Arnold, CA Area Trip - April 17-19

[AA Journey]

I checked and there is no email yet.  

[Guest Pedram]

Actually I have replied before and never got a reply via email until today. Only difference was a small box I checked on my reply that said to keep me in the loop. So I think maybe Antonio needs to do that.

[DHappel]

The Plan:

 

I'm going to head out from Walnut Grove about 2:00 tomorrow.  With stops for gas or whathaveyou I should be at the trailhead by 4:45-5:00.  The trailhead at Lake Alpine, on highway 4. 

 

From the California Backroads and 4-Wheel-Drive Trails book: 

 

From Bear Valley (last gas) proceed 3.4 mi E. and turn right at the sign for Lake Alpine West Shore.Follow paved road south just .1 mile.  Avoid left turn for Alpine Lake Campground.  Bear right where road swings left to main parking area.  Road immediately changes to gravel.  Trail starts on left where Bear Valley Biking Trail goes right.

 

We'll make camp about 3/4 mile down the trail.  It should be pretty easy going to get to that area.  There should be a sign at .7 miles for the 'official' start of the Slick Rock 4WD trail, after which camping is open. 

 

I'll have my radio on 146.460.  I'll have my cell on but it's very unlikely I'll have reception so the radio will be your best bet.  I'll try to be conspicuous so you can't accidentally pass me by on the trail.

 

Looks like I'll have 2 Jeeps along tomorrow as well.  They are planning to leave the east bay at 3:00, so they'll probably get to camp around dark - 8:30ish.  As far as I know neither of them has HAM, so they'll have to make do. 

 

If anybody has any questions I'll be checking the forum tomorrow pretty much until I leave.  Feel free to ask here or PM me or call/text.

[ndamico]

Actually I have replied before and never got a reply via email until today. Only difference was a small box I checked on my reply that said to keep me in the loop. So I think maybe Antonio needs to do that.

I hope you can make it. The more the merrier!

[ndamico]

We are planning on leaving sac around noon. Stopping for lunch in Murphy's. What time do you want to start on Saturday? I need to know when we need to get to you camp by.

 

Also make sure you fill up in Arnold. After that gas prices go way up as there is only 2 or 3 more stops.

[DHappel]

I'd like to be on the trail by 8:30.  The more people we have the slower we will go, and with what looks like a really nice weather weekend we're more likely to encounter traffic.

 

Will that work with you?  I think you'll be the only one driving in on Saturday morning now that my Jeep friend has changed and is coming in tonight.

[LandRonB]

My tentative plan is to leave the house around 2 and be at camp around 5.  I'll have my radio on 146.460 if anybody is coming in that night looking for us.  I plan to camp a little way down the trail, maybe 3/4 mile or so instead of at the official campground at the trail head.

 

My Jeep buddy Andrew also confirmed he's coming but he'll be driving up early Saturday.  He's planning to be there by 9.

 

 

So that's Nick and daughter, Antonio, myself and Michele, and Andrew (jeep).  Anybody else in??

Do you have room for me - bringing my CT110? I work late tonight but can meet you all at camp tomorrow before 9am.

 

What time are you all planning to leaving camp and start the trail?

 

I have the following coordinates as the start of the trail N38 28 8.8 W120 0 36.9 and will have my ham radio on 146.460.

 

If I am not there by 9am, no need to wait up.

 

See yah!

[Guest Pedram]

Good morning everyone. So the plan today is to get three things. First is fix a brake master on Jarells disco. Then weld on tow points to Antonios truck. Then last is to pack last minute items into my truck and leave. Are you guys camping on the trail near the waterfalls? Do I need firewood? And who's bringing the Elle nacho burro fighter mask?

[RedRover]

Good morning everyone. So the plan today is to get three things. First is fix a brake master on Jarells disco. Then weld on tow points to Antonios truck. Then last is to pack last minute items into my truck and leave. Are you guys camping on the trail near the waterfalls? Do I need firewood? And who's bringing the Elle nacho burro fighter mask?

 

lol! I like how much you get done before a trip... welding?  I'm lucky if I've had coffee before noon...  

[Guest Pedram]

Honestly the welding part is very easy. The brake part is what I'm not looking forward to. I would rather be welding..... I need that sticker.

[ndamico]

I'd like to be on the trail by 8:30.  The more people we have the slower we will go, and with what looks like a really nice weather weekend we're more likely to encounter traffic.

 

Will that work with you?  I think you'll be the only one driving in on Saturday morning now that my Jeep friend has changed and is coming in tonight.

 

I can be there whenever.  so are we starting at 9 or 8:30?

[RedRover]

     (since we have no LR3 icons...)

