Rubicon

ED4 Trip Report Rubicon Trail Carol and I would like to thank everyone for the great time this weekend. We really enjoyed our first trip to the ‘Con.

Since we both had to work on Friday, we decided not to leave the valley until later in the evening after the traffic died down. Unfortunately, this put our arrival time at the campsite to late thirty – Sorry folks!

After a great evening under the stars, I found that the Icehouse campground offered a Starbucks delivery service al a Mike & Renosa – Thanks guys! Charged up on Mocha we took our place in the line of rigs and headed towards the Loon Lake entrance of the Rubicon trail.

Right before reaching the trail head I had an emergency come up that threatened to cancel the trip for us. Fortunately, I was able to resolve everything by the time we got back to the campsite so we decided to turn around and try our luck at catching up with the group.

We eventually arrived at the staging area and found out right away that this trail would be interesting. The first challenge was trying to find the beginning of the trail. Hint – It’s on the other side of the makeshift Heli – Port.

After finding the trail entrance and working our way through the large boulders strewn about in the beginning of the trail, we found ourselves in a large open granite area that had relatively few rocks. Right as I was starting to think great, a chance to relax a little, I popped the bead on my front passenger tire while coming off a ledge, Doh! Fortunately I was with ED4 on a previous trip when Jim H had blown the bead on his tire so I was able to use the lesson learned from that trip to reseat my bead using my CO2 tank. In fact it was that experience with Jim’s tire that inspired me to purchase the tank.

Fortunately, we didn’t run into any other vehicle issues as we continued our quest to catch up with the group. We eventually caught up to everyone where they stopped for lunch at the base of the Little Sluice. After exploring the area, the group turned around and headed back the way we came in.

For me the trip out was much more difficult then the trip in. There were a few spots where I got hung up and needed some spotting – Thanks Darrel & David.

I also want to thank John for putting this run together as I’ve wanted to run this trail for a while now. Now that I have a taste for it, I can’t wait to head back and run it all the way through.

The staging area

Near the exit

The End

IceHouse reservoir – Camp Site

Rubicon

Name: CJ ArnesenDate: 9/5 - 9/7/08 Location: Ice House Campground and Rubicon Trail Trail Boss: John Ruiz Attended by: Dave and sons (friend of John), Dave G, Darell, Mike and Renosa, Rick and Carol, John, and CJ.

What a great run. It all started at Darell’s house. We loaded up my jeep on his trailer and got everything strapped down. Darell was awesome enough to respond to my empty co-pilot seat with not only his presence but also a trailer and A/C.

We were on the road before 9am. Proof below

We had a great drive up to Tahoe. We met up with John at a Brake Check and caravaned the rest of the way. WE made it to Ice House Rd. where we turned left and climbed the steep grade to the campsite. I set up my tent seen below. My tent probably hasn’t been set up in 12+ years, and its of the era where they didn’t use eleastic on the tent poles, so each tent pole is seperate and likes to disconnect as you try to set the tent up. (maybe I should buy a new tent)

Next we headed into South Shore. Below is a view from the drive in. We had some dinner and some gambling. Dave G. Is good luck just so you all know. I’ll let him tell you the details of his craps playing skills. We got back around 9:20pm and promptly went to sleep.

Morning came around 6am, and it was time to hit the Rubicon. Below the whole group is waiting at the enterance to the campground.

Then we get word over the CB that John (our trail boss) needs a wrench. Darell and I drove back round to give a hand (wrench). Turns out John had forgotten to remove his tow bar.

We drove to the trail head, but not before stopping to get a beautiful view of Loon Lake and a photo op with the Jeep.

Next we aired down. Darell informed me that this was only his third time riding in a Jeep. He seemed to handle it well, and even lend a hand in disconnecting my swaybar.

We hit the trail. (A little side: I did a horrible job taking photos this trip, only took 60 or so. I was too busy having fun driving. So I stole a few pics from Renosa’s shutterfly account to help better document the trip)

A shot of my CJ crawling over part of Gate Keeper.

The trail had lots of climbs.

And a ton of drop offs. The entire backside of my gastank is dented in from the drops.

We had a wonderful time heading in and finally stopped at Little Sluice. We ate lunch and then hiked up Little Sluice in the hopes of seeing Spider Lake. Below a Pic of Spider Lake in the distance.

