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Big Mac did an extraordinary job readying his Mighty Pony for a Moab adventure. He chose very challenging trails that pushed the limits of our trucks and our skills. Squirrel plotted all obstacles into his trusty Garmin GPS and we were ready to take on Moab. Fantastic! That’s the best word to describe our OR2006 Moab 4x4 trip. Our vehicles performed very well and we were able to climb obstacles that were trail-rated at 5.0 – extreme difficulty. We ate well and really enjoyed the beauty of the Moab region. We missed those of you who did not make this trip and look forward to a new adventure next year. Temps reached over 100 degrees as Squirrel drove in excess of 75MPH, prompting him to rename Big Mac, “Big Fry”, for bringing us to Moab in the heat. We converged at the campsite in the early evening and had a delicious fish bbq. The evening was a very comfortable 65 degrees. On Tuesday morning, we headed up Difficult-rated trails (Poison Spider, Golden Spike and Gold Bar Rim). Squirrel forgot which positions on the transfer case enabled 2-wheel or 4-wheel drive, high and low. So, he got the Skipper stopped on obstacles that should have been doable. Big Mac burned a hole in his ARB locker line and we headed back down to town to get that fixed. When we got back, it was too late to do the trails we started and we did a moderate Seven Mile Rim trail. It was perfect – enough obstacles to keep us entertained and the trail warmed us up for the next day when we would redo Poison Spider, etc.) Temps reached 140 degrees inside the Bronco’s un-ventilated interior. Near the bottom, Koko Head sprung a leak in its oil filter. Further inspection revealed the high pinion differential had so much compression that it punctured the oil filter. And, I was worried about not enough travel :>) That night we had T-Bone steaks and baked potatoes for dinner. On Wednesday, we had a blast on Poison Spider and Golden Spike. Ledges and obstacles were very difficult, culminating in the Golden Staircase and Golden Crack. The Golden Staircase is a series of high ledges requiring a 90-degree turn on a small rock before descending. Big Mac drove it perfectly and we decided it was too much for Koko Head. However, Koko Head told me it wanted to try the Golden Staircase too. So, we attempted it, but with only 35” tires, the springs hit before the wheels reached the ledge. The climb is quite vertical. So, Sand Man, Navigator, the Skipper and Big Mack put some rocks under the front tires and Koko Head made the amazing climb. Next, we traversed a huge crack in the slick rock providing an almost vertical descent and climb with lots of thrills. A sandstorm and lightening storm approached as we were on top of the mountain and that was scary. Watching Navigator cover himself like a sheik with a towel provided some levity, however. We finally made it down the mountain around dusk, but because we didn’t listen to old Garmin, we passed Big Bird Rock several times until we made it out around 10pm only to have dinner at Denny’s. Fortunately, we talked some sense into Big Mac and decided not to do Pritchet Canyon, considered the toughest trail in Moab. It doesn’t have the single most difficult obstacle in all of Moab; rather, it is just a long, punishing series of obstacles. After 10 hours of tough wheeling the day before, we decided to do something easy like Hell’s Revenge :>) Hell’s revenge starts off with Dump Bump – a famous obstacle where we found two broken vehicles and decided not to try it. So we proceeded onward to steep, narrow slickrock trails that returned the familiar shelf-pucker experience I so long ago discovered. At the end of that trail is an obstacle called the Escalator that Squirrel so wanted to try. However, failure here would be disastrous. So, instead, we watched a couple of other vehicles struggle and finally make it. This will be some great video. The Escalator makes Big Mother Hill look like nothing. Navigator treated us to a great Mexican dinner that night and the next day we headed home. Big Mac and Navigator spent the night in Elko and partied with the locals. The Skipper and Squirrel took a leisurely drive back to Loveland via Green River, Price, Vernal, Steamboat, Granby, Grand Lake and Estes Park. We spent the night in Steamboat walking around the Yampa River that was moving higher and faster than I ever saw it. The river looked like it was moving at about 25 MPH when we crossed a bridge. Amazing. We took the gondola to the top of Steamboat for breakfast and went to see the Fish Creek Falls that was massive this time of year. THE FUTURE:
I’ll have to cut a lot of fender and rocker panel away for the bigger tires and rims, but I think the bigger, heavier wheels will help the springs travel further and the wider tire width will make for even better stability. Enjoy the photos. |
