theesotericone's Trails and BS Thread

[theesotericone]

So, an 80 series with factory dual lockers, V6 with 232000 just came up for sale. Price is a bit high but I'm drooling right now. lol

 

[octanejunkie]

Yeah man, you would have been fine. Let me know early summer and we'll get out. You can do Coyote and Silver Canyon for sure. You can probably even do most of Mozourka Canyon and I'd be happy to drag you through the Narrows to Papoose Flats. If we don't do the narrows you'll be fine getting in the "normal" way to Papoose.

I'll put a long weekend on the calendar in May/June - I love the Sierras and wouldn't mind doing some camping out there too

Actually I haven't done a lot in DV. I split my free time between climbing and wheeling. There is so much of it here I never drive more then 45 minutes to get things. I would like to explore DV at some point though. And the Panamint Valley as well. I've also been trying to figure out the logistics of an all dirt trip up the East Side of 395. Basically start at the 395/14 junction and stay on dirt all the way to Mammoth and possibly beyond.

That might be do-able, but so much of that land has been sold and is being redeveloped like Cantil has been (solar dish farms)

 

[theesotericone]

Black Canyon to 34E303​

What can you say about Black Canyon? It's an often overlooked trail that takes you into the White Mountains south of Bishop. Look it up online and you'll find a lot of info on mountain bike forums. What you won't find is a lot of info on wheeling forums. It gets done but not often to my knowledge. Why? Well, because it's tight, loose shale, and generally just a really shitty road that's barely wide enough for a quad. It was perfect.

I got my usual crack of 11AM start and headed off towards Warm Springs Road. This is where you'll pick up Black Canyon Road. Calling it a roads being generous. If you are one of those clay bar pretty truck types you can cross this adventure off the list. My rigs got some really nice wood pin striping. Although the brush and trees did help knock a lot of the dirt off from last weeks adventure. lol

The plan was to head up Black to 34E303 then head over to 34E304. From there it looked like I could wind my way back down to Poleta Canyon. It might have worked if I was on a dirt bike. after about 7 miles there's a single track heading down but not even close to a passable 4X road. Oh well.

Plan B was quickly hatched. If I backtracked I could pick up 34E305. From the topo it should connect to 4S01. That's the major dirt road that runs atop the White Mountains, AKA, Ancient Bristlecone Scenic Byway. After about 4 miles on one of the narrowest roads I've ever run I was greeted by a very large, very dead tree. The tree was in the middle of my very narrow road. With a bit of luck I was able to get turned around and headed back out Black Canyon. I'll be back in the spring with a chainsaw. Once this connects again it's gonna be sweet.

Some of you guys may have noticed that I don't post a lot of pic of obstacles. I do this on purpose. Not having a clue of what's ahead is a huge part of the draw of wheeling to me. I like to give people an idea of the terrain but not spoil that adventure by posting every rock garden. wash, or steep, loose hill I navigate. Be warned though, this trail has all those things and a few more. lol


Here's the end of Warm Springs and the air down location. Black Canyon Road is right center of photo. From there it turns hard east and goes into the canyon.

Here's the mouth of the canyon. It's gonna get a lot narrower in the next mile.

Here's where it starts to narrow a bit. Not bad yet.

Just in case you where wondering why it's called Black Canyon.

Did I mention it gets a little narrow?

Top of the canyon.

Pretty nice of me to pull off to the side of the road to get this shot wasn't it? Actually that is the road. You can see the left quad track under my driver rear tire. lol

This is the end of 34E303. 34E304 heads left from here and unmarked 34E305 heads right. 34E305 looks really improbable for the first 300 yards but it goes. It's also sign posted 200 yards in for some reason. lol

The view from 8700' on side of the Whites from 34E304.

The end of 34E304 for anything but bikes. There's a bike only Forest Service sign about 100 yards past this. After scoping out the single track I tended to agree with them for once. lol

My turn around spot on 34E305. That big tree is another 200 yards in. Not the funnest spot I've ever had to back out of. lol

A cool photo heading back down 34E305.

And that's the end of the trip. Retrace your steps back down Black Canyon. At least until I get that tree out of the way.

Have a good Holiday guys.

 

[Road Bull]

Happy Holidays Matt!

That looks like some pretty cool trail you found. And it looks like that extra bit of clearance in your rear bumper comes in handy for those tight turn arounds. I dig it. Great pics too.

 

[Unner]

Looks like you're on the death valley side there? I commented to my girlfriend that I thought there wasn't much snow up on the Sierra Nevadas when we were there, but I wasn't sure if the death valley side of the valley gets any snow since there wasn't any at all.

Looks like a nice little trip!

 

[octanejunkie]

Nice no-spoiler post

 

[Road Bull]

So, an 80 series with factory dual lockers, V6 with 232000 just came up for sale. Price is a bit high but I'm drooling right now. lol

Ooooh. I have always loved this era of the Land Cruisers. Those are super tempting. Lucky for me, the only thing keeping me from buying one, is a bucket of cash. Maybe someday. People say they are more expensive to fix than your average 4runner. Maybe the parts are more expensive. But, for the buy-in at this vintage, you are getting one hell of a capable vehicle that somehow often has a lot of luxury that is beyond the reach in today's market. I just looked the modern day LC is $83,665 starting. Hahahahahaha. See? Just think of the money you'd be saving by buying smart with an 80 series! It practically sells itself!

