Signal Peak was a great trip. Unfortunately, we were inundated with smoke from the American Fire and possibly also the Rim Fire-this is nearest Yosemite National Park.
We stopped in Auburn to gas up. Auburn is sort of the gateway to the gold country. Everyone takes a picture of the miner panning gold from the front. But as you can see, he's not wearing Levi's...:giggle
It's a lot of smoke :eek1
Most of our travel was over fairly easy terrain so not many wheelin' pix and nothing more than a bunch of snapshots either.
You can see where we're headed (barely). It's the hill with all the antennas on it.
We passed some great water views (this is one we camped by).
There were few challenges along the way. The lead Jeep and I didn't bother to air down, just took it slow.
Here we are at the top of Signal Peak.
Our first time Jeep owner made it to the top and in one piece. A little terrified in a couple of spots, but in one piece
When we arrived, we met a family holding a memorial for their dad. His father had worked at the Signal shack back in the day. Both Grandma & Grandpa were scattered from this spot-seemed very fitting that dad was scattered there too. Godspeed dad and thank you to the family for sharing their story.
We did some posing at camp. Our n00b didn't want to...
Camp was awesome. Right behind us was Pierce Creek. A little dusty but really quiet. Ideal spot really. Just far enough off the road and not at all easy for most to get to make it a great spot. Access to the "long way" to Signal is just outside of camp-we opted for the shorter approach since we had a first timer.
We rarely suffer food wise too-between all of us, we do stuff like deep fried French Toast with center cut bacon & breakfast sausage. Juice and real coffee too. Dinners are always pretty good. Veg might be sauted mushrooms with onions & bell peppers. A bag salad is almost always a good choice. Chicken or tri-tip. Dessert? Not this trip.
Moderator Journeys/Sports/Big Picture :: Need some help with dgrin?
I hadn't been wheeling since my Moab trip, back in May, but yesterday I finally got to hit a few trails with a couple of fellow Jeepers.
The weather has been real dry, for a few weeks now, and unseasonably dry all summer, so I figured it was safe to hit The Cliffs Insane Terrain and not get any of the "guaranteed damage" you always here about.
As I walked out to my garage I was greeted with dark skies and thunder...go figure. That meant I had to put the doors back on...bummer. It did sprinkle a bit as I headed south, but I out ran the rain. The Cliffs is about an hour south east of my house, so that meant the rain was following me.
When I arrived at The Cliffs it was nice and sunny. Matt (Rubicon) and Dan (Cherokee) showed up a few minutes after I did, and so did the clouds. Just as we hit the trails it started to thunder just a bit, and sprinkle....but it only lasted a few minutes, thankfully. After that it was as nice as can be.
Just before we hit the trails.
The first obstacle of the day was "Jimmy's Crack"....which was nice and muddy.
Matt was the first one into the crack, and made it right through.
Dan was next....
He needed a tug.
I was next.
And I was stuck.
And in need of a tug.
I was sure I just needed to go a bit more driver, so I went around and did it again.....and made it right through.
A few minutes later Matt found another hole, and the hole won. Dan had to pull him out.
I went next, and the hole put up a good fight.
But my Jeep fought back.
In the end, my Jeep won.
It was only a few minutes later that Dan found himself in a little situation...but he managed to drive out of it.
This how happy a Chevy guy looks after being winched out of a hole, by a Jeep.....my Jeep btw.
Matt decided this looked like a good way down....and as usual pictures don't do it justice.
Matt got high centered before the second drop.
Dan rocked him and Matt was able to make a little progress...but just a little.
Without any tires touching the ground it was time for tug.
Dan gave a tug, and gravity took over.
I decided to go next.
No high centering for me.
That second drop felt and looked like a big one from the driver seat.
We found a big rutted hill to climb. Matt went first, and gave it a whole bunch of skinny pedal, and after a few attempts made it up...sorry no pics Matt.
Dan gave it a few shots as well, but couldn't find the traction needed.