 

Maybe we can get Brenton or someone to do some line art (actual artistry) but until then, here are some new photorealistic trucks:

 

LR3

 

 

LR4

 

 

 

Discovery (Camel Trophy)

 

 

 

[LandRonB]

I'd like to be on the trail by 8:30.  The more people we have the slower we will go, and with what looks like a really nice weather weekend we're more likely to encounter traffic.

 

Will that work with you?  I think you'll be the only one driving in on Saturday morning now that my Jeep friend has changed and is coming in tonight.

Ok my question answered; see you all before 8:30am tomorrow.

[Guest Pedram]

Is there a setting for sending pictures with my phone?

[ndamico]

Ok i may drive up this afternoon and say hi otherwise see you in the morning at 8:30

[DHappel]

LR3 is alive and well in the driveway.  Just finished changing rear brakes and putting my Johnson rods back on.  Fridge is chilling.  Just gotta pack and if there's time maybe I'll mow the front yard so the neighbors don't torch the place while we're gone. 

[ndamico]

Heading out now! Ill leave the nclr freq on the radio.

https://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/04/17/cb300ac0d20d68fc3dd5b74e3b11f3a3.jpg

[LandRonB]

LR Selfie

 

I am home from work; just changed the oil on the CT110; now need to pack and leave early tomorrow.

 

My 10 year old might come with me if I can get him up & early.

 

Also the last part of the Slick Rock will be the most challenging.

 

I don't have lockers on the CT110 but with sliders and a winch, we will all be fine!

 

Ok trail leaders Dhapel/ndamico, we're following you guys.

[ndamico]

Just got to our cabin. Fyi I found out from local hams the Dodge ridge repeater should work up there.147.975 pl100

[ndamico]

Anyone who is driving up, do you want to meet for breakfast in arnold?

[LandRonB]

I like the idea of bfast at Arnold on way; thanks for the invite Nick; maybe next time when not in the rush.

 

I'll just pack a couple of bagels and feed my 10 year old son Jake when he is fully awake; we're shooting to be at camp before 8:30am

 

How's the weather? Looks to be sunny high of 62 and dips down to 37 at night accordinging to the Weather Channel.

 

I'll make sure my son packs a jacket for the night. Will see you there!

[ndamico]

Weather ahould be great. Sunday may get a little breezy later. Bring a jacket for nihht and sunscreen foe the day. See you there.

[DHappel]

An excellent trip.  Great weather, a beautiful campsite right on the creek, modest crowds on the trail and the people we did run into were all polite and nice.  No real carnage other than a couple tires.

 

I'm currently trying to get pics and videos uploaded from my phone to photobucket but it's being a PITA...may take a while.

 

Our final head-count was-

Ron and Jake, CT110

Pedram - D1

Jarrell - D1

Antonio - P38

myself and Michele - LR3

Nick and daughter (sorry, forgot her name!) - LR4

 

Plus my friend Andrew in his LJ and his friend in a JKU

 

I was running a bit late and when I arrived at Lake Alpine on HWY 4 I found Antonio parked at the turn-off.  The two of us made our way down the trail about 1.5 miles to an open area near the creek with a number of existing fire rings.  We set up camp and a couple hours later the two Jeep guys showed up.  Antonio told us he was also expecting Pedram but not until later in the evening.  We eventually turned in around 10:30 (?) without having seen him and figured maybe he had taken Nick up on his offer to stay at his cabin in Arnold.  About midnight not only did Pedram come rolling it, but he brought Jarrell along as well.

We had a bit of a brisk night with the mercury showing about 30 when we work up, but it was clear and sunny and quickly warmed.  While we were having breakfast and getting ready for the trail Nick and his daughter arrived, and shortly thereafter Ron and his son Jake came in as well.  With a full contingent we headed down the trail.

Since Antonio and Pedram were the only guys who had previously run this trail Pedram took the lead.  Before we even started, they both commented that the trail was in rougher shape than they remembered it.  In the past Pedram had brought his full-size long bed pickup as far as the campsite - I don't think you'd want to try that today

The trail is challenging but we couldn't look bad in front of the Jeep guys so we immediately started by taking the optional hard line on the first obstacle to set the tone.  Say what you want about Jeeps, but they just work on technical terrain.

We ran needed a lot of spotting but got all the trucks through with nothing more than some scrapes in the armor and wheels until about 2/3 of the way through.  I had gone over what looked like a simple rock in an otherwise flat and smooth part of the trail and drug my skids as the drop on the other side was deeper than it looked at first glance.  I radioed Nick behind me that he'd want to take a different line and walked back to spot him over.  Unfortunately this was a somewhat soft/muddy area and he couldn't quite crawl it but just spun so I told him he'd need a little bump to get over.  When he hit it the second time he spun the tires a bit and the truck turned before climbing over...and the right front then caught a sharp rock and POOF- no more sidewall.  Several people herd the tire go and immediately thought one of us had lost an airbag – it did sound about like that!  We eased him to an area where he could get off the trail and swapped on the spare.

