Now at the age of 45, it’s been a couple years since I have embarked on the challenge of conquering Redcone, WebsterPass, and Radical Hill on my KX500. Saturday morning, however, Tracy and I loaded our dog Madi in the Dodge RamCharger and headed south on Hwy 285. Just before reaching KenoshaPass, we turned right on the Forest Road that leads to Webster Pass. We came across a nice site to park just before reaching the Gibson Lake Trail Head. We then hiked the three mile trail above timberline to the tranquil alpine GibsonLake. Beautiful!
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After returning to the vehicle, our plan was to 4X4 over Webster Pass to Montezuma and return to Denver via Loveland Pass. We stopped to enjoy the scenery and have some lunch just prior to embarking on the last stretch to the summit.
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On the way to the top, we happened across five Mountain Goats, not uncommon for this area.
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I’ve always wondered how vehicles could possibly wind up wrecked at the bottom of this gigantic alpine basin. We were just about to find out!
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Just before reaching the summit, we encountered an eroded washout caused by the ice melt of a snowdrift which was running down and across the trail. To the left, was the steep uphill angle of the mountainside. To the right, was the most frightening ride of the last moments of your life. It was very intimidating but appeared to be passable. We felt the ground slightly give way below the right rear tire as we made it past. After proceeding approximately another 100 yards, we came to the realization that the snowdrift was actually blocking the trail just yards from the summit. We got out of the vehicle and hiked up and over the snowdrift to reach the summit by foot. The view from there is remarkable!
We were now, however, facing the reality of backing down past the erosion that we barely skated by on the way up. Tracy remained out or the vehicle in an attempt to guide me past the erosion and also to limit the casualties. I made it past the wash with my rear tires. As I proceeded a little further, the front of the vehicle suddenly slid to the left about two feet. I was frozen stiff with my knees shaking trying to keep the brakes applied. The right front tire slid into the wash and the vehicle was perched at a severe angle. Two guys on ATV’s watched the insanity and came to help. One of them got below the vehicle and did his best to stabilize the ground below my tire. He took a picture to show me the situation I was facing. Since the vehicle had not moved any further, I mustered up the courage to put it in park, let off the brakes, and climb out the extremely heavy door at that angle.
I was nowhere nearly equipped as I should have been, but I did have a shovel. We used it to divert the run off from further eroding the ground below my tire. The two guy’s on ATV’s left saying they would send a 4X4 up to help if possible. Tracy and I spent the next hour hauling rocks and in an attempt to stabilize the ground and to build a platform to which we could drive out on. A Jeep on top of Redcone also witnessed the incident. They descended from Redcone but had no way to get there Jeep on our side of the snowfield. They did, however, walk down and proved to be very helpful and experienced. They basically said they were sure they were witnessing a fatality. Others showed up and were less helpful. Some threw large rocks from a distance on the unstable ground below the tire. Others wanted to climb on the opposite rear corner of the vehicle. I had to convince them that any movement was going to be detrimental and eventually had to tell them to stay the hell away.
With the confidence of evaluating the situation, discussing it with some experienced 4 wheelers, and doing our best to stabilize the ground, it was time to dance. I climbed back in as everybody else watched. Started the vehicle, put it in reverse, eased off the brakes while giving just a little gas. It climbed right out. Everybody was excited! Made it home that evening around 8:00P.
As always, I truly feel blessed! In some ways, I feel angry and embarrassed to have put myself and others in this situation. It certainly was not the first time. On the other hand, these are the kind of things I truly enjoy doing. It’s sometimes easy to forget that this type of activity is truly risky and dangerous. In my opinion, the key to returning home safely was remaining calm, level headed, and resisting the urge to panic. Don’t mean to preach, but try to be prepared as possible and be safe.
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