Great pics and video... thanks for putting the RR up.
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GixxerJasen's Utah Dual Sport Trip
- Thread starter gixxerjasen
- Start date
Day 4
We woke up to cold but beautiful weather today. Patrick has gotten through some of his mechanical issues that have been plaguing him this week and he and Rollin are chomping at the bit to get out and ride. Today we have our sights on Poison Springs Road, which goes through Poison Spring Canyon. Gonna be a good day.
I've been trying out tubliss on my rear tire and it's been working really well all week. People say that it's fiddly with tire pressures and you have to check it daily. As someone who is terrible about checking his tire pressures, this has been reinforcement for me to keep on top of this. Nothing has really budged on pressures except the slight amount of loss when checking. I've also got a new battery powered hand held pump that is working really well including topping off that couple PSI in the high pressure tube. My front tire is a traditional tube and it's doing just as well.
I did like seeing the accumulation of dirt on the tire this morning, looks like I've been having fun.
At the gas station, this beast was fueling up. I'd hate to know how much a fill up is for that thing, but I bet he's having fun too. Sticker on the back says "Slow truck, fast house."
Just under 18 miles of pavement and we are ready for some dirt!
The first part of Poison Springs Wash Road was lots of loose rocks slightly smaller than a baseball. This is intermixed with periods of soft sand. A bit of a change from what we've had for a while. Eventually you get deeper into the canyon where the water runs and there's trees, less rocks, and the sand is wet, packed, and very firm. Lots of puddles to splash through. Very pretty and fun place to ride.
We stopped here and I got to put up my drone for a bit and get some of my first interesting shots. John R took off a bit early which gave me a chance to chase him with the drone a bit.
While riding, there's a bunch of cows and then a fork in the road. We took the right fork according to our GPS. Patrick must have missed it because he took the left fork. It's not every day a bad decision puts you on the other side of the canyon. As a good riding buddy, I made sure to commemorate this with a photo or two.
He wasn't too worried, and looks to have been enjoying the view. I spent some time enjoying the view too while we waited on him to backtrack around.
John H also enjoying the moment.
Time for another water crossing. This is the "Dirty Devil" river. We'd looked up the flow and height online earlier in the day and determined that it should be doable. When we got here the water was murky with silt and you couldn't really see the bottom to confirm what we'd read online.
After a couple of rock tossing plunk tests, we volunteered John H to go across and test the depth for us.
No sweat, easy peasy, we all got across and kept going.
After that, the canyon opens up and the road runs along the canyon, the dirt on the road is perfect and it's a fun and scenic ride along the edge.
We stopped here for a little break.
John H always finds the best places to enjoy the view.
At this point, John R starts freaking out a little bit. His gas tank is almost empty while the rest of us are all still at least half a tank. After going over his bike and determining that he doesn't have a leak, he remembers that he forgot to fill up that morning. While investigating though, we found he's lost a few bolts from his front fender. Patrick's "Bag O Bolts" came in handy and John R was able to get everything secured, now we just need to worry about fuel. It's late enough in the day that we decide to turn around at this point and head back.
Like yesterday, the ride back is just as awesome as it was coming out.
We stopped at this spot specifically. We'd looked for it on the way out, but John H found it on the way back. This canyon was known for smuggling and Butch Cassidy was known to bring stolen horses down this canyon on his way to sell them in Colorado. Legend has it that this was a favorite site for him to overnight at and it's easy to see why. There's good protection from the elements down here and water for the horses as well. I certainly wouldn't mind camping here
The rock back in the back there is known as "Butch Cassidy Rock." Someone had chiseled their name and image when Cassidy was 3 years old. Legend has it that the "Butch Cassidy" next to it was put there by him when he found it on the rock. Hard to see, even harder to properly photograph with a phone.
When it was time to leave, John R's bike wouldn't start. Seems like he's sucked all the gas out of his gas tank. An additional problem was that the fuel siphon hose someone had brought was back at the RV Park. Quickly a committee was formed to solve this issue. Too many folks in that committee already so I went to fly the drone for a bit. Ultimately a solution was found that was fully "Adventure Worthy."
We pulled my fuel vent hose off because it was the longest, and if you are astute enough looking at the previous photo, yes indeed, that is a Pistachio bag being used for the fuel transfer vessel.
We each donated a bag of gas to John R's bike and that easily got him back to the RV Park. He was much appreciative of the assistance.
We got rained on a little bit headed back on the pavement. Going pavement speed with a dirt bike helmet in the rain is a bit painful for the parts of your face below your goggles, but it wasn't very heavy and didn't last long. After getting cleaned up, we hit up the burger place again and I decided to try the chicken sandwich. It was every bit as good as the burger and I'd order it again. Since I'm watching my figure, I skipped the milkshake tonight.
We spent quite a bit of time that night planning for tomorrow. We have some unfinished business to attend to and it's going to create a fuel problem, even if everyone fills up first thing in the morning.
We woke up to cold but beautiful weather today. Patrick has gotten through some of his mechanical issues that have been plaguing him this week and he and Rollin are chomping at the bit to get out and ride. Today we have our sights on Poison Springs Road, which goes through Poison Spring Canyon. Gonna be a good day.
I've been trying out tubliss on my rear tire and it's been working really well all week. People say that it's fiddly with tire pressures and you have to check it daily. As someone who is terrible about checking his tire pressures, this has been reinforcement for me to keep on top of this. Nothing has really budged on pressures except the slight amount of loss when checking. I've also got a new battery powered hand held pump that is working really well including topping off that couple PSI in the high pressure tube. My front tire is a traditional tube and it's doing just as well.
I did like seeing the accumulation of dirt on the tire this morning, looks like I've been having fun.
At the gas station, this beast was fueling up. I'd hate to know how much a fill up is for that thing, but I bet he's having fun too. Sticker on the back says "Slow truck, fast house."
