Those Closed Off County Roads.

To make this next series of postings sensible, I decided that I would first post only the map and legend of the areas I've explored already, and add to it as I find out more.  Today's post is basically to give you an idea of what the landscape on the roads looks like, and how the canyons tease you from beyond.


Lets take CR 307 - Edge of the Canyon and that's exactly what you'll see; a small top section of the edge of West Boulder Point Canyon.  The road goes for three miles before it dead ends at a farm; no where along the road is there any access to the canyon itself.  Well, unless you want to trespass onto private land, and going to jail is definitely never going to be on my bucket list.

CR 311 - East Boulder Point gives you a small side view of Boulder Point Canyon; this road is only 1.7 miles before it dead ends at...you guessed it, a farm.

Now after the Hole in the Rock pioneers had settled in Bluff, a group were sent up north and began a brief settlement in Verdure.  They'd already kicked out the ranchers from Colorado and Texas; and it was easy since the courts were run by the Mormons, so they would vote in favor of the Mormon pioneers over the "outsiders".  Considering the original Mormon settlers of Utah were "outsiders" themselves; well that's logic for you.  Anyway, this was going to be the first location for Monticello in the long run, but plans changed.  Another group decided to head on up further north and found that the land under those majestic Abajo Mountains was lush and fertile.  Back to the ranchers who had settled here after being kicked out of Verdure...you guessed it, they were kicked out of this area too.  In fact, while digging around my own property, I found pieces of pottery which I was able to trace back to a company in Texas which made this pottery especially for the ranchers back in the 1860's.  I'm still researching my own property background, so intend on putting a photo of the pottery when I post that information in the future.  So, in 1887 Hammond was established and later renamed Monticello in 1888 after Thomas Jefferson's home.  A little side note about the pronunciation of Monticello; instead of the Italian pronunciation of Jefferson's home (Mon-ti-chell-o), it was "Americanized" into (Mon-ti-cell-o).  Besides the farmland, there is shrubland also, so keeping cattle was easy for the pioneers as well...wonder where they got the idea for that. 

While trekking around, I met a farmer who was willing to give me some input into the history of the "land grab", and also explained the numerous piles of sandstone rubble seen on the farms.  Tilling the land, the farmers found buried Indian ruins; well you never know when you might need those stones, so they were dug up and piled in areas that didn't interfere with the growing areas.  Checking out a couple of piles near the roadway, I noticed what looked to be pottery shards; smooth on one side, painted on the other; so maybe that farmer wasn't just telling a tale?

Digging around archives, I may have found out exactly who the rancher "Peters" was that Peters Point, Peters Hill, Peters Spring Road, Peters Wash Road is named after; yep, that's for another day also.

Mary Cokenour

Where Do Those San Juan County Roads Go?

From Monticello, along Route 491 to Colorado, there are a slew of San Juan County roads to the right and left. Looking at a map of the area, there are also many canyons listed; anyone with an explorer's attitude wants to know what there is to find and see in these canyons. My dog, Jenna, and I have been trekking up and down the roads, south of Route 491 and east of Route 191, to get to these canyons; it's been no easy task, let me tell you. Unfortunately, many of the roads, even though they are listed as "County" roads, dead end at farms and the canyons may or may not be seen in the distance.

Along both sides of the roads is farmland; "no spray" and "organic farming" signs posted along the fence posts as well as the "private property" and "no trespassing" signs.  The main crops are beans, sunflowers, alfalfa and wheat; along with the occasional orchard.  Looking at the richness of the recently tilled soil explains why the pioneers decided to come up closer to the Abajo Mountains; also explains why they kicked those ranchers from Colorado and Texas out of the area.  Now I was able to access a few of the canyons via two of the roads; I'll be writing those up as separate posts.  For now, I'm going to simply post the map I've created with the legend that goes along with it.  As I find new roads and sites to see upon them, the map will be updated. 

The Map

Updated June 15, 2014

The Legend

San Juan County Roads South of Route 491 and East of Route 191

The mileage locations of each road is based upon the starting point at the intersection of Main and Center Streets of Monticello, Utah.  The majority of property along both sides of the roads is privately owned; "No Trespassing" signs are posted.  Many of the farms have "No Spray" signs posted as they practice organic farming; the primary crops being beans, alfalfa, wheat and sunflowers, and the occasional orchard. The Utah/Colorado border is 16.4 miles, again, using the intersection of Main and Center Streets in Monticello, Utah as the starting point.

Main Roads - accessed directly off Route 491

3.5 miles - Monticello Landfill which utilizes the northern end of West Boulder Point Canyon.

4.1 miles - CR 307 (Edge of the Canyon); a small section of West Boulder Point Canyon can be seen; it ends 3 miles at farm.

5.1 miles - CR 308 (Hallers); ends 1.6 miles at CR 337 (North Dude Ranch Road).

6.2 miles - CR 309 (West Boulder); top of Boulder Point can be seen in the distance; ends 5.7 miles at farm.

8.2 miles - CR 311 (East Boulder Point); small side view of Boulder Point Canyon can be seen; ends 1.7 miles at farm.

9.2 miles - CR 364 (Johnson); ends 1/2 miles at farm.

11.2 miles - CR 312 (Horsehead); road through Eastland; 19.2 miles before it ends at Cactus Park (oil tanks and pump jack location); a separate loop road has ATV trails along it; overlooks include Horsehead, Big Water and Montezuma Canyons.

12.2 miles - CR 355 (Long Draw); ends 1.7 miles at CR 339.

13.2 miles - CR 366; closed road.

14.3 miles - CR 314 (North Lockerby); ends 1.5 miles at CR 339.

15.3 miles - CR 377; ends 1.4 miles at CR 339.

Secondary Roads - accessed from the Main Roads off Route 491

CR 337 (North Dude Ranch Road) - 2.1 miles in length; runs between CR 307 and CR 309.

CR 338 (Boulder CTF Road) - 5 miles in length; runs between CR 309 and CR 312.

CR 339 (East Lockerby) - 5 miles in length; runs one mile west of CR 312 to CR 377.

CR 340 (Pearson) - 8.7 miles; Pearson Canyon and Point viewpoints; ends at padlocked gate.

CR 341 (Coal Bed) - located 1.4 miles west of CR 377 along CR 339; road through Coal Bed Canyon.

CR 343 - merges with CR 341 at .9 miles; splits off from CR 341 at 5.4 miles.

CR345 - Cedar Point; settled 1918; mainly wilderness area.

CR 351 (Eastland) - 3 separate roads of central Eastland; LDS Church and Fire Department location.

CR 353 - off CR 312 - ends 1.4 miles at farmland.

CR 354 - off CR 312 - ends 1.1 miles at abandoned homestead.

CR 366 - closed road.

CR 367 (Shupe) - off CR 312; ends 1.4 miles at farm; dirt road at .9 miles leads to CR 338 or CR 339.

CR 372 (Monument Canyon) - located 11.8 miles along CR 341; 6.5 mile road through northern section of Monument Canyon; ends at CR 348 (State Line).

CR 381 - off CR 340; ends half mile at farm.

Mary Cokenour