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    Sundays weather was a lot better, the sun had
    broke through and it was warming up nicely. For  the ride today,we had
    the same head count as  shy one of the full-size rigs. We headed out to the
    "Gulf" as it's known locally. It's basically a river gorge than can either be
    wet or bone dry. It all depends on the weather. I can tell you that you don't won't to be
    down there during flash floods as you can see many places that the water line is a lot
    higher than the average 4X4. 
           
    We originally were going to run it south to north but due to high water we
    turned around went  back out of the gorge and went in at the north entrance. From where
    you air down and leave the pavement it is a little over a mile to the bottom. you loose
    about 700 feet of elevation in that mile too. It's a steep and narrow trip down filled
    with loose rocks and a few off cambers. Once at the bottom, you basically follow the
    rivers path downstream. There are several creek crossings and the big river crossing that
    can be real deep sometimes. Mike and I have been down there many times and it's always
    fun. You get such a variety of terrain, mud, rocks, ruts and combinations of it all.  
           
    We reached the "House of Prayer" which is a block building in
    the middle of nowhere. You have to 
     have a 4X4 or ATV to get
    there but they still hold services down there. Since everybody wanted to head home before
    dark, we turned around and headed back the way we  came in. The long uphill
    section coming out of the gorge was way more challenging going up as opposed to down. The
    loose rocks meant that unless you were locked up, you didn't stop until you got to the
    top! Once we made it to pavement, it was no time and we were back in Monteagle. It's hard
    to beat the terrain that Monteagle offers, everybody had their fill of every type of
    wheeling. So until next time.........Which by the way, is not until hunting season is
    over. A lot of the land is open courtesy of hunting clubs, so lets respect our fellow
    outdoorsmen. 
      
    --Drew Huber   |