Just under 18 miles of pavement and we are ready for some dirt!
The first part of Poison Springs Wash Road was lots of loose rocks slightly smaller than a baseball. This is intermixed with periods of soft sand. A bit of a change from what we've had for a while. Eventually you get deeper into the canyon where the water runs and there's trees, less rocks, and the sand is wet, packed, and very firm. Lots of puddles to splash through. Very pretty and fun place to ride.
We stopped here and I got to put up my drone for a bit and get some of my first interesting shots. John R took off a bit early which gave me a chance to chase him with the drone a bit.
While riding, there's a bunch of cows and then a fork in the road. We took the right fork according to our GPS. Patrick must have missed it because he took the left fork. It's not every day a bad decision puts you on the other side of the canyon. As a good riding buddy, I made sure to commemorate this with a photo or two.
He wasn't too worried, and looks to have been enjoying the view. I spent some time enjoying the view too while we waited on him to backtrack around.
John H also enjoying the moment.
Time for another water crossing. This is the "Dirty Devil" river. We'd looked up the flow and height online earlier in the day and determined that it should be doable. When we got here the water was murky with silt and you couldn't really see the bottom to confirm what we'd read online.
After a couple of rock tossing plunk tests, we volunteered John H to go across and test the depth for us.
No sweat, easy peasy, we all got across and kept going.
After that, the canyon opens up and the road runs along the canyon, the dirt on the road is perfect and it's a fun and scenic ride along the edge.
We stopped here for a little break.
John H always finds the best places to enjoy the view.
At this point, John R starts freaking out a little bit. His gas tank is almost empty while the rest of us are all still at least half a tank. After going over his bike and determining that he doesn't have a leak, he remembers that he forgot to fill up that morning. While investigating though, we found he's lost a few bolts from his front fender. Patrick's "Bag O Bolts" came in handy and John R was able to get everything secured, now we just need to worry about fuel. It's late enough in the day that we decide to turn around at this point and head back.
Like yesterday, the ride back is just as awesome as it was coming out.
We stopped at this spot specifically. We'd looked for it on the way out, but John H found it on the way back. This canyon was known for smuggling and Butch Cassidy was known to bring stolen horses down this canyon on his way to sell them in Colorado. Legend has it that this was a favorite site for him to overnight at and it's easy to see why. There's good protection from the elements down here and water for the horses as well. I certainly wouldn't mind camping here
The rock back in the back there is known as "Butch Cassidy Rock." Someone had chiseled their name and image when Cassidy was 3 years old. Legend has it that the "Butch Cassidy" next to it was put there by him when he found it on the rock. Hard to see, even harder to properly photograph with a phone.
When it was time to leave, John R's bike wouldn't start. Seems like he's sucked all the gas out of his gas tank. An additional problem was that the fuel siphon hose someone had brought was back at the RV Park. Quickly a committee was formed to solve this issue. Too many folks in that committee already so I went to fly the drone for a bit. Ultimately a solution was found that was fully "Adventure Worthy."
We pulled my fuel vent hose off because it was the longest, and if you are astute enough looking at the previous photo, yes indeed, that is a Pistachio bag being used for the fuel transfer vessel.
We each donated a bag of gas to John R's bike and that easily got him back to the RV Park. He was much appreciative of the assistance.
We got rained on a little bit headed back on the pavement. Going pavement speed with a dirt bike helmet in the rain is a bit painful for the parts of your face below your goggles, but it wasn't very heavy and didn't last long. After getting cleaned up, we hit up the burger place again and I decided to try the chicken sandwich. It was every bit as good as the burger and I'd order it again. Since I'm watching my figure, I skipped the milkshake tonight.
We spent quite a bit of time that night planning for tomorrow. We have some unfinished business to attend to and it's going to create a fuel problem, even if everyone fills up first thing in the morning.
Excellent
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Great pics, out of this world.
TNC
0
Awesome stuff! That area has some of the most amazing riding. Your friend who didn't fill up would have ended like some of my riding buddies that I mentioned in an earlier post...a bag of stale trail mix...half a canteen of water...and good wishes. 
But seriously, great pics and writeup...great fun.
But seriously, great pics and writeup...great fun.
Great pics! Love the Pistachio fuel bladder...
Day 5
Life has been crazy at work and at home lately, long time between edits here but I got it done.
Day 5 we decided to hit Poison Spring Canyon again and try to push further into Canyonlands to the Dollhouse. This is a pretty neat rock formation, but as much as John H tried, there was no way to get there and back on a full tank of gas, and there's no gas stations out there. After lots of discussion around routing, Patrick volunteered to haul a 5 gallon can of gas out to the start of the dirt and we'd stash it somewhere out of sight. We should be able to get back to this point and then split the gas and make it back to camp.
It was another fun day running out through the Poison Spring Wash and the canyon. Mike was with us today and he was really enjoying this ride. Every time he stopped he'd be gushing about how much fun he was having, how great the surface was, the amazing views, all of it. He was definitely having a good time and it's hard to not have a good time around someone experiencing such enjoyment. To be fair, we were having a good time too, but he was on another level.
Eventually we were exploring new territory and really enjoying the views and some of the long steep hill climbs to get there.
After a while we hit this sign. This is at a bit of a crossroads and one of the roads had been our alternate when planning how to get out here.
This run was mostly some sandy two track that was several inches deep. It was a lot of fun because the two track ruts would provide mini berms as it twisted and turned along. Then it'd turn to a big patch of deep sand or exposed rock, so you had to be paying attention. A little later we were in a section that was pretty much all rock, and we got some intel of the road ahead from some other motorcyclists and a Jeep.
We headed into this section and there were some small shelves to drop off of and climb out of here and there. After a bit we didn't know if the road got worse and it was getting late. It didn't look like we'd make it to the dollhouse and get back out before dark so we turned around to head back. I've watched a few videos since then and the road actually got much easier at this point, but that's hard to judge when you are out there and have no internet to research.
