As yet another mid-September day dawned bright and clear, we marveled at the fantastic country along our very extended backcountry route. We were driving from Big Water, Utah, on the west shore of Lake Powell, all the way to Moab. We were doing it the fun way, avoiding as much pavement as possible and spending the maximum amount of time in the dirt. We were about 10 miles from Utah Highway 95, deep in Poison Spring Canyon, and getting ready to start our fourth day on the road.
The first order of business was to replenish the gas in our tanks from the extra cans we were carrying. It had been 170 miles since our last refueling stop, and we still had another 70 miles to our next (and last) refill at Hite Marina. When venturing so far off the beaten track, it is extremely important to understand that slow dirt-road travel cuts into normal gas mileage considerably. So you must make plans accordingly. With the gas cans emptied into the tanks, we continued our trek east, down this spectacular canyon system.
Unlike some of the earlier legs of this journey, the remainder of our trip covered ground with which we were quite familiar. In fact, this way had been specifically chosen because we considered the remaining route to have some of the finest red rock backcountry roads to be found in all of southern Utah.
Poison Spring Canyon grows impressively as the watercourse cuts deeper into the sandstone strata and draws closer to the Dirty Devil River. Towering walls of red Wingate sandstone enclose the winding canyon. The road is typically graded, but it suffers from constant rearrangement by Mother Nature as it repeatedly crosses the water's path.
We emerged at the canyon's mouth and were confronted by the ford of the Dirty Devil River itself. Great caution needs to be exercised here as the ford is completely unimproved, varies dramatically with water level, and is a long, long way from any assistance if trouble is encountered. The water level was actually quite low, but the ford showed no new tracks since the last instance of high water. The latest surge of water had also left a rather high and abrupt wall of sand on the far side of the river.
We elected Bob's relatively heavy Scout as the vehicle most suitable for breaking down enough sand that we could follow in the smaller and lighter pair of Jeep trucks. Bob easily crested the bank, but it took him several tries to emerge from the deep, soft, and muddy hole just beyond. The two Comanches easily scaled the breach left by the Scout and had a much easier time besting the mudhole.
Once on the other side of the Dirty Devil, one is truly immersed in some of Utah's most spectacular backcountry. We climbed up toward the long protrusion of Buckacre Point, greatly enjoying the elusive antics of a small herd of desert bighorn sheep. Once we reached the top of the climb, we left the vehicles to admire the view. The view from the road below the point is our nomination as one of the most rugged panoramas anywhere in Utah. Far below and stretching away south toward Lake Powell is the Dirty Devil River Canyon. The river doubles back on itself so tightly and so often that it's nearly impossible to discern which direction the river is flowing. The high cliffs of Cedar Point to the west, the towering arm of Buckacre Point to the north, and distant Fiddler Butte and the Block to the south frame the entire sinuous spectacle. We've seen it several times before, but we still marvel at its wonder each and every time. This spot is truly special.