Pittsburgh to Utah in my Bronco "Lusitania"

[mike8675309]

I hope you have just a blast. I assume you meant a sabbatical after five years, not a five-year one.

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[TheShark]

Hopefully you don't run across any German U-Boats.

 

[dahoneybadga]

I live in SLC and there isn't much to do in the city right now besides some restaurants and the offroading is underwhelming all around. Central Utah and the San Rafael Swell/La Sal Mountain area has some really cool places that are worth hitting if you have the time. We are doing CO at the end of the month but would definitely recommend spending more time there than anywhere else.

If you haven't hit Moab yet, there are a ton of incredible trails, even for a new driver. Chicken Corners will give you some incredible views. Eye of the Whale was a new one I did this year - the trail had a few fun sandy parts where you can really gun it around some corners. The last easy one I'd recommend is Potash Road. Also very scenic and really won't run into any issues on any of those. If you only have a day, I feel like you need to do the obligatory runs on Fins and Things as well as Hells Revenge. Hells Revenge is a little harder but not terribly difficult - and it's usually busy so you'll have lots of help from those around if you get stuck or unsure what line to take.

 

[Red Squatch]

So I'm fortunate enough that my work offers me a 5 year sabbatical, so what else to do but head west and see what my Bronco can do. I thought I'd keep a travel log so that some folks back home can follow along. So this is my ride, the Lusitania, or Lucy for short:

She's a 2021 Badlands, mostly stock with a few upgrades for protection, LOD Destroyer Rock Rails, an LOD Transmission bash plate and DV8 Shock Bash Plates. I've got a Rough Country high winch mount with a Warn EVO 10K Winch.

Why do I call her Lusitania? Cause I've been known to sink her.

Anyway I'm relatively new to off roading, So I'm going to be doing the Bronco Off Rodeo to start and then exploring Moab and other points in Utah and Colorado. I need to be back in Pittsburgh the 21st, so feel free to follow along, and I'm open to suggestions on stuff to check out. I made it to Denver and the Front range today, so tomorrow we hit the mountains. In the mean time here's a few road trip attractions I hit on the way!

Nice, it will be fun following a Yinzer on his journey. Sounds like you're living out your dream, good for you.

 

[JimL]

Fellow Yinzer here. I love the picture of Lucy taken with the Burgh in the background. . I'll look for you -- I'll be in the 2019 Bullitt.

 

[drmdwebb]

I live in SLC and there isn't much to do in the city right now besides some restaurants and the offroading is underwhelming all around. Central Utah and the San Rafael Swell/La Sal Mountain area has some really cool places that are worth hitting if you have the time. We are doing CO at the end of the month but would definitely recommend spending more time there than anywhere else.

If you haven't hit Moab yet, there are a ton of incredible trails, even for a new driver. Chicken Corners will give you some incredible views. Eye of the Whale was a new one I did this year - the trail had a few fun sandy parts where you can really gun it around some corners. The last easy one I'd recommend is Potash Road. Also very scenic and really won't run into any issues on any of those. If you only have a day, I feel like you need to do the obligatory runs on Fins and Things as well as Hells Revenge. Hells Revenge is a little harder but not terribly difficult - and it's usually busy so you'll have lots of help from those around if you get stuck or unsure what line to take.

I will second Central Utah, especially in the fall absolutely gorgeous. There are some gnarly side-by-side trails, but the main roads are easily passable with a Bronco (I've seen normal passenger cars up there). Lots to do over a few days if you want.

Also, Hells Revenge and Fins and Things are must-dos in my opinion. You can bypass the serious stuff like Hell's Gate. I've seen normal stock 4x4 trucks up there do fine; you'll have no issue with the Bronoco.

 

[HotdogThud]

I work for a Tech company that's a wholly owned subsidiary of Ford. That's actually how I got my Bronco. It's a pretty awesome perk!

At Webasto a couple weeks ago: "Why don't you take like....five years off"

 

[swooshdave]

but the main roads are easily passable with a Bronco (I've seen normal passenger cars up there).

Otherwise known as "rentals".

 

[Mishra42]

Well We got to Moab Late Tuesday for those coming in from the east the 128 Bypass is definitely worth it.

The next Day The Adventure Began with a quick stop at the entrance to town.

We started off by heading to Dead Horse Point State Park. The story about the name is kind of horrible, but the views are Spectacular.

