New Year's Day Run 2013 - TSF

[NW99XJ]

This run has been renamed....from the hangover run to the recovery run..... Myself and others (i'm sure) will do our best to explain.
The morning started off brisk, windy, and dark.
Aaron (awesomexj) and Brandon (bmikes) with his dad, showed up at my place on time.
Mike however (bhmike) was a no call-no show. I gave him much grief via text, and left a horrible voice message in hopes he'd figure things out. (nothin but luv for ya man!)
The four of us hit the road, The NAXJA presidential motorcade was underway!
We made it to Banks just as the sun started to crest the horizon.
We pulled into the Shell station to top up the tanks and ran into Jason (crazymoose) as he was filling up...
I had a half-a-tank left so I figure I'd top off before heading up the hill.....
This is the point of the day in which I realized I had forgotten my wallet at home. GOOD TIMES! (i have never done this!)
Aaron was kind enough to kick $20 my way to top off my tank, and we were on our way.
We got to the Rogers Camp Staging Area right about 8:50 give or take, staged, and met up with those who straggled in. Kenny, Jon, (bronzewyrm) the other Jon,(98fivespeed) and Larry (demonoid) arrived within minutes of each other, and we finished airing everyone down and got our running order and trail routes set.
http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2241.jpg

THE PLAN:
To run Powerline and make our way to Archer's, with maybe a stop off at Hoodraiser and Hoggsback.
WHAT HAPPENED INSTEAD:
Jason had planned to meet up with his buddy Jarod up there, and unbeknownst to the rest of us, HE had a couple buddies tagging along. Another XJ, A Nearly stock K5 Blazer, on street tires,...and a 2WD Toyota Tacoma P/U.
Somehow, they got up front ahead of us, and managed to get partially up the first section of Powerline, before low-and-behold....the bronco and tacoma had problems making it up. After a good 30 min or more sitting there wheeling over the CB, an Executive decision was made and we all (minus Jason) backed out of Powerline to bypass and regroup. Once back onto the logging road, Larry got the bright idea that this would be the most opportune time to attempt the very-first-time-disconnection of his factory front sway bar links.
I of course had the camera ready.

BPB Eat your heart out...... :moon:
http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2242.jpg

After this all but brief rest and now well over an hour into the run, and not one rig in the group seeing more than 25ft of trail at best..... AND one rig of our group officially split away with the yotas and bronco, we made our way with the one non-naxja XJ with us to the second section of powerline.
I made it up to a good spot to park with no problems.
http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2243.jpg

Bronzey was right behind me.
http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2244.jpg

Brandon was right behind him, but made it no further than the first tight turn where the root-dig-out is. After a few runs at it he determined more runway was needed, but when backing up slid into a position where he could go no further without risking a flop.
http://i387.photobucket.com/albums/oo317/Bronzewyrm/Hangover%20run%202013/S7300496_zpscd829f63.jpg

Bronze came back down and hooked up to him and attempted to give him a tug.
http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2245.jpg

Two tow straps, a half hour of sucking exhaust fumes, and a lot of pushing and grunting, Jon finally had to winch his way up with Brandon in tow.
http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2248.jpg

http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2249.jpg

Larry made his best attempt next. In doing so suffered some decent carnage.
He made it to the root-dig-out, but was stopped dead in his tracks (or lack there of) by a rock. This of course took out his tie rod, turning it into a pretzel. This was not the entirety of his carnage, oh-no.....
He also managed to taco his front DS wheel:
http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2250.jpg

But the fun didnt stop there.....nope, why stop at one wheel when in one foul attempt you can fold YES TWO RIMS!
http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2251.jpg

The rear DS wheel was also damaged beyond any trailside repair:
http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2252.jpg

He decided that this was more than likely going to be the end of his attempts at Powerline, but not before parking his jeep to take one last look.....
His choice of location was not ideal.....
http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2253.jpg

After the heroic display of Dukes-of-Hazzard like vehicle exit and entry his final decision was to turn around and head back out.
This too did not go without fail.
http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2255.jpg

[NW99XJ]

In his defense, the snow was more like several inches of ice pellets, and any driving upon it, resulted in turning it all to a solid sheet of ice. Any tire spin resulted in forming a miniature ice rink under the contact patch of any given tire.
Lets take in the expression at this point on our Vice President's face and imagine what sort of terrible things are being planed for poor Larry....
http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2254.jpg

