Georgia Trail Riders Forum

OPEN RIDES & EVENTS => Trail Rides & Open Events (Everyone's invited) => Topic started by: tcdawg on June 21, 2023, 02:19:12 PM

Title: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: tcdawg on June 21, 2023, 02:19:12 PM
CHOCCOLOCCO ORV PARK AND CAMPGROUND

OPEN RIDE - EVERYONE'S INVITED

JULY 14 - 16

DISCUSSION THREAD ONLY

Ride CHECK-IN thread is here: http://www.gatrailriders.com/GTRForums/index.php?topic=19644.msg380632#msg380632

Park information: http://www.choccoloccomountain.com/

Choccolocco Mountain is located in Jacksonville, Alabama, just outside of the town limits.The park is 450 acres of rocky mountainous trails. The trails range from moderate to extreme.
Restaurants, hotels, and auto parts stores are only about five minutes from the park.

    We allow any type of off road vehicle. The trails are very rough, rocky, and steep in some areas. Even the main trails may be too rough for 4 wheelers and dirt bikes. Side by sides & 4x4's with larger tires are capable of trail riding on the main roads. This mountain is the extremely modified vehicle's paradise! The extreme trails are the best in the southeast. You ride at your own risk.

    The campground includes beautiful overlook views, wooded primitive camp sites, a bath house with restrooms & showers, RV campground with power & water hookups, and a children's playground.
We are approximately 5 minutes from the Jacksonville State University campus.

Trails descriptions:

TIER 2 – Intermediate: Rides that are open to all 4x4 vehicles. There will be challenges for stock to fully built rigs. Plenty of bypasses for lesser built vehicles. Some damage/Broken parts can be expected, depending on how far you want to push your vehicle. You will have a chance to gain a lot of off-road experience on these rides.

TIER 3 – Hardcore: Rides for fully built rigs. These rides will not be for the faint of heart. You must meet the vehicle requirement set by GATR STAFF to join these rides. These rides are for the most experienced drivers. Most trails on these rides will be hard.
Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: sharpshooter109 on July 02, 2023, 10:18:00 PM
Hey y’all. Long time lurker here on the forums. I’ve never been to a meeting or trail ride with y’all before. I want to ride at choccolocco in a few weeks but I don’t want to hold anybody up. I’ve got an unlifted 87 ford bronco on 33’s. I’ve only ever been trail riding once or twice before several years ago. I looked over the rules/required equipment and I have everything, except for maybe the radio/gmrs license. I do have a CB but I need to look into the gmrs license to see if I can get it before the trail ride.

I saw there were a few guys on 35’s but it looks like I would be the smallest tire there, and probably the least experienced as well. Does this park have any easy trails/lots of bypasses? Will anyone else be running the easier trails with me? Is this the trip for me? Or should I wait for another trip?
Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: jd30005 on July 03, 2023, 08:46:58 AM
Hey y’all. Long time lurker here on the forums. I’ve never been to a meeting or trail ride with y’all before. I want to ride at choccolocco in a few weeks but I don’t want to hold anybody up. I’ve got an unlifted 87 ford bronco on 33’s. I’ve only ever been trail riding once or twice before several years ago. I looked over the rules/required equipment and I have everything, except for maybe the radio/gmrs license. I do have a CB but I need to look into the gmrs license to see if I can get it before the trail ride.

I saw there were a few guys on 35’s but it looks like I would be the smallest tire there, and probably the least experienced as well. Does this park have any easy trails/lots of bypasses? Will anyone else be running the easier trails with me? Is this the trip for me? Or should I wait for another trip?
Chocco has lots of bypasses and easier trails to access the harder trails so you can also observe others.  I would say it’s a good park to come out to and just experience what a ride is like.  I’m attaching an image from my Avenza app that shows the park map (a little blurry) but you can see all of green and blue trails that you should be able to explore. 
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230703/044d79fe37ccbc778c2ff66fa564af62.png)
Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: Cannonballkev on July 03, 2023, 08:55:29 AM
My first time wheeling ever was with this group, In a full size long bed Chevy truck, on 33’s, independent front suspension, no lockers.  Wrong everything to be wheeling rocks.  That being said, over the next couple of years I took that truck places it should not have gone. It was a challenge, but I had fun and learned a lot, knew my limits.
Come on out, you won’t hood anyone up, we have all been a newby at one time.
Full size rig might be tight on trails and turning.
 Winch? Lockers?
Come on out, you gotta start somewhere!
Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: sharpshooter109 on July 03, 2023, 10:30:07 PM
Awesome! Thanks for the warm welcome guys! I’m finishing a few last minute fixes to get the bronco in shape for the trip. If everything goes according to plan, I’ll drive down there Saturday morning and drive back that night, weather permitting.

