You have heard of them, Rubicon, Tellico , Moab , and many other places like these. They are legendary places where only the experienced drivers venture across, with their well set up rigs. Only a nitwit would take a basic stock truck onto trails like these. Well that is me you see. More guts than brains. More desire than capabilities. This is the Los Coyotes Recreational Area. I thought that it would be a long time, until my Toyota and I were ready for the grueling trails that beckoned me. The time came sooner than expected.

My friend Eddie and my two Labradors spent Friday night camping out at Nelson campground.  We wanted to get a jump on the crowds that I anticipated would show up on Friday. Well, crowds of people were not a problem and we had the place to ourselves. The Nelson campground is nice because it is secluded, has only two campsites, and is not part of some large community campground.

Saturday morning arrived and after breakfast cleanup, Eddie and I packed up camp and went to the main campground to find the Dirt Devils. We found the Devils and their rigs, just before they were ready to roll. The turnout for this run was seven trucks. With Jesse May as our leader, we headed out to challenges yet unseen.

At the entrance of the reservation we were given a complementary map of the area, I wish that my navigator and I had studied that map more closely. Then the trail names like, Bob Sled Run, Ball Bearing Hill, Squeeze Rock, and Which Way Hill, may have given a clue as to what was coming up. The trail we started out on seemed like a fun venture and would not panic my dogs or myself. As we progressed down the trail, I found short steep descents that forced me to stop and get out of my truck to look at the obstacle, and figure if my truck was going to Endo over it or not. That section of trail was not as bad as I thought it going to be.  It was actually fun. A ways down on another trail the brush was closing in and making smooth passage difficult. The sounds emanating from the sides of my Toyota reminded me of fingernails scraping across a chalkboard. It was about this time that I pondered about the paint condition on my fellow club member’s trucks.

The trail seemed, (at times), to be so narrow, that I was convinced we were trekking down a goat path. A fun obstacle was an offset drop of two feet on the trail. By carefully driving off the edge, you can twist the suspension of your truck and show off its articulation. I was amazed at Corey’s Jeep articulation, provided by Terra Flex shackles. I was further amazed at my Toyotas lack of front-end articulation, causing a lifted rear tire.  The trail up to now, was accessible with my twin open differential truck, but up ahead of me, was one of the many chewed up hills that my truck just would not climb without serious slamming of the trucks suspension. I purposely positioned myself behind Mike Hewitt’s War Wagon. My hat is off to Mike for the many pulls that he provided to me. With a solid tug from the tow strap, every hill could be ascended (albeit with help). If steep hill-climbs can bring on near death experiences, so can these Down-hills that we were descending. One particular hill that Eddie and I had closely looked at on the previous day, had me laughing when Eddie suggested that we would probably wind up going down that hill the next day. How correct this visionary of the future was. Wisdom is what it is all about, as it turns out the hill was steep, but not the religious experience that I thought it would be. Once at the bottom of the hill, the nastiest vertical trail I had seen this day lay before me. The thought of being towed up this hill was out of the question, lucky for me this obstacle had a bypass around to the top. Once at the peak of  the hill, I could better appreciate the abilities of those  rigs that can drive to the top, without multiple roll-overs. A certain yellow CJ that appeared to be locked at both ends, had gotten seriously close to rolling over, when it was suggested to him, to wait for a helpful pull to the top. I then watched Jesse May drive the full length of this one-hundred yard hill, making it look almost easy. Most of the club took the bypass and regrouped so we could then continue on. It was closing in on one o’clock before we found a location off the trail, large enough to fit all our rigs, and for an hour, we caught our breath and chowed down. Most of the club feasted on cold sandwiches, while Eddie and I cooked Carne Asada, yum.

Los Coyotes Recreational Area is group of tight, twisty, and loose soil on hard pack trails. I could not imagine a long wheel based truck in a place like this, (unless it was a bulldozer). A King Cab 4x4 would however, be very useful on the next downhill that I was looking at. The steep angle of this trail combined with its dug out holes, in just the wrong places, had my anxiety level shoot up one hundred percent. Another truck club that was coming up the trail, this gave me time to closely examine the difficult section. Eddie and I were watching a Suzuki Samurai, (that was locked), crawl up the section that had me the most worried. It appeared that the driver chose an acceptable line up the hill, until all the tires were looking for traction. That poor Samurai slid back down a little bit and to the side, rite into one of those holes. When that Suzuki driver felt the front left tire leave the ground, he promptly applied the brakes. It is kind of sickening watching a fellow enthusiast, ever so slowly, roll onto his roof, now my anxiety level jumps upward again. The two clubs band together and quickly put the tires back onto the trail. After the rollover, that Suzuki only needed a few brief seconds of engine cranking and he was no worse than before, with no injuries.  Now, the moment of truth has arrived.  It is my turn to drive down that hill. Near the worst part of the hill, I stop and ask Mike Hewitt to strap me to his War Wagon, and lower me down the worst section, (where the Suzuki rolled).            

I was fearing the worst and praying for the best. Well we inched down that difficult section and with a great guide pointing where to go, I finished the hill without a problem.

Now we repeat the strapping of my Toyota for the next obstacle, the meanest “V”notch  that I have ever seen. The “V” was bad enough, but it also dropped your truck a foot or so. This notch had to be navigated just rite, or you could drop one side of your truck into the notch, and waste the side of your rig. As Eddie and I descended the notch, to my left, just outside the window on the side of the “V”, I noticed paint from trucks that botched the descent or ascent on this section. This was noteworthy and I exclaimed to Eddie (oh look a rainbow). My heart was skipping a beat or two as the truck dropped into the end of the notch, which means the worst is over. I completed the “V” without adding a silver hue to the rainbow, I can now disconnect the strap, it will not be needed again today.

Watching and learning is what it is all about so Eddie and I observe the remainder of the club navigate this section. I also see that nobody else wanted to be strapped down the “V”, and this makes me feel like a wimp. Oh well.

The rest of the day was fun and challenging, but nothing to really worry me. One strange sight to see is Bag Bys Rock. This is a house- sized rock that leans over the trail, threatening to roll over anything under it. This section is driven carefully, paying close attention to the roof line of your truck. Eddie and I consult the map and are dismayed that there is still a lot of trail to go, it was getting into the late afternoon. The remaining hours of daylight disappear behind the ridge to the West as we make the main dirt road. Realizing that we made it through the best that the trail could throw at us, I kissed the ground I stopped on. We headed back to the main camping area to regroup and head home. Night fall is complete as we hit Highway 79.

As I drive the 79, headed back to civilization, I reflect back on the day and realize how fortunate we are, to be part of an association of dedicated enthusiast. With the teamwork and advise, we can go places that previously were inaccessible. It is also reassuring to know that if a problem arises, nobody is going to be left behind, all this, from my fellow club-members at The Dirt Devils,    Thank You.

Ken