Coraphix

for those of you who dont know what black bear pass is, it is a 3- 5 hour 4wheelin road that goes from silverton up over into telluride. most of the trail is fairly easy and great views until the last couple miles where the views become absolutely immaculate and the trail becomes slightly harder and smaller.

my question for anyone who has dont it before, what is the largest vehicle you have seen or been in go over Black Bear Pass? I know have have heard of Hummers doing it with lots of trouble, i have also had to tow hummer up the stair case because they couldn't make the 1st turn. so what have you seen do it?

radio flyer

Have seen all types of four wheelers between 550 and the turn around spot, but nothing bigger than jeep size in the pucker section!!!! There was a unimog waiting for some friends last time i was there, but i didn't wait to see if they actually went down!! I love the Durango area and will be down in mid to late July for 4 days to run the area up thru Ouray!

Coraphix

ive seen all sorts of things all the way up to the point of no return. but the biggest thing ive ever seen go past that was a chevy s10 on 33s. and he was having some serious trouble.
i was wondering if anyone had seen anything bigger because i got a couple of buddies, very good and experienced, but with some fairly large trucks. i was wondering if it was worth trying for them.

radio flyer

Rolled 900 feet downhill!

Coraphix

is that your way of saying dont try anything on black bear unless you are 100% about it?

cause i was thinking the same thing.

ps: that is one gnarly wreck!

radio flyer

Here's the full story:
2004
Rollover claims two lives
A vacationing couple from Missouri was killed Tuesday evening when their Jeep slipped off Black Bear Pass and rolled more than 900 feet down a steep slope. Both were pronounced dead at the scene at 7 p.m., according to a report from the Colorado State Patrol.

The victims, Vern A. Huntington, 50, and his wife, Susan A. Huntington, 51, of Saint Peters, Mo., slid off Black Bear Pass road while taking a left hand turn on one of the switchbacks above the top of falls at about 4:15 p.m., police said. The couple was descending the steep mountain road in a soft-top Jeep Wrangler when the accident occurred. Neither was wearing a seatbelt and both were eventually ejected from the vehicle, suffering multiple traumatic head and chest injuries, according to a report from county coroner Bob Dempsey.

Police said there was no clear cause for the accident, though a recent rainstorm made the road somewhat slick Tuesday afternoon.

The actual cause, "is probably just always going to be a guess," said Mike Westcott of the San Miguel County Sheriff's Office, who responded to the scene.

Westcott said the first call about the accident came into the Sheriff's Office a little after 4 p.m. from another driver on the road who had seen the Jeep roll by in his rearview mirror.

Police were on the scene by just after 4:30 p.m., and the Search and Rescue team was scrambled to help locate and treat the victims.

Because neither passenger was in the vehicle when police arrived, an immediate search began for accident victims, while rescuers waited for confirmation on how many people were in the Jeep when it crashed, Westcott said.

Vern Huntington was found where he was ejected from the vehicle about 100 feet from where it left the road; Susan was later found to have been ejected about 50 feet from where it came to rest, on its roof and back on the road approximately 930 feet down the hill, according to police and coroner's reports. There were no other travelers with the Huntingtons.

The Jeep was "totally crushed," according to Dempsey's report.

SAR team leader Eric Berg said a lack of information on how many passengers were in the vehicle originally complicated operations for the rescuers, who performed a "safe but aggressive grid search," of the area, looking for victims.

Berg said his volunteer rescue team worked valiantly on the slick hillside Tuesday in what were considered extremely tough circumstances.

"They performed magnificently, as usual," he said.

Though Black Bear Pass road is in places exceedingly steep and narrow, especially in a pitched rock section above Ingram Falls referred to as "The Stairs," fatal car accidents on it are rare, and there has not been a fatality in recent memory, police said.

Accidents happen all the time all over the world, the trail has some super pucker factor- mainly on the stairs section because it's off-camber, down hill and has loose rocks mixed with dirt! The three point turns will keep your undivided attention, as it should because if you go over it's unlikely to end well. Iv'e been down 3 times and the first time scared the hell out of me! When you go, check-check-check, and then recheck your brakes including your emergency brake.
__________________