SummitPost.org

I was thinking of canyoneering in Robbers Roost area this weekend. The weather sites say no precip for Hanksville in the last month. I have received secondhand reports of lots of snow there.
I called a restaurant in Hanksville, the guy said they got nothing. I realize Hanksville isn't exactly Robbers Roost but its close.

Poison Spider in Moab said they received 1" and its long gone.

could they actually have gotten more at Robbers Roost?

I was down by Price yesterday, no snow around there, the last storm cam from the northwest which typically leaves that area dry. The forecast calls for a few weekend storms in northern Utah, but I doubt much will get to the Robbers Roost area, more likely just cold and windy in that part of the state.

could they actually have gotten more at Robbers Roost?

Doubtful that there is much snow there, but call the Hans Flat Ranger Station just to make sure. 435-259-2652.

thanks Scott, I called he said about 2" of snow Saturday. He gave me a BLM number 435-542-3461. She said someone was there Saturday and reported about 5", but she was pretty sure it was all gone by now.

Next question, how bad is the water going to be in Blue John and Larry's Canyon?

dsunwall wrote:Next question, how bad is the water going to be in Blue John and Larry's Canyon?

If my memory is correct, those don't have significant water issues. (We were there in late October, and it had also recently rained before our trip.) The west fork of Bluejohn is dry, and the main fork is dry except for small pools in the dark lower slot, below the accident site. Larry Canyon was muddy from recent precipitation, but it was a fun kind of muddy and nothing painful as far as water. The east fork of Bluejohn has the most water of the four, but still nothing too bad, just some wading, if I remember correctly.

I should also mention the roads. I was also there once on Thanksgiving weekend, and the canyons were again dry, and the road from UT24 was fine. In the evening, on our way out, it started to rain and then sleet. We had decided to take a different road out. We took the road that goes north from Horseshoe Canyon directly to Green River, instead of the road west to UT24. As we continued north, the pooling water made some parts of the sandy road a total trap! We had 4WD, but we were still at risk of getting stuck. Running starts were the only way we got through some parts of the road that were covered with up to 18" of water. The water and sand caused the vehicle to decelerate, even though I was giving it throttle.

So check the weather first, and I would avoid that north-south road for sure if it's going to rain or snow. My bad experience is only with that one, but I suspect all of those sandy roads might be impassible in rain.