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White Rim Trail riding double

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humanrace

humanrace

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Dennie
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Spears
Has anyone done this? Which direction did you go?
 
Go counter clockwise!! There is a bit of deep sand/silt on the NW corner that is better to hit when you are fresh rather than at the end of a long ride. Most of it would not be too difficult two up for a decent rider AND passenger. There might be a few steep sections where you and/or the passenger might want the passenger to walk it depending on the conditions at the time you ride it. There are some steep climbs/descents where good brakes and good power would be handy. It is an epic ride in terms of scenery, but not so much in terms of technical stuff. Just go easy because there are some corners that if you blow them... it is a long way to the bottom...
 
SpiritAtBay said:
You and the wife planning an adventure?
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Yes, but probably not like you are imagining. It's only been 3 weeks since she had a hip replacement. We're going to wait a few more weeks and then go. We'll take the camper and truck and the DRZ400. She would like to do the White Rim Trail, but it's a whole day ride for a single person on a DRZ and our truck is a 2WD Colorado. We would probably have to camp riding the DRZ. I'm enquiring because she is making such good progress. She started back to work full time last week.:thumb::thumb: I see more 2 to 3 mile hikes on this trip than I do rides on the bike.

Tourmeister said:
Go counter clockwise!! There is a bit of deep sand/silt on the NW corner that is better to hit when you are fresh rather than at the end of a long ride. Most of it would not be too difficult two up for a decent rider AND passenger. There might be a few steep sections where you and/or the passenger might want the passenger to walk it depending on the conditions at the time you ride it. There are some steep climbs/descents where good brakes and good power would be handy. It is an epic ride in terms of scenery, but not so much in terms of technical stuff. Just go easy because there are some corners that if you blow them... it is a long way to the bottom... :pirate::pirate: EYES ON THE ROAD.
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That's great, heard great things about recovering from hip replacement. Amazing.
 
I'm contemplating doing the White Rim later this year if I can stuff it in, so I'll be watching this thread - if anyone has any more insight on this adventure.
 
Flipit said:
I'm contemplating doing the White Rim later this year if I can stuff it in, so I'll be watching this thread - if anyone has any more insight on this adventure.
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I've done it before, but not double and all of my trails are starting to get mixed up in my brain like a bag of gummy worms left on the dash board on a hot, sunny day. After Scott mentioned the sand, I remembered it. If you do it counter clockwise, be sure to complete the ride by riding the Shafer Trail and not the Potash road. If you do it clockwise, start inside Canyonlands and go down Shafer instead of starting just outside Moab. I guess I'm saying don't miss Shafer Trail.
 
I guess my biggest question would be: What is a realistic timeframe for doing the entire White Rim, including Shafer Trail?
 
It's close to 100 miles counting several short side roads to overlooks. Some of the side roads lead to a view sort of like looking over the edge of a canyon while you are standing inside of a canyon, very scenic. It can be done in a long day, but better in two days.
 
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Flipit said:
I guess my biggest question would be: What is a realistic timeframe for doing the entire White Rim, including Shafer Trail?
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We left Monticello about 9:00am and did the near one hour ride up 191 to Moab, got gas, and then headed out to do the White Rim Trail. We were riding a KTM 530 EXC and 450 EXC. We stopped frequently for pics and ran a leisurely pace. We were sitting on the bench out front of the Island in The Sky office at the top of Shaffer about 5:00pm. I recall they were closing the office for the day and heading home. We hung out for a bit then went back down Shaffer and rode the Potash road back into Moab, got gas, then did the hour ride back down to Monticello. This was late April and we were home at the hotel a bit before dark.

Gas is an issue. If I recall, the total miles from Moab back to Moab was about 150 miles I can go 300 on my KTM 530 EXC. I have a 6-1/2 gallon tank. Rsquared's 450 had similar range because he had the same tank. If you cannot reliably hit 175 miles on a full tank, I would strongly suggest carrying extra gas! You will NOT be pushing your bike out and vehicle recovery is VERY expensive out there.
 
A DRZ 400 wont make it on a stock gas tank. I rode my friends around it one day with a 5 QT oil jug strapped on and filled with gas. That worked but I short shifted all day. Two up will be more challenging on fuel for sure. As graded as the trail is now, in comparison to how it was even 10 years ago, I still would not take a passenger with a recent hip replacement on it. One small tip over and she hits a rock she could be in huge trouble out there. Just getting her out will be a major challenge and cost as mentioned above. I think there are a couple options for loops but all are long and you would need to be in top shape to do it riding double. Going in from Schaefer trail end and riding 30 miles then turning around and riding back out is a really nice option too. You miss the nasty sand which varies by year but is never fun. You may not even be able to do it riding double unless you have well honed "sand skills" . If I remember correctly, if you come in through the sand, there is shortly thereafter a very steep climb that might require a passenger hiking up the hill. Its not (or at least wasn't) a hill to attempt to stop /start on due to the lose rocky terrain.
 
I've been around it many times both directions, and I think it is very restricted now, with not much camping allowed. Speed limits highly enforced and permits supposedly required . Group sizes are limited as well. Watch out for bicyclists as they are sure they own the trails. We've had multiple altercations even back in the early days. I can't imagine how bad it is now. My riding buddies don't even ride it any more due to crowds. That said, some of the best photos and views are out the Shaeffer trail around sunset.
 
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