Spring-time again for another weeklong wheeling adventure. For the last six years, a group of Nissan 4x4 enthusiasts have held a gathering to tackle some trails, do some camping, and share in camaraderie. So when Andy Schauer contacted us last March, wanting to know if we'd like to attend Arizona Run VI, we said sure thing.
Following a huge rainstorm a few days before, the event started east of Phoenix in the Florence Junction area. As drivers converged from places as far away as Dallas, the group set up base camp, and over the course of three days ran the Woodpecker, Ajax, and Martinez trails. These are essentially wash trails interconnected with remnants of old prospecting roads.
The Charouleau Gap trail winds its way through the Santa Catalina Mountains in the Coronado National Forest near Tucson. The 4,000-foot elevation made for a cold evening of camping.
With stunning weather and challenging trails, the group had a great time with some leisurely camping strewn in. On day four, camp was broken and everyone followed a sandy canyon trail back to the highway and 60 miles south to a new camping spot after topping off fuel and food supplies. The last couple of days were spent in the Santa Catalina Mountains following the Charouleau Gap trail. This scenic course winds its way through a series of washes and canyons and traverses elevations to over 5,000 feet. We spent a final evening camping here before ending the week out running trails. To top it off, the camp food was great, and on the last night the group shared digital photos from the week projected on a makeshift projector screen out in the boonies. Calmini kicked in some raffle prizes too, so there were some lucky parts winners who took home some goodies. If you're interested in next year's event, click on the link below, and you could be wheeling at Arizona Run VII.
Lower Woodpecker makes for a fun play spot, and John James dove right in. A Dana 44 articulated by custom-wristed Bronco arms and coils help the '95 Pathfinder tackle these trails with ease. John also fabricated a long-arm rear suspension and lots of other parts on this rig. | 
Dee Schauer wheels her own '02 Xterra while husband Andy provides a little guidance on Lower Woodpecker. With 3.92:1 transfer case gears and an ARB, she made the Goodyear Wranglers pull her to the top of this obstacle. | 
Andy Schauer's '98 Frontier has crawled many trails across Arizona, Colorado, and Utah with the help of a Dana 44 solid-axle swap, dual ARB lockers, and Calmini transfer-case gearing. The Herculiner on the body panels is one cure for what's known as "Arizona pinstriping." |
Glen Meloy traveled all the way from Texas to play on the Arizona rocks. His '01 Xterra crawled its way over each trail with the help of a pair of ARB Air Lockers and 32-inch BFG Mud-Terrains. | 
Perched on 37-inch Wrangler MTRs was Terrence Foster's '99 Frontier. The Dana 44 front axle, low transfer-case gears, and lockers pulled him up every obstacle he found, keeping him from having to use his Warn 8274 winch. | 
Jim Wickes wheels his '98 Frontier down a washed-out hill while wife Shawna follows in her '88 Samurai. The shackle-lifted Sammy skittered and bounced across the deep ruts biting at its small tires. |
This Pathfinder also found its way to Arizona from Texas under the hands of Keith Maddox. This '98 unibody Pathfinder sports a custom owner-designed IFS lift. His rig also does repair duty with an onboard welder and air supply. An onboard computer displays GPS tracks on a fullsized LCD. | 
Wheelbase can sometimes help and sometimes hurt on an obstacle. Bob Simmons' 3-inch-lifted '04 Frontier Crew Cab could pull the long obstacles, but not without a little bumper dragging. | 
Flipper Geiger was the sleeper in the group, gliding his '95 Pathfinder along the trails with the help of a single Lock-Right locker. His rear-mounted gas grill clanks a bit, but is mighty popular on trail runs at lunch time. |