Back Way to Crown King, AZ Toyota Run 2008

[Disruptor]

Hi all!
I know most people in Arizona know of this trail, but I would love to share it to all from out of state in a huge gathering and run to the top. When at the All Pro Off Road Jamboree, Terry mentioned I should post a run up and get some people to go. I love this trail not so much for its technical difficulty but for its historic content and the dinner at the mill in Crown King.

Date: February 23rd, 2008, 10 AM

Drivers gathering starting at 10 AM and the Trail run will begin at 11 AM.
This reason is so that dinner or lunch can be ordered up at the Mill in Crown King.

Time and Distance: 4 to 5 hours, trail is about 34.4 miles long. Return trip will be on the Crown King Road to Cleator and Interstate 17. This return is on a graded dirt road all the way until the interstate and is about 30 miles long.

Difficulty: Its not a hard core trail by any means, there are some tricky optionals that require a rear locker. The trail keeps getting worse each winter with the rainfalls erroding away the roads fast. There are some challenging steps and rocks are quite exposed in others.

Features: This trail is really historical, it would be wise if you read up on the history a little bit before heading out. There are multiple mines along the way, old remains from the mining facilities, and the very historic town of Crown King which features the oldest bar in Arizona. Elevation ranges from 1500 feet all the way to nearly 6000 feet in the Bradshaw Mountains.

To get there: Take Interstate 17 to Cave Creek/ Carefree exit 223. Head west on State Highway 74 about 11 miles. Turn right just past mile marker 19 on a major paved road. Drive straigt for about 5.5 miles to where it reaches Castle Creek Road. Turn left onto a reddish dirt road and take it for several miles until you see a huge dirt parking lot usually filled with trucks and trailers. This is the meeting spot for everyone. Look for FJs and other offroad vehicles airing down.

Notes: I would recomend a big breakfast and some snacks on the trail due to the fact that the food is so excellent at the Mill. A huge filet mignon wrapped in 2 long slices of bacon along with salad is only 26 bucks, and this thing is like 20 oz., there are many other delicious items as well. The old mill they used to crushed rocks was built around it for this restaurant.

Its up to you if you want to spend 10 bucks on dinner at the cafe in the Saloon or spend 20 to 30 bucks per plate at the mill. We will be meeting in the Saloon for drinks I am sure.

Also, let me know if you are out of state and interested, if enough are, then we might be able to get you a group discount at the nearest decent hotel.

Just post here if you are interested and give me the details on your location, city, state, and contact information.

Thats it for now.. I will post more as we get closer to the date. If not many can make it or are interested I might be will to change the date.

Stay tuned...

Brandon

[tibaal89]

Yea, it is a great run... last time I did was in the middle of December and the trail was comically washed out. I was getting stuck on rock obstacles that didn't exist when I was there in October or so...

Where are you from?

[Disruptor]

I am in Chandler, AZ.

Yeah I actually went a weekend after we had major rains and a system was coming through it that same weekend that was much less rain but was still snowing up at CK when the had the light parade up there. There were multiple creek crossings, it was a blast that time.

[speedy]

2008 is what you mean, right? There are some pictures of this run on this forum. Feel free to link them here if you want for some teaser shots.

[BellyDoc]

Hey Brandon! I was WONDERING when you'd finally get here.

I strongly suggest you be somewhat cautious about opening yourself up for being responsible for a large group. I never have as much fun when I feel responsible for a lot of people as I do when I run with a half dozen drivers that I go with regularly, and where we know eachother's capabilities. That trail, in particular, shouldn't be run with more than about a 10 rig party unless you break it into parts. I would suggest 6.

Although its not a technically demanding trail, it's sporty. The likelihood that you'll need to manage some sort of situation, whether in your party or other parties that you encounter along the way, is significant.

The likelihood increases exponentially with an increase in party size.

Passing other parties, either going in the same direction or in the opposite direction... sucks in several places.

Remember when we rock-stacked that guy off a high center up on the shelf road section??

I suggest you look at the board here in some detail and check out the regional sections. There's a whole lot of us Arizonans well knit together and we're all trying to figure out what the heck you've been doing, not coming online here, up until now.

There's an AZFJ subforum.

We've also got a board at AZFJ › News

By the way... you probably should check out what I'm building in my garage now... there's a thread on here under member build-ups... go look... you'll know it when you see it.

Welcome home, dude.

[tibaal89]

Hey, cool... check out AZFJ.org like Doc said... always something goin on!

[Disruptor]

Yep, thanks for correcting me, still used to typing 2007.

Jon, you missed the All Pro Jambo.. it was a blast. Well I was hoping to get in between 6 to 10 rigs since the date is not that far away, I figure quite a few people won't be able to make it.