Mar 04, 2024
After a too long hiatus, we got back out onto a trail! The weather had been relatively dry the last couple weeks (though that changed yesterday), so we thought we really ought to get out.
I started out using the Bronco Trail app, but it doesn't have much in the area beyond the standard stuff around Ouray. That's all still closed, as far as I can tell. I switched over to COTREX, which is a trail app created by the Colorado state government. It's not the easiest app to use, but it has tons of trail information. After a bit of browsing there, and discovering the West Slope 4 Wheelers website (shout out to those guys for the suggestion), we decided to head over to the Peach Valley OHV area north of Montrose to try the Eagle-Wave Loop.
WSW rates this "4+" out of 10, so I wasn't expecting it to be all that challenging. Right off the bat, it was pretty easy, but fun because I was able to get the speedometer going - and scared my ladyfriend (Alison) a little. Soon after, though, the inclines began and the rocks began to crop up on the trail. It was a much bigger challenge than I expected, but I got a ton of footage - so much that I had to make two separate videos, and probably really needed three. We're working on trying to get the camera into different places, and Alison got some experience as a ground guide. Overall, it was a ton of fun, and our stock Black Diamond Bronco performed very admirably climbing over rocks and on our high speed run to wrap up the loop. We're new to this, but I think this trail did a lot to improve my confidence in the vehicle and in myself. Some big takeaways: probably should have aired down, but I forgot until we were nearly done - it worked out all the same; more ground clearance on this thing would be helpful.
Check out our video, if you're interested. Once I get the rest of the clips pasted together, I'll post the second part. Thanks for watching!
I started out using the Bronco Trail app, but it doesn't have much in the area beyond the standard stuff around Ouray. That's all still closed, as far as I can tell. I switched over to COTREX, which is a trail app created by the Colorado state government. It's not the easiest app to use, but it has tons of trail information. After a bit of browsing there, and discovering the West Slope 4 Wheelers website (shout out to those guys for the suggestion), we decided to head over to the Peach Valley OHV area north of Montrose to try the Eagle-Wave Loop.
WSW rates this "4+" out of 10, so I wasn't expecting it to be all that challenging. Right off the bat, it was pretty easy, but fun because I was able to get the speedometer going - and scared my ladyfriend (Alison) a little. Soon after, though, the inclines began and the rocks began to crop up on the trail. It was a much bigger challenge than I expected, but I got a ton of footage - so much that I had to make two separate videos, and probably really needed three. We're working on trying to get the camera into different places, and Alison got some experience as a ground guide. Overall, it was a ton of fun, and our stock Black Diamond Bronco performed very admirably climbing over rocks and on our high speed run to wrap up the loop. We're new to this, but I think this trail did a lot to improve my confidence in the vehicle and in myself. Some big takeaways: probably should have aired down, but I forgot until we were nearly done - it worked out all the same; more ground clearance on this thing would be helpful.
Check out our video, if you're interested. Once I get the rest of the clips pasted together, I'll post the second part. Thanks for watching!
tchancey, RobWTx