After decades of bopping down endless gravel forest roads at a brisk clip without an incident, I’ve now slid off the road for the second time in two years. And this time I can’t blame a rare moment of emotional distress. No, I was simply going a bit too fast, having been lulled by this road’s relatively good condition as well as a growing hunger after a long drive and hike. So when I came around a blind downhill curve and suddenly there was more air than road under me (thanks to a slide), I slammed on the brakes and hung on as the Tracker crashed over two drop offs and headed for the deep ditch. Would we be walking home?
We were returning home from a hike to Snow Camp, which has become one of our favorite outings when we’re in Port Orford. It’s at 4,223′ in elevation, which is the highest peak in this area and rather unusually high for the Coast Range. And yes, it lives up to its name with plenty of snow in the winter. It’s due east from Gold Beach and south of the Rogue River, so a good hour and a half drive from Port Orford.
The views in every direction are stellar; those are the Siskiyou Mountains on the Oregon-California border in the far distance. Wanda is looking west towards the ocean. The native vegetation this high up here is stellar, an endless rock garden with lots of blooming flowers this time of year.
That includes a vast hillside of pitcher plants (Darlingtonia). These carnivorous plants only grow in permanently boggy environments where the crown of the plant stays above the water but the roots are always wet. The east side of Snow Camp is one huge seep and they thrive here.
Inspired by them, we saw some for sale at a nursery recently and picked up two of them which I planted in our little backyard stock tank “pond”. I put them in there just last week before we left for Port Orford and when we came back yesterday there was a whole new pitcher that had shot up very quickly. They secrete a scent that attracts insects which then fall down into the pitcher where they are digested. They also send up a flower, which is on the right.
We first came up here in the late summer of 2024, when the gate was open and the Tracker tackled the very steep, rough and washed out last 100 yards or so. The former fire lookout is available for rent.
Last summer I found a local hiking guide that showed a four mile trail up to Snow Camp. It starts at Fairview Meadow, then heads into a lovely stand of older forest where I spotted the remains of a car. I wrote that up here, and it appears that the very sparse remains were identified as a 1936 Terraplane by DougD. I am impressed but not really surprised. It was bound to be identified by one or more of our intrepid car savants.
Back to the little problem we encountered. There are two main forest roads to Snow Camp; we had driven up 3133, which starts at the Rogue River, and we came down 3680, which explains why I didn’t anticipate this problem with the road. The coastal mountains are relatively unstable, so these slippages do occur. And in retrospect, I do remember it now from driving up this way last year. So yes, presumably my memory isn’t all it used to be.
Forest Road 3680 is the major “arterial” in this section of the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest, and it’s in very good condition. We hadn’t headed out for this trip until about one or so, and now it was 6:30 or thereabouts, and my speed creeped up into the upper reaches of my forest road envelope: 40 mph on the straight sections and some 30-35 on the curves. That did not leave any margin for unexpected road washouts behind a blind curve.
There had been something that could have been taken as a warning on the road a mile or two back: an abandoned red Tracker like this one, a two door “convertible” with even the doors removed. No tags, rough shape, presumably left for the Forest Service to haul away. Its driver’s side was all beat up; presumably it had slid off the road too at some point. I did look covetously at its stick shift…
As I wrote at the top, I was bopping along when the road essentially disappeared in an instant, a steep downhill right hand curve with two drop offs, like ledges, due to severe land movement. Whoa! We sort of flew down over the first ledge and then plowed mostly straight towards the edge, with brakes full on. This is where we came to a stop, right at the very edge of very soft gravel bank, below which was a pretty deep ditch; not a man-made one, but the natural one made by the drainage from this gully. That’s where these “slides” are most likely to be encountered.
Looks like that thistle saved our bacon? Another foot or so and we’d have been in a bit of a pickle.
I decided to survey the situation a bit before deciding on a course of action. The fallback would be to call my friend Alan in PO to come and tow us out with his Jeep, but that would be a bit of a wait as well as an imposition. The passenger side rear wheel was well in the air. And the bottom of the Tracker was just barely clearing the ledge; good thing I had put larger tires on it. If the Tracker had been high-centered, a self recovery without a winch would be very unlikely.
I got back in, put it in 4 Low, and tried reversing: that resulted in…nothing. The rear wheel obviously just spun and I was worried about the driver’s side front wheel digging itself deeper into that very soft gravel if it spun too much.