We turned around and started heading back out. Below four of us make our way through one of the many rock gardens.

As we crawled out Mike broke the stud mount on his driver side front shock. Not much long after, the airbag went out as well. Below, his Jeep comes down one of the steeper descents near a large granite bowl.

Dave G also came down, attempting to not completely drag the tail end of his CJ-8.

After heading back through the gate keeper we made our way back over the granite to the trail head.

And finally a group photo at the dam overlooking Loon Lake

I had an absolute blast. Everyone was so helpful and had such great attitudes. A big thank you to John for making this trip happen, and a big thanks to Darell for making this trip MUCH easier for myself and my Jeep. It was a real joy having a co-pilot and good conversation for the long drives and on the trail.

Looking forward to the next adventure, CJ

Rubicon

September 6, 2008 Attendees:

John Ruiz (trail boss) Dave and sons CJ and his better half, Darrell Mike and Renosa Rick and Carol

Many thanks to John for organizing the event, to David for leading us into the wilderness, Darrell for spotting us through all the bumps and to the entire group for their attitude and eagerness.

Most of the crew was on the road at various times early Friday morning which landed everyone in camp (Icehouse campground) by mid afternoon. The campground was nice with a great view of Icehouse Lake. Very comfortable with plenty of space. After everyone got settled we piled into vehicles and made our way into Tahoe. I got to play tourist having never been there. The group assuring me I would recognize when we crossed the border into Nevada. They were right, those casinos are perched on the state line. We had a decent meal, enjoyed some dice and some cards. A nice bonus. We rolled back into camp and got to sleep for an early morning.

In the morning the weather was great. We moved quickly out of camp for the 25 miles to the trail head. (next time we should consider staying closer to the trail head). We hit Loon Lake, over the first dam, then over the second dam and into the staging area.

We started the trail one shy, Rick had to stay back and joined us later. The first obstacle was the Gatekeeper. I understand it is now smaller than it was before it was demolished (2005), it was a great tone setting obstacle. We took our time and worked our way from the Gatekeeper to the granite bowl, to Walker Hill and to Little Sluice and Spider Lake. That took us until lunch time when Rick joined back up with us. From there we explored a little and headed back.

On the way back we had to remove one of Mike’s shocks just before he lost an airbag. He still made it back through the trail without the airbag.

Back to camp as the sun was setting for community chili and some tired fireside chat. It was a long day.

It was an amazing trip. I cant wait to do it again. Overall I thought the trail was easier than I thought it was going to be. For as much time we spent behind the wheel, we barely scratched the surface. Of the 18 miles of trail, we only covered three miles. I am ready to attach the other 15 when ever anyone else is ready.

Great group of guys. Had fun with all of them.

Thanks to John for planning the trip and “paving the way”

Thanks to Darrell for his spotting and his chili and his driving

Thanks to David and his boys for leading the pack and his patience with us

Thanks to CJ for his techo-geek and company

Thanks to Mike and Renosa for their FANTASTIC photos

(looking forward to getting on the road)

(John and CJ working through the Gatekeeper)

(CJ almost through the Gatekeeper)

(David and sons nearing the granite bowl)

(david and sons peering over the granite bowl)

(John trying to find rocks to stack over the granite bowl)

(Mike stuffing a tire on the journey across the granite bowl)

(some abandoned Scrambler on the trail)

(Spider Lake, I could have spent all day there)

(Rick and CJ on the return trip)

Rubicon

This trip was a lot of firsts for me. First time I have been to the Rubicon First time everyone on the run slept in a tent or bed of a pick up. First time I ran a trail where the rangers were hiking on foot and we could not keep up with them. First time I had mystery chili. It was good. First time I went on a run that long. First time I had hot Starbucks in the morning. Thanks Mike.

I was very happy with the how the trip went. There were 9 adults, 2 kids and 7 vehicles attending this run. 7 of us never had been on the Rubicon before or knew its exact location. Darell had been on it 4 years ago and David I. had been on it twice. The camp ground was pick at random off a map. It was not the one Darell was thinking of. So this trip had the makings of a very long day. But the trip went off without a hitch.

Everyone found the campsite without any problems. Darell even took CJ and I on a tour of the Mercedes dealer in El Dorado. It was fun towing a second vehicle thru the line of new cars. Richard and his wife even found our camp site at 1 in the morning, even after we switch sites from where we said we would be. Got to try harder next time to hid from him.

