tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26957754654271478212024-02-07T19:15:22.026-07:00soaztimFuture posts will be put on the new website. WWW.dirtsunrise.COM SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15387074561333856721noreply@blogger.comBlogger268125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-25813829598917258392016-06-02T10:56:00.003-07:002016-06-02T10:56:45.948-07:00Bugout: Hiding from the masses of Memorial Day weekend... <div id="uid1">
I didn’t plan this last weekend as an exercise in hiding from the masses that head for the outdoors on Holiday weekends, but it turned into just that.
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We started out leading a group of folks from a friends Coffee Shop on a little offroad romp. Since it was the first “Adventuremobile” meetup there were plenty of trucks, but none that had the time to go on our offroad excursion.<br />
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<em>Here is the adventuremobile meetup at Fourtillfour. A Porsche themed coffee shop in Old Town Scottsdale. Four Till Four = 3:56 which is sort of code for = Porsche 356. The owner, Nico, sold a 356 he had to fund the opening of the coffee shop, hence the name. </em>
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<em>For some pics of the run to the river, check out Jared’s site: </em>
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<a href="http://www.jaredhouston.com/blog-1/" target="_blank">Blog</a></h6>
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<a class="js_readmore readmore-referenced" href="http://www.jaredhouston.com/blog-1/" target="_blank">Read on <span class="hostname">jaredhouston.com</span></a>
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Since there was just 2 trucks, plus a Touareg on 20" wheels, we decided to do a short side trip for the day next to town. For Nico, this spot was less than 20 minutes from his house in North Scottsdale. Not a bad get away to escape the city.
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We enjoyed a couple beers and some sandwiches. It was an easy day.
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The road to and from this oasis is barren and harsh.
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It was fun to be able to spot them up and down this nice little ledge. It was the hardest wheeling they’d done in their truck and with a nice hole the size of a truck to the left of Goose in this pic, it added a level of pucker to the exercise. <br />
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K and I packed up the truck for the full 3 day weekend when we left that morning. We planned to catch up with or friends over on the Apache reservation, but right now that seemed like a LONG way away.
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Saturday afternoon... once we hit pavement and went our own ways we decided to get to the closest high elevation spot to Phoenix. We were sure that there would be TONS of people on Four Peaks being so close to town...<br />
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We were wrong, very wrong. Most of the pull outs were empty and once we hit the summit we were all alone! I figure the only reason it was empty is that it was TOO close for a 3 day weekend. Everyone had the same idea to get further away since they had the time.
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As is my general method: Find a dirt road, then get to a secondary lesser used dirt road and finally a tertiary road off of that one! Now we were sufficiently remote for me to relax. :-)
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Now that we were at about 5,200 feet I’d like to tell you that we relaxed and made a fire, but we didn’t. I passed out. After Expo and the cramming of work in before and after Expo I was beat. I wondered momentarily what I had done over the last 2 weeks and where it went, but my mind took over and I slept. I slept for almost 12 hours. I sure needed it.
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In the morning I walked around the area taking some pics. I felt nearly human again.
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An old miners shack? Hunting cabin? Whatever it was, it was floating on the surface without a real foundation so it wasn’t anything expected to be too permanent.
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The road ahead was covered in undisturbed pine cones. A sure sign that you’re on a seldom used road. I love it.
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Good morning vulture. I know it’s hard to tell, but I’m not dead yet.
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Big furry bumblebee’s were all over doing their morning harvesting.
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Even on the main road atop Four Peaks we were all alone.
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The sky was an overcast gray from a fire burning up near Young, AZ in the mountains.
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It’s hard to believe, but as the crow flies we’re less than 20 miles from Phoenix. So close and so far away.
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We headed down the backside of Four Peaks and around Roosevelt Lake. HERE is where they are, the masses. Hundreds of RV’s and trailers parked at the lakes edge. It was like a big noisy city in an otherwise quiet area. There was less room between most of them than between their houses back home. I love the water and boats, but this looked nothing like a place I wanted to be so we kept moving, too quickly, to Globe, AZ.
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As I was rolling into the outskirts of Globe I saw a Highway Patrol. No worries, I was in a 21 year old truck fully loaded down, right? Oops.
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“Hello Officer.... How fast? Uh, I think I was going about 60MPH? Oh... 67MPH... What? THIS IS A 45!!! Wow, well, I earned that one. Sorry about that officer. I never thought I’d earn a speeding ticket in this beast, but it looks like I did and then some... my bad.“ (Criminal speeding is 20MPH or more over the limit so he COULD have taken my truck from me and put me under arrest... Ouch)
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Instead, he came back, thanked me for being honest and respectful and wrote me a warning. So many good vibes I had to shake his hand and say “I know you didn’t have to do that, thank you sir! We’re off to that breakfast place you mentioned. Have a good weekend.”
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Phewww!
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It turns out NOTHING is open in Globe, AZ on a weekend so with a gas station doughnut slowing eating ME from the inside out, we headed for the mountains. Along the way we stopped at Seneca, AZ. A failed experiment to create a picturesque camping/fishing spot on the San Carlos reservation. These buildings were very high quality construction. Such a shame and such a beautiful spot. Read more here:
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<a class="js_readmore readmore-referenced" href="http://www.ghosttownaz.info/seneca-lake-ghost-town.php" target="_blank">Read on <span class="hostname">ghosttownaz.info</span></a>
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The main clubhouse and check in area.
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Quite a fireplace.
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There were buildings scattered around. All similarly nice at one time.
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The would be gas station and store.
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I’ll never understand it. Usually it’s kids, of which I was a stupid one too, but sometimes you see adults doing vandalism... I don’t get it.
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Just around the next corner you come to one of the more remarkable views available from a paved road in Arizona. Salt River Canyon.
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On to the next stop, Fort Apache.
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More info:
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<a class="inset-skip" href="http://www.legendsofamerica.com/az-fortapache.html">http://www.legendsofamerica.com/az-fortapache.html</a>
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<a class="inset-skip" href="http://www.fortapachearizona.org/history/">http://www.fortapachearizona.org/history/</a>
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It’s hard to illustrate just how remote Fort Apache is, even today. It’s in the middle of nowhere. The three out of business gas stations you pass on your way there is further proof that this area is becoming more remote or staying constant at best. So, it’s surprising then, when you see a late 1800's city street in perfect repair.
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Then, we were back to dirt.
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Dirt, glorious dirt.
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Always bring an automatic gate opener.
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This area is fairly barren. Early settlers cut down almost all of the occasional tall pines to build homes or fences. What’s left are mostly Pinion Pines and a clay mud that will stop a Unimog if it’s wet.
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We explored some side roads and even came across this little guy. <a class="inset-skip" href="https://www.desertmuseum.org/kids/oz/long-fact-sheets/Collared%20Lizard.php">(Collared Lizard)</a>
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Eventually we found our friends and made camp. The life around here is all based around the rivers, creeks and lakes. On the plateau it’s hot and barren, but in the canyons the area comes alive.
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The rest of the group had been relaxing for a couple days. Catching dozens of fish and throwing them back. Not today though, today we wanted to catch enough for a big fish fry.
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I grabbed a couple beers, SPOT, my Leatherman, a full Camelback of water and went looking for my happy place.
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Looks pretty good...
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Ooh, looking even better.
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Getting really close!
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K agrees!
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NAILED IT!
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inotgunnaleave...ever
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What? Hike in the river? Sure!(I can’t sit still..)
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Can you find Goose in the pic above?
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*enhance*
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So, it was right about here that one of our friends mentioned seeing a black bear earlier in the day at this spot...
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Hmmm, waiting to see the reflection of a bear in the river now...
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<div id="uid109">
The rest of the folks came back with a nice catch. 7 of the biggest bass they’d caught. We filleted them up (Easier and less bony than Trout) and had a helluva fish taco feast.
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<div id="uid111">
Homemade Guacamole, Salsa, Pico De Gallo, black beans (Cook in a dutch oven). It was awesome. I love fish tacos even more than Carne Asada.
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It was a great night. I was exhausted still and barely starting to unwind from that feeling or perma-stress-work feeling, but it was sorely needed.
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Nooo! It’s Monday morning... Since we’d shown up to the party late, it was tough packing up and leaving the next morning. I DIDN’T WANT TO GO.
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<div id="uid117">
On the way out you pass several homes of early American settlers. It’s interesting to see and try to make sense of the tortured history of an area like this. Most folks I’ve met on or from the Rez just want to be left alone...
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<div id="uid119">
Slowly, but surely, we made our way back to “civilization.” Funny how it sounds like a bad word when you’re coming from a place like this.
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<h2 id="uid120">
<em><strong>“Civilization? You can have it. Give me the wild places!”- Me, just now, a second ago.</strong></em></h2>
SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-90708000960043644352016-05-06T06:57:00.000-07:002016-05-06T06:57:19.654-07:00Death Valley "SUPERBLOOM" Part 4<div id="uid1">
The trip home is usually one filled with stressful thoughts of work, responsibilities of the real world and longing for the places you just left. This drive home was different because although we felt those things, we knew we had one last day of adventure!
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We popped into the Mojave to have lunch. We didn’t want to set foot in a gas station or restaurant and loose our connection with dirt.
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<div id="uid6">
Something about seeing a bush make these lines in the sand from days or weeks of wind is oddly comforting. It reminds you that whether you go visit nature or not, it’s doing it’s thing. It doesn’t need any help and it’s not waiting for you.
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<div id="uid8">
We hit the super slab and high tailed it back into AZ. Although we’d had a great trip and would miss our friends we were longing to be remote. It’s a strange thing to say after “overlanding” in Death Valley, I know. For us, seeing 20 or 30 other trucks passing us as we explore makes us feel like we’re in a busy place. We needed a night to decompress in a truly remote spot.
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<div id="uid9">
We exited the highway in the nothing town of Yucca, AZ, home to the Chrysler Proving Grounds. (What the hell do they prove there anyway? Not much from the looks of a PT Cruiser)
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<div id="uid10">
It goes from boring desert near the highway to beautiful and lush desert just a few miles towards the Hualapai mountains.
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<div id="uid12">
There is a lot of mining history in these hills.
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<div id="uid14">
After driving along feverishly trying to find a side trail we found a promising one. Fairly good size brush meant no one had visited for months. Off of that road we found an even lesser used road. Something clicked at that moment. This was enough. This finally, was complete and lonesome solitude. I had found it, at least for a night.
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<div id="uid16">
There were some ranching remains of a feed tank and even an old corral with a fire pit. Certainly not a place NO MAN had ever been, but one that had been forgotten. Perfect.
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<div id="uid18">
Time to cook some Carne Asada! I’d been carrying it the entire trip, but the group meals were so large we’d never used it.
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<div id="uid21">
It was a great night of relaxing... well, we were so tired we actually passed out by 9PM... Adventuring takes it out of you.
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<div id="uid22">
The next morning I wanted to use our final day to take some seldom used roads that aren’t on most maps. See, the thing is, I’d mapped these mountains about 7 years ago so I had a faint memory of what roads went where. Since I didn’t do the entire mountains by myself there were areas I didn’t know of course.
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<div id="uid23">
Step 1, check out this road we camped on to see where it went.
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<div id="uid24">
A mine. A copper one to be exact.
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<div id="uid26">
To you or I this might look like a BIG mine, but after hours of searching the best we could find was a couple mentions of it in mining records of the late 1800s into the 1940s. It seems to have been worked even into the 60s. It was just too small of an effort to report on whereas there are several other mines just a few miles away that have entire books written about them.
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<div id="uid28">
The explosives shed looked stout!<br />
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I’m not sure what it is, but it’s oddly beautiful and ornate.
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These locks have seen better days.
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Behind those not so secure locks is the lower shaft.
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A bit of a trucks leaf springs and rear end.
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<div id="uid38">
These ore cart tracks travel over to the top of the ore shoot. This would have been impressive to see work back in it’s prime. Men moving all over like ants to extract as much of the green gold as they can.
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<div id="uid41">
I’ve seen boards like this before in mines. I think it’s a chart to keep a record of either “loads of ore” or “Which miners are underground” at any given time.
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<div id="uid43">
There was a small slot in this wall. A timecard slot? Outgoing mail? Not sure, but it’s interesting to see that even in remote mining operations you still have the basic rules and bureaucracy of an office.
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<div id="uid45">
Water, all mines operate on water. Finding a steady source for use or conversely pumping out the mine so it doesn’t flood. It’s either an asset or a huge challenge. These pipes were strung all over the mountain.
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I don’t bet any of the men working hard up here had much time to pause and remark on how beautiful this area of Arizona is, but we sure did.
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<div id="uid49">
These rich looking rocks of copper ore were all over the tailing pile. You could feel the substantially greater weight of these VS the normal rocks nearby.
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Time to hit the road and start making our way towards the small town of Wikieup!
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<div id="uid54">
This site is more heavily written about for the discovery of a new mineral named after the mine’s name. <a class="inset-skip" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antlerite">Antlerite!</a> This is Antler Mine.
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<div id="uid58">
The head frame was impressive as was the mine shaft sinking down a couple thousand feet. Yikes. I got chills just taking this shot.
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The ground is littered with core samples.
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The tailings are so immense it gives you a good visual of just how deep the main shaft must go.
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Back on the road we went. Now in low range. Plodding our way towards the mountains that would get us home.
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I’m always glad to wake up a rattlesnake while in my truck. It’s while standing next to them I have far less appreciation.
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<div id="uid69">
Ascending we went. I recognized our trail. It’d been a long time, but if you read my mapping the southwest posts you might recognize some of the area ahead. The difference being we weren’t in snow and on motorcycles. “Hmm, now that road was wide enough for a big ol landcruiser, right...? right..... maybe”
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It’s not often you feel a connection with a plastic sign, but when you’re the one who installed it, you do. :-)
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At first the trail was a decent size. The tracks were UTV or “Golf Cart” sized, but the trail was wide enough for Goose.
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<div id="uid75">
The higher we climbed the tighter it got. My tires road along the bushes next to the visible tracks. It wasn’t a positive sign and I took note of it.
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Somewhere around here, I stopped worrying about photos. This is where the trip goes fairly dark in a visual sense.
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<div id="uid79">
For the next hour we had to work as a team. There were a few boulders that my mind remembered seeing only as we rounded the bend. AHA, shoot... I remember that rock from long ago. Why didn’t I remember that one.. Hmm. <br />
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<div id="uid80">
“Okay babe, I need you here fully and completely. We’ll be fine, but it will take some time and working together. Okay?”
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<div id="uid81">
“I’m terrified, but I will do whatever you need.”
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<div id="uid82">
“Okay, I am going to have to go on the inside of this one. Stand on the passenger side away from the truck and let me know how many inches I have until we hit.”
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<div id="uid83">
There were 3 where we had to go up and close to the inside of the cliff and 5 where we had to go to the outside of a boulder to get around them. On the inside hill ones the truck was leaning at about a 45 degree slant to the boulder and then the cliff. I was really only focused on the boulder.
</div>
<div id="uid84">
“Okay, you just slid a bit on that last move. You only have an inch before it hits the door of the truck.”<br />
“Shit, okay I’m going to try something.”<br />
“okay, that worked. You have 6 inches. Pull forward and I’ll put a rock under your tires as you go to see if we can make the truck lean a bit less.”
</div>
<div id="uid85">
Literally inch by inch we made progress. My left foot on the brake and right on the gas trying to make progress as steady and controlled as I could. On the boulders we had to take on the outside I could see the side of the truck well so I knew when I had inches to spare. What I couldn’t see is the cliff side.
</div>
<div id="uid86">
Everything in my mind said, “you are beyond the limit of what you can guesstimate. As far as we are concerned your tires are already off the cliff.”<br />
With this lack of guesstimation and getting it right being all the more important I relied COMPLETELY and unequivocally on Kelsey.
</div>
<div id="uid87">
“I am going to put the truck as close to the boulder as we possibly can. I need you to constantly and without pause call out how close we are to the edge. If anything get’s squirrely just yell stop and I will stop all movement. Okay?”
</div>
<div id="uid88">
The “okay” I got sounded an awful lot like “I’ll do my best, but I’m not so sure about this.”
</div>
<div id="uid89">
Well, here we go!<br />
</div>
<div id="uid90">
“You’re good, you have 6 inches, good, good, good, getting close, maybe 3 inches, moving away from it now, you’ll go up on a rock for a second, okay, coming back down, you’re clear.”
</div>
<div id="uid91">
On one I actually hear, “you are touching the rock.” It was like the blood drained from my face.
</div>
<div id="uid92">
“Is it bad?” I said in my most defeated tone.
</div>
<div id="uid93">
“No, I don’t think it even left a dent yet. You are literally just touching it so slightly.”
</div>
<div id="uid94">
On another one I heard “The boulder is touching the fender flare, but it’s giving and it doesn’t seem to be leaving a big scratch.”
</div>
<div id="uid95">
Oh good. I found myself saying “Sorry Goose” out loud.
</div>
<div id="uid96">
Once we were through the worst of it we saw a sight that lifted our spirits. 2 wild horses running along the trail. They weren’t just lost as they were unshod and very scared of humans. These were true wild horses.
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<div id="uid98">
That was a wonderful sight. It somehow made it all worth it.I don’t want to do it again, but it was worth it to do it once.
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<div id="uid99">
Near the top we had one last boulder that we now considered easy compared to the rest. “Hell, let’s get at least one photo of what we’ve been doing for the last couple hours!”
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<div id="uid100">
Quick team work and we were through.
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<div id="uid102">
Phew, we made it to the top. Damnit, I wish we had a drone follow us up that.
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<div id="uid104">
At the summit that was covered in snow last time I was here.
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<div id="uid106">
At the top we caught one last sight of the wild horses before they took off. We later research the nearest known area that Game and Fish try to keep the wild horses in. It was more than 100 miles away. These two apparently have their own mountain to enjoy.
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<div id="uid108">
Well, we made it to the top of a questionable road. We still have to make it down just as many miles now. I could tell you that the way down was wonderful and easy, but that would be a lie.
</div>
<div id="uid109">
I can say that it wasn’t as scary. Unfortunately, for our buddy Goose it was a lot more brutal. Camera away, mirrors pulled in, we proceeded to pinstripe the truck like I’ve never pinstriped any before. The bushes were too close together for even a UTV or small jeep. That meant that every bit of Goose from the hood to the rear quarter panel was being scraped. Bits of rubber seals were ripped off, trim pieces were popped loose.
</div>
<div id="uid110">
I found myself repeating “I’m sorry Goose. I’m so sorry. Sorry buddy” Over and over again like rainman.
</div>
<div id="uid111">
When we finally got through it to a road with signs of use measured in days instead of years we stopped for a long lunch and a cold one. What a day. I was sad for Goose, but he’d made it. I was sorry to put K through all of that, but she did great and I knew we’d be fine. <strong>This</strong> is what Goose is made for. I try to avoid this level of abuse, but we’d had a great adventure and it brought the three of us closer together. So, time to wax Goose a couple of times and order some replacement parts for the hurt trim.
</div>
<div id="uid112">
Then on to ordering up next months maintenance pieces for Goose to keep him in top form, and so on. Gotta stay ahead of the curve.
</div>
<div id="uid113">
Just before hitting pavement nature made one last effort to keep us from going back to real life. I really wanted to give in.
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<div id="uid115">
Thanks for reading along. Until next time.
