[Dec 28, 2012] Pott Mtn VA Before it Closes? (New Castle, VA)

Hey guys, I'm new here but I'm a friend/neighbor to Hadfield. I have wheeled Potts many times and would like to join you all and even guide you through if needed. There are some rules we need to go by up there and some common sense stuff as well. Matt may have already mentioned all of this but I will again anyway. Our club works hard to keep this trail open so i wanted to stress a few points that always come up.

All rigs must be tagged and insured(street legal in your state)
We have to stay on the trail! Anything other than the trail is considered "wilderness" and only foot travel is allowed. If caught "off trail" there are stiff fines.
Its very dry up there, please, if you smoke do not flick them out of the rig. Dunk them in a bottle or something.
Al road rules apply including DUI and open container so keep that in mind.

If you would like for me to join you please let me know and I can come up with some meeting places/addresses. Trailers can be parked at the upper trail head and you can drive back down the fire road to the lower trail head but its a long drive, at least 14 miles gravel/paved combined but your trailer will be there when your done wheelin' There are other options for trailer parking. As Matt said there is the ranger station and the Pines campground. I will get confirmation on parking at The Pines

Jon
 
Thanks for posting Jon.

All he'll be a good person if you want him along. We'll probably meet you on the trail with the bikes
 
Is this still planned? I am still on the fence just becasue of the long highway miles in a not so friendly trail rig
 
As far as I know yes. I spoke with Nick a couple days ago. You guys can work out your details we'll meet you on the trail somewhere.
 
Just let me know your plans. Jon (xjtrailrider) plans on going through with you guys. He'll meet you somewhere. I have to wait will one of my friends gets off work friday to ride. He gets off at 11. We'll probably see you around 1 - 1:30 on the trail. We can run the whole thing in 40 minutes on the bikes if we push it.
 
I am in. Planning on leaving Winston around 6:30am Friday.
 
Here's The Schedule
  • 11:00 Hit the trail! This trail does not loop so you have two options once we get to the end. 1) if you drove your jeep/truck then you can just exit the trail at the tail end and navigate your way home. 2) If you trailered then you are doubling back. Maybe hitting an obstacle a second or third time if you'd like. I will be doubling back to make sure everyone makes it back to the trail head and can get back on the road to drive home. We will be stopping somewhere in the middle to eat lunch maybe. On the trail we will meet Matt(hadfield4wd) and Jon(xjtrailrider) two locals who have offered to be our guides and enjoy the trip with us.
Everyone is welcome to join the ride. Matt has told me that 31's would be a minimum. The most trouble for rigs with 31s will be clearance. For reference a stock TJ can make it through bypassing hard obstacles but like always expect rock contact to the rockers, axles, exhaust etc. Let's make it fun! I look forward to seeing old faces and meeting new people.​
Weather
Extended forecast predicts some precipitation earlier in the week but it looks to be a normal day just very very cold. Below freezing and windy so I pray everyone is in an enclosed rig.​
If You Plan on Going...
Pm me your cell number so I know you are going and then we will be able to communicate if any one is a little late.​
 
looks like a good time. I'm about 90% sure I'll be able to make it. just need to get my steering redone this week
 
Trailer parking is permitted at The Pines campground. There is not a lot of room though. You might get 2 rigs in there. There is much more room at the ranger station but its a good 12-15 miles from the trail head. The Pines is about 6-8 miles from both trail heads.

I'm making repairs on my rig from the last run and will be ready to go Friday
 
JC and I are trailering, who else will be trailering?
 
Damn Nick can't call nobody! I been working alot and havent been on here as much as I would have hoped. I get paid the 27th so this is possible.

I will have to see... Right now the Flats is my priority and I still have a few things to do on the comanche to get it ready, but my XJ is always up for trips like this.

Swap front axle yoke, new rear shocks, and if I am lucky get a traction bar fabbed up for the rear.
 
We have had a ice/snow/wind weather event roll through up here today. With the way the wind is howling right now combined with the ice/snow on the mountain, we may have some blow-downs on the trail which would make it impassable since we can't go around a blow-down and we cant saw it up without a NFS chainsaw permit. If we are lucky there wont be any issues and if there are we can winch the trees out of the way. Its supposed to be in the 40's here tomorrow so most of the snow will be gone by the time we get there Friday.
 
We have had a ice/snow/wind weather event roll through up here today. With the way the wind is howling right now combined with the ice/snow on the mountain, we may have some blow-downs on the trail which would make it impassable since we can't go around a blow-down and we cant saw it up without a NFS chainsaw permit. If we are lucky there wont be any issues and if there are we can winch the trees out of the way. Its supposed to be in the 40's here tomorrow so most of the snow will be gone by the time we get there Friday.

Can we use a bow saw to get smaller trees cut up and off the trail, or is that not allowed either?
 
Can we use a bow saw to get smaller trees cut up and off the trail, or is that not allowed either?

Yes, just no chainsaws unless you have a NFS chainsaw permit. I use to carry a Stihl 009 with me when I went up there until I learned the hard way that I needed a permit for it. I plan on getting my CS Permit this winter.

We can drag trees with a winch to clear the trail as well.
 
I just called the district ranger to make sure the Potts Jeep Trail would be open tomorrow, it is, and get some other info. Not trying to be a butt, just trying to make sure the correct info is out there :) According to the ranger at the Eastern Divide Ranger District, which manages the Potts Mountain Jeep Trail, there is no such thing as a NFS chainsaw permit. There is a Sawyer Certification that has different levels that you are supposed to have if working under direct supervision of FS personel. As with anything government related, there are a lot of gray areas, but, you do not have to have a permit to carry a chainsaw in national forests :) If you are cutting wood for personal use you do have to have a wood permit. Users of the forest are perfectly within their rights to clear obstructions to legal forest service trails whether they be OHV, hiking, biking, etc.
 
I just called the district ranger to make sure the Potts Jeep Trail would be open tomorrow, it is, and get some other info. Not trying to be a butt, just trying to make sure the correct info is out there :) According to the ranger at the Eastern Divide Ranger District, which manages the Potts Mountain Jeep Trail, there is no such thing as a NFS chainsaw permit. There is a Sawyer Certification that has different levels that you are supposed to have if working under direct supervision of FS personel. As with anything government related, there are a lot of gray areas, but, you do not have to have a permit to carry a chainsaw in national forests :) If you are cutting wood for personal use you do have to have a wood permit. Users of the forest are perfectly within their rights to clear obstructions to legal forest service trails whether they be OHV, hiking, biking, etc.

That is news to me. If you all want to carry a chainsaw its good with me. I was told otherwise previously and I'm just trying to conform to the rules I was told. A chainsaw might make for an easier day.

I've been trying to pull the weather cam up on Potts Mtn to see how much is on the ground up there. Its not working for some reason.

As of right now, I'm still going and my rig is ready. I have not heard from Hadfield.
 
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