I have to say that the Rubicon was the hardest run I have done since joining ED4. There are almost no spots were you can drive along without worrying about damage. It is pile rocks after piles of rocks. There were a few tight squeezes mixed in. I thought for sure that I was going to lose a mirror and a window. It seems that 32″ tires are a little to small. I hit every part of my underbody on rocks. I also got high centered a couple times. It was a long 10 hours of driving, 45 minutes from the camp site to the trail head.

Everyone made it off the trail without any major problems. In fact there was very little vehicle damage that could be seen. For a bunch of novices I was surprised how well everyone did. No one got stuck to bad. Not much time was used up spotting. I though for sure that we would be spotting the whole trail. No one lost a mirror.

Rubicon

This event was planned by John Ruiz, attended by John Ruiz, David Grubman, Dave and his two sons(a friend of John’s), CJ Arneson, Rick and Carol Yung, Mike and Renosa (sp) Cline, and myself. The idea was to head up to Ice House Campgroung on Friday the 5th, run the Rubicon on the 6th and come home on the 7th. Plans were for several of us to meet at my house and leave at 9:00am on friday. Plans got a little changed, but CJ arrived shortly after 8:00am. We loaded CJ’s Jeep on my trailer, strapped it down, and we were on the road by 8:43am. Wow ahead of time! We hooked up with John Ruiz at the brake check point on the pass. We went on up to a shopping center at El Dorado Hills, bought some lunch supplies and headed up to Ice House. Arrived there, were met by the Clines. Circled the campground a couple of times and landed in several campsites. The rest of the ground with the exception of the Yung’s all arrived and set up camp. I was planning on making a trip into Lake Tahoe and hoped to leave camp by 4:30, we left 4:16 for Tahoe. Wow ahead of time!. We went into Harrah’s and paid our respects, had dinner at Fatburgers and decided to meet up for the return trip at 8:00pm. We headed back to camp at 7:49. Wow ahead of time again! This has to be some sort of ED4 record. The Yung’s arrived into camp around 12-1:00 am, settled in. The plan was to leave camp at 7:30am for the trail, we left about 7:25am, some more to add to the record setting time table.

We arrived at Loon Lake, aired down and headed for the trail. A little trouble has had going through the Gate Keeper, but no damage. It was just a very beautifull day. Headed up through several obsticles. great spotting help by all. A few little scrapes here and there, but no breakage. We arrived up at the Little Sluece, had lunch and went for a hike up the sluece. Parts did not look that bad until you got the boulders that were 4-6 feet high in the middle of the trail. This was a nasty part for about 200 feet of so. We hiked up to the top of the hill so we could see Spyder Lake. What a beautiful view from up there. We decided it was time to start heading back. We did encounter several of our vehicles developing a little diff drip. We were just about back the Gate Keeper when Mike tore a shock right out of it’s mount. The shock was removed and within a few more minutes Mike reported he had lost the air bag suspension on the same corner where the shock had gone. Mike was able to drive his 4 door Wrangler Unlimited all the way out.

Inspections were made, scrapes on some, a little body damage on a couple, dents in gas tanks, which shrinks the capacity, but all of the smiles and grins made up for everything. Back to camp and heat up the chili. It was a long day of wheeling and bed time came by 10:30.

CJ and I left camp around 8:30 or so to start heading home. A slight detour to grab a few Bronco parts in Pine Grove and home in San Jose by 2:45 on Sunday.

This was only the second time that I have had the opportunity to be a passenger and really enjoy the surroundings of the trail. What a wonderful thing to be able to do. I thoughly enjoyed the driving ablilities of CJ and his’s attention to taking good lines.

I especially want to thank CJ for allowing me to ride along with him and get to know him.

Darell L. Kroeker

Rubicon

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How not to run the Rubicon

This can also be titled…how NOT to do the Rubicon….or…how to save the sanity of your passenger, remembering that she is the one that feeds you. I should preface this account by saying that Joe and I, and the Jeep, are safe and sound, and a little sore. We all survived, although the Jeep got a lovely new dent on the passenger side fender.

Joe and I, perhaps forgetting our age, the age of the Jeep, and the difficulty of the trail, decided to do the Rubicon in 1 day.

Thinking we would get an early start, we set the alarm to 5:30am, only to push the snooze button, and get up about 8:00.