I gave it a couple of shots as well, but traction just wasn't there, and I'm not a skinny pedal guy. I think this was one hill were the MTRk's bite did the trick.
Matt said coming down was a bit scarier than going up...he was sliding most of the way.
Guess what, we found more mud.....did I mention it was dry?
More skinny!
This time Matt lost the battle and had to winch himself out.
Once Matt stopped slinging mud all over the place I noticed his exhaust was now pointing in front the tire.....side exhaust anyone? Matt and I were able to man handle it back to where it belonged....almost. We used a ratchet strap to hold it in place.
Then it was Dan's turn.
Dan used more skinny too, but Matt had to tug him out.
For the record, I drove right through....but the camera was with me.
We made our way back to the parking lot, ate some lunch and decided to call it a day, as Matt's exhaust was really fubarred, and was hitting the axle on small bumps. We decided it was better to call it a day than risk more damage. I had dinner plans too, so getting home a little early was a good thing.
Matt and his Jeep.
Me and my Jeep.
I didn't get a shot of Dan and his Jeep....he was up airing up when I took these, sorry Dan.
I do have a couple of short vids I need to get posted on YouTube, and when I do I'll post them here.
It was fun getting out on the trails, and if all goes well I'll be out again next weekend @ The Badlands.
I spent two hours cleaning the Jeep yesterday, just so I can hit the trails again this Saturday. Hopefully I'll come back with some pictures of the "big boys" climbing some wicked walls and such.
Yesterday a group of us met up at the Badlands Off Road Park for a day of wheeling. One of my 12 year old daughter's, Mallory, rode along with me.
It's a 3.5 hour drive from my house to the Badlands. I always dread the drive, but it's usually worth it....even though I do have to drive another 3.5 hours home...ugh.
We arrived at the park at 0830 (IL time, IN time said it was 0930....but what do they know?)
We met up in the parking lot and got the Jeeps and buggy ready to roll.
My Jeep.
Will
Kevin
A group shot.
A shiny new Rubicon joined us....for awhile.
Tracey
Brad
Another group shot.
First thing we did was head to the quarry and play on some rocks.
There were some things of interest along the way. This hill required a lot of skinny pedal, and those who were willing to use it (I wasn't) made it.
No skinny was required here....the buggy crawled it with ease.
We made our way towards the creek, by way of the ravine or wedge, and once we exited that we found the normal hill climb and it's bypass blocked by a downed tree. We turned and went back towards where we had come from, but on a different trail.
You weren't getting up this without a front locker.
We made it back to the creek....which was just a trickle, since there hadn't been any rain in awhile. We crossed over the creek and did a climb.
We lost a few rigs along the way....still not sure why.
After this it was back into the creek and onto the rocks along the way.
After watching Kevin and Brad play on the rocks we made our way down the creek to the area by the quarry pond, which had more rocks for Kevin and Brad.
We then made our way along the quarry rim to Purgatory. Along the way I accidentally hit the gas and brake pedals at the same time which caused my Jeep to lunge forward then stop suddenly, which caused my daughter, who didn't buckle up after watching the guys play on the rocks, to bump her head on my windshield, while she was texting. She didn't hit it hard, and wasn't hurt, but the windshield cracked like a spider web. Lesson learned here, always, always wear your seat belts off road (and on). You expect things to happen on obstacles, but not while crawling along and less than 5mph, but this proves things can and will happen, at any speed. Buckle Up.
I tried the hardest line I had ever tried in Purgatory, but as far as I know there are no pictures of it....which is par for the course.
Here Kevin watches Brad as he makes things look easy.
Kevin gives it a shot.
I sat and watched Kevin for several minutes, he wasn't having much luck, or making much progress so I left to find some rocks of my own. I managed to find an obstacle I had never done before, again I'm sure there are no pictures of it, but Tracey did it too.
I then returned to where Kevin was and as I arrived I saw him tip over backwards, fall on to his lid, and roll over onto his side....
