Badlands OffRoad Park Indiana - Trip Report & Pics

[Bandit Runner]

My buddy Tom and I went to Badlands Offroad Park in Attica, Indiana for the first time. We didn’t really know what to expect, because it was the first time at an actual offroad park for either of us. Tom has much more experience wheeling than I do, as he used to live in Colorado. I was in my ’02 with 35’s, and he has a ’97 with 33’s. Open diffs all around.

On the way down:

Passed some cool looking windmills:

After checking in, we first started on some nice easy wooded trails and a few hill climbs:

But they quickly turned into some good mudding:

After that we decided to play on the rocks in the quarry:

 

[Bandit Runner]

Tom getting a little tipsy:

Tom got hung up on his gas tank skid, so I gave him a little tug:

Me stuffing the rear tire:

(Keep in mind I’ve NEVER rock crawled before. So if it looks like I don’t know what I’m doing, that’s why.)
 

 

[Bandit Runner]

Then we heard there was a cool trail called the River. So we found it and dropped down into it:

Towards the end of the river trail, there are these huge culverts that you drive through, and drop out of:

That was a little scary, as we had no idea how deep that pool was:

Time for a snorkel!
Quickly trying to get out:

Up and out:

Whew! Made it out! Glad I put my deckplate back in beforehand.
Then we decided to call it a day and head home:

Filling up on the way home:

Back at home. The wife wouldn’t let my truck back in the garage before hosing off the first layer of mud:

As far as damage, my buddy caved in his rocker panels and the corners of his rear stock bumper a little, but nothing too bad. I ended up with scrapes on my custom rear bumper and on my sliders (better than the sheetmetal, right?) Also my rear bumper came up when I landed hard on it, and it hit my rear quarter panel causing some minor damage and a cracked taillight mount. I thought an inch of space between the bumper and body would have been enough, guess not. We also ended up with a lot of pinstripes, as some of the trails were pretty tight.

My buddy found a nice aftermarket muffler on one of the trails, and also an oil filter wrench. Who changes their oil out on the trail? Must have been one of those J**ps we saw out there.

I was very impressed by the ability of my truck. It seemed to go anywhere I pointed it, even with open diffs. My only complaint about the park was that the trails were not clearly marked and their map sucked, so we didn’t always know where we were. Overall, we had a great time, and I learned a lot about rock crawling. Can’t wait to do it again! I am already planning my next round of mods too.

 

[00_4runner]

Great pics man! I live in Illinois and I want to go to the badlands ASAP. Looks like lots of fun. Next time you decide to go lemme know and ill try to meet up with you. I don't have much experience wheeling and I was looking for someone semi local to go with. I'm rolling with the 3in toytec coilovers and 891s with 265/75 duratracs . Building her up as fast as possible! Haha. Thanks for sharing!

 

[ameining]

Great photos, looks like it was a great time!

I would have been quite nervous dropping from those culverts into the pool where it appeared the entire hood was submerged! I guess I am just too cautious, but it seems to me that the intake would have been flooded with water??

Also, I am very unfamiliar with these offroad 'parks' everbody speaks of...do they exist in Colorado? Do you have to pay to go inside these things??

 

[fightman80]

Sweet pics man!

 

[Bamf_CT2004]

Took you long enough to post the pics. My bad on the river. I forgot to tell you that we usualy bail out before the tubes. I might be doing an Oct trip if anyone is interested. Probably around the 8th -9th or the weekend after. If anyone is interested in going let me know.

 

[Stick Figure]

Also, I am very unfamiliar with these offroad 'parks' everbody speaks of...do they exist in Colorado? Do you have to pay to go inside these things??

I thought Colorado was an off road park?:shrug:

 

[4-Ripcord]

Its about time you took that beast off the pavement!

That was nuts when you drove out of that pipe, shoulda taken a video of that one!

 

[JWaldz]

those culverts look a lot like this!

