I'm planning a trip into the Maze District for the last week in October. I'm no stranger to the Moab/Hanksville area but I've never had the chance to visit the Maze. Does anyone have any suggestions on must see landscapes or overlooks? Any tips on good campsites?
I did a 4 day trip in the Maze in May. There is alot to shoot there, but if you're limited in time do the easy thing. Shoot the Dollhouse and the Maze Overlook.
Also, I'd recommend that you pick up the Laurent Martres Photographing the Southwest book for Utah.
Be aware that the road to the dollhouse and standing rocks is slightly technical.
This is the shots I got from the trip from a photography standpoint. Please note that I have a couple shots from a place called hidden canyon in this group and those shots were not taken in the Maze. http://www.ladewigs.com/Gallery/v/Southwest/Maze/
As you can see, if you want to play in the Maze you really do need some experience in 4x4 driving in such terrain. And I wouldn't think about going in there after, during, or before a rain.
I should also mention, all three of our vehicles on this trip were equipped with racks for extra gasoline. My jeep carries 19 gallons in the tank and I'm pretty sure the two 4-runners were about the same. Our route was simply from Hite to the Dollhouse, then out to the Maze Overlook and then up the Flint Trail and out to Green River. I think I would have just made it to Green River on fumes if I had not been carrying the extra 10 gallons (29 gallons total), but it would have been close and I might have come up short. If we had decided to explore any other 4WD routes we would have absolutely needed the fuel.
We also were carrying full tool kits and some recovery gear like tow straps. All three of us had good 4-wheeling experience before the trip.
If you're looking for the easier route, it would be to drive from Hite to the Maze Overlook though this could be very problematic if it should rain as the area is full of a type of clay that would become very slick. If you are afraid of height and very narrow 4WD roads on cliffs, do not take the Flint Trail out. Return to Hite and either get gas there at the marina or in Hanksville.
These are not the most dangerous 4WD trails by any stretch, but they are remote and you will need to be very self sufficient.
Also I should mention in regards to Martres book: He mentions the hike from the Maze Overlook to the Harvest Scene panel as being slightly technical, bring a 30 ft section of rope. This was not slightly technical, it was fully 5th class technical climbing in places with no protection. There was the potential for some significant falls. The worst section from a technical standpoint was a drop of 8 feet onto a ledge, followed by a traverse and a free climb down a vertical section about 12 feet. I did not get any photos of this as we had our hands full spotting each other down. But there were several other problematic sections.
Thanks for your replies, photos and advice. I'm planning on staying in the Maze as long has the gasoline holds out. I have the carrying capacity for 10 extra gallons of gas and will rig up something so I can get at least another five gallons on the Jeep.
I've been driving the 4x4 roads and searching the Southwest for images for the last 12 years. Alan is right about not traveling in Canyonlands NP during or after a rain. I got trapped on the White Rim Trail in October 2006 for four days (it was supposed to be an overnight trip) because of heavy rains, rock falls and flash flooding. Not an experience I want to repeat but thanks to over preparation the only bad result was that my then girlfriend missed her flight back home and had to pay a bunch of extra money.
Mel, my Jeep is set up just as well as your Rubicon. (BTW, nice Rubicon) I haven't put in lockers yet but I have a winch, a 4 inch lift, 33 inch tires, lots of recovery gear, tools and all kinds of skid plates. I just got back from a month of driving the mining roads in the San Juan Mountains in and around Silverton, CO. I wasn't able to repeat a trip down Black Bear Pass (I did go up to the pass, it was one of the better locations for wildflowers this year) but I was able to get up to Governor Basin and do Poughkeepsie Gulch trail.
Here's a photo of me going up the winch point on the Poughkeepsie Gulch trail. The blue masking tape is from a windshield replacement a couple of days earlier.
Great Andrew. You'll have a great time. Don't worry about a 3rd gas tank. 10 extra gallons was plenty. Also, as long as it doesn't rain, I doubt you'd have any need for lockers. I did not use mine at all on that trip.
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