Trip Report

[sharon]

Just got back from 8 days in the desert with no cell, no tv, no outside service of any kind, so have been busy checking up on all of you gals. Busy, busy, busy! We were in Johnson Valley, near Lucerne for the King of the Hammers race. What fun! We jeep up there several times a year, but this is the first time we've gone up for the race. The area is called Means Dry Lake OHV area and most folks, like us, go up to run the rock canyons, called The Hammers. There's Jack Hammer, Claw Hammer, etc.

This is the BF coming up a rock ledge, called a waterfall. The reason I got this pic is because I was walking (or climbing I guess would be the word) for a while. He had rolled the jeep over on it's side about 200 ft before this shot, and I decided that walking was the better part of valor for a while.



We called this guy Mad Maxx, not because of the way his buggy looked, but because of the way he was driving. Here he's going up the first waterfall to a ledge called "Back Door". I predicted he would flop her over there and sure nuff, he did. Nice guys, we caught up with them later and they are from Canada, had never played in the rocks before, but they sure were having fun!








Nice view from the trail

[Nasoosie]

HOLY COW, Sharon! I had no clue you were doing stuff like this! My son would LOVE to be involved in that kind of off-roading, or rock climbing in vehicles, or whatever you call it! How, pray tell, do they right those overturned vehicles?? Great pictures....thanks for posting them!

[sharon]

They just put a winch from another vehicle on it and flop it back over, no fuss, no muss. BF had a hard time getting his rig back over 'cause there wasn't any place for another vehicle to get beside him and none of the rocks above him were stable enough to put a winch on and use to turn himself back on his wheels. The guy behind him has a super crawler and went up the side of the mountain and hooked onto him with a snatch block and winch and flipped him over. I had already crawled out of the jeep, had gear oil running on my leg and had had enough. Just sorry that I forgot to get the camera out so I could get pictures. In 15 years of crawling there, that's the first time he ever put his jeep over....boy, was he mad! He's put it over in Moab and over by Salton Sea, but never there. Wasn't scary when it happened, we wear 4 point harness' and it happened real slow. Crazy? Probably. Fun? Absolutely!

[bluepinecones]

It does look like crazy fun - but for someone else, not me for sure.
Great photos, enjoyed all

[avalen]

OH MY GOODNESS!!

[Liz]

Gosh, hope nobody got hurt! I'd be walking too and taking the photos.

[mtngal]

Wow, that looks 'exciting'! I'm with you gals walking. And wasn't the weather perfect? Love those blue skies!

[SeeyaGal]

Sharon you guys are NUTS! Yeah I'd be taking photo's .......can't get me in one of those things!! My Jeep is trail ready with the skid plate on the bottom but I won't let Dan take her out!

[Bethers]

My eyes are still popping out of my head. I, too, alas, would be one of the walkers and picture takers. And I'm not sure I'd want to get too close. But I sure can understand how you guys can enjoy it.

Great pictures - and I'll be looking at them again, I'm sure.

[sharon]

No Liz, no one was hurt, we're tied in the seat pretty tightly with a harness. When we rolled over my butt and shoulders didn't move a bit and I'm always careful to keep hands and feet inside. Here are a couple more pics...these are from Nevada last year. Slick rock like in Moab, Utah, which is where we'll be over Easter. Glad you guys are enjoying them.

[Orchid]

Yikes! This is definitely not my kind of driving. I'm getting motion sickness just looking at the pix. Thanks, Sharon, for posting them though. Cheryl

[Sparkle]

Note to self...if Sharon invites me ANYWHERE have a good excuse ready.

[BirdbyBird]

Or note to self: If invited just insist that you will drive in your vehicle. Nice picts, lets us know what it is all about even if our imaginations can't put us in the seat!

[retiredhappy]

OMG, can you spell crazy? I'm with Sparkle. Love the pictures tho, keep them coming so I can get my excitement vicariously.

[sharon]

Aww c'mon Sparkle, I took you wheelin' at the North Rim in a Rhino and didn't flop you over once! Altho I did notice that the
"oh sh&t" bar on your side was a little bent when we got back!

Donna and I WILL get you out to the sand dunes and on a quad one of these days!!!