Left Hand Canyon ORV Park 2/22/09

[Haku]

Hey All,

As promised I have a trip report, complete with Pictures.

After working till the wee hours of the morning and sleeping till about 11am, Steve and I met up in Boulder in a small dirt parking lot at the bottom end of Lee Hill Road. Its a great meeting place, though going up the road a ways and meeting at the Bus Stop strip club might be more along some peoples lines. Being a Sunday and Steve just coming from Church, we decided to just head up to the hill.

Its a great little spot, since there are easy and hard parts and its 10 minutes outside of Boulder.

The first part up past the unofficially official shooting range is a really easy access road to the fun parts up top (now that Carnage is closed at least). We decided to take the Upper Carnage trail for a bit more challenge. Steve was having a few issues with his engine dying, but nothing to really dampen the fun too much. Upper Carnage is fun because it goes up a small valley for a ways through some rock jumbles, and then does some tight switchbacks up to the main trail. Here are a few pics of it:

http://dk09fg.bay.livefilestore.com/y1px5Tt4ulTajBudik0gyT1kz9dZ3dJWgAKwyx3gXTv5fAKaCk tO3hi0zz0IdVrOwhzMMtdj3sJdUrnuYyj2NHOHQ/Josh1.jpg

http://dk09fg.bay.livefilestore.com/y1p2TH-s6Y0E_W2vZ_xx4LOVrHad7CviW3kivffcwYdUcxV9_hY131f2J TjXjvxWNnYXarbgxOk-xlSc0vLb4HPaA/Steve1.jpg


http://cid-6d5c6bd062842f31.skydrive.live.com/self.aspx/Cars/Josh1.jpg

[Haku]

The switchbacks eventually lead up to the main trail, just about where it gets hard. I'll be honest and say that I have no idea if it continues to be hard, but the first major obstacle thwarted both Steve and I. I am still getting used to being off camber and not freaking out, plus my Samurai has ultra stiff springs that don't flex hardly at all. This translates to me not really trying that hard when it gets into the off camber stuff.

Steve on the other hand, has balls of steel it would seem, and is willing to try just about anything. He really tried hard and nearly got up it, but in the end it started getting a little sketchy for a vehicle with no roll cage. Definitely got to the point where, as he was backing up, if he had made a slightly wrong move it would definitely have rolled. A bit of hard gas and some clever steering and he was off the hard part. Here are some pics:

http://dk09fg.bay.livefilestore.com/y1pJMQgqWbYFzdfxOvGn7X-Ov9W-0609XVzIp8S36IcL-71LxHBLt-NuidS4Fx-BwdMG87eCxFoB1UR8MDbrqgqcw/SteveandJosh1.jpg

http://dk09fg.bay.livefilestore.com/y1pTgzbLtlvKysqN7_Gi2j2zUQJ9J8xHbibsbePTD-4MS6CCvFDEE93N-KvO5SMf2d47yS8khsx9q6la3SQx_Ia5A/SteveHardPart1.jpg

http://dk09fg.bay.livefilestore.com/y1p4EXOxFE1kY9vZV6g2YlZ5xJF6RNl8syVJ2gMDyo6Bo2sCFG oB15u4_apfrocGyECLZIfVe6DFURCrDYp0cGpBQ/SteveHardPart3.jpg

http://dk09fg.bay.livefilestore.com/y1pxwGP3TMjZfKHz_N1wtimnZgNbEHt4qnyVq2x_rqfz9YeRg1 _wBcpLp3Tec8ASsHwA4wgQdl9HCB16TW-s-hxpQ/SteveHardPart2.jpg

Since neither of us got up that, we headed down to Five Points (the central place where all the trails up there meet). I had heard bad things about Firemans hill and "never being able to get up it" but had also heard that they made an easy road up it. I knew there were some cool views, and that the new Challenge Buggy course was up there and wanted to see what it was about. The road up is pretty easy and just about any vehicle with a low range box could get up it. Its a bit steep in spots, but graded and smooth till it gets up to the top of the ridge. No more Endo hill to worry about.

