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Planning our annual trip to CA, and we are contemplating heading down through Moab on 191, connecting to 40, and over to Flagstaff and down to Phoenix. Have any of you driven the stretch of 191 between 70 and 40? Mainly curious as to how remote the stretch is, gas, amenities etc. Any info is appreciated.
The wife and I did it last summer on the motorcycles. I imagine if we found gas for the bikes every couple hundred miles it shouldn’t be an issue in a car.
Oh, and for whatever its worth, here’s a shot of the weather when we rolled into Moab at around 4 pm.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...c77e985c95.jpg
Nice, we are hoping to move to Phoenix soon, so may as well get used to it.Quote:
Originally Posted by ray1970
It wasn’t nice. Now I know how a baked potato feels. Lol.
For reference, here is what it looked like when we got to Flagstaff shortly after lunch the next day.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...e5a9310148.jpg
I camped out at the Slick Rock bicycle trail east of Moab. Cool rock formations. Fun on a mtn bike.
https://rimtours.com/tours/slickrock-trail/
Actually we are planning on Anthem, about 30 miles north of the heart of Phoenix, which is a bit cooler, and seems to have similar summer temps to SE Co where I'm from.Quote:
Originally Posted by ray1970
We are actually thinking about bringing our Mtn bikes, although I'm not sure how much biking we will get to do until we get to the grandparents so they can watch the kids.Quote:
Originally Posted by BushMasterBoy
Moab, Monticello, Mexican Water, Chinle, and Genado all have gas stations. Chinle is the only one you can count on having a fast food restaurant. Burger King apparently has a concession with the Navajo Nation.
My daughter and I camped in Moab before driving through Monument Valley. We camped in Chinle before turning back driving through, Shiprock, Farmington, Chama, to Alamosa. It was during her spring break so I want to say sometime in March. Moab was comfortable but Chinle was windy and cold. Great Sand Dunes was almost too cold to sleep outside for either of us.
As long as you try to top off your tank before you get too far below half a tank, you won't have any worries. Monument Valley is beautiful but driving on the Reservations always makes me sad. It reminds me what it means when the government promises to take care of you.
Enjoy the drive.
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Originally Posted by hurley842002
I'd suggest 191- 163 - 160. Gas up in GJ then top off @ Moab. Fill up again Kayenta AZ- Flagstaff AZ, West side of MV is beautiful, as well as other camera stop and shoot areas along the way. That way cuts across AZ instead of down then over.
Bluff UT has very clean rest rooms at the station just north of the PD station. Kayenta has a few eating places as well as clean amenities. Depending what time you hit Flagstaff it's smooth sailing or I25 traffic headaches.
When we drove into Utah for Mount Zion a few years ago, it was 110 damn degrees every day in town!
Moab is a tourist zoo right now. Otherwise a fun drive.
Isn't the Easter Jeep Safari coming up soon?
Done it many times, it's not bad but filling up when you can is a good call.Quote:
Originally Posted by hurley842002
That said, I very much enjoy taking 285 to 50 to 550 (to 60 and 145 beyond that if I remember right). It's a fantastic drive, I used to visit a girl in flagstaff every few months and I miss that drive more than her for sure.
e:Though my route doesn't take you through Moab so if you're loving that idea, definitely ignore me.
EJS starts on Saturday I do believe.Quote:
Originally Posted by Irving
And the Burning Man festival too I think.Quote:
Originally Posted by Irving
We make that trip every year, and it's a fairly quick, efficient and very scenic drive. The roads have been improved quite a bit over the past few years with new pavement, wider road and more passing lanes. Leaving from the Front Range we'll gas in GJ, then Bluff. Sometimes we'll gas in Moab, then in Kayenta or Tuba City. Beware that Monticello is a speed trap town, and to a lesser extent so is Blanding. I've never gotten stopped in UT, but Monticello preys on tourists big time as you will see. It's dirty business. Don't drive 3 over. We never stop or purchase anything in Monticello as a result.Quote:
Originally Posted by hurley842002
For some years we've gone to Sedona for a festival and a research project so we drive through Oak Creek Canyon. It's a gem of a habitat and a great drive. Let the speedsters pass and take time at spots along the way. Camping is great there but you will need to reserve in advance.
