- Location
- Grand Junction, CO
Made the trip to Area BFE over the weekend, it's been YEARS since I've wheeled it and I really wanted to hit those trails again, now what I have something capable enough. My favorite trail is Helldorado, have some great memories from my early wheelin days on each and every challenge.
I met up with Jeff Stevens @drtsqrl in his Suzuki-based buggy and Dale in a Jimmys chassis buggy. I told Jeff that I wanted to hit Helldorado and anything after that was just a bonus. He mentioned that the first obstacle had been severely washed out last time he saw it and wasn't sure how the rest of the trail looked.
Sure enough, there was a GIANT hole in the center of the first obstacle. We looked at it, talked about the options and I decided to drop in from the right. It got sketchy as the TJ tettered back and forth on opposite tires, with several backups and turns to get somewhat stable and continue on. Jeff & Dale were smart and opted to bypass the first part and drop in from the left, up high.
We got to the squeeze and noticed it hadn't really changed much, I headed in and it got tippy when I was too high on the right side. Quick reposition and sliding the cage/roof along the undercut rock and I made it thru without too much drama. Dale had a similar experience and Jeff had a little trouble keeping his front tires where they needed to be at first.
At Breakover rock it was VERY filled in.... the line to the right looked like nothing compared to what it used to be. And Breakover rock itself was almost 2-3' shorter than it used to be. We talked lines and I decided to take the traditional route up and over, it worked well but I did have to scrape my belly to get all the way over. Dale took the right line and it looked pretty smooth. Jeff opted to go over Breakover as well and made it pretty clean.
A few more minor challenges and we were at the Waterfall.... it was NOT filled in at the bottom and looked as tall as ever. We talked lines, I setup my winch remote and headed in. I tried to crawl it but didn't have a chance... it was just too steep and way too tall. I gave it a couple small bumps and didn't gain any progress. I backed off a little, gave it one good bump and the TJ jumped sideways a good 4'. It was pretty uncomfortable, watching that giant hole to the left get way too close!! Jeff was up top, so we hooked up the winch and after some jockeying and getting the front axle further to the right, I finally winched up and over.
Dale was next and he gave it a valid attempt, also getting denied. He opted for the hook and he smoothly drove up and winched the rest of the way.
Jeff was up and he also careful selected his line, only to get denied. He gave it a bump trying to get the front-end to hook, but it just wasn't happening. We hooked up the cable and his winch made some crunchy noises and then just... stopped working. I jumped in the TJ and got into position, we ran my winch cable to Jeff's rig and pulled him the rest of the way up.
After that we climbed out of the wash and worked our way over to Minor Threat, playing on some big rocky climbs.
We opted to try Major Threat which was interesting, you drive up way high and off-camber with the drivers side. Jeff cleaned the line and I followed, but was anything buy clean... my front end was going anyway but the right way. Eventually I found the line, or at least close enough and made it thru. Dale cruised thru pretty well, with Jeff spotting. It looks sketchy, but you're not going to roll anywhere.
Lunch spot with a view!
We found Greenday and headed up it, it's a fun trail and has several ledges that can get real tippy if you're not fully paying attention. Dale learned this quickly, with a slow flop onto the drivers side. He was able to steer and back out of it, getting back on all 4 tires. With a bit of spotting to the right line, he found his way up with a little less drama.
Soon we exited Greenday and were at the base of Suicide Hill... I've never driven it before and it looks nasty, steep and a deep hole and notch in the center. Jeff lined up and walked up the first half, then had to work his way up and over the boulders at the top. I was up next... putting on all 5 points of my harness (not the first time either). As I started up it and got steep, my passenger rear tire dropped in the hole in the bottom and the TJ got light, real quick. I backed off, re-positioned and tried again. This time I pretty much walked up the main part of the hill, but really fought getting over the ledges and boulders at the top. My rear tires were trying to climb a ledge, while the fronts were hitting a couple rocks at the same time. I tried opening up the LS3, but horsepower wasn't doing it. I got lucky, hooked the driver tire in a crack and got just enough traction to pull up and over.
After Suicide Hill, we worked our way over to Smashing Pumpkins, then Dropkick and Rage Against the Machine. We dropped down Pucker Pass and it's SKETCHY! Right on the edge of a massive cliff, with a drop and then a 90* right hand turn. You can't see what's ahead of your tire, just the ledge and cliff inches away from it. I had to backup 4-5 times to feel good about it and eventually crossed the exposed ledge.
We worked our way back to Strike Ravine, then headed up and out... to the open play area, Found some fun ledges and boulders to climb, played around.... I got way bound up at one point and had to winch to Jeff to get me out of trouble.
After that we called it a day.... and what a day it was! So much fun, loved seeing the old trails and reliving some fun memories with friends. It was a great day, beautiful weather... and the Cottonwood trees were beautiful with bright Yelloy leaves. Really enjoyed our small but capable group, it was an amazing day! Thanks Jeff and Dale for the company!