</div>
<div id="uid116">
www.hu-bar.com
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SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-17482543076723633162016-05-06T06:56:00.002-07:002016-05-06T06:56:16.309-07:00Death Valley "SUPERBLOOM" Part 3<div id="uid1">
<em><strong>“The shelter had been rumored to have been built by a park ranger long ago to stash supplies or even by Charles Manson and his “family” as a last resort to get away from the impending Race Wars that they were trying to incite with the Tate/Labianca murders.”</strong></em><br />
</div>
<div id="uid2">
So, up Warm Springs road we went. On up to Butte Valley and the beautiful Striped Butte.
</div>
<div id="uid3">
The next stop was to check out a cabin that was new to us. Let’s call it Mr. Smith’s cabin.
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<div id="uid5">
This one sits just outside the park boundary, but up a canyon so far that you start to think there’s nothing to see. If we didn’t know it was there I think we would have turned around and assumed it was a dead end. When you do see it, you realize what a great spot it is.<br />
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<div id="uid7">
In this photo you can see the old cable going straight up the mountain. A relic left over from another generation of mining.
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<div id="uid9">
The bus, like many of them, had been a target for decades.
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<div id="uid14">
We checked out the cabin and noticed that it had some recent visitors. It turns out Mr. Smith himself was up using his cabin so there would be no staying there tonight for us. (Most of these cabins are named after some long deceased caretaker so it’s a treat to visit one where the “owner” is still using it.)
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<div id="uid16">
One thing you always see plenty of when exploring the desert, mattresses. The core of them lasts longer than most things out here and it’s not a good shooting target so they last, thankfully.
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<div id="uid18">
Well, as awesome as this spot was, it’s time to move on.
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<div id="uid20">
We explored some of the side roads around Butte Valley that we’d never had time to run before.
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<div id="uid21">
Some remnants of the super bloom were still visible on the hillsides.
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<div id="uid25">
The well known Geologists cabin below.
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<div id="uid28">
Not a bad view looking down on the entire valley from above.
</div>
<div id="uid29">
This next step was something completely different. My brother had done a lot of research, looking at maps/topos and general all around sleuthing to find a fall out shelter we believed to be near Butte Valley. The shelter had been rumored to have been built by a park ranger long ago to stash supplies or even by Charles Manson and his “family” as a last resort to get away from the impending Race Wars that they were trying to incite with the Tate/Labianca murders.
</div>
<div id="uid30">
Whatever the truth, we headed out on a hike to see if we could find this spot. Besides waking up an angry sidewinder rattlesnake on our hike, it was absolutely beautiful.
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<div id="uid32">
There were wild burros all around wondering why we’d disturbed their private valley.
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Well, we found it. Such a benign looking spot. Underneath that pile of rocks was a cement door with a chain for a handle to open it.
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Inside was some piping with a water spicket.
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<div id="uid39">
Although we were the second folks to ever sign the guest book, it looks like the first may have left an artifact behind.
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<div id="uid41">
There were lots of old metal lockers with some random items from Canola oil, soy sauce and other food stuffs.
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What does every fallout shelter need? Schlitz Malt Liquor!
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<div id="uid45">
There was some spools of much older cable and even a barrel filled with clothing. It’s interesting to note that none of these larger items could fit through the small opening we crawled through and the back of the mine was a dead end. So, why leave them in here and create a tiny entrance door? Only the original architect understands that.
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<div id="uid47">
Corduroy jacket anyone? The rats and intense humidity brought on by water seeping into the mine had ruined everything that was once stored here. We were both having a hard time breathing in here. The air was THICK.
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<div id="uid49">
Did something just move over there? Rats, I hate rats. That’s enough for me. Let’s get out and hike back to safety.
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<div id="uid51">
Enough of that! We decided to go and grab a cabin for the evening! This one’s got a great view and has fresh water from a spring pumped in to boot! Time to relax!
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<div id="uid53">
The garden and trees at this one are generally in great condition, but it looks like the watering system isn’t working as it should and everything was fairly dry.
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<div id="uid55">
The best feature of this cabin? 2 chairs cemented into the ground on top of the hill with a view.
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<div id="uid59">
Our buddy Steve wasn’t messing around when he said that he was cooking dinner for the entire group. We were going to eat well.
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<div id="uid61">
4 racks of ribs on the rotisserie. I know that the circumstances can color how a meal tastes, but even with that being said, THESE WERE THE BEST RIBS I’VE EVER HAD! I’ve never put lime juice on ribs and it seemed odd at first, but Steve was right on with this meal.
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<div id="uid62">
I am still dreaming about it.
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<div id="uid64">
The next day we headed up over Mengel pass and down Goler wash to Panamint Valley.
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The pass looked about the same as it always has.
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<div id="uid67">
The long wheelbase and low side steps of the FX4 meant it got high centered a couple times. Nothing that jacking up the truck and tucking a few rocks under the tires wouldn’t help.
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<div id="uid70">
I can get lazy while driving Goose, he makes short work of most obstacles.<br />
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Heading down Goler Wash.
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<div id="uid74">
As an interesting development. The Keystone mine is active again. Judging by the fact that these signs say as many scary things as they can, but leave out any mention of Private Property, makes me guess you can still visit the site. We had a lot of ground to cover so we kept moving.
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<div id="uid76">
From here to the bottom of Goler Wash the trail is a graded dirt road. The old waterfall obstacle is gone. Several Ford Super Duty mining trucks passed us headed to the mine. It seems like they are hustling to get this mine producing again.
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Lots of new to the area, but old, mining equipment around.
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<div id="uid80">
From here we drove out through Ballarat and on to Trona and then Kramer Junction. We said our good byes to the rest of the group and Kelsey and I headed towards Arizona. We weren’t ready to head home for another day so we quickly hit dirt and started our solo adventure.
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<div id="uid83">
www.hu-bar.com
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SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-88166877332242815772016-05-06T06:55:00.002-07:002016-05-06T06:55:34.700-07:00Death Valley "SUPERBLOOM" Part 2<div id="uid1">
So, off we headed to what I’ll call Hope and Cleaver’s Cabin. We’d known about it for a couple years, but this was the first time we’d have time to visit it.
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<div id="uid3">
We found it! The landscape in this area was unlike anything nearby. It’s similar to the <a class="inset-skip" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Places_of_interest_in_the_Death_Valley_area#Artist.27s_Drive_and_Palette">“artists drive”</a> in Death Valley proper, but this one was ours. No RV’s, no Trailers and no sound.
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Perfect.
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Nice front porch. Let’s unload and settle in for the afternoon. It was finally time to relax.
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The rest of the crew filing down the hill.
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Nice looking rack on the front porch. Was it trying to tell us something?
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<div id="uid13">
Hard to say...
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<div id="uid14">
First off, it’s time to get the flag up and let others know we’re staying... (We didn’t see anyone while we were here anyway)
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<div id="uid15">
The grassy knoll is a set of crosses dedicated to the 2 men who kept this place in shape for many years. It’s their cabin, we’re just visiting.
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<div id="uid17">
Although small, this cabin is in great shape. Lots of supplies and it’s clean enough that even I’d consider sleeping inside.
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Lots of books to keep you busy. Old first editions too. I’m happy to see these have been left for the next person and the next person to enjoy.
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<div id="uid24">
Time to open up the windows and relax on the porch.
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<div id="uid26">
After a bit, we started walking around exploring. The stratigraphy in these rocks was beautiful. I may want to go back to school and study geology.
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<div id="uid29">
I took the truck up one of the many canyons behind the cabin. They go on quite a ways and I could see spending a couple days here just finding the end of each one.
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<div id="uid30">
Found an old Chevy.
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<div id="uid32">
This is one of my favorite shots from the day. Our own little valley.
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With nothing to show scale it’s hard to grasp how far away things are.
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<div id="uid36">
These tags with pressed in numbers were all over the valley. Most hills had at least 1 on them. Mining claim markers? Not sure.
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For a bit of scale, here is my brothers truck a few hills away.
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<div id="uid41">
It was time to go and see if our other buddy was going to meet up with us. He had a HAM radio that would be good once he was nearby, but we wanted to see if we should be worrying all night about where he was and if he could find us in the dark so we took a little drive looking for service. The roads we took were in shambles.
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<div id="uid42">
For 50 yards the road was as defined as can be, then it entered a wash and disappeared completely. I was thankful for my large tires as we crawled over boulders looking for the road. The big rains responsible for the superbloom had completely washed away roads that had been around for over 100 years. Again and again we found the road and then lost it as we climbed in elevation looking for service.
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<div id="uid43">
Sadly, the second my phone started buzzing, the first message was that he wasn’t going to make it. 2 kids and a wife that was ill meant he was scraping the trip. Right up until the last hour before his scheduled departure he was texting hopeful messages. Sorry to hear it buddy, next time.
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The view of what cell phone service looks like out here. Not bad.
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<div id="uid46">
We trundled back to camp passing a guy meditating in camp that was still as Buddha himself. Then another truck where the folks were scurrying to cover themselves. Sometimes people think they are much more remote than they really are. This is not the first time I’ve come around a corner to see more skin than I wanted to! :-/
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<div id="uid47">
We settled into camp and enjoyed a late night of roasting chickens over the fire on a rotisserie and roasting potatoes in tinfoil over the fire.
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Chewie and K hanging out by the fire. This is her “We need a dog, you know we need a dog.” face.
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<div id="uid51">
Right about when we were getting tired a giant flaming ball rose over the hill to our east. Aliens, definitely aliens. Wait, give me one more shot of Tequila... Nope, the moon. The moon was FULL and about as bright as I can remember ever seeing it.
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<div id="uid52">
The rest of the night, no one needed a headlamp or flashlight.
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<div id="uid54">
The following morning the sun rose with a vengeance and we knew it was time to find higher and cooler ground!
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Looking back at the cabin in the center of the frame.
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Which way should we go?
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<div id="uid60">
So many choices.
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<div id="uid62">
That way brother!
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<div id="uid64">
Next stop, warm springs. It was sad to see the decay that vandalism has accelerated in recent years as offroading has grown in popularity. Every year, we feel the pull to go further and more remote to get that same feeling of wonder.
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<aside class="referenced-wide referenced-fullwidth referenced-editor js_inset tmpl_referencedGroupFullWidth clearfix" contenteditable="false" data-vdom-uid="tag-tgWPJX-168" id="uid105">
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<div class="referenced-item referenced-editor-item" data-uid="tag-tgWPJX-168">
<a aria-hidden="true" class="js_skip-inset close" href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=2695775465427147821#"></a><a class="columns small-4 medium-3 referenced-item-image img-border" href="http://deathvalleyjim.com/2014/01/26/warm-springs-camp-death-valley-national-park/" target="_blank"><img src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/c_fill,fl_progressive,g_north,h_77,q_80,w_137/wtv3olpqddfmw3l4abob.jpg" /></a>
<br />
<h6 class="headline">
<a href="http://deathvalleyjim.com/2014/01/26/warm-springs-camp-death-valley-national-park/" target="_blank">Warm Springs Camp (Death Valley National Park) - Death Valley Jim - Guide to the Mojave Desert, Death Valley, Joshua Tree</a></h6>
<div class="text small-offset-4 medium-offset-3">
<span class="referenced-item-excerpt hide-for-small"> Warm Springs Camp was established in the 1930’s by Louise Grantham. Grantham, originally from… </span><a class="js_readmore readmore-referenced" href="http://deathvalleyjim.com/2014/01/26/warm-springs-camp-death-valley-national-park/" target="_blank">Read on <span class="hostname">deathvalleyjim.com</span></a>
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</aside>
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<div id="uid66">
Someone had filled the pool which, although neat in a photo, just turned it into a mosquito breeding and rat killing pond.
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No lifeguard on duty.
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That’s okay. The real beauty of this spot is the warm water that trickles out of the rock nearby. It’s bathtub warm, but is certainly not a hot spring.
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It’s not much of a pool, but over the years folks have stacked rocks enough to contain a small area about 2 feet deep to sit in. It was fantastic.
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It’s hard to believe how much water a slow trickle can add up to over time. We headed out of Warm Springs and on our way up the canyon.
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<div id="uid78">
We decided to take a side trip to see some petroglyphs and find a spring that has been used by Native Americans and miners alike for hundreds of years.
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<div id="uid80">
We climbed almost 2,000 feet in a short period, over the elevation of the main road.
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You can see the rest of the crew behind me off in the distance.
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Where there’s water there is always more bloom.
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These lady bugs... look like they’re... well one might be a man or ladyman bug. Scandalous.
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This was an evil kind of cactus that I don’t remember seeing before, ever. The Fiberglassasbestosevillonghairhippie cactus. (It’s latin name)
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This is one strange and angry looking flower.
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<strong>A long way from... anything. This is the point in the trip where it hits you. You’re not stressed about work, you’re not stressed about having to go back to reality (yet). This is the high point. The high point of this hill, the trip, relaxation and remoteness. All of it. This, is why you came out here. </strong>
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<strong>Something about enjoying a view that few others have gives you a good feeling. It’s yours. There may be better views objectively speaking, but there are none better on the planet subjectively, in this moment. </strong>
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<strong>It’s perfect, and you worked your ass off to find it.</strong>
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We did find the petroglyphs. I’m sure there are more nearby, but we didn’t see them and some of the group was not into this side trip. So, we headed out.
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Okay, let’s load up and head out.
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<strong> Time to go to Butte Valley in Part Three.</strong>
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SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-83208683140701389862016-03-30T15:15:00.000-07:002016-05-06T06:57:29.812-07:00Death Valley "SUPERBLOOM" Part 1<div id="uid1">
<strong>SUPERBLOOM!!! WE MUST GO TO SEE IT!!! ALL HAIL SUPERBLOOM!!!!</strong>
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<em>Hey everything’s brown... We missed it, oh well. Don’t read any further...</em>
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Every year we set out for the area in and around Death Valley National Park. The first year it was the items on the Park Map: The Racetrack, Lippincott pass, Saline Hot springs and we even found a few adopt-a-cabins. The following year we stuck to roads that didn’t exist on most maps and found ever more interesting places and cabins. </div>
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Every year since, going on 9 now, we scour maps for months ahead of time trying to find new surprises and gems before we ever start the truck up to head out!</div>
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2016 was no different. We had a lot we wanted to cover, but we’ve also gotten better at trying to focus on one area instead of it all. This year we would start in Mojave and use Butte Valley as our northern most point. (Traditionally Butte valley would be our southern most post)
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After working a long day in Phoenix, AZ we rolled into camp well after dark. What we woke up to was extraordinary.
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Most of us slept in our trucks, but my brother and T slept in the cabin. This one is very well kept and visited almost every night. We were lucky to get it, but thankfully a Wed night is the most likely to get it.
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I had to get up and walk around. There is something special about mornings in the desert. All the more so when you didn’t get to see it the night before.
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So many old mining ruins. The air is dry, cold and still.
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This was a beautiful spot. Within sight of the I-15 and people speeding on their way to Vegas to loose money or speeding home to Los Angeles to go and make some more.
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Sometimes it’s nice to step back from that obvious rat race to think about other ways you yourself fall into that trap. Always gunning for that promotion so you can afford more toys, but in the process work too long to have time to use them? Always finding that your costs exactly match your current pay? Funny how that works...
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This little shanty of a cabin sits in view of all the sheep, but is somehow so far removed from it.
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Tin can alley next to the guest house.
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The folks who are working to keep this cabin in shape are coming back to complete a bench on this swinging bed frame.
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The walls are filled with photos of the original inhabitant.
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Although this room looks a bit eerie in the lighting, it’s just had a new floor put in making it a much nicer spot to spend time than before.
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Now, go sit in that chair and practice violin until your fingers bleed. Now.
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There is a little artifact museum in one room that exists, only if people resist the temptation to take things home with them. I know it’s strong, but do you really want to deprive others of the wonder you felt?
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Plus, my Danish friend says their Queen makes a mean ham!
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There was even a note from the son of the Cabin’s owner thanking folks for all of the hard work.
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We took our time getting going and spent the first half of the day just exploring the old cabins and mining remnants of this little valley.</div>
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Off to the next cabin!
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The interior was the cleanest of any I’d ever seen. It had a lot of recent work done as well.
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In it hung this note:
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Moving around the valley the next camp had a bus that was visible for miles away.</div>
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For some reason buses and commercial trucks are always imposing. Even when in the desert without an engine. I feel like at any moment they can decide to crush you.
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The transmission on the bus was free and you could still find a couple of gears. It’s amazing what some oil and a well sealed case can do to prevent rust.
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The interior was rough.
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This bunker had a fair amount of time put into keeping it secure. Concrete, home made latches and hidden hinges. It may just have been food stored here, but someone wanted it to be safe.
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The house had a great view with it’s own mine entrance just behind it.
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Moving along. We’d only move another few hundred yards when we came to this truck.
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Which led right to another cabin. This one had yet to be restored.
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The desert was sure happy and loving spring.
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<div id="uid69">
Hmmm, what’s that strange wall that’s literally build around the rock?
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<div id="uid71">
Well, it’s just more wind protection for the fire pit of course! I love it.
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<div id="uid73">
In some of the more run down areas you really have to look past the big picture to see the details. Things like this barn door slider were beautiful.
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<div id="uid75">
This large picture window in a wood paneled room with a fireplace. This would be a good place to spend some time when this building was in it’s prime.
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Need an addition, just back it in.
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<div id="uid79">
Most of the roads we explore in the deserts and mountains were built with a tractor/dozer. Most are long gone. This highly used and highly DIY repaired one was still on site. I wonder how many of the trails around here it built.
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The air controls of this long forgotten car are still nice and legible.
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<div id="uid86">
Time to hit the road, we took some dirt roads towards Baker, CA. <a class="inset-skip" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baker,_California">(Home of the worlds largest thermometer! WOW!)</a>
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<div id="uid87">
This would be our last gas stop for several days so we topped it off and headed back into the dirt. This next cabin was new to us and the road to it had been mostly washed away. At times there simply was no road. We’d scan on the horizon and eventually someone would see signs of a road and we’d B-line over to it.
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<div id="uid88">
This washout was worse than most, but easy enough to have some fun on it.
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Now Steve, time to crush those plastic bumpers a bit...
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The front departure angle was fine on the drop in, but the rear bumper was going to touch.
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Go slow, very very slow. This hill is big enough that if you hit it at too much of an angle it could flip you, but it’s also a steep enough of a step up that your front bumper will sit on the dirt if we don’t angle it a bit. Okay!?
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Damnit, too fast Steve. Be nice to your truck! Listen to the spotter...
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Once the lockers clicked in it climbed up and out though.
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Chewie is audibly laughing at his driver.</div>
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Lockers a supercharger and 33's meant that Kevin was going to use the whiskey throttle technique to cross.
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It worked, but it wasn’t pretty. I give up.
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Eventually, we made it to the cabin. This one had quite a collection of appliances at it’s round about.
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All in all, it was a nice one, if a small one.
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What can you guess about the caretaker?
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Yep, D. All of the above.
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He sounded like a really good guy. Just a couple years ago he was killed when a semi crossed over the center line while on his way back home from working on this very cabin.
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He sounded like a really good guy. Just a couple years ago he was killed when a semi crossed over the center line while on his way back home from working on this very cabin.
