Finally got the wherewithal to go up to the San Juans. Uneventful drive up from Durango, turned off on the Ophir Pass road, smooth sailing over quite an easy road. Popped up over the top onto the "difficult" part (not very difficult at all) and noticed some ominous clanking from the front, pulled over to find the left front spring perch had busted off the frame and the shackle has flipped all the to the back. Crap.
Pulled off at the switchback. Naturally the sheepherder jack is leaning against the garage. Got a bottle jack between the spring and the frame but not enough travel to get the shackle flipped forward. A couple jeeps (seemed like hundreds) drove by without highlifts. Finally a guy had one, got it jacked up, the shackle flipped a ratchet strap to the right frame rail to pull it back in place, one on the back of the shackle to keep it from sliding forward, two to hold it tight against the frame rail and one around the back of he shackle to keep it from sliding back.
Drove down to ATV Rentals Silverton where the guy couldn't weld it back on but knew this guy just down the road. John, the biker welder guy took a look at the shackle, crawls out from under and says, "The right side's busted too." Double crap. He offers to weld 'em both for $100, a bargain I'm thinking given the circumstances, so I hop in my cousin's cruiser and we head down to Handlebars for lunch. Hit the ATM, back to John, pay him, and all's well that ends well. Oddly, it's not leaning like it did before.
Special thanks to the Jeep guy with the jack who, when I told him to be sure to get on the Jeep forums and brag about saving the LC with my blessing said, "Nah, I won't do that, we're all one big happy, right?"
