Trip Report: Back Way to Crown King Az 3-9-24

[Bird Dog Off Road]

So inspired by this post, https://www.bronco6g.com/forum/threads/backway-to-crown-king-az-01012024.86881/ there was talk between @Az_Squatch_Bronco, @_ocnorb_ & @RynoRanger & I to plan a trip so I set a date for 3-9-24. Then somehow someone threw it out on Facebook "Never had it Never will" (7-up) and the group grew to 10 vehicles.

In attendance were:

Felix808 4- door White Badlands
@_ocnorb_ 2-door A51 Badlands
Dave in his RadMigo Blue built Amigo
@Az_Squatch_Bronco 4-door Camo Badlands
@RynoRanger 4-door A51 Badlands
Mark in a Red 2-door Wild-Track
John in a Cyber Orange 2 door Badlands
KC & The rest of the crazy girls in a White 2015 JKU They were having a blast!
Scott in a 21 Rubi Gladiator
Tailgunner Tom in a nice Blue JKU



@Az_Squatch_Bronco, @_ocnorb_ & @RynoRanger & I decided to set this up. We put a date of 3-9-24 on it & the plan was in motion. @_ocnorb_ & I both being from SoCal decided we would start our adventure on 3-8-24. We took off and made our way to the trail head staging area, but knowing what we now know we would have continued further down the trail . The staging area was a complete zoo with countless 5-wheels and toy haulers with a bazillion SXS’s. If I never see another one on the trail it will be too soon . Later when we were stopped at the waterfall someone told me this was the first day of Spring Break and the first ever 2- week Spring Break. So yea no shortage of trail traffic. I can sure pick’em A lot of these folks just don’t care how they act & the noise is nuts. Yeah I’m old Anyway the circus was out running around and blaring music past 1 am yelling and racing through our campsite . It was ridiculous. There were also countless wild burros that were making all kinds of racket throughout the night, apparently because we camped in their favorite toilet judging by all the deposits in the area . Some roaming cattle was also found in the area.

We had just finished setting up camp & the rain started in followed by a lightening & thunder storm . Thankfully the lightening passed us up directly and the rain didn’t last too long. It was a beautiful night sitting around the campfire eating carne asada tacos and watching the lightening in the distance trying to ignore the SXS circus .

We got up the next morning and cooked up some breakfast burritos and broke down the camp. The burritos were great, but would have been better if someone didn’t forget the bacon in the fridge 500+ miles back at home

. I guess that beats discovering it was left out on the counter to spoil when I returned home .

The rest of the group met up at our campsite at the staging area. We aired down & had a quick drivers meeting & we were on our way at about 9am.

Traveling down the trail we ran into a jeep group, a full size truck group that we would be stuck behind at the waterfall later and countless SXS’s one group was about 17 deep and quite annoying as we kept running into them after we had let them pass numerous times. Again the noise. Consideration is not in their creed for the most part .

We made our way down the trail hitting a number of the optional offshoots. One was very slippery and need to do a double bump with some momentum to get up and over.

Traveling down the trail we discovered numerous vehicles that were abandoned and of course shot up as well and some parts art mostly consisting of crank shafts, one of which was rather impressive. My guess is out of a straight 8 tractor (Big Rig)



We arrived at what I would call the main obstacle, the waterfall where we ran into a Great Mess of Crap (GMC) full-size hung up for well over an hour as the previous Jeep group had winched them off only for them to fail & fail again trying to get through. After an hour & no small change the group was finally through.

Next was our turn. The rocks were super slippery I tied 3 different lines before finally hitting paydirt & got up & over. Next was @_ocnorb_ and he decided to try my final line making it on his first attempt. Well done. We ended up winching John in his cyber 2 door via Dan’s winch. Mark found his RC winch was DOA so Dan was called back into action. @Az_Squatch_Bronco took a couple stabs at it and made it up. We winched a few more vehicles up and over then the Gladiator made it up on his own.

A short way up the trail from there we came to the last major obstacle. There were a couple ways to go on this. To the right was slippery and a lot of holes. To the left was a V-notch wall that was close to the canyon & river below when you came down so a little nervy. I determined that the V-notch was the best line and everyone pretty much made it with just a little pucker factor. We continued to pass SXS’s on the way up to the end of the trail finally making it to the end after a 6 hour day on the trail.