I met up with Jeff Stevens @drtsqrl in his Suzuki-based buggy and Dale in a Jimmys chassis buggy. I told Jeff that I wanted to hit Helldorado and anything after that was just a bonus. He mentioned that the first obstacle had been severely washed out last time he saw it and wasn't sure how the rest of the trail looked.
Sure enough, there was a GIANT hole in the center of the first obstacle. We looked at it, talked about the options and I decided to drop in from the right. It got sketchy as the TJ tettered back and forth on opposite tires, with several backups and turns to get somewhat stable and continue on. Jeff & Dale were smart and opted to bypass the first part and drop in from the left, up high.
We got to the squeeze and noticed it hadn't really changed much, I headed in and it got tippy when I was too high on the right side. Quick reposition and sliding the cage/roof along the undercut rock and I made it thru without too much drama. Dale had a similar experience and Jeff had a little trouble keeping his front tires where they needed to be at first.
At Breakover rock it was VERY filled in.... the line to the right looked like nothing compared to what it used to be. And Breakover rock itself was almost 2-3' shorter than it used to be. We talked lines and I decided to take the traditional route up and over, it worked well but I did have to scrape my belly to get all the way over. Dale took the right line and it looked pretty smooth. Jeff opted to go over Breakover as well and made it pretty clean.
A few more minor challenges and we were at the Waterfall.... it was NOT filled in at the bottom and looked as tall as ever. We talked lines, I setup my winch remote and headed in. I tried to crawl it but didn't have a chance... it was just too steep and way too tall. I gave it a couple small bumps and didn't gain any progress. I backed off a little, gave it one good bump and the TJ jumped sideways a good 4'. It was pretty uncomfortable, watching that giant hole to the left get way too close!! Jeff was up top, so we hooked up the winch and after some jockeying and getting the front axle further to the right, I finally winched up and over.
Dale was next and he gave it a valid attempt, also getting denied. He opted for the hook and he smoothly drove up and winched the rest of the way.
Jeff was up and he also careful selected his line, only to get denied. He gave it a bump trying to get the front-end to hook, but it just wasn't happening. We hooked up the cable and his winch made some crunchy noises and then just... stopped working. I jumped in the TJ and got into position, we ran my winch cable to Jeff's rig and pulled him the rest of the way up.
After that we climbed out of the wash and worked our way over to Minor Threat, playing on some big rocky climbs.
We opted to try Major Threat which was interesting, you drive up way high and off-camber with the drivers side. Jeff cleaned the line and I followed, but was anything buy clean... my front end was going anyway but the right way. Eventually I found the line, or at least close enough and made it thru. Dale cruised thru pretty well, with Jeff spotting. It looks sketchy, but you're not going to roll anywhere.
Lunch spot with a view!
We found Greenday and headed up it, it's a fun trail and has several ledges that can get real tippy if you're not fully paying attention. Dale learned this quickly, with a slow flop onto the drivers side. He was able to steer and back out of it, getting back on all 4 tires. With a bit of spotting to the right line, he found his way up with a little less drama.
Soon we exited Greenday and were at the base of Suicide Hill... I've never driven it before and it looks nasty, steep and a deep hole and notch in the center. Jeff lined up and walked up the first half, then had to work his way up and over the boulders at the top. I was up next... putting on all 5 points of my harness (not the first time either). As I started up it and got steep, my passenger rear tire dropped in the hole in the bottom and the TJ got light, real quick. I backed off, re-positioned and tried again. This time I pretty much walked up the main part of the hill, but really fought getting over the ledges and boulders at the top. My rear tires were trying to climb a ledge, while the fronts were hitting a couple rocks at the same time. I tried opening up the LS3, but horsepower wasn't doing it. I got lucky, hooked the driver tire in a crack and got just enough traction to pull up and over.
After Suicide Hill, we worked our way over to Smashing Pumpkins, then Dropkick and Rage Against the Machine. We dropped down Pucker Pass and it's SKETCHY! Right on the edge of a massive cliff, with a drop and then a 90* right hand turn. You can't see what's ahead of your tire, just the ledge and cliff inches away from it. I had to backup 4-5 times to feel good about it and eventually crossed the exposed ledge.
We worked our way back to Strike Ravine, then headed up and out... to the open play area, Found some fun ledges and boulders to climb, played around.... I got way bound up at one point and had to winch to Jeff to get me out of trouble.
After that we called it a day.... and what a day it was! So much fun, loved seeing the old trails and reliving some fun memories with friends. It was a great day, beautiful weather... and the Cottonwood trees were beautiful with bright Yelloy leaves. Really enjoyed our small but capable group, it was an amazing day! Thanks Jeff and Dale for the company!
