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I have often told people that bad trips make good stories....I got a great story this weekend.
I took Friday off from work and was hoping that I would be able to leave Thursday after work but knew that was a long shot. Didn't end up leaving until after noon on Friday and after hemming and hawing between going to a couple places that I knew about and a new area someone on another message board had posted some pictures of their day trip of and told me that there was a few places that they thought would be good for camping along El Oso Rd. I decided on going to the new area. Specifically, to a spot where Sycamore Creek crosses El Oso Rd. I had high hopes because it had rained pretty heavily a few days prior and I figured the streams would be swollen with all the runoff.
With my truck loaded and my dog as my copilot I was off. It should have taken about 2.5 hours to get where I was going but because I wasn't paying attention to what my gps was doing I ended up going an extra hour out of my way. That's ok, I don't mind the drive because the scenery is so nice. Excited as I turned off the asphalt I headed up the dirt mountain road.
Ten miles in I had passed few places that I would consider good camping spots when I came to an impressive clearing. It was on a rock outcropping that gave way to some great views and had room to spread out a bit.
Naturally I hopped back in my truck and headed down the road. I didn't give a second thought to the fact that the road I was on wasn't on Google Maps. I just kept pushing forward toward my goal. Another mile in and I reached the spot I was looking for and couldn't help but be underwhelmed. Sure there was running water and even a small pond but the water wasn't moving fast so the pond was a little iffy. I had seen plenty of runoff and new that the lower down I went the more water there would be so I decided to explore further down the road that was, by this time, headed downhill.
Just around the bend I ran into, what turned out to be El Oso Mine.
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About 6' tall and looking like a cave in the side of the mountain it is literally on the side of the road. There was water on the floor so I didn't go in...plus it was pitch black. Just on the other side of the road was a spot that would have been just big enough for me to park my truck and set up camp. It would have been a tight fit but it would have been enough. There was also a small stream coming down the mountain, crossing the road and dropping further down on the other side making a fantastic waterfall sound. I walked up the road about a quarter mile and decided that the road might cross the stream one more time and hopped in the truck and continued down the road.....
By the time I realized that was a mistake it was too late. The road was to rough for my full size F150 despite the fact that it has 4wd...and there was nowhere to turn around. I didn't have any choice but to push forward. Getting out often to plot the safest course over the large rocks and swells on the road and greatly adding to my pinstripe collection on my truck I crawled forward hoping to get to a spot to turn around. Soon I realized that I was closer to what I hoped was the end of the road, basically where it met up with another road, then the beginning and figured it would be better to push through. It took me over an hour to go 2 miles. It was starting to get dark when I got to a spot that I didn't think I was going to be able to pass less than half a mile from the end of the road. Fortunately there was a spot that I was able to execute an 8 point turn and drive back to a flat spot where I can unload and set up my tent, literally in the middle of the road.
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I as I was lying there there getting ready to go to sleep I was stressing out because I wasn't sure that I was going to be able to make it out the way I came in either. I was trying to form a plan for the morning. Clearly I wasn't going to set up everything and camp in the middle of the road for the weekend but maybe I could set up the grill and make a quick breakfast....oh crap...I didn't load up my grill before I left the house. No worries, I have plenty of snacks. Apples, chips, candy bars, and beef jerky that I generously shared with my dog. I woke up in the morning with a fresh attitude and after a bit of reading, loaded up and headed out.
Obviously I made it out but on my way out I was debating weather or not to just head for home or find another spot and camp for another night. My wife bought me a tripod grill for a campfire that I had to cook my food so it was still an option. I figured that I would stay at the original great spot with the views except someone was there. :( Kept heading toward home and took a different way out than I came in and was looking for a good spot. Came across one that was where 2 streams merged but it was right off a busy road. There must have been a dozen vehicles, mostly Polaris type off road things, go by in the first 30 minutes I was there looking around. I saw a turnoff on the other side of the road that only went in about 50-100 feet but opened to a clearing that was behind a small hill blocking most of the noise from the road. It was right by one of the streams and if you followed it up a bit there was a waterfall. The only hitch is that I would have to turn on the 4wd to get down that short road which after the trouble I had earlier I wasn't anxious to mess with anything like it again. But I decided I was going to stay there but since I had been texting my wife all that was going on and the last thing I told her was that I was most likely heading home I wanted to let her know that I was staying the extra night and where. The only problem was that there wasn't ANY cell reception. I even climbed the mountain a bit to see if I could get something...anything...but nothing. I figured I would head up the road a couple miles and find some reception. So I pulled up the gps coordinates and sent the text and went looking for a signal. 20 minutes later I still hadn't found a signal and my phone battery died despite being plugged into the lighter.
I called the weekend a bust and kept on for home. Thinking that my brother put it best. Mother Nature kicked my ass.
