2nd trip to johnson valley (1 Viewer)

[VCCruzr]

Well I spent this past weekend camping with some friends at Soggy Dry Lake which is smack dab in the middle of Cougar Buttes and "The Hammers". We arrived about noon on Friday, set up camp, then headed to Means Dry Lake in search of the hammer trails. There was quite the huge camp of custom buggies one of which was a 40. After passing around the camp we arrived upon a trail with a toyota pick-up and some 4runners crawlin' up it, "Chocolate Thunder" it was. Of course, after watching them, we had to give it a shot. Here are a few pix:

 

[VCCruzr]

More Chocolate Thunder Pics

After walking the trail, we went for it:

 

[VCCruzr]

More pics:

Keep on truckin' !

 

[VCCruzr]

And more....

Onward to the top and finish with a nice view of the valley. Also, here are a few links to get an idea of the trail. Alot of trails have a "gate keeper" and Chocolate Thunder doesn't disappoint:

YouTube - Chocolate Thunder, Hammers 2010

The rest of the trail:

YouTube - KOH, King of the Hammers 2011, Tony Pellegrino on Chocolate Thunder

 

[VCCruzr]

Saturday- Cougar Buttes Bound

Having been there before, I wanted to do some new stuff so while doing Bullfrog we found a trail marked "Extra Credit". After running this trail in both directions I believe running it in reverse brought my "C" grade up to an "A+".

 

[VCCruzr]

More....

More Extra Credit

 

[VCCruzr]

Cake Walk

After running Bullfrog we ran Cake Walk. Here was a fun section. I wish I had more pics.....maybe my friends will send some of theirs but here's what I have:

 

[SOCALFJ]

Nice work! I've wheeled Sledge and Wreckingball and that was enough for me back in 2003.

I love the shot of the Trasharoo, may i post that on our Facebook page?

 

[VCCruzr]

I love the shot of the Trasharoo, may i post that on our Facebook page?

Dave,
Of course! It hauled firewood into camp and the trash out. First chance I've had to use it since I bought it at TDS. Love it!

Derrick

 

[80BajaBound]

Oh man! I wish I didn't know what I missed...

 

[cruiserruf]

That is freakin awesome, derrick. Anymore pictures of chocolate thunder?

 

[green73]

That "Extra Credit" line looks fun. I am gonna have to look for that one while out there this coming Sunday. My local club is sponsoring Bullfrog for the upcoming High Desert Roundup. Where on Bullfrog should I look for that obstacle? On second read it looks like "Extra Credit" is a separate trail.

 

[VCCruzr]

That is freakin awesome, derrick. Anymore pictures of chocolate thunder?

I will see if my friends have any. I just took a few shots after I cleared each section.

That "Extra Credit" line looks fun. I am gonna have to look for that one while out there this coming Sunday. My local club is sponsoring Bullfrog for the upcoming High Desert Roundup. Where on Bullfrog should I look for that obstacle? On second read it looks like "Extra Credit" is a separate trail.

This "extra credit" section was a spur and re-entered the trail about 150 yards later. It was marked with a couple of wood stakes painted red and labeled "extra credit". I will look for some maps and try to figure out the location. It as early on in the trail.

 

[fjc8871]

Some of the pics sure made me pucker! Chonis check time! Looks like a great time. One of these days I will get out there. Thanks for sharing.

 

[VCCruzr]

Carnage Pictures from Bullfrog & Chocolate Thunder

I figured I post some pictures of the new carnage from this trip just so people know what to expect if you "push it". The sliders did their job as well as the bumpers and skid plates. I sleeved my LCA's just for this trip and I'm sure I would have bent them had I not done that. All 4 rims received major rock rash and I also acquired a decent amount new scrapes from all the rock rubbing I did and got my first dent. Here are a few pics:

 

[VCCruzr]

More pics:

Carnage continues. The front: bumper scrapes. thimble mashed, and hawse fairlead scaped. Oh, and thank God for BIO's AC Dryer protection:

 

[VCCruzr]

More carnage:

Even though 4x4Labs' bumper has a great departure angle, it still drags on everything because of the 80s long A$$! In the first pic I show my first dent. I thought I was going to lose my rear DS light cluster but the LX cladding does serve a purpose as "extra padding".

 

[VCCruzr]

Carnage continues...

These pics show some of the underside damage: I bent my rear sway bar so bad I removed it. The new sleeved LCA's held up. And my BIO sliders and their 1/2" cat protection did their job. Check out the cat guard and how much it bent.

The moral of the story, Armor up and you'll be fine. Except for a little paint loss .

 

[Dan2722]

Dang that's a lot of rock rash on one trip! Good thing you have the extra cladding.

I see a fully lined rig in your future to match the Al's on your roof.

 

[VCCruzr]

I see a fully lined rig in your future to match the Al's on your roof.

As soon as the cladding gets ripped off that is the plan. I thought for sure this trip would do it. I plan on lining it on the body line that runs just above the door handles like Reid did on his black 80.