John R had a bit of a rough go at this point. He had a tip over and we worked hard to get his bike through a tough obstacle. We were both worn out and my audio is full of heavy breathing as I was sucking wind trying to get going. I think the exhaustion hit John because he seemed to get sucked into that situation where the riding has difficulty, but it's made worse by your lack of energy, so you have more issues, which wear you out. I was out of energy from helping and wasn't sure how we'd both get through this, which was right about the time Patrick turned around to provide a helping hand. A few others showed up later and took over and we managed to get back to the last of the rocks and took some time to sit under the minimal shade and catch our breath.
We took off again and hit the two track section and then worked back into the canyon. I've never been too comfortable sitting and turning on a dirt bike, but I was too tired to stand so I tried to remember my fundamentals and practice them while riding. About halfway back to the canyon, something clicked and I got it, and was getting some good spin and slide and being comfortable powering through the turns. I caught the Johns and was having so much fun I passed them and kept going.
Eventually Mike was there waiting on me and he jumped in behind me till we caught the rest of the group, then I let him go ahead. That morning, I'd tried keeping up with Mike but he just zoomed off and left me. My new skills were helping, but Mike was taking it easy and letting me ride with him. We weren't doing anything stupid or riding super fast, just having a good time enjoying the winding dirt road and the canyon views.
We came around a super easy corner and Mike says that he lost traction on his front end. I saw his back end coming around and he was going down right in front of me. I laid in on the brakes but that sand on hardpack made it hard to stop quick. I laid down a line but didn't hit Mike as he was blocking the trail.
Mike's leg was under his bike and he was asking for help to lift up the motorcycle. I got mine parked and ran over to help him. As I approached the scene, I realized that Mike's leg had gotten pinned under the bike while his body had rolled. His leg was definitely not pointing the right direction. I got the bike off and his leg had a twist and bend below the knee that was not natural. Mike pointed out calmly that his leg was looking a little janky and he reached down and straightened his leg so it looked sort of normal. I went into a bit of panic mode not knowing how long Mike would be calm before the pain kicked in and realized I needed to get some info from him, like where his satellite device was and stuff like that.
I also realized that the two Johns would be coming up pretty quickly and this was a blind curve and we didn't need more riders down. I ran halfway around the curve and threw my backpack down in the middle of the road then ran back to Mike. We started assessing the situation and trying to make a plan. Mike has a modern iPhone with the satellite texting so we got his phone out and he started trying to contact 911. The two Johns showed up and my plan had worked as they saw my bag and immediately got puzzled and slowed way down.
At this point I was the only one who really had a grasp on the situation as Mike wanted us to help him get on his bike so he could ride out. Mike wasn't feeling like himself and the other two only saw his leg after he mostly straightened it. Attempting to get on the bike showed that this was definitely a bad idea. We did work to get him moved out of the direct sun and into the nearby shade. Poor Mike, he's a tall guy and was trying to use the shortest two people out there to help him, not sure how much help we actually were but we got him there.
Mike had a text conversation with 911 and due to our remote location the only offer they had was a helicopter. Mike hadn't signed up for the helicopter insurance so he declined it. We sent the other guys ahead to go back to the RV site and get Mike's truck to come and get him. Meanwhile, Mike was using his satellite text function to let his wife know what was going on and to also try to get in touch with JT and Gina who were out on their own ride.
Broken legs suck, but there's worse places to have to spend the afternoon.
Mike was pretty prepared though in the kit he had on his bike. He had a space blanket that proved useful for him and he sneaked this picture when I was looking. I thought he was texting, but nope. Sneaky Mike.
He also had some bug wipes that helped with the gnats we experienced out there. Mike also had fire starting stuff and a hand chainsaw, which would have been good if we'd had ANY trees out there. We tried to use his jump kit and tire pump to charge his phone but one device wasn't functioning and we didn't have the proper cable for the other one, so Mike had to conserve what little battery he had to keep our communication going.
Not having a whole lot to do, I checked and confirmed that our road had a BLM designation and not an NPS designation at this point meaning that we'd exited Canyonlands and weren't inside the National Park, so I was able to put up the drone for a little bit.
So, Mike's crash was at 4:22PM. At 6:30PM Mike got a text from JT and Gina that they had picked up Mike's truck and were departing the RV site. The road is a bit rough for a big pickup truck so we knew it would be slow going. We watched the shadows track across the canyon as the sun went down on the other side of the cliff behind us.
The sun went fully down and it was 8:45 when we finally saw headlights coming down the canyon. Just a point, during the entire four and a half hours, we didn't see any other vehicles out here. JT and Gina showed up and we got Mike comfortable inside his truck, and then JT went to work getting Mike's bike loaded while Gina and I tried to help out but also stay out of JT's way. He was a man on a mission here for sure. We had a small debate about whether or not I should ride out and when Gina and JT realized I have the pathetic stock headlight from KTM on my bike, they insisted to load it up and haul me out too.
I haven't ever upgraded my headlight because I don't ride in the dark, but I learned that sometimes you don't have a choice, so now I've added some expensive goodies to my wish list for upgrades.
I'd scouted ahead and found the most ideal place for JT to turn Mike's truck around, and it was a bit sketchy. We had the truck backed up with wheels to the edge which meant the tail of the truck was hanging well over the edge. JT called out that the view in the backup camera was pretty terrifying and we got a good chuckle.
We started heading back, and the boys back at camp had put in a few additional phone calls and had gotten the local volunteer search and rescue sent out to check on us. They arrived in their built and lifted 4Runner and were a good couple of guys who checked on Mike, and offered some medical assistance. They followed us for a bit before JT waved them around and we made our way back to pavement. I remembered Patrick's gas can and ran to check on it and in their haste they hadn't picked it up so I grabbed it and we headed to camp.