The only other option was to try going forward, which Stephanie was dubious about, afraid it would just go further down off the side. I cocked the wheel all the way over and gently applied some throttle, and then some more, and although the front end was down in the gravel it started to move…in the right direction. Whew!
Yes, I felt chastened. It was my bad. And this was the second time in two years; the previous time it was the xB, which slid off the edge of a road in a curve and into a down tree, dinging it up pretty good, including pushing a big branch into the windshield. Ironically, I was actually going a bit slower than usual on this familiar road near Eugene, because I was a bit distraught over the fact that our dear old doggie Lil’ Man had struggled on this hike, making his inevitable demise all-too obvious.
So two slides off forest roads, one going slow, the other fast. Hmm, what does that suggest?
I texted these pictures to Jim Klein and he texted back: “Don’t tell (son) Ted; he’ll take your keys away”. I haven’t told him yet, so please don’t any of you. I’m not quite ready for that conversation.
Related CC reading:
Auto-Biography: I Finally Slid Off A Forest Road Into A Tree – Because I Was Driving Too Slow
Trailside Classic: Yes, There’s A Car In This Photo – But How Did It Get Here?
Glad to hear that is episode didn’t end in a disaster! I think that because you have become so familiar with driving on these types of roads, you are starting to take doing it for granted. The Universe has sent you another warning, time to slow down a bit. I received my own warning a couple of years ago, it wasn’t driving related, but I took the hint.
One nice thing about being retired and not tied to a commute or need to one be somewhere regularly is it does afford the ability to take some time going places without the need to hurry. Of course liking fast driving is another thing, but I lost the desire a long time ago. Nowadays am perfectly fine with letting my even more slowpoke-driver wife take the wheel, while I enjoy just looking out the window as the scene passes by. Glad no people or cars were injured by this event!
Take the lug wrench/tire iron and stick it through the tow eye at the right rear, have one person (ideally the heavier one) bounce on it while the other person backs up. That’s what they would do in English observed trials 🙂.
I’ll try to remember that!
Pride goeth….
Lots of us have learned about that but would never admit it. Glad both of yours turned out OK. No bent metal, only bent pride!
Reminds me of a car I’ve seen that went off a national forest road, an olds rocket 88 that sailed into a dead tree, broke that tree then came to a rest on the log which is all that kept it from rolling down the mountain side into a steep gully. it’s still there forest service has no interest in spending money yarding it out. its been shot at and lots of parts stripped off though the rear axle was only partially removed, its hung up on the leaf springs, still has the engine & transmission
We all age out Paul ;
Your writing indicates you’re still on top of things, many have gone a bit too fast on dirt roads and landed in the ditch, many on the side or top, I don’t think this incident is any cause for worry .
That’s a beautiful area there, thank you for sharing it in pictures .
The old fire lookout looks pretty far gone for a rental now, looked much better in your other photograph from before, clearly zero maintenance .
Your Pug is cute ! my bitch is a Pug / Chihuahua mix in brindle, also very cute and loving .
Your stock tank pond looks nice, do these carnivorous plants reduce insects much ? .
Who knew thistles were so sturdy ? =8-) .
I found that larger 235 tires o my four cylinder Tracked sucked up too much engine power and so discarded them .
Glad no one was hurt .
? Is there cell service up there or would a long walk to help be necessary ? .
-Nate
The lookout was just boarded up for the winter season.
Wanda is a Bug (Pug X Boston Terrier).
Don’t know about the insects yet, as they’ve only been there for a little over a week. But we don’t have annoying insects here except for a few flies. Hopefully they will be victims soon.
I’ve come to the same conclusion about those 235 tires. But I’ll probably just leave them on as we don’t use it much except just for local outings when we’re down there. It lives there.
There was cell coverage. It’s gotten much better down there in the last couple of years.
I’m glad everyone was OK Paul. Happens to all of us . . .
I haven’t done it for a while, then this spring we went into our property over a rather long logging road. One spot holds snow owing to the shade and a mountain downdraft keeping it cool. I went in that morning with a 10,000 lbs trailer, no problem even in two wheel drive. Came out after a warm day and hit the 200 yard section of snow in 2WD, with an empty but 3000+ lbs trailer on.