The road to Sedona from the I-17 exit just south of Flagstaff is getting a major rebuild to the upper end of Oak Creek Canyon. Check on it's status as it might be closed at night for construction. It should be finished before summer. Of course, you really want to see Oak Creek Canyon during daylight. Oak Creek may not seem so different from many Colorado mountain canyons but in the Arizona context it's pretty special. Watch for elk along this route, we see them almost every time through there. There are deer too, and javelinas lower in Oak Creek.
Prior to that we would go to Scottsdale & Mesa, and on to Patagonia via 191 through Chinle and Ganado to Holbrook and Payson. It's shorter and less trafficked if you're going to the east end of the PHX area.
We went that way last summer on the bikes. The road was pretty well non existent for miles and miles (it was torn out for reconstruction) and was just dirt and rocks. Kind of reminded me of the trail up to Yankee Doodle lake. It had been raining so it was mostly slick and muddy with scattered large rocks and various off-camber sections. Navigating at crawling speeds in bumper to bumper traffic on a touring bike was quite the adventure.Quote:
Originally Posted by Hummer
It was a beautiful ride once we got past the construction and Sedona was nice.
Yea, we went through in late July and it was a real mess. They tore out the decent two lane meandering road to build what I think will be a wide three or four lane.Quote:
Originally Posted by ray1970
I first camped and rode through Oak Creek Canyon on my R100RS in 1978, and later in 1979 on my way back from a 3 month tour to Alaska and back. Oak Creek is one of those special rides like along the Peak to Peak and over Trail Ridge, the road from Banff to Jasper, the ride from Turnagain Arm to Homer, from Fairbanks to Circle City, to Wonder Lake in Denali, and a few others.
Small world. It was late July when we were there. Heck, we might have been following you.Quote:
Originally Posted by Hummer
Do take 128 at the Cisco exit, much prettier. Moab is a tourist pit these days but we often spend a night there to break up the drive. It's 14 hours from Boulder to Scottsdale with Moab a bit under half way. The hotel at the bridge in Mexican Hat is fairly nice. Whatever you do, time your drive so you aren't crossing Navajo land at night...random drunks wandering the road dressed in black.
Thanks for the feedback and info everyone, much appreciated. Our main goal is to wind up in Phoenix (hoping to move there soon), and figured we would hit Moab as I used to be an avid "wheeler" yet have never been to Moab. I didn't realize how much more rez land we'd be traveling through, hope my two pistols and a rifle won't be an issue.
Done it many times, car, truck and motorcycle. Great drive. In Summer it will be hot. Gas is available in every little town - the longest stretch between gas stations won't be more than 50 miles.
Definitely take the road through Cisco, it's spectacular and it cuts a few miles off the drive. For more scenic views, stay on 163 through Monument Valley all the way to Kayenta.
I take it you haven't driven through NE Arizona before? It's ALL part of the Rez, pretty sure it's the biggest indian reservation in the US. Your guns won't be an issue unless you start waving them around - I presume you weren't planning on doing that?
Time zones may throw you off: Here's the deal: AZ does not observe DST so right now AZ is in the same time zone as CA.
BUT...the Navajo Reservation DOES observe DST. So the Rez will be on MDT same as us but once you're off the Rez you will be on California time.
I ran into this issue when I was trying to qualify for a Saddlesore 1000 ride back in 2014 (a Saddlesore 1000 is where you ride a verified 1000 miles on a motorcycle in 24 hours or less.)
I've driven 40 and that little corner of 15 many times, but that's the extent of it, only the main highways and get off only for gas.Quote:
Originally Posted by Martinjmpr
If you go on US 40 in Eastern AZ make sure you stop at Standing on the Corner park in Winslow, AZ.
When you're tired of life in the fast lane, it will give you a peaceful, easy feeling. [Coffee]
Also, seriously, just for fun when driving across the Rez, tune your radio to AM 660, KTNN - "Voice of the Navajo Nation."