Molen Reef

Trail Run on May 22, 2015
Report and photos by Monica I., Trail Leader

Monica I.

Red 2010 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon

Walt S.

Gold 2004 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon

Matt K.

White 2016 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon

We had a big day planned, but the hour was later than we had intended it to be as we were south of the San Rafael River crossing on Fuller Bottom. Monica got really stuck, and we blew through a couple of hours getting her out of the sticky mud. We had to skip a trail we planned on (next time!), and then one trail wasn't even there when we got to the trailhead. When we got to Molen Reef, we had the option of continuing on the mellow trail or trying the new trail to the south. We turned onto Molen Reef, of course.

We were quiet, enjoying the solitude and mellow trail after a long day of miles, rain, hail, and mud. The sun wasn't setting just yet, but the heavy clouds made it dark a bit too early. The trail was a pretty straight shot down to the Moore Cutoff Road as it followed the Molen Reef.

It wasn't long at all before we came to the end of the trail. We weren't sure if the Moore Cutoff Road would be developed or not, and we found a nice, paved road instead of dirt. We saw another trail across the pavement, but we didn't discuss it long before realizing we were ready to air up before it got dark.

We aired up and headed for I-70 along the Moore Cutoff Road. We talked about going to see the Sid and Charley formation, but the sun went down before we really had a chance. We were pretty tired after our first day, and we were looking forward to the rest of the trip. So, we called it a day for trails.

The trip back along the highway was crazy as it rained quite heavily at times. Still, we got back to town completely covered in mud. We expected desert dirt and heat, but the first day of our trip had none of that. Utah is full of surprises.