Kevin was fine and so was Jeffery...his Jeep.
After we got Jeffery back on it's wheels it fired right up and we headed to the parking lot to give it the once over and eat lunch.
Things were going pretty good, for awhile, then I told Kevin I was going to turn left and follow the an orange arrow...which I was pointing at. I got in my Jeep, turned left, and Kevin went straight. I was a bit confused, as he was right behind me. We then played a game of chase your tail, as we went around in a circle...lol. We got that mess straightened out and headed on down the trail...but then we lost two more, so we stopped and searched for them. Once we were all together again I just took the easy way out, to where the big rock, cement piles are.
We headed on down some more of Orange, a section that leads to the rock garden, but before we got there I found some mud....
It was deep and sticky.
While I was winching myself out Kevin got a call from Brad who was off by himself and in need of a rescue.
Kevin and I went to help Brad and the others called it a day.
This is how we found Brad....trust me he's in there.
Brad was high centered on top of horse power hill. I was able to go up a side trail and get positioned to winch him over. It didn't take much.
Of course Brad went right back up....and over this time.
Kevin gave it a shot or three....
A 4bt Cummins doesn't have horse power.
So this was as far as Jeffery made it.
I managed to save another Jeeper, in a TJ, who had ventured off by himself, and was royally stuck. He had mud up to his knees and his elbows. I managed to winch him out with ease....lesson learned here, never wheel alone, not even in an off road park.
Friday night, while running around getting everything done, buying toys, getting ice for my cooler and such, I noticed a squeak, squeak, squeak, coming from what appeared to be the front driver side wheel area. I greased the axle joint, in hopes that was all it was, but it triggered a bit of paranoia in me, and I couldn't help but think "maybe I shouldn't go".
I woke up at 4am Saturday morning (I got to bed earlier than expected since NIU stunk up the MAC Championship game) and was on the road by 5am.
As I drove down I-39 I kept thinking "I should just go back home". Granted I wasn't hearing the squeak anymore, but there was still some paranoia in my mind.
I turned off I-39 and onto Hwy 24, at El Paso, and thought "I should just go back home"....but I knew people were counting on me to show up, so I continued on....paranoid and all.
As I went through Watseka IL I saw Kevin (ksilovich in the Walmart parking lot, getting his flag....wait until you see it. I had to stop for a minute....so I waited for Kevin to drive on by and followed him to Kentland Indiana, where we hung a right down Hwy 41, towards Attica.
I followed Kevin to where 52 splits from 41, as he took 52 to go to his bank, which was closed btw.
As I traveled down 41 I saw a Jeep up ahead, as I got closer I saw that it was Will (TheHeilis)
I passed Will, gave him a and he followed me on down to The Badlands.
The first thing I did was get a photo in front of the Badlands sign, with my two toys, one for a girl and one for a boy.
I had to get something wheeling related for the boy.
Kevin met up with Will and I a few minutes later and we got ready to wheel.
We headed to the quarry, with some of the guys from Will's club in tow. I never did get any of their names....there's not a whole lot of conversation when you're wheeling in the cold.
Kevin went right for the walls.
Air time seemed to be his thing.
Kevin on some big rocks.
After playing around in the quarry for a few minutes we hit the trails...with me in the lead. We were the first on this trail, so I had to be the ice breaker.
Along the way I attempted a climb I couldn't do last time out...even though I tried like 5 times. This time it was a cake walk...I aired down a bit more this time, so that probably made all the difference. If you'd like to see a photo of it.....get real, we all know there's no photos of me wheeling.
Finally, a broken puddle
We dropped into the ravine that leads you towards the creek, but last time out there was a tree across the end of the trail blocking the creek trail, which caused us to double back, it was no different this time.
Doubling back gave you two options, the easy way and the hard way. I took the hard way, hit it a bit harder than last time, and probably harder than I really needed to, or should have.
Will gave the hard way a shot.
After a couple of attempts Will took the easy way.
