I arrived at Wendy's about quarter of 8:00 to and empty parking lot. It didn't take long for everyone to start rolling in. As people arrived, we gathered paperwork and did introductions. Ryan was nice enough to bring donuts for the crowd. Most people had already eaten breakfast, so the remaining donuts were saved for the trail. There were two outstanding parties that we had not heard from so we waited until 8:30 to give them a chance to catch up.

We chatted for a minute, dispersed those with CB out in the group and headed for Harrisonburg. We took over the pumps at the sheetz around 10:30. Most people topped off their tanks and grabbed drinks, snacks, lunch, whatever. The group converged outside the doors while everyone was finishing. We were making final preps for getting to the trail and notice Randy Wood standing by us. He and Carol were on their way to Roanoke and had just stopped for a minute. I tried to talk Randy into joining us, but he didn't give in.

We headed out for the trail and found out that Cline was familiar with our selection and offered to keep us from getting lost. We made the turn onto the beginning of the trail and stopped past the reservoir for drivers meeting, locking of hubs, etc. It was a bit chilly and the wind didn't help. We headed back out and just enjoyed how beautiful it was.

Just before noon we found a small mud run, mostly flat mud pan. There were a couple of rutted areas behind the pan. We all played a little, Chris had the most fun with the G-Wagon. He was in his own element playing in red goo. We convinced Kyle to let Sarah drive in the mud so she could enjoy it too. As people finished with the mud, they all grouped back at the entrance. Chris was so happy with his wheels that he opened it up for anyone to try. Several people did take him up on the offer.

We stopped and tried to find one of the two GeoCaches that were reported to be on the trail. One had not been found for over a year. Tom Potts doubled back to find it and Ryan showed off his RC beast. We did find out that you have to be careful when running these near trucks with CBs on 23. When he turned on the transmitter, all the CBs in the group started making a ruckus and the RC didn't behave when near the trucks. Potts came back reporting defeat.

We made Flagpole Knob about 1:00 and stopped to enjoy the view and scarf some lunch. The wind in the clearing was brutal. Sarah was trying to pretend she wasn't cold in just a windbreaker, but we could see that wasn't the case. I pulled out another one of my jackets from the back of the bronco and she wrapped up in it. Granted as small as she is three of her could have fit in there.

After leaving Flagpole Knob, we ran across the second GeoCache. Success, Tom and Ryan found it.

We made a quick stop at Meadow Knob to get a couple of scenic shots. Everyone just relaxed for a couple of minutes before getting back on the trail

We stopped again because Potts reported we were close to the first GeoCache he looked for. This time it was a success. He ended up finding both of the caches listed along our route.

We wound our way out and headed back for the asphalt. We stopped in a clearing before getting to the highway so that I could unlock my hubs (back up 20ish feet). Others took advantage of this time to do the same and chat. Ryan thought he had a rock between the heat shield and his rotor so we hi-lifted he 4runner and pulled the wheel for inspection. Chris pulled out a snap-on electric impact (nice). He did not have the right socket, but I did have my toolset that we were able to leverage. We didn't see anything on in the way so we replaced the wheel. We heard the sound he was describing, but it only happened when in 4wd. He said he'd figure it out when he got home.

We said our goodbyes and headed for the highway. Everyone started to disperse once we got back to Harrisonburg. Tom Potts and I split off on 11 to hit 81.

Thoughts...

It was nice to have a diverse group of vehicles. I think it shows well, that we are not a "brand" club. We had 3 jeeps, 3 4Runners, a G500, and a Full Size Bronco.

I want to thank those who attended. I had a good time guiding the group and everyone was nice and relaxed. It was a cold day, but the views were spectacular.

Special thanks go out to Cline and Tom. Cline kept us from getting too lost and passing all the fun spots. Tom ran tailgunner and made sure that we didn't have any strays or separated in Harrisonburg (traffic lights)