Muley Point

Muley Point is a mecca for boondockers, overlanders, and outdoor adventurers, hovering over the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area in Southern Utah.
Muley Point is a mecca for boondockers, overlanders, and outdoor adventurers, hovering over the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area in Southern Utah.
I don't need to tell you this, but I will. Because, years of exceptional schooling and life experience is not a panacea against occasional brain farts. So, when we arrive in Rocky Mountains National Park and encounter a very welcome discount for low octane fuel, we give it a try. The mistake is not immediately apparent. Our truck drives well for the next day. It isn't until we turn off the highway onto a forest road while searching for the night's camping site that we know something was wrong. The engine turns off mid turn. Fortunately, we are at the side of the road...this time.
Rocky Mountains National Park’s Old Fall River Road traverses 11 scenic miles from the valley floor to alpine heights. Built back in 1920, this road was early visitors automobile introduction to Rock Mountain National Park. Since its creation, the paved Trail Ridge Road has become the parks main thoroughfare. Yet, Old Fall River Road remains a scenic back road through the park, bypassing much of the congestion and chaos of the popular paved alternative.
Driving the Shafer Trail between Canyonlands National Park and Moab is absolutely hair raising. The descent from the park's visitors center to the canyon floor is a heart stopping collection of narrow switchbacks. Better yet, the narrow trail is flanked by a sheer, 1,000-foot cliff on one side and a rock wall on the other. And if that is not enough disincentive, there is little between you and a precipitous drop other than a few tenacious sage brush.
The Rimrocker Trail is an off-road and OHV route from Montrose, Colorado to Moab, Utah. The trail traverses terrain from pine and aspen forests to rolling hills of sage and cactus. The road condition varies from regularly graded gravel to rutted dirt roads and one high water crossing. The trail winds through federal and private land so be conscious of signs along the road when selecting a campsite or taking side adventures on other trails.
Like any tourist destination, finding a place to stay is a challenge. Most campgrounds are booked out in advance. But, if you have 4-wheel drive and a willingness to rough it without facilities, there are undeveloped campsites with amazing vistas along Forest Road 525C.
Yes, we went to Overland Expo East. No, we didn't camp or stay the whole week like we did two years ago. For people in the middle of a build, those tickets get expensive and the time is better spent plugging up leaks. Yet, for one day, we waded through shoe-engulfing mud, the likes of which I hadn't seen off the set of Deadwood to talk with fellow wanderers and vendors to inspire the next stages of our build.
Kofa National Wildlife Refuge sits between Quartzsite and Yuma, Arizona. From certain parts of the refuge, you can hear the explosion of ordinance from the neighboring military proving ground. This time, however, we intent to explore the heart of this 665,400 acres of Yuma desert and the refuge's namesake.
After big horn sheep, our second greatest interest is in hiking a slot canyon. Along with being on our way, Palm Slot Canyon is accessed by a rough road that requires 4-wheel-drive, which scratched our overlanding itch. Though, our eagerness to tackle such a challenge may have gotten us in trouble.
So, we've been raving about Big Sur a bit. But here is the down side: rock slides. I'm sure you've heard plenty about them. The slide between Mud Creek and Salmon Creek Station is expected to close that portion of Highway 1 through 2018. That means no through-routes of Highway 1. For trailers and other large rigs, that means Highway 1 is an in-out trip starting in Northern California. But we have a truck camper and are taking the Nacimiento-Fergusson Road.⠀