Builds Project Pikachu: 1977 FJ40

[cbmontgo]

So there's a place deep into Southeastern Utah that I've been wanting to explore for a while. Then a buddy of mine called and said that his brother in Des Moines wanted to see Utah for the first time. So, I had an excuse to put a trip together into the far reaches of Dark Canyon.

We put a plan together and this motley crew of adventure-seekers was assembled.

 

[cbmontgo]

Coming from several different directions, we all decided to meet in Grand Junction on Friday. We hit the town and had some margaritas before heading back a dive motel. Anyway, long story short, we were westbound on I-70 the next morning and headed for Utah.

Pikachu was purring down the interstate, averaging 15.2 MPG.

Stopped for a break as we got closer to Moab, which was our lunch destination spot.

 

[Flatlanderfj40]

Thought about Pikachu the other day after I received a vector of my 40 in mustard from the designer for my company work tee’s. Perhaps, it’s the old school stripe/theme? Anyway, sick 40

 

[cbmontgo]

My college buddy and one of my oldest pals, Wes (@Swannie) was my copilot on this trip. He's been a on every single 4x4 trip with me since college and is one of the OGs of this sort of adventure. Wes has several 40s as well, but usually flies up from Louisiana for these trips and drives with me. The other guys from down south weren't able to make this one.

Anyway, quick lunch in Moab and head south on UT 191, cracking 74,000 miles as we turned west of UT 211. We then stopped at the Needles Outpost, topped off on $ 10/gallon gas, and took a vote one last time on whether we wanted to attempt go deep into an area which was rumored to be impassable right now due to the record snow/mud they've had.

The majority vote was to head towards the tough stuff, so off we went. The group consisted of Pikachu, an FJ Cruiser, a 1-ton Suburban, a '71 Bronco, and a Jeep Rubicon. All of these guys were experienced outdoorsmen/4x4 folks, so it was a fantastic group despite the mutt mix of vehicles.

 

[cbmontgo]

The road began as well-graded and smooth and gradually got narrower and higher in elevation.

Before long, there were Aspens and snow around us, approaching around 8,600' in elevation.

 

[cbmontgo]

Phenomenal views along the way as I verified the topo and we trekked through areas of mud and snow on the north and shaded slopes. Seemed pretty good so far.

 

[cbmontgo]

Then we came upon this spot. Pikachu sank the front tires in a snowbank and the rear started sliding towards a deep ravine. We came to within 4-6 inches of sliding off, but were able to dig the front tires out and slowly creep forward, thanks to the Aussie locker grabbing the high side.

We winched a couple of the other vehicles through, including the 1-ton Chevy.

You know it's fun when there aren't any/many pics. Legit pucker factor makes great campfire fodder.

 

[EWheeler]

Thought about Pikachu the other day after I received a vector of my 40 in mustard from the designer for my company work tee’s. Perhaps, it’s the old school stripe/theme? Anyway, sick 40

View attachment 3323759

I'll buy a shirt

 

[wngrog]

Moar

 

[fjdiesel]

Moar

I think I wore my mouse out clicking the "like" button so many times on this...

 

[fjdiesel]

I'll buy a shirt

Make that another sold. Or 3. Toddler sizes too? PM me. In honor of Pikachu ofcourse.

 

[cbmontgo]

The winchfest cost us some valuable time, as the sun was getting close to setting on the final 10-mile stretch. From that point forward, the only vehicles back there were two ranchers on ATVs that had made a cowboy camp near the road. They waved and stared as we pressed on.

Finally we made it to the turn towards the camp site just after sunset. What I thought was a 2-mile dirt road was a rutted out and rocky 4WD trail, still 2 miles long. I don't think anyone had driven this road in a season or three. We nearly rolled Pikachu on its side, only being caught by a wall of dirt on the side of a wash. The other rigs followed suit, although they were able to learn from my mistakes as tailgunners.

We were to keep going and find this elusive camp site.

The hill eventually got so steep that my camp table flew off the roof rack and bounced off the hood. Had to hike back up in my flip flops and recover it.

A little further down...

We finally got into camp and settled in. Tents went up, the fire started, and steaks hit the grill. We were very relieved to have made it, but were also a little bit anxious about getting back out of there in a couple of days.

 

[cbmontgo]

Every time I do a group run to Utah, I like to see new areas that are far off the beaten path. I spend hours on snowy days looking at Google Earth and finding spots which have something to offer. On the few reports I've read, this particular valley is known for a large concentration of Anasazi ruins, and hiking to them would surely be an interesting experience. We woke up to a campfire breakfast of eggs, potatoes, and sausage and then went in search of a way down into the valley.

The trail began somewhere around here and we realized that it was gonna be a steep hike. Everything about accessing this place was hard-earned.

We finally made it to the valley floor and it flattened out, only to find ourselves in a super thick creek crossing with bear scat everywhere, and I mean everywhere. The tunnels through this stuff were made by bears, and we had to stoop to get through. One of the guys lost his cell phone during this process but we didn't cross any mama bears, luckily.

 

[cbmontgo]

We were not disappointed when it came to the concentration of history down here. I won't publish too much about this because of random Google searchers, but it was well worth the tough day of hiking.

 

[cbmontgo]

We eventually made the slow trek back to camp. Our camp is towards the top of the far right canyon in this pic.

Made it back to camp that evening and caught a great Utah sunset.

Followed by campfire burgers and a fantastic clear night.

 

[cbmontgo]

The next morning, we decided to get an early start to make sure all of the rigs could make it back out safely. The exit out of camp went well.

We then made a stop at one of the many views of Dark Canyon, which is really amazing. Most of this place has to be explored on foot from what I can tell. There must be places in here where no human has ever set foot.

We also explored an old spring, which had a cool old structure built nearby. Someone had clearly lived in here, with wood stove piping and shelves built into the wall.

 

[EWheeler]

The next morning, we decided to get an early start to make sure all of the rigs could make it back out safely. The exit out of camp went well.

View attachment 3323893

We then made a stop at one of the many views of Dark Canyon, which is really amazing. Most of this place has to be explored on foot from what I can tell. There must be places in here where no human has ever set foot.

View attachment 3323894

We also explored an old spring, which had a cool old structure built nearby. Someone had clearly lived in here, with wood stove piping and shelves built into the wall.

View attachment 3323895

Damn, this is an epic trip. Extremely jealous!

 

[cbmontgo]

The drive back towards Beef Basin was muddy, but mostly navigable. Not this spot though.

I have a potential future camp mapped out that we wanted to check out, so off we went to get there in time for lunch. The view never disappoints.

 

[Flatlanderfj40]

How tall are your roof rack risers? Any interference issues?

 

[cbmontgo]

How tall are your roof rack risers? Any interference issues?

They are standard 1A risers. Barely clear the fiberglass top with the crossbars, but it works.