Details
The trail has always been classed as difficult but with some care and a very good spotter it used to be passable in a near stock truck. Not anymore.
There are two parts to this trail, getting to it and running it. Getting to it means traveling in normally through Box Canyon and the trail to the Martinez Cabins. The section to the cabins had changed a little due to some extra washouts and some rocks but it’s still not overly difficult. Unlocked trucks might have a little difficulty with getting cross axled in places but should make it through with care. The cabins are still there but the white one has half collapsed and the generator that used to be behind it has now been dragged some distance back to the rocky creek on the way in.
The mine loop trail itself starts and finishes just past the cabins. As normal we elected to run it counter clockwise, heading first towards the old mine processing buildings.
The rock field is the 1st obstacle and was about the same as before. Some changes due to water flow but if anything it was easier than before. The old obstacle that forced you to drive between two tight rocks just before the rock climb is still there for example but is now optional as the ground to the left of it is now passable.
The rock hill up to the mine buildings was somewhat more difficult. Just about all of the smaller rocks and soil have washed away leaving just the bigger rocks in place. Some of these are now pretty unstable and move around quite a bit as you climb but it’s not overly difficult to get to the top if you pick the right line and the spotter knows what he’s doing.
No real changes after that for a while. The mine buildings look about the same and the wash leading up to them is still tricky but passable. After the buildings for about half a mile the trail is interesting but not overly complicated.
The changes start once you get around behind the hill and start to climb. There has been considerable water flow in this whole area all the way up to the top and it has either washed away or cut into many sections of the trail. The first half or so of the climb is different but not overly tricky with good spotting and line selection.
The real problems started just before the section of switchbacks about half way up. There are 4 or 5 really tricky sections involving wash outs and or loose sections. Most of these are at the switchbacks themselves and cause you to have to take 2 or 3 turns with severely crossed axles and/or very tippy situations close to the edges on very loose surfaces. One of the worst is a particular side slope section on very loose soil/pebbles that is a good 45 deg right next to a deep washout channel. As you climb and the drops get deeper it gets pretty dangerous in places. There is significant risk of a truck tipping over and/or sliding and a real chance of going over the edge with some of the drop offs being hundreds of feet deep. Lockers and good tires, with some good articulation are a must if you want to get up this section. Suspension lifts, loaded roof racks and top heavy trucks are going to cause/have problems.
The next issue is at the hill descent down into the valley before the last section of climb. There is a smallish hill of about 150 feet or so in length at about 50 deg or more. The surface is very loose and slippery and both our trucks essentially slid/slithered down most of it (mine got pretty sideways at one point). Luckily there is a good run out at the bottom so you can just let the truck go and hang on. The key issue with this hill is that it’s probably impossible to drive back up it without winching or being pulled and the length is just enough coupled with a lack of anchor points to make that a real task to do. So this hill coupled with that fact that the switchbacks would be even worse going downhill (you would be driving towards the edges at a down angle on most of them on loose surfaces), essentially lock you in to completing the rest of the trail in the direction you are running. Wouldn’t normally be a problem except that the most difficult obstacle is still to come.
The climb up the next section is tricky but again pretty doable with a good spotting and care of line selection. It’s mostly rock and ledges with some slippery stuff from time to time. Nothing really then until you crest the ridge at the very top and start back down the other side.
As you start to descend you come up on the obstacle that used to be known as the Luge. It used to be a pretty scary descent on a slippery surface (hence the name). A bypass also existed although it wasn’t that much better. This section has changed drastically. The Luge is gone. There is a washout that cuts down and through it as well as vegetation and so on that stop you even being able to get to where it used to be. The bypass is now the only option and it is almost impassable. I only say almost because we made it through (eventually). It took us 3 hours to get the 2 trucks thru the next 25-30yds and clear of the obstacle. There are a number of different reasons that combine to make this obstacle as bad as it is. Incline angle, deep loose slippery surfaces, loose rocks, severe side slopes within a narrow and deep channel, bare rock face below a slippery surface at about 60 deg angle and so on. All of this leads towards a drop off directly ahead and below the exit where the trail turns 90 degrees. If you slide or slip through there is a risk of carrying on and going over the edge. We made it through with a combination of lowering on winch, tiptoeing down the slopes, digging and pickaxeing, stacking many, many rocks, pushing the sides of the vehicles away from the walls of the cut or putting blankets between the sides and the roof and so on. We ended up using just about every piece of recovery equipment we had with us in the two trucks.
To give you an idea, we where 6 or 7 hours into the trail when we reached the start of this obstacle and only about ½ a mile from the end with about ½ an hour of light left. We still seriously considered turning back and going back over the trail to get out. Only the doubt that we could climb the slippery hill and the danger of trying to descend the switchbacks stopped us doing so and decided us to go down. As another indication. We passed a number of ATVs, Jeeps, Full Size Trucks and even a couple of seriously built rock buggies on the way up to and at the Mine buildings. When we left the mine though to head round the back, none of them followed us…..
The rest of the trail was uneventful back to the cabins. Its all downhill and there are lots of big loose rocks that can be annoying and move around on you or get hung up in the undercarriage, but its not overly difficult if you pick your line.
Conclusion:
The Mine Loop is not closed. It’s even passable if you want to spend a minimum of a very long day to do the 3-1/2 miles around. It’s very dangerous as it is right now and the risk of both severe vehicle damage and/or injury is very high. You should not attempt it without a minimum of full lockers, plenty of articulation, 33”+ aggressive tread tires and a good spotter. Lifted or top heavy trucks will have more issues due to the many side slopes and tippy situations. Larger groups, groups with inexperienced drivers or limited capability vehicles should take camping equipment as you are most likely going to be out there a while. On a positive note there is cell service (T-Mobile at least) from the top of the ridge just before the last obstacle where you could call in an airlift…
