As they say, "What goes up must come down." That's true of airplanes, tech stocks, and Jeep roads. In our case, coming down could only mean one thing: SOB Hill. This short but steep section of trail descends a wooded hillside, and is strewn with boulders that rival the rock gardens of Spring Creek and Battlement Mesa. I'm not sure a vehicle could climb the hill with anything less than 35" tires (or a lot of rock stacking), but we suspected that we'd make it down okay with our lockers and 33s. Under the careful direction of Chris' spotting, I proceeded down.

    I neared the bottom, but I was overtaken by a group of dirt bikers. They were having a tougher time than I was, mainly because their bikes couldn't stay running due to the steepness of the descent. But they came down a makeshift go-around with their back wheels pretty much locked up and got by me without too much trouble. The go-around, while passable for now, will likely erode away in the not-too-distant future and become just as difficult as the original trail. This is no solution. Look, if the trail is too difficult, don't go around; go back. Driving off the trail and making your own path through the woods is a good way to get trails closed. Tread lightly. At any rate, I completed my descent without any major problems, thanks in large part to an excellent spotting job.

    The Colonel then guided Bill down, helping him get just tippy enough in one section for a great photo, but never putting him at any real risk of rolling. Bill then took his turn as spotter for Chris, while Jason and I recorded the moment on film. As usual, the pictures can't show the true steepness of SOB Hill. Believe me, it earns its name. But we all made it down successfully, with only the occasional sound of metal on rock.

    Once out of the woods, so to speak, we continued down into the valley, and then began the ascent back up the other side. After a short time, we came to an old cabin that looked like it would be a great spot for lunch. Eating in the shade next to the cabin, we met several of the local residents. While Molly preferred chasing the squirrels, Scott and Michael decided that lunch was for the birds. The twins happily gave up cracker after cracker, much to the delight of the mountain jays.

    After lunch, we headed up the opposite side of the valley we had just descended, and soon found ourselves above treeline again. We took a quick side trip up Wise Mountain, where a family of mountain goats was grazing. They were kind enough to pose for a few pictures before moving on.

    Then it was time for us to head back down. Our final descent brought us past the Wild Irishman mine at St. John's, and finally onto pavement in Montezuma, next to the River Run Gondola at Keystone. After getting some air and gas in Keystone, Bill headed west for a few days of camping. The Potters and I headed east over Loveland Pass and back to Denver, with memories of another great day of Jeeping in the Rockies.

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