Utah Motorcycle Trip - EP13: Shafer Trail is Incredible 

Yeah, I'm not sure why I felt the need to apologize for that 🤣 The scenery is incredible. Have a great trip!

I can't get back to Utah soon enough 😁

Glad you liked it and yes, Utah needs to be on your must-see list!

I haven't explored it enough either!

Glad you liked it 👍

It was an amazing ride!

Wow! Thanks for sharing this and I'm so glad you were inspired to hit the road on a solo trip. Sounds like you had a great ride!

Yep, lots of scenery to appreciate.

Love, love the FJR, but no, not missing it 😊

😂

It's a KTM 1290 Super Adventure

I appreciate that! I will absolutely be coming back and hopefully sooner rather than later. A tour guide would be nice :)

When the road surface is loose, going up is usually easier than going down. The entirety of Shafer Trail, including the switchbacks, was hard packed when I rode it so I would not have hesitated to ride it either up or down. It was easy - no challenge at all, but it does require experience and comfort with constant slipping of the clutch if you ride up it. But the wildcard is that the switchbacks themselves don't have a lot of room for error because the drop offs are nearly vertical. With only a touch of offroad riding, you certainly don't want to get in over your head because of the steepness of it. I'd suggest starting at the east end and taking Potash Road up to the base of the switchbacks. Have a look at the switchbacks from the canyon floor, and if you feel like you're up to it, then ride on up. But if not, turn around and take Potash Road back out to Moab. Potash road was absolutely fantastic, was easy to ride, and you would not be disappointed even if it were the only part you rode.

This is really helpful. Thanks!

I'm not quite sure....much of it depends on how easily spooked a beginner rider is, whether that rider is just new to off road riding or is completely new to motorcycling, and whether, despite being a beginner, the rider has a reasonable understanding of certain techniques (low speed maneuvering, clutch slipping, etc.) even though they may not have a lot of experience in the application of those techniques. For a beginner, I would say DO NOT try it from west to east, riding down the switchbacks to begin. Instead, start from the east and ride the trail up to the switchbacks. If that part of the ride goes well then you can consider continuing up the switchbacks from there. If the bottom section was a handful, then you probably don't want to take the switchbacks. Also, you can turn around at any time when riding from east to west if necessary. I would not even thing about turning around on the switchbacks or on the cliffside trail at the top. Once you start those, you need to be committed. Hope that helps....

Yeah, I know. Come back and tell me how your trip goes!

@@Tiger993 will do. I really appreciate your videos. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed riding along with you on this trip.