While offering ATV/UTV rentals we also off you a bit of history. In the summer of 1965, an Air Force plane crashed in the Roosevelt National Forest. The T-33 jet trainer was flown by an experienced pilot and Air Force Major, Jay Currie. Along with Currie was the passenger, and technical observer First Lieutenant Donald Darby. The flight started at Buckley Field in Aurora, CO and was headed to California. The flight was cut short when Air Traffic Control lost touch with the pilot over the Colorado mountains.
While the cause of the crash still is unknown, there was weather and thunderstorms in the area. Before the plane went down, Air Traffic Control told Currie to increase his altitude from 13,000 ft to 17,000 ft. Contact was lost with the Major and Lieutenant who died when the military plane crashed into a mountain. The crash happened near Nederland, Ward and Estes Park.
The ATV/UTV trail offers access to a bit of history as you can visit the plane crash through a trailhead. While there, please be respectful of the area in memory of the two lost in the plane crash. While walking around the wreckage, treat the area as a historical site and do not move or take anything you find. Plan to spend time at the wreckage site, hiking around as you’ll find debris from the crash spread out throughout the area from impact.
Contact Estes Park ATV Rental for an ATV or UTV rentals in Colorado to make the trek to the trailhead to visit this historic site and take in your bit of history. Our staff can also direct you as to where to find the larger pieces of the wreck while you are on the trail.
