Lessons Learned From A Short Off Road Drive

[Dan Higgins]

My wife and I were in the Estes Park/RMNP area of Colorado this weekend. I was hoping to find a very mild drive we did a couple of years ago but I couldn't find it in any of the off-road trail books I have. So I guessed that it might be one called Pierson Park Rd which was in an older off-road book I have. Not a good idea. Lessons learned (this if for novice off roaders, not the advanced and somewhat crazy folks to "explored" Moab this past August!).
- Note. I was alone with my wife. No one to help us out if something went awry.
- The resources I had on the trail were from nearly 10 years ago. I failed to get up to date info
- Pierson Park was not the very easy trail we had driven a couple of years ago. I recognized that almost immediately and should have turned around then and there.
- The trail was "moderate" but doable. The description in the book described a steep, winding downhill section that would be OK if you were going downhill. Much more difficult if going uphill. I almost turned around before reaching that point but decided to press forward. As it was, we descended that downhill section with no issues - 4L, S1 piece of cake. I did tell my wife that I was glad I didn't have to climb up that section!
- A mile or so later and only a couple miles to the end we ran into a problem. A landslide had washed out the road in 2013. Though likely passable by mountain bike or ATV (and possibly by an LC) we did not know what lay ahead. So - we had to turn back. Lesson: Never assume that there will not be a "surprise" on the trail - even near the end.
- Turning back meant I needed to go up that steep, curving, rocky 1/4 mile portion I had come down. Ouch.
- Crawl mode to the rescue. Man I love this truck! All I had to do was find and steer the line. Crawl control took care of the rest. Of course the ~33" tires and the very modest lift helped. And this wasn't my first off road drive. But, still, being able to let Crawl control do its thing while I studied and steered the line was awesome.

So in summary (just imagine me beating these into my foolish head).
- Don't drive a trail without doing your research
- Drive with a buddy
- If in doubt, turn around
- When you have to get through, thank God you have a Land Cruiser!



And, hey, it was a beautiful day! (And as it was, there was no body damage. Just a few more pinstripes.)

 

[mcgaskins]

Pics or it didn't happen

 

[Dan Higgins]

Ha! The only pics I have were from a pleasant part of the trail with lots of aspen leaves. If I had taken pics or a video of the climb up that hill, my wife would have accused me of doing it all on purpose just so I could post something on the forum! She was being great about it all but that would have pushed her patience a bit much. “Hey, Love. How about getting out of the truck and climbing up this rocky hill and getting a video of me driving up.”

The other lesson - dont’ go down something you’re not sure you can get back up. I was telling my wife on the way down how much easier it can be to go down something than to go up and how glad I was that I was going that direction on the trail. I should have known right then that those words would come back to bite me.

BTW, this was not a climb that any of the experience, damage-be-damned, skinny-pedal-trained, hard core folks on the forum with their built trucks would have even hesitated with. But for me, it was a good lesson and gave me more appreciation for things like CRAWL.

 

[Sandroad]

Whew! I know the feeling. Years ago in my 80 I went down a steep sand dune thinking I was on a loop trail and also thinking I was glad I didn't have to go up that spot. It wasn't a loop road and it took every bit of that 80 and careful skinny pedal work to get back up. My wife cheered at the top and we've had at least one Land Cruiser ever since.

 

[JohnJB]

Storm Mountain or Bunce School Rd are likely to be more stock-friendly trails in that area.

Caribou Creek would also be an option, down towards Nederland.

My biggest takeaway from my short stint in CO, trails are only getting more difficult every year due to the amount of traffic the trails now see and irresponsible, trail-destructive use.

 

[linuxgod]

Any time you take a trail that you've never driven you're definitely taking a risk, especially when traveling alone. Even those you have driven can change. Always carry some recovery gear and make sure you have enough fuel to double back. The guys who had to winch up the waterfall in Moab at night can attest to how a shifted boulder can completely change the skill and tools required.

When we were in Canyonlands I tried to depart via Long Canyon. As we descended into the canyon near the start of the trail the road abruptly dropped in front of us littered with 2'+ boulders. I had to back up the trail until I got to a pull-out and was able to turn around. Apparently recent rains had washed out the trail. I'm glad we weren't coming into Canyonlands via that route or else I might have stupidly tried to climb them since it would have been a long drive back to Moab on the same trail. (Wish I had taken some pics of the rocks - I've subsequently seen videos of that narrow section of the trail and it normally looks driveable even in a stock truck.