Some of the other guys came up the hard way.
We crossed the ravine and headed towards the creek.
We followed the creek down to the rock outcropping, where the fun usually begins.
Before we knew it, it was lunch time. We got lunch tickets when we donated our toys, for we figured we may as well eat.
There was a good crowd for lunch.
They served BBQ pulled pork, hot dogs, beans, chips, cookies and soda.
There was a raffle for a Warn winch or a set of Pro Comp tires (up to 35") and a 50/50 raffle, neither of which I won.
After lunch we returned to our Jeeps. I had heard something a bit odd on the way back from the quarry and when I gave the Jeep a look-see I found that I wasn't paranoid after all. That damn u-joint blew apart, taking the inner and outer shaft ears with it. My wheeling day was done. I was ready to head for home, but Kevin convinced me to hop in Jeffery and ride shot gun.
We headed to the Orange Trail, were there was a bit of a wait at the point of drop in.
Once passed that point things moved right along.
My view from Jeffery.
Some of the group on the trail.
One of the members in our group almost met someone from another group.
The black Jeep (our group) had to be pulled back. The situation was a bit worse than it looks here.
After completing Orange we headed back to the quarry. Kevin took me up some walls and through some big *** rocks...it was a blast, something I'll only be able to do in my Jeep with many more mods....costing many more dollars.
Kevin and I went over to the Red Trail and he climbed some stuff that I wouldn't be able to do.
We then met up with the rest of the group, where one of the guys, in a Grand Cherokee, found a little something on the trail.
This little treat was hiding along the trail that winds around and through the quarry pond, it's a frozen tree stump.
This tire was no match for the frozen tree stump. Big slit.
Not the best place to change a flat, but they got 'er done.
After that little adventure most of the group left, some stayed in the quarry and Kevin and I hit a few other areas of the park.
As Kevin ripped through the dunes we found a Chevy truck buried to it's axles.
Kevin was nice enough to winch them out.
While taking that photo I notice the front tires weren't spinning. I asked if he had it in 4wd.......he said he didn't have 4wd. That's right, wheeling a 2wd Chevy in the dunes....but hey, it has limited slip. :laugh: We asked if they had a tow strap, so we could pull them to safety, they did not. We left them there.
Kevin headed over to the rock garden at the end of the Green Trail and did it faster than I ever have, then went back through it, faster than I would ever have imagined anyone going through it. If you've been through it you know it's not full of small rocks. I thought I was going to lose a filling. :laugh:
We climbed a few more things, here and there, raced around on a part of Green neither of us have ever seen, then called it a day.
I went ahead and drove the Rubi home, with the broken axle as it was. I never heard any strange noises, and the only time I could even tell there was an issue is when I made slow, sharp turns, like at intersections. I could feel the steering wheeling moving in my hands from what I believe was the inner and outer axles rubbing against each other when turned.
Despite the breakage I had a great time. Kevin's Jeep is a blast to ride in, but it's too damn noisy and at one point the diesel about killed me. :laugh:
This was my last trip for quite awhile. I need to get some chromo shafts and start saving for my August 2014 Colorado trip, and pay Kevin for the tire carrier he's making me.
If you'd like to see all the pictures I took go HERE.
If anyone from the group stumbles across this thread go ahead and post up your pics, if you have any.
Comments
We stopped in Auburn to gas up. Auburn is sort of the gateway to the gold country. Everyone takes a picture of the miner panning gold from the front. But as you can see, he's not wearing Levi's...:giggle
It's a lot of smoke :eek1
Most of our travel was over fairly easy terrain so not many wheelin' pix and nothing more than a bunch of snapshots either.
You can see where we're headed (barely). It's the hill with all the antennas on it.
We passed some great water views (this is one we camped by).
There were few challenges along the way. The lead Jeep and I didn't bother to air down, just took it slow.
Here we are at the top of Signal Peak.