And I got stuck. On a flat, level straight stretch. Just because my attention wandered momentarily
I backed up, in 4 wheel drive now, wisely disconnected the trailer as it was gravel 6 feet to my left and my plan was to get the truck out, then back up on an angle and reconnect. Then i went forward, and got stuck. Tried again and got really stuck with one wheel down, in a 1 ton diesel.
So I went for my shovel (nope; leaning on the shed at home where I left it), then my tire chains (Nope; took the box of chains out earlier to make more room). We called the neighbor with the 1 bar of cell service we had and he was on the way, but fortunately another area resident came along with his F150 and gave us a quick pull and we were on the way.
Lesson learned, it happens. In response to this post’s title, no there is no need to hang up the keys
Beautiful area – I love the fire lookout, here in BC there are some that have been fixed up and are managed by non profit groups. I like that you can book that one. Thanks for the story!
It’s not unlike parts of BC; remote and rugged.
If you had no clue that you’d made a mistake, then I’d say it was time to take your keys away.
I never make mistakes!
A close call. Good to hear of a positive outcome. Given the recognition that speed was a factor I’d say if you trim the speed a bit then keys can remain in your capable hands.
Nice hike, and a close call with a good outcome.
I still intend to come and claim my identification prize and go for a hike someday, 1800ft elevation gain to Snow Camp might be within my capability. I’d even ride in the back of the Tracker if there’s some sort of HS handle to grab on to.
But I must point out someone else came up with the Terraplane ID, I just pinpointed the year so it was a team effort.
1800′ elevation gain? Fairview Meadow as at about 3900′ and Snow Camp is at 4200′. The trail does lose some elevation before the final pull up to Snow Camp, maybe some 500′ or so. I’m guessing the total net gain is closer to 800 or so feet.
A few weeks ago, the metro Detroit TV news announced a new bill is working it’s way through the legislature in Lansing. The proposal is that everyone 75 and over be required to take a vision and driving test every four years, and everyone 85 and over have an eye test and driving test every year. Seems the insurance companies what we old farts off the road.
If you can’t pass a simple eye and driving test, I want you off the road as well…
Agreed.
Sometimes I feel they should retest everybody, to judge from some of the stupid behaviour I see.
The time frame for those vision tests is perfectly logical. You are not between the ages of 20 -50 where your visual acuity is pretty stable. At 75 and over, but could be earlier, there are cataracts, the effects of macular degeneration, effects of glaucoma, and effects of diabetes to name a few. Those issues can alter your vision in just a year if not over a four year period. The amount of people I have seen in 45 years of practice, who swear their vision is fine and the DMV doesn’t know what they are doing, would fill a book.
Don’t forget that your acuity level can diminish your depth perception, your judgement on how far away an object is, and your ability to judge speed. I just saw a woman today who was very worried about her vision and seemingly some spatial disorientation. She had a car accident last week when making a left turn across a two lane road into a parking lot. I know it well to my office. She didn’t get half way across before getting hit. Her acuities were 20/70 OD and 20/60 OS after cataract surgery in January. As typical that meant a person would automatically have good vision. No, not always and I could correct her to 20/20. I’m pretty sure she completely misjudged the car that hit her.
Remember, my DMV asks for my opinion on whether your vision is good enough to drive or not.
At 75 and over, but could be earlier, there are cataracts, the effects of macular degeneration, effects of glaucoma, and effects of diabetes to name a few.
Yup. Last winter, the Doc said I’m about three years from cataract surgery. No doubt I will pay up for the correcting lenses, as I have been so near sighted, all my life. Thing is, while I see the eye doc every four years or so, and the doc declares my vision corrected to 20/20, I can’t remember the last time I could read street signs.
My concern with all the extra testing, is where is the Secretary of State, the agency that issues driver’s licenses in Michigan, going to get the money for the additional staff?
(required automotive content) Scotty Kilmer is my age, actually, about 2 weeks younger. He had his cataracts done, iirc, last year. Before the surgery, his glasses were as thick as mine.
If you had a pair of visegrips you could have pulled the parking brake up tight, clamped the visegrips on the cable to the right rear wheel, then let the brake back off, with the right rear locked it would send power to the other 3 wheels and hopefully you could have backed out.
Clever idea. Thanks.
Wow! I’m glad this turned out ok with no one hurt.