We arrived at camp at 12:30AM. John H had gone to bed early to rest up so that he could relieve JT of driving Mike and get to a hospital. The nearest hospital with a trauma center was in Grand Junction, just over 2 hours away. They arrived right around 3AM, John dropped Mike off and then headed to a nearby hotel.
Doctors thought Mike might need two surgeries but they got it done in one. His wife flew out to meet and help him out, and a few days later he flew home. JT and Gina packed up his bikes and travel trailer and made a convoy to get his stuff home to him.
This was a super long day that started off as the best day of the trip but obviously had an ending that was much less than ideal.
Life has been crazy at work and at home lately, long time between edits here but I got it done.
Day 5 we decided to hit Poison Spring Canyon again and try to push further into Canyonlands to the Dollhouse. This is a pretty neat rock formation, but as much as John H tried, there was no way to get there and back on a full tank of gas, and there's no gas stations out there. After lots of discussion around routing, Patrick volunteered to haul a 5 gallon can of gas out to the start of the dirt and we'd stash it somewhere out of sight. We should be able to get back to this point and then split the gas and make it back to camp.
It was another fun day running out through the Poison Spring Wash and the canyon. Mike was with us today and he was really enjoying this ride. Every time he stopped he'd be gushing about how much fun he was having, how great the surface was, the amazing views, all of it. He was definitely having a good time and it's hard to not have a good time around someone experiencing such enjoyment. To be fair, we were having a good time too, but he was on another level.
Eventually we were exploring new territory and really enjoying the views and some of the long steep hill climbs to get there.
After a while we hit this sign. This is at a bit of a crossroads and one of the roads had been our alternate when planning how to get out here.
This run was mostly some sandy two track that was several inches deep. It was a lot of fun because the two track ruts would provide mini berms as it twisted and turned along. Then it'd turn to a big patch of deep sand or exposed rock, so you had to be paying attention. A little later we were in a section that was pretty much all rock, and we got some intel of the road ahead from some other motorcyclists and a Jeep.
We headed into this section and there were some small shelves to drop off of and climb out of here and there. After a bit we didn't know if the road got worse and it was getting late. It didn't look like we'd make it to the dollhouse and get back out before dark so we turned around to head back. I've watched a few videos since then and the road actually got much easier at this point, but that's hard to judge when you are out there and have no internet to research.
John R had a bit of a rough go at this point. He had a tip over and we worked hard to get his bike through a tough obstacle. We were both worn out and my audio is full of heavy breathing as I was sucking wind trying to get going. I think the exhaustion hit John because he seemed to get sucked into that situation where the riding has difficulty, but it's made worse by your lack of energy, so you have more issues, which wear you out. I was out of energy from helping and wasn't sure how we'd both get through this, which was right about the time Patrick turned around to provide a helping hand. A few others showed up later and took over and we managed to get back to the last of the rocks and took some time to sit under the minimal shade and catch our breath.
We took off again and hit the two track section and then worked back into the canyon. I've never been too comfortable sitting and turning on a dirt bike, but I was too tired to stand so I tried to remember my fundamentals and practice them while riding. About halfway back to the canyon, something clicked and I got it, and was getting some good spin and slide and being comfortable powering through the turns. I caught the Johns and was having so much fun I passed them and kept going.
Eventually Mike was there waiting on me and he jumped in behind me till we caught the rest of the group, then I let him go ahead. That morning, I'd tried keeping up with Mike but he just zoomed off and left me. My new skills were helping, but Mike was taking it easy and letting me ride with him. We weren't doing anything stupid or riding super fast, just having a good time enjoying the winding dirt road and the canyon views.
We came around a super easy corner and Mike says that he lost traction on his front end. I saw his back end coming around and he was going down right in front of me. I laid in on the brakes but that sand on hardpack made it hard to stop quick. I laid down a line but didn't hit Mike as he was blocking the trail.
Mike's leg was under his bike and he was asking for help to lift up the motorcycle. I got mine parked and ran over to help him. As I approached the scene, I realized that Mike's leg had gotten pinned under the bike while his body had rolled. His leg was definitely not pointing the right direction. I got the bike off and his leg had a twist and bend below the knee that was not natural. Mike pointed out calmly that his leg was looking a little janky and he reached down and straightened his leg so it looked sort of normal. I went into a bit of panic mode not knowing how long Mike would be calm before the pain kicked in and realized I needed to get some info from him, like where his satellite device was and stuff like that.
I also realized that the two Johns would be coming up pretty quickly and this was a blind curve and we didn't need more riders down. I ran halfway around the curve and threw my backpack down in the middle of the road then ran back to Mike. We started assessing the situation and trying to make a plan. Mike has a modern iPhone with the satellite texting so we got his phone out and he started trying to contact 911. The two Johns showed up and my plan had worked as they saw my bag and immediately got puzzled and slowed way down.
At this point I was the only one who really had a grasp on the situation as Mike wanted us to help him get on his bike so he could ride out. Mike wasn't feeling like himself and the other two only saw his leg after he mostly straightened it. Attempting to get on the bike showed that this was definitely a bad idea. We did work to get him moved out of the direct sun and into the nearby shade. Poor Mike, he's a tall guy and was trying to use the shortest two people out there to help him, not sure how much help we actually were but we got him there.
Mike had a text conversation with 911 and due to our remote location the only offer they had was a helicopter. Mike hadn't signed up for the helicopter insurance so he declined it. We sent the other guys ahead to go back to the RV site and get Mike's truck to come and get him. Meanwhile, Mike was using his satellite text function to let his wife know what was going on and to also try to get in touch with JT and Gina who were out on their own ride.
Broken legs suck, but there's worse places to have to spend the afternoon.
