Twin Cone
It had been far too long since we'd been on Twin Cone, and everyone was pretty excited to get going. It was always a group favorite, and we had a couple of new members with our big group of regulars. The sun was shining and everyone was in a great mood as we aired down at the Kenosha Pass parking area. It wasn't long before we were on the trail.
Though there were a few tiny puddles here and there, there really wasn't much water on the trail. We were really surprised to see that they had fixed the portion of the trail that had previously been under quite a bit of water, and this time we were on a trail that was high and dry. It must make things easier for the people who own buildings there.
We saw a couple of ATVs throughout the course of the day but otherwise we had the trail to ourselves. We were a pretty big group, so that was a lucky break. We started up the switchbacks and the trail was pretty easy, and soon we were at the overlook.
We found plenty of room to park everyone, and we all got out to check out the scenery. It was a very clear and nearly cloudless day, and we could see for many miles. The mosquitoes were out, so everyone broke out the bug spray, and then we were off again.
We were soon at the bottom of the first obstacle, and everyone remembered why we liked this trail so much. The rocks were loose and large in places, and the dirt between them was usually loose and damp. That made for a slick and slippery challenge at almost every rocky section.
There is some braiding through the whole area, but you can usually tell which part of the trail is the legal one. In places you couldn't tell, we usually remembered which illegal section wasn't there the time before. It seemed like the right-most trail was most often the correct one, but we still had to use our best judgment in places.
Lockers were turned on by those who had them, and we all enjoyed the challenges as we climbed. We remembered a tippy section and many went through it that way, but a few of us tried to go over the rocks that high centered everyone. Monica failed, Austin failed, Chuck failed, Brian failed, and then Gary got hopelessly stuck. He managed to get all four tires almost hanging in the air, with rocks in front of and behind him that wouldn't let him pass. He broke out the winch and got through it with just a little pull.
We had a good time through the next bit, and then we were at the second major obstacle. There was a section of rock that gave us troubles the times before, and it was more dug out and difficult this time. A few of us tried, but none of us had tires big enough or clearance great enough to make it over the big rocks. Monica tried quite a few lines before she got hopelessly stuck and had to winch out. She only winched a couple of feet before she was stuck again. The loose dirt just made it too difficult to stay on a line.
A few others experimented with different lines through those big rocks, but nothing to the right of the center line would work. It was okay, though, because there were many other fun lines to be had.
Mark F. had been with us up to this point but he took a look at the big hill climb just around the corner and decided that he'd had enough. He left us at that point, and we continued on. He was right, it was a tough climb.
The only legal way up this hill is one of the more difficult ways, the way furthest to the right as you face uphill. Monica went first and needed lockers and a lot of digging and working to get to the top. Everyone else had to give it just as much of an effort, but it was worth it. The most impressive display came from Brian who worked long and hard to get his nearly stock Jeep Wrangler up to the top. Nice job!
After we made it up the big hill we pulled off to the parking area to have lunch. It was windy, of course, but we made a wind block with the Jeeps and had a nice lunch. It was great to have so many people there, just like years past.
It was a great time climbing up to the top, and we all crammed in together to find parking. It was really windy and pretty chilly even with the sun shining, so we didn't stay long. The scenery was amazing, though, and everyone was smiling from ear to ear.
The trip back down to the trailhead was pretty fast. All of the obstacles are easy going downhill, of course, and we didn't stop for pictures. We left a few members at the trailhead to air up while most of the group continued on to Boreas Pass. Twin Cone is such a fun trail, and we're going to do our best to see it more often.
Reports from Other Days: 6
Use the arrows or dots to flip through the previews of the other reports for Twin Cone. Click one of them to read more and see all of the photos from that day.