Our first time Jeep owner made it to the top and in one piece. A little terrified in a couple of spots, but in one piece
When we arrived, we met a family holding a memorial for their dad. His father had worked at the Signal shack back in the day. Both Grandma & Grandpa were scattered from this spot-seemed very fitting that dad was scattered there too. Godspeed dad and thank you to the family for sharing their story.
We did some posing at camp. Our n00b didn't want to...
Camp was awesome. Right behind us was Pierce Creek. A little dusty but really quiet. Ideal spot really. Just far enough off the road and not at all easy for most to get to make it a great spot. Access to the "long way" to Signal is just outside of camp-we opted for the shorter approach since we had a first timer.
We rarely suffer food wise too-between all of us, we do stuff like deep fried French Toast with center cut bacon & breakfast sausage. Juice and real coffee too. Dinners are always pretty good. Veg might be sauted mushrooms with onions & bell peppers. A bag salad is almost always a good choice. Chicken or tri-tip. Dessert? Not this trip.
The weather has been real dry, for a few weeks now, and unseasonably dry all summer, so I figured it was safe to hit The Cliffs Insane Terrain and not get any of the "guaranteed damage" you always here about.
As I walked out to my garage I was greeted with dark skies and thunder...go figure. That meant I had to put the doors back on...bummer. It did sprinkle a bit as I headed south, but I out ran the rain. The Cliffs is about an hour south east of my house, so that meant the rain was following me.
When I arrived at The Cliffs it was nice and sunny. Matt (Rubicon) and Dan (Cherokee) showed up a few minutes after I did, and so did the clouds. Just as we hit the trails it started to thunder just a bit, and sprinkle....but it only lasted a few minutes, thankfully. After that it was as nice as can be.
Just before we hit the trails.
The first obstacle of the day was "Jimmy's Crack"....which was nice and muddy.
Matt was the first one into the crack, and made it right through.
Dan was next....
He needed a tug.
I was next.
And I was stuck.
And in need of a tug.
I was sure I just needed to go a bit more driver, so I went around and did it again.....and made it right through.
A few minutes later Matt found another hole, and the hole won. Dan had to pull him out.
I went next, and the hole put up a good fight.
But my Jeep fought back.
In the end, my Jeep won.
It was only a few minutes later that Dan found himself in a little situation...but he managed to drive out of it.
This how happy a Chevy guy looks after being winched out of a hole, by a Jeep.....my Jeep btw.
Matt decided this looked like a good way down....and as usual pictures don't do it justice.
Matt got high centered before the second drop.
Dan rocked him and Matt was able to make a little progress...but just a little.
Without any tires touching the ground it was time for tug.
Dan gave a tug, and gravity took over.
I decided to go next.
No high centering for me.
That second drop felt and looked like a big one from the driver seat.
Down, safe and sound.
Dan gave it a few shots as well, but couldn't find the traction needed.
I gave it a couple of shots as well, but traction just wasn't there, and I'm not a skinny pedal guy. I think this was one hill were the MTRk's bite did the trick.
Matt said coming down was a bit scarier than going up...he was sliding most of the way.
Guess what, we found more mud.....did I mention it was dry?
More skinny!
This time Matt lost the battle and had to winch himself out.
Once Matt stopped slinging mud all over the place I noticed his exhaust was now pointing in front the tire.....side exhaust anyone? Matt and I were able to man handle it back to where it belonged....almost. We used a ratchet strap to hold it in place.
Then it was Dan's turn.
Dan used more skinny too, but Matt had to tug him out.
For the record, I drove right through....but the camera was with me.
We made our way back to the parking lot, ate some lunch and decided to call it a day, as Matt's exhaust was really fubarred, and was hitting the axle on small bumps. We decided it was better to call it a day than risk more damage. I had dinner plans too, so getting home a little early was a good thing.
Matt and his Jeep.
Me and my Jeep.
I didn't get a shot of Dan and his Jeep....he was up airing up when I took these, sorry Dan.
I do have a couple of short vids I need to get posted on YouTube, and when I do I'll post them here.