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I took Friday off from work and was hoping that I would be able to leave Thursday after work but knew that was a long shot. Didn't end up leaving until after noon on Friday and after hemming and hawing between going to a couple places that I knew about and a new area someone on another message board had posted some pictures of their day trip of and told me that there was a few places that they thought would be good for camping along El Oso Rd. I decided on going to the new area. Specifically, to a spot where Sycamore Creek crosses El Oso Rd. I had high hopes because it had rained pretty heavily a few days prior and I figured the streams would be swollen with all the runoff.
With my truck loaded and my dog as my copilot I was off. It should have taken about 2.5 hours to get where I was going but because I wasn't paying attention to what my gps was doing I ended up going an extra hour out of my way. That's ok, I don't mind the drive because the scenery is so nice. Excited as I turned off the asphalt I headed up the dirt mountain road.
Ten miles in I had passed few places that I would consider good camping spots when I came to an impressive clearing. It was on a rock outcropping that gave way to some great views and had room to spread out a bit.
Naturally I hopped back in my truck and headed down the road. I didn't give a second thought to the fact that the road I was on wasn't on Google Maps. I just kept pushing forward toward my goal. Another mile in and I reached the spot I was looking for and couldn't help but be underwhelmed. Sure there was running water and even a small pond but the water wasn't moving fast so the pond was a little iffy. I had seen plenty of runoff and new that the lower down I went the more water there would be so I decided to explore further down the road that was, by this time, headed downhill.
Just around the bend I ran into, what turned out to be El Oso Mine.
About 6' tall and looking like a cave in the side of the mountain it is literally on the side of the road. There was water on the floor so I didn't go in...plus it was pitch black. Just on the other side of the road was a spot that would have been just big enough for me to park my truck and set up camp. It would have been a tight fit but it would have been enough. There was also a small stream coming down the mountain, crossing the road and dropping further down on the other side making a fantastic waterfall sound. I walked up the road about a quarter mile and decided that the road might cross the stream one more time and hopped in the truck and continued down the road.....
By the time I realized that was a mistake it was too late. The road was to rough for my full size F150 despite the fact that it has 4wd...and there was nowhere to turn around. I didn't have any choice but to push forward. Getting out often to plot the safest course over the large rocks and swells on the road and greatly adding to my pinstripe collection on my truck I crawled forward hoping to get to a spot to turn around. Soon I realized that I was closer to what I hoped was the end of the road, basically where it met up with another road, then the beginning and figured it would be better to push through. It took me over an hour to go 2 miles. It was starting to get dark when I got to a spot that I didn't think I was going to be able to pass less than half a mile from the end of the road. Fortunately there was a spot that I was able to execute an 8 point turn and drive back to a flat spot where I can unload and set up my tent, literally in the middle of the road.
I as I was lying there there getting ready to go to sleep I was stressing out because I wasn't sure that I was going to be able to make it out the way I came in either. I was trying to form a plan for the morning. Clearly I wasn't going to set up everything and camp in the middle of the road for the weekend but maybe I could set up the grill and make a quick breakfast....oh crap...I didn't load up my grill before I left the house. No worries, I have plenty of snacks. Apples, chips, candy bars, and beef jerky that I generously shared with my dog. I woke up in the morning with a fresh attitude and after a bit of reading, loaded up and headed out.
Obviously I made it out but on my way out I was debating weather or not to just head for home or find another spot and camp for another night. My wife bought me a tripod grill for a campfire that I had to cook my food so it was still an option. I figured that I would stay at the original great spot with the views except someone was there. :( Kept heading toward home and took a different way out than I came in and was looking for a good spot. Came across one that was where 2 streams merged but it was right off a busy road. There must have been a dozen vehicles, mostly Polaris type off road things, go by in the first 30 minutes I was there looking around. I saw a turnoff on the other side of the road that only went in about 50-100 feet but opened to a clearing that was behind a small hill blocking most of the noise from the road. It was right by one of the streams and if you followed it up a bit there was a waterfall. The only hitch is that I would have to turn on the 4wd to get down that short road which after the trouble I had earlier I wasn't anxious to mess with anything like it again. But I decided I was going to stay there but since I had been texting my wife all that was going on and the last thing I told her was that I was most likely heading home I wanted to let her know that I was staying the extra night and where. The only problem was that there wasn't ANY cell reception. I even climbed the mountain a bit to see if I could get something...anything...but nothing. I figured I would head up the road a couple miles and find some reception. So I pulled up the gps coordinates and sent the text and went looking for a signal. 20 minutes later I still hadn't found a signal and my phone battery died despite being plugged into the lighter.
I called the weekend a bust and kept on for home. Thinking that my brother put it best. Mother Nature kicked my ass.
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