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Imogene Pass Trail - 13,114'
Wednesday, August 11 th, 2004 (Part 2)
By Jim Davis
After the easy and scenic Ophir Pass Trail, we found ourselves in Telluride at the trail head of the Imogene Pass Trail about 10:15. We decided to bypass the planned break in Telluride and started right up Imogene. This afternoon’s participants were:
By Jim Davis
After the easy and scenic Ophir Pass Trail, we found ourselves in Telluride at the trail head of the Imogene Pass Trail about 10:15. We decided to bypass the planned break in Telluride and started right up Imogene. This afternoon’s participants were:
Syncros (8)Paul’s tan ’86 Syncro Westy
Ian's white '90 Syncro Westy Richard's wihte '87 Syncro Westy Serge’s silver ’91 Syncro Westy Sue’s blue ‘90 Syncro Westy Steve’s blue ’86 Syncro GL Jim’s gray 87 Syncro GL Steve’s silver ’91 Syncro Westy |
Syncro-nuts (20)Paul Connelly
Ian & Amy Phifer Richard Jones Serge, Claire, Mélodie (12), and Ophélie (5) Sue Booth, plus dogs Casey & Riley Steve and Jo Ann Wacker Jim & Matt (16) Davis with Matt’s friend Jeremie (16) Steve, Erik (16), & April (11) Best |
Steve Best ’s friend Bob and his Subaru, had taken the paved road to Telluride and met us there. He joined us for the first portion of the Imogene Pass Trail, which wasn’t difficult for a Syncro but just didn’t look right for the Subaru. Also, Dan & Danae Hays and Bob Stevens were along hitching rides in someone’s Syncro.
From Telluride the ascent along road K68 gains elevation gradually traversing the slope that forms the north side of the canyon in which Telluride is situated. Views down into the canyon are very nice and little Telluride looks very quaint – the picture perfect mountain village. Also, looking up the canyon to the east are views of Bridal Veil Falls and the switchbacks of the infamous Black Bear Pass Trail.
There are a couple places along this route which concrete has been used to support the roadway and hold it to the side of the canyon’s cliffs. The previous generation of support consisted of timbers stacked like "Lincoln Logs" have long since broken away. The going gets a little rougher, but I’d still call it “mild” 4-wheeling. Soon we reach “Social Tunnel”. Quite an odd site to see a tunnel on a 4x4 route, and the only one I’ve encountered. Surprisingly, the tunnel is large though, about twice as tall as a Syncro and twice as wide too. After about 4 miles we reach the lower reaches of the mining area known as Tomboy. We pull out here on the right into a nice large, flat area good for re-grouping and wait for a few of the vans that hadn’t arrived yet.
Soon the radio crackles. Indiscernible at first, but someone is trying to communicate. After waling up to a high spot to be able to see better down the canyon, we could hear them. It was the Syncros we were waiting for and could see across a side canyon about a quarter of a mile from us. The infamous words coming through the radio were “broke down”. After a bit more radio talk we discern that the Wacker’s Syncro had a seized water pump and was on the side of the road. We leave a few vans at the turn-out and a couple of us drive back down to Steve’s van with some tools. Diagnosis confirmed, that water pump was NOT going to ever spin again!
Out comes the second spare water pump to be installed at Safari this year. Out come the tool wielding mechanics. We were a water pump replacing machine having honed our skills on Paul Connelly’s pump he day before. Knowing just which order to work, knowing just which tools to use on which bolts, the job goes pretty smooth for a repair done on the side of a 4x4 trail! Trying to save and reuse coolant proved to be the biggest obstacle, but after finding just the right density of cloth to filter the coolant as we put it back in, we were on our way again. Sorry about that sweater Jo Ann! Water pump replacement time happened to coincide with lunch time so we nabbed food as we worked and didn’t really get any “social” lunch break this day. Also, while the road looked rough for the AWD Subaru, it wasn’t too difficult for a couple of teenagers driving a Toyota Corolla! Must be dad’s and dad’s insurance! He was not being gentle on that Toyota as they first drove up pas the “Syncro Repair Station” and then back down about 20 minutes later!
