Jungo Rd 2014

[Roundabout]

My current plan is to leave BRC via Jungo Rd to Winnemucka. I will be driving a 1/2 ton pickup truck during daylight hours. Has anybody been down Jungo Rd recently? If so, what condition is it in and do you have an estimate for the time it takes to get to Winnemucca?

[mournlight]

Hey Roundabout -
I'm a TN neighbor, by the way. I've researched that path a number of times because it looks like fun, but the condition seems to change month to month. There are numerous stories about busted tires, broken axles, etc and no phone service, no other traffic, and so forth. If you will search around, you'll find notes about the mining activity in the area, which influences the condition of the road.
I've decided that this is not the route when I'm loaded down and anxious to arrive. It would suck to get delayed by two days, especially after driving so far. It is tempting though, isn't it?

[TT120]

I wouldn't advise using Jungo rd. Especially in a loaded down half ton truck. That road is largely unused and subject to washouts and other natural forces. They do not maintain that road at all. If you get stuck or break down out there, there will be NOBODY to help you for miles and miles.

[Roundabout]

I have researched what I believe to be all the previous threads on the road. Most of the stories there are all hearsay, no actual first hand accounts. I have also "driven" down the road via google maps, which has sent their street level picture taker down the road. I am well versed in driving on tough roads. The Google street level view actually makes it look not bad, BUT conditions can vary from season to season and year to year. That is why I framed my question to ask if anyone had been down the road this year. There are mining camps and one tiny town on the route, so there has to be some traffic, especially as one gets closer to Winnemucka. It is an official state road. I am considering this only for my exodus, and only if I am able to begin the route in the AM. Mournlight: Howdy Neighbor!!

So, has anyone been down any part of Jungo Road in the last 6 months???? If so, what was the condition of the road?

[gaminwench]

A friend who lives in Gerlach posted today that she would no longer use Jungo road for her regular commute.
It is now (apparently) too sketchy for the locals.

Safety third.

[ygmir]

I'm curious, as to the route you take, or plan to take, from BRC to Jungo to begin your journey.
Make sure you have at least one spare tire. I'm sure you'll have provisions if you need to wait a day or so for someone to go by, depending on if or when you break something.
Not saying you will, just in case.
and, as stated, unless you can find someone who's driven it in the last week, your info may not be accurate. There have been thunder showers and cells in the area, and it only takes one deluge to change the road dramatically.

good luck.

[fernley1]

There have been lots of thunderstorms in that area the past week.

[Roundabout]

A friend who lives in Gerlach posted today that she would no longer use Jungo road for her regular commute.
It is now (apparently) too sketchy for the locals.

Safety third.

Thanks for the replies so far!

Gaminwench, what sort of car/truck does your friend drive? And do you know what it is specifically about the road that is her complaint? Those 2 variables would make a big difference in understanding her comment.

Ygmir, I plan to pick up the road just south of the rr tracks in Gerlack. Otherwise, if the BM trash fence were down, it looks like the road could be picked up on the playa by leaving out the NE side of BRC. However, I don't want to possibly piss off some Bmorg authority person by trying that.

Fernley 1, you raise a good point. If it turns out that the area has had heavy rains in the 2 weeks before exodus, I will definitely reconsider.

[666isMONEY]

Try contacting the BLM office in Gerlach here:
http://blackrockdesert.org/blm-black-ro ... ct-center/

See also this (with another phone number to call for info):
http://blackrockdesert.org/know-before-you-go/

[ygmir]

A friend who lives in Gerlach posted today that she would no longer use Jungo road for her regular commute.
It is now (apparently) too sketchy for the locals.

Safety third.

Thanks for the replies so far!

Gaminwench, what sort of car/truck does your friend drive? And do you know what it is specifically about the road that is her complaint? Those 2 variables would make a big difference in understanding her comment.

Ygmir, I plan to pick up the road just south of the rr tracks in Gerlack. Otherwise, if the BM trash fence were down, it looks like the road could be picked up on the playa by leaving out the NE side of BRC. However, I don't want to possibly piss off some Bmorg authority person by trying that.

Fernley 1, you raise a good point. If it turns out that the area has had heavy rains in the 2 weeks before exodus, I will definitely reconsider.

yeah, the fence will still be up at exodus, and those Perimeter folks are like falcons, they'll swoop in and get ya if you try to cross the closure area. The closure is in effect a while after the event ends.

and, things don't get "fixed" out there, as far as roads go, very fast.
if there is a washout now, it'll probably still be there at the event.
I'd suggest finding someone who drove in that way and see what it was like.

[ranger magnum]

I was on jungo rd in June. I have a 4x4 Cummins diesel 2500, built as an expedition vehicle. As such it weighs around 9000 pounds. Im running 35" BFG Baja Terrains.

I had zero problems. Going slow is your best defense against punctures.

