2001 Spring Break 50 Miler Trek
Needles District, Canyonlands National Park
April 7th-14th, 2001
About the Trip
This trip will take us to "multi-colored sandstone
carved into delicate arches, magnificent spires,
and breathtaking canyons", some of the prettiest
country in the United States.
This will be a challenging hike covering 50 miles at elevations
ranging from 5000 to 7200 feet. The challenges are not quite like the
Grand Canyon - where the "down and up" kills you - here the challenges will be water management and distance hiking, sometimes through water and sand. It WILL be worth the effort, though.
The temperatures are normally high 60's in the days, mid 40's in the night. Some rain or possibly even short-lasting snow is possible, but this is a
desert much like Albuquerque in climate, just usually a little cooler.
Plus, there's an optional mountain biking extravaganza
on Friday, April 12th at the World Famous Moab Slick Rock
and Sand Flats areas! All day - ride your heart out!
Support Crew
A support crew will be helping us get to and from the hike areas,
as well as being able to relax around Moab, camp on the Colorado River,
fish, explore the Arches or Zion National Parks, and even ride
mountain bikes all week. We need four to eight adults with larger-capacity
vehicles and a truck or two to make up the support crew.
We'll need to have seating and pack carrying
capacity for 14 hikers, plus room for the support crew.
Roads to the drop-off sites are paved all the way to the drop off location
in Squaw Flats campground, and paved to within about 14 miles of pickup
at the Cathedral Butte trailhead.
Fees for the support crew, assuming a stay all week, will be $125 per person. This will cover the cost of all the food for the week, most or all of the gasoline for the trip, and camping fees in Moab.
Preparations
We'll be doing at least 4 prep hikes, (and one prep bike ride, for those planning to ride the optional mountain biking day) with some flat 5-milers at the start, working up to15-milers over-the-crest. These prep hikes will
be mandatory and successful completion of them is required to be able
to go on the trip. Tentatively, we'll hike 4 weekends of
March. We'll need adult support, of course, on these
prep hikes as well as on the trek.
We'll have a mandatory pack inspection and a couple of
meetings during Scout meeting to set up crews, go over equipment
lists, review safety requirements and verify room or containers for
food and water (each Scout should have 1 gallon of water capacity in
his pack).
Trek Reservations
We'll have room for 10 Scouts and 4 Grannies
on the trek. We will camp and travel in 2 groups of 7 people,
each group doing almost the same trail each hiking day,
but camping/cooking separately, sometimes as much as 2 miles
apart, sometimes just out of sight of the other group.
We'll need to get your commitment to go on the Trek by
March 5th. Initial payment of $50 is due at that time.
Last payment of $115 is due on April 2nd. If a trekker
finds they can not attend, their payments will be refunded
only if a stand-by person is ready to go in their place.
Stand-by trekers are encouraged, but they must meet all the
requirements listed below, and if they are notified of a
slot opening up, they must be able to pay the total fees ($165)
on April 2nd.
Requirements to be able to go on Trek as a Scout:
- 14 years to 17 years on April 7th, 2001
- Philmont medical examination shows no problems with strenuous exercise
- In good standing with Troop 285 - all dues paid, not suspended
- Have Hiking merit badge, or be working on it
- Complete all prep hikes
- Pay Trek fees by deadlines
Daily Itinerary
April 7th (Saturday)
6AM: Depart Albuquerque, drive via Gallup, Shiprock, Cortez CO, Monticello UT, then 32 miles before (south of) Moab UT, turn off at Canyon Rims turnoff onto BLM land, go west 6 miles to Wind Whistle campground. Total distance: 365 miles.
4PM: Arrive Wind Whistle campground. A 15 person group camp site is
reserved, remainder will camp in an individual camp site (if one is
available when we arrive) or "dispersed" right along the road.
April 8th (Sunday)
6AM: Rise, get hot breakfast, and drive to Squaw Flat Campsite at north edge of Needles District.
8AM: Start hike for the day.
- Group 1: Big Spring Canyon - Chesler Park - Devils Kitchen - overnight
at DP1 campsite south of the Devil's Kitchen vehicle camp (7.5 miles)
- Group 2: Big Spring Canyon - Chesler Park - Chesler Park Loop West Side - Joint - overnight at CP5 campsite (9.4 miles)
After drop off, support crew free until Thursday afternoon. Possible
activities - visit Arches, Island In Sky, Zion, fish Colorado River,
mountain bike around Moab, check out Moab stores, etc.
Support crew relocates to a BLM campsite near Moab (Goose Island, Hal Canyon, Oak Grove, Big Bend, Upper Big Bend) and camps in an individual
camp site ($10 per night for the group) until Wednesday evening. Goose Island is preferred, since we will have reservations on the evenings of Thursday and Friday to stay as a large-group at Goose Island. During week, please scout out a restaurant for dinner on Friday evening; make reservations if needed for about 7pm, about 20 people. Also, please scout out an RV park in Moab for showers (we'll have to pay for priviledge) for hikers on Thursday evening (on way back to camp) and Friday evening (after biking).
April 9th (Monday)
7 AM: Start hike for day.
- Group 1: Devil's Pocket - Chesler Park Loop West Side - Joint - EC3 campsite to drop main packs - day hike Druid Arch Trail out and back - camp at EC3 (10.0 miles)
- Group 2: Joint - EC3 campsite to drop main packs - day hike Druid Arch Trail out and back - camp at EC1 (7.8 miles)
On the Joint trail, there's a quarter-mile hike through this slot caused by
faults in the sandstone.
April 10th (Tuesday)
7 AM: start hike for day.
- Group 1: Squaw Canyon - Lost Canyon - Peekaboo - camp at large about 1 mile south of Peekaboo in flat canyons east of road (9.7 miles)
- Group 2: Druid Arch - Squaw Canyon - Lost Canyon - Peekaboo - camp at large about 1 mile south of Peekaboo in flat canyons east of road (10.5 miles)
April 11th (Wednesday)
7 AM: start hike for day.
- Group 1: Salt Creek Road going south, camp at large southwest of Cresent Arch (7.5 miles)
- Group 2: Salt Creek Road - Upper Salt Creek - camp at SC4 (10 miles)
Close to the campsites for the evening - Angel Arch, poster-boy for the Needles
district.
April 12th (Thursday)
7 AM: start hike for day.
- Group 1: Upper Salt Creek - Bright Angel - out at Cathedral Butte (14.8 miles)
- Group 2: Upper Salt Creek - Bright Angel - out at Cathedral Butte (12.8 miles)
We'll pass by several pictographs, including the All American Man.
Pickup at Cathedral Butte trailhead; camp in BLM campground, Goose Island, group site A is reserved. Here's a view looking back on the Salt Creek valley
where it ends at Cathedral Butte.
April 13th (Friday)
(Optional) mountain biking at Moab Slick Rocks or Sand Flats areas - or a layover day to fish or sleep in at camp. Dinner at a Moab restaurant. Camp in Goose Island campground.
April 14th (Saturday)
7 AM start drive to Albuquerque (optional different route - Moab - Bluff UT - Shiprock - Farmington - Cuba - Albuquerque - probably slightly longer trip)
Arrive by 5:30 PM
Trip Sponsors
Mr. Coles and Mr. Mortimer are the trip coordinators. You can contact them
with any questions. Mr. Coles can be reached at home at: 323-8487.
Other folks Trip Reports from the Needles District
Upward Angel: Backpacking Upper Salt Creek
Jointly to the Needles
Needles Nirvana
A Map of the Hike Area
Here's a map showing our trails and most of the campsites (except when we
are camping "at large" (in the wild).