We gathered for a group shot at the end of the trail & went in to town to search for gold, a parking spot in our case as it proved just as hard to find. Looked around the small town a bit & we all ended up at the Saloon. This place does have some storied history going back to the 1864’s. The whole town burned down 4 times over the years but as luck would have it or priorities proved the saloon was the only thing saved in each fire. They cook a great burger but it aint cheap.

Damage report:

Jettisoned 1 mud flap of Johns Bronco & 1 stirrup step off Marks Bronco. I think everyone else cane out clean.



This was a great run with a great group. Definitely worth doing once!!!

Thank you everyone for coming out. It was great meeting you all

Please add details and photos

Moving to Phoenix at the end of April. This trail is definitely on top of my list of trails to do after I get settled in.

Sponsored

 

[Ford Motor Company]

So inspired by this post, https://www.bronco6g.com/forum/threads/backway-to-crown-king-az-01012024.86881/ there was talk between @Az_Squatch_Bronco, @_ocnorb_ & @RynoRanger & I to plan a trip so I set a date for 3-9-24. Then somehow someone threw it out on Facebook "Never had it Never will" (7-up) and the group grew to 10 vehicles.

In attendance were:

Felix808 4- door White Badlands
@_ocnorb_ 2-door A51 Badlands
Dave in his RadMigo Blue built Amigo
@Az_Squatch_Bronco 4-door Camo Badlands
@RynoRanger 4-door A51 Badlands
Mark in a Red 2-door Wild-Track
John in a Cyber Orange 2 door Badlands
KC & The rest of the crazy girls in a White 2015 JKU They were having a blast!
Scott in a 21 Rubi Gladiator
Tailgunner Tom in a nice Blue JKU



@Az_Squatch_Bronco, @_ocnorb_ & @RynoRanger & I decided to set this up. We put a date of 3-9-24 on it & the plan was in motion. @_ocnorb_ & I both being from SoCal decided we would start our adventure on 3-8-24. We took off and made our way to the trail head staging area, but knowing what we now know we would have continued further down the trail . The staging area was a complete zoo with countless 5-wheels and toy haulers with a bazillion SXS’s. If I never see another one on the trail it will be too soon . Later when we were stopped at the waterfall someone told me this was the first day of Spring Break and the first ever 2- week Spring Break. So yea no shortage of trail traffic. I can sure pick’em A lot of these folks just don’t care how they act & the noise is nuts. Yeah I’m old Anyway the circus was out running around and blaring music past 1 am yelling and racing through our campsite . It was ridiculous. There were also countless wild burros that were making all kinds of racket throughout the night, apparently because we camped in their favorite toilet judging by all the deposits in the area . Some roaming cattle was also found in the area.

We had just finished setting up camp & the rain started in followed by a lightening & thunder storm . Thankfully the lightening passed us up directly and the rain didn’t last too long. It was a beautiful night sitting around the campfire eating carne asada tacos and watching the lightening in the distance trying to ignore the SXS circus .

We got up the next morning and cooked up some breakfast burritos and broke down the camp. The burritos were great, but would have been better if someone didn’t forget the bacon in the fridge 500+ miles back at home

. I guess that beats discovering it was left out on the counter to spoil when I returned home .

The rest of the group met up at our campsite at the staging area. We aired down & had a quick drivers meeting & we were on our way at about 9am.

Traveling down the trail we ran into a jeep group, a full size truck group that we would be stuck behind at the waterfall later and countless SXS’s one group was about 17 deep and quite annoying as we kept running into them after we had let them pass numerous times. Again the noise. Consideration is not in their creed for the most part .

We made our way down the trail hitting a number of the optional offshoots. One was very slippery and need to do a double bump with some momentum to get up and over.

