I suppose it may not be as wild (or damaging) as the trip that Romer made to Flat Nasty last year, but I think this group is looking for a bit more 'tame' trip. I am certainly not ready for any carnage 
.
Departure
We are leaving Saturday, November 3.
We have not nailed down specifics, and probably will not until our meeting on November 1 at Syberg's. The drive is about 2.5 hours from St. Louis. I plan to leave somewhat early (for me) in order to have a full day of fun given that it is starting to get dark early. That said, I propose we meet no later than 7am somewhere along Hwy 44 in the Fenton area. Last trip, we met off Bowles Ave at the gas station/Hardee's (good stop for coffee and breakfast).
Communications
I don't think anyone other than me is using Ham frequencies of any kind (so I won't bother trying to get my Yaesu 8900R installed and tuned before this trip - it just arrived). However, most of us should be using a CB at this point, so I suggest channel 15 for trail communications. I'll monitor it on the way down for anyone running late and I'll have it on at Flat Nasty to keep in touch if we get separated or anyone joins us late (I didn't have a working CB last trip and couldn't find half the group once I got separated). If anyone is looking to make a purchase before the trip, there are many options that can be had and installed for under $100.
Trail Difficulty
From what I know, much of the group wants to keep it simple (no carnage). I figured we could start with the easy (but long) 'hill and dale' trail. This wraps around about half of the park and can easily take 2.5 hours to complete given our anticipated 'crawl' speed. However, it crosses two of the park roads at about the half-way point, so if it is taking too long, we can always cut across the park roads and just do half the trail.
After a break for lunch, I figured trail #20 would be a good follow-up to the 'hill & dale" warm-up of the morning. This starts with a pretty steep and scary hill, but a stock 80 without F/R lockers can crawl up it provided they have decent tire tread. There are some tight turns given our long rigs, but I survived without damage on the last two runs - just take your time on the tight turns. There is also a steep downhill (make sure you are in low and bleed your brakes well before the trip). Finally, there is one steep uphill with large-ish loose rocks (not a clearance issue, just a traction issue). I locked my F/R on the first trip, but there were several open trucks in the group that did it just fine (they are better drivers than me I suppose).
Services
There is a gas station in town about 10 miles from the park. I got gas here on the way in and on the way out. I also aired up here on the way out (I don't have on-board air . . . yet). I dropped my 285/75/16 BFG all-terrains to 19 lbs in the park for better traction and a softer ride on the rough roads. I just drove slow and made easy turns back to town on the way out.
There is also no food at the park - so plan to either head to town for lunch/snacks or bring a cooler. I packed a cooler with plenty of drinks and snacks, along with simple sandwiches for lunch. I think you can cook over a fire at the park, but I"m not sure - and I didn't want to spend the time anyway. I also didn't want to waste time driving to town and back for fast-food (though I did stop on the way home).
There is also no cell phone service in the park or anywhere nearby once you leave town. There were people in the past groups with Verizon, Cingular/ATT, T-Mobile & Sprint/Nextel and nobody had service. Again, you'll really need the CB for communications and maybe I'll get that Ham going before the trip after all (it might be nice to have a way to talk with people in St. Louis from the park).
I'll have all the basic recovery gear, including a winch, two snatch blocks, multiple D-rings, chains, tow straps, etc. . . . but I recommend you bring whatever you have. I've never used any of this stuff, and I don't expect anyone will need it on the easy trails we'll be covering. If you plan to split off and hit the tougher trails, bring your gear and have the CB handy in case you need one of us to help out. If you're stuck on the trail, someone will help b/c they won't be able to get by until you are cleared. Given that it is a Saturday, there will likely be plenty of other people in the park (it will be less croweded on the easy trails though).
Expenses
Gas: I didn't keep track, but I probably spent $50-$75 total. I'm sure you all know your rigs and they are not gas-friendly.
Park Entrance: $15 for drivers & $5 for passengers. PRICES CORRECTED ON EDIT - THANKS MoJ.
That is all I know of other than your food and whatever you decide to buy in advance of the trip (CB, sliders, bumpers, winch, recovery gear, etc . . .).
Who is Attending
Well, I'm in and I have a friend who is planning on joining us in his heavily modified Jeep (he'll be bored on the trails mentioned, but that's his problem). Others have indicated an interest, but I suggest they post here to commit. Here is who I have so far:
Miescha - 80 series (me ;p)
Friend of Miescha - Dan & modded Jeep
StlCruiser - 80 series
Toyminator - 4-runner or 80 or ????