Extreme water crossing Jeep Cherokee 4x4 - YouTube


Looks like yall had fun! Awesome pics

 

[00_4runner]

Took you long enough to post the pics. My bad on the river. I forgot to tell you that we usualy bail out before the tubes. I might be doing an Oct trip if anyone is interested. Probably around the 8th -9th or the weekend after. If anyone is interested in going let me know.

Im very interested. Just for the day right? Ill definetely be down to go.

 

[BigFishAllDay]

Towards the end of the river trail, there are these huge culverts that you drive through, and drop out of:

That was a little scary, as we had no idea how deep that pool was:

THAT'S NUTS! I was thinking the same thing you said when I saw that pic... "Hope he had his deckplate in!"

That place looks like a blast though. It's like an amusement park, but for adults who have bad ass off road toys.

 

[Bandit Runner]

Great pics man! I live in Illinois and I want to go to the badlands ASAP. Looks like lots of fun. Next time you decide to go lemme know and ill try to meet up with you. I don't have much experience wheeling and I was looking for someone semi local to go with. I'm rolling with the 3in toytec coilovers and 891s with 265/75 duratracs . Building her up as fast as possible! Haha. Thanks for sharing!

Thanks, I'll definitely keep you in mind for next time. How do you like the duratracs? My wife has those on her FJCruiser.

Great photos, looks like it was a great time!

I would have been quite nervous dropping from those culverts into the pool where it appeared the entire hood was submerged! I guess I am just too cautious, but it seems to me that the intake would have been flooded with water??

Also, I am very unfamiliar with these offroad 'parks' everbody speaks of...do they exist in Colorado? Do you have to pay to go inside these things??

Yes, it was quite nerveracking submerging the hood underwater. It wasn't really intentional. We checked our airboxes afterwards, and there were just a few drops of water in the bottom of it. If I wouldn't have put the deckplate back in, it might have been much worse.

Don't know if there are any offroad parks in CO. Yes, you have to pay a small fee when you check in.

Took you long enough to post the pics. My bad on the river. I forgot to tell you that we usualy bail out before the tubes. I might be doing an Oct trip if anyone is interested. Probably around the 8th -9th or the weekend after. If anyone is interested in going let me know.

Yeah, it did take me a while. No problem on the river drop, everything turned out alright. Thanks for the offer on the 8-9th.

Its about time you took that beast off the pavement!

That was nuts when you drove out of that pipe, shoulda taken a video of that one!

Its been offroad plenty, but mostly wooded trails, sand, and some mud. This was my first exposure to rocks. There is a video, I'll try to post it.

THAT'S NUTS! I was thinking the same thing you said when I saw that pic... "Hope he had his deckplate in!"

That place looks like a blast though. It's like an amusement park, but for adults who have bad ass off road toys.

Tell me about it! Yeah, it really wasn't too smart, but it turned out alright in the end.

 

[00_4runner]

So far the duratracs are great, had them about a week and no complaints yet. Can't wait to see how they handle off road and in the snow. And yeah definitely keep me posted.

 

[sportscarfan]

I love my duratracs off road. Can't wait for the snow!

Those tube exit pictures are nuts!

 

[IanB]

That culvert drop into the pool would have been nerveracking! Great pics!

 

[Dagobah]

those culverts look a lot like this!

Extreme water crossing Jeep Cherokee 4x4 - YouTube


Looks like yall had fun! Awesome pics

Why was everyone freaking out in that video? He had a snorkel. Everyone started yelling "Shut it off!" and then they started cheering when he drove out of the water. I dont get it. Jeep people? :shrug:

 

[brian2sun]

Great pics Bandit! I hate water crossings! Props to you for doing that culvert!

 

[Bandit Runner]

Thanks everyone. The water crossing was intense. It had to be at least a 4 foot drop off the culvert into more than 3 feet of water.

I definitely want a snorkel in the near future. I think I'll make one from scratch. Should be a fun project.

 

[scottishb]

Wow! You guys had fun! That looks like it may be worth the trip. Looks a little better than the park over here in Illinois.