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Saint George area: unmarked summit 01 s(u)

An extensive web of gravel roads, mostly on BLM land is accessible from a trail head at the end of Navajo Drive in suburban Saint George. The area around the trailhead is designated as a "dessert reserve", This is one of three very closely spaced points, that can play the role of highest summit in rough gravel day loops, starting from the Navajo Drive trailhead. The most prominent of these three summits is Bulldog Road Pass summit in the Beaverdam Mountains. For all practical purposes all three summits are at an identilcal elevation. There is a good chance that this one may be a few feet higher than the other two.

01.START-END SOUTH:jct I15 Beaverdam exit
02.jct Ut91 - BLM1005
03.profile turns right onto Bulldog Pass Rd
04.Bulldog Pass, 4720ft
05.low point and jct to road leading lower, 4420ft
06.Bulldog Pass Rd s(u), 4730ft
07.low point and jct with road north to Ut91, 4470ft
08.St George area unmarked s(u)-1, 4740ft
09.jct on right with dead end road to West Valley Wash
10.START-END NORTH:Man O War Rd crosses West Valley Wash in St George


Approaches

From West.
In order to show the maximum possible elevation gain the profile starts back in the town Beaverdam at the I15 exit. The dayride below does not contain that maximum elevation gain, but instead joins at point 2, coming down from an unnamed summit in the Arizona part of the Beaverhead Mountains. But it is just as easy to construct a loop, with this side also approaching from Saint George.

Whichever option is chosen, They all meet at a junction just slightly below 300ft of this summit. There is actually a sign here, the only one for many miles around. It only offers hints of what might be in the southerly direction: the Joshua Tree reserve.

But the way to this summit heads east. This road there can be seen when decending from Bulldog Pass(sh). From there it makes a surprisingly civilized impression, with guard rails and a surface that might be paved. The reality is gravel though. The road winds in a few wild meanders to the top of a bare dessert grass mound.


From East. (described downwards). There are many intersections on the way down, and none of them are signed. All of the tracks are indicated as trails on my somewhat dated openstreetmap product, even though they are all well used gravel roads, a bit steep and rocky in places. The only vehicle I saw on the way down , before entering the dessert reserve on the outskirts of Saint George, was one other lone gravel biker. I think he was working very hard on the way up.  As for me, a few places were borderline traction on the way down, but all in all, very ridable, rocky in a few places. On the way down, there are unique views of this portion of the great geological staircase, that is the transition of Utah to Arizona, starting with light crumbly badland shales on the bottom and terminating with snow covered Pine Mountains under the seemingly perpetual blue skies.

The route down takes the downhill option at each junction, except for one at point 9. Here the downhill option goes to the shores of West Mountain Valley Wash, which was a fairly significant river during my visit in April 2023. There is no bridge to the other side. Heading back to the last junction and taking the remaining option, the road further diverts from the power line corridor, roughly followed so far, and takes a more northerly course. It is now a good fast surface and climbs again to another low summit, before turning more easterly again heading for the outskirts of the Saint George. There is plethora of other roads close to St George, but the way back is obvious. The profile ends at a busy trailhead with all kinds of motorized and unmotorized users.

cLiCk on image , arrows , or thumbnails to advance slideshow


Dayride with this point as highest summit:

PARTIALLY PAVED / UNPAVED

( < Beaverdam Mtns unmarked summit 01 s(u) | Nv158 Mt Charleston Loop s(u) > )

St George area: unmarked summit point01 , Bulldog Pass , BLM 1005 Beaver Dam Mtns , St George area: unmarked summit point02: partially up BLM1005 > up BLM 1005 > BLM1005 Beaver Dam Mtns s(u) > BLM 1005 north > Ut91 north > Bulldog Pass Rd east > Bulldog Pass > Bulldog Pass Rd(shp) > unmarked road heading east > following downhill option at every intersection[unsigned] << turnaround point at West Mountain Valley Wash > St George area: unmarked summit point02 > following options leading direction St George at every intersection > Dessert Reserve Th > Navajo Dr east > Manowar Dr east with detour > Pioneer Rd south > West Sun River Pkwy onto I15 > I15 south > Cedar Pocket exit > BLM1005 west back to starting point: 59.0miles with 6180ft of climbing in 7:21hrs (Garmin etrex32 m5:23.4.6)
Notes: Thanks to Travis, who helped me find a speedy way through St George onto I15. The part on I15 was definitely unpleasant this time around. because of heavy traffic heading into the low sun and a sometimes extremely narrow shoulder. It is legal though. - There are three summit points on this loop in close succession. Due to the 300ft cutoff point (which I am arbitrarily using for these pages), the slightly lower Bulldog Pass becomes a summit point while the slightly higher Bulldog Pass(sh) is a shoulder point to this summit. St George area summit point02 is only a high point on this ride, if one takes (the wrong) turn down to the river (like me), instead of staying uphill on the left.


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