Graham Family Farm NW

4W613 Sign Replacement Run
Report and photos by Clay Graham / Eastern Washington Adventures

This story starts back on July 11th, 2009 when the All Wheelers Off Road Cub add new signs on 4W613 at the Gray Rock Trail.
On this day we removed all the old signs at the Dome Peak Trail and at Strobach Mountain to take back home to refinish.
We had to make it fast since the Ahtanum State Forest was on fire at Green Lake. See Tread Here!

The next week Phantom-309 offered to plain the old signs for us. We dropped them off at Helliesen Lumber.

The signs were too far gone to save. Helliesen Lumber donated 14 new treated 2×6 boards for signs and Phantom-309 routered new words on them for us.

Here we are pictures of my wife and I painting them.

On Saturday October 17th, 2009 we met up at Nasty Creek Corrals to air down.

Heading up Nasty Creek Road.

At the Strobach Mountain Trail Head we replaced a broken Green Dot Marker with a new one.

Moving up the Strobach Mountain Trail.

At this small meadow we added a Green Dot marker to show where the trail was since there were tracks every where.

We moved up the trail to add markers at an intersection where a non-green dot trail was.

The first marker.

The second marker.

Both Green Dot markers in the picture.

Moving up the trail the weather turned bad fast. It got cold, windy and the rain came down hard.

Coming up to the Strobach Mountain Trail and 4W613 intersection.

We all got wet putting up these signs.

As we worked the rain and wind seem to get worse. We were now hearing thunder.

Well they are up but will have to have the paint touched up next summer. The white soaked in.

Moving up up toward the 4W613 Upper Meadow the trail got real slick.
I got hung up on a big rock at the top of the steep climb but some how was able to get going again after a few tries.

As soon as I topped the climb I found a Jeep coming down the trail.

The Jeep backed up aways to let me by as the rest of our group found places to pull off to let the Jeep by.

Here we are at the 4W613 Upper Meadow regrouping. We are missing three TJs.

I got back in the rig to hear TJ40 was winching his way up.

After we regrouped we headed on. Here is a quick picture in the Dome Peak Fire area.

We stopped at the Dome Peak Trail Head to replace the signs. Yes it was still raining.

Well they are up. Looks like only one sign need more white paint. Some of the other need the brown touched up.

Here we are coming into the 4W613 Lower Meadow.

Here is the Gray Rock Trail intersection where we added new signs on July 11th, 2009.

The climb up Foundation Ridge was very slick and a lot of fun.

I stopped at Strobach Springs to see the plaque the Jeeping Nomads had put back up after some mounting mods.

Moving on.

We stopped at Jackass Road to regroup.

We took FS1020 toward Blue Slide.

Passing the Rimrock Lake View Point.

Looking down at Green Lake where the fire was on July 11th, 2009.

We dropped down 4W615 toward Blue Lake.

Coming into Blue Lake.

The back side of Blue Lake looked to be froze.

We dropped off 4W615 onto the Blue Lake Trail and then down the North Fork Ahtanum Road.

The fall colors were bright.

We turned into the Snow Cabin Campground for the last time. The campground will be closed to vehicles forever soon.

We stopped to use the new outhouse for the first and last time.

Funding was cut so this new outhouse will be closed.

After a short break we headed on down to the Ahtanum Sno-park to air up.

This was a very fun run.
On this day we logged 117 volunteer hours with the DNR for the 4W613 signs project.

I want to thank everyone that was part of the 4W613 signs project.
A special thanks to Helliesen Lumber for donating the 2x6s.

Wenas Wildlife Area Exploring Run – Part II
Report & photos by Clay Graham / Eastern Washington Adventures

On September 13th, 2009 after the Jeeping Nomads 4×4 Swap meet in Yakima I came home to a hot house. I talked the wife into going for a drive in the 99 XJ that has air conditioning.
We headed out toward the end of the North Wenas Rd. to find the Green Dot road I missed the day before.

We found the entrance near the end of the pavement.

There was no big yellow sign like the other area.

On up around the bend there was a gate.

Working our way up the ridge we found this sign facing the way we just came from.

Up on top of the Umtanum Ridge we could see the Manastash Ridge Observatory.

Zoom in view.

Looking at the road ahead.

The view to the right, Cleman Mountain.

On up the road we found the top of Black Canyon. To bad the road did not still go through.

Up near Kelley Hollow Rd. we came up to the back side of a “No unauthorized vehicles” sign.

We were on the Green Dot road so the sign must have been for an old road across the brush.

We headed on. We dropped down Durr Rd. to the Sheep Company entrance and then headed home.

This was a fun trip. I would like to see this area with snow on it. It would be very challenging.

A special thanks to JayW and SuperGlock for the info on the road I could not find on the first day out.