 

[theesotericone]

Happy Holidays Matt!

That looks like some pretty cool trail you found. And it looks like that extra bit of clearance in your rear bumper comes in handy for those tight turn arounds. I dig it. Great pics too.

Thanks man. Hope things are well and you're enjoying the Holidays.

The bumper has passed everything I've thrown at it with flying colors. I'm happy.

Looks like you're on the death valley side there? I commented to my girlfriend that I thought there wasn't much snow up on the Sierra Nevadas when we were there, but I wasn't sure if the death valley side of the valley gets any snow since there wasn't any at all.

Looks like a nice little trip!

Yeah, it's a great trail. I can't wait to re-connect it.

I was in the White Mountains. White Mountain itself is the third highest peak in Cali. Death Valley is a lot further south and there's two sub-ranges between me and it. The Inyo Mountains and the Panamint Mountains. The highest peak in Death Valley is Telescope Peak at just over 11,000 feet. It does get snow but the trails usually are open year round down there.

Up here in the Whites there is almost always snow above 9,000 in a normal snow year. All the trails have locked gates at the top and bottom. This year they're not locked because of the lack of snow. That's what makes this trail unique. There's no gate. When I manage to connect it it could become a "secret" way into the upper Whites in a normal snow year. At least until the Forest Service gates it.

Nice no-spoiler post

Thanks man. It's not a 2 wheel locked trail though. I'll give you that much. lol It has about 3 miles of solid low range terrain on the way up.

Ooooh. I have always loved this era of the Land Cruisers. Those are super tempting. Lucky for me, the only thing keeping me from buying one, is a bucket of cash. Maybe someday. People say they are more expensive to fix than your average 4runner. Maybe the parts are more expensive. But, for the buy-in at this vintage, you are getting one hell of a capable vehicle that somehow often has a lot of luxury that is beyond the reach in today's market. I just looked the modern day LC is $83,665 starting. Hahahahahaha. See? Just think of the money you'd be saving by buying smart with an 80 series! It practically sells itself!

Yeah it would be nice but the wife vetoed it. Too much money. In the meantime I found a guy selling a 96 SR5 5 speed with 210k on the clock not far from me. He's asking to much as well but I'll meet up with him and take a look. If I can get him down I just might end up with two Runners. We'll see.

 

[octanejunkie]

There are a group of Overland Bound guys planning a spring break Death Valley trip - 5 days dry camping, in late March 2018.

I would be willing to coordinate and participate in a similar, maybe less ambitious, DV Weekender/Camping trip for this coming spring. A few here seem to have interest in the area and it's only about 2 hours from me.

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk

 

[BrianSD_42]

Your 4Runner must a lot faster than mine if you can get to DV from LA in about 2 hrs. I'd guess 3 hours to Lone Pine without traffic and if course it's another 45 mins from there into the valley from North entrance. Going to the South entrance (Panamint Springs) looks closer on a map but the time to enter the park is similar (~3.5 hrs best) from LA because the roads are slower.

BTW I'd be down for a quick trip. I've been many times, it's a pretty cool place.

I'd really like to do a HWY 395 lakes and breweries 2-3 day camping trip around March/April when the roads open up.

 

[octanejunkie]

Your 4Runner must a lot faster than mine if you can get to DV from LA in about 2 hrs. I'd guess 3 hours to Lone Pine without traffic and if course it's another 45 mins from there into the valley from North entrance. Going to the South entrance (Panamint Springs) looks closer on a map but the time to enter the park is similar (~3.5 hrs best) from LA because the roads are slower.

BTW I'd be down for a quick trip. I've been many times, it's a pretty cool place.

I'd really like to do a HWY 395 lakes and breweries 2-3 day camping trip around March/April when the roads open up.

Yes, Brian, my 4runner is a lot faster :bigok:

2 hours is a rough number, considering I start counting when I leave the SFV after gassing up in Van Nuys, cheapest gas on my route till Mojave. With no traffic I can get to Mojave from the SFV in about an hour or so.

From Mohave to Olancha Junction is about another hour, there is a DV cut off there, but in all honesty I've never been to DV, so that cutoff (109 IIRC) might be useless.

I'm about 3 hours to Lone Pine, 4 hours to Bishop, all in, so I'd have to defer to your experience here.

FWIW, I'm thinking about doing a light wheeling day in Gorman before the New Year, or any other spot within the same driving distance

 

[theesotericone]

I would be willing to coordinate and participate in a similar, maybe less ambitious, DV Weekender/Camping trip for this coming spring. A few here seem to have interest in the area and it's only about 2 hours from me.

BTW I'd be down for a quick trip. I've been many times, it's a pretty cool place.

I'd really like to do a HWY 395 lakes and breweries 2-3 day camping trip around March/April when the roads open up.

