This run is and always will be contingent on the weather. This is an overnight run.
Run Leaders: Rob & Karen Rien (949) 351-9309 KM6GOT & KM6GOS
We will be heading down Friday Night. Please RSVP to Rob at the phone number above or email rrien07@gmail.com. Meeting at Trailhead to Pinyon Mountain at 0900 Saturday morning January 28. Coordinates: Latitude: 33° 3'25.10"N, Longitude: 116°25'13.10"W
There is an RV park about 100 yards from the trailhead and folks can make a reservation to stay the night there, Karen and I will be heading out Friday and stay the night Friday and Saturday. They only have RV and Tent sites available that weekend. Rates are very reasonable and can be found on the attached Stagecoach Price List. Cabins are sold out for a wedding that weekend, however I have reserved several spots for us to camp as a group, see the attached map, just mention the Dirt Devils, they will put you with our group, time permitting we could also do a Night run.
There is a parking lot where we will meet up, air down and disconnect your front sway bar if needed. If Your Rig does not have “Anti Rock” or “Quick Disconnects” you will need to bring two 18mm open-end wrenches (the ratchet closed ends are faster) and two zip ties to disconnect your sway bar and tie up your tie rods. You will need to disconnect your sway bar for this run.
Tire size: 32" at Minimum, however 33” or larger is easier, tires need to be aired down to max of 18 PSI, any more than this and you will have too much of a tire swell on your side walls, and you will have a tougher time fitting through the squeeze, it's is a very tight fit between two extra-large boulders.
Lift: Nice if you have it but not necessary for this run.
Body Damage: Possible as in all runs, but more so on the Squeeze and Heart-Attack Hill. I will winch down anyone not comfortable driving their rig down the hill. Shorter stock rigs might choose this option, but it’s not necessary, just bring a fresh pair of Panties or Shorts).
Trail Type: Medium to extreme, driver’s choice. There are 8 or more tough spots that a stock Jeep will have a tougher time getting through but with a skilled driver and 4 wheel drive, it is passable.
Communication: Ham Radio 146.550 MHz S-2/CB Channel 4/Cell: (949) 351-9301 Rob's Cell.
Required Equipment:
So here are the facts of the trail: Departure angles are tight (no Full Sized Trucks will fit), so small Toy trucks might have a bit more rubbing than a Jeep, but still completely passable as long as they fit through The Squeeze gate keeper. Otherwise they can go around and meet up at the bottom of Heart-Attack Hill. Plan on most of the day to get through this run, with just two rigs and one winching, it took us 4.5 hours to run this trail. This is a very challenging run, but it is not limited to just the Built up Jeeps, our son’s 08 JK Sport was able to make the run with proper staking and spotting. I am sure that he could have made it up the waterfall if we had the time to try. This is a great trail to test your skills as a driver, so do not let the extremity of the trail keep you from coming along. We will discuss proper descent of the extremely steep hill, review the two lines to take before you head down the trail. This is a Jeep Badge of Honor run and is considered one of the toughest runs in the So Cal area, but the cool part is that it can be run in a stock Jeep without any lift. This is a beautiful desert run with amazing vistas and sandstone canyons, so if you have never been, or have not been south of Ocotillo Wells, come see the untouched part of that desert.
Run Overview: The Squeeze is the first obstacle we will go through, one of the nice things about this trail is that it is a one way trail, so if it is backed up we will not be waiting on someone coming the wrong way, just the rigs trying to get through the trail. Once through The Squeeze, we will travel down to an amazing vista and waterfall that we will NOT be going down, but it is great photo op. Then we will turn around and head up the hill to "Heart-Attack" Hill. There are a few more gatekeepers to go through but once you get through these tight spots; one waterfall and a nasty looking boulder, you will just drive on up to a staging point on top of the hill. We will review the safety procedures for descending this hill so that all rigs make it down safely. On every video that I have seen of rollovers from this hill, each one has been Spotter and Driver error. I have run this hill several times and no one in our groups has ever rolled or damaged their rigs other than a few scrapes. Once down the hill we will head out to Sandy Canyon. We were not able to pre-run the canyon due to the recent rains but it is an amazing canyon. From there we will head back out to Fish Creek Wash and time permitting hit El Diablo Drop off and then head back to Camp.
On Sunday Morning we will head out at 0800 for 5 and 7 Palms, these are Oasis watering holes for the desert animals in the area, then head up the wash to Fish Creek once more, and visit a mud cave or two. There are Wind caves that I have not seen yet that are supposed to be amazing but we will need to hike in to see them - there are no Jeeps allowed on that trail. From there we will pass Fish Creek Dry Campsite heading back towards the road. We will air back up near the road and head out from there to S2, making a right on S2 and left on 79. There is a nice restaurant overlooking Lake Henshaw.
Directions: Travel to Stagecoach RV Resort (Trailhead 300 yards or so on left side of road past Resort Pinyon Mtn. Trailhead). From Orange: 5 south to 79, 79 to 78, left to Borrego Springs, Ocotillo Wells, Right on San Felipe Road (S2), Right on 78, Left on S2. StageCoach RV Resort is on the Right side of the Road, Trailhead is just past on the left side of the road.
The RV Resort does offer group rates as long as only one person pays and we put down 20% deposit,.I think that their rates are low enough, but said I would put it out there for anyone. Group Rates require 10 or more staying on the resort.