Mike was pretty prepared though in the kit he had on his bike. He had a space blanket that proved useful for him and he sneaked this picture when I was looking. I thought he was texting, but nope. Sneaky Mike.
He also had some bug wipes that helped with the gnats we experienced out there. Mike also had fire starting stuff and a hand chainsaw, which would have been good if we'd had ANY trees out there. We tried to use his jump kit and tire pump to charge his phone but one device wasn't functioning and we didn't have the proper cable for the other one, so Mike had to conserve what little battery he had to keep our communication going.
Not having a whole lot to do, I checked and confirmed that our road had a BLM designation and not an NPS designation at this point meaning that we'd exited Canyonlands and weren't inside the National Park, so I was able to put up the drone for a little bit.
So, Mike's crash was at 4:22PM. At 6:30PM Mike got a text from JT and Gina that they had picked up Mike's truck and were departing the RV site. The road is a bit rough for a big pickup truck so we knew it would be slow going. We watched the shadows track across the canyon as the sun went down on the other side of the cliff behind us.
The sun went fully down and it was 8:45 when we finally saw headlights coming down the canyon. Just a point, during the entire four and a half hours, we didn't see any other vehicles out here. JT and Gina showed up and we got Mike comfortable inside his truck, and then JT went to work getting Mike's bike loaded while Gina and I tried to help out but also stay out of JT's way. He was a man on a mission here for sure. We had a small debate about whether or not I should ride out and when Gina and JT realized I have the pathetic stock headlight from KTM on my bike, they insisted to load it up and haul me out too.
I haven't ever upgraded my headlight because I don't ride in the dark, but I learned that sometimes you don't have a choice, so now I've added some expensive goodies to my wish list for upgrades.
I'd scouted ahead and found the most ideal place for JT to turn Mike's truck around, and it was a bit sketchy. We had the truck backed up with wheels to the edge which meant the tail of the truck was hanging well over the edge. JT called out that the view in the backup camera was pretty terrifying and we got a good chuckle.
We started heading back, and the boys back at camp had put in a few additional phone calls and had gotten the local volunteer search and rescue sent out to check on us. They arrived in their built and lifted 4Runner and were a good couple of guys who checked on Mike, and offered some medical assistance. They followed us for a bit before JT waved them around and we made our way back to pavement. I remembered Patrick's gas can and ran to check on it and in their haste they hadn't picked it up so I grabbed it and we headed to camp.
We arrived at camp at 12:30AM. John H had gone to bed early to rest up so that he could relieve JT of driving Mike and get to a hospital. The nearest hospital with a trauma center was in Grand Junction, just over 2 hours away. They arrived right around 3AM, John dropped Mike off and then headed to a nearby hotel.
Doctors thought Mike might need two surgeries but they got it done in one. His wife flew out to meet and help him out, and a few days later he flew home. JT and Gina packed up his bikes and travel trailer and made a convoy to get his stuff home to him.
This was a super long day that started off as the best day of the trip but obviously had an ending that was much less than ideal.
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Great RR! Thank you.
Well done write up, pix and vid Jason.
Thanks for taking the time to put it together.
Thanks for taking the time to put it together.
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Not quotes, because my ancient brain will not allow me to remember direct quotes, but Least Heat Moon used Rober Frost's poem "The Road Less Traveled," to extend a caution to other travelers. Moon, while referring to the Road Less Traveled, said something like, "Use caution when searching for adventure. It's surprisingly easy to find." It seems like this group found more adventure than they searched for. While Moon cautioned against overly searching for adventure, he also said there will never be a bridge long enough to span the chasm between one who went in search of adventure and one who stayed at home. GixxerJasen's Utah Dual Sport Adventure just lengthened the necessary bridge to span that chasm. I hope the leg heals nicely.
Day 6
Alright, let's wrap this up.
Day 6 opened up and a lot of us were moving slow this morning after the late night last night. Mike of course is in the hospital, so he won't be joining us today. John H drove Mike to the hospital, dropped him off and found himself a cheap hotel in Colorado. It was going to be a bit before he rolled out of bed and made the several hour drive back to Hanksville. Rollin woke up and jumped on his ADV bike and started the ride home needing to be back a bit earlier than the rest of us. JT and Gina were busy themselves. That left myself along with John R and Patrick. John and Patrick had missed out on the behind Factory Butte the other day and inquired if I had the tracks for that. With us getting a later start and needing to pack and prep for the trip home, we wouldn't have enough time for Behind the Reef, but the first part would fit in great. I'd also wanted to do a little drone flying so I prepped them for that.
Getting suited up, I grabbed my last pair of clean socks. I had to chuckle a little at the irony of picking these as they were my son's socks and they seemed to line up with the previous day's events.
Oddly, I took video this day but that was the last photograph I took all day long.
Running out past Factory Butte, we continued to have fantastic weather. The overlook behind the Butte was well received by both Patrick and John, and after a bit of taking photos, we continued on our way.
We stopped off near some formations and I put up the drone. Patrick was kind enough to ride out and be the subject of the videos and provide some perspective and a well timed little wave to the drone.
We rode out and got to where the pavement starts and there's a parking lot and some restrooms there. I pointed out where John H and I had made a wrong turn earlier in the week and ended up at a spot we were nervous about riding up so had turned around. Patrick jumped at the challenge and rode around and straight up the hard part like it was nothing. Sigh.
Then it was pavement back to the RV park. Time to start packing bags, loading bikes and getting the travel trailer ready to turn in.
We had a good diner and an early bedtime because I had to be up super early in the morning. I still had to drive the Travel Trailer 100 miles west and get it turned in, then come back and load my bike and head toward home. Turn in was easy, I was expecting some extra charges for cleaning and fuel used but the owner checked us right in and gave me a thanks for taking care of his stuff. Easy peasy.
