I got home at about 1 am last night after what was yet another great Jeep Safari Week. Although the weather was not as warm as it was in years past, it did not scare the crowd away nor stop anyone from enjoying the adventurous trails set up by Red Rock 4 Wheeler’s for the event. One of my personal favorites of these trails, is a spectator point called “Potato Salad”. This hill climb gets it’s name from the choppy rock that, from a distance, looks like a potato salad. Below is a video of a jeep who has almost mastered this climb.

The last two days of the event is the vendor expo; where myself and many other businesses were there to offer either the perfect accessory or necessity to your 4 wheel drive, information on where to play or stay with your jeep, and of course, the perfect souvenir to remember your trip by.  I must say I enjoy the expo as much as the trail riding because it is a place to connect with like-minded people that are all there for the same reason; the love for adventure. US191 offers so much to those seeking any thrill, and Moab is a cultivation hub of those living their dream of adventure.

LIVE OUT LOUD!

Parking Behind the Expo

The Perfect Sales Dog

Friday, March 11, 2016 from 8:00am throughSunday, March 13, 2016 at 6:00pm

Jeep Safari 2016  

March 19 – 27

Thank You to Red Rock 4-Wheelers!

The BLM approved the permit for 2016 Jeep Safari. The permit is approved for a 10-year period and has allowed the club to add some new trails and trail segments to the permit. With the permit now approved and in force, the club introduced these eight new trails – some added trail segments to existing trails but add just a little more excitement for those daring drivers!

The eight new trails were met with enthusiasm by all in 2014 & 2015 and filled up quickly so if you want to run them in 2016 be sure to be online when registration opens in January.

They are “The Pickle“(7), “Cameo Cliffs“(3), “Day Canyon Point“(4), “Deadman Point“(3), “Rusty Nail“(7),”Where Eagles Dare“(7), “Jax Trax“(5), and a special addition to Hell’s Revenge “The Escalator“(8). All of these trails are now available for review on the trails page.

While planning my next trip to Jackson Hole , I stumbled upon this through the Teton Aviation Center. What better way to experience one of the most gorgeous mountain ranges then by air? This GRAND adventure is definitely going on the must do list for this fall!

Click on the video link below for some footage that will blow your mind and information on how to join in such a grand experience!

“Soar the Tetons on one of our scenic glider rides and experience this beautiful mountain range from a birds-eye view. Enjoy a leisurely soar and let the magic of motorless flight in one of the world’s most awe-inspiring scenic areas provide you with the adventure of a lifetime. Or, for groups up to three people, enjoy a powered tour of area mountain ranges in a Cessna. We are dedicated to providing the safest, most comfortable and enjoyable flights possible.”

Mesa Verde National Park was founded by Theodore Roosevelt in 1906 ” to preserve the works of man”. This was the first park of its kind. The Park is home to 4700 archeological sites, 600 of which are cliff dwellings.

Mesa Verde

When I toured the park in November of this past year I couldn’t help but feel like I had hopped into the  DeLorean and traveled back in time. To be able to look thousands of years back to how the pueblos lived and survived was awe inspiring.

A Little over a week ago a group of friends and I decided to voyage to the confluence of the Green and Colorado river . The trail-head is found deep in Canyonlands National Park and is an 11 mile round trip hike. We had a perfect Spring day for it. The sun was out, but the weather was not too hot for a long hike.  The dessert flowers and cacti were just starting to really bloom, making it a beautiful colorful walk.

Indian Paint Brush

view of the Needles

While the moderate trail is relatively easy, there and some cliffs to be mindful of and a short ladder is in place at one point to help transition one of these rocks. Total elevation change for the hike is 200 feet. I didn’t really feel the elevation change being that there are a lot of lengthy flat stretches in two different valleys and one long plateau.

The scenery is great throughout, but my favorite view along the hike was of the needles. We stopped with this great view to have lunch and re-hydrate.

We arrived at the confluence at about 2pm, roughly three and a half hours after we started, but we took lots of breaks for photos and lunch.

There is nothing quite like the view of the Confluence for the first time with your own two eyes. For this reason, I’n leaving the photo out. This is definitely something you want to see for yourself! The red color of the Colorado meeting the almost turquoise color of the Green is spectacular. The reason why the dividing line between the two is so visible is doe to the temperature differences in the rivers. Further downstream, they do eventually mix.

A side note for those of you who do not like to hike or are unable. There is a Jeep Safari trail that also takes you to the confluence. It is definitely a longer road, but I am told is equally as enjoyable.

