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| Whiskers Draw Canyon Overlook, UT | |
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| | Whiskers Draw Canyon Overlook, UT | | | |
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Whiskers Draw Canyon Overlook, UT
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| Hiking | 1.20 Miles |
224 AEG |
| | Hiking | 1.20 Miles | 1 Hour | | 1.20 mph |
| 224 ft AEG | | 15 LBS Pack | | |
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| partners | | For our first full day of hiking we had planned on a number of hikes on one side or another of Cottonwood Road (San Juan County Road 228), Whiskers Draw Road (San Juan County Road 229) and Elk Mountain Road (San Juan County Road 092 & Forest Road 301).
However, after heavy overnight rain (at least at our Air BnB in Blanding) we had a relatively high expectation of major plan changes, depending on road and changing weather conditions.
Initially the conditions on Cottonwood Road were reasonable for the 4Runner, just a few areas with greasy-mud and a couple minor drops through washes. When we reached the first wash with a bit more significance we followed through behind a San Juan County pickup. Shortly after passing him we crossed a few more washes of lesser significance before catching up to a large front end loader. The driver asked us how far we were going because he was on the way to remove a large boulder from the road at Big Notch. With more rain coming, he pretty much hinted it would not be good if we continued. Being within a mile of our first planned stop, we told him that was as far as we would go and would drive back out after our hike the ruin sites in Whiskers Draw.
We parked at a small open area which appeared to receive a reasonable amount of activity, and we quickly found a narrow road heading in the exact same direction as I had planned. At first the road was ok, but it soon became a slip/sliding near-disaster so we decided to give it a wide berth.
Once we reached the slick-rock above the head of the canyon we encountered plenty of water flow, enough so we had to follow a weaving path to keep from soaking our foot-gear. With a few sprinkles here and there and threatening clouds, we soon realized the bottom of the canyon (where the ruin sites are) would likely be a muddy river so we settled on continuing to the end of the slick-rock with hopes of at least a few photos of the first ruin (from the NW).
In the end, between the waterfall into the canyon and the single visible ruin site, it was pretty much a toss-up which was more interesting/appealing. With more sprinkles, it was time to head back.
Temps were a cool 52-59°.
Good thing we didn't dally and hit the road back down as the first few washes were already flowing more than on the drive up. The second wash was the one I thought was the worst on the drive up but I was drastically mistaken!
It was actually the wash we had followed the San Juan County pickup through, which before was just a small drop on one side. But now it was a true flowing river complete with waves. Oh boy... are we screwed or what? Sure we could survive if we had to stay out overnight but it could be worse tomorrow.
So... I drove right up to the by-now a full on river, got out and attempted to gauge the depth with a trekking pole. Already the mud was like slick wet quicksand and I was barely able to step back before be sucked in.
Ok, so now what? Well, IF we will attempt a crossing there are some major issues to plan for:
How deep is it in the center, how heavy is the flow, the waves are varying so when is the best time to give-it-a-shot, etc.?
Ok, so we sat there thinking about if we wait will the flow drop?
After 8 minutes or so I realized whether the flow drops or not, the erosion of the road on either side of the wash would make a deeper channel, so it's now or never.
I backed up a ways, placed the 4Runner on the far left side, aiming it to the far right so when we hit the waves we'd have a better chance of not being washed to the side, and therefore miss the road and be washed away... yup, I know, I know, Do NOT cross running washes!
Well, after another minute of thought it was time... I put the 4Runner in 4 Low, engaged the center locker... oh wait, all I get is a the locker icon on the dash flashing red so that's no help. So what next? SPEED!
I took a moment to gauge a slight drop of the waves, floored it and it jumped forward only to realize in 4 Low, it DOESN'T have much speed! And as the RPM's rose, the computer said, hold on there a minute fella, I'm not going to give you any more!
And just as we hit the waves it bogged down, essentially with the accelerator pedal being overridden by the computer, and I thought Oh feces! we're in big trouble.
However... because we had momentum we still had forward progress, and a moment later there was a big boom along with a mass of water covering the windshield BUT WE MADE IT across! Whew!
It will actually be two days later before I realized the big boom was the front valance panel hitting likely a 3+ foot wall where the bank had been eroded by the waves... and the valance panel was GONE!
Wow! I must have really been spaced-out at the end of the day when I washed the tons of mud off the 4Runner at the Air BnB. (Thankfully there was a garden hose readily available)
How could I not see the half-dozen black clips in the white bumper which had held the silver valance panel onto the bumper. While there are used panels for less on eBay, not including the new fasteners, a genuine Toyota part at a discount is $250+. Not happening, at least for a while, so I just removed the broken black clips and put white tape over the holes.
And we still have another hike to do... |
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