From up the hill Jon (98fivespeed) had made it to where Bronze had been, and winched up to a tree. Three tow straps and a length of rope were lowered down the hill, to pull our beloved Larry to a more proper position on the trail.
http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2256.jpg

But in order to fully get Larry turned around we had to get him pulled into this little burm like flat spot, where he proceeded to bury his front end to the frame rails. GOOD TIMES! It was up to Kenny at this point, our trusty tail gunner, and the last remaining winch toting rig in the group to rescue Larry (once again)....
In order to do this, the non-naxja XJ and Kenny had to swap places, which was all good 'cause he was ready to go home at this point. Cant blame him really after witnessing what he did all morning. This of course didnt go with out issues galore.
1. The driver/owner was deaf, and so all spotting signals had to made very loudly and with eye contact and hand gestures, along with the occasional sign language from a girl-friend.
2. He was on all terrains
3. Open/open diffs.
4. had to reverse nearly the whole way.

And if that wasnt enough.....A small group of rigs was also at this point attempting to come DOWN Powerline, at the same time another group was trying to come up. We call this a FAIL SANDWICH.
The upper group was "persuaded" by Aaron to find a different trail, and the lower group (a few wranglers) needed help getting turned around. The one JK in the group found himself sideways on the trail, and nearly pinned against a tree.
This made for a lot of fun!
...and of course a few winch pulls, and more manual pushing, and back breaking grunting labor.
We finally got him and Kenny swapped in line, and continued on with the remainder of the Larry rescue.
The other Jon grabbed a snatch block and a tree saver, and we got Kenny into position to pull Larry out of the self made hole. (sorry no pics)
Larry got pulled out and faced the right way and Kenny once again backed halfway out of powerline to get turned around and make sure Larry and the other XJ got back up to the road ok.

:party:

Now that the day was nearly half over, we decided to say screw-it, and turn around, head back to the road, and break for lunch.
Under the spotting and direction of Aaron, we all made the tight turnaround and heading from whence we came...
http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2267.jpg

After lunch, and doing the best we could to get Larry on his way to limp home.... Jason came over the hill with the yota-bronco group and re-joined us. Him, myself, Kenny, and Bronze all continued our quest to Archers.
http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2268.jpg

http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2269.jpg

Making our way up the hill, we came across this dually who while on his way to get firewood with the family got stuck, and was trying to shovel his way out, all while trying to avoid getting closer to the ravine.
http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2273.jpg

YAY!!! ANOTHER RESCUE!
(Aaron was thrilled)
http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2275.jpg

Jason pulled up in front of him and staged up to winch him out. The winch was strong enough, but the XJ was too light.
We anchored him to a nearby tree from the back and winched the big-ass-dually back to safety.
http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2276.jpg

We eventually got the behemoth turned around, and on his way back down the hill.
At which point a newer Silverado was trying to come up the hill, and a JK and an Explorer were trying to come down.
Once again we found ourselves in a fail sandwich.
I convinced the driver of the Silverado that there was no where NEAR enough room on this road for both him AND the dually, and that he'd have to back his way down to the "T" about 100 yards down the hill, giving everyone room to pass.
We also decided we had had enough for the day, and turned around ourselves.
AS we came down the hill, we found the owner of the Silverado shoveling his way out of being stuck......
WHY NOT?!?!?! WHATS ONE MORE RESCUE?!?!?
Jon staged up behind the full size and gave him a little tug, we also convinced him he should turn around, and head out.
http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2277.jpg

We took the long way back down to Rogers, the Silverado followed us about halfway, and then went on another route.
Almost to Roger's I decided to not leave well enough alone, and pulled into that first section of powerline that was skipped earlier that morning.
Bronze followed me in for grins and giggles.
About halfway thru we find (guess what....) ...a nealry stock late model 4runner just chilling in the middle of the trail. We tried to get him off to the side, and moved out of the way enough to pass, and in attempting to do so, I managed to slide into a bit of a hole.
http://i387.photobucket.com/albums/oo317/Bronzewyrm/Hangover%20run%202013/S7300552_zpsea83fe25.jpg

Jon gave me a quick tug, and we went up to the opening under the powerlines, turned around, and made a beeline for Rogers.
We caught Jason just as he was leaving. Said our goodbyes and parked to air up.
http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2280.jpg

We caught a glimpse of a familiar truck/trailer, and hoped he was making it up and down safely.
http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h328/jbchill1/IMG_2282.jpg


The first run of the year was certainly an interesting one (to say the least).
Full of tons of good deeds, a lot of back breaking, painstaking, patience testing, recovery and rescue. If I had to do it all over again, I would. I was glad to help out so many people and leave them with a great impression and proud representation of the NWC.