Traveling down the trail we discovered numerous vehicles that were abandoned and of course shot up as well and some parts art mostly consisting of crank shafts, one of which was rather impressive. My guess is out of a straight 8 tractor (Big Rig)



We arrived at what I would call the main obstacle, the waterfall where we ran into a Great Mess of Crap (GMC) full-size hung up for well over an hour as the previous Jeep group had winched them off only for them to fail & fail again trying to get through. After an hour & no small change the group was finally through.

Next was our turn. The rocks were super slippery I tied 3 different lines before finally hitting paydirt & got up & over. Next was @_ocnorb_ and he decided to try my final line making it on his first attempt. Well done. We ended up winching John in his cyber 2 door via Dan’s winch. Mark found his RC winch was DOA so Dan was called back into action. @Az_Squatch_Bronco took a couple stabs at it and made it up. We winched a few more vehicles up and over then the Gladiator made it up on his own.

A short way up the trail from there we came to the last major obstacle. There were a couple ways to go on this. To the right was slippery and a lot of holes. To the left was a V-notch wall that was close to the canyon & river below when you came down so a little nervy. I determined that the V-notch was the best line and everyone pretty much made it with just a little pucker factor. We continued to pass SXS’s on the way up to the end of the trail finally making it to the end after a 6 hour day on the trail.

We gathered for a group shot at the end of the trail & went in to town to search for gold, a parking spot in our case as it proved just as hard to find. Looked around the small town a bit & we all ended up at the Saloon. This place does have some storied history going back to the 1864’s. The whole town burned down 4 times over the years but as luck would have it or priorities proved the saloon was the only thing saved in each fire. They cook a great burger but it aint cheap.

Damage report:

Jettisoned 1 mud flap of Johns Bronco & 1 stirrup step off Marks Bronco. I think everyone else cane out clean.



This was a great run with a great group. Definitely worth doing once!!!

Thank you everyone for coming out. It was great meeting you all

Please add details and photos

Great photos! We're glad to hear your and your group had fun, the trails you guys took look beautiful.

 

[Az_Squatch_Bronco]

Moving to Phoenix at the end of April. This trail is definitely on top of my list of trails to do after I get settled in.

Would run this trail again sometime, let me know!

 

[CalvinT]

It's been over 20 years since I've been in the Bradshaws or to Crown King. I always went through Bumble Bee because it's quicker (I was going for work). I've always wondered about the back way in.

Thanks to your excellent report, I know to never try it on a weekend.

 

[RynoRanger]

Moving to Phoenix at the end of April. This trail is definitely on top of my list of trails to do after I get settled in.

Hey man; saw your post on FB (I'm ChuckReynolds over there) so welcome here. This trail is fun... I would do again for sure - but I need some more space under my truck first

 

[RynoRanger]

It's a 15mm head... just need to figure out which grade-8 to buy to replace em.

Turns out spending $16 at Ace on 2 stainless bolts and 2 washers could have just been a "M10-1.5 x 40 mm Universal Metric Body Bolt" which like... a couple bucks at home depot or amazon. Sheeeiiitt.. Going to return that overpriced crap to Ace and order a handful of these.
Problem is... I couldn't get the bolt into the hole this one came out of...hoping a taper helps but I may have twisted and/or stripped that hole out a bit.


UPDATE: Ford dealer parts dept had a bag of 4 for $5.48 including uncle sam. Just go there. lol

 

[Shifts And Grins Fab]

Much too slippery this time around & yours is the run I linked to in the beginning

Awesome! I see that. It’s a fun trail when there aren’t too many people on it. If you come again, I’d love to j

Moving to Phoenix at the end of April. This trail is definitely on top of my list of trails to do after I get settled in.

Let’s connect when you get settled. Ryan 480-239-3148

 

[_ocnorb_]

So inspired by this post, https://www.bronco6g.com/forum/threads/backway-to-crown-king-az-01012024.86881/ there was talk between @Az_Squatch_Bronco, @_ocnorb_ & @RynoRanger & I to plan a trip so I set a date for 3-9-24. Then somehow someone threw it out on Facebook "Never had it Never will" (7-up) and the group grew to 10 vehicles.

