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Indian Creek on a Bicycle?

Original Post
Bryan Hall · · Portland, Oregon · Joined Feb 2008 · Points: 100

I've never been to Indian Creek before but am planning a trip this fall. If I showed up on a bicycle would I be screwed in regards to camping and commuting to the crag every day? Or is it an easy walk to the cliffs from your tent? Any concern of having my bike stolen out there?

I'm hoping to hit Zion as well and have the same questions. I might finish up at red rocks but know the long ride I would face daily out there. Potentially a stop at j-tree could happen and I would need bike beta for that location as well.

Thanks!

Highlander · · Ouray, CO · Joined Apr 2008 · Points: 256

You could camp at the Cottonwoods and access Way Rambo, Sabatical and Pistol Whipped. Camp at Broken Tooth/Fin to access those crags. Most of the major camping areas are Creek Pasture, Superbowl (short bike to Cliffs of Insanity) & Bridger Jacks (there is tower climbing at the Bridger Jacks), but other crags require some driving. Best bet is to camp at Superbowl or Creek Pasture and hook up with someone with a car.

ElyseSokoloff · · Spokane, WA · Joined Jun 2007 · Points: 0

Trying to picture this so apologies if I'm misunderstanding you. How would you get to IC? On your bike? Because if you can get there on your bike then getting to the actual crags will be cake and pie for you. IC is fairly remote. If you're catching a ride and then bringing a bike then yeah, it just depends on what cliff you want to climb at as to whether it would be rough hike. We usually camp at Bridger Jack and drive out to the crag o' the day and it's about 10-20 drive depending, usually closer to 10. The roads are dirt and for the most part are accessible by any car but some like an AWD option with a few needing true 4X4.

Again, sorry if I'm being obtuse but I needed clarification.

Bryan Hall · · Portland, Oregon · Joined Feb 2008 · Points: 100

I'll be getting there on a bike and then commuting to the crags by bike unless I meet up with car people (hopefully). It's not so much the difficulty of the ride to the crags but the time needed to bike it that concerns me.

For example: Smith Rock is a great spot for bikes because the climbing and camping are a stones throw apart. Miguel's pizza in the red river gorge kind of sucks because of the distance between crags and narrow twisty paved roads.

Bryan Hall · · Portland, Oregon · Joined Feb 2008 · Points: 100
Highlander wrote:You could camp at the Cottonwoods and access Way Rambo, Sabatical and Pistol Whipped. Camp at Broken Tooth/Fin to access those crags. Most of the major camping areas are Creek Pasture, Superbowl (short bike to Cliffs of Insanity) & Bridger Jacks (there is tower climbing at the Bridger Jacks), but other crags require some driving. Best bet is to camp at Superbowl or Creek Pasture and hook up with someone with a car.
Thanks for the tips that helps a ton.
brat . · · Salt Lake City, UT · Joined Nov 2007 · Points: 81

Something to consider... there is no water in Indian Creek. I usually drive in there with a gallon per day I'm staying. That would be cruxy on a bike...

Bryan Hall · · Portland, Oregon · Joined Feb 2008 · Points: 100
brat wrote:Something to consider... there is no water in Indian Creek. I usually drive in there with a gallon per day I'm staying. That would be cruxy on a bike...
Yeah... As much as 15 gallons would be a little bit much on the bike. That sounds like 100% car friend need.
Devin Fin · · DURANGO · Joined Jan 2010 · Points: 3,725

You can roll in 2 canyon lands 4 water.. it's free if you just tell them you need water.

Jamie Henrichsen · · Lake Morena, CA · Joined Oct 2009 · Points: 60

It's the massive rack of cams on the bike. Also, how would you get all the beer required? If you are friendly and give good belay you could work around the cam issue. I don't know about the beer and water...

Bryan Hall · · Portland, Oregon · Joined Feb 2008 · Points: 100
Jamie Henrichsen wrote:It's the massive rack of cams on the bike. Also, how would you get all the beer required? If you are friendly and give good belay you could work around the cam issue. I don't know about the beer and water...
Hmm. Could I trade cams for beer and water? Then belay to get my top rope ascents in?
ElyseSokoloff · · Spokane, WA · Joined Jun 2007 · Points: 0

You can get water at Canyonlands for sure but if you're getting there by bike, again, it's not exactly close to the climbing. You'd be spending all your time traveling. Where would you be coming into, Moab? IC is over an hour away by car, it's about 40 minutes from Monticello. I'll be honest, no matter how hard core you are, I don't see IC by bike being feasible.

