Metal Masher
We were at the Metal Masher trailhead sign at 5PM when we decided that we still wanted to do the trail. Bob was on a mission to conquer Widowmaker, and no one was ready to quit wheeling for the day.
The trail was marked by painted white lizards this time, making it even easier to find. This has never really been a difficult trail to find, though.
It was pretty mellow until we got to the place where Wayne bent back his tailpipe last year. Monica tried it and failed miserably again, so she backed back down. Bob got in it and spun some tires, but it wasn't happening for him either. We all just kept going, so no one made it up that hill again.
We didn't see any other vehicles on the trail, and we got to Rock Chucker in about an hour from when we were at the trailhead. Bob was excited to do it again, so he got right on it. He popped right over the top with no issues at all.
Monica decided to try it next, and everyone decided that if she made it they'd all have to try it. She made it right up, so then it was everyone's turn.
While Bob was spotting Monica up the obstacle he did some crazy hand movements that were caught on video. This "dance" is now called "The Bob" and one we did regularly during the following day on Pritchett Canyon as well as on the trip home to Denver in a blizzard.
Eric went up Rock Chucker next, like he was on a paved road. It went so fast that some people even missed seeing it.
Mike and Cheryl went up next and didn't have any troubles with their silver Rubicons. Ladd brought up the rear and did a bunch of sliding around at the top, but he kept on it and popped right up. We all did Rock Chucker and we were feeling pretty good!
The little bit of trail that takes you from the top of Rock Chucker back down to the main trail is more challenging than you would think. There are a few cool sections, then you have a very steep downhill part followed by another downhill section that is tippy. It was even fun coming down from that, so we had a blast getting back to the trail.
The sun was starting to set as we got to Mirror Gulch. There were a few tires spinning on the way into the obstacle, but otherwise everyone just drove right through it. It's a fun section.
The fun hill came next, and everyone took the optional way through it at the top, where it is steep. When we ran this trail last time we all went around it, and that proved to be an interesting section when Ladd and Eric both got a pretty crazy wheelstand. This time it was just a challenging obstacle and no one got into any weird positions.
We got to the cliff edge as the light was finally leaving us, and the highway looked really cool with all of the headlights from the cars below. It was a gorgeous sunset.
Naturally we decided to go try Widowmaker in the dark. Monica went up first and forgot about the left turn as you got to the pole at the top of the hill before the obstacle, dropping her front tire off the edge. She backed out of it, but it was close.
After we all got to the top, Bob was ready to try Widowmaker. We found a wimpy winch point in the rocks, so he got his Jeep ready to winch, just in case.
Bob got up on it and started giving it some gas, spinning tires and making some progress. Then he slid off to the right like so many have, but he kept on it. Finally, his front tires started sliding off to the left, putting him a little sideways on the hill so he stopped. He ended up on the rock on the right, unable to back down.
Bob's plan was to winch himself high enough to get off the rock, then back down to try again. It was working just fine until the flimsy winch point broke and Bob came back down on the rock. He couldn't go forward and he couldn't go back, so he was stuck.
Mike and Monica started down the hill to take the bypass and get over to the top of Widowmaker so Bob could winch off of their Jeeps. Even though they hurried and only lost about two minutes lost on some slickrock, it still took about 30 minutes to come around. Bob was stuck in his seatbelt the entire time, and was ready to get off the obstacle by the time they got there.
While they were waiting, Cheryl was playing with Cole and moving some rocks around, hurting her back in the process. Everyone helped her crawl up Widowmaker and get in her Jeep, and Don drove the rest of the trail. No one wanted to be winched up Widowmaker after Bob, so everyone else went around to the bypass.
Eventually we all caught up and were all together again at the top of Widowmaker. We slowly worked our way to the end of the trail, then decided to go out to Highway 313 instead of back by Gooney Bird Rock. It ended up being a nice, smooth ride to the highway, which was good for Cheryl.
It was far back to town and the next day's trail was far south of town so we aired up before going back to Moab. It was a chilly ride but we finally got home to dinner in the condo. It was a great day, even though no one made it up Widowmaker. Next time!
Reports from Other Days: 4
Use the arrows or dots to flip through the previews of the other reports for Metal Masher. Click one of them to read more and see all of the photos from that day.