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<div id="uid117">
“Dear old dad, the best pal I ever had.” Stickers were posted around the cabin. The words seem to hang over the entire cabin, but not in a creepy way. In a comforting way. We were visiting a place that a very loved person spent some special times at.
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<div id="uid118">
Many of these cabins have shooting ranges at them. This one was no exception.
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The best addition to every cabin we’ve ever visited? A deck. Somewhere to sit outside, but out of the sun is a little piece of heaven. We sat here on the deck for a while and decided that we’d better fix a football sized hole in the roof we’d noticed. So, we moved a truck next to the cabin and used a home made ladder that was exactly as sketchy and bendy as it sounds to get an oven door to sit over the opening. Hopefully it keeps out any excess dust and rain that may have gotten in.
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At this point it was barely afternoon of our first day and we’d seen and done a lot. Time to head for a cabin to stay at. Off we went!
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As the terrain changed, we knew we were getting close, but that’s for the next part!
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Now, until Part II, go and repent. Sinner!
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SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-84797328544971038152016-02-25T08:52:00.000-07:002016-02-25T09:44:25.717-07:00Exploring the Bill Williams River area and the Parker 400Sometimes, you just need dirt under your feet. So, off we headed to find a new cabin and a quiet spot to spectate the Parker 400.
We sped through Wickenburg and on to our dirt road turn off.
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04011.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC04011.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04011.jpg" /></a>
This area is beautiful.
Eventually, after cruising along some seldom used roads we found our destination.
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04013.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC04013.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04013.jpg" /></a>
This cabin was lived in from the late 1800's until the late 1970's. Venice, lived here until her 80's, most of the time by herself. Her husband had died much earlier. An Arizona Game and Fish officer told a story of always checking on her in her old age, but learned to HONK when he came down the canyon each time, after he caught her on the roof fixing it, completely naked.
As the info I've found goes, a Motorcycle Club (The outlaw kind) inhabited the cabin after the original woman left, they made some improvements, but tore down the outhouse never to rebuild it. They were later "run off" if the stories are true.
It's really a nice place. It could use some love from visitors to get it back into a more useable shape, but here is how it sits today.
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04016.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC04016.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04016.jpg" /></a>
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04018.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC04018.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04018.jpg" /></a>
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04019.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC04019.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04019.jpg" /></a>
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04020.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC04020.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04020.jpg" /></a>
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04023.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC04023.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04023.jpg" /></a>
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04022.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC04022.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04022.jpg" /></a>
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04024.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC04024.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04024.jpg" /></a>
We come across a lot of cabins while exploring. It was interesting to see one that clearly had a woman's touch.
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04025.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC04025.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04025.jpg" /></a>
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04032.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC04032.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04032.jpg" /></a>
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At some point they built a good size dam in the wash. Since no one has been around to clear it out the back side of it was filled to the top with sand. Impressive that it was still holding with all of that weight behind it.
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Time to head over to see the Parker 400. This is the road leaving the cabin.
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Some old road signs. Reminds me to bring some paper and chalk with me in the truck. I'm sure that the indentations would be legible via a "rubbing" of the sign.
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We made it to the Bill Williams and crossed over the several wet sections of it.
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04047-ANIMATION.gif.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC04047-ANIMATION.gif" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04047-ANIMATION.gif" /></a>
After the first two we came across this.
A 2wd, GMC Jimmy, stuck above the bumper in the water. Engine still running.
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The guys had gotten it pretty stuck. Still, nothing a little tug from the winch wouldn't fix. I tried to get them to wade in and attach a strap that I carry, but they insisted on using their "Paracord." I let K know to sit in the truck and I popped the hood just in case anything went flying. I knew it wouldn't take much to rip that stuff. Sure enough, barely a blip from the winch and it snapped. Now they relented and we used my equipment.
After pulling them out, we put all the gear away and watched as the truck got stuck trying to back up. We got the gear out and tugged them again.
Then they got stuck while trying to turn around on the soft sand. So we tugged them again, but this time we kept an old tow strap tied to their truck. We pulled them through the water crossings and back to the other side of the river. I tried telling them to keep some tension, but they ran over the line several times. Thankfully this was an old strap that was already well abused. We wished them luck after the water drained from the interior and headed back across the river. We had a race to get to!
The last water section looked deep and fairly muddy on the bottom. (The others were pretty sandy, which is better than mud!) K offered to walk it. This is fantastic. Once she walked across I was able to see where the deepest point was and keep a bit of momentum.
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The terrain constantly changes in this area. Headed into an area full of red rock.
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There are a lot of wild burro's in this area. I like to think of them as what's left of the miners who first came to this area. The miners are long gone, but the burro's keep watch. Waiting for them to come back.
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One more stop on the way to the race!
Swansea. Here is some more info on the old mining outpost:
<a href="http://www.ghosttowns.com/states/az/swansea.html">http://www.ghosttowns.com/states/az/swansea.html </a><br />
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swansea,_Arizona">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swansea,_Arizona</a><br />
<a href="http://www.blm.gov/az/st/en/prog/cultural/swansea.html">http://www.blm.gov/az/st/en/prog/cultural/swansea.html</a><br />
<br />
I like ghost towns, but this one get's so many visitors it somehow takes away a bit of the mystery.
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All of the mine shafts, sink holes and other known danger spots are covered by metal grates.
Immense amount of welding work done out here.
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Tailings everywhere.
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Miner housing.
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We then headed towards the Parker 425 course. (I keep calling it the 400, because that's what it was called when I raced it)
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04077-ANIMATION_1.gif.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC04077-ANIMATION_1.gif" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04077-ANIMATION_1.gif" /></a>
We hit the course on a seldom used road in the middle of no where.
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04096.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC04096.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04096.jpg" /></a>
So, imagine our surprise when we see a car there.
The driver and co-driver of 1047 had broken down in the morning race. (This year is a 2 race format with the slower classes in the morning and the faster ones at night.) This meant that they had been here since 8AM and had to stay put waiting for a tow until AFTER the final race which meant midnight! Wow. That's a long day without much food or water.
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The car was in perfect condition except for the rod hanging out of the bottom end of the motor. Yikes.
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What can you do, but offer them a beer and cook up some bacon for them? I'm not sure, so we did! They appreciated it and a while later a "care package" was thrown out the window of a Trophy Truck for these poor guys stuck at mile 99.5 of the race.
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It's good to have friends.
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We all settled in and started watching the race.
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I'm partial to the 1600 class cars since it's what we used to race.
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Since it was already late afternoon, this car must have broken down in the morning race, only to get going again later.
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The winner of the race flying by. That's a lot of "Double Down" arrows ahead. The course, although smooth and following a road right here, had a down hill with a sharp right hander. A few race cars slid off of corners like this during the race and off into a dry creek bed or notch that swallowed up the race car.
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04129_1.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC04129_1.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04129_1.jpg" /></a>
Hence the "extreme danger ahead" sign.
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They kept roaring by. The helicopters following the high dollar teams.
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As darkness fell, you could really hear and see the difference in drivers. Some where fast and smooth, others were hard on the brakes and throttle inputs.
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04140%201.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC04140 1.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04140%201.jpg" /></a>
Bottoming out from the bump and hard braking.
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These race lights really turn night into day.
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You could see the light of a car coming. It looked a bit like a sunrise coming over the hill.
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Ever couple of minutes, they'd speed by and vanish.
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A fire, food, beer and race cars. This is a good place to be.
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04181_1.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC04181_1.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04181_1.jpg" /></a>
In the middle of the night we heard a knock on the window. The 2 racers were getting their tow back to the start line, FINALLY. They said thanks and left a couple of beers they'd bummed from the tow truck as a thanks. Good people.
We woke up to silence and an amazing sunrise.
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When you are half asleep in the morning, watch out for Cholla. The most evil of all cactus, the Teddy Bear or "Jumping" Cholla have barbed spike that go in, but never really come back out of your skin.
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04187.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC04187.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04187.jpg" /></a>
Well, that's it. A quick overnight and then back home to install a new front door, change the oil on a motorcycle, do laundry and.... find out the head gasket is shot in the Landcruiser. Yes, you read that correctly. Goose, is hurting. Time to pull it and see how bad it is. In true Landcruiser form, the truck ran great once warm. It would shudder on start up and expel the coolant from it's cylinders without hydrolocking and causing more damage. Time to give Goose some surgery.
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04189.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC04189.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/2016/2-7-16%20Parker%20400%20and%20MCGUFFY%20cabin/DSC04189.jpg" /></a>
SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-39357517860738832642016-02-11T11:33:00.002-07:002016-02-11T11:36:19.822-07:00Adopt-a-cabins<h2 id="uid1">
<strong>Adopt-a-cabins are first come, first serve, leave it better than you found it, remote cabins.</strong></h2>
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In most cases they are well over 100 years old. Some volunteers, and in the past even BLM sponsored groups, will work on these old miners shacks to keep them standing.
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One may just have a repaired roof to keep the rain out. Another might have a working stereo/solar panels/working refrigerator/BBQ/fresh water/garage etc. The fun part is finding these cabins and participating in their continued stewardship for all to enjoy.
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It sounds a bit hokey, but when you see the amount of work and ingenuity you either want to be a part of it or apparently, you want to destroy it. Don’t be like the second type of person.
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<strong>How the cabins work:</strong>
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<strong>1.</strong> No one owns them. (In some cases someone does actually, but the rules are first come first serve no matter which one you’re in.)
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<li><em>1A: Most of these cabins have mice/rats. If you don’t want the Hantavirus, it’s best to sleep outside. We spend a lot of time inside of them and there are several of my friends that sleep in them. I’m not one of them. I prefer to retire to my truck for bed. </em><a class="inset-skip" href="http://www.cdc.gov/hantavirus/hps/index.html">http://www.cdc.gov/hantavirus/hps/index.html</a></li>
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<strong>2.</strong> How do you go about staying at one? You arrive, put up the American flag and that’s it. It’s now yours to stay in. We always invite other visitors to stay with us because it’s just the right thing to do. Sometimes people have traveled for hours or days to stay there so it’s nice to share.
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<strong>3.</strong> What’s the cost? There is no $ cost, but often times there is a jar of money you can contribute to. The good folks that keep the cabin in shape will use it for nails, paint, windows etc. Or, you can simply bring what the cabin needs! Paint, toilet paper, some piping to repair water lines etc. It’s all appreciated. Sometimes there is a list of <strong>“needed items.” </strong>(It really blows your mind when you see a jar of $20's. It gives you faith in humanity)
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<strong>4.</strong> Why wont people tell me how to get there. Because, some people suck and that’s the only way to protect them, at least somewhat. I’ve seen a beautiful cabin one year, only to see a burned out hulk the next. We all have to find them. That’s part of the fun! Once you find the first one, you feel proud and know you’ll want to find more!!!
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<strong>5. </strong>Why don’t they make the road to them easier to traverse? In most cases, there is no “THEY” to improve the road. Also, often times the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) deems a cabin too accessible and too dangerous so they bull doze it flat! No one wants that to happen. I’ve gotten to where I know a cabin once stood and it’s just a perfectly manicured piece of flat dirt. :-(
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<strong>6.</strong> How do I know if it’s an adopt a cabin or some ones actual home!? Obey private property signs, don’t go past locked gates (unless you KNOW the cabin past it is one of the shared use ones).
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<strong>7. </strong>How do I find out more about these cabins? Go out and find them! There is info all over the internet about them. Some even have very general directions to get you started, but the actual location is generally hidden and should remain this way. When you see how much work has gone into some of these, you’ll want to keep it that way out of respect for those who’ve brought these abandoned places back from the dead.
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If you want to start with one, research the Barker Family ranch. It’s where Charles Manson was captured. I bet the Barker’s regret ever renting to a crazy hippie. Their once picturesque ranch will always be associated with him although no one was ever thought to have been killed there.
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So, with that. Here are some pics.
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Basic one in Nevada.
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<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-250" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-250" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/jihpmsnfc8wntrucywwa.jpg" />
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A very nice one that was in use until the 70's. The pool was fed by a natural warm spring so it was always fresh. Word is, that some folks know how to turn the piping back on to fill the pool. What a day that would be. A Toyota Corolla with a good driver can get to this one.
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<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-249" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-249" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/vhaiunbnvddp5a5cd7vx.jpg" />
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<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-248" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-248" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/bflgxaivtflda8eiwlyj.jpg" />
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<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-247" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-247" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/e0mrckiwixgabe6jkdrq.jpg" />
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<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-246" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-246" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/rfluhzdipzp71bigcpoq.jpg" />
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<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-245" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-245" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/kmh5qa7ww71qfzhmvcxj.jpg" />
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A memorial above the fire place dedicated to some friends Dog who visited this cabin with them many times.
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<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-244" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-244" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/cklj1dqu3tcl1uqaudfi.jpg" />
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Nice one that’s a bit tougher to get to, but still very well known.
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<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-243" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-243" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/nprwi2nndv4u2cnnmwqm.jpg" />
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This one has fresh water and a hell of a view.
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<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-240" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-240" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/dnpqnnbkog8bm7xrvsfk.jpg" />
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Here is another one, not far away.
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Per the usual. Leave open gates open and closed gates closed unless it’s otherwise signed like this one.
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Spare motorcycle chains and skis?
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Check
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<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-234" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-234" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ijpngc5wgipwyhjtuldx.jpg" />
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and Check
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Light reading materials?
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yep
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<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-232" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-232" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/xvpddepzpcozsmggfowt.jpg" />
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<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-231" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-231" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ctwizsvnlnpdi0pv7amf.jpg" />
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The flag pole. First step, find the American Flag and raise it!
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This semi-famous cabin was once a nice one. Unfortunately, it got too famous. Just because one evil guy lived here for a very short time, a ranch that was around for a long time owned by a family, was burnt to the ground. Very f-ed up.
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Before:
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<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-228" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-228" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/srnqiwpgyeaydw6898ea.jpg" />
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After:
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<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-227" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-227" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/hofxzcl7uyok7yuv46z1.jpg" />
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Before:
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<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-226" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-226" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qojtlnyylg5i0uwjgzm2.jpg" />
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After:
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<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-225" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-225" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/a08ls5mpvdvquo71fyes.jpg" />
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<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-224" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-224" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/jt5362y3tixg2wfstb7s.jpg" />
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Moving right along. This one is a favorite for most of us. The road is always changing. Figure a 4x4 with a tiny bit of lift and a decent driver can get you there. There are actually 2 cabins here. Right next to each other.
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This one has water, power, a stereo inside and out, batteries, solar panels, full propane hookups for the fridge and stove, a homemade cooling system, a target shooting table and range, a garden, a bathroom etc. It’s absolutely amazing.
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The following photos are a bit of each cabin.
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<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-222" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-222" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/mqvynbvphtguaz7cdj6i.jpg" />
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<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-221" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-221" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/i85qkzhkso37ayuuxbpe.jpg" />
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<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-218" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-218" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/hrxhwoectp1xqaopa7xa.jpg" />
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</figure><figure class="has-image media-medium" contenteditable="false" draggable="true" id="uid77">
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<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-210" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-210" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/fnnjnxmtjzndj7mmoyyf.jpg" />
</div>
</figure>
<br />
<div id="uid78">
Take your chances...
</div>
<br />
<br />
<figure class="has-image media-medium" contenteditable="false" draggable="true" id="uid79">
<div class="image-wrapper" contenteditable="false">
<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-209" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-209" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/pz2ob337dasdbyu8nrvr.jpg" />
</div>
</figure><figure class="has-image media-large" contenteditable="false" draggable="true" id="uid80">
<div class="image-wrapper" contenteditable="false">
<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-208" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-208" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ngai3dbwwe7vtypcotbe.jpg" />
</div>
</figure>
<br />
<div id="uid81">
Always check the weight of your nuts.
</div>
<br />
<br />
<figure class="has-image media-medium" contenteditable="false" draggable="true" id="uid82">
<div class="image-wrapper" contenteditable="false">
<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-207" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-207" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/md4kpvmjuzpdv1dzsbjo.jpg" />
</div>
</figure><figure class="has-image media-medium" contenteditable="false" draggable="true" id="uid83">
<div class="image-wrapper" contenteditable="false">
<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-206" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-206" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ga00l4lgkjbaeuqlyveb.jpg" />
</div>
</figure><figure class="has-image media-large" contenteditable="false" draggable="true" id="uid84">
<div class="image-wrapper" contenteditable="false">
<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-205" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-205" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/tlloamfbm5pscnhqhbcz.jpg" />
</div>
</figure><figure class="has-image media-large" contenteditable="false" draggable="true" id="uid85">
<div class="image-wrapper" contenteditable="false">
<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-204" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-204" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/h4cizobewrs1duv5uaxq.jpg" />
</div>
</figure>
<br />
<div id="uid86">
Moving along to the next cabin. This one we found while trying to get away
</div>
<div id="uid87">
from this dust storm. Poor friend of mine on a motorcycle. She’s tough as nails.
</div>
<br />
<br />
<figure class="has-image media-large" contenteditable="false" draggable="true" id="uid88">
<div class="image-wrapper" contenteditable="false">
<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-203" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-203" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/mmxb4mypmkyoilsmsfmg.jpg" />
</div>
</figure><figure class="has-image media-large" contenteditable="false" draggable="true" id="uid89">
<div class="image-wrapper" contenteditable="false">
<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-202" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-202" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/kclbogm54fl71xjxifxt.jpg" />
</div>
</figure><figure class="has-image media-large" contenteditable="false" draggable="true" id="uid90">
<div class="image-wrapper" contenteditable="false">
<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-201" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-201" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/xczvxzo3xpbxgeysjog8.jpg" />
</div>
</figure><figure class="has-image media-medium" contenteditable="false" draggable="true" id="uid91">
<div class="image-wrapper" contenteditable="false">
<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-200" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-200" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/e3psfblkbini9inxldco.jpg" />
</div>
</figure>
<br />
<div id="uid92">
Stylish interior!
</div>
<br />
<br />
<figure class="has-image media-large" contenteditable="false" draggable="true" id="uid93">
<div class="image-wrapper" contenteditable="false">
<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-199" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-199" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qjmd273yphvgszjoneks.jpg" />
</div>
</figure>
<br />
<div id="uid94">
Nice and still up here. HELL down there.
</div>
<br />
<br />
<figure class="has-image media-large" contenteditable="false" draggable="true" id="uid95">
<div class="image-wrapper" contenteditable="false">
<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-198" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-198" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/mewxji0icsrlw7o3ofs5.jpg" />
</div>
</figure>
<br />
<div id="uid96">
In addition to Cabins you can often find other neat random things. On the early maps this area was marked/named “Marble Bath” so some enterprising early desert explorers decided to make it literal.
</div>
<div id="uid97">
People bring extra marbles and rubber duckies on occasion to keep it stocked up!
</div>
<br />
<br />
<figure class="has-image media-medium" contenteditable="false" draggable="true" id="uid98">
<div class="image-wrapper" contenteditable="false">
<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-197" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-197" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/lwcx2st8s0neimbizphk.jpg" />
</div>
</figure>
<br />
<div id="uid99">
Here’s another one. It’s right on the California/Nevada border.