The route above the Tomboy mine area was reputed to be pretty rough and some in our group preferred a less adventurous afternoon. Sue Booth and Richard Jones headed back down for a leisurely and scenic paved drive back to camp. Ian Phifer, Steve Best, and their family & friends had other plans for the remainder of the week and headed back downhill as well. Pressing onward & upward were:
From Telluride the ascent along road K68 gains elevation gradually traversing the slope that forms the north side of the canyon in which Telluride is situated. Views down into the canyon are very nice and little Telluride looks very quaint – the picture perfect mountain village. Also, looking up the canyon to the east are views of Bridal Veil Falls and the switchbacks of the infamous Black Bear Pass Trail.
There are a couple places along this route which concrete has been used to support the roadway and hold it to the side of the canyon’s cliffs. The previous generation of support consisted of timbers stacked like "Lincoln Logs" have long since broken away. The going gets a little rougher, but I’d still call it “mild” 4-wheeling. Soon we reach “Social Tunnel”. Quite an odd site to see a tunnel on a 4x4 route, and the only one I’ve encountered. Surprisingly, the tunnel is large though, about twice as tall as a Syncro and twice as wide too. After about 4 miles we reach the lower reaches of the mining area known as Tomboy. We pull out here on the right into a nice large, flat area good for re-grouping and wait for a few of the vans that hadn’t arrived yet.
Soon the radio crackles. Indiscernible at first, but someone is trying to communicate. After waling up to a high spot to be able to see better down the canyon, we could hear them. It was the Syncros we were waiting for and could see across a side canyon about a quarter of a mile from us. The infamous words coming through the radio were “broke down”. After a bit more radio talk we discern that the Wacker’s Syncro had a seized water pump and was on the side of the road. We leave a few vans at the turn-out and a couple of us drive back down to Steve’s van with some tools. Diagnosis confirmed, that water pump was NOT going to ever spin again!
Out comes the second spare water pump to be installed at Safari this year. Out come the tool wielding mechanics. We were a water pump replacing machine having honed our skills on Paul Connelly’s pump he day before. Knowing just which order to work, knowing just which tools to use on which bolts, the job goes pretty smooth for a repair done on the side of a 4x4 trail! Trying to save and reuse coolant proved to be the biggest obstacle, but after finding just the right density of cloth to filter the coolant as we put it back in, we were on our way again. Sorry about that sweater Jo Ann! Water pump replacement time happened to coincide with lunch time so we nabbed food as we worked and didn’t really get any “social” lunch break this day. Also, while the road looked rough for the AWD Subaru, it wasn’t too difficult for a couple of teenagers driving a Toyota Corolla! Must be dad’s and dad’s insurance! He was not being gentle on that Toyota as they first drove up pas the “Syncro Repair Station” and then back down about 20 minutes later!
The route above the Tomboy mine area was reputed to be pretty rough and some in our group preferred a less adventurous afternoon. Sue Booth and Richard Jones headed back down for a leisurely and scenic paved drive back to camp. Ian Phifer, Steve Best, and their family & friends had other plans for the remainder of the week and headed back downhill as well. Pressing onward & upward were:
Syncros (4)Paul’s tan ’86 Syncro Westy
Serge’s silver ’91 Syncro Westy Steve’s blue ’86 Syncro GL Jim’s gray 87 Syncro GL |
Syncro-nuts (12)Paul Connelly
Serge, Claire, Mélodie (12), and Ophélie (5) Steve and Jo Ann Wacker Jim & Matt (16) Davis with Matt’s friend Jeremie (16) Dan and Danae were in someone's van too. |
Traveling further east up the canyon we reach the main site of Tomboy. Some guides describe a town of Tomboy, and some describe the Tomboy Mine. I really couldn’t tell what was once a town or what once a mine. A lot of piles of rock, a lot of old broken timbers though. Since the water pump had put us behind schedule we didn’t have time to check out the site if we wanted summit Imogene pass and complete tour planned route.