 

[Battleship]

My wife and I were in the Estes Park/RMNP area of Colorado this weekend...)

Can you provide details on your very modest lift?

 

[Romer]

I never wheel alone. Always someone wanting to go out and wheel. Everyone needs a strap now and then

 

[Back 40]

I have done the same thing. When my wife and I had just moved to Las Vegas when I found an "high clearance" trail. We followed it and had almost the exact thing take place. We came to a slight washed out area with about a 25-30" drop. We were in a older stock Jeep Rubicon. I mentioned that we could drop off easily but getting back up it would be a different concern. We got out and walked about 200 yards up the trail and everything looked fine. We dropped of the ledge with no problem. We traveled about 600 yards and found the whole trail had been washed away. That is when everything starts to sink in. We are in the middle of the desert, 115 degrees, 2 small bottles of water and no one knew where we were. To top it off no cell service. Needless to say not one of my brighter moments.

I locked the axles and starting working though the rock pile which was pretty bad. I had asked my wife to help spot in a few areas which didnt go very well. She just kept crying and reminding me that we were going to die out there.

Long story short, we made it through to Pahrump and only suffered a couple small dings to the Jeep, and a story my wife will never let me live down.

Glad you had the same luck and made it out in one piece with no damage to the LC.

 

[mcgaskins]

I have done the same thing. When my wife and I had just moved to Las Vegas when I found an "high clearance" trail. We followed it and had almost the exact thing take place. We came to a slight washed out area with about a 25-30" drop. We were in a older stock Jeep Rubicon. I mentioned that we could drop off easily but getting back up it would be a different concern. We got out and walked about 200 yards up the trail and everything looked fine. We dropped of the ledge with no problem. We traveled about 600 yards and found the whole trail had been washed away. That is when everything starts to sink in. We are in the middle of the desert, 115 degrees, 2 small bottles of water and no one knew where we were. To top it off no cell service. Needless to say not one of my brighter moments.

I locked the axles and starting working though the rock pile which was pretty bad. I had asked my wife to help spot in a few areas which didnt go very well. She just kept crying and reminding me that we were going to die out there.

Long story short, we made it through to Pahrump and only suffered a couple small dings to the Jeep, and a story my wife will never let me live down.

Glad you had the same luck and made it out in one piece with no damage to the LC.

Back in the day when I lived in Vegas I took my X5 down a trail that sounds very similar through the back of Red Rock Canyon. I only saw one other guy on the trail in a built TJ on 35s, and he looked at me like I was absolutely crazy to be back there in a BMW SUV. Come to think of it, I was

EDIT - @Back 40 found a couple pics. Does this look like the trail you were on?

 

[Back 40]

mcgaskins,
That looks like the same trail. It starts on the back side of the 14 mile Red Rock loop and comes out by Pahrump. The trail starts pretty easy. There are normally a couple rough spots with cut outs but nothing crazy. When the flash floods came through you never knew what you would find.

 

[Dan Higgins]

Back in the day when I lived in Vegas I took my X5 down a trail that sounds very similar through the back of Red Rock Canyon. I only saw one other guy on the trail in a built TJ on 35s, and he looked at me like I was absolutely crazy to be back there in a BMW SUV. Come to think of it, I was

EDIT - @Back 40 found a couple pics. Does this look like the trail you were on?

@mcgaskins, BMW? And that looks like its night time. And there is a big rock in front of your right front tire. Hmmm.

 

[Dan Higgins]

@JohnJB, thanks for the tips! I thought about Bunce School but also through there was a chance that Pierson Park was a trail I had driven before. Wrong! And I agree with you about the trails in Colorado. Lots of ATV and built Jeeps hitting them hard and tearing them up. I will say that some of the Jeep clubs are pretty good about doing maintenance on some of them. But not so much the ATV riders. Then add in the rocky soil and the occasional downpours and washouts.

@linuxgod, I had recovery gear (strap, Bubba rope, shovel, Maxtrax, and so on. But no winch. So self recovery would not have been an option which just adds more to the importance of having a buddy when going out on anything more than an easy, fire road. Or turning around at the first sign of a challenging section. And you are very right about how things can change at the last minute. My wife commented that the washout of the trail could have happened last week. So even the most recent reviews may not have that bit of info in there. In this case, they would have as the land slide happened in 2013.

