What started as a simple ATV ride to McAdam for a picnic quickly turned into one of the muddiest and most entertaining rides of the season.
Joining the adventure were Miss My Phone, Real Rookie, The Boss, This Guy Knows Things, and Just Not McAdam as we loaded up and headed toward McAdam, New Brunswick. After nearly a week of rain, we knew we'd be finding plenty of water along the trails—we just didn't realize how much.
Rain-Soaked Trails to McAdam
The ride started with warm weather, a mix of sunshine and passing showers, and trails that were absolutely saturated.
Water holes were everywhere, fallen trees blocked parts of the trail, and muddy sections kept us on our toes. Thankfully, everyone made it through without getting stuck as we worked our way toward McAdam.
Before reaching town, we decided to take a side trail toward Vanceboro for our picnic. It was much tighter than expected, with steep dips and uneven terrain that had everyone paying attention. The rough trail was enough to make Miss My Phone nervous, and she decided to hop off the ATV for one of the trickier sections.
Picnic Time and a Visit to McAdam
After making it through the trail, we finally reached our destination and enjoyed a well-earned picnic before heading into McAdam for fuel.
No McAdam trip would be complete without stopping at the historic train station. It's become an Oak Hill Crew tradition, and of course we couldn't resist making the obligatory jokes about the train station from the hit TV show Yellowstone before climbing back onto the ATVs.
Little did we know, the best part of the day was still ahead of us.
The Ride Home Gets Interesting
Things kicked off almost immediately when The Boss had a little trouble crossing the railway tracks, giving everyone else plenty to laugh about.
Then Real Rookie discovered that charging through puddles at full speed is a great way to completely soak yourself.
Not long afterward we reached one particularly muddy section where The Boss made several passes through the hole, launching mud in every direction and making sure nobody nearby stayed clean. It didn't take long before everyone was laughing.
Trail Repairs with Zip Ties
Our next stop was the warming shack, where we ran into several other groups enjoying the trails, including cyclists out celebrating a diaper party ride.
While there, we even captured some trailside repairs as another rider used nothing more than a handful of zip ties to patch up a broken machine well enough to limp it back home. It's just another reminder that sometimes simple trail fixes can save the day.
The Road From Hell
After spending some time chatting with everyone, we headed toward one of our favourite sections—the infamous Road From Hell.
Waiting for us was a massive mud and water hole.
Real Rookie volunteered to go first before turning around and parking right in the middle of the crossing to film everyone else tackling the obstacle. Naturally, The Boss saw an opportunity for revenge and blasted Rookie with a wall of muddy water while crossing.
With the cameras rolling in 240 FPS, everyone took turns charging through the massive crossing, creating some incredible slow-motion footage.
"The Water Could Not Be Trusted!"
One of the biggest surprises of the day came when Miss My Phone led the group into what appeared to be an ordinary flooded trail.
Halfway across, the radio crackled to life.
"The water could not be trusted!"
What looked like a shallow puddle suddenly dropped away beneath the ATV, causing it to lean sharply to one side. After shifting into 4x4, she slowly crawled her way back out, but from that point on every water crossing was approached with a little more caution.
Everyone else, meanwhile, enjoyed bouncing from side to side as they powered through the flooded trail.
One Last Splash
As we made our way toward home, the trail opened up with several long water holes that were perfect for a little speed.
This Guy Knows Things hit one of them just right, launching water completely over his head and soaking himself from top to bottom. It was one of those moments that perfectly summed up the entire ride.
Wrapping Up the Adventure
Before calling it a day, we stopped by F*K It 2WD's place. Unfortunately, he couldn't join us because his son had softball, but we still spent some time hanging out, practicing wheelies in the yard, and playing around in his seasonal pond before finally heading home.
Some rides are memorable because of the scenery.
Others are memorable because everything goes slightly sideways.
This McAdam adventure had deep water, flying mud, trail repairs, great laughs, and plenty of unforgettable moments. If there's one lesson from this ride, it's this:
Never trust the water.
Watch the full adventure on the Oak Hill Crew YouTube channel, and don't forget to subscribe for more ATV adventures across New Brunswick.
