Dennis Poulon's two grooves in the road are still there. I could have gotten my narrower jeep around them but parked at the head of the canyon as he suggested. There's a decent turn around point above the head of the canyon where the road bends left and where you first see the road erosions, should you opt to drive further.
I suspect the road will probably worsen with time as a proposed new wilderness expansion area sign is passed just after you leave the paved highway.
Steve Larson - Feb 12, 2011 9:18 am - Hasn't voted
Another opinion on the road
As 4x4 roads go, this one is nothing special. I drove a full-size Tundra to the radio tower. Even with a long wheelbase and wide vehicle I found the washouts pretty easy to get around. The road is a bit rocky in places, and there are some minor ruts, but I didn't need anything more than normal 4 wheel drive to get up. Low range gears were nice on the way down, as I didn't have to ride the brakes.
I believe the road has significantly degraded over the past year. A Ford F-150 in our group couldn't drive past Old Mormon Spring and had to do some work on a road washout just to get there. We also had a Suzuki Samurai with decent clearance (it has driven over Mengel Pass via Goler Wash for reference) that was stopped about a mile short of Old Mormon Spring.
To drive past the spring at this point would pretty much require a rock crawler as the road has all but disappeared until about a 1/2 mile before the radio tower. There are several dry waterfalls with at least two foot vertical steps that are now visible. Lots and lots of boulders everywhere in the wash too.
December 2015 UPDATE: I can confirm what Craig has stated. The north road is now in very bad shape as well. My Subaru Crosstrek made it nearly to the Sheep Spring parking area, but we had to drive very very slowly.
mtbaxter - Apr 5, 2010 2:05 am - Voted 10/10
Approach road updateDennis Poulon's two grooves in the road are still there. I could have gotten my narrower jeep around them but parked at the head of the canyon as he suggested. There's a decent turn around point above the head of the canyon where the road bends left and where you first see the road erosions, should you opt to drive further.
I suspect the road will probably worsen with time as a proposed new wilderness expansion area sign is passed just after you leave the paved highway.
Steve Larson - Feb 12, 2011 9:18 am - Hasn't voted
Another opinion on the roadAs 4x4 roads go, this one is nothing special. I drove a full-size Tundra to the radio tower. Even with a long wheelbase and wide vehicle I found the washouts pretty easy to get around. The road is a bit rocky in places, and there are some minor ruts, but I didn't need anything more than normal 4 wheel drive to get up. Low range gears were nice on the way down, as I didn't have to ride the brakes.
cab - Jan 5, 2015 4:02 pm - Hasn't voted
Road UpdateI believe the road has significantly degraded over the past year. A Ford F-150 in our group couldn't drive past Old Mormon Spring and had to do some work on a road washout just to get there. We also had a Suzuki Samurai with decent clearance (it has driven over Mengel Pass via Goler Wash for reference) that was stopped about a mile short of Old Mormon Spring.
To drive past the spring at this point would pretty much require a rock crawler as the road has all but disappeared until about a 1/2 mile before the radio tower. There are several dry waterfalls with at least two foot vertical steps that are now visible. Lots and lots of boulders everywhere in the wash too.
gimpilator - Jan 15, 2016 8:34 pm - Hasn't voted
Re: Road UpdateDecember 2015 UPDATE: I can confirm what Craig has stated. The north road is now in very bad shape as well. My Subaru Crosstrek made it nearly to the Sheep Spring parking area, but we had to drive very very slowly.