I made Tucumcari that night and with my favorite Blue Swallow Motel all booked up, I ended up staying at the Motel Safari across the street. It was very nice and is a good #2 location in town. The next day I was up early and got home just after lunch time. As usual it takes a few weeks to get the Utah dirt out of all the places it gets to on the bikes, clothes and truck, but it's well worth it.
I love me some Utah, but now I've got some cravings to go riding in the trees.
Alright, let's wrap this up.
Day 6 opened up and a lot of us were moving slow this morning after the late night last night. Mike of course is in the hospital, so he won't be joining us today. John H drove Mike to the hospital, dropped him off and found himself a cheap hotel in Colorado. It was going to be a bit before he rolled out of bed and made the several hour drive back to Hanksville. Rollin woke up and jumped on his ADV bike and started the ride home needing to be back a bit earlier than the rest of us. JT and Gina were busy themselves. That left myself along with John R and Patrick. John and Patrick had missed out on the behind Factory Butte the other day and inquired if I had the tracks for that. With us getting a later start and needing to pack and prep for the trip home, we wouldn't have enough time for Behind the Reef, but the first part would fit in great. I'd also wanted to do a little drone flying so I prepped them for that.
Getting suited up, I grabbed my last pair of clean socks. I had to chuckle a little at the irony of picking these as they were my son's socks and they seemed to line up with the previous day's events.
Oddly, I took video this day but that was the last photograph I took all day long.
Running out past Factory Butte, we continued to have fantastic weather. The overlook behind the Butte was well received by both Patrick and John, and after a bit of taking photos, we continued on our way.
We stopped off near some formations and I put up the drone. Patrick was kind enough to ride out and be the subject of the videos and provide some perspective and a well timed little wave to the drone.
We rode out and got to where the pavement starts and there's a parking lot and some restrooms there. I pointed out where John H and I had made a wrong turn earlier in the week and ended up at a spot we were nervous about riding up so had turned around. Patrick jumped at the challenge and rode around and straight up the hard part like it was nothing. Sigh.
Then it was pavement back to the RV park. Time to start packing bags, loading bikes and getting the travel trailer ready to turn in.
We had a good diner and an early bedtime because I had to be up super early in the morning. I still had to drive the Travel Trailer 100 miles west and get it turned in, then come back and load my bike and head toward home. Turn in was easy, I was expecting some extra charges for cleaning and fuel used but the owner checked us right in and gave me a thanks for taking care of his stuff. Easy peasy.
I made Tucumcari that night and with my favorite Blue Swallow Motel all booked up, I ended up staying at the Motel Safari across the street. It was very nice and is a good #2 location in town. The next day I was up early and got home just after lunch time. As usual it takes a few weeks to get the Utah dirt out of all the places it gets to on the bikes, clothes and truck, but it's well worth it.
I love me some Utah, but now I've got some cravings to go riding in the trees.
Thanks for letting me stop and play. Sometimes folks just want to ride, but it makes for good memories later.
Nice report, Jasen. I am so stoked you got over head video of Cassidy camp. Thanks again for dragging the trailer to and from our base camp.
By the way, I could be convinced to take a mid to late July trip to the San Juans.
By the way, I could be convinced to take a mid to late July trip to the San Juans.
Thoughts on insurance, satellite communicators, and preparation.
So, here are some thoughts I have on these items, based on the amount of research I did before this trip, and experiences I've had and witnessed.
Two years prior to this trip, one of the guys in the group, John H, had a nasty crash in Utah and injured his back. His buddies were able to get a hold of emergency services and get him helicoptered out of there. Thankfully he had insurance for this kind of thing and it was a no brainer. I went into super research mode on this stuff and purchased my own insurance based on his story. Mike had planned on getting the insurance, but for many reasons he didn't complete the purchase. This put him in a pickle of a position there on the side of the trail and the cost of the ride put him in the position of declining the assistance. It's an expensive prospect and one you shouldn't be concerning yourself with when you are hurting out in the middle of nowhere. The insurance is cheap and if you are planning any kind of trip like this, just get the insurance so you don't have the dilemma at a time you just need to be focusing on other things.
Additionally, making the wrong decision can have dangerous consequences. It was 11 hours from the time of the accident to the time Mike was in the hands of medical professionals. He got lucky there, but you run a lot of risk of medical complications taking place during a long wait time like that. This is the reason they want to send you a helicopter, it's the fastest way to get you help.
I did some research between Garmin and Spot on the insurance provided and found some interesting stuff there. Garmin has excellent reviews dating back to the beginning of Garmin's offering of this service. Spot's reviews aren't so good in the past. The difference in the two companies is that Garmin runs their service and Spot contracts theirs out to a third party. Interestingly enough, a couple of years ago, their third party was purchased by Garmin. Not wanting to give business to their competitor, they moved over to their current provider, Overwatch X. The reviews since this transition seem to be good so it's kind of a wash between them. Coverage is very similar with some small differences that are worth reviewing but ultimately if you already have a device, you won't go wrong picking the coverage offered by that device.
In my research in all of this, I already had a Spot Gen 4, but looked into the Garmin side as well, specifically at the Mini 2. I like that the current devices support some type of two way communication whether on the device itself or connected to your phone. This proved to be a big plus in that Mike was able to have a two way conversation with emergency services. He was able to know someone was on the other end and was able to make decisions. On my device, I push the button and then I hope someone gets the message and is coming to get me. I have zero input on the type of assistance I'm getting and the folks on the other end have no idea what kind of help I actually need. Of course, these devices that support two way communication can function like mine if I'm not able to have a digital conversation in my situation.
I ultimately decided to stay with my Spot Gen 4 because of some things going on with Garmin. Their basic communication tech has been the same for a long time with little changes despite newer models. Apparently they've recently released an upgrade version of their larger communicator that uses new protocols and tech for the communication. There's anticipation of these changes being pushed to the next version of the Mini, so I didn't feel like making that investment at this time. I also didn't see the benefit of the two way communication until we were actually using it. I'm hoping to have a new device on my next adventure, but we'll see which way I go with it.