At the Tomboy site the road conditions deteriorate and move from “mild” to “moderate” in a hurry. The route is steep here and the trail is loose rocks which make traction loose at best. Serge’s 16” Turbo Diesel Syncro is in the lead and really motors up without too much fuss. The torque in that engine is amazing compared to a “WasserBoxer”. The other three vans have a bit more trouble though. High revving engines, a bit of spinning tires, and rounding switchbacks with unknown obstacles ensued. For myself, I hold the brake, rev the engine to redline, and “launch” up the slope in low. It’s a balance between keeping the engine speed up enough to keep moving and having the Syncro come to a stop unable to pull it’s own weight. The altitude isn’t helping us either up here - 12,000 feet up your power is really low! In several places I keep the accelerator floored and have to slip the clutch to keep the revs up in order to maintain momentum.
The Wackers and Paul Connely ahead of me have found spots to pull over to see that I make it up. As I get to them, I just pass by, not wanting to have to stop and start again on this grade again. With Serge still ahead, I come up to a blind switchback and fear the worst. The previous switchback had the typical big rock part way through the curve and this upcoming one was even steeper. As I round the corner, I was surprised by the smooth path ahead, the Syncro’s turning radius is a perfect fit and we just motor smoothly through! Now, I find myself catching up to Serge since his diesel engine, different gearing, and 16” wheels have found a nice power band going about 1 MPH slower than my van. Not wanting to risk losing momentum, I close ground on Serge at a slow walking pace. About 50’ behind, I radio to Serge “Serge, can you speed up!?” About 30’ behind and closing : “Uh, Serge, can you speed up?!” “ Jim, is that you?” is the reply. “Yes! SPEED UP!, SPEED UP” He finally understands and gives it more throttle since he was not at full throttle – that diesel! and we travel along with me about 10’ behind for a bit both going about 5 MPH. His engine builds power and begins to broaden the gap, 20’ away, 30’ away, 40’ away – “ahhhhhh, I can relax again!”
Soon we reach the pass!! Imogene Pass sets way above the tree line at 13,114 ft in elevation and has a nice flat ridge to pull out onto. There are radio antennas here along with a pass elevation sign, a mailbox, 4 Syncros and 12 Syncronauts on this day.
The view from over 13,000 feet is really amazing! I thought that The other passes we’d visited so far had been something, but Imogene is the most spectacular. Of course the route up males you work for it more than the others. There’s a nice ridge here at Imogene that could fit many vehicles so we had no trouble parking our Syncros and spending some time at the top relaxing, socializing, and soaking up the view. Since we reached the pass after 3:00 this afternoon, It was getting a little late in the day and we still had a lot of trail between us and Ouray. We started our descent a bit before 4:00.
The trail down was a combination of easy, smooth dirt road sections that any car could handle with a reasonable sprinkling of tough spots. Some of these tough spots we went down on the Ouray side were so significant that I don’t think a typical Syncro could have handled them if going up to the pass on this side. For most of this section my van was in the last position so that I could get photos and videos of the other vans ahead. At one point we came around a curve and come to a stop at an obstacle behind the other vans, but out of sight of Serge’s Syncro who was in the lead. Danae Hays is on foot walking back toward the stopped vans. She had been riding in Paul’s van and as she walked toward us, she was holding her hands apart, like someone describing the size of a fish they’d caught. But this would have to be quite a fish, because her hands were about 3 feet apart. She was talking to us as she walked , but she was too far away for us to hear. As she drew nearer, I could finally understand what she’d been trying to convey… that as Serge went over the rocks, his wheel had been that far off the ground! Really, 3, feet. That’s how far her hands were apart I’ve seen plenty of Syncro wheels off the ground on my van and on friends. Six inches - yes, 10 inches - yes, maybe even 15 inches, but I’ve never seen a Syncro wheel this high! And me without a photo or even a second of video to show for it!
