We will be towing a CTC (5x10) and camping in addition to a hotel here and there. Other than the standard stuff I plan to bring is there anything special folks bring in the MOAB/GC area ?

How was your trip? Any trail recommendations? My wife and I are planning a trip in May to the North Rim and seeking out 1-2 good trails. candidates right now our Point Sublime Trail and, maybe, Jumpup Point trail. We won't be towing/camping so will need to return to Kaibab Lodge each night (unless things go very wrong). thanks in advance.

 

[Andy29847]

I did most of that in 2023 but zi took the motorhome. ? If I had your gear, I would camp at Point Sublime and Toroweep..

 

[sarguy1941]

How was your trip? Any trail recommendations? My wife and I are planning a trip in May to the North Rim and seeking out 1-2 good trails. candidates right now our Point Sublime Trail and, maybe, Jumpup Point trail. We won't be towing/camping so will need to return to Kaibab Lodge each night (unless things go very wrong). thanks in advance.

Our trip was great but only did a few small trails out of Arches national park. We started up one trail and quickly determined we still had 3000 miles to get home...so... We are planning a 2025 trip back.

 

[notquiteflotsam]

If I had your gear, I would camp at Point Sublime and Toroweep..

Thanks. I'd love to camp but my wife's camping days are behind her. She's well past putting on shoes and headlamps for the midnight pee. We'll be doing an out and back. We are talking about staying for sunset (depending on the conditions of the road out in good light), which means I'm getting to shap for ditch lights

 

[notquiteflotsam]

Our trip was great but only did a few small trails out of Arches national park. We started up one trail and quickly determined we still had 3000 miles to get home...so... We are planning a 2025 trip back.

The trip back to Texas is a long one as well. I guess the trail in Arches was a doozy? Everything I've read on what we intend to do suggests it should be fun but nothing particularly technical. With all the land in Texas private, we've got to put some miles behind us to do anything like this short of a few places. And if we aren't going to do this, then what the heck did we buy the Jeep for anyway?!

 

[Andy29847]

A park ranger recommended that I not use the route to Point Sublime that starts near the North Rim Lodge. He gave me this sheet of directions to follow.

The road to Point Sublime is not especially challenging. There are some spots where I was glad to have 4wd. I imagine in wet weather it would be much worse.



The road to Toroweep was the one I was concerned about (traveling alone). It was rainy season when I was there, and I had read some reports of people having trouble when it was wet. I waited 3 days before making my run. I found the road to be great. There were a few muddy spots, but the roadbed was good and there was no need to try and drive around the mud. In fact, the worst spots are on the edges where you could slide into a ditch. The 4wd part of this route is the last few miles. The going at the end is slow, but not especially difficult. There is a ranger checkpoint ~5 miles before the canyon. A permit is required to go past this point. I signed up for mine on line. I bought permits for several days to be able to chose the best weather. The number of permits each day is limited.

Tuweep - Grand Canyon National Park (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov)




Colorado is my fav spot for vacations. If you need some skinny of things in southwest parts, I might can help.

 

[fourfa]

https://www.nps.gov/para/planyourvisit/4x4-vehicles-and-off-pavement-travel-safety.htm

"Mud-terrain tires are not effective at handling mud on the Arizona Strip. The local clay packs into the spaces between the knobby treads like peanut butter. It isn't flung out by the revolution of the wheel like watery mud in other regions of the country. Mud-terrain tires turn into slick, smooth donuts that have no traction in mud in this area."

just quoting FYI

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