Red rock and seven slots: Easter Jeep Safari celebrates 55 years

As the sun peeked over the La Sal Mountains, washing Southern Utah with warm hues of ochre and crimson, we made our way down Main Street to the Moab Diner for breakfast.

It was opening day of the Easter Jeep Safari (EJS), and a steady stream of traffic flooded in to town for one of North America’s most popular off-road venues.

Although today’s event draws tens of thousands of participants from all corners of the planet, we need to look back half a century, and further, to understand the significance of origins.

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The year was 1967, and in an attempt to boost a lagging economy, the Moab Chamber of Commerce organised an event to draw attention and tourism to the area. It would be a simple affair and take place on Easter Sunday; a one-day trail ride in the backcountry with a few dozen participants.

Registration was free, and a highlight of the day was a Cessna flyover replete with an air drop of ice cream. The original route is now known as the Behind the Rocks Trail, and the event’s popularity required the addition of the Moab Rim Trail the following year.

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Meanwhile, steady growth strained the Chamber’s resources, and in 1982 management of the event was handed off to the club that had been volunteering as trail guides, the Red Rock 4-Wheelers.

My first experience exploring the fissured canyons surrounding Moab was in 1990. It was a non-EJS week mid-summer, and back then there weren’t any established maps of the web of trails that threaded their way up and down narrow ledges on precipitous cliffs.

I wondered why they were there and who created them? A buddy and I hiked up an eroded switchback to what appeared to be a cave, what we found was an old wooden crate full of dynamite and a mining claim tag. Miners, of course, but what were they looking for? For this, we need to turn the clock back to 1952 and the height of the Cold War.

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The Moab Rim Trail, which became part of EJS in 1968, ascends a diagonal ledge along the Colorado River.

Explosive exploration

In 1946, the United States passed the Atomic Energy Act, and in 1949 offered incentives to prospectors to help locate domestic uranium deposits.

Word of this prompted amateur geologist Charley Steen to borrow $1000 from his mother, pack up his family, and move to Moab. Living in a tarpaper shack, he scratched at the dirt for several years, exhausted all of his money, and his family nearly starving. Charley was ready to pack up and head home, and then he hit pay dirt.

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Charley’s original Willys Jeep is still on display near town.

Word of his success brought an onslaught of commercial mining companies to Moab, which in turn canvased every ledge, canyon, and fissure of the region. Yep, the trails we enjoy today, as well as the Easter Jeep Safari, are the result of the Cold War and Nuclear Age.

As for Mr Steen, his mine, affectionately named Mi Vida (‘my life’ in Spanish) produced enough uranium to make Charley a very, very wealthy man. There would be no more tarpaper shacks for the Steen Family.

If you are in Moab, his Willys Jeep can be found on display in front of the Sunset Grill Event Center … which was originally his palatial home on a hill above town.

EJS in the 21st century

Popularity of the event has seen exponential growth in the past 30 years, and it now draws enthusiasts from the world over. Featuring dozens of trail rides over a nine-day period, and a vendor show with more than 200 manufacturers, Easter Jeep Safari has become the North American spring gathering of the off-road world. It has also generated tens of thousands of dollars for land-use efforts to keep trails open for public access.

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The local Boy Scout troupe organises a Saturday barbecue, which has become their largest annual fundraiser

Moab has also become the go-to location for the testing of new vehicles, and in the mid 2000s Jeep began its ‘concept’ program. Each year since, it has revealed a fleet of one-off vehicles, some have been wild retro-modern creations but others have actually made their way to production.

The class of 2022

This brings us to this year’s rigs, and by the looks of them, Jeep is committed to joining the global trend of electrification. We spent two days driving them, and below is a brief recap. Enter Jeep’s 2022 Concepts.

Birdcage

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What’s cool? Open-air bugs-in-your-teeth driving experience (no windshield, windows, or top), flat fender flares, custom winch cradle, Granite Crystal metallic paint, Add-a-trunk rear deck system.

Bob

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What’s cool? Bed bobbed 12 inches, open concept, Dynatrac Pro-Rock 60 axles, fastback canvas top, custom rear rack.

D-Coder

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What’s cool? Prototype light bar, rack, leather seats, spray-on tub liner, and mesh bikini top. Scan any part on this Jeep with your phone – they all display a QR code – and it takes you to the product on Jeep Performance Parts’ website.

Grand Cherokee

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What’s cool? Trailhawk PHEV is light on mods but heavy on style and comfort. In 3C° weather, we took refuge in the Grand and cranked up the heated steering wheel and seats. We also liked the ‘Rodney Dangerfield’ houndstooth interior color scheme.

Jeep 41

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What’s cool? Jeep 41 pays tribute to its Willys MB military underpinnings, but in a 21st Century way: OD green paint, sand-tan soft top, camouflage seats, Warn winch, alloy ‘plow-disc’ wheels.

Magneto V2.0

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What’s cool? Everything! Magneto V2.0 is a super-energised version of Magneto 1.0. Monster horsepower and torque, zero emissions, ultimate in EV off-road capability. What is not to love?

Rubicon 20th Anniversary

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What’s cool? Introduced in 2003, the Rubicon model will celebrate its 20th birthday next year. Honouring that milestone, Jeep developed the 392 HEMI-powered 20th Anniversary concept. With custom graphics, anvil grey paint and red leather interior, full body armour and skid plates, and an air-compressor integrated in to the rear gate, we are hoping they will offer this one as a factory package.

Power Wagon

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What’s cool? This Kaiser Jeep M725 Power Wagon was originally revealed at the 2021 SEMA show, but it is so damn cool we need to take another look – Crate 392/6.4-litre HEMI V8, Dynatrac 60/80 axles, raised canvas roof, beer keg refrigerator, and original roof-mounted spotlight (now LED). This is one cool Wagon.