[Funrover]

Pictures make it better! You know with both rigs being older it makes the pictures that much cooler!

[Haku]

Once up to the top of the ridge, there were some fun rock jumbles and steep parts to have fun with (they all had a flat and easy way around for those not wanting to get dirty:princess:). Got a few pictures of that too (none of me unfortunately...the bane of being the dude with the camera), here they are:

http://dk09fg.bay.livefilestore.com/y1pIP2sDkHv0U6qz0I5w852NtJ_65yRWXMSOQyeXdgUFLNPfh8 yKbQ6y2TRaG0cUn3THrEPRt6JsSq-dbGO-Z6rQQ/SteveFiremans2.jpg

http://dk09fg.bay.livefilestore.com/y1pyuCGu7zqdQ5QhO8RqAAUbEGMdFo5P2wGiQDAgmYKOXSsyGf-iUF8gpAM-htlE5siXrzaOJXXRhc/stevefiremans3.jpg

The Challenge Route is just up the hill from where these were taken. It looks like its going to be pretty hardcore and for the fully built up buggy rigs only. Definitely seems like there are a few spots where it would be bad to roll off the obstacle, since its on top of a hill. Luckily while you may roll down the hill, its not going to be in a place where you would go all the way down the mountain doing so.

The view at the top is pretty amazing, with a clear view of area surrounding Boulder in front and mountains behind. You could definitely do worse. Got a few pics of that too:

http://dk09fg.bay.livefilestore.com/y1pa5P_Jhgsbtww62JlpBsdSR74LvVDTdHkAS7IaO4zmpmEkV5 d0hMX5P8_enTS3uSADyc5r_TYwVc/SteveandJosh2.jpg

http://dk09fg.bay.livefilestore.com/y1pe77e9P1_ZLdOZofq-EihDdlnMtC9eaJPCciMTAme7uTOPdP6Qx7ihrbBLjxE-troqEWejHsfBuI/SteveFiremans1.jpg

http://dk09fg.bay.livefilestore.com/y1pNvlk3pFf2gmN4C6Wm2XrcaigIYdRzZnYb9oaZUcxYVVt2Fd Kask7JUJb7tPJeZSoE-lAvRvm3pE/JoshFiremans1.jpg

By that time it was starting to get dark, so we decided to head down and call it a day. This just meant cruising back down to Boulder. Alas it wasn't meant to be that easy. Steve flagged me down and said that he was hearing some clunking coming out from under his Scout in the front. Turned out that somewhere on the trail that day, he had broken the bolt that held the bottom of his front passenger side shock on. Didn't seem to be a terminal issue, so after about 20 minutes of awkward positioned wrenching, he got the top bolt off the shock and removed it. Definitely DOA on the shock, as the top mount was bent 45 degrees. Didn't seem to overtly effect his ride or control of the vehicle, so we headed the rest of the way down. Saw a fellow Front Ranger, Greenramp, coming up the access road as we were coming down. Nothing like a mid evening "check your vehicle" run.

In all, it was a fun day despite some challenges. Steve and I both came away with the feeling that before we really got out for another full on adventure, that we had some work to do to our Rigs. For me, I have a set of YJ springs to go on with missing link shackles. Should vastly improve both my ride and flex. I also have a full exhaust on its way, as I currently only have an open header. Definitely makes for alot of noise that I don't really want.

Steve plans to go Spring Over with new Tires and such in the next month, with a 4 inch lift in the future as well. We both want Roll Cages and Winches as well. Oh if we were rich. Oh well, do what you can.

Anyways, it was a fun time and its definitely worth going up there. I recommend a weekday if you can, since it gets pretty crowded. Lots of ATV's and gun enthusiasts taking advantage of the Shooting Range. Oh, and if you want to see higher res version of the shots I included in this report, they can be found here:

http://cid-6d5c6bd062842f31.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/Cars?uc=1

Cheers and Happy Wheeling,

Josh

[Funrover]

Great report, great pics!!! Hope you don't mind I am gonna keep a pic or 2!