In attendance were:

Felix808 4- door White Badlands
@_ocnorb_ 2-door A51 Badlands
Dave in his RadMigo Blue built Amigo
@Az_Squatch_Bronco 4-door Camo Badlands
@RynoRanger 4-door A51 Badlands
Mark in a Red 2-door Wild-Track
John in a Cyber Orange 2 door Badlands
KC & The rest of the crazy girls in a White 2015 JKU They were having a blast!
Scott in a 21 Rubi Gladiator
Tailgunner Tom in a nice Blue JKU



@Az_Squatch_Bronco, @_ocnorb_ & @RynoRanger & I decided to set this up. We put a date of 3-9-24 on it & the plan was in motion. @_ocnorb_ & I both being from SoCal decided we would start our adventure on 3-8-24. We took off and made our way to the trail head staging area, but knowing what we now know we would have continued further down the trail . The staging area was a complete zoo with countless 5-wheels and toy haulers with a bazillion SXS’s. If I never see another one on the trail it will be too soon . Later when we were stopped at the waterfall someone told me this was the first day of Spring Break and the first ever 2- week Spring Break. So yea no shortage of trail traffic. I can sure pick’em A lot of these folks just don’t care how they act & the noise is nuts. Yeah I’m old Anyway the circus was out running around and blaring music past 1 am yelling and racing through our campsite . It was ridiculous. There were also countless wild burros that were making all kinds of racket throughout the night, apparently because we camped in their favorite toilet judging by all the deposits in the area . Some roaming cattle was also found in the area.

We had just finished setting up camp & the rain started in followed by a lightening & thunder storm . Thankfully the lightening passed us up directly and the rain didn’t last too long. It was a beautiful night sitting around the campfire eating carne asada tacos and watching the lightening in the distance trying to ignore the SXS circus .

We got up the next morning and cooked up some breakfast burritos and broke down the camp. The burritos were great, but would have been better if someone didn’t forget the bacon in the fridge 500+ miles back at home

. I guess that beats discovering it was left out on the counter to spoil when I returned home .

The rest of the group met up at our campsite at the staging area. We aired down & had a quick drivers meeting & we were on our way at about 9am.

Traveling down the trail we ran into a jeep group, a full size truck group that we would be stuck behind at the waterfall later and countless SXS’s one group was about 17 deep and quite annoying as we kept running into them after we had let them pass numerous times. Again the noise. Consideration is not in their creed for the most part .

We made our way down the trail hitting a number of the optional offshoots. One was very slippery and need to do a double bump with some momentum to get up and over.

Traveling down the trail we discovered numerous vehicles that were abandoned and of course shot up as well and some parts art mostly consisting of crank shafts, one of which was rather impressive. My guess is out of a straight 8 tractor (Big Rig)



We arrived at what I would call the main obstacle, the waterfall where we ran into a Great Mess of Crap (GMC) full-size hung up for well over an hour as the previous Jeep group had winched them off only for them to fail & fail again trying to get through. After an hour & no small change the group was finally through.

Next was our turn. The rocks were super slippery I tied 3 different lines before finally hitting paydirt & got up & over. Next was @_ocnorb_ and he decided to try my final line making it on his first attempt. Well done. We ended up winching John in his cyber 2 door via Dan’s winch. Mark found his RC winch was DOA so Dan was called back into action. @Az_Squatch_Bronco took a couple stabs at it and made it up. We winched a few more vehicles up and over then the Gladiator made it up on his own.

A short way up the trail from there we came to the last major obstacle. There were a couple ways to go on this. To the right was slippery and a lot of holes. To the left was a V-notch wall that was close to the canyon & river below when you came down so a little nervy. I determined that the V-notch was the best line and everyone pretty much made it with just a little pucker factor. We continued to pass SXS’s on the way up to the end of the trail finally making it to the end after a 6 hour day on the trail.

We gathered for a group shot at the end of the trail & went in to town to search for gold, a parking spot in our case as it proved just as hard to find. Looked around the small town a bit & we all ended up at the Saloon. This place does have some storied history going back to the 1864’s. The whole town burned down 4 times over the years but as luck would have it or priorities proved the saloon was the only thing saved in each fire. They cook a great burger but it aint cheap.

Damage report:

Jettisoned 1 mud flap of Johns Bronco & 1 stirrup step off Marks Bronco. I think everyone else cane out clean.