----------------------------------------------------
The elephant in the room is the built in technology in modern phones that looks to put Garmin and Spot out of business. Before the trip, I had watched a few videos of this and determined that it's probably not ready for prime time. Actually experiencing this proved to me that I wouldn't recommend this to anyone right now.
The first thing that was obvious was having to point the phone at the satellite. The iPhone will help you find the satellite and assist you in getting it oriented correctly for the communication to happen. That's a bit fiddly when you are lying on the ground trying to get a help message out. Additionally, the satellites are passing overhead, so there's not always one readily in view and you have to find it and align things and get the messages sent and received. Being able to push a button on the spot and it'll connect on it's own when it sees the satellite makes things easy. This was more difficult as the cliff behind us blocked view of the satellite, so we had half the effective communication time before the satellite was no longer available to us. Heaven forbid if you fell in a crevasse or narrow canyon. I can't say if Spot or Garmin would be able to communicate, but at least you wouldn't be holding your phone trying to find something.
The biggest impact was the battery. Mike crashed toward the end of the day. When he pulled his phone out, he had 30% battery on his phone. The biggest things that chew up the battery are screen use and your phone trying to establish communications. Those two things will eat your available battery level quickly out in the middle of nowhere. Mike's battery was going down at an alarming rate while using the screen to find satellites and get his text messages in and out. At some points he ended up turning his phone off to conserve energy in case he needed to send a message later. He had a tire inflator that had the ability to act as a charging block, but something had happened to it and it wasn't functioning properly and wouldn't charge his phone, so his backup wasn't worth anything. All of this added a lot of stress to the situation. That said, he was able to communicate with 911, his wife, and our friends back at the RV camp, so it did have a lot of benefit. That said, it's very easy to end up in a situation where you aren't able to communicate at all. The batteries on my Spot have easily lasted through a full two week trip while sending data all day long. I also carry spare AAA batteries for it as well so I'd be pretty confident that it can handle the communications during an emergency. The phone tech is cool, and will be better in the future, but it's not where I'd put my confidence in it for a potential life and death situation.
As for getting assistance from others, this is great if you crash along the interstate, but even a popular place like we were at, was still far too remote for hoping for help. During our four and a half our wait on the side of the trail, we did not see a single person. No Jeeps, no SxS, no motorcyclists, no bicyclists, no hikers. When our buddies got back to camp, they dialed 911 and even though we had folks coming to get us they requested for Search and Rescue to come out just in case. Not sure how it'd be inside something like a National Park, outside of that like where we were, it's all a volunteer thing. Getting the volunteers contacted and mobilized in their personal vehicles and out to your location takes quite a bit of time. We met up with two guys from S&R in a well modified 4Runner on our way back in Mike's truck.
There's a lot to think about for these situations, and you have to decide for yourself how you want to be prepared. Going forward I'll definitely have a dedicated two way satellite communication device and carry the insurance.
So, here are some thoughts I have on these items, based on the amount of research I did before this trip, and experiences I've had and witnessed.
Two years prior to this trip, one of the guys in the group, John H, had a nasty crash in Utah and injured his back. His buddies were able to get a hold of emergency services and get him helicoptered out of there. Thankfully he had insurance for this kind of thing and it was a no brainer. I went into super research mode on this stuff and purchased my own insurance based on his story. Mike had planned on getting the insurance, but for many reasons he didn't complete the purchase. This put him in a pickle of a position there on the side of the trail and the cost of the ride put him in the position of declining the assistance. It's an expensive prospect and one you shouldn't be concerning yourself with when you are hurting out in the middle of nowhere. The insurance is cheap and if you are planning any kind of trip like this, just get the insurance so you don't have the dilemma at a time you just need to be focusing on other things.
Additionally, making the wrong decision can have dangerous consequences. It was 11 hours from the time of the accident to the time Mike was in the hands of medical professionals. He got lucky there, but you run a lot of risk of medical complications taking place during a long wait time like that. This is the reason they want to send you a helicopter, it's the fastest way to get you help.
I did some research between Garmin and Spot on the insurance provided and found some interesting stuff there. Garmin has excellent reviews dating back to the beginning of Garmin's offering of this service. Spot's reviews aren't so good in the past. The difference in the two companies is that Garmin runs their service and Spot contracts theirs out to a third party. Interestingly enough, a couple of years ago, their third party was purchased by Garmin. Not wanting to give business to their competitor, they moved over to their current provider, Overwatch X. The reviews since this transition seem to be good so it's kind of a wash between them. Coverage is very similar with some small differences that are worth reviewing but ultimately if you already have a device, you won't go wrong picking the coverage offered by that device.
In my research in all of this, I already had a Spot Gen 4, but looked into the Garmin side as well, specifically at the Mini 2. I like that the current devices support some type of two way communication whether on the device itself or connected to your phone. This proved to be a big plus in that Mike was able to have a two way conversation with emergency services. He was able to know someone was on the other end and was able to make decisions. On my device, I push the button and then I hope someone gets the message and is coming to get me. I have zero input on the type of assistance I'm getting and the folks on the other end have no idea what kind of help I actually need. Of course, these devices that support two way communication can function like mine if I'm not able to have a digital conversation in my situation.
I ultimately decided to stay with my Spot Gen 4 because of some things going on with Garmin. Their basic communication tech has been the same for a long time with little changes despite newer models. Apparently they've recently released an upgrade version of their larger communicator that uses new protocols and tech for the communication. There's anticipation of these changes being pushed to the next version of the Mini, so I didn't feel like making that investment at this time. I also didn't see the benefit of the two way communication until we were actually using it. I'm hoping to have a new device on my next adventure, but we'll see which way I go with it.