It was fun getting out on the trails, and if all goes well I'll be out again next weekend @ The Badlands.
I'm not looking forward to the clean up part either. Maybe it'll rain and I can go for drive.
Watch this
Hollister Hills has a spot called Hector Heights that's the highest spot you can drive to.
The instructions said "bring food".
Ribs
Veg & chicken (bbq with Hawaiian inspired marinade.
This is a part of the mighty San Andreas Fault.
This runner has about $6G's worth of LED lighting on it. Great climb too.
I brought Riley. He's getting better as a backseater.
These CrossFit guys are hella strong!
Riley's not so sure about the rocking thingy.
The Jeep vs. Yota thing came to blows...
We hung out in the obstacle course after lunch. That was a lot of fun and made to a great end to our day at the park.
Nice...wish we had wilderness around here.
It's a 3.5 hour drive from my house to the Badlands. I always dread the drive, but it's usually worth it....even though I do have to drive another 3.5 hours home...ugh.
We arrived at the park at 0830 (IL time, IN time said it was 0930....but what do they know?)
We met up in the parking lot and got the Jeeps and buggy ready to roll.
My Jeep.
Will
Kevin
A group shot.
A shiny new Rubicon joined us....for awhile.
Tracey
Brad
Another group shot.
First thing we did was head to the quarry and play on some rocks.
After that we headed out on some trails.
There were some things of interest along the way. This hill required a lot of skinny pedal, and those who were willing to use it (I wasn't) made it.
No skinny was required here....the buggy crawled it with ease.
We made our way towards the creek, by way of the ravine or wedge, and once we exited that we found the normal hill climb and it's bypass blocked by a downed tree. We turned and went back towards where we had come from, but on a different trail.
You weren't getting up this without a front locker.
We made it back to the creek....which was just a trickle, since there hadn't been any rain in awhile. We crossed over the creek and did a climb.
Will cresting the top of the climb.
A gathering at the top of the hill.
We lost a few rigs along the way....still not sure why.
After this it was back into the creek and onto the rocks along the way.
After watching Kevin and Brad play on the rocks we made our way down the creek to the area by the quarry pond, which had more rocks for Kevin and Brad.
We then made our way along the quarry rim to Purgatory. Along the way I accidentally hit the gas and brake pedals at the same time which caused my Jeep to lunge forward then stop suddenly, which caused my daughter, who didn't buckle up after watching the guys play on the rocks, to bump her head on my windshield, while she was texting. She didn't hit it hard, and wasn't hurt, but the windshield cracked like a spider web. Lesson learned here, always, always wear your seat belts off road (and on). You expect things to happen on obstacles, but not while crawling along and less than 5mph, but this proves things can and will happen, at any speed. Buckle Up.
I tried the hardest line I had ever tried in Purgatory, but as far as I know there are no pictures of it....which is par for the course.
Here Kevin watches Brad as he makes things look easy.
Kevin gives it a shot.
I sat and watched Kevin for several minutes, he wasn't having much luck, or making much progress so I left to find some rocks of my own. I managed to find an obstacle I had never done before, again I'm sure there are no pictures of it, but Tracey did it too.
I then returned to where Kevin was and as I arrived I saw him tip over backwards, fall on to his lid, and roll over onto his side....
Kevin was fine and so was Jeffery...his Jeep.
After we got Jeffery back on it's wheels it fired right up and we headed to the parking lot to give it the once over and eat lunch.
Things were going pretty good, for awhile, then I told Kevin I was going to turn left and follow the an orange arrow...which I was pointing at. I got in my Jeep, turned left, and Kevin went straight. I was a bit confused, as he was right behind me. We then played a game of chase your tail, as we went around in a circle...lol. We got that mess straightened out and headed on down the trail...but then we lost two more, so we stopped and searched for them. Once we were all together again I just took the easy way out, to where the big rock, cement piles are.
We headed on down some more of Orange, a section that leads to the rock garden, but before we got there I found some mud....
