On the Road Again - Purple ZR-1 Road Trip to Utah

[QB93Z]

Day 17: Still in Moab: We got a very early start for a guided Jeep trip down into the canyons at Canyonlands National Park. Once again we rode with Adrift Adventures of Moab:




We drove north of Moab on US-191 and turned south on CO-279 which follows the Colorado River. There is a large section of the cliff face with ancient petroglyphs:




We passed an industrial potash facility mining potassium chloride and turned west onto Potash Road. We entered the the canyons and the scenery is amazing.



On a plateau that is hundreds of feet below the level of the Canyonlands viewing areas we were still hundreds of feet above the Colorado River:



It is impossible to absorb all of the rock formations in all directions. See if you can see the alien "ET" in this view:






to be continued....

[QB93Z]

Here are some more pictures of the canyons and the roads we drove:





After driving a small part of the White Rim Trail, we drove up Schaffer Canyon Road to return to the Canyonlands Visitor Center:






Jim

[WARP TEN]

Absolutely spectacular scenery Jim, and beautifully photographed. On the one with the boulder perched on a small pedestal, I am not sure I would stand quite so close to it. One sneeze and, well, you know.... And those switchbacks make me think it would be a great place for a western Mountain Run....--Bob

[QB93Z]

Day 18: We are still in Moab, just taking it easy. We have had a failure of the HVAC system. The system would only blow hot air out the AC vents. This is not uncooled air like an AC system failure, we have heated hot air blowing from the AC vents. That means that the Blend Door is stuck in the heat position. I disassembled the passenger side dash and tried to get it working but it only worked for 1 day. This morning I took it all apart again and removed the Blend Air Damper Motor. I verified that the system would work without a signal from the motor and removed it. Then I rigged a wedge (made from a plastic knife) to stick the Blend Door in the cooling position. I hope this works because it was 100 degrees yesterday.

Jim

[WARP TEN]

Originally Posted by QB93Z

Day 18: We are still in Moab, just taking it easy. We have had a failure of the HVAC system. The system would only blow hot air out the AC vents. This is not uncooled air like an AC system failure, we have heated hot air blowing from the AC vents. That means that the Blend Door is stuck in the heat position. I disassembled the passenger side dash and tried to get it working but it only worked for 1 day. This morning I took it all apart again and removed the Blend Air Damper Motor. I verified that the system would work without a signal from the motor and removed it. Then I rigged a wedge (made from a plastic knife) to stick the Blend Door in the cooling position. I hope this works because it was 100 degrees yesterday.

Jim

You are a better man than me, Jim, to have taken apart your dash not once, but twice, in 100 degree heat. Sounds like a good solution--hope it holds for you. You won't be needing heat for quite a few months. Sorry about your issue; good luck with it! --Bob

[QB93Z]

Day 19: South to Blanding, UT

We departed Moab early to get down the road before it got hot. Our next adventure is in the Needles District of Canyonlands National Park. The Needles District is the southern portion the National Park, which is a large park.

We took US-191 south. We stopped at Wilson Arch for a photo:

Hello from Jim and Lyndi:







The traffic on US-191 was light and the scenery was stunning:




We turned on to UT-211 headed to Needles District. The road was recently repaved and an easy drive. Total drive from Moab was about 1.5 hours.




to be continued.......

[QB93Z]

Before we got to the Needles District, we stopped to see an ancient artifact called Newspaper Rock. This area of the canyons was apparently a crossroads for travelers who carved designs into the dark desert varnish. The Petroglyphs are believed to be 1300 to 2000 years old. Some of pictures were carved by "recent travelers". There are no known explanations of what the figures mean, but maybe we can guess:




I see a hunter with a bow and arrow and the hunted animal:



Were there people the had six toes?



We continued on, enjoying the landscapes, to the Needles District:




There are many rock formations that can be described my familiar items such as a Dutch Wooden Shoe:






The Needles District gets it name from the shapes carved by erosion:




to be continued......

[QB93Z]

We drove along the paved road that takes you out to the accessible areas of the Park. We hiked a short "trail" at Pot Hole Overlook to enjoy the rock formations:

We named this on John Travolta Rock:




At this overhanging rock ledge Lyndi saw a dining room table:




We drove out of Needles District, all the way to US-191 and headed south to Blanding, UT, our destination for the day. As we approached Blanding we sighted heavy clouds:





Jim

[Jagdpanzer]

Amazing scenery and great photos.
The one with the long straight highway reminds me the Forest Gump movie.

[QB93Z]

Well the plastic knife repair to get the AC working properly stopped working after one operating period. 89 degrees today. I decided that the problem was the HVAC computer has to see a position signal from the Blend Door Motor.

Hoping to get the whole system working properly, I took the motor apart and redistributed the grease to improve the operation.




Then, this evening when it cooled down I re-installed the motor. For the fourth time, I am declaring that the AC is working again.

Anyone want to give me odds on that?

Jim