Went to Rausch on Saturday for an ORC blue ride, everyone had a great time. The trails were still covered in wet snow and the traction was greasy. It was a blue ride and Mark was the guide. Mark likes to wheel blacks, so we went on some spicy blues. Ended up doing Crawler Ridge and Krawlin' for Cops in the morning. There were 6 of us, not including Mark and his tail gunner.
Had a gentlemen in a 26 Toyota Landcruiser in the group. It could have used some ground clearance, but he gave the trails hell all day. I'll give him credit, he had to take some bypasses but the rest of us were in wranglers and a gladiator. The Yota cut a sidewall on Krawlin for Cops, so we spent 40 minutes changing a tire in a washout while the melted snow runoff was cascading down off the mountainside. Would have been a moment of Zen if not for the tire.
The snow makes the trail feel a bit smoother. On the other hand, it makes all the rocks slippery as hell and hides all kinds of surprises. Made the off-cambers and the climbs and descents interesting. Picking a line involved a bit of educated guessing at times.
Spent the entire day on the western side. Ended up eating lunch on the trail. A guy from Columbia, MD had a sweet gladiator. The bed is shortened so the overall length looked to be around 8 inches longer than a JLU, and the approach and departure angles are awesome.
The lot was packed in the morning, in large part because a PA jeep club had a canceled event and decided to hit Rausch instead.
I like AOAA and Rausch, of course both of them are on the site of former coal mines. But I think I've decided that I like Rausch a tiny bit more. The trails at Rausch feel more like a trail you'd find in your local woods somewhere to me. At AOAA part of me always feels like I'm riding on ancient coal haulage roads, or a trail created by dumping a field of rocks and boulders in the woods. Don't get me wrong, there are trails at both places that I love. But at Rausch, you can be on a Blue trail 50 yards from the parking lot. At AOAA it feels like you can spend a lot of time riding on haulage roads to get to the trails you want. The average person probably wouldn't notice, but after spending enough time there it's my impression thus far.
I love having four seasons but I can't wait for spring to arrive. Spring should be vibrantly green and muddy, considering the rain and snow they've been getting in those parts.
Of one thing I am certain, getting out on the trails just makes me want to get out on the trails. That first ride of 26 was like dumping gasoline on the fire.