It was deep and sticky.
While I was winching myself out Kevin got a call from Brad who was off by himself and in need of a rescue.
Kevin and I went to help Brad and the others called it a day.
This is how we found Brad....trust me he's in there.
Brad was high centered on top of horse power hill. I was able to go up a side trail and get positioned to winch him over. It didn't take much.
Of course Brad went right back up....and over this time.
Kevin gave it a shot or three....
A 4bt Cummins doesn't have horse power.
So this was as far as Jeffery made it.
I managed to save another Jeeper, in a TJ, who had ventured off by himself, and was royally stuck. He had mud up to his knees and his elbows. I managed to winch him out with ease....lesson learned here, never wheel alone, not even in an off road park.
Our Trip, via Google Maps
We had a great day, with great weather. I wish the Badlands was closer, as the drive just keeps me from going as often as I'd like too.
I'll have a short video of Kevin doing a climb backwards....eventually.
Looks like you guys had a great time as well!
This weekend's trip was way more fun than last weekend's trip. It appears we'll try to get back out again in November.
Sometimes it's just fun to play around with an image.
Friday night, while running around getting everything done, buying toys, getting ice for my cooler and such, I noticed a squeak, squeak, squeak, coming from what appeared to be the front driver side wheel area. I greased the axle joint, in hopes that was all it was, but it triggered a bit of paranoia in me, and I couldn't help but think "maybe I shouldn't go".
I woke up at 4am Saturday morning (I got to bed earlier than expected since NIU stunk up the MAC Championship game) and was on the road by 5am.
As I drove down I-39 I kept thinking "I should just go back home". Granted I wasn't hearing the squeak anymore, but there was still some paranoia in my mind.
I turned off I-39 and onto Hwy 24, at El Paso, and thought "I should just go back home"....but I knew people were counting on me to show up, so I continued on....paranoid and all.
As I went through Watseka IL I saw Kevin (ksilovich in the Walmart parking lot, getting his flag....wait until you see it. I had to stop for a minute....so I waited for Kevin to drive on by and followed him to Kentland Indiana, where we hung a right down Hwy 41, towards Attica.
I followed Kevin to where 52 splits from 41, as he took 52 to go to his bank, which was closed btw.
As I traveled down 41 I saw a Jeep up ahead, as I got closer I saw that it was Will (TheHeilis)
I passed Will, gave him a
The first thing I did was get a photo in front of the Badlands sign, with my two toys, one for a girl and one for a boy.
I had to get something wheeling related for the boy.
Kevin met up with Will and I a few minutes later and we got ready to wheel.
We headed to the quarry, with some of the guys from Will's club in tow. I never did get any of their names....there's not a whole lot of conversation when you're wheeling in the cold.
Kevin went right for the walls.
Air time seemed to be his thing.
Kevin on some big rocks.
After playing around in the quarry for a few minutes we hit the trails...with me in the lead. We were the first on this trail, so I had to be the ice breaker.
Along the way I attempted a climb I couldn't do last time out...even though I tried like 5 times. This time it was a cake walk...I aired down a bit more this time, so that probably made all the difference. If you'd like to see a photo of it.....get real, we all know there's no photos of me wheeling.
Finally, a broken puddle
We dropped into the ravine that leads you towards the creek, but last time out there was a tree across the end of the trail blocking the creek trail, which caused us to double back, it was no different this time.
Doubling back gave you two options, the easy way and the hard way. I took the hard way, hit it a bit harder than last time, and probably harder than I really needed to, or should have.
Will gave the hard way a shot.
After a couple of attempts Will took the easy way.
Some of the other guys came up the hard way.
We crossed the ravine and headed towards the creek.
We followed the creek down to the rock outcropping, where the fun usually begins.
Kevin started playing right away.
The rest of us (without trailers) watched.
Kevin went back to lifting tires.
More 3-wheeling.
And again.
Kevin found this ledge to his liking.
He made it look easy.
