1gb.

[Handlebars]

That’s how many photos I uploaded to Fototime. I separated them into albums for each day or trail, they are stored in their original 2128x1416 pixel size. I got a new camera just for this event, a Nikon D700. The camera arrived a couple of days before I left so I did not have much time to peruse the 472 page owner’s manual. I fell back on experience from when I last used an SLR in 2001. This thing is considerably more elaborate than my N80, particularly in the various auto focus modes. Blame me, not the camera, for the blurry shots because I switched to manual focus a few times and forgot to turn it back on.

You are welcome to download the full sized version of any photos you like for personal use. Don’t delay because I will be weeding out most of the 607 photos in there and resizing/editing the survivors into a new album. The photos and links I post in this thread will eventually go dead as I move them around.

Day 1- Lavender Canyon, Salt Creek

Taking the scenic shortcut from Monticello to the Needles

Cleft Arch in Lavender Canyon. One tradition of these pre Fall Fling trips is that we have red, white and blue Jeeps.

I forget… was this Caterpillar Arch?

Last one through the gate gets to lock it on this rainy day. We needed to get a permit and combination for the lock from the Needles Ranger station.

Driving through Salt Creek from our campsite at Peek-a-Boo Canyon after the sun came out.

More to come…

 

[Handlebars]

Day 2

Day 2- Elephant Hill, Chesler Park, the Confluence

Going up the switchbacks

Down the other side

The Devil’s Pocket

Jared hiking in the Joint Trail

Some of the wild creations left by previous visitors to the cairn chamber

Heading towards the Confluence Overlook under clearing skies

The Confluence of the Green and Colorado Rivers

North Six Shooter Peak silhouetted by sun kissed clouds while hiking the Cave Spring Trail

More to come…

 

[Handlebars]

Tuesday- Strike Ravine

Tuesday- Strike Ravine

I got to lead 20 vehicles, the largest group of any of the trails I lead this year.

Tom helps spot on Big Ugly Hill

More Big Ugly Hill

One torn sidewall was the only carnage on this trip.

Vince learning the trail so he could lead it on Friday. Thanks Vince!

The Barger Brothers parked at our Area BFE lunch stop. The round eyed Jeep won “best built rig” at the Show-n-Shine

Bloose tackles one of the test areas at BFE.

Chowing down at Area BFE

Winding around the switchbacks on the return trip

Tuesday, hospitality night at Slickrock.
John & Melissa, the newlywed Mr. and Mrs. Lobster. Thanks for your hard work in making this event a success and congratulations on your new life together!

More to come…

 

[lobsterdmb]

Re: Tuesday- Strike Ravine

Tuesday, hospitality night at Slickrock.
John & Melissa, the newlywed Mr. and Mrs. Lobster. Thanks for your hard work in making this event a success and congratulations on your new life together!

Thanks for the best wishes and for the pic Alex!

 

[Brendan_91XJ]

Must have taken that picture for the ten minutes I actually got away from that table

Congrat's again John and Melissa!! :cheers:

 

[dotcom]

great pics alex, wish i could have joined you. maybe next year

 

[Handlebars]

Must have taken that picture for the ten minutes I actually got away from that table

You were there every other time I went by Cabin 2! You make a great substitute Remi and are muuuch easier to understand.

Wednesday- Moab Rim

I love this trail. One thing I love most about it is how its off camber ledges, combined with copious cliff exposure, regularly scares the crap out of flatlanders driving sky high rigs who are in Moab for the first time. Yet many people with near stock Jeeps make it to the Rim with careful spotting and driving.

Here is Michael doing just that, on 31’s and open diffs:

Fear is no friend here…

Mrs. Lobster spots for Mr. Lobster on the Devil’s Crack

Jared maintains steady 4 point contact with the ground at all times. Sometimes the fourth point is the bumper.

Rick’s lightweight buggy thing crawled up the Z-Turn with ease

Squaring up on this ledge near the top made for some tippy moments

Everyone took a breather when the trail finally leveled out

Coming back down

Gravity helps out on the trip down Z-Turn

Josh is glad his first time on this trail is during daylight

Trail leader Tom did a great job of getting everyone through without carnage

 

[kuligow]

great pictures Alex !! found few with my rig .. thanks !!!

 

[dotcom]

yah thats one trail you will never get me back on alex, veerryyy scary and im getting used to cliff roads here in colorado.

