Never Wheel Alone!!!

JL Rockies · **Posted:** Fri May 14, 2010 12:59 am

From my Facebook fan page posted 5/2:

I went to the U4WDA board meeting Thursday night which I attend when I remember to. After the meeting was over, one of the members approached me and invited me to go out with him and his friends on a trail ride and campfire.

The trail head was in Saratoga Springs, UT which is very close to where I live. I had no idea there were any trails just on the other side of the freeway from where I live but as it turned out, the trail was 82 miles round trip! We met up at 5PM and headed out on schedule (unusual for any outing).

We had been in the midst of a snow/rain storm all week so the trails were very muddy. The plan was to drive up and over the mountain range and have a campfire on the other side at the mouth of Black Rock Canyon. The trail itself was basically a narrow dirt road which had a steep edge on the passenger side most of the way.

About 3/4 of the way to our destination, we stopped to gather firewood. At this point we were in the middle of nowhere and it was raining and snowing on and off which is why I thought it unusual to see a young man all by himself running towards us.

"Excuse me... does anyone have a phone I can borrow?" "My truck has slid into the ravine near the summit!" Then he asked us, "How much farther does the trail go this way?" At least 14 miles to the main dirt road which is still nowhere near any help" my new friend answered.

I loaded up his gear in my Jeep and we gave him a ride to the summit where his Toyota pick up was. Our plan was to retrieve his truck and get him back on his way home. After talking with him along the way, his story read like "101 Things Not To Do in the Back Country". Here are some of the highlights:
He was alone
No one knew where he was
He was in the mountains where it's been raining and snowing for a week with bald street tires
No phone, no radio.... no way of calling for help

He started on the opposite side of the mountain and as he went over the summit (the snowiest and muddiest part of the trail), his truck kept sliding straight as the trail turned right. The only thing that stopped him from going over was a sapling tree that was all by itself in just the right spot on the bend. We found it sitting with only the passenger side tires still on the trail and the rest listing towards the darkness.

Since I was the the only one with any recovery gear, I had the honor of trying to get the truck back onto the trail. The plan was to attach a strap to a tree and to his rear bumper; this would keep the rear from sliding off as we pulled from the front and taking my Jeep over the edge with it. Of course, as soon as we got everything rigged up, it was dark and the snow started falling making everything a sloppy mess.

It took us 45 mins to get him back on the trail and on his way. We continued to our final destination and had our campfire, snacks a good cheer. We had about 4" fall while we were there. I'm not sure how things would have turned out for our t-shirt wearing friend if we did not show up.

foglebr · **Joined:** Sun Feb 14, 2010 4:38 am **Posts:** 23

WOW!!

That is a scary story!!

I had an incident that highlights a few of the same points, only I had the right clothing for the trip. Couple years ago I had a 94 S10 Trailblazer. Was wheeling on random dirt farm roads around the Air Base near Grand Forks, ND. I was out trying to scope out areas to do snow-kiting. Well, on one patch of road I went through some drifts, but then hung up the whole shebang on a large patch of deep snow. Thank goodness I had a recovery snow shovel in the vehicle. Took me a good hour or two to dig out the ruts to solid ground to get enough grip to back out.

Moral, make sure you're prepaired before you head out!! As for what JL Rockies described above, ensure that you know the trails you're following. Understand your skills and your vehicle's capabilities. But above all, make sure people know where you are going in case the worst happens! :JEEPIN:

AZKJ · **Posted:** Fri May 14, 2010 9:23 am

Great story!! You were the only one with recovery gear?? Sounds like your new found friends weren't well prepared either....

JL Rockies · **Posted:** Sat May 15, 2010 3:50 pm

The dude in the Ranger PU had a length of chain which we used to anchor my back bumper to his front to stop my KJ from being dragged through the mud towards the stuck truck.

BVCRD · **Posted:** Fri May 21, 2010 1:04 pm

Should read, Never go anywhere into the wilds unless you are prepared. Guess Alaska taught us that.

jeepetorp · **Posted:** Sat Jul 17, 2010 2:03 am

Go prepered, isn´t that what Jeepin is all about? Otherwise I could drive a VW Passat...

Must be a great feeling to help someone like that, and even greater feelings for him in the Toyota... Good work. (Or was it God work?)

UncleDave · **Posted:** Mon Dec 06, 2010 2:02 pm

Wow! Glad you guys were able to help the sucker out! Although, after the privilege of seeing your Liberty in person JL, it doesn't seem likely many situations could occur where that adventure vehicle of yours wouldn't be able to lend assistance in some way, shape, or form. Hope that guy learned his lesson. Somehow I doubt it was painful enough to remember, though, seeing as how you guys saved his bacon.

devlish · **Joined:** Thu Sep 30, 2010 10:50 am **Posts:** 163

Thankfully you where there to help! good lesson for everyone that has gone less than prepared, and a reminder for that that DO come prepared.

JL Rockies · **Posted:** Mon Dec 06, 2010 10:40 pm

Thanks for the kind words UncleDave... I keep trying to tell peeps on here that I'm a serious enthusiast but it mostly makes people angry... mostly.

Never Wheel Alone!!!

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