</div>
<br />
<br />
<figure class="has-image media-large" contenteditable="false" draggable="true" id="uid100">
<div class="image-wrapper" contenteditable="false">
<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-196" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-196" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/mje9r4qmkfeupnx5h9u6.jpg" />
</div>
</figure><figure class="has-image media-large" contenteditable="false" draggable="true" id="uid101">
<div class="image-wrapper" contenteditable="false">
<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-195" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-195" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ysczthwscgjb82bznxzv.jpg" />
</div>
</figure>
<br />
<div id="uid102">
I could go on for hours, but I’d rather plan my next trip and you should start planning yours. The deserts of Arizona, the Mojave Desert and remote areas of Death Valley are where you’ll find the majority of them, but they do exist in the reaches of Colorado and Utah so keep your eyes peeled!! You never know, you might even find a bar, that’s not a bar since there is no liquour or business license. You just take beers, but then feel a strong urge to donate some money to the bars preservation. No sale, just donations.
</div>
<br />
<br />
<figure class="has-image media-medium" contenteditable="false" draggable="true" id="uid103">
<div class="image-wrapper" contenteditable="false">
<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-194" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-194" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/sxnbp9tmju3gdvho1qag.jpg" />
</div>
</figure><figure class="has-image media-large" contenteditable="false" draggable="true" id="uid104">
<div class="image-wrapper" contenteditable="false">
<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-193" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-193" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/fdyxwduazwuojvz80tnj.jpg" />
</div>
</figure>
<br />
<div id="uid105">
Happy Hunting!
</div>
<br />
<br />
<figure class="has-image media-large" contenteditable="false" draggable="true" id="uid106">
<div class="image-wrapper" contenteditable="false">
<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-192" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-192" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/hekbwedpqnwa9kjzhcvb.jpg" />
</div>
</figure><figure class="has-image media-large" contenteditable="false" draggable="true" id="uid107">
<div class="image-wrapper" contenteditable="false">
<img data-uid="tag-FhOGpZ-191" draggable="false" id="tag-FhOGpZ-191" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/prlayrexwpuko9hoflfi.jpg" />
</div>
</figure>
<br />
<div class="edit-placeholder" id="uid108">
<br /></div>
SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-61665296750562547202016-01-29T08:02:00.001-07:002016-01-29T08:02:13.453-07:00Home-built Overlander DIY: "Gascan-trashcan"<div id="uid1">
<i><b>Feed me Seymour, feeeeed me... trash.
</b></i></div>
<div id="uid1">
<br /></div>
<div id="uid1">
<br /></div>
<div id="uid2">
My rear swing out rack is a gas can or water can holder with a table. That’s great, but what about trash. I have used an ammo can I had for a trash can. Amazingly, there isn’t an ammo can or anything else that fits in a jerry can holder exactly.
</div>
<div id="uid2">
<br /></div>
<div id="uid3">
So, I figured I’d take an old Jerry can and turn it into a trash can. Some good friends in the old pueblo (Tucson) had one laying around rusting away so I stopped by to check in and pick it up. This sucker was really rusted out, but in my eyes it just had a nice patina. Simple enough.
</div>
<div id="uid3">
<br /></div>
<div id="uid4">
A. Cut off the top. (If your can has been used for fuel in the last century or so, you should fill the can with water while cutting it. Throwing a bunch of sparks at gasoline fumes isn’t very smart! Fill it with water and just let the water spill out as you cut. Be careful of where your grinder or sawzall’s cord is!!!! Water + Electricity = Excitement. Excitement may be =/< death...)
</div>
<div id="uid4">
<br /></div>
<div id="uid5">
B. Weld on a hinge. (I used a cheap, but over-sized gate hinge)
</div>
<div id="uid5">
<br /></div>
<div id="uid6">
C. Weld on a compression latch (available at any Hardware store, again I used a cheapo because it doesn’t need to hold a lot of weight)
</div>
<div id="uid6">
<br /></div>
<div id="uid7">
D. Weld on some guides so when it’s shut it stays shut in line. (You could put an inner ring of thin metal that could follow the contour and it would work even better, but this was an after thought that I did once completed to keep it in place while offroading)
</div>
<div id="uid7">
<br /></div>
<div id="uid8">
E. De-burr the edges, redneck sand blast the inside (not a fancy sandblast, but throw some sand and pea sized gravel in it and shake the HELL out of it to de burr and de-rust it a bit)
</div>
<div id="uid8">
<br /></div>
<div id="uid9">
F. Lastly, paint the inside and the bottom.
</div>
<div id="uid9">
<br /></div>
<div id="uid10">
That may sound like a lot, but it was easy. I just painted the inside and the bottom to prevent further rust. I left the outside because I like it. It has character. I am going to let the new hinges rust up and then maybe I’ll clear coat the whole thing.
</div>
<div id="uid10">
<br /></div>
<div id="uid11">
<strong>This was about an hour job.</strong>
</div>
<div id="uid11">
<strong><br /></strong></div>
<div id="uid11">
<strong><br /></strong></div>
<div id="uid11">
<strong><br /></strong></div>
<div id="uid12">
The great part is, almost all Jeeps or trucks have some sort of way to carry a standard gas can. That means you should be able to use it for future trucks or sell it to anyone if you need to.
</div>
<div id="uid13">
Big thanks to Brent as always for the help and work on the 4runner and the gas can. He’s helped me built everything I’ve ever put on a truck of mine.
</div>
<div id="uid13">
<br /></div>
<div id="uid13">
<br /></div>
<div id="uid14">
<br /></div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid15">
<img data-uid="tag-WHlk63-66" id="tag-WHlk63-66" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/mmhpdc54quzogrxaq8e0.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid16">
<img data-uid="tag-WHlk63-67" id="tag-WHlk63-67" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/zhipzk83say30kv8uojo.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid17">
<img data-uid="tag-WHlk63-68" id="tag-WHlk63-68" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/sepw1efxa320eqyekawk.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid18">
Simplicity at it’s best. (Note the half assed cut near the latch. I was in a rush to get this done and was using a cutting wheel)
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid19">
<img data-uid="tag-WHlk63-69" id="tag-WHlk63-69" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/xefkn4sh4cy3h9a63wf2.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid20">
Now, get out and use it!!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid21">
<img data-uid="tag-WHlk63-70" id="tag-WHlk63-70" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/cfci0i21plj1gitvoq6t.jpg" />
</div>
SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-58064803008553762592016-01-25T10:56:00.002-07:002016-01-25T10:56:27.404-07:00Car Show Season, AZ: (Pavilions Car Show) <h2 id="uid1">
The Pavilions car show has been happening every Saturday, without a break, for 20 years.</h2>
<div id="uid2">
In summer, when the nightly temp is 110 and the sun doesn’t set until 8PM, you may only see 15 or 25 cars here. The week of all the local car auctions? It swells to the thousands. Instead of showing up at 4PM hundreds are cars start pulling in at 8AM.
</div>
<div id="uid3">
It’s a sight to see. There isn’t much organization so it’s best to just check it all out. I try to walk every row.
</div>
<hr id="uid4" />
<div id="uid5">
<em><strike>Fair warning, this is basically just a big photo dump from my Saturday afternoon walking the isles. Any attempt at organization was half hearted and mostly a failure.</strike> </em> <br />
</div>
<hr id="uid6" />
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid7">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-164" id="tag-deDGAb-164" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/jlsc7icnrgzcealnokdo.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid8">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-165" id="tag-deDGAb-165" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/u45pxjbkp3htk07jubba.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid9">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-166" id="tag-deDGAb-166" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/buya6bvnegsmuscbft4p.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid10">
You can’t really encompass the entire place without a drone. Even then, the cars are moving in and out all day so it’s hard to not miss at least 50% of what showed up and then left before you noticed.
</div>
<div id="uid11">
There is something about old drag slicks I love. I don’t know what it is.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid12">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-167" id="tag-deDGAb-167" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/echxmnbznki75pbkwdul.jpg" />
</div>
<h2 id="uid13">
<strong><em><br />
</em></strong></h2>
<hr id="uid14" />
<h2 id="uid15">
<strong><em>Ready for the <strike>BS</strike> Awards? I just decided what they are and these folks win.</em></strong><br />
</h2>
<hr id="uid16" />
<div id="uid17">
<strong>The winner for the “Owner who most looks like his car”</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid18">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-168" id="tag-deDGAb-168" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/yqhqfqnnbbwypc2vkfcd.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid19">
<strong>The Two-tone award:</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid20">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-169" id="tag-deDGAb-169" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/pahyxbhsguiq5hv2nes7.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid21">
<strong>The original Overlander... award.</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid22">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-170" id="tag-deDGAb-170" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/frqhmt8hufvxmhgiuptm.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid23">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-171" id="tag-deDGAb-171" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/lnhxy6ad0ojsawjjpotj.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid24">
<strong>The I WANT I WANT, Award.</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid25">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-172" id="tag-deDGAb-172" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/wj96otjsdf33si1ec2si.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid26">
Comes with a free Bra.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid27">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-173" id="tag-deDGAb-173" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/vffknt7hjxgum3heyjcx.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid28">
<strong>The car most likely to make you say “I wish I would have bought one when they were cheap” in the near future award, goes to all of these.</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid29">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-174" id="tag-deDGAb-174" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/jllibchizqdoeint55i5.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid30">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-175" id="tag-deDGAb-175" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/f4u3axlagah1yo6xwg87.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid31">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-176" id="tag-deDGAb-176" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/rhlfdiycua14grczfddc.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid32">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-177" id="tag-deDGAb-177" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ykwadfkne38eysbp4t9a.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid33">
<strong>The alien antenna award goes to....</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid34">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-178" id="tag-deDGAb-178" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/aeii87mkkyneadc1x4ki.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid35">
<strong>The “Uncut just feels better even though most cut it.” Award.</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid36">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-179" id="tag-deDGAb-179" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/q08fa926hna0rlg7nucd.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid37">
<strong>The, “I want to believe”, but those aren’t real Fuchs and I think it’s not a turbo” award.</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid38">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-180" id="tag-deDGAb-180" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ph3yem5buzisvwa9ys4n.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid39">
<strong>The “New and improved Ford Fusion Coupe.” award:</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid40">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-181" id="tag-deDGAb-181" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ln8wbqoijhmydsct11ds.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid41">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-182" id="tag-deDGAb-182" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ovaefld0sois90obd1ek.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid42">
<strong>The coolest old plate/long forgotten hotrod club Devil decoratiom, award...</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid43">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-183" id="tag-deDGAb-183" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/fsbso5myxwih9zxaukg7.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid44">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-184" id="tag-deDGAb-184" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/looefq1hhsovywggiuak.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid45">
<strong>The “Cocaine can take us back in time!” award.</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid46">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-185" id="tag-deDGAb-185" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/h5w432tx8jts4fxub4s2.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid47">
<strong>The “coolest homemade muffler” award goes to the guy who said to me. “Does it have baffles?! What do you think the weld marks are on the side..?” </strong>
</div>
<div id="uid48">
<strong>Opps, sorry, Duh award, goes to:</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid49">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-186" id="tag-deDGAb-186" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/vv3gbvj6h6641h9ljcgv.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid50">
The “Oh shit, I shouldn’t mess with the Volvo enthusiasts parking area”
</div>
<div id="uid51">
Lotus?
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid52">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-187" id="tag-deDGAb-187" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/xkbzahvmptc6xm7m5qxw.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid53">
Lotolvo?
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid54">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-188" id="tag-deDGAb-188" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/bsrfqcwlq2zfgh2rjk1b.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid55">
<strong>The car most likely to make you say. “I wont drive that without a lot of LSD.”</strong>
</div>
<div id="uid56">
<strong>Gasser:</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid57">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-189" id="tag-deDGAb-189" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/skinbobbyq5znxoegn5x.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid58">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-190" id="tag-deDGAb-190" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ordoe9ccpjq28lcxqtnf.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid59">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-191" id="tag-deDGAb-191" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/alhdqbc1djceacplr0rd.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid60">
Urals are cool, I don’t care who you are. They fake out a lot of people.
</div>
<div id="uid61">
<strong>The, “I feel smarter than others when they think my bike is old” award goes to:</strong>
</div>
<div id="uid62">
“WOW! I bet it’s a pain int he ass to find parts for that old thing!!” -The guy next to me.<br />
</div>
<div id="uid63">
“It’s 2006 so I just go to the dealer for parts.” -The owner.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid64">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-192" id="tag-deDGAb-192" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/tiycewjjemfeybipjyur.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid65">
Mmmm, I love Targa’s. I like hard top 911s more, but the Targa’s are sure pretty in their own way.
</div>
<div id="uid66">
<strong>The, “don’t judge me, I like it” award goes to:</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid67">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-193" id="tag-deDGAb-193" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/u3isiiwrkrcdwf6q9fbn.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid68">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-194" id="tag-deDGAb-194" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/loxxy2l37xzu91pdwpyz.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid69">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-195" id="tag-deDGAb-195" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/vu5c6q3u1tmubclvxudc.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid70">
Let’s pause this award ceremony to look at just the tips of these cars. Mmm, I sometimes realize that for a half hour I’ve only taken photos of grills and hood ornaments...Sometimes one is not enough.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid71">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-196" id="tag-deDGAb-196" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/dqifrwcqxel91ch2jvmf.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid72">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-197" id="tag-deDGAb-197" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/q3oq4qjrg5zjfp0lc4vc.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid73">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-198" id="tag-deDGAb-198" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/fwcsozabarfrhjvuxqxo.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid74">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-199" id="tag-deDGAb-199" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/bjr5uhik87gtn5qkepk4.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid75">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-200" id="tag-deDGAb-200" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/cvapxg4n25mw2l5qjv3y.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid76">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-201" id="tag-deDGAb-201" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/xpkcek3pesdzsrtdddxt.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid77">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-202" id="tag-deDGAb-202" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/gvl6bcnadwasbxnc0tyy.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid78">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-203" id="tag-deDGAb-203" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/z0od26lgdbgczesjydsh.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid79">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-204" id="tag-deDGAb-204" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/zfs6diicn2u7ffhsrirp.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid80">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-205" id="tag-deDGAb-205" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qtahpxbcv3fqqtnd669p.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid81">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-206" id="tag-deDGAb-206" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/hckcxieax8ruz5rum0bq.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid82">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-207" id="tag-deDGAb-207" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/gzgoeiwrtdvvsfzbis6h.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid83">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-208" id="tag-deDGAb-208" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/iaqig6x7eoek88oocgzs.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid84">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-209" id="tag-deDGAb-209" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/n9uympsx00ff6yfdhgd8.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid85">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-210" id="tag-deDGAb-210" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/yhqlbvyodibtopltis32.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid86">
<strong><br />
</strong>
</div>
<div id="uid87">
<strong><br />
</strong>
</div>
<div id="uid88">
<strong>The “Oh shit, those do exist?” award goes to:</strong>
</div>
<div id="uid89">
A Willy’s Aerowing. I’ve never actually seen one of these before.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid90">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-211" id="tag-deDGAb-211" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/dy5lqzcgqkv41pycvg6d.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid91">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-212" id="tag-deDGAb-212" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/zvyfwtfgacpg2gi0f0oy.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid92">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-213" id="tag-deDGAb-213" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/kdpvtitea4k9obtffyrn.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid93">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-214" id="tag-deDGAb-214" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/wsvm3xpsbpzxilwztrkr.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid94">
<strong>The “Everything I need and nothing I don’t. I don’t need you, I just need my thermos and this Triumph. That’s all I need!” Award goes to:</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid95">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-215" id="tag-deDGAb-215" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/km9ezbtbabnjsxaosl0z.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid96">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-216" id="tag-deDGAb-216" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ya5jsdaybsmc3ajtf58u.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid97">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-217" id="tag-deDGAb-217" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/w7jkl8gxciocamoi4nlt.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid98">
<strong><br />
</strong>
</div>
<div id="uid99">
<strong><br />
</strong>
</div>
<div id="uid100">
<strong>The “I was born this way and I’ll be damned if I’m going to get braces just because you are staring at me, underbite” award goes to:</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid101">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-218" id="tag-deDGAb-218" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/mmajmjupmgxidykhbr0s.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid102">
<strong><br />
</strong>
</div>
<div id="uid103">
<strong>The “Fire domes to the each of us”, award goes to:</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid104">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-219" id="tag-deDGAb-219" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/bum5ucbihhbtvotsso9q.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid105">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-220" id="tag-deDGAb-220" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/j9vyucog1yhbespg3zzk.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid106">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-221" id="tag-deDGAb-221" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/jzr9jogxizcdwjc3ccjk.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid107">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-222" id="tag-deDGAb-222" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ux5wtgsf8uqpfsrtykng.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid108">
The “I WANT YOU, IT’S LOVE IT DOESN’T HAVE TO MAKE SENSE!” Award goes to:
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid109">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-223" id="tag-deDGAb-223" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ko4wd5twmnrskqjullk8.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid110">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-224" id="tag-deDGAb-224" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/tx0ckw2xln7rpzm14pew.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid111">
I’ll buy a car with an obsolete water pump just so we can hang out.<br />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid112">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-225" id="tag-deDGAb-225" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/uuphbjuspfwihtuxxtpe.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid113">
The “I have a gated shifter, but I don’t drive it so the next guy can” award:
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid114">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-226" id="tag-deDGAb-226" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/sdlx3z4sl2x5wzv1kcq6.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid115">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-227" id="tag-deDGAb-227" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/uches9jxtlpoi26ljy1s.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid116">
The “It looked good on paper!” award winner.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid117">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-228" id="tag-deDGAb-228" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/fmqkwktjy0rncl1zvuz4.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid118">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-229" id="tag-deDGAb-229" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/zyfmuksgc62xzyq6uilx.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid119">
<strong><br />
</strong>
</div>
<div id="uid120">
<strong>The “it makes me tired just thinking about cleaning and waxing it” award goes to:</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid121">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-230" id="tag-deDGAb-230" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/eomph0zgs6rnjaac0m42.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid122">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-231" id="tag-deDGAb-231" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/f3pwzoo8uhcdxyfjclgc.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid123">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-232" id="tag-deDGAb-232" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/w3qj26rpnzyovalaup4n.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid124">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-233" id="tag-deDGAb-233" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ruday0fqdvk3wgxbro1y.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid125">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-234" id="tag-deDGAb-234" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/nacca5mf2c0okh04ed72.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid126">
<strong><br />
</strong>
</div>
<div id="uid127">
<strong>The “I’m bald, but my car has a nice head of hair” award goes to:</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid128">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-235" id="tag-deDGAb-235" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qeezqlqq3rmv78luuj7r.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid129">
<strong><br />
</strong>
</div>
<div id="uid130">
<strong>The “I am not afraid of commitment” award goes to this Colorado Coolaid fan:</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid131">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-236" id="tag-deDGAb-236" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/byrmnwwmooks82opdvhj.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid132">
<strong>The “I want it, maybe just a little because no one else loves it” award goes to:</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid133">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-237" id="tag-deDGAb-237" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/svomobd9tdzipw079vw2.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid134">
<strong><br />
</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid135">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-238" id="tag-deDGAb-238" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/vxgifwqvpo4kt2aq7tns.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid136">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-239" id="tag-deDGAb-239" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/m7hosujnrbr41xahdcbo.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid137">
<strong>The “That F-350 is sure cute and short” award goes to:</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid138">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-240" id="tag-deDGAb-240" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qfjzs5q2p3nmhmoeyip0.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid139">
<strong><br />
</strong>
</div>
<div id="uid140">
<strong>The “I don’t care if it has 2 scoops of raisins, I hate sugar scoops” headlights award goes to:</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid141">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-241" id="tag-deDGAb-241" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/evy3lzdfwiwe3zebuo9w.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid142">
<strong><br />
</strong>
</div>
<div id="uid143">
