US East Northern VA / MD Monthly Meetups

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CO_R1T

CO_R1T

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DRJ said:
@geekyadam
Here are some suggestions for the September trip. I'll share my experiences and the maps I recorded.
  1. Green ridge state forest - this place has a lot of camp sites available and have easier trails to a little tougher trails that are rutted out. There are some overlooks and stream crossings and is dog friendly. It's about 1.5 to 2 hours from the DMV area (depending on where you are coming from). Trails that are rutted out were similar, in condition, to the trails that @Exped4x4 took us to in Clifton. Some of the streams that we crossed were rather deep and I would recommend getting a diff breather installed prior to attempting the crossings.
  2. Flagpole knob - this trail is also very stock friendly. However, there are a couple of areas that required our group to get out of rigs and stack some rocks and/or have spotters to allow stock vehicles (like mine) to safely pass without damaging our vehicles. The view at the top is amazing and is a fairly large area. I did not camp at Flagpole, but I believe the camp sites are free as long as it's open. @Exped4x4 camped out here and can provide some feedback on the camping. There are several water/mud holes. I used my lockers on this trip in some areas, but there were other stock vehicles that did not have lockers. We had 12 rigs in our convoy and it took us 7.5 hours to go up, have lunch and come down.
  3. Big levels - this trail is very stock friendly and clearly marks more challenging trails which converge with the main trail. Big levels is a big more rocky than the other two trails above so bring a seat cushion =). I got more pin stripes from this trail on my truck than from any other trail. It's definitely a tight trail, but still doable with a 1/2 ton (we had a Tundra with us on this trip). This trail also had some water/mud holes that are quite deep. I bottomed out on a couple of them and our trail lead also damaged his exhaust in one of the water holes. I would stay away from this trail immediately after a down pour with a stock rig. We had 8 rigs in our convoy and it took us close to 7 hours to go up, have lunch and make several stops along the way. This was an event that @TerryD organized and a few of the group members did camp out and can provide some additional feedback.
I've attached the *.gpx and *.kmz files for the routes that I recorded. I am still new to Gaia and didn't get all fancy with the labeling, but I'm learning.
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Awesome info. I don't have any experience with these trips yet, but interested in checking out all three. Green Ridge State Forest sounds like it would be a good one.
 
Bennett

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WK2EcoD said:
Hey everyone! I just signed up for OB and came straight here as I live in NoVA (Arlington area). Seems like this meet up crew has been going strong since April. When's the next meetup? I see there's some comments about something this weekend, although that may be a bit rushed at this point for me.
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Welcome!
 
geekyadam

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Okay the current idea I like would be to hit @KephartRC's camping spot just outside flagpole trailhead, camp, wake up, pack up, hit the trail, find another spot at the top/end of the trail, camp, wake up, back out the trail, head home.

We won't be able to leave Woodbridge on Friday 9/15 til 5ish, and few hours to get there, so rather not start the trail in the dark then try to set up camp late hour. What's everyone [that's going] think?

Truth be told it was @wk2blackpearl's idea.
 
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DRJ

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geekyadam said:
Okay the current idea I like would be to hit @KephartRC's camping spot just outside flagpole trailhead, camp, wake up, pack up, hit the trail, find another spot at the top/end of the trail, camp, wake up, back out the trail, head home.

We won't be able to leave Woodbridge on Friday 9/15 til 5ish, and few hours to get there, so rather not start the trail in the dark then try to set up camp late hour. What's everyone [that's going] think?

Truth be told it was @wk2blackpearl's idea.
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Once I get a better idea as to how my schedule will look like, I'll let you guys know if I can make it. I'm not a fan of Route 66 at 5pm so I am leaning towards joining you guys on Saturday of that weekend.


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geekyadam

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Fair point. Well maybe we leave at 6pm then.
Let me know if you will head out Friday and we'll caravan.
 
Epic Overland

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AG Sheep said:
Would everyone be able to meet up at that time? Dependent on when ppl get off and the amount of traffic they might hit
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Traffic flat out f-ing sucks on 66 coming out of NOVA, especially on a Friday... Rolling out after 7 is my move, if I can't roll out early on a Friday putting me at the campground roughly around 9:30. There's always a slow down at the I-66/I-81 interchange, so expect that.
 
DRJ

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Bennett said:
Is the route you plan to drive in the Flagpole Knob GPX file Wook posted? Also, anyone have coords for the camping spot?
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Unless we find paid campgrounds around the area the ones off of flagpole are free and can't guarantee to be open. FYI, If you are using my *.gpx I started recoding at the nearby Sheetz.


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geekyadam

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KephartRC said:
Traffic flat out f-ing sucks on 66 coming out of NOVA, especially on a Friday... Rolling out after 7 is my move, if I can't roll out early on a Friday putting me at the campground roughly around 9:30. There's always a slow down at the I-66/I-81 interchange, so expect that.
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What area are you coming from?
 
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