Ahh the idea of the keys being taken away…
When Cindy and I moved to the Tri Cities of Tennessee, I was trying to get a proper diagnosis of why my then 55 year old back failed. I was told I could no longer work (don’t ask about the financial burden that’s caused) and then I finally found a truthful doctor. My spinal canal is too small for my spinal cord. So yes the wrong movement could paralyze me. I was advised that I would not be driving after 61 due to limited range of neck motion. Well, sorry, but I’m not giving up the chance to drive my 78 Fleetwood! So I’ve been so very careful.
It’s great that you still hike and enjoy the out doors.
I’m so glad you got through that safely, Paul. I lost a nephew some years ago in similar circumstances to your incident with the xB – the big branch through the windshield broke his neck.
There are two components here that are affected by age. One is eyesight and the various skills which rely on it – depth perception, speed perception etc.
The other is our body’s actual physical ability to respond in a timely and appriopriate manner.
You knew how to get out of the fix you’d got into (cognition okay), and you were able to implement a plan that rescued you (physical abilities okay). You should be good to go for a while yet.
I’m glad you weren’t hurt, and that it didn’t slide past the point of return! Yikes!
Woaah, there’s a lot here!
Paul, somehow you don’t fit the mental image I had of you, at least if pic #2 is correct. Not that it matters, just an observation.
Running off the road. Twice. Well, up on forest service roads, things can get dicey. It’s up to you, would you have done better 10 years ago? Or was it just, *****
Vision. As one who is no longer a kid, I’m frustrated by my vision, which is correctable with glasses. Last year I mentioned that to my optometrist and his instant reply was, half the people your age would kill for vision like yours. Which really frightens me about others on the road!
That’s Stephanie in pic #2. And Wanda. I was taking the picture. 🙂
Ha! You know, most folk would just have the dog cock a hind leg on such a trip.
The old joke goes that the worried adult son rings his elderly parents on their carphone saying “Hey, it’s me, listen, I just heard, be super careful when you’re on the South Freeway today, there’s some old idiot driving the wrong way up it.”
Comes the reply “Jeez, son, there’s not just one, there’s hundreds of ’em!”
You’re not quite THERE yet.
Isn’t that alpine landscape gorgeous? No wonder you bought the plant to remind you.
Glad to see that this didn’t turn out to be a more serious problem! And Kudos for sharing this embarrassing moment – many of us would have been reluctant to do that.
Paul, I hope you take this the right way: I would not want to be the person who attempts to take your keys away.
Glad you, Stephanie and Wanda are safe.
My father-in-law, the ex Naval Aviator, is 85 and pretty much legally blind. But the state of Pennsylvania doesn’t seem to care, and recently renewed his license without any sort of vision check, even when he had to get up close and squint at the check he signed to pay for the fees, directly in front of the DMV employee. He has a car in his driveway that he keeps threatening to drive to the store, but I pulled the coil wire out of it two years ago.
I wouldn’t either. 🙂
Main thing is that you, Stephanie and Doggus are safe.
Point is you are out there doing pretty strenuous physical things when other retirees (and younger) have turned into couch potatoes – keeping you both physically and mentally fit.
It is probably just an overconfidence thing born of familiarity – not related to age. We all like to “test” ourselves until reaching our limits – as i have on my mountain bike.
I guess we just have to listen to what theat great philosopher * once said:
“A man’s just gotta know his limitations”….
(*Clint Eastwood in Dirty Harry)
BTW, I once had a Tracker (manual) as a company car – great little mountain goat of a vehicle that shamed tricked out jeeps and Jimmys, especially on tight trails…
Agreed, and about the Tracker too. And there’s nothing on the market like it anymore; everything is huge now.
Agreed, and about the Tracker too. And there’s nothing on the market like it anymore; everything is huge now.
Well, the Bronco Sport has off road pretensions. Apparently, it will go away in 2028. Ford us supposedly working on a new “Bronco”, but the EU version is supposed to be three row, hence bigger than the Escape or BS, because “bigger and more expensive” is how Farley rolls.
Nice spot. I like the old Fire Lookouts here in BC. By design they were placed in places with panoramic views. I doubt age is a thing, I have been having little bush mishaps for more than 40 years and they just happen sometimes. I am getting more worried about extracting a big pickup from predicaments as I age. Small like a Tracker seems easier. And when I can on dog free trips I have switched to a very easy to turn around and very easy to extricate motorcycle. And when I am on my motorcycle I pay a whole lot more attention to terrain.