Paul Connelly was next to find a path down over these rock ledges. He took the path to the far left, and headed through with the vigor of a teenager. Do you know what too much speed can produce doing down rocks this steep? Two wheels off the ground. Yes, as he cleared the last of the steep rocks he sort of bounced his way down and both rear tires were airborne for a moment! Not very high, mind you, but it was both of them. Sort of scary Paul. Next to scare us was Steve Wacker. Seeing Paul’s stunt, Steve didn’t want any part of the steep, but firm rocks to the left, so he choose a route to the extreme right of the trail which was less steep, but was loose rocks and dirt. To Steve’s immediate right off the edge of the trail was a drop-off of about 15’ and then a hillside for about the next 200 feet. Just perfect to start a Syncro rolling sideways down the hill. Steve route was precariously close to the edge and applying a bit of brakes, he started a 4-wheel slide in the loose rocks. I thought he was done for and I could picture him and the Syncro tumbling down the hill. But, the sliding stopped, and rolling started again and he finished the challenge without further drama.
Now, seeing Steve’s track was not quite as close to the edge as it had looked, I choose the same route for myself, but positioned a couple of rocks to better support the path for my left/front wheel. I eases into it very sloooow and completed it without the exciting drama the other vans had provided. Further down the Ouray side there were a couple more steep, rocky obstacles of similar nature to this one, and we all handled them quite well. As I traversed one after another, I remember saying to myself, that I’m glad we’re going this direction, because I don’t think any regular Syncro could make it up and over these rocks going the other direction (Ouray to Telluride).
We ended up the day in Ouray at dinner time, a bit before sunset. We found a casual restaurant offering outdoor tables on it’s deck and enjoyed a nice meal in the shade of the canyon walls surrounding Ouray while the sunlight still light up the cliffs at the top of the canyon’s walls. I took a couple photos of this, but they really don’t capture the beauty of this scene. With temperature’s still warm enough to wear short sleeves, Syncronauts around the table, and tales of courage and skill on the Imogene Pass Trail, this was the perfect end to a perfect day!
The weather on for this trail run was great: a splattering of white clouds & blue skies, warm temperature, and a slight breeze, a 10 on a 1-10 scale. The 4-wheeling on this trip I’d classify as “Mild” up to the Tomboy site and then “Moderate-Plus” after that until 1/4 the way down on the Ouray side and then back to “Mild” again. These ratings are based on a “Easy – Mild – Moderate – Difficult – Extreme” scale. In my estimation unmodified Syncros can’t do a trail I’d call “Difficult”. The higher elevations of this trail took our Syncros to their limits of power and traction on the way up and to the limits of ground clearance, suspension travel, and braking on the way down.
See the Ophir Pass Trail story for Part 1 of our August 11 th adventure.
At the Tomboy site the road conditions deteriorate and move from “mild” to “moderate” in a hurry. The route is steep here and the trail is loose rocks which make traction loose at best. Serge’s 16” Turbo Diesel Syncro is in the lead and really motors up without too much fuss. The torque in that engine is amazing compared to a “WasserBoxer”. The other three vans have a bit more trouble though. High revving engines, a bit of spinning tires, and rounding switchbacks with unknown obstacles ensued. For myself, I hold the brake, rev the engine to redline, and “launch” up the slope in low. It’s a balance between keeping the engine speed up enough to keep moving and having the Syncro come to a stop unable to pull it’s own weight. The altitude isn’t helping us either up here - 12,000 feet up your power is really low! In several places I keep the accelerator floored and have to slip the clutch to keep the revs up in order to maintain momentum.
The Wackers and Paul Connely ahead of me have found spots to pull over to see that I make it up. As I get to them, I just pass by, not wanting to have to stop and start again on this grade again. With Serge still ahead, I come up to a blind switchback and fear the worst. The previous switchback had the typical big rock part way through the curve and this upcoming one was even steeper. As I round the corner, I was surprised by the smooth path ahead, the Syncro’s turning radius is a perfect fit and we just motor smoothly through! Now, I find myself catching up to Serge since his diesel engine, different gearing, and 16” wheels have found a nice power band going about 1 MPH slower than my van. Not wanting to risk losing momentum, I close ground on Serge at a slow walking pace. About 50’ behind, I radio to Serge “Serge, can you speed up!?” About 30’ behind and closing : “Uh, Serge, can you speed up?!” “ Jim, is that you?” is the reply. “Yes! SPEED UP!, SPEED UP” He finally understands and gives it more throttle since he was not at full throttle – that diesel! and we travel along with me about 10’ behind for a bit both going about 5 MPH. His engine builds power and begins to broaden the gap, 20’ away, 30’ away, 40’ away – “ahhhhhh, I can relax again!”
