Metberry Gulch

2009

The opening run of the season brought us back to an almost forgotten favorite, the one and only Metberry Gulch! It’s always questionable when a storm dumps 10” of snow on you 3 days before a run, but in true Edge style we decided to proceed with the original plan! We met at our trusty C-470 & 285 to begin our journey. The sun was shining and the weather promised to be in our favor.

We headed up 285, when rounding the corners we heard a loud EXPLOSION. Looking back in the rearview, we saw Tony’s Jeep swerving. Turns out he blew is drivers side rear tire. Strange place and time for that to happen, so we knew there had to be more to it… After taking the tire off, it was obvious what the problem was. One of the links of his Terra-Flex suspension had pulled loose and destroyed the threads and was contacting the inside of the tire causing it to puncture. Pretty scary at highway speeds, but Tony did a great job of bringing the Jeep to a stop. After getting the link put back together well enough to get him home, we got him turned around and proceeded toward the Gulch…We made the turn onto 67 toward Deckers, and made our way to the trail head. We were closely watching the amount of snow on the ground, which was our only concern with the steep descents and climbs down toward the Platte River… As the morning warmed up, we realized the snow wouldn’t be much of a problem at all. As a matter of fact it added to the fun, and gave the trail just a little more challenge on the easier sections!

At the bottom we had lunch and enjoyed some sunshine next to the river. It felt great to get back there after so many years!

The climb back out was exactly what the doctor ordered to cure some spring fever!! It was steep and loose, with that familiar granite slab that just begs for some tire tracks! That coupled with all the loose pea gravel, gave us just enough challenge to make it interesting!

We made it out safely and enjoyed a quick barley pop at the Sedalia Grill! Now that’s what I call a perfect day!!!

Until next time, Cheers!! Chris…