Saturday, we hit up the New River Canyon Trail, north of Phoenix, off the I-17 and Table Mesa Rd. This is considered an easy trail, but as you'll see, there were plenty of challenges thanks to recent rains. We had 9 rigs in all, including two 2WD vehicles.



Jeff's 80-series 'cruiser





Doug's 4th gen 4Runner and his buddy's Tacoma SC'd Pre-Runner





Heading out...



















First water crossing...2WD Xterra has some trouble with the wet grass coming out...



Doug manuevering his rig through the first water crossing at 1.8 mi from the trailhead:





Brian looks to take it up a notch, but mis-judged the water depth...





...and gets stuck, with water coming into the cabin.



Jeff gets in place to winch him out











Hella lights are filled halfway with water



Swamp water drains out of the 2nd gen 4Runner



After continuing on, we stopped for lunch at a cool rock formation







Then we find a mud pit and have a little fun. Aaron actually jumped his Jeep into the mud and then got stuck...and continued to bury all 4 wheels. DOH!







Next, the Tacoma PreRunner got sideways and then stuck. Brian backs in to give him a tug out.





I slosh around in the foul-smelling mud as Brian gets ready to tug in the background





Doug takes another go at the mud





The Landcruiser makes another pass



We find a nice mound to play on, with a sharp turn at the top







Poser shot



A fun hill climb, where ATVs had been just moments before.



The Xterra made several attempts, but the loose terrain proved too difficult. It was even tough for the guys with 4WD and lockers.



3rd Gen and 4th Gen 4Runner pose





On the way out

 

Man that was a fun run. funny on an easy trail we got some many stuck. Sorry we had to run out early. I realized when we got back that half my steering stabilizer came off, so the last half I had to stabilizer. Did ya get any mud runs of my Jeep?

 

It was a fun run! Besides the scenery and views, that trail would've been pretty lame had it not been for all of the additional challenges we managed to find. I didn't get any great video footage, but maybe between all the other guys that were snapping pics and video, we'll have some more stuff to post.

 

Sweet. The side trails were awesome, and a lot of fun. Hope to head out with you guys soon.

 

Looks like it was a fun run. Next time, do us a favor, DON'T try and create a more "challenging" line at a water crossing. You can do a lot of damage to the stream bed and bank.

 

I agree with flyfishexpert. the best way to get our trails closed down is to make new ones to make it more challenging. Not to mention enviro groups just love pictures offroaders running through creekbeds and off trail damaging established riparian areas.

 

As much as i agree about the enviromental damage (YOU SHOULD TRY SALISBURY PLAIN uk, Its strict even if the army use it)... AWESOME PICS i envy you access to these places As ours is being resticted even more .

 

That is one of my favorite "mellow" runs.

I am pretty sure I know that mud hole you all played in. Was it off the main route that gets you to I-17? If so, and you ever want to do an amazing hike, park there next time and head upstream.

The creek narrows and has massive boulders that will require you to wade waist deep to get through. Dogs and kids love it... unless it's to cold.

 

man trips like this make me want to move to phoenix!

 

Love to see TONS of pics....You the man!!!

 

I understand and share your concern for the environment, but 2 months ago that "stream" wasn't even there and 2 months from now it will be dry until next winter except for the occassional wetting by a summer monsoon. Out here in AZ we Tread Lightly by actually staying IN the (mostly) dry stream beds and canyons, referred to as "washes". Any perceived "damage" done by 4 wheeling gets erased by the next water flow, whether it be from a monsoon or intermittent rainy periods. The nice thing is that these trails through the washes are constantly changing as obstacles get washed out and new ones are formed!

 

I was wondering why we didn't see Brian on Sat. to run Elvis. Now I see he was having all kinds of fun in the mud and water.

 

Looks like a good time...minus the mud ....

 

sweet place looks like fun

 

Great pics guys!

 

Great pictures, I wish I had been there. Mud is fun b.t.w. I don't know why so many people are afraid of it, it washes off...submerging the ride wouldn't be fun for the owner of said ride, but pulling it out would be. (yes I'm one of those guys who likes the added challenge of stuck vehicles, just not too many or too often)

Even though I agree people should "tread lightly" there are many times when pictures make it look worse than it is.

 

holy crap! haha you werent kidding when you said one rig almost swallowed by a creek!lol nice pics looked like fun

 

Great pics!