<strong>The, I love old cars because of details like this award goes to:</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid144">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-242" id="tag-deDGAb-242" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/e7gkn4s8bw13ki1upf0s.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid145">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-243" id="tag-deDGAb-243" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/hghpq1wsjlpl5zhwk0mt.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid146">
<strong>The 4 door winner.</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid147">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-244" id="tag-deDGAb-244" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/pmx7d7sxvqxpavfxccgd.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid148">
The “I don’t like muscle cars that much, but I love this one. So what, I’m unamerican, they just do nothing for me. Shut up. I’m sorry” award goes to:
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid149">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-245" id="tag-deDGAb-245" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/irrae30z3edskiobya13.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid150">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-246" id="tag-deDGAb-246" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/xtwwtevfmzhikbqj33da.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid151">
The “DON’T EVER LET IT GET PAINTED OVER” award goes to:
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid152">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-247" id="tag-deDGAb-247" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/fyn5qutpkhh0gpp9ashd.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid153">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-248" id="tag-deDGAb-248" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/r4ztanbp5keuccxgp0hh.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid154">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-249" id="tag-deDGAb-249" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qqij6tjqnaa8uynmcn33.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid155">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-250" id="tag-deDGAb-250" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/gbzfypx2rhi7bk5uv4sx.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid156">
The perfect patina award goes to:
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid157">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-251" id="tag-deDGAb-251" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/skgig2p1tqqnoewl7tp8.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid158">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-252" id="tag-deDGAb-252" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/r15hlgo8oaxahmkwj4u3.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid159">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-253" id="tag-deDGAb-253" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/up5l62tuksmgj0bukqit.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid160">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-254" id="tag-deDGAb-254" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/nfzykvbvlvdodkzf6euh.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid161">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-255" id="tag-deDGAb-255" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/b09yoaae5xssiaipkfgm.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid162">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-256" id="tag-deDGAb-256" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/c9vznmwldea9uwvsp9vw.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid163">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-257" id="tag-deDGAb-257" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/stfa6pccqt7hnzoyurgs.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid164">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-258" id="tag-deDGAb-258" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/t9nhl2q8af7xnmd6dglf.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid165">
I love this strange and wonderful Vortech Supercharger for the Gremlin.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid166">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-259" id="tag-deDGAb-259" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/lk0rwxhii2l5dlbbbvls.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid167">
The paint on this 280Z was mesmerizing.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid168">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-260" id="tag-deDGAb-260" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/x2gtyquiv7piaxr8eevq.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid169">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-261" id="tag-deDGAb-261" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/np2xmckvlbfum3fxcm87.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid170">
We’ll file this thing under crimes against vehicles. I don’t actually hate on the ones I put in this category, but they are just the ones that I don’t like and I want to destroy with fire and lava. IMHO.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid171">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-262" id="tag-deDGAb-262" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/oehy6fhqj2u8orzcfgiv.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid172">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-263" id="tag-deDGAb-263" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/lkhw5nf9r2q7wokznfv0.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid173">
The “Most likely to make my Porsche purist friend throw up.” award goes to this something with a fake slant nose and the a body gap big enough to load luggage through.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid174">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-264" id="tag-deDGAb-264" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/yjqei4qf9ultwgwm5hsp.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid175">
Did I mention it’s got a V8? Hid your eyes.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid176">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-265" id="tag-deDGAb-265" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/dlwphpmx0jbeibcgyrrb.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid177">
The crimes against messing with a good thing award goes to:
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid178">
<img data-uid="tag-deDGAb-266" id="tag-deDGAb-266" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/higvlvxacamqapktjm9p.jpg" />
</div>
SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-51919646470390582472016-01-21T08:31:00.001-07:002016-01-21T08:31:22.940-07:00Wandering the Southwest... Part IV<div id="uid1">
<em>Dennis: “So, where are we?” </em>
</div>
<div id="uid2">
<em>Me: “I think were about here.” </em>
</div>
<div id="uid3">
<em>Dennis “Think?.... There is no, think, we are here or we aren’t. Why don’t you just tell me when to turn and I’ll drive along until you tell me... </em>
</div>
<div id="uid4">
<em>So, we there yet? </em>
</div>
<div id="uid5">
<em>How about now?...”</em>
</div>
<div id="uid6">
<em><br />
</em>
</div>
<div id="uid7">
<em>Me: “Shit, sorry, I think it’s about 50 yards back, but I didn’t see a side trail.”</em>
</div>
<div id="uid8">
<em>Dennis: “Well, don’t always trust where you think a trail should be.”</em>
</div>
<div id="uid9">
<em>Here are parts 1-3: </em>
</div>
<div id="uid10">
<a class="inset-skip" href="http://soaztim.blogspot.com/2015/11/wandering-southwest-for-couple-years.html">http://soaztim.blogspot.com/2015/11/wandering-southwest-for-couple-years.html</a>
</div>
<div id="uid11">
<a class="inset-skip" href="http://soaztim.blogspot.com/2015/11/wandering-southwest-part-ii.html">http://soaztim.blogspot.com/2015/11/wandering-southwest-part-ii.html</a>
</div>
<div id="uid12">
<a class="inset-skip" href="http://soaztim.blogspot.com/2015/11/wandering-southwest-part-iii.html">http://soaztim.blogspot.com/2015/11/wandering-southwest-part-iii.html</a>
</div>
<div id="uid13">
<em><br />
</em>
</div>
<div id="uid14">
<em>That was my training on the first day of this mapping job. Training by fire. Sitting in the cab of “Buck” with 8 or 9 maps (All 4 feet by 4 feet so they are all folded many times over), a ruler and a GPS I was reading the Latitude and Longitude and then calculating our exact position within 5 or 10 feet. We were looking for trails that were either seen from detailed aerial photos, historical records or maybe even just a hunch from someone at the GVT.</em>
</div>
<div id="uid14">
<em><br /></em></div>
<div id="uid15">
<em> At least, that’s what I was SUPPOSED to be doing. I was trying, but in all of my offroading and exploring it was never so critical to TRULY know where you are, exactly. I only needed to know about where I was and where the next major turn was. I needed to get on top of this skill, and fast. I needed this job, I wanted this job, but most of all I wanted to be a part of this ragtag group of yahoo’s that I came to know as the Rat Patrol. </em>
</div>
<div id="uid15">
<em><br /></em></div>
<div id="uid16">
<em>Over time we got to where we’d spot a trail because the brush was about 2 inches shorter in 2 spots, but only if you looked at it straight on. That would be from the 2 slight depressions from prior vehicles traveling a now, rarely, used track.</em>
</div>
<div id="uid16">
<em><br /></em></div>
<div id="uid17">
<em>Over the next few days I started to get the hang of it and thus began the next couple years of living out of a truck and going on some of my favorite adventures. To this day, when I ask someone where we are, I have very high expectations that they either say I don’t know, or they can say EXACTLY. Poor wife...</em>
</div>
<div id="uid17">
<em><br /></em></div>
<div id="uid18">
By the way, that jerk Dennis, became a reverend just so he could do me the honor of marrying me and my wife last month. It all worked out in the end.
</div>
<div id="uid19">
That was a little trip back in time, but I thought the story was worth telling. Back to where we were. In Young, AZ living in a double wide with the Wild-land Firefighters in some of the prettiest country in the Southwest:
</div>
<div id="uid19">
<br /></div>
<div id="uid20">
Oh yah, speaking of where we were, shit...
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid21">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-119" id="tag-zng5tN-119" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/epgxdshzhqz4p0wbanze.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid22">
So, during and just after WWII the country was in a frenzy to find enough Uranium to enrich. So, there are spots in the remote bits of the US where we found it. One of these spots were along some trails we had to map today. The Forest Service guys said, “you should be fin as long as you don’t stay to long or start eating the dirt.” Right... I used to think a guy in uniform might know what he’s talking about, but doing this job I learned that it wasn’t so, many many times over.
</div>
<div id="uid22">
<br /></div>
<div id="uid23">
So, as we were riding around the area logging trails we came to a pretty good hill. Nothing steeper than I’d ridden most days, but it was filled with softball sized rocks. About half way up the tire just slipped and spun. Next thing I knew I was pushing my bike with the rear tire spinning and throwing a ton of dust in the air... You know what they build the roads to mines with? All of the rock or “tailings” they remove from the mine. Oh good, I’m breathing a lot of Uranium dust. On the plus side, I glow like a safety beacon in the dark.
</div>
<div id="uid23">
<br /></div>
<div id="uid24">
We rode past one of the mine openings. It was interesting to note that a lot of people had camped right here or even explored the mine. Stupid is as stupid does, but who was I to talk at the moment. This opening was about the width and height of a bus.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid25">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-120" id="tag-zng5tN-120" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/euym5ewokqf4viybg9k8.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid26">
More openings, that although blocked off at one time, had been reopened by crazy and curious visitors.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid27">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-121" id="tag-zng5tN-121" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ttcspijzgh1p2vb24j8f.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid28">
Enough of this! Let’s get out of here and never come back. We rode up, and up and up until we were at about 8,500 feet. Not a bad lunch spot.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid29">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-122" id="tag-zng5tN-122" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/rdwbtrynxo4kpwcfepld.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid30">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-123" id="tag-zng5tN-123" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ec71afp4ejstdbjdxxmg.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid31">
It even had a porta jon!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid32">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-124" id="tag-zng5tN-124" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/opwn1k4ceu50v1sdxhsa.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid33">
Although, I didn’t feel like getting a black widow bite so I only used it as a kick stand.
</div>
<div id="uid34">
More great signs! This one was down a trail where the grass was several feet high. It’s an old road that likely sees a “couple” of vehicles a year that leads to an old mine. The higher the grass on a road, the more excited I get because that means less people have been there before me.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid35">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-125" id="tag-zng5tN-125" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/bmjgodob6d1lcvusjsjo.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid36">
Old ore cart tracks and head frame were scattered about.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid37">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-126" id="tag-zng5tN-126" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/kpohjuzikv3qms3gx3q1.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid38">
It would be... bad, to ride this area at night. The trail came up from the right in this shot. The wedge cut out of the ground had a shaft right in the middle that went, who knows, how deep.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid39">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-127" id="tag-zng5tN-127" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/z5jgbjlf57xhzwzebnmh.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid40">
Leaving “home”, nice and cold each morning.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid41">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-128" id="tag-zng5tN-128" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/iipgpvn6jlok2qc9zu1l.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid42">
Fire lookout tours are a change to get some elevation and see your surroundings. It’s also often a chance to chat with someone who’s bored out of his mind and looking to talk to someone!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid43">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-129" id="tag-zng5tN-129" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/dhuz70grpf4qwwlfxd5f.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid44">
<strong><em>RECORD SCREECHING!.... Time to move! We’re going back to Wikieup!</em></strong>
</div>
<div id="uid45">
Wikieup, beautiful Wikieup...
</div>
<div id="uid46">
Where it can be 100F in town and still have snow on the Hualapai’s next to town.
</div>
<div id="uid47">
Snow riding! (It’s amazing how bad video quality was...)
</div>
<div id="uid48">
brr,
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid49">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-130" id="tag-zng5tN-130" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/whpnwzebhhargqog5w2n.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid50">
The snow would come and go as you rode. Over a pass it might be so deep that the bike was overheating as so were you, while pushing the bike inch by inch.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid51">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-131" id="tag-zng5tN-131" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/x76dvx4mkwo0hsiba1q7.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid52">
There was a lot of old mining history to look at though.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid53">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-132" id="tag-zng5tN-132" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/rkncypqmo5pcrncjqbt9.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid54">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-133" id="tag-zng5tN-133" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/cduy9q8cgjthybnfrnov.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid55">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-134" id="tag-zng5tN-134" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/m6xffkqyfszghojmzd9m.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid56">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-135" id="tag-zng5tN-135" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/hst37enae9voj9ldevl8.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid57">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-136" id="tag-zng5tN-136" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/w4fqkazxsjrgph24svky.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid58">
A great place to camp is buy an old chimney. If it’s solid enough you can still use it for your campfire.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid59">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-137" id="tag-zng5tN-137" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/vitvcrfxcwua3mlson2o.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid60">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-138" id="tag-zng5tN-138" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/hikcqe3zjz2lczx8k0pm.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid61">
Looks like neat old stone house!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid62">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-139" id="tag-zng5tN-139" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ieiobq1ojzvkkgdo9jat.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid63">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-140" id="tag-zng5tN-140" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/vbnohxskdiqq2cxi5lfb.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid64">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-141" id="tag-zng5tN-141" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/nf0ip7uhlnel0oyd937g.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid65">
Waiting for their owner?
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid66">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-142" id="tag-zng5tN-142" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/k6659b4awgfwsfjjzhzz.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid67">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-143" id="tag-zng5tN-143" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/oqnekdxffbkdonpu1mvw.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid68">
Let’s check it out! What could go wrong?
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid69">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-144" id="tag-zng5tN-144" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ifezljn4b1nppv2ysifv.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid70">
RunawayrunawayrunawayRunawayrunawayrunawayRunawayrunawayrunaway!!
</div>
<div id="uid71">
If you ever see this, turn around and leave, quickly. Bleach is used in the production of meth.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid72">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-145" id="tag-zng5tN-145" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/vkbstaihrlv9e9tpa1bw.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid73">
Too bad because it was a decent looking building.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid74">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-146" id="tag-zng5tN-146" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/axrouyvnxfxd8n7apnwp.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid75">
Sections of trail like this were great. We’d just passed a boulder the size of a car so this section hadn’t seen any four wheeled vehicles in a while.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid76">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-147" id="tag-zng5tN-147" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qdvhubwb8scz60v0wfek.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid77">
Great views up top.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid78">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-148" id="tag-zng5tN-148" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/mmbqxveyzppjwccux340.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid79">
I’d started using an Ogio flight vest in place of a backpack. I still use it today. So much nicer to carry weight evenly instead of just on your back.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid80">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-149" id="tag-zng5tN-149" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/baasjkatze1czgekznan.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid81">
Clint road a bike we affectionately named Porky. An XR600R that he rode like it was a feather-lite bike, which it was anything, but!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid82">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-150" id="tag-zng5tN-150" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ywprhztkul4hcgtyxavn.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid83">
Sometimes, you’d spend a while working on climbing one hill.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid84">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-151" id="tag-zng5tN-151" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/oh2xxfdf8riovf4tqqkj.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid85">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-152" id="tag-zng5tN-152" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/x5ejxhcqyudaqslma5xi.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid86">
Just to find a dead end, but at least it was recorded in and done.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid87">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-153" id="tag-zng5tN-153" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/oxv52p6wkif087qwvil7.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid88">
I think this sign’s been here for a little while...
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid89">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-154" id="tag-zng5tN-154" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/swozw7d26gbst11wz7pq.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid90">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-155" id="tag-zng5tN-155" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/is2yztlpwajcrin2qgyx.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid91">
One day, we’d fought through snow for hours on end.
</div>
<div id="uid92">
It started out harmless enough. Just a slick hill where the snow had turned to ice.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid93">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-156" id="tag-zng5tN-156" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/cdqorkle61mllcclvilx.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid94">
Then, we started to make fresh tracks...
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid95">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-157" id="tag-zng5tN-157" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/bespbrir1kpvf4twzgrt.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid96">
Then it got deeper.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid97">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-158" id="tag-zng5tN-158" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/pftrwcc5l02ddkzzmvbv.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid98">
Progress was slow. Lots of tire spinning. Pushing the bike for sections. You and the bike would overheat and then if you rested for a minute you’d start getting cold, fast!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid99">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-159" id="tag-zng5tN-159" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qbuaeeakajy48dmemimv.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid100">
We found a dry spot to stop for lunch.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid101">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-160" id="tag-zng5tN-160" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/o81njjro6yugg3psjip7.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid102">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-161" id="tag-zng5tN-161" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/utvbnpsl6nsx0jtugaz7.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid103">
Then it was back at it. Slow progress.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid104">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-162" id="tag-zng5tN-162" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/cjvfxcjtsildcpcjljlp.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid105">
Deeper still. The best technique was treating it like deep sand. Start in second gear and keep moving at all costs until you lost all forward momentum. Then, whatever you do, don’t dig a hole with the rear tire.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid106">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-163" id="tag-zng5tN-163" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/awhswmigq70kcapufiki.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid107">
Sometimes following the tracks of the other guy helped, but mostly, fresh tracks seemed to be the safest and easiest. The tire in front of you would polish the snow into a slicker ice.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid108">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-164" id="tag-zng5tN-164" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ya45ezdhbc4lqbboijpj.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid109">
You’d look for little patches of dirt or thin snow. It was like hitting a “turbo” section while playing Nintendo Excitebike as a kid. If you could find a thin section where you got traction often enough, you could keep moving!! It was an semi out of control game where you just held on and aimed for dirt. Sometimes the bike would go there and other times the ruts and tilts to the ground underneath the snow would take you another direction...
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid110">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-165" id="tag-zng5tN-165" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/afxzfnyiyedhfwz18syo.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid111">
Go go go!
</div>
<div id="uid112">
Sure, it doesn’t look deep, but it was enough to hold the bike up without a kick stand.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid113">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-166" id="tag-zng5tN-166" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/hkj1qanjhemtuczu7c9l.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid114">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-167" id="tag-zng5tN-167" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ihkzifnbtfwzacxgyppn.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid115">
Eventually, the TOP!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid116">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-168" id="tag-zng5tN-168" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/v3szbuggdpogjn0a8rvp.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid117">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-169" id="tag-zng5tN-169" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/t9n6ognyl88y2nyaufp4.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid118">
This is my, cautiously optimistic, face. Happy to have made it here, but picturing going down steep snow trails somehow didn’t offer much comfort. Feeling wet with a combination of cold melted snow and sweat, it was easy to get frustrated, but then it would hit you, I COULD BE IN AN OFFICE RIGHT NOW! Thank god I wasn’t!!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid119">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-170" id="tag-zng5tN-170" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/umlmtlv3jlpoooet411u.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid120">
Being the westward face of the mountains, there was only a little snow in shadowy sections. We were happy for that! The downhill ride was uneventful and fun.
</div>
<div id="uid121">
We saw some old ranches on our way back into some warm territory.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid122">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-171" id="tag-zng5tN-171" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/kbuzkygpajbqia6qfxim.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid123">
Desert, sweet desert, how I love thee.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid124">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-172" id="tag-zng5tN-172" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/rv4d48f0rm38jxjezpeg.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid125">
The sun was warming us up and it was wonderful.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid126">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-173" id="tag-zng5tN-173" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/arcy5layrsgdnkuqh5uf.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid127">
So... we’d made it over the pass and logged in the trail we need to get done, but we ended up on the wrong side of a fairly large mountain range from home. Even with large desert tanks we didn’t have enough fuel to make it back to town. Hmmm. Well, let’s just keep going west and see if we can bum some gas at the highway.
</div>
<div id="uid128">
This guy didn’t have any fuel he wanted to spare...