[Eddie]

I was on Jungo Rd on a heavy (900lbs) loaded down bike. It was slow and brutal, but I made it without breaking anything important. YMMV

[Roundabout]

666isMONEY, thank you for those local information contacts! That should be very helpful.

Ranger Magnum, wow! That is an impressive rig you have! Did you at all need to be in 4wheel drive on your traverse of Jungo Road? I will not have 4x4.

Eddie, congratulations on successfully traversing Jungo with a heavy bike. When did you do this?

[Just_Joe]

666isMONEY, thank you for those local information contacts! That should be very helpful.

I know of two people in Gerlach that do the trip to Winnemucca regularly in lightly loaded trucks. They say that the worst part is from south of Gerlach to the hot spring areas on the east side of the playa. They avoid this section by taking the "playa bypass". This option is unavailable during the BLM closure
Yes, it's a dirt road, yes, you may get a flat and yes, you may be stranded for a while with mechanical failures.
Radical Self Reliance.

[thirt33n]

if you are an alert and prepared driver Jungo road is just another road.
i drove in and out in 2002 without a problem. helped a lady change a tire....

1978 vw bus. no problem.

it's not a big deal unless you are not prepared and not paying attention. I even went pretty damn fast.
don't let the rumor filled wuss bags scare you. it cuts off 100 miles and you skip all that crappy bumper to bumper traffic.

go

[firepoet]

No direct experience... but know of folks who have had multiple flats... don't know what they were driving.
Could be an adventure but unlikely a time saver. good luck.

[mdmf007]

Jungo road is alive and well. It is well maintained - but maintained in part by the mining companies that use it, so it is industrial. In addition there are a couple of rail crossings that will scrape the bottom of low slung cars. Trains at these crossings may be doing in excess of 70-80MPH as well.

Jungo road is also known as state route 49 on maps. In 18 years f using it dozens of times a year (I have an office the Mucc) I have had exactly one flat tire.

Watch for cows, broken down cars, sharp corner or two out of nowhere, washouts at a couple of creek type of crossings and make sure you top ff in Winnemucca. Theres nothing between Winny and Gerlach but dust. Last - youll see BMAN, get closer and closer and closer, then start driving away again because Jungo connects to the highway about three miles south of Gerlach.

Enjoy.

[Roundabout]

Jungo road is alive and well. It is well maintained - but maintained in part by the mining companies that use it, so it is industrial. In addition there are a couple of rail crossings that will scrape the bottom of low slung cars. Trains at these crossings may be doing in excess of 70-80MPH as well.

Jungo road is also known as state route 49 on maps. In 18 years f using it dozens of times a year (I have an office the Mucc) I have had exactly one flat tire.

Watch for cows, broken down cars, sharp corner or two out of nowhere, washouts at a couple of creek type of crossings and make sure you top ff in Winnemucca. Theres nothing between Winny and Gerlach but dust. Last - youll see BMAN, get closer and closer and closer, then start driving away again because Jungo connects to the highway about three miles south of Gerlach.

Enjoy.

Thank you, thank you, thank you mdmf007!!! That is exactly the kind of "on the ground" current info that I was hoping for. I am only taking it on the exodus, so I will top off my gas tank on my way to BM at Empire.

[lucky420]

we always call it winnefucca

[Thecatman]

Most of the stories there are all hearsay, no actual first hand accounts.

I'm glad you said MOST stories. Just my first hand experience on the Jungo Rd, although 6 or 7 years ago. It's a nice, fun drive. We drove it from SR447 to Sulphur, about 1/3 or so the way to Winnemucca. We were fortunate to see a herd of about 12, give or take, pronghorns running head-on at us. I stopped til they all passed. It was kinda like Jurassic Park.
While returning back to 447, we, or I, since I was driving, sliced the right rear tire of my better halfs Jeep. To jack the Jeep up, my better half took some hardcover books along to read and I used two of them as a base plus a 1/2x12"x14" piece of plywood that was in the back seat. Just to raise it 3 or 4 inches.
There's a few miles area that has thousands or more of roughly fist sized rounded rocks that slice tires like a "hot knife through butter".
I strongly suggest you don't unless you have two or three spare tires. Even if you use one spare on the Jungo Rd, you still might need another before arriving at your home-twenty. The extra weight and space....just sayin.
I'm just glad I didn't get another flat out there because all we had was one spare. We had Les Schwab brand ATs on and the spare was a wimpy Goodyear all season. We were ill prepared to drive that road and fortunately we made it out without further issues. Now I'm Goodyear Wrangler Dura-Trac year round.

[mdmf007]

Yeah I forgot - Youtube has dozens of vids. Heres one of some happy burners in an RV showing the road itself.

[Captain Goddammit]

That RV is a Ford truck and it's hard to tell from the video it looks suspiciously like an Earth Roamer, something I'd take just about anywhere!