Moab in October? Too late in the year?

JeepJeep75

JeepJeep75

New member
Hello everyone. I am trying to plan a first time trip to Moab in the second week of October. Is this too late in the year to go? Provided there isn't a huge early snowstorm, will the trails still be open? How about the campgrounds? I know October pushing it as far as nice weather in the higher country, but what do you all think about the Moab area in October?
 
Highs should be in the mid 70's, with lows in the 40's. Great time to be in Moab.Daylight is shorter though.Crowds thin out some.
 
BLM campgrounds close at the end of Sept, the majority of private campgrounds close end of October with 1 or 2 staying open until the first week of Nov. Hotels/motels/condos/houses available year round.
Trails are open year round but can get pretty dangerous with snow or ice.
Weather that time of year can range from High's in the 60's to the 80's, so typical Fall weather.

I think the Fall is the perfect time to go, crowds are waning, temps are cooler, and you may still catch some great fall colors in the La Sal's in October.
 
We went for our first time to Moab last October and it was amazing. Perfect weather and no crowds. Traffic will pick up on the trails Friday-Sunday, but the weekdays are where it's at. As stated above campgrounds will be closing for the season, so do some research and plan a little bit. We were on a month long camping road trip that went through Moab and decided we wanted some comfort while we in town and got lucky and stayed at the KOA in one of their small cabins the last week they were open.
 
October should be nice. Went there early December last year and no crowds, all the trails were open. The overnight temp was 18 so that was a little rough, the dog was not happy at all.
 
bigcale said:
October should be nice. Went there early December last year and no crowds, all the trails were open. The overnight temp was 18 so that was a little rough, the dog was not happy at all.
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Are there still primitive places to camp? Just me & the trailer? My wife is really wanting to go again this year (with Moab our destination, not just a single day while passing through). I have a couple of weeks in September we could go or towards the end October.
 
Check out discover moab.com,they list camping info.The visiter center on main street has some good info as well.
 
We have a spot reserved at Pack Creek campground. This will be my wife's first tent-camping experience so I hope all goes well. I've camped all my life so I'm trying to prepare her as best I can. Dumb question though: are bears ever a concern in town in Moab?
 
I prefer winter/colder camping weather, a thousand less families everywhere. I'd rather primitive camp though, I'm not too fond of camp "grounds"
 
I've never been but my wife and I are thinking about taking a trip to Moab Oct 20-22. I've been told by friend that have been to prepare for all kinds of weather. I live in Texas so the cooler weather would be very welcomed!

Ok so just looked at what we're planning on doing and won't be going those dates above.
 
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No bears. Coyotes are are the only things to worry about if you have kids or dogs. Utah is a land of extremes that time of years plan for 70 degree sun to blizzards during the day and no matter what below freezing nights. What direction are you coming from and i could suggest some free BLM camping areas that are on the out skirts.
 
Esum2016 said:
No bears. Coyotes are are the only things to worry about if you have kids or dogs. Utah is a land of extremes that time of years plan for 70 degree sun to blizzards during the day and no matter what below freezing nights. What direction are you coming from and i could suggest some free BLM camping areas that are on the out skirts.
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Thanks Esum2016. We are coming from Southern California. Traveling along the 15 to the 70, then dropping into Moab. This will be my wife's first time tent camping so I want to start her out with restrooms and hot showers, then get more primitive in a few years. I'm not sure how much she's gonna like it so I need to go into this knowing at least a few things are in place. The wheeling part we both love, just not sure she's gonna like sleeping on the ground with all of the little critters. At least the total amount of cash for our entire stay is equal to one day in a B and B. Money saved already![emoji6]
 
For sure! Happy jeep wife, happy jeep life. if you are driving all the way out i would suggest a side route of Zion national park to Capital reef to Moab. (SR 9 - 89 - 12- 24- 70). most scenic way to get to Moab from there and it doesn't add too much time. Best part is there are always small cabins to rent along the way that are cheap during off season. $30 buck and under per night. Hot showers and all. Have fun. You are going to love it.
 
tucked said:
Are there still primitive places to camp? Just me & the trailer? My wife is really wanting to go again this year (with Moab our destination, not just a single day while passing through). I have a couple of weeks in September we could go or towards the end October.
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Sorry for the late reply. As far far as primitive, that depends, I like to stay at Sand Flats there are picnic tables, fire pits and pit toilets. The best part is you are literally surrounded by trails. If you are going solo like I did you can run Fins and Porcupine pretty easy without a spotter. Although before this last trip it had been 13 years since I had been there and those times were with a group during EJS.

http://www.sandflats.org/
 
Thanks for the replies. Trip is on for September 18th (leaving KC) and will be coming back the 24th. Really looking forward to this trip. I did see that week Moab is hosting the Land Rover National Rally... hoping that doesn't make things too crowded.
 
Just rolled in, set up camp, and now enjoying dinner at The Blu Pig. Will be here for 8 days, so if anyone's around here hit me up. [emoji106]
 
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