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Needles
Odyssey And Cataracts
(ND1+CA1) |
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 Trip OverviewDetailed Itinerary
Return
Options
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| Fast Facts |
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 S.E. Utah Detail
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Main Attraction
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Hiking Needles backcountry
to the Colorado River, rugged
4-wheeling, wilderness
camping, intense Class II-V
whitewater rafting, Cataract
Canyon, geology,
unforgettable scenery,
Canyonlands National Park,
ends in Glen Canyon
Recreation at Hite Marina on
Lake Powell.
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Who Should Go
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People looking for deep immersion in the wilderness, combining solitude with big adventure, travelers looking for both land and river excitement.
Easy logistics from Moab
Utah.
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Length
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3
days/2 nights
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Cost
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$650.00 Adult
$610.00 Youth (16 & younger)
Wetsuits mandatory May and
June.
Camping gear rentals
available.
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The Big Picture
The Needles region of Canyonlands National Park is one of the most well-kept secrets in America and represents the very heart and soul of the park. To enter the really pristine areas of the park, you must either hike many miles or be an accomplished four-wheeler. Tag-A-Long Expeditions,
primary canyonland
outfitter, remove these boundaries by providing you with four-wheel drive access, locating the most desirable camp site, and guiding you to
reach the very hear of
Canyonlands National Park
just below the confluence of
the Green and Colorado
Rivers. Add to that stunning arches and windows carved out of rock over millions of years and some of America’s most incredible landscapes, and you’re off for the adventure of your life!
The Details
Day 1 – Lunch & Dinner
Your wilderness trek begins at the Tag-A-Long
4x4 outfitter office in Moab, Utah, at 8:00 a.m.
to convene for an 8:30 a.m.
departure. From Moab we will drive south to the Needles area of Canyonlands National Park.
You'll necessarily rent
camping gear. Two sets are
required for this itinerary
(you get them for the price
of one!) You will need a
comfortable back pack for
water, camera, a portion of
lunch, but little else. A
second gear bag must be
packed to arrive with the
raft on day 2 to supply you
for the Cataract Canyon
whitewater rafting trip. On
our way to the off-road
trail into the Needles, we’ll visit Newspaper Rock, an astonishing panel absolutely filled with ancient Indian petroglyphs. Was this a method of communication? What symbols do these inscriptions hold? You can only use your imagination to try to unravel the mystery. After lunch, we approach notorious Elephant Hill, one of the most challenging four-wheel drive
in the Needles passes in all of Canyonlands. Once we successfully negotiate the climbs and descents on narrow, rocky ledges – you can walk outside your vehicles if you feel more secure -- we’ll reach our campsite and home for the night. As the sun drops, don’t miss the incredible change of colors on the Needles
formations as your guide prepares a delicious dinner.
Day 2 – Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
After coffee and breakfast around 7:00 a.m., we
embrace a six mile hike
across horsts and grabens,
navigating Lower Red Lake
Canyon to reach the Colorado River.
The motorized J-Rig raft is
awaiting our arrival. Just a few miles more downriver and we reach legendary Cataract Canyon. Today we encounter the first of 25 named rapids! Tonight you camp with the roar of the rapids in your ears!
Day 3 – Breakfast & Lunch
After breakfast, we will run
the rest of the rapids of
Cataract Canyon. Grand
-Canyon style rapids and
respected whitewater. The
rapids become more intense
as we travel downstream;
"Ben Hurt", "Powell's Pocket
Watch", "Capsize" and the
three spectacular rapids of
the "Big Drop" series. This
is one of the steepest and
most exciting sections on
the Colorado River. We zip
off of Lake Powell to
conclude this odyssey of
Canyonlands National Park, a
combination of the Needles
District of Canyonlands and
the whitewater rafting of
Cataract Canyon, finishing
in Glen Canyon Recreation
area, to return to Moab,
Utah.
Return
options
1.
Return by land. The ride from Hite
Marina of the Glen Canyon Recreation area to Moab takes about four hours
through the high desert country of
southeastern Utah. Your arrival in Moab
will be about 9:00 p.m. The cost is
$73.54.
2. We strongly
recommend a scenic charter flight. You fly
over the Colorado River including some of
the rapids you just conquered in Cataract Canyon and, from an
altitude of 7,000 feet, you really see the
amazing formations in the Maze, Island and
Needles sections of Canyonlands National
Park. The flight is about 30 minutes making
your arrival back in Moab about 5:30 p.m.
This once-in-a-lifetime flight is only
$105.00.
3. Tag-A-Long will
shuttle your vehicles to Hite Marina on
Lake Powell so it will be waiting for you
when you arrive at the marina in the
afternoon. The cost of this service is
$231.77 per vehicle.
Contact us
for
Moab vacations.
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