This was a great run with a great group. Definitely worth doing once!!!

Thank you everyone for coming out. It was great meeting you all

Please add details and photos

Great write up @Felix808 and thanks for leading the pack. Met a lot of great people for sure. Hopefully we can put more runs like this together soon.

 

[Shrek27]

@RynoRanger , should be m-10 x40's for the FDU skid plate. Also when shopping for suspension do your homework. Those fancy external / remote res shocks are more for go fast stuff, but if that's not your bag you can save a lot of money. They just won't look as flashy.

Glad to have had you along & that you had a good time

After extensive research on coilovers I ended up with the SVC perch collars…heavily influenced by your rig and capabilities, your posts here and also wanting to keep my investment in the HOSS 2.0 package. They get installed tomorrow. The 37s might be a while tho. I’ve joined the SoCal Bronco club and hope to see your Bronco up close in Big Bear this June!

 

[Felix808]

After extensive research on coilovers I ended up with the SVC perch collars…heavily influenced by your rig and capabilities, your posts here and also wanting to keep my investment in the HOSS 2.0 package. They get installed tomorrow. The 37s might be a while tho. I’ve joined the SoCal Bronco club and hope to see your Bronco up close in Big Bear this June!

Yeah, I've been really happy with the setup, so much so I bought another set of low mileage SAS take offs for future use. It's not a high speed setup like all those flashy $6K remote reservoir kits, but it works pretty good & rides nice. You'll want the JKS Max Tire Kit as well. It cleans up the front end & gives more clearance.

I'll be at BBBB Thurs night thru Sat. Depending on how the trail signup go, I may be leading a John Bull run again this year & will be looking to run Gold Mountain as well.

Look forward to meeting you

 

[BulldogBear]

Thanks.
I was talking to a girl from the Jeep group who clued me in on the Spring Break thing about the trash, noise & craziness. She said, "Oh they can't shut us down here" I tried to explain to her it can all change & quickly I might add.
Don't kid yourself people, take care of the areas you visit & be courtious & polite

I've run that trail (and tons of other AZ trails) many times. My off-road groups start to get annoyed with me because I'm constantly stopping to get out and pick up trash, but I want these trails to stay open.

Side-by-Sides were a mistake.

 

[Shrek27]

Yeah, I've been really happy with the setup, so much so I bought another set of low mileage SAS take offs for future use. It's not a high speed setup like all those flashy $6K remote reservoir kits, but it works pretty good & rides nice. You'll want the JKS Max Tire Kit as well. It cleans up the front end & gives more clearance.

I'll be at BBBB Thurs night thru Sat. Depending on how the trail signup go, I may be leading a John Bull run again this year & will be looking to run Gold Mountain as well.

Look forward to meeting you

I'll definitely do the JKS or the Lobo kit before I put on 37s. We're staying at the Worldmark on the east side of the lake Thurs -Sunday and hope to get in a run every day. Trails like Gold Mountain with those freelance rock pile sections are precisely why I want to upgrade my clearance. I'm new to this so every advantage should help. Not sure if I'll punch that ticket for BBBB though...I won't have any steering mods before then and wouldn't want to hold up the group.

Will be great to meet you and the SoCal group for the first time!

 

[Daniela at 3W Auto Life]

So inspired by this post, https://www.bronco6g.com/forum/threads/backway-to-crown-king-az-01012024.86881/ there was talk between @Az_Squatch_Bronco, @_ocnorb_ & @RynoRanger & I to plan a trip so I set a date for 3-9-24. Then somehow someone threw it out on Facebook "Never had it Never will" (7-up) and the group grew to 10 vehicles.