Soon we reach the pass!! Imogene Pass sets way above the tree line at 13,114 ft in elevation and has a nice flat ridge to pull out onto. There are radio antennas here along with a pass elevation sign, a mailbox, 4 Syncros and 12 Syncronauts on this day.
The view from over 13,000 feet is really amazing! I thought that The other passes we’d visited so far had been something, but Imogene is the most spectacular. Of course the route up males you work for it more than the others. There’s a nice ridge here at Imogene that could fit many vehicles so we had no trouble parking our Syncros and spending some time at the top relaxing, socializing, and soaking up the view. Since we reached the pass after 3:00 this afternoon, It was getting a little late in the day and we still had a lot of trail between us and Ouray. We started our descent a bit before 4:00.
The trail down was a combination of easy, smooth dirt road sections that any car could handle with a reasonable sprinkling of tough spots. Some of these tough spots we went down on the Ouray side were so significant that I don’t think a typical Syncro could have handled them if going up to the pass on this side. For most of this section my van was in the last position so that I could get photos and videos of the other vans ahead. At one point we came around a curve and come to a stop at an obstacle behind the other vans, but out of sight of Serge’s Syncro who was in the lead. Danae Hays is on foot walking back toward the stopped vans. She had been riding in Paul’s van and as she walked toward us, she was holding her hands apart, like someone describing the size of a fish they’d caught. But this would have to be quite a fish, because her hands were about 3 feet apart. She was talking to us as she walked , but she was too far away for us to hear. As she drew nearer, I could finally understand what she’d been trying to convey… that as Serge went over the rocks, his wheel had been that far off the ground! Really, 3, feet. That’s how far her hands were apart I’ve seen plenty of Syncro wheels off the ground on my van and on friends. Six inches - yes, 10 inches - yes, maybe even 15 inches, but I’ve never seen a Syncro wheel this high! And me without a photo or even a second of video to show for it!
Paul Connelly was next to find a path down over these rock ledges. He took the path to the far left, and headed through with the vigor of a teenager. Do you know what too much speed can produce doing down rocks this steep? Two wheels off the ground. Yes, as he cleared the last of the steep rocks he sort of bounced his way down and both rear tires were airborne for a moment! Not very high, mind you, but it was both of them. Sort of scary Paul. Next to scare us was Steve Wacker. Seeing Paul’s stunt, Steve didn’t want any part of the steep, but firm rocks to the left, so he choose a route to the extreme right of the trail which was less steep, but was loose rocks and dirt. To Steve’s immediate right off the edge of the trail was a drop-off of about 15’ and then a hillside for about the next 200 feet. Just perfect to start a Syncro rolling sideways down the hill. Steve route was precariously close to the edge and applying a bit of brakes, he started a 4-wheel slide in the loose rocks. I thought he was done for and I could picture him and the Syncro tumbling down the hill. But, the sliding stopped, and rolling started again and he finished the challenge without further drama.
Now, seeing Steve’s track was not quite as close to the edge as it had looked, I choose the same route for myself, but positioned a couple of rocks to better support the path for my left/front wheel. I eases into it very sloooow and completed it without the exciting drama the other vans had provided. Further down the Ouray side there were a couple more steep, rocky obstacles of similar nature to this one, and we all handled them quite well. As I traversed one after another, I remember saying to myself, that I’m glad we’re going this direction, because I don’t think any regular Syncro could make it up and over these rocks going the other direction (Ouray to Telluride).
We ended up the day in Ouray at dinner time, a bit before sunset. We found a casual restaurant offering outdoor tables on it’s deck and enjoyed a nice meal in the shade of the canyon walls surrounding Ouray while the sunlight still light up the cliffs at the top of the canyon’s walls. I took a couple photos of this, but they really don’t capture the beauty of this scene. With temperature’s still warm enough to wear short sleeves, Syncronauts around the table, and tales of courage and skill on the Imogene Pass Trail, this was the perfect end to a perfect day!