While stopped for lunch at the start of a long rocky down-hill section we had some traffic coming by from both directions.  A few of them stood out:  First, a young guy in a nearly new FJ Cruiser came along.  On the first good obstacle of the hill he got his right front up too high on slab and very nearly rolled it.  I'm pretty sure he needed a change of underwear after that moment - it looked pretty bad.  (of note, the angle of that slab really does try to grab your tire and pull you into it.  I don’t think he could steer the correct way once he started on that line.  One of the passing Jeepers commented that a buddy of his had done exactly that and rolled in the same spot not long ago)  The other guys that got my attention were a group of three bikes coming up.  The first was a big KTM 525 - a pretty serious (barely) street legal dirt bike with a good rider.  Let’s compare that to a built D90.  The next guy was on a Yamaha 400 endure bike...OK, but not ideal for a technical trail.  We’ll compare that to a stock Disco.  The last guy was on a BMW F650 - basically a street bike that is also at home on say a gravel road or graded fire road.  Definitely not suitable for climbing rocks!  In my Rover-comparison he’d be driving an Evoke or maybe the new Disco Sport.  The poor guy was beating himself to death, but I guess they all eventually got through as we didn't see them come back the other way.

As one of our Jeep friends had a new baby to get back to, the two of them headed out in advance of us while we had a leisurely lunch and let traffic pass.  A bit later we also got on the trail.

We eventually arrived at the last and most difficult obstacle of the trail - the stairs.  There is a by-pass half-way up, but even that requires some work to make.  There was a crowd gathered here as it's close to the south end of the trail and good place to watch the fun as people take their turn.  Pedram was first up and of course he went for the hard line.  He gave it a good try but after some serious efforts eventually decided the risk of breakage was getting uncomfortably high and took the by-pass.  I had watched him and figured hey...I'll try it too.  I got up the first half with little difficulty and started up the harder second half.  A couple of attempts later and over the shouted 'advice' from the crowd I suddenly heard Pedram shouting STOP!  I had somehow picked up a good size rock, maybe 7" across or so with my right rear and wedged it between the tire and air strut.  Luckily no damage and I was able to yank it out and continue.  It took a good deal of work and I got some new scars in the wheels/armor, but I did make it up much to the enjoyment of the crowd.

Jarrell also gave the hard line a try but like Pedram backed out and took the by-pass before breaking anything.  The rest of our group also made the climb and by-pass with a bit of work.

Although we were nearly done, we weren't quite out.  Pedram, in the lead, took a poor line off a moderate drop and got more than he bargained for.  He was closer to rolling than comfortable (at least as seen from my point of view) and came down hard on his right front, blowing the bead on that tire as well as taking a bit of a hit to his bumper.  We were able to re-seat the bead with his CO2 tank and a strap around the tire, but he must have had a rock in the inner bead as he still had a pretty good leak.  However we were nearly out of the trail so he just topped it up and we continued along. 

At the end of the trail Nick headed back to his cabin while the rest of us returned to camp for dinner and the usual BS-ing around the campfire.  We did have a few brief sprinkles on the drive back, but not enough to even use the wipes.  The night ended up warmer than the previous by about 10*, though we did have a bit of wind that woke me around 3AM and had me out checking on the tent stays.

All in all it was a great trip and I think we'll have to do this run again!  While not suitable for stock Rovers, anybody with a little lift, some sliders and tires, and the willingness to endure a bit of trail risk should be able to make it.  Nick was a trooper taking his '10 LR4 through this trail.  He did suffer a couple of scuffs on the bumpers and wheels but got through just fine.  I also have to hand it to Ron for bringing the CT out and putting it through its paces.  These two guys make a great book-end showing both new and old Rovers are up to tough trails.

I'm sure the other guys from the trip will chime in with more details from their own perspective, as well as their own videos and photos.  I'll get mine posted up as soon as I can.

In the end, we'll have to do it again.  The trail is tough but short enough to make a great 'intro to rock crawling' trip.  If you have visions of running the Rubicon or other hard-core trails, this is a great way to get a feel without diving in head-first.

 

 

 

[GraemeWare]

I'm sure the other guys from the trip will chime in with more details from the trip, as well as their own videos and photos.  I'll get mine posted up as soon as I can.

 

In the end, we'll have to do it again.  The trail is tough but short enough to make a great 'entro to rock crawling' trip.  If you have visions of running the Rubicon or other hard-core trails, this is a great way to get a feel without diving in head-first.

 

Don,

 

Sounds great, and I'm sorry I missed it this time.

 

Anyone interested in putting it back on the calendar for July (10)/11/12 or June (5)/6/7?

 

Graeme

[Guest Pedram]

Seeing how busy it was in this time of year is just the beginning. I think July would be the worst time to do these trails with the traffic we saw. And more trucks in the group only leads to more delays.