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid129">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-174" id="tag-zng5tN-174" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/i1nwgaizctsqls6q2zcm.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid130">
These guys weren’t very talkative.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid131">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-175" id="tag-zng5tN-175" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/hn1s9w0dy2gj8e9ykv7g.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid132">
The one gas station we found had been closed for 6 months. The house next to the station had a sign that said NO FUEL FOR SALE. We decided to try anyway. We weren’t some station wagon from the highway that just planned poorly, we’d come over the mountains and the next gas was 30 miles which in dirt bike terms was TOO FAR to make with what we had left. We hoped he’d feel the same way and take pity on us!
</div>
<div id="uid132">
<br /></div>
<div id="uid133">
Thankfully, the guy eventually obliged and charged us the most expensive gasoline we’d ever bought. Let’s hit the graded sand highway back around the mountains and get HOME!!!
</div>
<div id="uid133">
<br /></div>
<div id="uid133">
<br /></div>
<div id="uid134">
Next time, we head to California.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid135">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-zng5tN-176" id="tag-zng5tN-176" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/cwiynplxnuix9esekrmm.jpg" />
</div>
SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-50637007297461141682016-01-18T07:26:00.002-07:002016-01-18T07:28:54.818-07:00Car Show Season, AZ: (Penske Racing, Carsncoffee)<div id="uid1">
I decided to ride the ol R50/5 around on Saturday. First to the Penske Racing Museum in Scottsdale, AZ. It’s flanked by all of the requisite fancy dealerships from Maserati, Ferrari, Porsche, Land Rover to Bentley and Lamborghini.
</div>
<div id="uid2">
I think it fit in perfect! ;-)
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid3">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-99" id="tag-QsT0jZ-99" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/hxapwyoje4lvenffl4vk.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid4">
You had your perfect classic Ferrari’s OF COURSE. Most of the cars here were registered in Montana to save on registration fees. Sort of funny, but I’m used to seeing that in AZ now.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid5">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-100" id="tag-QsT0jZ-100" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/gjuvg3ebpboyczxlpgbs.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid6">
Just look at that paint. WOW!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid7">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-101" id="tag-QsT0jZ-101" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/dojutwuljfllxlcvdmro.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid8">
I wonder if these “knock off” wheels have ever been knocked off? I just can’t picture the owner using a big brass or lead hammer to wail on these to get them spinning. Hmm.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid9">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-102" id="tag-QsT0jZ-102" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/v9j9w5ubybtzzvg9nitf.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid10">
It’s just hard to picture this happening:
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid11">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-103" id="tag-QsT0jZ-103" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/soddbndcxpu8isvpjcd3.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid12">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-104" id="tag-QsT0jZ-104" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/zkpw9rovijwgocjyvvtx.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid13">
I gravitate to the older cars. You get desensitized by the newer ones. Sure a Bentley is neat, but not when you see 15 new ones in a row.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid14">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-105" id="tag-QsT0jZ-105" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/raacducibmkftnl6pnja.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid15">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-106" id="tag-QsT0jZ-106" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/d3amry0qa2ds6o1mdjfm.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid16">
Testarossa with Cocaine white interior. Hell yah!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid17">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-107" id="tag-QsT0jZ-107" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/g9pbbw99dkwsgsz1bedj.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid18">
This Morgan wasn’t old, but it still grabs your attention.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid19">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-108" id="tag-QsT0jZ-108" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/niedkfw2lepuousnbrkj.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid20">
He made it here and didn’t light on fire, so good for him.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid21">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-109" id="tag-QsT0jZ-109" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ugp75a8es1uwucwomrey.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid22">
I sorta lovehate 912's. They aren’t very reliable or powerful, but they sure are pretty.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid23">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-110" id="tag-QsT0jZ-110" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/zl8z2ogimy0b1cjgi35k.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid24">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-111" id="tag-QsT0jZ-111" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/xazrdze5tlhye6jmrpsv.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid25">
Okay okay, a couple newer cars because, why not.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid26">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-112" id="tag-QsT0jZ-112" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/lf0vqaetsrbutm84doyv.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid27">
The museum is small, but great. Stop by and check it out during a cars and coffee sometime.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid28">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-113" id="tag-QsT0jZ-113" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/cjfv9hihgrmxwxkjan1v.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid29">
mmmmmm MGA.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid30">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-114" id="tag-QsT0jZ-114" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/wxheyscmel1zp6dk4msn.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid31">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-115" id="tag-QsT0jZ-115" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/phxjawxzndz6evzzbtam.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid32">
Should all British cars have some green on them, yes, when possible!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid33">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-116" id="tag-QsT0jZ-116" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/hsmfg6g8irt27nbyj5hq.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid34">
Such beautiful lines.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid35">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-117" id="tag-QsT0jZ-117" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ytratotqq96okdryimvc.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid36">
Sexist car around.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid37">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-118" id="tag-QsT0jZ-118" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/w9xd1o2h5tux4ahatw6t.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid38">
ALWAYS carry a back up steering wheel, because.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid39">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-119" id="tag-QsT0jZ-119" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ih70a9hejwxcleszk7k3.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid40">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-120" id="tag-QsT0jZ-120" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ug5vg8zwos0mdolfcfcp.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid41">
Go on, hit it!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid42">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-121" id="tag-QsT0jZ-121" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/xwvaarmd9jw9lfc8absr.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid43">
As with most cars and coffee people are always coming and going.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid44">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-122" id="tag-QsT0jZ-122" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/grf4cq0vhmsbeg0gs0qf.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid45">
So, sometimes you take a hip shot photo.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid46">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-123" id="tag-QsT0jZ-123" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/djor7avmldzcucdhhr2b.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid47">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-124" id="tag-QsT0jZ-124" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/flhapwufvdtrmcdoiqrd.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid48">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-125" id="tag-QsT0jZ-125" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/muqc6zrdqyj3qpecysva.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid49">
I am falling in love with all P1800 Volvo’s.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid50">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-126" id="tag-QsT0jZ-126" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/pgifqaeh35c6jbwax4pq.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid51">
Yes, this shall be the title photo, excellent old sticker.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid52">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-127" id="tag-QsT0jZ-127" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/sdhs1vsj0oylk0nhoomo.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid53">
I’m not normally a Corvette guy, but this one drew me over.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid54">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-128" id="tag-QsT0jZ-128" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/j6xvhrlzv8g1pxvrq0so.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid55">
Stingray!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid56">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-129" id="tag-QsT0jZ-129" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/piiypwf2zrnrtg7erkpi.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid57">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-130" id="tag-QsT0jZ-130" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/wzjoicuk9p4v4ykdstqm.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid58">
Next stop was a coffee shop I’d been wanting to go to. I met up with my buddy Jon on his similar newer year Slash 6. It’s called Four Till Four. It’s Porsche themed, but sorta car enthusiast themed in general.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid59">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-131" id="tag-QsT0jZ-131" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/f1zh77rbrn8rrlgwjtus.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid60">
Nico’s beautiful 356.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid61">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-132" id="tag-QsT0jZ-132" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/lxci4qdewuyqqsg3id73.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid62">
It’s all one original car. The different colors come from the prior owner sanding down the red to repaint it, spraying some primer and then never finishing. Now, I think he should just leave it like this forever. It’s unique.
</div>
<div id="uid63">
Here is more info and another article:
</div>
<div id="uid64">
<a class="inset-skip" href="http://www.facebook.com/fourtillfour">www.facebook.com/fourtillfour</a>
</div>
<div id="uid65">
<a class="inset-skip" href="http://www.fourtillfour.com/">www.fourtillfour.com</a>
</div>
<br />
<br />
<aside class="referenced-wide referenced-fullwidth referenced-editor js_inset tmpl_referencedGroupFullWidth clearfix" contenteditable="false" data-vdom-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-135" id="uid70">
<div class="container position-relative">
<div class="referenced-item referenced-editor-item" data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-135">
<a aria-hidden="true" class="js_skip-inset close" href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=2695775465427147821#"></a><a class="columns small-4 medium-3 referenced-item-image" href="https://www.instagram.com/fourtillfour/" target="_blank"><img src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/c_fill,fl_progressive,g_north,h_77,q_80,w_137/laypzxw8idyz4nlvqi4h.jpg" /></a>
<br />
<h6 class="headline">
<a href="https://www.instagram.com/fourtillfour/" target="_blank">Porsche inspired coffee shop (@fourtillfour) • Instagram photos and videos</a></h6>
<div class="text small-offset-4 medium-offset-3">
<span class="referenced-item-excerpt hide-for-small">Proudly serving Four Barrel Coffee
7105 E. First ave
Scottsdale, Az
</span><a class="js_readmore readmore-referenced" href="https://www.instagram.com/fourtillfour/" target="_blank">Read on <span class="hostname">instagram.com</span></a>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</aside>
<br />
<div id="uid67">
From meeting Nico and Mia they seem like good people who’ll do well! It’s a great location and feel!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid68">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-133" id="tag-QsT0jZ-133" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/yufazpjzdu6vvvsphouu.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid69">
<img data-uid="tag-QsT0jZ-134" id="tag-QsT0jZ-134" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ilttdya6atltnyx3bdjh.jpg" />
</div>
SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-92107592838330470442016-01-18T06:45:00.000-07:002016-01-18T06:45:01.786-07:00Exploring with no "Plan."<div id="uid1">
Often, I find myself planning the next big trip, ad nauseum. It’s to some pretty destination and I’m researching neat trails, cabins, campsites etc.
</div>
<div id="uid2">
Those are fun, but I try to always remind myself to wander aimlessly.
</div>
<div id="uid3">
This type of “Overlanding” is the kind that relieves the most stress and quiets my soul. Just picking trails/roads that you’ve NEVER been on and exploring. If they go through, great, if not turn around. Just watch the fuel/water/supplies and if it doesn’t go through, you turn around at the point where you need to.
</div>
<div id="uid4">
“Need to” meaning the point where you estimate that your water, fuel, food, or time will run out (With a nice big safety margin) if you don’t turn around. Often times, you’ll find a way “through” and add a new trail or connector to your mental map of an area.
</div>
<div id="uid5">
That’s what I did last weekend.
</div>
<div id="uid6">
We jumped on a road that everyone around Phoenix knows. The backroad to Crown King. It’s like a zoo trying to navigate this road. It’s filled with over 100 UTV’s and Jeeps most weekends these days. That’s not my idea of a fun time so we bypassed this road and decided to see if we could connect some other roads together to get there.
</div>
<div id="uid7">
Note: Be sure to put an SD Card into your camera before you try to take photos...... I got a lot of really neat ones before I realized my mistake. Oops!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid8">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-89" id="tag-PhVmEh-89" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/czvb8gzmi29vl18sxzhh.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid9">
We took a break and several times someone in a UTV or on a quad stopped to ask for directions to the Crown King Backroad. We realized that the only people we were seeing were ones that missed the turn. This was a good sign. Ahead of the next gate ahead I bet we’d see almost no one.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid10">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-90" id="tag-PhVmEh-90" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/anb6tuloiih8gbxba93v.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid11">
The roads weren’t horrible, just bumpy. These get so little traffic that the “baby heads” (Description for these size rocks) don’t get throw off the trail so you just bounce around on top of them.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid12">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-91" id="tag-PhVmEh-91" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/pzacoxsmuxe6kdbgfgqc.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid13">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-92" id="tag-PhVmEh-92" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/spkt2rvxk0juqd8xaco7.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid14">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-93" id="tag-PhVmEh-93" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/i0egujh0majbfcie9eon.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid15">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-94" id="tag-PhVmEh-94" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/uctqajgltahjbngzboze.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid16">
There are thousands of lonely old windmills pumping underground water into stock tanks in AZ. Most of these are from the late 1800's to mid 1900's. Most are Aeromotor’s from Chicago.
</div>
<div id="uid17">
<a class="inset-skip" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aermotor_Windmill_Company">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aermotor_Windmill_Company</a>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid18">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-95" id="tag-PhVmEh-95" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ztlr44e7rj0wle0q8ajs.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid19">
Eventually we connected to another backroad to Crown King. Still lesser used than the main backway, but this one see’s daily use.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid20">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-96" id="tag-PhVmEh-96" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/xeadfam3agwv62jhfdkg.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid21">
Might need a patch or two...
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid22">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-97" id="tag-PhVmEh-97" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/li7qukmvi18dk2wlt7c9.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid23">
It’s always nice to have a bottle opener handy.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid24">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-98" id="tag-PhVmEh-98" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/xu1kypocehkd7irugcya.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid25">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-99" id="tag-PhVmEh-99" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/q4npibwttj2lo38pxwig.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid26">
Scored a parking spot of front!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid27">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-100" id="tag-PhVmEh-100" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/fopdzqqduegfptv9rdy6.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid28">
The Crown King Saloon is a neat place! Lots of history as I’ve mentioned in previous posts.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid29">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-101" id="tag-PhVmEh-101" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/iz5qx9umgjp7glb85cn0.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid30">
To get away from the folks that now flock to this old Saloon on weekends, take your beer up the outdoor steps and enjoy the view. You really feel a word away up here.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid31">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-102" id="tag-PhVmEh-102" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/i3wmlfookzolurezuxso.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid32">
You can actually rent these rooms. I’m sure it’s more now, but it was once $25 for a night. Well worth it, but don’t expect a quiet nights sleep. You are just feet above where the band plays, in a 120 year old building, that was once a whore house. Sleep tight!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid33">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-103" id="tag-PhVmEh-103" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/vyon4g85dwhouvcobv5b.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid34">
Looking down main street. Site of one of the shortest 4th of July parades. :-)
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid35">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-104" id="tag-PhVmEh-104" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qbm48d29pyxcs2gne60u.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid36">
Here is a view of the same main street from the opposite side of town when the “Impossible Railroad” used to go right down the middle. The second to last building is the saloon and patio where I took the picture above.
</div>
<div id="uid37">
<a class="inset-skip" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crown_King_Branch">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crown_King_Branch</a>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid38">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-105" id="tag-PhVmEh-105" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/azgrttepbieklweagb5c.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid39">
General store now:
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid40">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-106" id="tag-PhVmEh-106" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/rvndyz0hohduunt8wjdw.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid41">
General store in the 1800's.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid42">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-107" id="tag-PhVmEh-107" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/xhrcunxpoikclpim2rbj.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid43">
How do you not get a photo of an old 40 doing work helping last nights band tow their van to the highway?
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid44">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-108" id="tag-PhVmEh-108" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/vil4mfohobdgmhidt9ij.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid45">
Now, that’s patina.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid46">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-109" id="tag-PhVmEh-109" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/hr0bb5supesrljceir0x.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid47">
As you descend what was once carved out as a railroad bed, it’s hard not think of the history this area has. It speaks to you.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid48">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-110" id="tag-PhVmEh-110" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s2ygkesdnk36upjfufkf.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid49">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-111" id="tag-PhVmEh-111" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/dyb5rqsmaj90xtokbsvq.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid50">
Time to air up and head home. Good Saturday.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid51">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-112" id="tag-PhVmEh-112" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/nkitnsv0luxyiixmiwqq.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid52">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-113" id="tag-PhVmEh-113" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/edx2dhpyritve2s6wrnf.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid53">
<img data-uid="tag-PhVmEh-114" id="tag-PhVmEh-114" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/n65aaolkfsi0qv4tko4i.jpg" />
</div>
SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-19937554539842680032016-01-06T10:37:00.002-07:002016-01-06T10:37:14.308-07:0013 days and 3,410.9 miles *Part VI*<div id="uid1">
The end, the final post. Yes, but also the best driving roads I’ve ever driven.
</div>
<div id="uid2">
We headed from Yosemite to Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Park. I’ve ridden a motorcycle over these roads, but always in summer. They were fun, but the average RV was driving along at about 10MPH and sometimes people would even stop in the middle of the road to take a picture. Yes, just dead stop, in the lane of traffic. Fun.
</div>
<div id="uid3">
You’d think we were speeding along through here this time with it empty,but the roads are so tight that just going the speed limit through the tighter turns the tires were squealing. It was a blast. Also, I made my new wife very car sick...
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid4">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-88" id="tag-blyA0W-88" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/bd32pomy84g586cqv6iw.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid5">
Here is just a close up of one tight section of turns.
</div>
<div id="uid6">
<a class="inset-skip" href="https://goo.gl/maps/LX74PhbJgnp">https://goo.gl/maps/LX74PhbJgnp</a>
</div>
<div id="uid7">
<iframe frameborder="0" height="450" src="/proxy/iframe?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2Fmaps%2Fembed%3Fpb%3D!1m14!1m12!1m3!1d51281.120715205936!2d-118.81163853195856!3d36.55242401174284!2m3!1f0!2f0!3f0!3m2!1i1024!2i768!4f13.1!5e0!3m2!1sen!2sus!4v1452091168350" width="600">
</iframe>
</div>
<div id="uid8">
Generally, when you’re on a bike or in a sportscar and you see a sign that says a 5MPH turn, it’s full of it. That’s for the RV’s. Well, on some of these if you take it all the way up to say... 10, yes 10MPH you’ll be screeching around the turns. It’s great. It’s the lowest speed, speeding I’ve ever done and had so much fun.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid9">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-89" id="tag-blyA0W-89" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/pdtdc2qkvpspsjoh75pj.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid10">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-90" id="tag-blyA0W-90" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/w2c89xx57r0nlalc9la6.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid11">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-91" id="tag-blyA0W-91" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/rkwhqucelvupmuo6jsek.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid12">
After some driving I made my wife sick, again. So we took a break.
</div>
<div id="uid13">
:-)
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid14">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-92" id="tag-blyA0W-92" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ikud1ma7hs2528yba33n.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid15">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-93" id="tag-blyA0W-93" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/zyctv8jicvxqedrogis2.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid16">
Gratuitous Porsche shots, because car.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid17">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-94" id="tag-blyA0W-94" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/knheygwxsep4dyigvsw2.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid18">
It was cold, but wonderful. We sat on a giant downed redwood and just relished how quiet it was. “There goes the one truck we passed earlier.” Although, she’d never been here we both knew how lucky we were to have the roads so open and quiet.
</div>
<div id="uid19">
<strong>It was that point in the trip where you know the end is near, but at least for just a bit longer, you were in the moment. Not thinking about home, work or problems, but just soaking in every ounce of what we could.</strong>
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid20">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-95" id="tag-blyA0W-95" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/glvblpp8shn3lxdt9mox.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid21">
If you come all this way, you have to stop and check out the touristy stuff. These trees are on a scale that we both agreed was very disneyland-ish. I hadn’t been here in several years so it was fun to rediscover them with her.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid22">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-96" id="tag-blyA0W-96" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/damvqnfd2qyhqqkwdus2.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid23">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-97" id="tag-blyA0W-97" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/at51e1wgbu1ti3lhbx3w.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid24">
Someone always gotta carve their name. A-holes.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid25">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-98" id="tag-blyA0W-98" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/hpx2x17ug7zmgiqb5keo.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid26">
Just the root structure of one Sequoia is like a work of art.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid27">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-99" id="tag-blyA0W-99" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/es43kkkdkehnzmnxkk96.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid28">
It’s pretty tough to photograph a tree that’s bigger than the statue of liberty.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid29">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-100" id="tag-blyA0W-100" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/iu9kfzpnq9oskhhgawr4.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid30">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-101" id="tag-blyA0W-101" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/maqmqqk6bka6junm1whr.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid31">
Seen here by a recreation of when Spacemen (or women) and Ms. Liberty tried to fight off evil blue whales who tried to attack the tree while a dinosaur ran away. #knowyourhistory (Is Liberty Flipping us off?)
