parksplace4x4 - parksplace4x4

A warm winter day seemed like a perfect excuse to get the Jeep out. So when some friends asked us to join them to run a trail, we were happy to go along. Since it was going to be a small group, we also decided to take Hita along for her first 4-wheeling trip.  After meeting in town we headed up to the Rainbow Falls trailhead just outside of Woodland Park.

Hita was anxious to get out of the Jeep. So while Howard aired down the tires, Hita did some exploring.  Although I didn't get any pictures of it; it was kinda funny watching when she it a couple patches of ice and could hardly keep her footing.  The group started out on Forest Service Road 350 and 350B; both had patchy snow but it was mostly packed down so the driving was pretty easy.  Somewhere along 350B or 351 (they kinda blur with all the snow) we stopped for a bit for kids and dogs to play a bit. Here Hita found her way into chest deep snow.

When we were ready to get going after our play stop; we found that Angie's jeep was stuck and couldn't move forward or backward.  So she had to pull out a tow strap out so Howard could help her get a little momentum to move again.

Once we were going again, we made our way up to Rampart Range Road.  Then crossed over to Forest Service Rd 327. There had obviously been far fewer vehicles on this trail, and the snow was much deeper.  The crown in the middle of the road between the tire tracks was deep enough we could see an indentation where the differentials of the vehicles in front of us were dragging.  Not far down this road Ron managed to miss a corner and the front end of his Bronco ended up off the road into a ditch.

It didn't take too long to get him back on the road.  But as we moved forward the trail became increasingly difficult. Eventually we got to a point where Angie's Jeep was stuck and Howard got his Jeep stuck trying to give her a tow. So it was time to break out the winch.  Most of the trees in the area were pretty small, but Ron was able to get his Bronco turned around and after a bit we were able to get both stuck vehicles moving again.

At this point we knew the snow had gotten deep enough we had to turn around. After a bit of work, we got all the vehicles turned around on the narrow trail and headed back.

We worked our way up to Rampart Range Road and then back down F.S. Rd 351/350 back to the trailhead.  And after airing up the tires we headed back to town.  Driving down Ute Pass I couldn't help but notice that Hita was worn out and snoozing with her head on the center console in the Jeep.   It took a few attempts but I eventually captured this picture of a sleepy puppy. 

Wheeling in the deep snow is definitly an experience, and certainly better in groups so there is help when vehicles get stuck as they are sure to do in snow!  In the end though we had a wonderful day out enjoying a sunny day in the mountains of Colorado.

Whew, what a day ... and month!   Although many of the Christmas for Kids activities start earlier in the year, the month of November is the final push to get many of the tasks for the events finished.   Hundreds of emails, a few facebook postings and for some of the volunteers countless trips to businesses for raffle prizes.  In the end it's all to benefit children in El Paso County.

After some early fundraising activities, the first group of pictures we have were from the wrapping party.

After we get gifts wrapped it's off the delivery at DHS and our parade. 

This year our parade was from DHS to Southside Johnnys.  We didn't drive or decorate our jeep, so this pictures was my favorite jeep in the parade...   funny that it's still a red jeep.

We had a profitable raffle at SSJ and had a great time chatting with friends.

This final picture is of Gina and I who are crazy enough to volunteer countless hours to this event.

November may not seem like the typical wheeling weather, but one of the good things about Colorado is that we can multiple days of warm weather that allows some trails to melt enough to get out and have some fun.  So after a few warm days, there was a small group from the club the decided to run Metberry Gulch, just outside of Divide, Colorado. This first picture is of Howard near the jeep while the guys were airing down.

After an uneventful (but in a good way) trek down the trail we made it to the river where we had lunch.  In this area at the river you can really see the difference the fire made.   So first we have the picture looking down the river:

After lunch we headed back out the trail the same way we came down to the river. On the way out the Jeep in front of us had a bit of fun in the puddles.

 

Another great day out enjoying a beautiful fall day in Colorado!

 

 

 

Each year the Colorado Four Wheelers host an event they call the 'Chilly Chili'.  It is a trail run traditionally run in October when the weather in Colorado turns chilly.  Every family that attends the event brings enough chili for their family. When we get to the end of the trail, we all dump our chili into one large pot, heat the chili, then serve.  It sounds a little strange, but it really tastes pretty good. For this year's event we chose the trail China Wall which is our club's adopt-a-trail.  We had trail cleanup to complete and today we also needed to install some new signs. 

We started by installing one of the signs at the Forest Service Road 212 entrance.  Here is a picture of part of the install group just after they set the sign posts into concrete.

 

 

Once we were done with the first sign, we moved down the road a bit and installed the sign at the Forest Service Road 204 entrance.  Next is a picture of part of the group that completed the install here.

