Ice Cave Creek Road
We had intended to run Winding Stairs Road -- that was going to be the big trail of the day. We had just had a blast on Hidden Valley Road, spent some time on Rampart Range Road, and then we started up Winding Stairs Road.
We pulled off early in the trail to have lunch. Everyone was happy and talking fast, excited to start Winding Stairs Road. We had a big group, but it looked like it was going to be a fun one.
The clouds above us looked a little menacing, but not too bad. It looked like it could go either way. We finished up with lunch and everyone was packing up, and then it started sprinkling.
Robert noticed that half of his skid plate was just hanging off of his Jeep, so he spent a little time in the rain and forming mud getting it put back on. It was really raining at this point, and we were realizing that the challenging half of Winding Stairs Road could end up taking us a bit more time than we thought. Brian decided it was going to take too much time so they headed for home after lunch.
We all left, heading for the fun half of the trail. We were almost to the intersection with Ice Cave Creek Road when Robert lost his power steering. He had sprung a leak in the line near his power steering pump. He put some JB Weld on it and we waited to see if it would hold.
As we waited, the rain turned from sprinkles now and then to a downpour. We all sat in our Jeeps, talking on the CB. Robert decided not to risk it, and that he would just head for home. Bob and Jed decided to skip the rest of the rainy day and headed out with him. The rest of us decided that the rain was just too much for the second half of Winding Stairs, so we headed out as well.
That meant that we all took Ice Cave Creek Road instead and no one did the fun on Winding Stairs Road. We'd have to save it for another day. What a bummer! The rain was really coming down, and there was a river flowing in the middle of the trail in lots of places. Staying off of the steepness of Winding Stairs was a good idea.
Reports from Other Days: 9
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