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid32">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-102" id="tag-blyA0W-102" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ozn8zbe1buc9vcmxf4eg.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid33">
It’s not just the giant tree’s around here. It’s all of them. The moss covered ones too. They all seemed “extra” amazing.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid34">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-103" id="tag-blyA0W-103" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/zhk8cb7ptvv2bpar1uwz.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid35">
Interesting footnote. I took this photos of part of a tree to show the rings of it. JUUUUST to the left of this frame is a hippie dude laying on the tree, hugging it and putting his face on it making noises like “OHHHH, MMMMMM, OH MYYY, I LOOOVE YOU TREEEEE.” It was a bit odd, but funny. Let’s just hope he’s not driving with what he’s on.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid36">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-104" id="tag-blyA0W-104" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/uh9xd9oxtfctumfeequh.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid37">
General Sherman in the middle with 2 other giants on either side.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid38">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-105" id="tag-blyA0W-105" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s38tbpgva1ixome25wm3.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid39">
The scale is so hard to comprehend. The black hollow area on the tree above/left was large enough to make a nice fort inside of. Maybe even a 1 bedroom apartment.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid40">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-106" id="tag-blyA0W-106" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/knymgmyt3tjfjnzyhbt1.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid41">
Right OOH, enough tree’s, let’s drive!!!!
</div>
<div id="uid42">
Remember that map above that had a road that looked like spaghetti. Here is a small view of a bit of it.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid43">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-107" id="tag-blyA0W-107" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/tutmk74u5wwchy9z3hry.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid44">
Most of the road had this stone wall inches on the side of it. It was talking to me. “Come here, just a bit closer, I want to EAT YOUR MIRRORS!”
</div>
<div id="uid45">
No!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid46">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-108" id="tag-blyA0W-108" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/zxrptxv62wxwapytoe71.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid47">
Ugh oh! She’s feeling sick again. I’m a jerk, but every time I try to take it easy, I just start slowly increasing my speed, just a bit, just a skosh, just for a second to see how it feels...
</div>
<div id="uid48">
I love this picture. I’ve stopped at this break spot on a motorcycle, but remember being hot, sweaty and surrounded by cars. Today, it was perfect. What a view.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid49">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-109" id="tag-blyA0W-109" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ryc5apzduedyjt6brud7.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid50">
From her point of view.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid51">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-110" id="tag-blyA0W-110" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/wxixtgai9vqbskpthldx.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid52">
We kept meandering down the switch backs. Many turns were more than 180 degrees winding back on themselves. We shot some video footage out the window which I’ll share later.
</div>
<div id="uid53">
All of a sudden around one corner was... HIM. The average asshole. The guy that thought since it’s a quiet day, why not stop in an area with no shoulder and just get out and take a picture. So, there he was in a section of 45MPH road right in the middle, at a dead stop. I gave him the proper salute and we kept on driving, realizing that even on perfect days, you’ll meet an asshole.
</div>
<div id="uid54">
We headed back into reality. Back onto normal roads and even highways. We spent the night near Bakersfield and the next morning went to visit my buddy Dennis. He’s actually the one who married us. You may remember him from the posts where I spent years mapping the dirt trails of the southwest. It was good to check in with one friend on a trip where we’d otherwise been hermits.
</div>
<div id="uid55">
After that we headed for Palm Springs and the final night of the trip.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid56">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-111" id="tag-blyA0W-111" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ormaixhfzlijn2c9wmsm.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid57">
We were happy to get home, back to our place, but we were also bummed. Ending adventures sucks, but it helps if you remember that life is the main adventure and you have to always keep the next trip planned. It’s the carrot on the stick to get you back to work.
</div>
<div id="uid58">
Condor did well. We shattered a headlight, but it held together thanks to a vinyl cover I applied before we left. We added just about 3.5 quarts of oil, but given the mileage that’s fine with me. There was no other issue to speak of. I was in awe of this car and not wanting to jinx it, neither of us said how impressed we were until we were driving down our own street.
</div>
<div id="uid59">
Maybe buying my dream car wasn’t such a stupid idea after all. Maybe...
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid60">
<img data-uid="tag-blyA0W-112" id="tag-blyA0W-112" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/xeq1cjofynxuf2epq3nx.jpg" />
</div>
SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-14952674039028603432016-01-06T10:35:00.006-07:002016-01-06T10:35:59.875-07:0013 days and 3,410.9 miles *Part V*<div id="uid1">
“A gold rush era gun shop that also serves beer... in California... that’s still open... Really?”
</div>
<div id="uid2">
We left Tahoe late in the morning and headed to Gold Country. <a class="inset-skip" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gold_Country">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gold_Country</a>
</div>
<div id="uid3">
This area of California is my favorite non-remote area. Yes, that’s convoluted, but I prefer the remote spots near the Salton Sea or Death Valley more, but for an area with paved roads, this is the best!
</div>
<div id="uid4">
Each town is so old and well established, let alone beautiful. With names like Sonora, Angels Camp and Copperopolis it’s hard not to conjure some cool images.
</div>
<div id="uid5">
These aren’t great photos, but they show a bit how each town in this area looks.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid6">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-KtjLbN-81" id="tag-KtjLbN-81" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/tddvunjffzhynqeb3bzg.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid7">
<img data-uid="tag-KtjLbN-82" id="tag-KtjLbN-82" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qznkz2uu4oa5wicjshd9.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid8">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-KtjLbN-83" id="tag-KtjLbN-83" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/lwo373rbwpfvlkcgh0u0.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid9">
This was cool. A place called “The Sportsman.” At first I thought it was some sort of hipster throw back. I mean, come on, I doubt any place 80 years ago served beer and sold guns. Right? Wrong, this place was on it’s second owner and was keeping it true to it’s origins as a place to grab a cold one, buy some ammo or talk about the recent hunting trip you just finished.
</div>
<div id="uid10">
We had to go in and grab a cold one, we just had to. A guy came in shopping for a gun while we sat at the bar. Another came in to post up a picture of the deer he’d just bagged on the cork board. I liked this place.
</div>
<div id="uid11">
We talked to the owner for a while and he had some old pictures of the building which was first the butcher and then “The Sportsman” thereafter for the last 80 or so years.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid12">
<img data-uid="tag-KtjLbN-84" id="tag-KtjLbN-84" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/es2lyhnqxirck3cki7qa.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid13">
That was a cool stop. We decided to camp not far from the entrance to Yosemite. That was the next big stop, but we didn’t dare camp at high elevation, it was cold enough down low!
</div>
<div id="uid14">
We camped in a campground with something like 50-60 spots. Not one other person was there due to the lake not existing anymore. That’s right, no water, at all. So, as creepy as it was, we camped next to a lake that at one time looks to have been a popular spot.
</div>
<div id="uid15">
There is nothing creepier than having a car slowly idle by in the middle of the night when you know you are the only person in an entire giant campsite. I didn’t sleep great after that and was wishing I was off on some remote road in my Landcruiser. Oh well, at least it was wet! No rain, but everything was soaked, including us.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid16">
<img data-uid="tag-KtjLbN-85" id="tag-KtjLbN-85" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/bfwtysspi9jv1wvzpvz2.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid17">
At least we had plenty of wild Turkey’s to keep us company.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid18">
<img data-uid="tag-KtjLbN-86" id="tag-KtjLbN-86" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/xvtythxeserk2koowf6k.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid19">
<img data-uid="tag-KtjLbN-87" id="tag-KtjLbN-87" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/oojfnfzfh4hyhvloklxe.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid20">
Here we go, what you were scrolling down to see.
</div>
<div id="uid21">
Heading into YO! SEMIGHTY!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid22">
<img data-uid="tag-KtjLbN-88" id="tag-KtjLbN-88" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ypjgfkh8xhxb1u5akht3.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid23">
<img data-uid="tag-KtjLbN-89" id="tag-KtjLbN-89" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/f22qmmp0hwqoiie9kmvy.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid24">
When it’s winter, you’re driving a car that has no problem making heat, and you’re in an empty national park with these views, you drive with the sunroof and all windows open. It’s just something you have to do.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid25">
<img data-uid="tag-KtjLbN-90" id="tag-KtjLbN-90" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/l4pqg1atyazsucv3eg7x.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid26">
<img data-uid="tag-KtjLbN-91" id="tag-KtjLbN-91" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/q2fim9wejc1zkyhihnkp.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid27">
<img data-uid="tag-KtjLbN-92" id="tag-KtjLbN-92" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/mena3hbwgzv938eeclse.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid28">
Well, My neck was getting tired from staring UP.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid29">
<img data-uid="tag-KtjLbN-93" id="tag-KtjLbN-93" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/hpfsfas0aad2v17m1mwy.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid30">
Well, that’s pretty pretty.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid31">
<img data-uid="tag-KtjLbN-94" id="tag-KtjLbN-94" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/om4zjrmlfodlkndmbqu4.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid32">
<img data-uid="tag-KtjLbN-95" id="tag-KtjLbN-95" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/exljiexikza7zpqdf9s1.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid33">
Such an amazing view. I’m used to Yosemite with tons of tour buses and RV’s clogging the roads. It was cold, but it was perfect.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid34">
<img data-uid="tag-KtjLbN-96" id="tag-KtjLbN-96" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/vx3vvx1iu4e7pkhv070h.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid35">
<img data-uid="tag-KtjLbN-97" id="tag-KtjLbN-97" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ktcssglxchkavgj4iow6.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid36">
Next up, the last installment. Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Park and the best roads I’ve ever driven.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid37">
<img data-uid="tag-KtjLbN-98" id="tag-KtjLbN-98" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/mctujczmhoyvkslc0lc6.jpg" />
</div>
SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-79625310172286745912016-01-06T10:35:00.003-07:002016-01-06T10:35:18.832-07:0013 days and 3,410.9 miles *Part IV*<div id="uid1">
It was time to leave the coast. This was tough to do, but it would have been easier if I’d known what roads we’d end up on later.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid2">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-TRjnKg-84" id="tag-TRjnKg-84" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/oijimy90m4vondn6efzl.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid3">
We headed to Medford, OR and from there down to Yreka, CA to visit my Grandpa’s grave.
</div>
<div id="uid4">
Bandon, OR was a cool town and we hated leaving. As we headed inland the whole area was foggy. You can imagine how slick the roads were.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid5">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-TRjnKg-85" id="tag-TRjnKg-85" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/gbcwpbtrfm5pm7hnb5sr.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid6">
There are some massive lumber mills here.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid7">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-TRjnKg-86" id="tag-TRjnKg-86" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/es9lyerqaxjqidikwxlt.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid8">
We took some side roads, but unfortunately we had to do a fair amount of I-5. Snow was moving in and we wanted to get over the pass between Medford, OR and Yreka, CA before it hit.
</div>
<div id="uid9">
Mt. Shasta looked amazing.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid10">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-TRjnKg-87" id="tag-TRjnKg-87" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/nopzn4u3qq61voabuibg.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid11">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-TRjnKg-88" id="tag-TRjnKg-88" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/swlzfq2kwb9brxndh91d.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid12">
We made it to visit Grandpa. He’s still saving a spot of Grandma. At least he has a good view.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid13">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-TRjnKg-89" id="tag-TRjnKg-89" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/dlysi8te7ni1z2mhkxc3.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid14">
<img data-uid="tag-TRjnKg-90" id="tag-TRjnKg-90" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/pmeyulemgakhghyva42w.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid15">
Yep, you sorta have to go in and have a beer at the bar you know your Grandma sung at when she was younger. I wonder if my mom ever snuck into this place?
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid16">
<img data-uid="tag-TRjnKg-91" id="tag-TRjnKg-91" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/adh06ydtbws1f5wud8s5.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid17">
We headed for Redding, CA for the night and in the morning we crossed our fingers and took the lowest pass over the beginning of the Sierra Nevada’s to Susanville and on to Reno. It’s highest point was at about 4,000 feet...
</div>
<div id="uid18">
It started looking like that may be too high...
</div>
<div id="uid19">
Well, it’s not sticking THAT much.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid20">
<img data-uid="tag-TRjnKg-92" id="tag-TRjnKg-92" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/h1z2bpekynxxlnknwkr8.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid21">
<img data-uid="tag-TRjnKg-93" id="tag-TRjnKg-93" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/vpqazizk68lb37uhmwi9.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid22">
Okay, there is slush forming on the road. Come onnnn summer tires, you can do it.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid23">
<img data-uid="tag-TRjnKg-94" id="tag-TRjnKg-94" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/gvumphsc9jipewp8g4hg.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid24">
We made it... to the highest point. I have to grab a photo. Then we can get out of here.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid25">
<img data-uid="tag-TRjnKg-95" id="tag-TRjnKg-95" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/d7wqsnlrvs4fzbije0co.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid26">
<img data-uid="tag-TRjnKg-96" id="tag-TRjnKg-96" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/bih99mz9mnrbimwkwetc.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid27">
We got off of that pass and kept plugging along towards Reno. At another spot we pulled over for some more pics. The sun was shining and the storm had moved to our west. Thankfully.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid28">
<img data-uid="tag-TRjnKg-97" id="tag-TRjnKg-97" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/vimkien2jlzwvz15akaf.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid29">
<img data-uid="tag-TRjnKg-98" id="tag-TRjnKg-98" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/l7ah8iqgn47vouu9aw8y.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid30">
<img data-uid="tag-TRjnKg-99" id="tag-TRjnKg-99" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/alfdgtpadqnmjz3jwudy.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid31">
About the time we thought we were good to go... there was 1 last high spot before Reno I hadn’t taken into account. There were clouds just around the area so we drove in not knowing what to expect. This was one of those “Stereo off” times where you just listen and feel for any slippage or sliding. <br />
Eventually we found a semi and drove in his tracks. There was snow all over, but at least in his tracks it seemed to be a bit slushier and wetter.
</div>
<div id="uid32">
It was hard to see much of anything.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid33">
<img data-uid="tag-TRjnKg-100" id="tag-TRjnKg-100" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/mvqtpy0ucvrvmedrviyx.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid34">
Well, we made it to Reno. I don’t hate Reno, but it’s not great for photos so we’ll just skip that. Once we checked the weather and saw that the storms seemed to be gone we did something mildly stupid. We decided to head for Tahoe. The wife had never been and it showed all sun for the next few days so lets go for it!
</div>
<div id="uid35">
Made it! The road were nice and dry.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid36">
<img data-uid="tag-TRjnKg-101" id="tag-TRjnKg-101" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/hmfjz96jx8cfgphqvzp2.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid37">
<img data-uid="tag-TRjnKg-102" id="tag-TRjnKg-102" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/m14uoodm1oo5hmymerlr.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid38">
Tahoe is one of those places that’s pretty from any angle.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid39">
<img data-uid="tag-TRjnKg-103" id="tag-TRjnKg-103" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/voktxti5prft2rb3p9co.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid40">
We spent the night, not camping, and decided we’d head for Gold Country tomorrow and hit the 49er territory, Yosemite and Sequoia National parks. The best roads were still to come.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid41">
<img data-uid="tag-TRjnKg-104" id="tag-TRjnKg-104" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/wbtyuplr98hue4n6yzb9.jpg" />
</div>
SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-50171999101435411602015-12-31T09:09:00.002-07:002015-12-31T09:09:22.908-07:0013 days and 3,410.9 miles *Part III*<div id="uid1">
So, we headed inland in the pouring rain. After driving through the tree I knew that the 101 was next. I wanted to avoid any major roads so we took a look at the map. “Avenue of Giants.” It sounds like I should know what that is... hmmm. Let’s check it out.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid2">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-91" id="tag-ZZBHc1-91" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/plea555de8apchspaa3c.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid3">
You might want to hit play and listen to this as a background. My car is in no way this loud, but the tone is the same. I love it.
</div>
<br />
<aside class="referenced-wide referenced-fullwidth referenced-editor js_inset tmpl_referencedGroupFullWidth clearfix" contenteditable="false" data-vdom-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-121" id="uid59">
<div class="container position-relative">
<div class="referenced-item referenced-editor-item" data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-121">
<a aria-hidden="true" class="js_skip-inset close" href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=2695775465427147821#"></a><a class="columns small-4 medium-3 referenced-item-image" href="http://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/classic-cars/videos/a27484/listen-to-three-glorious-minutes-of-air-cooled-porsche-911-sounds/" target="_blank"><img src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/c_fill,fl_progressive,g_north,h_77,q_80,w_137/uxqmldyvfxvxiyouv76e.gif" /></a>
<br />
<h6 class="headline">
<a href="http://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/classic-cars/videos/a27484/listen-to-three-glorious-minutes-of-air-cooled-porsche-911-sounds/" target="_blank">Listen to Three Glorious Minutes of Air-Cooled Porsche 911 Sounds</a></h6>
<div class="text small-offset-4 medium-offset-3">
<span class="referenced-item-excerpt hide-for-small">When a car sounds this good, you don't need much else. </span><a class="js_readmore readmore-referenced" href="http://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/classic-cars/videos/a27484/listen-to-three-glorious-minutes-of-air-cooled-porsche-911-sounds/" target="_blank">Read on <span class="hostname">roadandtrack.com</span></a>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</aside>
<br />
<div id="uid5">
I feel like we might be in a fairytale. Given the time of year and the downpour of rain there was no one around! It was amazing.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid6">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-92" id="tag-ZZBHc1-92" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/rcyaoaqo8zpj408jyn5j.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid7">
In some areas it actually looked fake.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid8">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-93" id="tag-ZZBHc1-93" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/mvnmnkaznb6oqwdngxsw.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid9">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-94" id="tag-ZZBHc1-94" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/miqtgb2pyj0xvazp2p8f.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid10">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-95" id="tag-ZZBHc1-95" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/pr4m6qzildm8yvzjeo3e.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid11">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-96" id="tag-ZZBHc1-96" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/bhfkbh5qkiaqaijb5isz.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid12">
Condor looks like an RC car. It was amazing.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid13">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-97" id="tag-ZZBHc1-97" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/v333vg0wfa9ehl10i9cb.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid14">
Gratuitous car shots, thankfully this is a car blog.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid15">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-98" id="tag-ZZBHc1-98" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/wyar36pgs8qxpneu24hw.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid16">
We spent the next couple hours meandering along this road and taking other side roads to avoid much of the 101. We stopped and had lunch at a campground surrounded by these giants with no one else around. That was my favorite moment of the trip so far. Standing under a small park overhang to stay out of the rain. Surrounded by giant redwoods. No sounds except for rain. No one except for her. Condor sitting there happily, almost looking proud of himself for how far he’d come... I dumped in another quart of oil and we headed back to the coast and Eureka.
