2012 FJ45 RUN labor day weekend "sourgrass trail" northern CA!

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orangefj45

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sorry it took so long to post up about the event. had to find a new suitable location and life has gotten in the way.......



soooo, as usual this is a "no sign-ups", "no registration" "no entry fee" type of event. just show up, bring enough food, camping gear and clothes and relax.

Sept 1st thru the third!


Sourgrass trail is located off boards crossing road just south of the town of dorrington on hwy4 in northern CA. directions are pretty simple:
find highway 99. then get onto hwy4 east. foloow that for a couple of hours till you get to the small towon of dorrington. don't blink, you'll miss it. take a right on boards crossing road and follow that for about 5 or 6 miles. that'll bring you down the side of a mountain and eventually to a bridge over a river at the bottom. cross the bridge and take a left into the parking/picnic area. you'll see a sign for the trail, hard to miss. take that trail to the very end, it's about 3 miles. you will need 4wd and there are a couple of spots where you'll have to pick a decent line to make it thru without having to back up. i have driven my bone stock and prestine 84 HJ47 troopie all the way in there without a scratch and without having to back up. try to come in with another vehicle if possible just in case.
there is no organized camping, just find a suitable spot. the camping area is plenty big and there's tons of shady spots due to the large redwood trees covering that part of the valley. we will be camped right next to the river. it's a beautiful spot and one of my favorites. just make sure you keep an eye on your kids. the river runs pretty good, even late in the season.
this year we had a lot less rain and snow than usual so the mosquitos should'nt be bad. but bring some bug spray just in case.
as always, there will be two raffles. one for prizes ( you get one and only one ticket as long as you drive a cruiser to the event ) and a cash raffle. the later costs $10 per ticket. buy as many as you want. we will draw one winning ticket which gets half the cash in the pot. the other hald goes to the "friends of the rubicon". so far we've donated about $5k all together.
raffle prizes?! i've been working on them.....and sent out pms, emails and phone calls to a lot of my suppliers and distributors. prizes are tricking in, event got something from my snap-on dealer today. it's become somewhat customary for participants to bring a raffle prize. it can be anything and i mean ANYTHING. we've had things ranging from tools to pocket knives to amazing quilts, pillows, blankets, onboard welder,.....and everything in between.

feel free to ask questions, i know i left a bunch of info out.


hope to see you there!


georg @ valley hybrids
 
I remember wheeling in to Sourgrass a couple of times, 26 or 27 years ago. Great campsite. Good choice, wish I could be there.
 
hey john.
you've got knobbies and a locker. bring it!
georg
 
I'm so stoked about doing this run again!! I've had a blast everytime, bit have missed it the last two years!!

So if coming from Reno, I would keep going past hermit valley camp ground??
 
According to google maps ~31.9 miles farther to Boards Crossing. (it's on the west side of alpine lake.)

Is SlickRock open this year? That is pretty close to Sourgrass. Could be day run or even half a day run.

I'm so stoked about doing this run again!! I've had a blast everytime, bit have missed it the last two years!!

So if coming from Reno, I would keep going past hermit valley camp ground??
 
Georg,
can i get a Stock long bed crewcab 4x4 chevy down the trail to camp?
is there a place to leave the trailer?
Thanks,
Buzz
 
yzftaco said:
According to google maps ~31.9 miles farther to Boards Crossing. (it's on the west side of alpine lake.)

Is SlickRock open this year? That is pretty close to Sourgrass. Could be day run or even half a day run.

Slick rock, Im happy to report. IS OPEN!!
I've wanted to check that trail out, but have never gotten the chance.
 
Looking forward to being there if all goes as planned, hard to believe though the area is prettier than deer Valley.
We loved the scenery there
 
Directions:


  • From SoCal, or West coast, it looks like you take CA-4 E then take
  • Boards Crossing Road/Forest Road 5N75 for 1.5mi
  • Keep left at Forest Road 5N02 for 3.6mi
  • After you go over the bridge make a left on to the dirt road
  • Then it's ~3 miles to the camp site
FJ45 Run on Forest Route 5N02 - Google Maps directions from Stockton


Georg.
Where do/can you park your trailer/tow rig?
Would Arnold be the last stop for gas/groceries?

Enquiring minds want to know :popcorn:
 
Last edited:
the wife and I will be there, not for the full weekend, we'll get there friday afternoon and need to leave sunday AM to get home. not bringing a 45 but the LX470.
Can't wait to meet some of you guys.
Paul
 
Slick rock, Im happy to report. IS OPEN!!
I've wanted to check that trail out, but have never gotten the chance.

Slickrock is pretty scenery, only real obstacle is at the end of the trail.
Unfortunately, that obstacle tends to attract a certain crowd so there might be some carnage on that obstacle at the end.

Would Arnold be the last stop for gas/groceries?

Big Trees Market in Arnold is your last stop for a decent sized store. If you want something from a bigger chain, there's a SaveMart in Angels Camp (if you come in highway 4), another in Sonora (if you come up 59 from merced through la grange), or a Safeway in Jackson if coming in from Sacramento.
 
Big Trees Market in Arnold is your last stop for a decent sized store. If you want something from a bigger chain, there's a SaveMart in Angels Camp (if you come in highway 4), another in Sonora (if you come up 59 from merced through la grange), or a Safeway in Jackson if coming in from Sacramento.

That's what is was looking like. Thanks for the confirmation.
 
Does anyone know if you get cell coverage out at the camp site? I know we had to go back to the road and drive back to the top of the hill at Deer Valley if you needed to call home.
 
any type of facility close by? mainly toilets?
 
Sound like a nice spot. Please take pics to share.:popcorn:
 
Bummer Wendy and I are going to miss this years 45 Run, Lot going on with Family. We plan to get out to Texas and see Will and Jordan so all my vacation time is used up. Have a Great time
 
landcrusher909 said:
Bummer Wendy and I are going to miss this years 45 Run, Lot going on with Family. We plan to get out to Texas and see Will and Jordan so all my vacation time is used up. Have a Great time

That's a bummer Rob, we'll miss you guys!
 
landcrusher909 said:
Bummer Wendy and I are going to miss this years 45 Run, Lot going on with Family. We plan to get out to Texas and see Will and Jordan so all my vacation time is used up. Have a Great time

Aaaaaawww!!
That sucks!! I was looking forward to chattin w/ ya!!
I know how that goes though.
You'll be missed.

K
 
Confused on directions

So, I'm a little confused. The directions above say

Directions:

From SoCal, or West coast, it looks like you take CA-4 E then take
Boards Crossing Road/Forest Road 5N75 for 1.5mi
Keep left at Forest Road 5N02 for 3.6mi
After you go over the bridge make a left on to the dirt road
Then it's ~3 miles to the camp site

But the google maps shows the destination immediately across the river. Is there 3 more miles after that? Is that were the more difficult section of driving is?

PEter
 

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