This set the tone for the rest of the day.

We drove through Georgetown, and decided to enter the trail through Wentworth Springs Road, for some additional bone crushing, Jeep punishing fun. We met Ole and Sherry coming out after finishing the Rubicon work day with FOTR, and Ole tried to warn us that the trail ahead was a little rough. He was right.

I’ll spare the account for the rest of the day, but suffice it to say that this was the first time I’ve ever screamed on a trail. I’m not proud of this fact, but it is true. I don’t believe that we set a land speed record for doing the Rubicon, but we started from Wentworth Springs Rd. at 1:00pm or so, and we arrived at Rt. 89 at 9:15pm. We stopped for lunch at Little Sluice, always a good source for entertainment, proceeded to do the rest of the trail at bone-breaking speed. We unfortunately met up with a particularly memorable individual who had broken down on Cadillac Hill, and refused to let us pass for 30 minutes or so. After determining that he was a few bricks short of a full load, as they say, we convinced him to winch up to a point where we could squeeze by him. (He had decided to do the Rubicon with open diffs - and an ancient Warn winch. To his credit he managed to get through it, but his YJ looked much worse for the effort.)

Joe did some incredible driving - some of the best I’ve ever seen him do. He maneuvered the Jeep through the rocks with a lot of skill, but the sound of the Jeep banging and crashing simply got to me.

I’m left with a great respect for the difficulty of the trail. It is simply non-stop rocks, rocks, and then for a change - some more rocks. Oh, and some granite slabs, and a few water crossings. We’ve decided that the next time we do the Rubicon we need the following - lower gears (we have stock gearing). maybe some kind of front locker (ours is open), a working clutch, and we’ll take a little more time. If we had bigger tires - it wouldn’t have hurt, although we’ll probably stick with 33’s. And of course we broke the cardinal rule of wheeling - we were alone, then the cell phone and GPS ran out of juice and we didn’t have the rechargers. To our credit, we did have emergency gear, including blankets, sleeping bags and warm clothes, a lot of water and extra food.

Jim - I need to talk to you about some good emergency flashlights!

Quite a few Excedrin later…..

Amy

Rubicon Works Project

Ole and I arrived a little before 7 a.m. at Ice House Resort for breakfast, and to meet up with the many other volunteers, and Del Albright. The plan was to move an old building, that was built in the 50’s, from one location to another location. The new location, which is closer to the spillway at Loon Lake. This building is to become an Information booth for people entering the Rubicon at Loon Lake. The new foundation had previously been formed, and ready for the building to be placed on it. Well, from where the building was located, to where they planned to move it, well I didn’t think it could be done, without having to take the building apart, or having the building fall apart.

Dana Holland, and a friend of his, Jimmy (didn’t get his last name), showed up a little late, with Dana’s big-rig tow truck, and a special kind of flatbed trailer with some interesting features, (like the axles moved in several positions, and the trailer was able to tilt in order to make loading easier). You really had to see this trailer to believe it. OK back to the report.

With the tow truck, Dana pulled the tractor/flatbed trailer over the granite slab and closer to the building to be removed. Getting the truck and trailer near the building was no small task. Lots of hardwood had to be placed under the tires to get the tow truck and trailer into position. The building had previously been reinforced in preparation of the move. After several hours the tow truck was in position to pick the building up. The building was picked up from it’s foundation, and maneuvered onto the flatbed trailer. Again, lots, and lots of moving hardwood under the tires of the tow truck, with the weight of the building hanging off the truck’s boom. The building was placed on the trail. At that point Dana pulled in front of the tractor/trailer as it could not move, it places, under it’s own power.

As the tractor/trailer got closer to the granite slab, which is very off-camber, the many volunteers were placed side by side, using their winches to keep the building from falling off the trailer, as the truck moved, and was pulled over the granite slab. Three winches at a time were connected to the building. Inch by inch the tractor/trailer moved over the slab, and closer to the new foundation. Once the tractor/trailer was near the foundation, Dana Holland used the tow truck’s boom to pick the building off the trailer.

While the building was in the air, several volunteers helped push the building in place. The building was placed on its new foundation in one piece, with very little damage from the move.

If I hadn’t been there, I probably would not have believed it. Several times during this long day, I had my doubts. Dana and Jimmy, well they must have nerves of steel to maneuver their very large trucks and that trailer over the granite slab. What a day.