As soon as we bought our Jeep in January, we couldn't wait to test it on the trails. Our first off-roading was in the mountains surrounding Big Bear Lake on the North Shore side.
Prior to hitting the trails, we stopped by the rangers station to get a map and to buy our Adventure Pass. We frequently noticed signs mentioning the Adventure Pass while driving in the Angeles National Forest. It's necessary to have if you wish to park your vehicle in the forest, you don't need it if you're just driving through. As we intend on doing a lot of off-roading and hopefully some hiking, the Adventure Pass is a must have accessory for our Jeep. It's also a nice way to support our local parks.
We spent about five hours off-roading in Big Bear, most of the time we were completely alone on the trails. We only saw one little chipmunk scurry in front of us. No other wildlife, except for birds.
It was mid-February and we were really hoping to find some snow, but with the unseasonably warm winter, this was all that we could find. The weather was brisk, but the sun was shining.
The trails were marked with ratings from easy to most difficult. A majority of the trails that we explored were flat and easy.
However, we did go on a trail that was rated the most difficult. This is how I handled it.
And when it became too much, I refused to stay in the Jeep as Dan drove down the steep trail.
Now that we've taken the Jeep out a few times and we've done far more harrowing trails, I'm not so chicken. I know that this picture makes it look pretty mild, but trust me, it was steep! I shouldn't have been walking down it in my Uggs.
Normally, I wouldn't advocate graffiti on nature, but I like this photo.
Our drive included a lot of dirt, tree branches scraping the sides of the Jeep and loud "clunk/clank" sounds as we jostled along. In the end, there were a few minor scratches, but mostly, the Jeep was just blanketed in dirt.
Nemo suffered a dismembered tail during an epic battle with a large tree branch. He just kept swimming.
In early May we will be back in Big Bear for the Jeep Jamboree. We can't wait to tackle the trails and really push our Jeep to its limits. Check out the official website for the event here.