I'll be in Australia from mid-March to mid-April. Haven't booked yet but I'll let you guys know the dates. I'd be down for a little late April DV run or you guys can head up this way and I'll show you around. If the snow doesn't show up soon it's gonna be a year round wheeling season at 10,000 this year. lol

 

[octanejunkie]

I'll be in Australia from mid-March to mid-April. Haven't booked yet but I'll let you guys know the dates. I'd be down for a little late April DV run or you guys can head up this way and I'll show you around. If the snow doesn't show up soon it's gonna be a year round wheeling season at 10,000 this year. lol

Well, if it's a weekend thing, I can do it anytime :humble:

 

[Unner]

I'll be in Australia from mid-March to mid-April. Haven't booked yet but I'll let you guys know the dates. I'd be down for a little late April DV run or you guys can head up this way and I'll show you around. If the snow doesn't show up soon it's gonna be a year round wheeling season at 10,000 this year. lol

What are you doing in Australia? That's another place I'd love to see.

 

[theesotericone]

What are you doing in Australia? That's another place I'd love to see.

Climbing at Arapiles and the Grampians. Also visiting my wives parents that live in Melbourne.

Go you won't regret it. This will be my second visit. My wife is a dual US and Australian citizen. We've talked about moving there but I can't leave the mountains. What would be ideal though is winters in Oz(there summer) and summers here. That's my dream retirement plan. Lucky for me I've got 20 years to figure out the logistics. lol

 

[octanejunkie]

Climbing at Arapiles and the Grampians. Also visiting my wives parents that live in Melbourne.

How many wives you got? Lol

 

[theesotericone]

How many wives you got? Lol

 

[Unner]

Climbing at Arapiles and the Grampians. Also visiting my wives parents that live in Melbourne.

Go you won't regret it. This will be my second visit. My wife is a dual US and Australian citizen. We've talked about moving there but I can't leave the mountains. What would be ideal though is winters in Oz(there summer) and summers here. That's my dream retirement plan. Lucky for me I've got 20 years to figure out the logistics. lol

Very nice! One day I'll make it hopefully.

 

[theesotericone]

Rudolph Rd to Coldwater Canyon to Moulas Mine(5S112)​

Today was an unexpected day off. It's snowing in a ski resort town so I got a snow day. Go figure. Since I don't ski and I needed to blow off a little steam I headed out to explore an area a few miles north of Bishop off Route 6.

There's a trail system that goes up 9600' on the Inyo National Forest Atlas. Not bad considering Route 6 is just over 4000'. There's a few old mining claims up there. The only named one is the Moulas Mine. The road actually continues past where the topo shows it ending for another mile. It ends at 10'400 feet atop a small rise.

Since I had some extra time to kill I took the long way in. There's a few unmarked dirt roads that stay shoot north from Rudolph Road. It's perfect high speed dirt. Just what I needed. It also happens to go past Coldwater Canyon, another area I wanted check out.

So with Five Finger Death Punch blaring I aired down and started the days adventures.


Here's the entrance to Coldwater. Another 1/4 mile past that is the end of the road. Not what I was hoping for.

Dirt in the desert. Notice that innocent looking ravine on the right of the photo? Yeah, remember that one.

So the road I'm on doesn't connect to the road I want to be on. The roads area only about 1/4 mile apart. That damn ravine again. I could backtrack 2 miles or so but I'll keep driving cause there's always a way.

Here's where shit got real. The road does indeed cross the ravine. You can see the road dropping in to the right of my rig. You can't see the exit. It was the steepest thing I've tackled. It doesn't cut the ravine like the drop in point. It goes straight up. The only tire tracks in it where from dirt bikes. I seriously considered taking my spare off and lashing it to the front bumper. It's that steep. With a little two foot driving though I made it without slipping or rolling.

That's where I'm going. I think?

Turns out 5S112 doesn't go into that canyon. It cuts hard left after another 1/4 mile. Then it gets steep fast.

And it stays steep and loose.

For a very long time as it works up the spine of a hillside.

At about 9000' you enter a forested area for a few minutes.

Then it gets steep, loose and narrow again.

This is where the road ends according to both my atlas and the topo on my phone. See that ridge just under the clouds on the right of the photo? Yeah, more about that in a second.

So this is where the "road" really ends. Not a lot of tracks and it's really sharp rocks under you but it's another mile and almost 1000' of elevation gain. Looking north.

Looking south.

I gotta say I wasn't expecting much from this trip. Most things in this area of the White's aren't that interesting. This trail was though. It's constantly steep, long, and takes you further in then I initially thought. From the start of 5S112 to where I stopped ended up being just under 5 miles. Lots and lots of this trail in loose, sharp rock. Anyone going needs to have a spare and a patch kit. I was in low range for almost all of it.

Hope to see some of you guys out here sometime. Lots of things to do in my area. lol

 

[phattyduck]

Hope to see some of you guys out here sometime. Lots of things to do in my area. lol

Most of us blast on through to get to the snow. :smow: :biggrin1:

-Charlie