----------------------------------------------------
The elephant in the room is the built in technology in modern phones that looks to put Garmin and Spot out of business. Before the trip, I had watched a few videos of this and determined that it's probably not ready for prime time. Actually experiencing this proved to me that I wouldn't recommend this to anyone right now.
The first thing that was obvious was having to point the phone at the satellite. The iPhone will help you find the satellite and assist you in getting it oriented correctly for the communication to happen. That's a bit fiddly when you are lying on the ground trying to get a help message out. Additionally, the satellites are passing overhead, so there's not always one readily in view and you have to find it and align things and get the messages sent and received. Being able to push a button on the spot and it'll connect on it's own when it sees the satellite makes things easy. This was more difficult as the cliff behind us blocked view of the satellite, so we had half the effective communication time before the satellite was no longer available to us. Heaven forbid if you fell in a crevasse or narrow canyon. I can't say if Spot or Garmin would be able to communicate, but at least you wouldn't be holding your phone trying to find something.
The biggest impact was the battery. Mike crashed toward the end of the day. When he pulled his phone out, he had 30% battery on his phone. The biggest things that chew up the battery are screen use and your phone trying to establish communications. Those two things will eat your available battery level quickly out in the middle of nowhere. Mike's battery was going down at an alarming rate while using the screen to find satellites and get his text messages in and out. At some points he ended up turning his phone off to conserve energy in case he needed to send a message later. He had a tire inflator that had the ability to act as a charging block, but something had happened to it and it wasn't functioning properly and wouldn't charge his phone, so his backup wasn't worth anything. All of this added a lot of stress to the situation. That said, he was able to communicate with 911, his wife, and our friends back at the RV camp, so it did have a lot of benefit. That said, it's very easy to end up in a situation where you aren't able to communicate at all. The batteries on my Spot have easily lasted through a full two week trip while sending data all day long. I also carry spare AAA batteries for it as well so I'd be pretty confident that it can handle the communications during an emergency. The phone tech is cool, and will be better in the future, but it's not where I'd put my confidence in it for a potential life and death situation.
As for getting assistance from others, this is great if you crash along the interstate, but even a popular place like we were at, was still far too remote for hoping for help. During our four and a half our wait on the side of the trail, we did not see a single person. No Jeeps, no SxS, no motorcyclists, no bicyclists, no hikers. When our buddies got back to camp, they dialed 911 and even though we had folks coming to get us they requested for Search and Rescue to come out just in case. Not sure how it'd be inside something like a National Park, outside of that like where we were, it's all a volunteer thing. Getting the volunteers contacted and mobilized in their personal vehicles and out to your location takes quite a bit of time. We met up with two guys from S&R in a well modified 4Runner on our way back in Mike's truck.
There's a lot to think about for these situations, and you have to decide for yourself how you want to be prepared. Going forward I'll definitely have a dedicated two way satellite communication device and carry the insurance.
Simmons1
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I have been using one of the Original "dumb" SPOTs from right when they came out. I use it on track so Linda and others have an idea where I am. I only have one experience with using the "911" button. See here:
SPOT 911 Button Actually Works
What started out as a relaxing dual sport ride in the LBJ Grasslands turned into a very long day. 2 KLR's and 1 WR250R started the day, Only the WR made it home under its own power. The meet up spot in Decatur: In LBJ Grasslands: Lunch in Forestburg: We were having a nice ride when...
TNC
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Great information there, gixxer. Nothing like real world, recent situations to really put a spotlight on the ups and downs of injury and rescue. I had SPOT initially and even went to the upgraded version...SPOT 2? In both cases I would too frequently for comfort not have my canned messages go out. And of course being out of phone coverage, there was no way I'd know it as I wouldn't get a confirmation on my phone. It was especially troubling to my wife when it was the one at the end of the day that said I was safely back in camp for the day. After some research I found that during my SPOT 1 and 2 days, SPOT would use cell phone coverage when it was present but satellite when it wasn't. Problem was when there was sketchy phone coverage at times, SPOT would drop the message in the ether as it wrestled with which protocol to use. I went to Garmin...first gen Inreach Mini...and have never had that happen because Garmin only uses satellite for your messages. I was curious if SPOT still uses the cell phone/satellite method. Anyone else have that experience with SPOT?...or...does Garmin use the same dual method but are just better at it?
Simmons1
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I have never heard of SPOT using cell service, only satellite. Learn something new everyday.
The only times I have had SPOT messages not go thru were if I was under real heavy canopy, or in a deep narrow canyon.
The only times I have had SPOT messages not go thru were if I was under real heavy canopy, or in a deep narrow canyon.
If you ride solo, make sure to pack a pistola too. If you can't move and your signal is blocked, you need a way to fend off the cougars.
TNC
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LS, I like cougars. But at my age most of them are in nursing homes, and my toes are battered and bruised from their mobility chairs. Maybe I do need a gun.
But seriously you're right...and not just cougars. On my December Big Bend trip, I was coming off the River Road on the east end when I came upon two open bed Border Patrol pickups packed with illegals out in the open and not restrained. There were only two BP agents. Everything looked peaceful, but I pulled up next to one of the agents standing there, told him I was a retired cop, legally carrying, to see if they needed any help. He thanked me and said they had all turned themselves in and were peaceful. Apparently December and early January saw a lot of this. Cougars, criminals, wild-eyed backcountry backpackers...you never know what threat you'll encounter.
I was wondering who I would snare with the cougar comment. Well done. That was hilarious TNC.
TNC
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Yes...it was easy bait on your part.
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Thinking it might be worthwhile to split the thread starting at Jason's discussion of insurance and emergency contact methods so we can continue it without detracting from the ride report and maybe include a link back to the report for anyone wanting more context regarding his recent experience with Mike. Thoughts?