Southeastern Utah Noob Camping Trip: Beef Basin 06/10/11 - 06/12/11

[SRN]

What: Three day, two night camping trip

 

Where: Beef Basin just south of Canyonlands

 

When: June 10th - 12th (Friday - Sunday). We will be leaving from Salt Lake City the morning of Friday, June 10th and returning in the evening of Sunday June 12th.

 

Who: Anyone who wants to go explore some amazing country with lots of indian ruins and spectacular vistas!

 

Vehicle Requirments: Any 4wd, high clearance vehicle. This basically means any SUV that is actually truck like or an actual truck.

A CB radio is highly recommended.

 

Trail: Most of where we will be going is pretty tame, rated a 2. Bobby's Hole, SOB Hill and Elephant Hill can easily be navigated with a stock SUV and a little skill and would probably garner a 3 1/2 rating.

 

Gear: Tent, sleeping bag and other sundries

Firewood

Food and some way to cook it

Water, water WATER!

Extra fuel

Trash bags (we take out what we bring in)

Camera

 

Schedule:

 

Friday: Plan on meeting at the Cabela’s parking lot in Lehi by 8:00am. We will then caravan the rest of the way to the trail head with stops for fuel in Wellington and Moab. We hope to make it to camp the first night by 3 or 4 in the afternoon. Around the campfire we will discuss Tread Lightly practices and basic 4WD and camping questions.

 

Saturday: Try to get going in the morning by about 9:00am and explore around Beef Basin and Ruin Park. Some light hiking to various ruins. Pretty leisurely day focusing mostly on looking around while we make our way to the border of Canyonlands. Find camp at a reasonable time and enjoy a night under the stars and continue our discussions from the previous night.

 

Sunday: Again, try to get going in the morning by about 9:00am and start heading into Canyonlands via Bobby's Hole and work our way through a bit of the Needles District and finally out by way of Elephant Hill. From there it's back to Salt Lake with the obligatory stop at the Moab Brewery for some Beer Cheese Soup (still eating it even though I am now lactose intolerant. Its that good!).

 

Summary: If you've never been camping down in southeastern Utah, this is some spectacular country that you really should try to make it to. This run is easy enough that any novice with a stock vehicle should be fine. Basically, if you want to have a good time out in the backcountry, you should come along.

And just to whet you whistle a bit, pictures of the area!

 

 

 

 

Edited June 1, 2011 by SRN

[SRN]

Updated original post with more info.