34 Jp jpmagazine.com OCTOBER 2019
2019 JP DIRT ’N DRIVE
not like “going fishing” early mornings,
but daily morning drivers’ meetings
are at 6:30 a.m., and we’re out of the
parking lot at 7:00 a.m. And as we like
to remind participants, “No whining” is
the first of Jp Dirt ’N Drive’s three rules.
Two and three are “Hydrate, hydrate,
hydrate” and “Have fun!” With another
5:30 a.m. wake-up call and 6:00 a.m.
breakfast behind us, we waved goodbye to
Montrose, Colorado, and headed north-
ward again on the highway (State 50 this
time) toward Grand Junction.
Just before reaching Grand Junction,
our group dodged acute left onto Scenic
and Historic Highway 141. This winding
backcountry byway offered numer-
ous historical, geological, and cultural
treasures (and more Poker Photo
Challenge photo ops). It took us over
mountain passes, into pine forests, past
farms and ranches, and through towns
like Gateway (named for the pillar forma-
tion at the canyon entrance—a gateway
to adjoining country to the south, west,
and north) and Uravan (which got its
name from URAnium and VANadium,
the two key minerals extracted from this
once bust li ng m i n i ng tow n) on t he way to
Naturita, Colorado.
Naturita was our short-term goal,
as it was a good gas stop and the point at
which the route got even more interesting.
Not far from town was the turnoff to Y-11
Road (dirt) that follows the San Miguel
and Dolores Rivers through high-walled
canyons for more than a dozen miles
u nt i l it pops back onto H ig hway 90 nea r
Bedrock. This deep, cool river canyon is
where we saw one of the wonders of human
ingenuity (and another Poker Challenge
Another group (above, right) chose the
lower-rated (5) Tabeguache Trail—part of the
Montrose trail system—and it did not disap-
point Jeepers looking for a workout. It had its
own set of challenges on a number of steep
climbs that were dug out and littered with loose
stones that often shifted under your wheels.
There were almost always go-arounds for
extreme obstacles on the trails. In this partic-
ular case, David Childs of the Western Slope
4 Wheelers used his 1990 Jeep YJ with locked
60s and a fuel-injected 360 to show us how
to tackle one of the most challenging climbs
on the Montrose-area Calamity Canyon trail.
The trail was rated 6 to 9, depending on route
options, and the trail description carried a
“tow rig recommended” warning.
Repeat Jp Dirt ’N Drive participant Jerry VanHoosen wheeled his orange-and-brown ’87 Jeep
YJ with gusto on Calamity Canyon. This particular obstacle gave quite a few people trouble,
including Jerry, who eventually got sideways a bit too far and hung up on a rock. That’s what
winches were made for, and he was smart enough to use it before causing any serious damage.Water crossings are always fun and make
good photo spots on the trail. Almost every
Jeep had somebody hop out and take
pictures as the rig slowly forded the tire-high
river on this section of the Tabeguache Trail.Clint Malburg and his ’97 Jeep TJ with a
custom bed and 18 inches of stretched
frame and wheelbase. It rides on Wagoneer
44 front and Dynatrac 60 rear axles with
37-inch tires. The TJ handled the Tabegua-
che Trail like it was on a Sunday drive.