MEET UP INFORMATION:- LINE-UP: Old Spanish Trail Arena (Cruise Moab HQ) 3641 S. Highway 191 Moab, UT 84532
- COORDINATES: 38°31'07.9"N 109°29'35.9"W - NEW!
TRAIL DESCRIPTION:The trail enters the beautiful small canyons, called "grabens," in the Needles District of Canyonlands National Park and is renowned for its challenge to stock vehicles. The tall cliffs lining the rivers are similar to those seen near Moab. Most of the surface rock formations, however, are of the Cedar Mesa Sandstone, which produces the spectacular colors of the canyons, spires, and balanced rocks that give the Needles area its name.
Drivers who own 200-series Land Cruiser be warned: there is a narrow section called "The Squeeze" that is difficult for these wide vehicles. If your 200 is pristine, you might not want to risk it.
This is a long day. Bring plenty of food (two meals recommended) and lots of water. The trail requires more highway driving than most day trips - about 75 miles each way. Vehicles should be capable of maintaining 55 MPH highway speed. Plan for enough fuel to complete 175 miles of travel.
There are two optional hiking trails that we usually hike during this run, time permitting. The first is through a slot canyon right after lunch, which takes about an hour total (including 15 minutes at a very scenic valley overlook that can only be reached on foot). Later in the afternoon, there's a second, shorter hike up to an overview of the confluence of the Colorado and Green rivers. If you're capable of hiking, you won't want to miss either of these. Bring good hiking shoes (flip flops not recommended).
Because this trail is in a National Park, NO DOGS ARE ALLOWED. This means you and your vehicle will not be admitted to Canyonlands Nat'l Park if you have a dog in it, even if you promise to keep the dog inside the vehicle the entire day. If you are bringing a dog to Moab, you probably don't want to sign up for this trail unless you have made arrangements for your dog to stay elsewhere (and remember, this is a very long day). This is a U.S. National Parks rule, and we cannot make exceptions for anyone.
