Copper Ridge Trail

by The Flatlander for

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Summary: The 3 rated Copper Ridge trail covers the terrain just west of Arches National Park north of Moab.

Location: The trail heads east off Highway 191 about 3 miles north of the Colorado River bridge.

Scenery: The white capped red rock towers and canyon walls of the Klondike Bluffs are the most impressive. Some arches will also be within view.

Click the small picture to view 640X480X16 million color version.

The Trail: There are two steep hills of eroded dirt and rock toward the end. Otherwise the trail would have a less difficult rating, unless it is wet when parts are impassable.

4X4NOW Same Day
Jeep Safari Trail Report
Saturday, Mar 27, 1999

Click on map for a larger version

We met on Hwy 191 across from the Moab Chamber of Commerce (indicated by the red map pin in Moab and finished 33 miles later high in a ridge exploring an abandoned copper mine (indicated by the upper red pin).  The trail ran between Highway 191 and Arches National Park.  The Lowrance 1600 GPS track trace is shown by the black jagged line joining the red pins.  This was my first field trial with the large screen, vehicle mounted Mapping GPS and external antenna and I couldn't be more pleased with with it.  Several sections of the Copper Ridge trail were shown the mapping I downloaded into the GloablMap 1600 using the included CD-ROM.  Even when we were on a section of 4X4 trail not shown it was comforting to zoom out and see where we were relative to Highway 191 and the major Park roads. Download the waypoints and track in the Lowrance GPS Data Manager file version or the DeLorme Topo USA / Street Atlas format for just the waypoints.  The trip took about a dozen 4x4s about 7 hours.

Trail leader Glenn Baxter held an informative drivers meeting after we got off the highway.  Glenn always does a good thorough job during his briefings being careful to emphasize such things as staying on the trail, avoiding the dark crusty looking microbiotic soil (even when walking) and keeping the vehicle behind you in sight.  Glenn knows we have to be on our best behavior on these trails or we will lose them.

The first feature trail scenery was a view down into Seven Mile Canyon from the "pour off" on the upper end.  We parked our vehicles about 10.4 miles from the Moab Chamber of Commerce (Waypoint 18 Lat: N 38°40.167'  Lon: W 109°40.732' ) and walked over to have a look.  On the way we noticed an Indian Paint Brush in bloom.  These little plants add refreshing color to the early spring landscape.  One of the many reasons Sharon and I enjoy our annual pilgrimage to Moab so much is that spring seems to start about a month earlier here than it does in Nebraska.  We really enjoy seeing the trees budding out and the other signs of spring including, usually, some very nice weather.   Today was no exception with sunny skies and comfortable temperatures.

We were surprised to learn there is an optional 4+ obstacle on this 3 rated trail.  Three of us had to try it.  Only Dean Child in his white pickup was able to make it cleanly on the first try.  Long wheel bases definitely have there advantages!  The obstacle (which is much steeper than it looks in the pictures is just off Court House Wash at Waypoint 26 ( Lat: N 38°41.516'  Lon: W 109°40.183') about 14 miles from the Moab Chamber of Commerce.

Most of the trail is very easy.  4WD was only necessary on a few hills.  On these, open diff vehicles needed a good line.  There was some tire spinning and some stock SUVs needed more than try to make it.

The biggest treats were near the end of the trail.  First were the Dinosaur tracks.  These tracks were made by a Sauropod millions of years ago.   Sauropods were very large four-legged herbivores or plant eaters such as the Brontosaurus.  This is the first reported Sauropod trackway reported in Utah.   The very large depressions in the foreground of the photo are the Sauropod tracks.   The BLM sing in the background provides information on the tracks.  We parked about 32 miles from the Moab Chamber of Commerce at Waypoint 48 (Lat: N 38°49.908'      Lon: W 109°45.713') and walked over to examine them.

The trail from about 500 feet below the Dinosaur tracks was rough.   It was a welcome relief from the 2 track road leading up to it.  It was nice to traverse some terrain that actually required 4WD.

The end of the trail revealed the remains of an old copper mining operation.  On the lower ground were remnants of the extraction basins.  At the top of the ridge was the mine itself and large abandoned tanks.  The old basins were near Waypoint 49 (Lat: N 38°50.468'     Lon: W 109°45.160') and the mining operation at the top was near Waypoint 51 (Lat: N 38°50.604'     Lon: W 109°45.001').

From the top we retraced our route back past the Dinosaur tracks and then cut over to Hwy 191 for the trip back to Moab.

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