@BuckeyeFan, I had Slee put on 2721 (progressive) springs in the rear and 2700s (very light but stiffer than stock) in the front along with Nitrocharger Sport shocks. Without our trailer the edge of the front fender sits 21” above the center of the hubcap. The rear is at 22”. With the trailer the rear sits about an inch lower. The underneath of my Slee sliders in the middle sits about 16” above ground. I’ll try to get some pics posted.

@Romer, I should call you to go out some time but I am intimidated by the experience and the builds that you all have.

 

[Romer]

@Romer, I should call you to go out some time but I am intimidated by the experience and the builds that you all have.

Dan all our club runs whether official or just a few guys showing up are all mixed experience. We work hard not to intimidate anyone and provide pointers when we see it. 14 years ago I had never done any real wheeling and joined the club. I learned a lot from my fellow club members. The way we see it, it is just paying it forward

Leading a trail at Cruise Moab, we had a guy who just bought a built truck, but had never wheeled. We helped him through it. Spotted hwne he needed, gave a few tips ahead of a spot when we thought he was nervous and put him behind a similar vehicle so he can see the lines they took.

In other words, your fear of being intimidated . . . . . . get over it

 

[Romer]

Dan, this is a fairly easy trail and very scenic spot at the spot with a lake. Not sure I can make it but a good one for even a stock vehicle

Bill Moore Lake Sat Sept 23rd - Rising Sun Member Forums

 

[mcgaskins]

@mcgaskins, BMW? And that looks like its night time. And there is a big rock in front of your right front tire. Hmmm.

I've wheeled virtually everything I've owned including an Audi TT that I have a pic somewhere of me powersliding it sideways on a dirt road going about 50mph. Dumb maybe, but I've learned a lot over the years which has made me less dumb.

Dan all our club runs whether official or just a few guys showing up are all mixed experience. We work hard not to intimidate anyone and provide pointers when we see it. 14 years ago I had never done any real wheeling and joined the club. I learned a lot from my fellow club members. The way we see it, it is just paying it forward

Leading a trail at Cruise Moab, we had a guy who just bought a built truck, but had never wheeled. We helped him through it. Spotted hwne he needed, gave a few tips ahead of a spot when we thought he was nervous and put him behind a similar vehicle so he can see the lines they took.

In other words, your fear of being intimidated . . . . . . get over it

Ken is 100% correct. Rising Sun is one of the nicest and most welcoming clubs you will find regardless of the hobby. The only thing you might have to deal with is guys driving older Toyotas getting drool all over your nice shiny ride...oh and they might tease you for having a heated steering wheel

 

[Dan Higgins]

Thanks, @Romer and @mcgaskins! That is a great idea. I did pay to join and attended a couple meetings. But I haven’t been home for the others. Although Bill Moore Lake may be a good future choice, I won’t be home this weekend. (In Gunnison and Ouray the next two weeks chasing the Aspen leaves with my bride of 38 years.) But I will start looking for opportunities to join the Rising Sun crew. And I will get over the intimidation - but I’m not giving up my heated steering wheel!

 

[Angelo1]

I think having a high quality drone to check out what's ahead is an absolute valuable tool for off-roading. I personally would always keep one in my vehicle for many other safety reasons.

 

[mcgaskins]

I think having a high quality drone to check out what's ahead is an absolute valuable tool for off-roading. I personally would always keep one in my vehicle for many other safety reasons.

I should have used that excuse when I bought my Mavic The good news is my wife thinks the drone is super cool and is always looking forward to reviewing the pics and videos when I get home!

 

[4gotalot]

Rule #1
I will never go off roading alone.
I will never go off roading alone.
I will never go off roading alone.

Just last week, I was 3 miles and 1:45 min in on a 5 mile dead end trail on a Tuesday, no one else out there. Nothing extreme, just another "pick a line" another 25 yards ahead just me and the dogs hoping I could make it to the next turn around but just kept going. I made the sensible decision to turn around because of the amount of time it would take to get back to a USFS road. It was an incredible day. I parked the cruiser at 10,440 ft and enjoyed the view at the top of this part of the world and was back at home by 9:00 pm only because I remembered rule #2.

Rule #2
If in doubt, refer back to Rule #1.