 

 

and a close up of the second sign

 

 

 

We had about 29 rigs on the trail today, so while part of the group went head, a few stayed for the sign installs.  Here's a picture at the Forest Service Road 204 trailhead of most of the vehicles that stayed behind.

 

 

After we finished the sign install and took a few pictures it was time to head down the trail.  Along the way we stopped and picked up trash.  Eventually we made our way down to one of the major obstacles on the trail, which is simply known as the wall.   We were at the back of the group and when we arrived we found out that there had been a tragic accident.   G&B had an unexpected accident when climbing the wall and the jeep tipped over onto it's side.  The back side window broke out and their little dog Tigger fell out of the jeep and got pinned under it.  They rushed Tigger back into town to the vet, but unfortunately he didn't make it.  Luckily G&B were not hurt, but we will certainly all miss Tigger.

 

While they had to cut their trip short, the rest of the group headed down to the river at the end of the trail.  There we started a campfire and set up the burner to heat the chili.  We had a wonderful lunch and afterwards we roasted some marshmallows for s'mores.  LL brought some new caramel marshmallows, that I just had to try.

 

 

In this picture Howard, the king of perfectly toasted marshmallows, toasts up on of the caramel marshamallows for me.  Yum.

 

We eventually called it an afternoon and headed home.  Another great day enjoying the mountains in Colorado.

 

Red Cone + Radical Hill + Middle Swan River + Georgia Pass:

This was a last minute trip where we were invited by G&B to join them and L&P to go run a few trails we had not done before.  Can't say no to a day out with friends that want to take us on new trails! 

We headed out early in the morning and all was well until we turned on to Hwy 9.  At that point the check gauges light came on.  Hmmm, we see what happens when we stop for as.  We stopped to top off the gas tanks in Fairplay and found the battery in our Jeep was deader than a doornail.   Howard cleaned up the connections hoping that would be the solution. George brought his Jeep closer and we got what was to be the first jump start of the day. We thought things were going to get better, but as  we continued on Hwy 285 to the turn off for the trail, the check gauges light came back on.   So when we stopped to air down the tires, Howard just left the Jeep running.  Soon enough we were on our way.

We reached the start of the Red Cone trail, and there were plenty of signs warning of the difficulty of the trail.  Experienced drivers only they said, and it wasn't long before there were some large rocks to crawl over.  But none of them were any problem for this group.  Not too far up the trail we decided to stop for lunch.  With the extra delays at the gas station it was late enough we all wanted to eat.  We found a beautiful spot along the creek to enjoy lunch.  As soon as Howard was done with his sandwich he went to work on the Jeep battery some more.  A bit more cleaning in hopes of getting it to work. 

oops, it seems I focused on the Jeep instead of Howard.  Regardless, you get the point.  This time Larry's Jeep was closest so it was his turn to give our Jeep a jump start.  Then we were on our way.  We didn't make it very far before we encountered a couple of rigs just sitting in the road.  I walked up ahead to see what was happening and found out that someone had a broken vehicle they were trying to get moved out of the trail.  We only waited a few minutes and then we were on our way again.

We made a quick stop just before Little Rascal Hill to enjoy the views.  Then as we started again I took this picture of L&P with Red Cone in the distance.  The summit is in site!

 

Yup,it's steep and narrow.  You can see the town of Montezuma at the far end of the valley below.  Amazingly pretty scenery, but the trail certainly has it's scary factor.  When you reach the base of the cone, you can turn left to return on Webster Pass or you can go right toward Montezuma. We chose the trail to the right so we could head up to another trail, Radical Hill.

 

We didn't find the trail to the top of Radical Hill very challenging, but it is rated difficult because of the danger factor with the narrow shelf road that can be a bit tippy in places.   Part way up the trail we found a momma and baby mountain goat chillin' on the hillside.  They kept their distance and we watched them from our vehicles.  A little further up we saw a couple more mountain goats, but the real treat was a the summit, where a whole bunch of them were hanging out.   Ok, I'm in heaven and could stay here for hours taking pictures. 

 

 

 

 

Unfortunately the road from here looked VERY narrow and were were unsure if it was a Jeep road or only an ATV trail.   This area is filled with a network of trails that would be great for ATVs.  Since we were unsure, we decided to leave that trail for another day after some more research and instead we headed back to Middle Swan River Trail.   That trail brought us to yet more amazing scenery.  Along one section of shelf road we encountered a Jeep headed up the hill.  There was an area with plenty of room to allow them to pass so we all moved over and waited.  I did notice that the passenger in the vehicle passing us looked terrified, not just a little scared, but so scared we wondered if she was ready to jump out and run home. Well, hopefully her day improved.   We finished our descent into the valley and then found our way to Georgia Pass so we could get back to Hwy 285. Four trails in one day...it was a great day to be in the mountains.