MoJ - 80 series
wfd175 - 80 series
.Departure
We are leaving Saturday, November 3.
We have not nailed down specifics, and probably will not until our meeting on November 1 at Syberg's. The drive is about 2.5 hours from St. Louis. I plan to leave somewhat early (for me) in order to have a full day of fun given that it is starting to get dark early. That said, I propose we meet no later than 7am somewhere along Hwy 44 in the Fenton area. Last trip, we met off Bowles Ave at the gas station/Hardee's (good stop for coffee and breakfast).
Communications
I don't think anyone other than me is using Ham frequencies of any kind (so I won't bother trying to get my Yaesu 8900R installed and tuned before this trip - it just arrived). However, most of us should be using a CB at this point, so I suggest channel 15 for trail communications. I'll monitor it on the way down for anyone running late and I'll have it on at Flat Nasty to keep in touch if we get separated or anyone joins us late (I didn't have a working CB last trip and couldn't find half the group once I got separated). If anyone is looking to make a purchase before the trip, there are many options that can be had and installed for under $100.
Trail Difficulty
From what I know, much of the group wants to keep it simple (no carnage). I figured we could start with the easy (but long) 'hill and dale' trail. This wraps around about half of the park and can easily take 2.5 hours to complete given our anticipated 'crawl' speed. However, it crosses two of the park roads at about the half-way point, so if it is taking too long, we can always cut across the park roads and just do half the trail.
After a break for lunch, I figured trail #20 would be a good follow-up to the 'hill & dale" warm-up of the morning. This starts with a pretty steep and scary hill, but a stock 80 without F/R lockers can crawl up it provided they have decent tire tread. There are some tight turns given our long rigs, but I survived without damage on the last two runs - just take your time on the tight turns. There is also a steep downhill (make sure you are in low and bleed your brakes well before the trip
). Finally, there is one steep uphill with large-ish loose rocks (not a clearance issue, just a traction issue). I locked my F/R on the first trip, but there were several open trucks in the group that did it just fine (they are better drivers than me I suppose).Services
There is a gas station in town about 10 miles from the park. I got gas here on the way in and on the way out. I also aired up here on the way out (I don't have on-board air . . . yet). I dropped my 285/75/16 BFG all-terrains to 19 lbs in the park for better traction and a softer ride on the rough roads. I just drove slow and made easy turns back to town on the way out.
There is also no food at the park - so plan to either head to town for lunch/snacks or bring a cooler. I packed a cooler with plenty of drinks and snacks, along with simple sandwiches for lunch. I think you can cook over a fire at the park, but I"m not sure - and I didn't want to spend the time anyway. I also didn't want to waste time driving to town and back for fast-food (though I did stop on the way home
).There is also no cell phone service in the park or anywhere nearby once you leave town. There were people in the past groups with Verizon, Cingular/ATT, T-Mobile & Sprint/Nextel and nobody had service. Again, you'll really need the CB for communications and maybe I'll get that Ham going before the trip after all (it might be nice to have a way to talk with people in St. Louis from the park).
I'll have all the basic recovery gear, including a winch, two snatch blocks, multiple D-rings, chains, tow straps, etc. . . . but I recommend you bring whatever you have. I've never used any of this stuff, and I don't expect anyone will need it on the easy trails we'll be covering. If you plan to split off and hit the tougher trails, bring your gear and have the CB handy in case you need one of us to help out. If you're stuck on the trail, someone will help b/c they won't be able to get by until you are cleared. Given that it is a Saturday, there will likely be plenty of other people in the park (it will be less croweded on the easy trails though).
Expenses
Gas: I didn't keep track, but I probably spent $50-$75 total. I'm sure you all know your rigs and they are not gas-friendly.
Park Entrance: $15 for drivers & $5 for passengers. PRICES CORRECTED ON EDIT - THANKS MoJ.
That is all I know of other than your food and whatever you decide to buy in advance of the trip (CB, sliders, bumpers, winch, recovery gear, etc . . .).
Who is Attending
Well, I'm in and I have a friend who is planning on joining us in his heavily modified Jeep (he'll be bored on the trails mentioned, but that's his problem). Others have indicated an interest, but I suggest they post here to commit. Here is who I have so far:
Miescha - 80 series (me ;p)
Friend of Miescha - Dan & modded Jeep
StlCruiser - 80 series
Toyminator - 4-runner or 80 or ????
MoJ - 80 series
wfd175 - 80 series
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