It started out as a small group of friends wanting to get together and do a little wheeling and it grew into a group of ten.

My wife Sue and I love Rattlesnake Canyon and every chance we get we make the long drive to the back side of Big Bear in-between Yucca & Lucerne Valley's. The canyon it self isn't what we 4 wheelers would call difficult, on a scale of 0 to 5 I'd rate it a .50 or about half a point over a rough country dirt road. The sand is soft, the scenery wonderful and this allows you more time to gawk than worry about tire placement or bending tie rods.

Like I said ten of us made the run and five of us were from OC 4 Play. We had Frank, Lyle, Steve Bass, Warren and Sue and I. Which looks like six but is only 5 Jeeps (sorry Warren). One Toyota (Warrens), one bone stock YJ, one YJ lifted & locked in the rear only and the rest of us fully set up (aka locked front & rear w/low gearing). Sue drove most of the way (90%) and she tackled all the obstacles first, most of which she had never driven before.

Our first challenge was a small notch that everyone but the two not locked in the front made easily. At this point Frank had to do a little trail side maintenance as he somehow lost one of the front axle u-joints bearing caps. After watching him use two hammers to bang the stubborn cap back into place he put on a wheeling display showing us just how far he could push his stretched Willy's without turning it over. The crowd was sure, unanimously so, that Frank was going to lay OLD BLUE on it's side, but Frank knows his machine and lucky for us didn't turn turtle.

From there we looked at what I call the Bottomless Pit Mine, a mine that you cannot see the bottom of and feel sure the rocks you drop just keep falling forever. (China maybe?) Needless to say it is deep!

At the canyons end we ate lunch at Vaughn Springs before traveling up 2N02, off this trail we follow a spur that leads us over a couple interesting obstacles. This route although not difficult has a couple fun sections and even the bone stock YJ made it without too much difficulties. Read; lots of tire smoke and the sound of a little 4 banger redlined let us know Russell (aka Cliff) was trying to get up something. It was in the middle of this trail that Steve's motor mount let go, so that every time he gave it gas to go over something or up something, the fan hit the radiator shroud with a load clatter that we could hear all the way up front. But Steve being the hardcored Jeeper that he is pressed on. Yeah Steve!

Our next route was Onyx Summit, but I remember Ranger Greg Hoffman telling me to beware of a bad spot on the trail, that if it was icy and the slope just right someone was going to go for a long, steep, FAST ride. Well, I don't particularly care for roller coasters so I felt it prudent to by-pass Onyx Summit trail itself but to run the lower section called Pontiac Sluice.

Steve and the stocker sat aside as the rest of us played and then took the by pass back to the original trail. Next we did a little known trail, forgot the # that isn't difficult at all until you add the snow factor. It is more like a washed out, narrow country road than any hard 4 wheeling trail, until you get to the very end. Four to six inches of snow don't sound like a lot but add a little ice under it, packed hard by previous travelers and just enough steepness to shift the weight off the front wheels and you have a spot that stopped seven out of ten in the group.

Seven had to be strapped up to the road as the wind picked up, it got real chilly and darkness started falling rapidly. We thought we were out of the woods but the gremlins just wouldn't let us alone. Frank's Jeep started acting funny and then Warrens Land Cruiser lost it's high beams, or was it low beams, Warren? We aired up and John Strege kept hearing hissing air coming from the left rear tire. Whoops, not good time or place to change a tire so he headed off down the hill to find a warmer, drier place to put the spare on. My high beams stuck on bright and we had to pull over on Hwy. 38 so I could work the switch with my hand before I blinded anybody. More gremlins.

Need I say we had a great time?

One of the best trips I have ever had the pleasure to be on. Good friends, Jeeps (sorry Warren) and trails that challenged you but didn't break anything. Now that's my idea of fun!

Bill & Sue Baker