 

We needed another jump start after airing up the tires, and again after we stopped in Divide for dinner.  But we managed to get home safely and the Jeep will need a new battery... tomorrow!

Iron Chest:  2nd Trail of the Day

Earlier in the day we had run the Grizzly Lake Trail (see the previous post for details).  We returned to Hancock Road and drove just a bit further to the Iron Chest Trailhead.  This was our first time on this trail, and we almost missed the trailhead as it looked more like a parking area.  We had to look closely to see the start of the actual trail.  The tires were already aired down, so we didn’t need to stop.  

It didn’t take long before we were working our way up the infamous ‘rock garden’.  This section certainly lives up to it’s name.  It is not unlike the trail to the top of Mt Antero where you just keep getting banged about by the rocks; the rocks are just bigger on this trail.  We were grateful for larger tires which made maneuvering through the rocks a little easier.  About half way through the ‘rock garden’ we encountered an older Jeep Cherokee that had broken a drive shaft and managed to get stuck trying to work their way back down the trail.  They had been trying to free themselves from the rocks and were happy to see us. 

Howard pulled out the winch, attached it to the Cherokee and freed the guys from the rock hold they were in.  Once they were able to continue forward, we moved to the side of the trail to let them pass.  They seemed quite happy to be moving on down the trail.

I took these next couple pictures as they guys continued their way up the trail.  There were lots of beautiful trees surrounding the rocky trail.  In this first picture K&S are passing around and will be going over some good size rocks.   Keep in mind these guys have 35” tires on their Jeeps.

And then another picture that shows the rocky trail ahead of them. 

After escaping the ‘rock garden’, the trail travel s out of the trees and you are soon on a narrow shelf road.  Although the road is super narrow in this section it provides for some amazing views of the valley below and the mountains all around.   Hancock Road runs at the bottom of the valley in this next picture.

We couldn’t help but stop for a Kodak moment here and take some time to take in the beauty all around us.   When we continued on it was not long before we arrived at the Iron Chest Mine site.   We parked the Jeeps and walked around a bit.

It is amazing how well preserved these old building are.  Each time you see them you have to wonder how many more winters the old walls can take.  We walked along the road took a few pictures of the buildings and the views.  Although it is absolutely stunning up here in the summer, I can only imagine how harsh it would have been for the old miners in the winter. 

After a nice stretch of the legs and time to soak in the amazing views, it was time to head back down the mountain. It was a nice drive back to the ‘rock garden’, then super bumpy as we worked our way back through the boulders before getting back to Hancock Road.  Once off of Hancock Road we stopped to air the tires back up and get the Jeeps ready for the road.

We finished up another great day exploring the back roads of Colorado by having dinner with K&S at the Coyote Cantina in Johnson Village.

Grizzly Lake:  1st trail of the Day. 

It's amazing how wonderful and rejuvenating a day out in the fresh mountain air can be.  Travel ‘plans’ were not going as planned as we were supposed to be in Northern California right about now.  But drama at work caused our vacation to be cancelled, so we opted for a last minute trip four-wheeling with friends. 

We packed up the Jeep Saturday night then it was an early start this morning since it was a couple hours to the trailhead.  We stopped in Woodland Park for breakfast where we met up with our friends K&S. Then it was on to Johnson Village where we topped off with gas, and a final stop just before Hancock Road to air down the tires. We had two trails on the agenda today: Grizzly Lake and Iron Chest. We decided on Grizzly Lake first so we could have lunch at the lake.

The Grizzly Lake trail starts just a short way up Hancock Road.  The first section is a bit narrow, just enough for one vehicle and wouldn’t you know we ran into a rig coming down the trail.  We were able to move over to let them pass, but K&S had to back down nearly to the trailhead to find room for them to pass.  After waiting for them to catch up we were moving forward again.  And soon we were at the creek crossing with the first and only real obstacle on the trail, an ever-changing rock climb.  Although not intimidating to the experienced it sure to keep out the faint of heart.  We generally look at those as a good thing though; it keeps the traffic down on these pretty trails.

Our last trip up here Howard made it up the rock face on the left side. So this time he made his first attempt at the climb on the left side. But true to the ever-changing part, the left side was much more dug out than last year so he was unable to get enough grip to make it up the rocks.  This first picture is of the guys assessing the size of the rocks on the left side. Pictures never do justice to the size of these rocks.

The 2^nd attempt to climb the rocks was over to the right a bit.  He got a little air under that driver front tire as he climbed, but in no time at all he was up and over the rocks.

 

 

 

 

The last time we were here it was much earlier in the summer.  It was wonderful to see the lake surrounded by all the green grasses and shrubs.  There were a few groups camping in the area, but we still managed to find a spot to park the jeeps and have a picnic by the lake.  There were a few mosquitoes, which is pretty normal at these alpine lakes, but they were not too annoying. We chatted for a bit and enjoyed the beautiful surroundings before we headed back down the trail.