Before we knew it, it was lunch time. We got lunch tickets when we donated our toys, for we figured we may as well eat.
There was a good crowd for lunch.
They served BBQ pulled pork, hot dogs, beans, chips, cookies and soda.
There was a raffle for a Warn winch or a set of Pro Comp tires (up to 35") and a 50/50 raffle, neither of which I won.
After lunch we returned to our Jeeps. I had heard something a bit odd on the way back from the quarry and when I gave the Jeep a look-see I found that I wasn't paranoid after all. That damn u-joint blew apart, taking the inner and outer shaft ears with it. My wheeling day was done. I was ready to head for home, but Kevin convinced me to hop in Jeffery and ride shot gun.
We headed to the Orange Trail, were there was a bit of a wait at the point of drop in.
Once passed that point things moved right along.
My view from Jeffery.
Some of the group on the trail.
One of the members in our group almost met someone from another group.
The black Jeep (our group) had to be pulled back. The situation was a bit worse than it looks here.
After completing Orange we headed back to the quarry. Kevin took me up some walls and through some big *** rocks...it was a blast, something I'll only be able to do in my Jeep with many more mods....costing many more dollars.
Kevin and I went over to the Red Trail and he climbed some stuff that I wouldn't be able to do.
We then met up with the rest of the group, where one of the guys, in a Grand Cherokee, found a little something on the trail.
This little treat was hiding along the trail that winds around and through the quarry pond, it's a frozen tree stump.
This tire was no match for the frozen tree stump. Big slit.
Not the best place to change a flat, but they got 'er done.
After that little adventure most of the group left, some stayed in the quarry and Kevin and I hit a few other areas of the park.
As Kevin ripped through the dunes we found a Chevy truck buried to it's axles.
Kevin was nice enough to winch them out.
While taking that photo I notice the front tires weren't spinning. I asked if he had it in 4wd.......he said he didn't have 4wd. That's right, wheeling a 2wd Chevy in the dunes....but hey, it has limited slip. :laugh: We asked if they had a tow strap, so we could pull them to safety, they did not. We left them there.
Kevin headed over to the rock garden at the end of the Green Trail and did it faster than I ever have, then went back through it, faster than I would ever have imagined anyone going through it. If you've been through it you know it's not full of small rocks. I thought I was going to lose a filling. :laugh:
We climbed a few more things, here and there, raced around on a part of Green neither of us have ever seen, then called it a day.
I went ahead and drove the Rubi home, with the broken axle as it was. I never heard any strange noises, and the only time I could even tell there was an issue is when I made slow, sharp turns, like at intersections. I could feel the steering wheeling moving in my hands from what I believe was the inner and outer axles rubbing against each other when turned.
Despite the breakage I had a great time. Kevin's Jeep is a blast to ride in, but it's too damn noisy and at one point the diesel about killed me. :laugh:
This was my last trip for quite awhile. I need to get some chromo shafts and start saving for my August 2014 Colorado trip, and pay Kevin for the tire carrier he's making me.
If you'd like to see all the pictures I took go HERE.
If anyone from the group stumbles across this thread go ahead and post up your pics, if you have any.
http://www.studio-liorit.co.il
מתנה מקורית
The rest are here
http://bluemoonoriginals.smugmug.com/Travel/Tacoma-World-Annual-Citrus-Mee/
You don't take a photograph, you make it. ~Ansel Adams
Blue Moon Originals
We had a blast this weekend
This was my first time wheeling and the wife and I are hooked
You don't take a photograph, you make it. ~Ansel Adams
Blue Moon Originals
Once is usually all it takes to get the bug.
Nice shots.
Aaron Newman
Website:www.CapturingLightandEmotion.com
Facebook: Capturing Light and Emotion
Thank you
You don't take a photograph, you make it. ~Ansel Adams
Blue Moon Originals
I wish there was someplace around here to actually do some snow wheeling, besides the streets.
As much so as me driving to the store in 4wd does.