There are many camping sites along Kane Creek Road. While all were beautiful in bloom with the Spring, there were two that stuck out to me in particular. The more well known of these two would be Moonflower Campground, located just 3 mile off US 191. The entrance to Moonflower is lined with petroglyphs . There was a small flowing creek (I imagine from the rainfall) that leads the way into Moonflower Canyon. All Along this creek through the breathtaking canyon are wonderful unique camping sites. The canyon walls not only provide shelter but a gorgeous landscape. There were about 6 (out of 8) prime camping sites in Moonflower and they are on a first come/first served basis. Camping is 10.00 a night, but definitely worth every penny.

The second site that really stuck out to me was a bit further up the road. This is one i did not find listed on the BLM map. The campground is called Spring Site. It is slightly less protected as it is not in its own Canyon, but does have large trees at each site to provide shae and shelter. I appreciated the open layout and great climbing near by. This one only has 4 sites. Itis right along Kanes Creek which provides  a great water source and the soothing sound of a flowing stream.

Out of the many campgrounds on Kanes Creek, I found these to be the most scenic, secluded, resourceful, spacious, and over all a great place to camp!

Moonflower Canyon

Moab Jeep Safari Week

I can’t believe almost a week has gone by since Jeep Safari Week . It was absolutely amazing for US191.com to be a part of the event this year. Spreading awareness of what beauty and adventure US 191 holds is always such a positive experience. To hear things like “I had no idea it went that far” or “how many national parks?”  Is what our website is all about. I’ve always loved playing tour guide and as a result many people decided to take US 191 on their journey home.

Jeep Safari Week

The time is here again to kick off another amazing week in Moab! Easter jeep safari has been taking place in Moab since the 80’s and each year it seems to get a little bigger and a little better.
COME MEET MEMBERS OF THE US191 TEAM ! We are so pleased to be a part of the expo for Jeep Safari this year! We have made shirts specific for this event, so be sure to get your Jeep Safari souvenir!
The expo will take place on Thursday the 17th ( 7am-8pm) and Friday the 18th (7am-6pm) inside and outside of the Spanish Trail Arena just south of Moab right off US 191 ! This part of the event is open to the general public. Come see everything 4 -wheeling and get information on future 4 – wheeling.
This 9 day event attracts people from all over the world. Each day offers 9 different locations/trails to be explored departing from Moab . “Big Saturday ” caps off the event with the largest ever single trail ride departure happening . 30 groups line up in downtown Moab to head off in very direction to hit 30 different trails!
There is still time and space to register online for this awesome event at www.rr4w.com !
A few things you will want to know before hand, despite the name, not just jeeps are allowed. There are no restrictions as to what type of make and model, but high ground clearance and 2 speed transfer case are expected in whatever you choose to drive. NO ATV’s or UTV’s. vehicles must have an integral metal top or roll bar. All cars must be road legal with proper brakes, safety belts, etc. recommended items include a fire extinguisher, first aid kit, tow strap, spare tire, and jack. Be sure to pack your food, non-alcoholic beverage , plenty of water, sun protection , and proper gear for unpredictable weather.
Please be sure to swing by the booth, can’t wait to see all of you 4-wheeling fans in Moab this week!

I will admit, I am a dare devil at heart. I enjoy anything that really gets the adrenaline going. Such as, but not limited to, speed in any sort of motor sport, defiance of nature; such as white water rafting, camping with bears, tornado watching, etc, or anything that challenges my fear of heights. So far to conquer this fear I have pushed myself a bit further each time when rock climbing, conquered the world tallest zipline, and jumped out of a perfect;y good airplane.

None of things I imagine compare to the thrill of the World’s Largest Rope Swing.

There are many things I will never forget about my first trip to Moab. One of which being the very concerned phone call that I received from my parents. Knowing my darting heart (and just learning how to use the internet) they had seen a video of a man who tried to ride the “swing” and tragically lost his life. I am fully an adult, but there are sometimes that my parents still feel the need to be parents (as most do) and evidentially this constituted. They made it very clear to me that this was NOT on the parents approved list of adventures. Naturally, this left me curious. I thought I must investigate this tomorrow.

To my surprise, later that night I met up with two of my friends for a bonfire that I conquered the “swing” that very day! I had envisioned this swing all set up, just there for the taking, but in fact, it is much more complicated than that. In order to ride the swing, you must first set it up. This requires not only the knowledge, but also very expensive equipment (good rope isn’t cheap). Luckily, my buddies had both.

They showed me a video on their phones that left me even more intrigued. Even with all of their skill and careful planning, they did not fully escape without injury. My friend Al had a rope burn to his neck that could have been a lot worse. All of these fear factors aside, in that moment, I added the swing to my personal life list.

Being that I will be headed back to Moab in a little over a week to run a booth for US191.com at Jeep Safari Week (more information on that to come) I was thinking about this swing. Will it finally be my time?

When I was researching the World’s Largest Rope Swing online, I found this video….enjoy

http://youtu.be/4B36Lr0Unp4