Eagle Rock
After a great time on Saran Wrap, we were ready for the fun on Eagle Rock. We had already crossed the pond at Gold Camp Road, and now we were on our way to the true trailhead.
The big dirt hill near the Eagle Rock trailhead had a tree across it, and it didn't seem worth the effort to get rid of it just to do the hill. We decided to skip the hill, crossing the little stream and getting started with the trail.
The rocks at the start were fun, and they even gave a couple of people some issues. However, it wasn't long before we were at the Poser Rock.
This big rock is completely optional, and everyone decided to see how much they could flex their suspensions on it. Don got up on it, getting some great flex in his nearly stock Jeep Rubicon, stopping when his rear tire left the ground. He was light on his tires, but he stopped long enough for some pictures. Austin thought it looked like his Jeep was peeing, so he mimicked it in the background for effect.
Robert got up on the rock and showed us how much his YJ could flex. It was pretty impressive! He was really twisted up.
Pete came through next and took a slightly different line. His flex was incredible as he worked his way to the top of the rock. Instead of backing down, he actually went over the edge, getting some more great flex shots.
Austin came up last, getting some more impressive TJ flex out of his suspension. He had a big grin on his face, and his Jeep looked awesome.
We kept going, and it wasn't long before we were at the first obstacle. It looked like it was a little more dug out compared to the year before, but it was nearly the same. It looked rough in spots.
Don went right up the middle, and it looked like he was going to just walk right over it. Then he got pretty stuck. He couldn't go forward at all, and backward wasn't going to happen either. He only had a couple of tires completely on the ground, and those were on loose dirt. He ended up getting a tug back down from Robert, and then Don chose a different line that took him right up and over the obstacle.
Robert got up on the far left line of the obstacle, and it was just as tough as it was the year before. We just didn't have the clearance to pull it off. He tried changing his line around here and there, but nothing was working. He finally had to give up and go through the middle, which ended up being easy for him.
Pete was next to try the left line, but it wasn't meant to be for him, either. He got pretty tippy at one point, and he tried a few times, but the obstacle is just too big. He successfully went around it.
Austin had seen enough, and he just went right up through the middle. It was just as easy for him as it was for most of the others.
We had some words with some dirt bikers who came up, when two of them decided to go around the obstacle and off trail instead of through it. We didn't get through to them, though, and we saw their tracks off trail again in a few places as the day went on.
We kept going, and we were surprised to find that the big rocky hill wasn't as tough this year. Everyone picked their way through and over the rocks, not having any issues. We weren't sure what changed, but something was different, making it easier.
The rocks are so much fun, and everyone enjoyed themselves as we worked our way to the last obstacle. Don had to work on it to get his tire up on the big rock, simply because of smaller tires. Once he did, he was up and over the rocks and through the obstacle without any issues.
Robert flexed his way through it, getting a couple good wheelstands in the process. It was easy for him, and fun to watch.
Pete tried a slightly different line, and as his reward he ended up really tippy at the bottom of the obstacle. He was already getting a wheelstand, and it looked like he could flop his Jeep over if he kept going. He backed up and changed his line, and then it was fine. At the top of the obstacle, he got tippy again, but this time he drove out of it. He definitely made the most of the obstacle!
Austin came through last, twisting and flexing his suspension. He made it look very easy, and his Jeep looked like it was on a dirt road.
There had been a lot of snow during the winter, and we still saw some on the sides of the trail. The streams actually had whitewater in them, and there were muddy sections where the trail was usually dry. One muddy section also had rocks in it, and Don found one of them stuck under his transmission skid plate. He needed another tug from Robert to get through, and everyone and everything got muddy.
When we got to the marshy area we found a club and the Forest Service finishing up work. They had put up fencing to keep people out of the wetlands, which was definitely needed. They said we could go off trail to get around them (they had lots of vehicles) but we decided to wait for them to move instead. It wasn't long before part of the trail was clear enough for us to get through. We thanked them for the work they were doing, and then we kept going.
The views on this end of the trail were phenomenal. Everything was very green, complemented by the snow on top of Pikes Peak. It was absolutely gorgeous, and we enjoyed the scenery.
When we got out to the dirt road, we found a section of optional trail that usually just went up a hill and back down. This time, water was going across the start of it. Don had to see how deep it was, cautiously creeping through it. It came up pretty high on his Jeep, but he made it through just fine.
Austin had to see how high it would come on his Jeep. It was quite a bit different. On his Jeep, it wasn't even high enough to cover his tires.
We headed back to Gold Camp Road and found ourselves in quite a bit of traffic. That made everything extremely dusty. It was probably the most dust and dirt we've seen on a trip so far, but it was worth it.
We ended up at El Tesoro in Colorado Springs were we had some fantastic Mexican food. The construction on I-25 made it difficult to get to, but the food was worth it. We filled our bellies and headed for home after a great day of wheeling.
Reports from Other Days: 12
Use the arrows or dots to flip through the previews of the other reports for Eagle Rock. Click one of them to read more and see all of the photos from that day.