 

The return trip went smoothly and soon we were back at Hancock Road.

 

China Wall:

Today was not the normal Jeep outing, true it was a typical Colorado Four Wheelers adopt-a-trail trip, with some trash pickup and such it was different because Howard was not driving the Jeep.  Nope, today he was tasked with the picture taking while I (Cindie) drive.  Our friend and fellow club member LL was nervous about leading her first trip, so we decided to have some fun with this and see how man of the women we could get to drive.  While there are a few female club members that drive trails regularly, most are like me and are passengers.

The group met in Divide mid-morning.  We had a great showing of women drivers and it was off to the trail, China Wall.  We went past Tarryall to the far entrance on 204B.  There we stopped to allow everyone a few minutes to air down tires.  We were quite the site.   A total of 17 vehicles today, and we were 100% Jeeps, there were wranglers of all ages!  This first picture is just part of the group at our first stop.

After the short stop to prepare our vehicles we were off.  LL and her husband RL had the lead and we brought up the tail end of the group.  The first part of the trail was headed up into the trees and was pretty easy.   We got to the first real obstacle a rocky uphill section that is actually much easier than it used to be because the Forest Service had to make it accessible for fire access.  Even so there is an easier (left) side and a slightly harder (right) side.  Being a the back I didn't really get a chance to see who all took the harder side, and as we approached, Howard simply said... your choice.  The only person I saw go up the harder side was our friend LW who I know from experience you don't generally follow.  He manages to climb things that no one else does.  But knowing that Howard was not going to let me do anything insane, I decided to follow LW and go up the harder side.  It was a bit bumpy but not too bad, and everyone cheered as I got through that section. Several of the women commented when I reached the top that they were glad I had the guts to do it since they went around.  Unfortunately no pictures from this section since Howard stayed in the Jeep with me.

The next part of the trail includes some popular camping spots so the group was stopping frequently to pick up trash.   Eventually we made it to the next rocky section, and this time Howard was kind enough to get out and take a few pictures.

Ok, I have to admit that picture doesn't make it look like much. But when you first take the Jeep down these boulders it's a bit scary.  But I held on and made it through this section with ease.  We continued on some more to, yes another rocky section.

This one you had to aim the tires correctly so RL was kind enough to spot each of us as we drove down the hill.  Again I made it through nicely.  Not shown here, but one of the rocky sections had a sideways tippy spot.  And I hate tippy spots!   So Howard was kind enough to direct me around the tippy spot.  Whew!  and  Thank you!

Not far after that we approached the guys favorite spot a hill with no name.  This is one of those hills that some of the guys love to take on and others prefer the bypass.  Howard got out here to take pictures and left me to decide what I wanted to do.  Feeling pretty confident after all I'd been through so far, I decided to go for it.  So, first here is a picture of me approaching the wall, getting some last second tips from Howard.   Engage both front and rear lockers and one going just keep on the gas, don't let off.   Understand don't let off the gas. I think he said that about 10 times, so I know he meant it.

Heck no I'm not nervous (yeah, right) after all everyone from those 17 vehicles is standing around watching me and Howard loves his Jeep.  Ok, deep breath, I can do this.  So there's RL waiting for Howard to finish his last minute instructions so he can give me all the directions I need to go up the hill safely.  Again a typical disclaimer... these never look as difficult in pictures as they really are.  So, listening and watching RL I creep up to the base of the hill and then point the Jeep as directed and soon enough I'm crawling up the hill.   As the back tires reach the base of the hill I can feel the driver side front tires lifting and the adrenaline rush is there.  RL and Howard are both yelling (nicely) keep on the gas, so the good student that I am I do and soon enough I'm up to the top of the hill to a cheering crowd.

I pull over with the many Jeeps at the top and as I put turn the Jeep off I realize my hands are shaking uncontrollably.  Wow.  That was scary, but cool at the same time.  I get a bunch of 'great job' remarks from the guys (so nice to hear!).  But still need to stop shaking.  Howard comes by to check on me and tell me of the nice air I got under that front tire.  So, thinking, cool that will make a great scrapbook picture I asked if he got a picture.  And in a sad response he said no.  He was so focused on encouraging me and yelling (nicely) to keep my foot on the gas that he managed only two pictures.  One at the bottom of the hill and one at the top.  So, sad, but I had many witnesses to prove I did it.

After everyone who wanted to had time to climb the hill, we finished the last small section of the trail down to the river.  There we had a nice picnic lunch, chatting about how well all the women drivers did today and how the husbands were so supportive.  After lunch we completed the trail in reverse.  Howard stayed in the Jeep with me, so really no pictures. Overall a great day and quite a feeling of accomplishment.  But I do know how much Howard loves to drive his Jeep, so I will turn the keys back over to him.