Ajax Mine Trail

Ran Upper Ajax Mine Trail on 9/23/23, I have an 01 XJ, 5 1/2 inch lift and 35 in tires, front and rear lockers, a 97 TJ, stretched (110-inch wheelbase), 350 cid eng, 40 in tires, basically a tubed out jeep/buggy, and our third jeep was an 89 YJ, 350 Cid Eng, also with a 110 inch wheel base with a double transfer case set-up, also basically a buggy on 40 in. tires. Based on the previous review, the trail has been eroded a lot by all the spring rains. The original description on this trail is now very much out of date as far as the obstacles, there are I believe now, 6 major obstacles, five being extreme for any jeep with even moderate upgrades. It took us about 4 hours to complete the trail, I had to winch off three of the obstacles, of the three I drove through, two of which gave me some nice body damage. The other two jeeps with me also had some trouble on three of the obstacles but took a different line having 40-inch tires and an extra four inches of lift. It's my opinion the best set up would be a 110-inch wheelbase (preferred), and min 37-inch tires, 40 inch preferred and some real strong rock sliders. Taking a long wheelbase vehicle on this trail, in my opinion, would be a serious mistake. GOOD LUCK. Sorry with all the trouble we had, did not bother with pictures. A bit of video was taken, when I receive them, I'll try to add them to the review later.

Ran upper and lower Ajax yesterday. Both sections had some flowing water which made some obstacles more difficult. Description for the upper section needs more details and obstacle markings. Once you go up the first big obstacle, you are committed. There isn’t an “easy” way out. We had 5 vehicles - two 4-dr jeeps with 37” tires, two TJ’s with 37-35” tires and a Cherokee on 33’s with full exterior roll cage. Expect some body damage and the use of rails and skids and winching. Would definitely run again despite the challenges!

Arizona National Forests and State Lands are back open for travel. There are still some very important fire restrictions in place. These restrictions can often change by specific areas.

Due to extremely high fire danger, exceptional drought conditions, resource availability, and increased fire activity, the Department of Forestry and Fire Management and the Arizona State Land Department will implement closures to State Trust Land throughout Arizona. These closures are also in conjunction with our USFS partners. As of 8am on June 25, 2021, closures will be implemented on state-owned and managed lands in all 15 counties. All state-owned and managed lands are closed to entry for recreational purposes, including hunting, camping, and off-road vehicle use. Target shooting and fireworks are prohibited year-round. AZ State Land Closures Notice

Went out to run Ajax again, the lower portion. What a fun trail. No significant changes to report. We did go up to the mine to have lunch. Solid trail in the area.

Ran the trail up to the water tank on Saturday, the lower portion of the trail. Fun trail, passable, no significant changes, but slippery when wet 😂. I still have yet to run the upper portion.

The trail has been changed at waypoint 2. A very large boulder has fallen into the wash, blocking the original line through the big boulders. .

Trail was a bit wet in spots. Very difficult trail but lots of fun. We had four jeeps all with lockers and lift, 33-35 tires. Needed to winch/pull a few jeeps through the trail. Had some body damage, flares torn off, lots of under carriage damage. Don't recommend if you can't handle body damage. Must go with winches and recovery gear. Good luck.