Bryan Hall · · Portland, Oregon · Joined Feb 2008 · Points: 100
ElyseSokoloff wrote:You can get water at Canyonlands for sure but if you're getting there by bike, again, it's not exactly close to the climbing. You'd be spending all your time traveling. Where would you be coming into, Moab? IC is over an hour away by car, it's about 40 minutes from Monticello. I'll be honest, no matter how hard core you are, I don't see IC by bike being feasible.
I appreciate the honesty. I'd be biking in from Bend, Oregon and would probably go through Moab. It seems like water is the biggest issue. I assume people make town runs tho. Perhaps beers/belays would get me a shuttle to water and back... I definitely recognize that it would be a long shot and perhaps a better experience to just buck up and drive if I want the primary focus to be climbing. I do however enjoy long bike tours. Maybe the creek isn't the perfect place to go for this trip. I bet if I do go for it there will be some cool stories when it's all said and done.
EJN · · Unknown Hometown · Joined May 2012 · Points: 248

In terms of Zion, Biking is totally an option to nearly all of the climbing here. There's basically only one road, and most of the climbs have fairly short approaches. The reality of the situation here is BYO partner, however. There are only about 15-25 local climbers, many of whom work seasonally out here through the fall. Lots of travelling climbers come through here, only to be disappointed by the lack of an accessible community. However, there is free bike accessible camping and a very low chance that your bike will be stolen.

Good luck, man! Sounds like a rad trip!

ElyseSokoloff · · Spokane, WA · Joined Jun 2007 · Points: 0

The long ride you spoke of at Red Rocks would be about a 1/16th of what you'd do for IC. IC is wonderful, fabulous and magical but if you want to focus on climbing, yeah, I'd say do the car thing. Maybe stash the bike in Moab, rent a car for a week, continue on your trip?

On a side note, since you're biking from Bend, are you climbing at Smith and if you are, do you have partners lined up? I have a good friend whose partner is on the bench. She's super strong (5.13, maybe 14?) and gets out everyday she can. I could shoot her an email...

camhead · · Vandalia, Appalachia · Joined Jun 2006 · Points: 1,240

Bottom line: if you bike to the Creek, you will be relying upon others' cars in various ways. So, figure out how to reciprocate. Personally, I would consider IC to be one of the worst areas to do on a bike. Way worse than Smith, the Valley, Squamish, Gunks...

That is all.

Bryan Hall · · Portland, Oregon · Joined Feb 2008 · Points: 100
JLP wrote: You're biking ~1000 miles to IC, then bothering yourself with advice about a 20 minute cruise to the crags in the AM? I don't get that. Sounds like a cool trip. I think you'll be fine. Zion has a shuttle system. J-Tree no problem there either. Your stuff won't be secure in RR. I'd either rent a car or skip it and just carry on to J-Tree.
If its only 20 minutes then that's no big deal. Seems like varied opinions on to the length of the ride from campsite to crag tho.
Em Cos · · Boulder, CO · Joined Apr 2010 · Points: 5

That's because the distance can vary greatly depending on which campsite/crags you choose. The bigger issue is probably water - not sure how many days worth you can carry in on your bike in the first place but you may end up spending a lot of time taking trips to get water.
Maybe you should post up and try to find people who will be there at the same time. If I was going to be camping there I wouldn't mind filling an extra water jug for you on my way in.

Rob Dillon · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Mar 2002 · Points: 760

Filtering water out of the cowflop-infested main Creek is unlikely to satisfy.

"Bottom line: if you bike to the Creek, you will be relying upon others' cars in various ways."
This is essentially true.

It sounds like you will be traveling solo. This is rarely a problem there, except for the bike thing.

I have not biked to IC, but I have done some bike-based camping there. It's okay. The best deal is to make friends with your neighbors and climb wherever they feel like going, throw your pack in their rig, and bike yourself to the crag. Fetching water from town is more trouble than it's worth- buy somebody a six-pack and get 'em to get you some water.

On one trip we camped under the BJ's and mostly climbed there- tower routes, 1-4 pitches or so. Lots to do for at least a week there. We biked as far as the Optimator (a mile or so) but with full Creek packs (2 ropes, gallon, massive cam rack, etc) it kinda sucked and I wouldn't want to go much farther. No rack/panniers though, just bent under the weight of the packs. Racks and bags would extend the range quite a bit. At any rate, this is the most central camp spot and the ride to the highway is actually pretty fun.

Camping at the Creek Pasture or Super Bowl is pretty social but long commutes are guaranteed. Riding on the highway is not bad, unless there's a bad headwind.

Cottonwoods camping would be pretty OK for stuff in Cottonwood Creek and maybe the Cat Wall area.

Some of the approaches (Meat Walls, The Wall) are a bit sandy and would make for slow going on skinny tires.

Look me up on warmshowers if you're headed to CO.- rob

Tom-onator · · trollfreesociety · Joined Feb 2010 · Points: 790
JLP wrote:What a bunch of car camping weenies. There is water all over the place. Bring a filter.
Some years there is water available in the reservoir and the creek, most years there is not. Availability is based on current drought conditions.
Rob Dillon · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Mar 2002 · Points: 760
vimeo.com/thomascwebb/canyo…

bad ass inspiration.
David Appelhans · · Broomfield, CO · Joined Nov 2007 · Points: 410

I've never seen the reservior dry, but isn't it on private land? The rancher has been very tolerant of climbers, make sure we don't do anything to change that.

Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

Southern Utah Deserts
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