BIG Thanks to everyone who made it out, and who helped everyone else out.
There was a lot of great character out there, and some really good people helping out others. I'll be more than happy to wheel with any of you anytime.

[4.3LXJ]

Ha Ha Josh. That is what snow runs are all about. lots of rescue. Winches mandatory :D One of these days I want to get up there to run TSF. When I lived in the area it was closed to allow the trees to all grow up since the burn. One of these days ....

[cantab27]

anytime in 4wd is a good time josh.....amazing what ya find out there some times and wounder how they get so far in certain rigs......cool pics great write up to brother .. thanks for sharing ..site needs more wheeling pics and trip reports...

[denverd1]

reminds me of the time I rented a jeep in New Mexico. No doubt, it was equipped with street tires to keep us from having too much fun, but it was like playing russian roulette on some of those corners. at least you got to get out and wheel it! Sounds like you got good karma headed your way

[Carves]

Snow driving ... Has been so long since Ive been in the stuff - I would probably have to stop and wait for it to melt .. :D

Good pics .. looks like you had an interesting day out.

You blokes use ever use wheel chains ??

[4.3LXJ]

You blokes use ever use wheel chains ??

That takes all the fun out of it Carves. A true sacrilege. :p

But yes I have. Most excellent not only in snow, but mud as well

[Carves]

That takes all the fun out of it Carves. A true sacrilege. :p


:D


Down here the nanny state regime ended up making them a requirement ... http://www.drive.com.au/Editorial/ArticleDetail.aspx?ArticleID=53309

.... probably coz of all the, snow driving inexperienced, feral tourists from warmer areas ... doing the trendy thing, and daytripping the snowfields.



But yes I have. Most excellent not only in snow, but mud as well

X 2 ... also saved my bacon on some "black ice" patches, once or twice.

[4.3LXJ]

:D


Down here the nanny state regime ended up making them a requirement ... http://www.drive.com.au/Editorial/ArticleDetail.aspx?ArticleID=53309

.... probably coz of all the, snow driving inexperienced, feral tourists from warmer areas ... doing the trendy thing, and daytripping the snowfields.




X 2 ... also saved my bacon on some "black ice" patches, once or twice.

We used to have to chain up at the first snow flake in the mountains here. But over the years they have relaxed those requirements. Went north from here a few years back and took the long way to avoid chaining up my 2WD pickup and trailer for a couple of hundred miles. Got to southern Oregon and they had three high passes. I chained up for the first. Got to the third and there were about a dozen "professional truck drivers" coming down backwards with forward gears engaged. What a mess not to mention the cars in between. Ran a nice slalom course up the hill through the mess. If I had the Jeep there I could have made a fortune

[XJ Wheeler]

We used to have to chain up at the first snow flake in the mountains here. But over the years they have relaxed those requirements. Went north from here a few years back and took the long way to avoid chaining up my 2WD pickup and trailer for a couple of hundred miles. Got to southern Oregon and they had three high passes. I chained up for the first. Got to the third and there were about a dozen "professional truck drivers" coming down backwards with forward gears engaged. What a mess not to mention the cars in between. Ran a nice slalom course up the hill through the mess. If I had the Jeep there I could have made a fortune

Had a similar experience on a rum back from New Mexico. Started snowing pretty heavily, and made a mess of the trucks in the hills. Most lined the upsides, with a few that thought they could keep going and those ended up finding their way closer to the bottom than the top at the end of their efforts. Thankfully it was a heavy load. The 2wd dully we were in had approximately 6k over the rear axle, never slipped once.

[Rayburne]

We were stationed in Germany from 84 thru 90 and I was a mechanic working on snow removal equipment so I had to be at work no matter b what 7 days a week thru snow season. We lived 35 miles from the Air Base I was stationed at and made it to work everyday with out chains and only had to leave my car stuck twice. Once with the right front tire pushed into wheel well ( totaled BMW )
This last Apr we went to Portland Oregon and had to buy chains for the first time ever. Made it to the area to put the chains on before the mountain pass and as we were driving past people applying chains looking for a free spot we saw people near the front taking chains off so we just headed on without the chains. We were in the wife's 2010 Pruis and it made it with no problems, surprised me.
Your snow run looked like a blast wish we lived near others to get a group outing like you.