Polar Mesa

Gopher Flats
June 16, 2019
Moab, UT


Much to my delight, Polar Mesa was a scheduled club (Moab Friends For Wheelin') run.  And even more to my delight, Sunday dawned with beautiful blue skies and whimsical clouds.  We met at the cinema along with Dee, Chris and Scott, and Joe and Jenny.  A nice group of folks to share a Sunday drive with.  

We headed out Sand Flats Rd. 

It is a very pretty drive that goes all the way to the LaSal Mountains.  Our first stop was at the rim overlook at the Porcupine Rim campground about 15 miles from downtown...just inside the Manti-LaSal National Forest.  It's a breathtaking view of the hills and mesas of Castle Valley.  

It's not a shabby look at the LaSals either !  Just look at all that green !

We climbed higher and higher on Sand Flats for several more miles.








I love the mountain meadows...

When we reached LaSal Loop Road, we made a left turn and followed the winding road until it ended at Castle Valley Road.  There we turned right.  Not far the pavement turns to dirt.  That's where we stopped to have lunch. We had to see the dinasaur tracks, more views, and the wildflowers.

Lunch with a view!

Dinosaur track with a view.  (Thanks to Jenny for sharing her photo.)  

Wildflowers with a view!

We continued on the dirt road.  Eventually the dirt turns to rocks as we made the climb up to the mesa on a series of switchbacks.

It's a short hike to see the mining remnants.  Scott, Dee and Chris lead the way.

Because of its remote location, no claims were staked here until around 1914 (Other claims in the area were as early as the 1880s.) in response for a demand in radium.  Ore was hand sorted at the site, sacked in cement bags and sent by mule to a 
subcamp 5 miles southeast of the Dewey Bridge (on Hwy 128) then by wagon to Cisco.   

 By this time, the day was well into mid afternoon.  The decision was made to return to Moab via Thompson Canyon and Onion Creek OHV trails.  We have driven both these trails several times.  

Thompson Canyon Trail

 The drive down Onion Creek was my favorite part of the day's route.  The skies turned dark, the winds picked up, and we even had a few rain drops.  It was gorgeous !

The end of the trail (or the beginning if you are going up) winds its way through Fischer Canyon and ends at Hwy 128.

  

From there, we made good time along Hwy 128.   The Colorado River was at full capacity !  In fact, we were under a flood watch, but that has since been lifted.

It was a fun day with fun friends.  And a great escape from the summer temps.  Speaking of that, we had a cool down this week-end...highs in the low 70s !  Soooo nice.

Well, I'll close for now.  Until next time,

(Thanks to Dee for this photo)

HAPPY TRAILS !

Up next, some Wile E fun!

A Lazy Sunday Drive on Thursday!

Portal Rv Resort
Moab, UT
May 19, 2016

What a treat it was to join in on a pre-run to Polar Mesa that the Red Rock 4 Wheelers were doing. John and Carol, led our group of 5 jeeps, followed by Ber, us, Dee, and Mike and Joanne, the tail gunners for the day. It was like a lazy Sunday drive only it was Thursday!  Joe and I have driven Onion Creek and Thompson Canyon several times, but had never gone as far as Polar Mesa (You will love this Ronnie and Carol.).  We clocked a total of nearly 75 miles round trip.  

Onion Creek continues to be one of my favorite rides if for no other reason, it is the first trail Joe and I ever drove when we were in Moab for the first time 4 years ago. Right from the get go, there are creek crossings.  Mike counted 32 crossings.  I tried once to count them, but the "wows" and camera action took precedence.

My favorite section of Onion Creek is Gypsum Squeeze. It is colorful and sometimes a little stinky (thus the name Onion Creek) from all the sulphur.  


Just as we turned onto Onion Creek, I attempted to take pictures with my Nikon.  Sadly, I discovered I had left its SD memory card at home plugged into our laptop.  So all our memory shots are taken with my iPhone.




We spotted several Chukars, a beautiful bird in the partridge family, along the creek side.



Onion Creek and the trail cut through Fisher Canyon so if you have never seen the towers, its a great way to get an up close look.  Climbing out of the canyon is a jaw dropping experience...well at least for me it is.   A narrow shelf road adds to the excitement. 

Onion Creek dead ends. You can turn around or take a left hand turn and follow the Thompson Canyon trail.  There is a gate at the top of the ridge before you drop down scenic switchbacks.  Rules are, leave the gate as you find it.   The wildflowers were unbelievably gorgeous covering the banks with yellows, purples, reds, whites and pinks.  There is a spur trail to Hideout Campground, but signage for the main trail is clear.    

Most of Thompson Canyon trail is gravel/rocks with one steep, narrow climb.  When you get to a "T" in the road, turn left for Polar Mesa.  Polar Mesa is mostly a dirt trail with continuing spectacular scenery around every curve.  The mix of dark grey clouds, blue skies and shadows added to the beauty.  

Our lunch spot was on top of Polar Mesa at the derrick left behind from the mining days.

L-R : Mike and Joanne, Joe, John and Carol and Dee

 We thoroughly enjoyed the stories Ber (in the red jacket) shared about his dad traveling these same roads in a hauling truck back in the early 1900s.  Ber is amazing and fast becoming one our heroes.

 

Our route from there made a loop on a less traveled trail, but very legal, back to the mail trail...

...and down we went and crossed the meadow with the open range cattle.

This section of our ride took us through a Ponderosa Pine forest. 






Then we turned right onto Castletown-Gateway Road #207. The aspens in the LaSals are just beginning to leaf out.

Shortly after the pavement begins, there is a look-out stop with a vault toilet.  Mike showed us the designated path through a new gate, which led to dinosaur tracks.

While there Ber and Dee checked under Ber's jeep.  He said it just wasn't running right.  No worries...he made it home just fine.

 

The views of Castle Valley as we drive down the mountain...

If you ever find yourself in Moab and want a quiet, peaceful drive through breathtaking scenery, this is the one.  Onion Creek and Thompson Canyon/Polar Mesa are listed under the easy trails in the Charles Wells book Guide to Moab,UT Backroads & 4-Wheel-Drive Trails.   

Until next time, happy days and...

  HAPPY TRAILS!