The weather on for this trail run was great: a splattering of white clouds & blue skies, warm temperature, and a slight breeze, a 10 on a 1-10 scale. The 4-wheeling on this trip I’d classify as “Mild” up to the Tomboy site and then “Moderate-Plus” after that until 1/4 the way down on the Ouray side and then back to “Mild” again. These ratings are based on a “Easy – Mild – Moderate – Difficult – Extreme” scale. In my estimation unmodified Syncros can’t do a trail I’d call “Difficult”. The higher elevations of this trail took our Syncros to their limits of power and traction on the way up and to the limits of ground clearance, suspension travel, and braking on the way down.
See the Ophir Pass Trail story for Part 1 of our August 11 th adventure.
Here’s some trail information from published trail guides with comments before Syncro Safari:
Imogene Pass Difficulty:
The "Guide to Colorado Backroads & 4-Wheel Drive Trails" describes this trail's difficulty rating as: "Moderate". Also describes portions as "narrow & steep" but usually not difficult. Some places have primitive reinforcement to reduce erosion, "high clearance four-wheel drive and low range are definitely required" above the site of Tomboy. Also "Overall this trail is rated at the high end of moderate. Some off-highway driving experience is recommended."
"4WD Trails: Southwest Colorado" gives it a difficulty rating of 4 out of 10. A 4 rating is described as: "High clearance 4WD recommended. Rough road surface with rocks larger than six inches possible, but a reasonable driving line available; mud possible but passable; stream crossings less than fifteen inches deep; substantial sections of single-lane shelf road possible; moderate grades; moderately loose surface."
Imogene Pass Features:
Second highest pass in Colorado at 13,114' elevation and the highest pass road in the San Juans, described as one of the most thrilling passes to cross in Colorado, would be impassable most of the summer if not cleared of snow, many mines border the route, remains of the historic Tomboy Mine Town site, views of Bridal Veil Falls, Telluride to Ouray is 18 miles. Of special interest is Social Tunnel, yes an actual tunnel on a 4x4 route! "4WD Trails: Southwest Colorado" gives it a scenic rating of 10 out of 10.
Imogene Pass Route:
Start is Telluride, Social Tunnel at 3.2 miles, mine buildings, Tomboy Mine remains, bridges over several creeks, Imogene Pass summit, spectacular views, creek crossings, Camp Bird Mine, Box Canyon Falls, town of Ouray after 18 miles. Time: one book says "several hours", another says "allow 4 hours". If we leave Telluride at 1:30, we should be in Ouray by 6:00PM.
The "Guide to Colorado Backroads & 4-Wheel Drive Trails" describes this trail's difficulty rating as: "Moderate". Also describes portions as "narrow & steep" but usually not difficult. Some places have primitive reinforcement to reduce erosion, "high clearance four-wheel drive and low range are definitely required" above the site of Tomboy. Also "Overall this trail is rated at the high end of moderate. Some off-highway driving experience is recommended."
"4WD Trails: Southwest Colorado" gives it a difficulty rating of 4 out of 10. A 4 rating is described as: "High clearance 4WD recommended. Rough road surface with rocks larger than six inches possible, but a reasonable driving line available; mud possible but passable; stream crossings less than fifteen inches deep; substantial sections of single-lane shelf road possible; moderate grades; moderately loose surface."
Imogene Pass Features:
Second highest pass in Colorado at 13,114' elevation and the highest pass road in the San Juans, described as one of the most thrilling passes to cross in Colorado, would be impassable most of the summer if not cleared of snow, many mines border the route, remains of the historic Tomboy Mine Town site, views of Bridal Veil Falls, Telluride to Ouray is 18 miles. Of special interest is Social Tunnel, yes an actual tunnel on a 4x4 route! "4WD Trails: Southwest Colorado" gives it a scenic rating of 10 out of 10.
Imogene Pass Route:
Start is Telluride, Social Tunnel at 3.2 miles, mine buildings, Tomboy Mine remains, bridges over several creeks, Imogene Pass summit, spectacular views, creek crossings, Camp Bird Mine, Box Canyon Falls, town of Ouray after 18 miles. Time: one book says "several hours", another says "allow 4 hours". If we leave Telluride at 1:30, we should be in Ouray by 6:00PM.