[Haku]

[quote=Funrover;24477]Great report, great pics!!! Hope you don't mind I am gonna keep a pic or 2![/quote

I have no problem with you keeping them. Just promise you'll use the higher res ones, and give credit where its due.

JH

[Funrover]

[quote=Funrover;24477]Great report, great pics!!! Hope you don't mind I am gonna keep a pic or 2![/quote

I have no problem with you keeping them. Just promise you'll use the higher res ones, and give credit where its due.

JH

I am selfish.... i keep them to look at later :lol:

[Brody]

Thanks for the pictures and report!

Since when did the Left Hand Canyon Trail become the Left Hand Canyon ORV Park? Is this some new BS from the park service since they closed the Carnage Canyon section of the trail?

[Tye]

Nicely done :thunb:

See how you are Aaron.

[greenramp]

Let me know next time you plan to do this again, I'd like to join you.

[Chris]

Nice report, great pics. I'll have to make it there some time myself.

:thunb:

[Haku]

Thanks for the pictures and report!

Since when did the Left Hand Canyon Trail become the Left Hand Canyon ORV Park? Is this some new BS from the park service since they closed the Carnage Canyon section of the trail?

Thats probably not something official, just something my brain told me to say. I do remember seeing something about LHC ORV "area" or something along those lines. Could be wrong though. It is hard to to call it one trail, and borders on a publicly held "park".

I am definitely bummed that Carnage is gone. I was lucky enough to get up it once before they closed it. It was alot of fun and afforded a challenging but doable (at least for my short and narrow wheelbase that can go around all the big stuff) and safe area. There is still a ton of stuff up there to do though, and should afford some good spectating up at the top watching buggy fun. Oh well, no use crying over spilt milk and all that.

Greenramp, I'll definitely let you know the next time I head up there. Like I said in my report, I have some work to do on my rig before I get out again, but it should be only a couple days work at the most. Its a great area and closer then just about anything to Denver Metro. If I still lived in Boulder I would go up there a couple times a week.

JH

[Brody]

Hey Haku

I don't know what kinda springs you are thinking about running, but I did see that you mentioned yours were stiff.

You might just check to see if the stock wrangler or waggie springs would work on your rig, giving you the lift and articulation you need. It is probably posted on one of the Zuki forums.
If they will work, High Country will probably give them to you for a six pack or two.. they'll probably let you do some dumpster diving in their scrap bin to come up with them as they just toss the stock ones. I have gotten coils and leaf springs from these guys this way. Just ask one of the counter guys and make sure that the 'big boss' isn't around when you do it...

Secondly, Colorado Auto Parts off of Radcliff and the Santa Fe frontage road will sell leaf springs for $15 per side no matter what they come off of...you just gotta pull them yourself..

[Haku]

Been there done that....heheee

I have a set of 2.5" lift ProComp YJ wrangler springs sitting in the garage. The missing link shackles from www.trailtough.com should be here today or tomorrow. I want to stay Spring Under if I can, so I decided to go with a lift spring. I think I'll loose a tiny bit of height from this setup (The 5" Calmini shackle reverse system was on it when I bought it, which includes the 3" lift springs that ride hard as rock). I don't mind being a bit lower down, since COG will be better. The YJ's flex and ride a ton better, and I've heard very few negative things about using them. Better flex, better axle wrap prevention, and a much better ride. I think I will have to get longer travel shocks and shock mounts, but that shouldn't be an issue beyond money.

If you can't tell, I have been researching the crap out of this and have read up on every aspect:). Should make the rig alot more fun.

JH

[Brody]

I don't know if you have seen any of these, but I posted a bunch of videos, many that have Carnage stuff on them, in the 4x4 and videos of interest thread. Check them out if you feel like it. Some of them are pretty good and show a lot of the harder obstacles. The best, to me, of Carnage, is the one where we ran it in the winter when it was virtual sheet of ice. None of us had ever driven on stuff like that before and it was a hoot!