There's some nice picnic tables with shade for lunch if the timing works out. It's a little pricey to get into the park, but All in all worth it in my opinion. After that we headed into Canyonlands.

Our Route was the Schafer Pass and Potash Rd with a detour along the White Rim Rd to Muscleman Arch. White Rim Road requires a special day Pass, only 50 a day are given out. It runs a full 100 miles but we only did the nice easy portion made up of the first 10 miles or so. Schafer pass has the infamous switchbacks that drop 1400 ft.

I'm not going to lie pucker factor was high here. I'm still pretty new to this sort of driving. The road is well maintained and pretty wide, but there's a few spots that are pretty tight. there's plenty of sections to pull off and let the uphill folks pass. I was glad for a copilot who was looking ahead and would warn me of oncoming traffic. Here's the view from the bottom.

After that we hit Muscleman Arch. Not really challenging, but again narrow and a bit nerve wracking with the large drop off.

Once we got on the Potash rd it was pretty uneventful, though the number of Nissans and Buick's we saw that had no business on that trail was surprising. I guess that's how guys like Matt's Off-Road recovery stay in business. There's plenty of scenic vistas including Thelma and Louise point and a Balanced rock right near the end of the trail. All in all a great way to ease into the adventure.

Today we're waiting on my Third friend to show up so no trails as we need to go pick him up. Tomorrow is the Off-Rodeo. In the meantime, see if you can figure out what time we dropped into the Schafer Pass!

 

[BadBronc]

Just did the same trip, maybe with some different detours, in early August to attend the Moab Off-Rodeo. 4000 miles in total by the time we got back to home by way of Rocky Mountain National Park and the Badlands.
Such an amazing journey, and like you mentioned completely different than what we're used to.
Check out Salt Flat Road and Willow Flats Road in Arches as a nice break from the tourists on the blacktop. I wasn't going to do Willow Flats solo, but was fortunate enough to have another Bronco show up as we were about to turn around.

If you're offered a twilight run up Onion Creek after the Rodeo, don't hesitate!

Enjoy some prairie jewels at the Red Rock Resort

 

[timhood]

Sorry I didn't see this until now, as I could have recommended some fun trails not far from SLC. My son and I have been doing a lot of trails at the south end of the Oquirrh mountains in Cedar Valley not far from the Pony Express Staging Area. Also, the Tintics west of Utah lake have some fun Baja trails as well as trails that take you to ridge peaks with nice views. Little Moab is out there, but it should be called Tiny Moab, LOL. There's plenty to do and lot's of fun to be had. It's not Moab, but it gives us an excuse to spend a couple of weekends a month checking out new areas.

 

[swooshdave]

Today we're waiting on my Third friend to show up so no trails as we need to go pick him up. Tomorrow is the Off-Rodeo. In the meantime, see if you can figure out what time we dropped into the Schafer Pass!

Once you do the Off Roadeo you'll get a better idea of what the Bronco can do and it will lower your stress.

 

[Mishra42]

Once you do the Off Roadeo you'll get a better idea of what the Bronco can do and it will lower your stress.

Yeah, part of it was the sheer scale of the landscape. The worst for me is driver side camber. When I sank the car it was at a 19 degree angle and sitting there watch water leak into the car while my friends pulled me out was pretty scary. But I'm sure I'll get used to it.

 

[MtnRanger]

I will second Central Utah, especially in the fall absolutely gorgeous. There are some gnarly side-by-side trails, but the main roads are easily passable with a Bronco (I've seen normal passenger cars up there). Lots to do over a few days if you want.

Also, Hells Revenge and Fins and Things are must-dos in my opinion. You can bypass the serious stuff like Hell's Gate. I've seen normal stock 4x4 trucks up there do fine; you'll have no issue with the Bronoco.

If you were to pick one, hells revenge without hells gate or fins and things, which is more scenic and easier and less risky of breaking something. I’m planning to do one of them or a similar one day after off rodeo before heading back home

 

[drmdwebb]

If you were to pick one, hells revenge without hells gate or fins and things, which is more scenic and easier and less risky of breaking something. I’m planning to do one of them or a similar one day after off rodeo before heading back home

I’m not sure Fins and Things is much easier. There are some cool obstacles on it as well. If I had to do just one I would pick Hell’s Revenge because you have great views of the Colorado River and you can potentially see carnage at Hell’s Gate. It’s pretty fun to sit a while and watch on a busy day. I always do both.

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