3/12 - 3/16 - Off Roading and Camping in Prescott, AZ
Another year, another fun Rogue Overland Expedition! This time it would be their "Back to the Roots" trip which meant back in Prescott (Lou's backyard), and more rock crawly. On the agenda were a few trails I haven't done and a few old time classics like Box Canyon and Backway to Crown King. Last time we did Backway to Crown King, Lou and I were forced to turn around due to heavy snow on the 2nd to last ledge, so I was hopeful we'd get another shot at it.
See the two Rogue Overland Youtube videos here: Part 1Part 2
Day 0 - Wednesday
Day 0s are always a freebie and gave me time to pack up in the morning. It was about a 4 hour drive for me but only a 30 min drive for Lou where we were meeting for dinner. I left Vegas around 1 and ended up finding two of our fellow Rogue companions, Mayhem and Ron, on the drive out. We were on our typical ham radio station so we linked up quickly.
We ended up rolling in to camp around 5:30. To make it easy for everyone, the plan for check in was in a boxed off area in the parking lot at Dillon's Western Trails Ranch, get your spot, then receive a food and drink voucher! Lou and I got pulled pork sandwiches with the rest of the gang. They also had a small zoo so we got to see some llamas and baby goats. After that, we caught up and went to bed around 10 excited for the fun to start.
Day 1 - Thursday
All good Rogue trips start with a driver's meeting and then we lined up. We were in blue group lead by our friend Ian in his sick long-travel Tacoma. I was a little bummed that my red Bronco wasn't in red group but blue group ended up being okay too!
Our first trail was Box Canyon. This is the trail that I believe water logged my steering rack from the year prior. It was a bit wet from recent rain in the area and the clouds were rolling in but Nick and the other leaders were aware so they kept the pack at aggressive pace. It ended up being the right call because it started raining once we got off the trail. That was crucial since Box Canyon had definite flood potential and it would be sketchy to try and get 25+ trucks out of the wash in such a short timeline.
After Box Canyon and lunch, we were headed to check out the Monte Cristo Mine. Most of these old trails were cut in to access mines and these dirt roads were no exception. We passed the Gold n Grub restaurant that looked actually really nice for being in the middle of nowhere. It was kind of weird.
It was raining on us pretty good at the mine so we didn't stay for more than 15 minutes, which was fine since we still had a bit of a drive to camp. Once we arrived, the rain was more of a down pour but our friends Josh and Mickey set up their awning and we drank Moscow Mules until it cleared. Nick pushed the pot luck to Saturday since no one felt like cooking in the rain. Everyone went to bed early, hoping for sunnier weather.
Day 2 - Friday
Friday morning started after a cold but dry night. The Rogue guys had 2 Bubba Ropes to give out and the best way to do that was a massive Rock, Paper, Scissor contest. The two winners would each receive a Bubba Rope. My strategy was simple: since most of the attendees were either Millennials or Boomers, I knew they would start with scissors so I started with rock. After many rounds of dominated the competition, I walked away with a brand new Bubba Rope! ðŸ¤
After my big victory, we broke up in teams again (we were near the back) and finished out Champie road that fed into Backway to Crown King. We started around 10:30 which should have been enough time but Mother Nature had other plans. We made good time, stopped for lunch around 1PM but it started snowing as we started the climb around 2:30. This drastically slowed down our pacing especially with a large group. It did make for some dramatic views of the area though, so that's a plus!
We hit the ledge that Lou and I previously had to turn around for at 4:40. The ledge was unclimbable but there was another route that opened up to the left where an old broken down truck had been. Nick and Mike were spotting us through it pretty quickly.
The real issue wasn't the first ledge; it was the second. Lou and I did not see the second ledge on our previous run since we had to turn around on the first one. The second ledge was in bad shape and required many rocks to build up the obstacle. This was a team effort moving rocks from the wash below to the obstacle up top! This ledge took us as a group about 2 hours to get through. A real doozy. Mike was spotting everyone through in the dark, cold, snow like a champ!
Since it was getting late, Jared (Green Leader) started leading the first group to camp around 7:30. This was the right decision as we were higher elevation now and the snow was really coming down. Our group passed through the town of Crown King around 9. The snow was thick enough that you could not see the tire tracks from the previous group, even though they passed through mere minutes before. I was glad to be following Ian as I could watch his Tacoma slide and knew where to slow down.
We finally rolled into our camp spot at 10:07PM in the rain, a little hungry, and a little tired. We were bummed that we missed the hot dog dinner that was planned but the success of the day was that the Rogue guys got every truck and person to camp safely that night, and that's what matters!
Day 3 - Saturday
Saturday morning was a later start which gave us time to explore the Cleator Bar and Yacht Club where we camped. This was a unique bar with a ton of personality complete with a full size pirate ship called The Black Scorpion. Unfortunately, it was not safe to climb on otherwise I woulda been up there for sure! The real advantage of the spot though was the running water sink and flushable toilets. Everyone took a few minutes to clean themselves up before we started for the day.
Our next stop was lunch at the Rock Springs Cafe. Interestingly enough, this is where we stopped last time after our defeat on Backway to Crown King. This time, we ate our pie as victors! From there, we headed out to run Bloody Basin which ends in a big water crossing and camp.
The Bloody Basin trail was a few hours long on an easy but bumpy road that takes you to a bridge to cross over the Verde River. You can't drive the bridge though as it was made for sheep, hence the name, Sheep's Bridge. When we arrived, it was full of ATVs who eventually left and we got a good quiet spot for the night. One of their trucks got water logged in the crossing and departed the area after being worked on for an hour. This was also the night of the pot luck and good food was had by all, although not many people tried my Moscow Mules. More for me!
Day 4 - Sunday
I woke early on Sunday and decided to check out the bridge in the sunlight, and it was a very quiet and peaceful spot - much different than the night before. Lou and I along with 2 other folks said our goodbyes and rolled out a little earlier in an effort to be home early. We were only about a mile from camp when we found the broken down abandoned Ram that waterlogged the night before. We finished the trail in just under 2 hours, which was slightly faster than Nick when he pre-ran it on an ATV. Bragging rights.
Once we finished, we aired up, said goodbye to Lou, and Mayhem, Ron and I pushed off for home. This were the same two guys I drove out with a few days prior. I got home nice and early around 3:45 and Nina helped me unpack. Very nice of her! We got a pizza and settled in for a quiet evening after a full few days on another great Rogue Overland Expedition!
Big shout out to all the companies that sponsor the Rogue trips, especially Bubba rope!
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