The North American JK Experience

North American Jk Experience Rock Crawling JK

One of our favorite aspects of the four-wheeling hobby is the ability to create your own off-road adventures. Whether that journey is a quick trip down to the river or a full-blown multiweek excursion through the desert, the choice is yours. Over the past 10 years, 4-Wheel & Off-Road has hosted its own: a week-long wheeling expedition known as the Ultimate Adventure. Since its launch, this benchmark off-road trip has influenced countless others to create their own rugged wheeling adventures.

While many plan their excursions on a small scale, Mel Wade turned his big adventure dreams into reality with the creation of the North American JK Experience. His idea was simple: show Jeep Wrangler JK owners how capable their modified Jeeps are through a tough and scenic week-long wheeling expedition.

Similar to our UA, there are no trailers allowed, the vehicles must be street legal in their registered states, and each person and his or her Jeep must be self-sufficient. With a few nights of camping, long road days, and sheetmetal-devouring trails as part of the experience, this wheeling journey is not for the faint of heart-or the stock JK. Minimum requirements include front and rear lockers, a rollcage, a winch, recovery points, and tires at least 37 inches tall.

This year was the inaugural run of the JK Experience, and it sent the participants on a multistate tour of the Southwest. With the trip kicking off in El Paso, Texas, and finishing six days later in Southern California's Johnson Valley OHV Area, the group faced a wide variety of challenging terrain, beautiful countryside, and historic monuments. We caught up with the group just outside Las Cruces, New Mexico, and followed along as they splashed, bashed, and crawled their way from state to state.

For more information on the JK Experience and to find out how you can become part of next year's trip, visit www.jk-expericence.com.

Located just outside the Johnson Valley OHV Area is Giant Rock. Although it's just a giant rock, it's still an impressive sight to see!

Many of the trail rides on the JK Experience ran late into the evening. Though night wheeling can amplify trail difficulty, most of the group had auxiliary lighting, which made navigating the dark boulders a bit easier.
Many of the trail rides on the JK Experience ran late into the evening. Though night wheel
The first trail of the trip was Rocotello Rapids in Las Cruces, New Mexico. To help lead the way, local Joseph Bencomo brought out his custom-built '77 Wagoneer buggy. Local wheelers play a huge part in adventures like this, and we encourage any of you planning your own off-road expedition to contact the 4x clubs in the areas of your journey.
The first trail of the trip was Rocotello Rapids in Las Cruces, New Mexico. To help lead t
Mel Wade is the man behind the North American JK Experience and is no stranger to hardcore trails. With two Ultimate Adventures under his belt and countless wheeling trips, he had no trouble leading the group with his heavily modified EVO Manufacturing JK Unlimited.
Mel Wade is the man behind the North American JK Experience and is no stranger to hardcore

Part of a great wheeling trip is being able to enjoy the scenery both on and off the trail. On the Martinez Mine trail near Florence Junction, Arizona, we stopped by the incredible mining structure that was active so many decades ago.
Part of a great wheeling trip is being able to enjoy the scenery both on and off the trail
Anytime you mix extruding rocks and big Jeeps you're bound to end up with a little contact. Joe Daro's '07 Wrangler Rubicon got the brunt of the body damage on this year's JK Experience, and although his sheetmetal was a little worse for wear, his spirits never got knocked down.
Anytime you mix extruding rocks and big Jeeps you're bound to end up with a little contact
Being self-sufficient is part of the adventure. Fortunately the new Jeep Wranglers have plenty of room for food, parts, and camping gear. And if you're piloting a four-door Unlimited, you practically have enough space for a month's worth of supplies!
Being self-sufficient is part of the adventure. Fortunately the new Jeep Wranglers have pl

Most of Johnson Valley's Hammer trails are usually reserved for buggies, as the massive rocks are known to punish sheetmetal. To finish off the last trail of the JK Experience, we hit Sledge Hammer and got each JK through virtually unscathed.
Most of Johnson Valley's Hammer trails are usually reserved for buggies, as the massive ro
With a combo of two- and four-door Wranglers on the adventure, there was a rich variety of line choices and driving maneuvers. Randy Brown worked his JK Unlimited's long wheelbase and 42-inch-tall tires to his advantage and made this rocky climb look easy.
With a combo of two- and four-door Wranglers on the adventure, there was a rich variety of
Located just outside the Johnson Valley OHV Area is Giant Rock. Although it's just a giant rock, it's still an impressive sight to see!
Located just outside the Johnson Valley OHV Area is Giant Rock. Although it's just a giant

The Imperial Sand Dunes in Glamis, California, are a mammoth sight to behold and a veritable wheeler's paradise. While low air pressure and momentum help to scoot up and over the massive dunes, this Screaming Lizard-built, 6.1L Hemi-powered JK found the powerful V-8 conversion to be pretty useful as well.
The Imperial Sand Dunes in Glamis, California, are a mammoth sight to behold and a veritab
As we made our way through Arizona we stopped by the Painted Rock Petroglyph Site. While there is much speculation on the petroglyphs' true meanings, they're still a very impressive sight.
As we made our way through Arizona we stopped by the Painted Rock Petroglyph Site. While t
After a few high-speed runs through the desert and a couple of launches over the dunes, the 37-inch-tall spare, extra fuel cans, and cargo rack proved to be too much for the swing-away latch on Andy Brown's '09 JK. Luckily the group gathered up enough ratchet straps to secure the carrier, and Brown was able to continue wheeling.
After a few high-speed runs through the desert and a couple of launches over the dunes, th