Holler if you need to weld the new shock mounts on and don't have access to a welder. I remembered reading something about the Jeep springs being used on the Zuks, just didn't know which ones. They are also a good swap on the Yotas, too, which is why my flagged out Alcans are now a bastardized mix of Alcan, Yota, and Waggie springs...Ahhhh, the things you come up with with no $$.....

[Haku]

The Trail Tough guys make it easy this time. Everything is bolt on and relatively easy. I may need some welding for the upgraded upper shock mounts, but have a Suzuki buddy who is really good with a welder. I'll definitely let you know though. Have to save up for everything for a while, since I'm short on funds for the forseeable future.

There are actually several ways of getting YJ springs on a Samurai. The main issue with this, is that the YJ springs are about 6-8" longer then the Samurai ones. There are two ways of getting around this. The easy one is to make a Missing Link Shackle System that extends out in front of where the springs normally mount in front. Like so:

http://www.izook.com/tech/samurai/suspension/skyj/images/pic27.jpg

You move the rear shock mount back as well, to center the spring. This style is completely bolt on and several companies make shackles designed for it. You can also piece together some from Jeep shackles, or obviously fabricate your own. I don't have any of the equipment to make and modify stuff too much, so I just bought Trail Tough's kit. I have heard nothing but good stuff about it, so I don't mind paying for it.

The other way to do it is do a frame extension and go shackle reverse. Definitely takes more fabrication, but the shackle is in a better, more protected place. It also doesn't have the issue of spontaneously coming open on really steep climbs like the Missing Link systems sometimes do. You won't get as much droop with this system though, which is the Missing Links party piece. Here is a picture that gets you an idea of what the Frame extension looks like:

http://dk09fg.bay.livefilestore.com/y1pDTBUViZ7n_162aSfPgC2dOTtIWlhKYvEV_kkl5R7A5azG44 A4cgrG9GV4EctJZplLFJ6nI6SNy9vlvBbA47Jsg/srdistance.jpg

Going spring over might be in the future for me, and I think longer travel shocks for sure. After that I think I'll need a Roll Cage and Winch Bumper with a decent winch. I'll definitely be taking some pictures and such of my mini-build and post it up on here when its done.

JH

[Chris]

Have to save up for everything for a while, since I'm short on funds for the forseeable future.


There's a statement we can all identify with :(

[Roostercruiser]

looked.like fun cant wait for us too join you once our scout steering is fixed.

[Brody]

Thanks for the pictures on the shackle stuff. I learned a little more this morning, which is a good sign...I had heard about the front shackle set up and figured that it looked something like your pictures, but nice to see the real thing. I'm gonna look pretty close at the next set up Sammi I see...you bet...

I am going to try to get 2" more out of my springs without any $$, or at least not too much, but I bobbed the back of my rig to the perches. So now if I need to do the 63" cheapo Chevy rear springs or the flipped Tundra springs for more lift and flex, I will have to do a frame extension like the picture or mount the shackles on the outside of the bumper...For the front, I am just going to move the front perches down 2". Anyway, A lot of the same kinda stuff.

Looking forward to seeing it and hearing about progress. Glad you got a bud with a welder. Post up if he isn't available when you need one..

[MileHighAko]

http://dk09fg.bay.livefilestore.com/y1p4EXOxFE1kY9vZV6g2YlZ5xJF6RNl8syVJ2gMDyo6Bo2sCFG oB15u4_apfrocGyECLZIfVe6DFURCrDYp0cGpBQ/SteveHardPart3.jpg


Maybe I'm watching too much SciFi channel lately, but those tree branches to the left-front of your truck kinda look like a giant spider about to eat your rig. (hmm... maybe I'm just drunk).

Thanks for the post and pics.

[Haku]

Maybe I'm watching too much SciFi channel lately, but those tree branches to the left-front of your truck kinda look like a giant spider about to eat your rig. (hmm... maybe I'm just drunk).

Thanks for the post and pics.

Yeah, pesky trees. Luckily Steve's Scout has an anti-foliage charm cast on it, so possessed trees are not a problem.

JH