In attendance were:

Felix808 4- door White Badlands
@_ocnorb_ 2-door A51 Badlands
Dave in his RadMigo Blue built Amigo
@Az_Squatch_Bronco 4-door Camo Badlands
@RynoRanger 4-door A51 Badlands
Mark in a Red 2-door Wild-Track
John in a Cyber Orange 2 door Badlands
KC & The rest of the crazy girls in a White 2015 JKU They were having a blast!
Scott in a 21 Rubi Gladiator
Tailgunner Tom in a nice Blue JKU



@Az_Squatch_Bronco, @_ocnorb_ & @RynoRanger & I decided to set this up. We put a date of 3-9-24 on it & the plan was in motion. @_ocnorb_ & I both being from SoCal decided we would start our adventure on 3-8-24. We took off and made our way to the trail head staging area, but knowing what we now know we would have continued further down the trail . The staging area was a complete zoo with countless 5-wheels and toy haulers with a bazillion SXS’s. If I never see another one on the trail it will be too soon . Later when we were stopped at the waterfall someone told me this was the first day of Spring Break and the first ever 2- week Spring Break. So yea no shortage of trail traffic. I can sure pick’em A lot of these folks just don’t care how they act & the noise is nuts. Yeah I’m old Anyway the circus was out running around and blaring music past 1 am yelling and racing through our campsite . It was ridiculous. There were also countless wild burros that were making all kinds of racket throughout the night, apparently because we camped in their favorite toilet judging by all the deposits in the area . Some roaming cattle was also found in the area.

We had just finished setting up camp & the rain started in followed by a lightening & thunder storm . Thankfully the lightening passed us up directly and the rain didn’t last too long. It was a beautiful night sitting around the campfire eating carne asada tacos and watching the lightening in the distance trying to ignore the SXS circus .

We got up the next morning and cooked up some breakfast burritos and broke down the camp. The burritos were great, but would have been better if someone didn’t forget the bacon in the fridge 500+ miles back at home

. I guess that beats discovering it was left out on the counter to spoil when I returned home .

The rest of the group met up at our campsite at the staging area. We aired down & had a quick drivers meeting & we were on our way at about 9am.

Traveling down the trail we ran into a jeep group, a full size truck group that we would be stuck behind at the waterfall later and countless SXS’s one group was about 17 deep and quite annoying as we kept running into them after we had let them pass numerous times. Again the noise. Consideration is not in their creed for the most part .

We made our way down the trail hitting a number of the optional offshoots. One was very slippery and need to do a double bump with some momentum to get up and over.

Traveling down the trail we discovered numerous vehicles that were abandoned and of course shot up as well and some parts art mostly consisting of crank shafts, one of which was rather impressive. My guess is out of a straight 8 tractor (Big Rig)



We arrived at what I would call the main obstacle, the waterfall where we ran into a Great Mess of Crap (GMC) full-size hung up for well over an hour as the previous Jeep group had winched them off only for them to fail & fail again trying to get through. After an hour & no small change the group was finally through.

Next was our turn. The rocks were super slippery I tied 3 different lines before finally hitting paydirt & got up & over. Next was @_ocnorb_ and he decided to try my final line making it on his first attempt. Well done. We ended up winching John in his cyber 2 door via Dan’s winch. Mark found his RC winch was DOA so Dan was called back into action. @Az_Squatch_Bronco took a couple stabs at it and made it up. We winched a few more vehicles up and over then the Gladiator made it up on his own.

A short way up the trail from there we came to the last major obstacle. There were a couple ways to go on this. To the right was slippery and a lot of holes. To the left was a V-notch wall that was close to the canyon & river below when you came down so a little nervy. I determined that the V-notch was the best line and everyone pretty much made it with just a little pucker factor. We continued to pass SXS’s on the way up to the end of the trail finally making it to the end after a 6 hour day on the trail.

We gathered for a group shot at the end of the trail & went in to town to search for gold, a parking spot in our case as it proved just as hard to find. Looked around the small town a bit & we all ended up at the Saloon. This place does have some storied history going back to the 1864’s. The whole town burned down 4 times over the years but as luck would have it or priorities proved the saloon was the only thing saved in each fire. They cook a great burger but it aint cheap.

Damage report:

Jettisoned 1 mud flap of Johns Bronco & 1 stirrup step off Marks Bronco. I think everyone else cane out clean.



This was a great run with a great group. Definitely worth doing once!!!

Thank you everyone for coming out. It was great meeting you all

Please add details and photos

Greeeeeat journey and nice photos! Beautiful sunny day just put more fun into it!

Sponsored