The bronco has open diffs front and rear, and I do have a winch, but I need to get a new synthetic line for it. I’m working on that and hope to have it delivered in time for the trip.

I’ll post up on the check in thread with my info. Sounds like it’s going to be a fun trip!
Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: patman on July 11, 2023, 09:45:47 PM
Mexican restaurant Friday night? I'm shooting for Friday lunch arrival

Anyone bringing a grill for Saturday night?
Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: jd30005 on July 12, 2023, 08:55:43 AM
Mexican restaurant Friday night? I'm shooting for Friday lunch arrival

Anyone bringing a grill for Saturday night?
I will have my grill.
Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: clark123456 on July 12, 2023, 10:25:55 PM
Mexican restaurant Friday night? I'm shooting for Friday lunch arrival

Anyone bringing a grill for Saturday night?

You branging 3 year old brats?
Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: patman on July 12, 2023, 11:14:44 PM
Mexican restaurant Friday night? I'm shooting for Friday lunch arrival

Anyone bringing a grill for Saturday night?

You branging 3 year old brats?

She's 4 and is quite polite.

But I will bring some fresh bratwurst and buns to share
Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: bjeep on July 13, 2023, 07:15:51 AM
Mexican restaurant Friday night? I'm shooting for Friday lunch arrival

Anyone bringing a grill for Saturday night?

You branging 3 year old brats?

She's 4 and is quite polite.

But I will bring some fresh bratwurst and buns to share


So she takes after her mother???
Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: patman on July 13, 2023, 08:33:02 AM
Mexican restaurant Friday night? I'm shooting for Friday lunch arrival

Anyone bringing a grill for Saturday night?

You branging 3 year old brats?

She's 4 and is quite polite.

But I will bring some fresh bratwurst and buns to share


So she takes after her mother???
Haha. Just for her good traits

Sent from my SM-G986U using Tapatalk

Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: patman on July 16, 2023, 01:39:13 PM
If you bailed on the trip due to potential rain, you messed up. This was the driest I've ever seen the place, and it never rained. If you bailed due to heat, you weren't wrong lol. Friday was hot, but Saturday was overcast and with a good breeze most of the day.

Lots of carnage, but I'll let @TravisMac and @thudson17890 share their stories.

We ran everything more than once, and I got to check off a few more lines that I've always wanted to hit but couldn't make it up in the past(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/ccf408956fca46bdb6bd0bd15f682b90.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/142dec864efba8d8913cab827aae93c9.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/81c6235c6c42b7f41f2a2f64f4bd279e.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/2c3c4bada18c6035127c0cfb2433f166.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/5b55f16724feeedc03dfa8b10bfbb18f.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/67d774253473ce3d0773657b1e7e20b0.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/11238a873b4ebbf57a271c9ad985dc12.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/ed4226332c11164ab28167e902676b06.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/735cfddddf82411940d41b163df5c09e.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/d4b8bf7d4fa7de04d1b29e0901faf4e9.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/cf49c0dbe6393215d4854c208c883844.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/ba3be9889eb7221acf5f881eb470fb3b.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/8630dc785f81e77af7d9b14417877813.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/52045c409dc48bf99f850a944cfe4c32.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/7b8c9712105f511739a3378992bb71c6.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/056a844f4d9e663cd90936c9a2657bd5.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/fcd61502fca18a0ac5838da19a72e5df.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/8bc32ce3bc02b3931f5def9866754cb3.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/b46d6493dbedf282c1eed4e5e1b8e196.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/66950738d7cbe1e1defc2c745a101f74.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/eb37a26f73240e6a426d728e65097816.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/edb11a27e11cdba7e1016be6d2a08d00.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/1cdc2055cf1f1dcb16ef277d857a3ae9.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/0cf6b6f6519d8a70e69ba3cd1c8a1552.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/6a578d453b7dd959d5fcd00f72509624.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/8b76c96358a0d2d074b8a9a03d7587d7.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/f239a11315de4e0b4847f7b387ca2afc.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/d5aabe63180c9a7ce638d9a0101202c3.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/640d6b082a4cce67a129d910e681ae8d.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/b42f67b3592cdeb8ca4c31dc1d62242b.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230716/323bc7bc58cba60f5f4f2cef0037b77f.jpg)

Sent from my SM-G986U using Tapatalk

Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: Grass Janitor on July 16, 2023, 02:10:02 PM
Wish I’d made it, wasn’t a weekend I could get away though. Glad everyone had a good time.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: classified on July 16, 2023, 02:33:27 PM
Great weekend, great wheeling, great food, great weather, and great people. We had everything a man could ask for.
My carnage:
Broke another shock off the rear axle
Ripped off my gas tank skid
lost part of my exhaust

Like I said, Great weekend!!!
 
Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: TravisMac on July 16, 2023, 02:55:08 PM
Weekend could have gone better for me, but weather was great.

Mine is a long story, but the cliff notes version is I lost rear brakes on a steep, loose hill. We were looking for the new trail near cherry bomb and the route I took was not it, so I was attempting to back down when I lost the brakes and hit a tree going at a pretty good clip. It could have been much, much worse, so I’m thankful I’m in one piece and only lost a coilover and some brake fittings.

Thank you to @patman and @clark123456 for human-centipeding me back to camp
Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: Jeepster1407 on July 17, 2023, 11:36:48 AM
Weekend could have gone better for me, but weather was great.

Mine is a long story, but the cliff notes version is I lost rear brakes on a steep, loose hill. We were looking for the new trail near cherry bomb and the route I took was not it, so I was attempting to back down when I lost the brakes and hit a tree going at a pretty good clip. It could have been much, much worse, so I’m thankful I’m in one piece and only lost a coilover and some brake fittings.

Thank you to @patman and @clark123456 for human-centipeding me back to camp


Man that sucks but glad you and the buggy are ok. What caused your brake loss? Brake lines?
Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: Trailabite on July 17, 2023, 02:16:17 PM
Here's a video I took years ago wheeling with some guys up in Minnesota.

/>

Sent from my SM-S901U using Tapatalk

Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: jd30005 on July 17, 2023, 02:38:59 PM
Here's a video I took years ago wheeling with some guys up in Minnesota.


Sent from my SM-S901U using Tapatalk


Damn - what happened there?  Hope he was ok.
Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: thudson17890 on July 17, 2023, 03:14:37 PM
Was able to drive the jeep all the way back home in front wheel drive with the rear driveshaft and carrier removed. Thanks to everyone helping get me off the mountain and Brian giving me a ride to get another axle for the front right. Luckily advance auto had an axle don't think I could have made it home without it.
Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: Big Dave on July 17, 2023, 10:44:28 PM
I’d keep an extra stub shaft to run in your unit bearing in the event you toast a shaft & need to get home & you don’t have a spare shaft.

Without the stub shaft in place it will ruin the unit bearing.
Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: classified on July 18, 2023, 01:50:28 AM
I’d keep an extra stub shaft to run in your unit bearing in the event you toast a shaft & need to get home & you don’t have a spare shaft.

Without the stub shaft in place it will ruin the unit bearing.

I know that's true for d30 up until the JK. Does the WJ share the same unit bearing?
Rabbit hole I'm not going down tonight.
Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: Big Dave on July 18, 2023, 01:51:27 AM
Same concept.
Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: classified on July 18, 2023, 02:01:55 AM
Same concept.

We tested a JK d30. Pulled the shafts, carrier, and drive shaft. Drove it for 2 weeks including 2 trips from Buford to Tallahassee. Unit bearings held. Probably around 1500 miles on 38's.
Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: TravisMac on July 18, 2023, 06:41:58 AM
Weekend could have gone better for me, but weather was great.

Mine is a long story, but the cliff notes version is I lost rear brakes on a steep, loose hill. We were looking for the new trail near cherry bomb and the route I took was not it, so I was attempting to back down when I lost the brakes and hit a tree going at a pretty good clip. It could have been much, much worse, so I’m thankful I’m in one piece and only lost a coilover and some brake fittings.

Thank you to @patman and @clark123456 for human-centipeding me back to camp


Man that sucks but glad you and the buggy are ok. What caused your brake loss? Brake lines?
Yep rear brake line got pulled out.
Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: sharpshooter109 on July 18, 2023, 08:39:35 AM
Looks like a good time. Sorry I missed it. Hopefully I can make it out to the next one.
Title: Re: July 14-16 Choccolocco Mountain - Discussion Thread
Post by: Trailabite on July 18, 2023, 09:15:03 AM
Here's a video I took years ago wheeling with some guys up in Minnesota.


Sent from my SM-S901U using Tapatalk


Damn - what happened there?  Hope he was ok.
Engine kept dying, so he would let it roll back a little but and then dump the clutch to restart it. Until it didn't restart!

Sent from my SM-S901U using Tapatalk