It’s Easter, and in the 4x4 world that means one thing, it’s
Easter Jeep Safari week in Moab, Utah. If for some reason you are not aware of
Moab, there is only one thing to know. For a week around Easter, this sleepy
little town becomes the centre of the universe to the 4x4 community, much like
Sturgis to the biker crowd, only with less leather and exposed mammaries, for
the most part.
Anyone who has been to Moab, and the surrounding area will
know why this event is as popular as it is. The beauty of the surrounding
mountains and desertscapes is only surpassed by the spectacular challenges of
anyone of the hundreds of trails that wind themselves through valleys, climb up
rocky ridges and buttes and traverse great sandstone landscapes. Its canyon
lands are the prelude the Grand Canyon, while rock towers and buttes litter the
arid landscape, with regions of soft sand dunes thrown in for good measure. For
those of us from the wet rain forests of the BC coast, Moab might as well be on
another planet.
While the region is also a hot bed for mountain bikers, its
popularity with four-wheelers began back in the days following World War II.
You see, the entire region is riddled with fantastic 4x4 trails thanks to the
uranium boom after the war. With the cold war ramping up, and the arms race
right along side, uranium was needed in great quantities as the main ingredient
in nuclear weapons. Well, Uranium was in great supply in the mountains around
Moab, and as such, hundreds of mines were dug into these mountains. The rugged
terrain meant that roads built to the mines were sketchy at best and required
military surplus 4x4’s like the Jeep and Dodge Power Wagon.
Today however, the mines are all quiet, and the roads that
lead to them now take four-wheelers on scenic and challenging tours of the
beautiful landscape. I was in Moab with Jeep to test-drive Mopars project vehicles.
As the Safari’s popularity has increased, Jeep uses the event to unveil project
machinery as well as launch production vehicles. So with a Wrangler Rubicon in
hand, I decided to do a little exploring with what little time off I had.
There are dozens of official trails used for the Safari,
each with it’s own supervisor, as dictated by the local 4x4 club that holds the
annual event. Groups need to register ahead of time for use of these trails do
to the sheer number of vehicles in town, as well as the environmental
sensitivity of the region. With the media, I had already explored two of these
trails with Jeep and Dodge, the first day was spent in the dunes south of the
town and the second on the Seven Mile Rim trail (Easy trails but we were in
press vehicles). So while the groups stuck to the regular trails, I struck out
on my own, finding a scenic 4x4 road leading up Onion Creek Rd.
That’s the beauty of Moab, the region is vast and the
landscape provides a myriad of topographical features to explore. Turning off
hwy 128, I had no idea where Onion Creek Rd. would take me, but one thing I was
sure of, I would likely find new and interesting things along the way.
From 128, Onion Creek Rd. runs straight and flat across the
Colorado River canyons floor, however it didn’t take long for things to get
interesting. While most of the canyon has massive 800 to 1000 foot shear walls
down to the river below, here, the creek has washed out a valley of its own,
making for a gradual ascent up into the hills and high plateau abote. As soon
as the road began to wind around large rocky outcropping, the route took me
over several creek fordings as the road and creek crisscrossed each other into
the hills. The rocky hills were soon becoming spires, tall thin rock towers that
held large boulders precariously on top. It was a surreal scene making me think
I was in a Roadrunner and Coyote cartoon, and would soon have an Acme rocket
shot at me, or large rock dropped from above.
As I pressed on into the wilderness that was rapidly
becoming more extreme, the creeks canyon walls seem to close in while the road
narrowed to the point that the Rubicon was just wide enough to fit between the
rock wall on the right, and the a hundred foot drop to the creek bed below on
the left. The road was deteriorating as well, but still easy enough to get a
car down; just don’t put a foot wrong or it’s all over.
Moving past the spires, the road became even more raised
over the creek bed, however I was now up into much more gentler terrain. Rounding
a corner, I was met with the side of a mountain, bright with several unnatural
colors. However, the whites, grays, blacks and reds were all quite nature,
proof positive that these hills are home to all manner of minerals, both
dangerous and benign.
I pushed on up the road, finally reaching the high plateau
above. The rugged and deadly chasm of rock was now replaced with a flat prairie
of rock, sand and petrified dunes sitting 5,500 feet above sea level, and a
sigh of satisfaction came over me at the sight. By no means was the trail a
challenge to either my driving abilities or that of the Rubicon. No, it was the
experience of exploring, what seemed to me, to be an entirely different world.
The foreign landscape and vegetation, odd rock formations and alien colors all
made me feel like an explorer laying claim to a strange new land. For anyone
who owns anything with 4WD, Moab is an experience that is sure to be treasured.