 

[Handlebars]

Thursday- Dome Plateau, Show-n-Shine

This is the first year has run this trail. I was emboldened to lead this trail for my first trip through by having the National Geographic Moab North map showing it, the 2nd Edition Charles Wells book writeup and a GPS track from Trail Damage. It was a long day, the trail itself is 33 miles long and it is a 30 mile trek up highway 128 just to reach the trailhead. I followed the track, with only one wrong turn, including the area that Mr. Wells describes as “a maze of difficult roads”. Some of those roads are so faint that you could loose the way if you blink. Lunch came at a great overlook of the Fisher Towers and the Colorado River. After lunch came La Boca Arch, Cave Spring and some old mines.

We aired down and made a last pit stop at the burned out Dewey Bridge.

Mary brought along one of 10 Jeep Cherokee Travelbugs

On the trail

Lunch stop

Overlook

La Boca Arch

Randy battles a 50mph headwind in a venturi formed between domes overlooking the arch

Cave Spring

Old mine shacks

Checking out a nicely appointed abandoned cave home on the way back to town

They had a really nice view across the river to the Entrada Bluffs.

Show-n-Shine at Swanny Park. It is entirely possible that this is the largest gathering of modified Jeep Cherokees, ever.

Click for the full size panorama:

 

[Handlebars]

Friday- Metal Masher

Wayne provided trail leader duties for our large group

There is something for everyone on this trail. A stock Jeep can follow along on the main route yet there are some nasty optional obstacles for the bigger rigs to play on.

Most of the group successfully climbed Rockchucker. The Cherokee wheelbase seemed to be just about perfect.

Mirror Gulch

This great overlook was our lunch stop

Most of the drivers opted to try Widowmaker. Wayne’s rig, at the upper left corner of this photo, is parked at the base of it. Johnny’s white XJ is climbing the off camber ledges approaching Widowmaker, which is a decent obstacle in its own right.

A closer look at the ledges

Fortunately we had some rigs that bypassed Widowmaker to help Wayne get up. He broke a rear driveline and one front axle attempting to drive up it.

Several more people tried to drive it

The only way up on this day was to have several people up above pulling on a towstrap to provide that little extra bit of front wheel traction. Thanks for the help guys!

 

[Brendan_91XJ]

Great Pic's Alex,
Did you get any of me on widowmaker?

 

[Handlebars]

Brenden, I probably got better photos of you on Widowmaker than anybody else! You saw your XJ getting the strap in the background of the last pic up there, right? Look in my Metal Masher album for file #s ALX_1250 through ALX_1257 for a high speed series of you going up Widowmaker.

Don't forget to save the original size of the photos. Everything I linked in this thread is the poor quality "standard size" from Fototime. Zooming in on the full size photo, it looks like you are crossing your fingers on the hand you have hanging out the window and I can read your watch too. You went up at 3:20 pm.

 

[Brendan_91XJ]

Thanks!!

 

[Handlebars]

Saturday- Shafer Trail, Lathrop Canyon, Long Canyon

This was my smallest group of the entire Fall Fling- only 3 rigs showed up for the 75 mile tour of the White Rim area of Canyonlands National Park. The weather was changing from the warm, sunny and calm of the past few days to cold, cloudy and very windy.

Passing by the Potash boat Ramp. Little did we know that this Tex’s Riverways tour boat would participate in our trail ride.

We soon climbed high up above the Colorado River

These are the Walking Rocks- giant stepping stones of White Rim Sandstone. The hike out to them was made interesting by gusty winds that threatened to make us part of the landscape.

Shhhhh, don’t tell the greenies I said this- erosion is a beautiful thing!

Driving along the White Rim

That is the long way back to town

Trail’s end

Rainer enjoys a peaceful lunch where Lathrop Canyon meets the river

There goes the neighborhood!
Tour boats regularly stop at Lathrop Canyon to use the outhouse. These people had just gotten picked up after floating down the river for 5 days and were heading back to Moab. Anyone with a charcoal grill and some fresh burgers could have made a mint feeding returning boaters as they ate dehydrated food and granola the whole time.

Despite the river traffic it was an idyllic place to relax and watch the world go by. It is too bad they specifically prohibit camping here.

Driving back up Lathrop Canyon

At the top of Lathrop Canyon switchbacks take you through these tumbled down blocks of the White Rim

On the return trip we stopped to walk across Musselman Arch

A mini version of the White Rim Trail that I look forward to doing again!