</div>
<div id="uid17">
I like California, obviously, but it was nice to get to Oregon! This was now all new road to me and I couldn’t wait to see what it looked like.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid18">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-99" id="tag-ZZBHc1-99" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/kfwlvq2contkow7c3ryc.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid19">
It did not disappoint!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid20">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-100" id="tag-ZZBHc1-100" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/b6mxr3io0osh2qk2cqph.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid21">
Sneaker waves are like landsharks. Never let them in.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid22">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-101" id="tag-ZZBHc1-101" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/es0ck91840qwsb5ctz1d.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid23">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-102" id="tag-ZZBHc1-102" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/psnb2edrix5rhpiovasf.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid24">
How would you like to live at this light house. Yikes.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid25">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-103" id="tag-ZZBHc1-103" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/hms8s3duqlogzepryc1i.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid26">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-104" id="tag-ZZBHc1-104" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/orl7hiovolvwp7qwjpra.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid27">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-105" id="tag-ZZBHc1-105" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/wjv2ikorrt6dhbrokrnp.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid28">
As you drive along it’s startling how rugged the coastline is up here. Treacherous for any ships, that’s for sure.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid29">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-106" id="tag-ZZBHc1-106" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ksdbc59psne0sj4ucqrj.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid30">
We found a local brewery on a side road and decided to stop.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid31">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-107" id="tag-ZZBHc1-107" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/uczzgcdc4nrxl0iefecd.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid32">
The tasters were good! It’s a very small brewery and it’s so remote that they said none of the bottling or canning companies would travel all the way to them. So, they sell it in keg or growler form only.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid33">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-108" id="tag-ZZBHc1-108" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ma8k7m3ckcbcrhxlqi5j.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid34">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-109" id="tag-ZZBHc1-109" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/jktmyjiawpwpgjqvjjeg.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid35">
So after the short tour and explanation of how it all works, I need to start home brewing, we asked him where a good place to eat is.
</div>
<div id="uid36">
“Well, there’s just one place in town and we’re going there for dinner so I’d recommend it!”
</div>
<div id="uid37">
Haha!
</div>
<div id="uid38">
Who would think that this little shack called the Hunter Creek Bar and Grill would be the best meal of the trip??
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid39">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-110" id="tag-ZZBHc1-110" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/tv5mnl5t304dqfs91x05.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid40">
It was. Nothing fancy, but it was fresh, delicious and dirt cheap. We both looked at the bill and realized it was about half of what a really bad burger and fries had cost us at our last stop in California. Welcome to Oregon prices. WOOHOO!
</div>
<div id="uid41">
So, we continued putting up the coast. On a small “scenic” sideroad we saw this. Simple, but it looked clean and it was on the beach so we decided to check it out.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid42">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-111" id="tag-ZZBHc1-111" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/wuafzflb3f6ozqqvavaw.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid43">
Perfect, we have our home for the night!
</div>
<div id="uid44">
The beach is empty, as we’ve gotten used to. It looks like a painting. Thankfully the wife is a great photog!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid45">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-112" id="tag-ZZBHc1-112" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/zlajrfdznqs8vg6sgknf.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid46">
Pretty amazing.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid47">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-113" id="tag-ZZBHc1-113" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/l48d2f7k7ri2al3j1grf.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid48">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-114" id="tag-ZZBHc1-114" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/lb1qt05qzale8c077lql.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid49">
Hiding from the wind.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid50">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-115" id="tag-ZZBHc1-115" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/t6a8z1hfzureqxx1jwyg.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid51">
Picturing this big of a tree on the beach blows my mind. How long ago was it here? Looks like it was saw cut. hmmm.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid52">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-116" id="tag-ZZBHc1-116" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/k2nb1bqg4dgxtec99z2h.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid53">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-117" id="tag-ZZBHc1-117" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/koun09lmpqzrezca5wt0.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid54">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-118" id="tag-ZZBHc1-118" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/siqggd780mimtqfr8jqn.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid55">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-119" id="tag-ZZBHc1-119" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/o9pjmmifymvpf7vugrxe.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid56">
Bandon, Oregon. Go there, it’s rad.
</div>
<div id="uid57">
Next up, we dodge some storms..... What could go wrong???
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid58">
<img data-uid="tag-ZZBHc1-120" id="tag-ZZBHc1-120" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/rnjoyfqu6lmadcgokqj8.jpg" /></div>
SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-83406228361233435142015-12-30T08:44:00.000-07:002015-12-30T08:44:12.725-07:0013 days and 3,410.9 miles *Part II*<div id="uid1">
Good morning!
</div>
<div id="uid2">
What a view.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid3">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-94" id="tag-LSjkcw-94" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/dvbz4eqzl3mq8bbalxgz.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid4">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-95" id="tag-LSjkcw-95" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qtut5mxjfkrm30vj0b8z.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid5">
The road looks nice and empty. Perfect.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid6">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-96" id="tag-LSjkcw-96" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ftz9n7rntk84ra6vlvly.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid7">
Let’s go.
</div>
<div id="uid8">
There is something about driving in the morning. The silence, the light, the shadows, the engine noise, windows down, the lack of other traffic. It’s sublime.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid9">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-97" id="tag-LSjkcw-97" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/onts3yhqwt5gnzugfsuz.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid10">
Not long after starting we passed this Navy Communications base on a small rock outcropping. What a chunk of real estate to have a base. Wow.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid11">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-98" id="tag-LSjkcw-98" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/o0sn8ypivsihiwz3n3yl.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid12">
Yah, the road ahead looks pretty good.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid13">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-99" id="tag-LSjkcw-99" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qfkhr87svohs2c6ixwea.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid14">
Mrs. Lyndon Johnson must have owned a Porsche 356. Nice work “Lady Bird.”
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid15">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-100" id="tag-LSjkcw-100" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/gzggtt8imoqc2yg8gx66.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid16">
You can’t drive PCH and not get a photo of Bixby bridge. I stop every time I’m here. In fact, as I was taking this picture a flatbed tow truck with a rental car on the back stopped and a guy jumped out! He ran over, took a pic of the bridge and got back into the tow truck. See, I told you you COULD NOT do this road without a pic of the bridge.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid17">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-101" id="tag-LSjkcw-101" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/zxybbqxuiwtf5i5pidxs.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid18">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-102" id="tag-LSjkcw-102" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/imfsmtncagtgcpivjoc9.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid19">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-103" id="tag-LSjkcw-103" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/upnbwogtlzx9lsw5tbba.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid20">
There were quite a few of these lighthouses along PCH. We didn’t realize at the time, but most of them are Hostel’s now. Someone later told us that this one has private rooms you can rent and one had a hot tub along the cliff. WHAT?! Next time.... next time.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid21">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-104" id="tag-LSjkcw-104" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/arws3hmlolhdjfpmfjqv.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid22">
The tower with the “whale blubber” processing house down in front. It’s gone from being lit from whale blubber, to kerosene and now to electricity.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid23">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-105" id="tag-LSjkcw-105" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/d74cxygtqahhgbhmpywh.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid24">
We spent the night near Half Moon bay. No camping was open so we spent the night in an especially bad hotel. Roaches, holes in the wall, good times... Oh well, we’re cheap and most of the funds had been spent on the car and marriage stuff so we were fine with it.<br />
The next morning we hit up San Francisco. We did lombard street and have a lot of it on video (Video will come later, I need to edit it).
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid25">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-106" id="tag-LSjkcw-106" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/r2ykzxjbooya8p2ki3bf.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid26">
Primarily being “offroaders” we like SF, but wanted to get away from people so off we went! We got back to PCH and it was amazing. Quite a perfect section!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid27">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-107" id="tag-LSjkcw-107" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/y56sob8oeqejchxqzfx9.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid28">
Eventually, we found a place to camp within some trees.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid29">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-108" id="tag-LSjkcw-108" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ggmho5tkhcc2na3v3qrv.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid30">
We watched a Hawk dive bomb some quail unsuccessfully.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid31">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-109" id="tag-LSjkcw-109" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/jd5ikt5orhfolc4em7qw.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid32">
Then we grabbed a beer and headed for the beach.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid33">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-110" id="tag-LSjkcw-110" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/mbkscau5payrlwzjkzzz.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid34">
Oh deer! Time for my impersonation of the great white hunter.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid35">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-111" id="tag-LSjkcw-111" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/yiudkifjbuknjoa1hydc.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid36">
Come here! Give me a hug!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid37">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-112" id="tag-LSjkcw-112" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/jpvsspd4ampuufuxfrtb.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid38">
Okay, they left. It was a trip seeing deer on the beach. That doesn’t happen to often in Southern California.
</div>
<div id="uid39">
Another deserted beach. Perfect.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid40">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-113" id="tag-LSjkcw-113" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/lj1azxq6hrif2dntjiva.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid41">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-114" id="tag-LSjkcw-114" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ytmiyeg9vlbvmcrkfurd.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid42">
The next morning we woke up early because the winds were whipping the tent around. Within 5 minutes of loading the car up the sky opened up! It didn’t stop raining until the next day.
</div>
<div id="uid43">
Goodbye Pacific Ocean, for now.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid44">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-115" id="tag-LSjkcw-115" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/zatazhywcdossccxc5mj.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid45">
This looks fun! I’ve done this road on a motorcycle, but in the wet with a cover of fallen leaves... hmmm
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid46">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-116" id="tag-LSjkcw-116" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/j5rnqlok1bvn21jmfgto.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid47">
After feeling a little slippage I took it down a notch.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid48">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-117" id="tag-LSjkcw-117" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/myhjenz769jodtmlftqj.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid49">
This is a great road.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid50">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-118" id="tag-LSjkcw-118" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/mtyfiiy597sgmkdim7sg.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid51">
Pee break!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid52">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-119" id="tag-LSjkcw-119" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/tka5gbvw007vxu0b77gj.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid53">
As I was with my former car with Michelin Pilot Sports, I am impressed with these.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid54">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-120" id="tag-LSjkcw-120" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/dxap1vchk6yzskkkatwq.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid55">
What’s that? A tree to drive through for $5. Okay!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid56">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-121" id="tag-LSjkcw-121" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/wxdsjd6v93z22w7zziyl.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid57">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-122" id="tag-LSjkcw-122" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/exmuw3s2bojllinufux5.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid58">
A landrover Series II behind us? Yes, I’ll have to get a pic of that.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid59">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-123" id="tag-LSjkcw-123" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/flaa86f4hheckxpbxivo.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid60">
Turns out the trucks name is Winston. He is being driven from Seattle down through Norcal.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid61">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-124" id="tag-LSjkcw-124" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/gcdnkcuvfbcoaxeh5j2f.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid62">
Not quite gonna make it! Maybe with a soft top and 5PSI....
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid63">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-125" id="tag-LSjkcw-125" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/kgxdwbs86csxgg8tidyz.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid64">
Up next, more trees, more roads, more rain, more Condor.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid65">
<img data-uid="tag-LSjkcw-126" id="tag-LSjkcw-126" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/akhjipswrdfadskrop7s.jpg" /></div>
SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-3830823393886102212015-12-29T10:56:00.002-07:002015-12-29T10:56:56.531-07:0013 days and 3,410.9 miles *Part I*<div id="uid1">
“Hey Honey, let’s go drive Pacific Coast Highway and camp out of our car for the Honeymoon?” “Sure”She said .... wait! What?
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid2">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-96" id="tag-2ZvnjA-96" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/iowyq50hnpm3rhkjzktg.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid3">
In case you didn’t read about my frivolous decision to buy my lifelong dream car to use as a daily driver and get it back into reliable-ish shape, check this out:
</div>
<br />
<aside class="referenced-wide referenced-fullwidth referenced-editor js_inset tmpl_referencedGroupFullWidth clearfix" contenteditable="false" data-vdom-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-131" id="uid72">
<div class="container position-relative">
<div class="referenced-item referenced-editor-item" data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-131">
<a aria-hidden="true" class="js_skip-inset close" href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=2695775465427147821#"></a><a class="columns small-4 medium-3 referenced-item-image" href="http://hu-.kinja.com/dare-meet-your-heros-part-i-1726640498" target="_blank"><img src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/c_fill,fl_progressive,g_north,h_77,q_80,w_137/1443528253358004877.jpg" /></a>
<br />
<h6 class="headline">
<a href="http://hu-.kinja.com/dare-meet-your-heros-part-i-1726640498" target="_blank">Dare meet your heroes? Part I.</a></h6>
<div class="text small-offset-4 medium-offset-3">
<span class="referenced-item-excerpt hide-for-small">This is a story about my decision to go for it by selling my practical modern car and buy my dream… </span><a class="js_readmore readmore-referenced" href="http://hu-.kinja.com/dare-meet-your-heros-part-i-1726640498" target="_blank">Read on <span class="hostname">hu-.kinja.com</span></a>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</aside>
<br />
<div id="uid5">
There are many more nights and afternoons spent working on the car, but most of it is little stuff. I don’t think anyone wants to read about a couple hours installing engine mounts or re-greasing wheel bearings.
</div>
<div id="uid6">
So.... the day before Thanksgiving we cleaned up the car and headed out. The drive tomorrow would be the longest single drive we’ve made in “Condor.”
</div>
<div id="uid7">
He was all cleaned up and ready to go...
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid8">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-97" id="tag-2ZvnjA-97" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/hngijo2keweexy6ufnrq.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid9">
The frunk was loaded as it could get. Tent, sleeping bags, sleeping pad, clothes, Micro-start battery, mini air compressor, tool kit, hiking shoes, camelbacks, books, toilet paper, cooking stove/french press, extra oil/brakefluid/blinkerfluid, and a furry hat as a gift to my Goddaughter. I think we’re good!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid10">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-98" id="tag-2ZvnjA-98" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ja7x8ogrocwqdslurmzg.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid11">
I’m sorry Condor, but this is the cleanest you’ll be for a long time...
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid12">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-99" id="tag-2ZvnjA-99" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/xjijp9dvmxc8hnan8oqe.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid13">
And we’re off! The first day was about 390 miles of highway. It went great! No issues!
</div>
<div id="uid14">
California, where you drive in the fast lane and jump into the slow lane to pass. That’s okay,even left lane bandits couldn’t get me down. “I’M ON VACATION!”
</div>
<br />
<aside class="embed-inset" contenteditable="false" data-vdom-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-132" id="uid73"><a class="inset-skip inset-source" data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-132" href="https://youtu.be/CEf_VEXOTSw?t=10s" id="tag-2ZvnjA-132" style="display: none;" x-embed="1">https://youtu.be/CEf_VEXOTSw?t=10s</a><kinja-sandbox class="wysiwyg-embed flex-video widescreen" contenteditable="false" data-inset-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-132" data-vdom-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-132" id="youtube-video-CEf_VEXOTSw" x-loaded="1"><a aria-hidden="true" class="js_remove-embed remove" href="javascript:;">×</a>
<iframe allowfullscreen="true" data-original-url="https://youtu.be/CEf_VEXOTSw?t=10s" frameborder="0" height="450" src="/ajax/inset/iframe?id=youtube-video-CEf_VEXOTSw&start=10s" width="636"></iframe>
</kinja-sandbox></aside>
<br />
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid16">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-100" id="tag-2ZvnjA-100" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/futdgdsthhtqhz1tncpg.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid17">
After the family day we hit the road. What luck, my parents live about 5 miles from the actual beginning of Pacific Coast Highway!
</div>
<div id="uid18">
The obligatory “Smile for a picture!” by my mom. I promise I will keep selfies to a minimum.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid19">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-101" id="tag-2ZvnjA-101" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/b9ctlw41uwemr0zovyk2.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid20">
Here it is, the beginning in San Clemente/Capo Beach.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid21">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-102" id="tag-2ZvnjA-102" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/bn3rpo0aiztdjsyc6bo8.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid22">
After some fun cruising we finally hit our first section of beach with no homes around. Malibu!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid23">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-103" id="tag-2ZvnjA-103" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ktmkb0joque2xkhmccca.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid24">
Traffic was light and we were just enjoying cruising along. Eventually we pulled into Santa Barbara and headed for the beach.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid25">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-104" id="tag-2ZvnjA-104" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/whs9hp7ddf0n37ykuxms.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid26">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-105" id="tag-2ZvnjA-105" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/xroga7yyk7b1egg1uank.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid27">
Not a bad “Day 1.”
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid28">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-106" id="tag-2ZvnjA-106" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/sbsskv4wpstdm9qkoq3v.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid29">
In an effort to cool our heels and temper our normal GO GO GO style of driving we stayed in Santa Barbara for 2 nights. It nearly killed me, but it had the effect of making us slow down. We walked almost 9 miles around town stopping at different breweries just checking out the best of SB.
</div>
<div id="uid30">
Wife“You can have the complimentary wine if I can have the complimentary chocolate covered Strawberries.”
</div>
<div id="uid31">
Me “I’ll take that deal every time.”<br />
<br />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid32">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-107" id="tag-2ZvnjA-107" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/wd4we9bakxbfeq3usz1b.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid33">
Ok, enough sitting still. Let’s get to some remote areas and away from hotels.
</div>
<div id="uid34">
Just over the hill from SB is Cold Spring Tavern. It was a stop along the old wagon route. Very cool place with a lot of history.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid35">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-108" id="tag-2ZvnjA-108" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/j438w8r9pirkupyvqzc2.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid36">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-109" id="tag-2ZvnjA-109" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/joxseccyzqdgyvv1cmag.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid37">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-110" id="tag-2ZvnjA-110" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ofy4tzovfxrwnyndptad.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid38">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-111" id="tag-2ZvnjA-111" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ehfqdjxy5znxgefq8l9p.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid39">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-112" id="tag-2ZvnjA-112" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/f6bffveifudf60xxbtq1.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid40">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-113" id="tag-2ZvnjA-113" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/np6hrqw64yx5g3qshkn0.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid41">
Okay, enough history, let’s make tracks. We headed back to Highway 1 after a brief detour through some mountains. We stopped at Avila beach and I added the first quart of oil. We were about 900 miles in so it was expected. So far, so good.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid42">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-114" id="tag-2ZvnjA-114" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/udaiz2m6fxeup6lwdqn9.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid43">
Not a bad spot.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid44">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-115" id="tag-2ZvnjA-115" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/hcy4qt4s0tg9xsffbhkb.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid45">
The next stop, for lunch, was this beach not far from Hearst Castle. (We wanted to see Hearst Castle since it had been many years since the last time, but the lines of people were enough to make us want to leave... Next time!)
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid46">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-116" id="tag-2ZvnjA-116" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/gpqvfyjhvfokcvndgrll.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid47">
Good spot for lunch!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid48">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-117" id="tag-2ZvnjA-117" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/k31qztbpz36yx3bqa561.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid49">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-118" id="tag-2ZvnjA-118" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/nqzalnpougkmrm6vhmfg.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid50">
Next up we stopped to gawk at the Sea Lions.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid51">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-119" id="tag-2ZvnjA-119" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/glt0ed0irum1iaobd0oc.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid52">
I still felt like this from Thanksgiving!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid53">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-120" id="tag-2ZvnjA-120" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/nah6g1gfaba9cagrld0r.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid54">
The section just after was amazing. It’s at this point in the trip we realized we’d said “WOW!” so many times we just sounded like idiots, even to ourselves.
</div>
<div id="uid55">
Still... WOW!
</div>
<div id="uid56">
Driving this car along a winding road was magic. It was the first car that I didn’t feel the need to speed in to have fun. (Not that I didn’t at times, but I didn’t feel the need to) The character of the car was enjoyable at any speed. The feel of the road in your hands, the grumble of the engine, the view from the tall upright front windshield all made you want to just sit back and be in the moment. NO OTHER THOUGHTS... Just... NOW.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid57">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-121" id="tag-2ZvnjA-121" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/txm4dqfpctfl469ib5zq.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid58">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-122" id="tag-2ZvnjA-122" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/rihuo4qvie7f48v5yjtf.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid59">
This spot was at an overlook of PCH and the ocean. No one around. Perfect campsite!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid60">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-123" id="tag-2ZvnjA-123" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/oaeazplih3hy55gbyrjn.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid61">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-124" id="tag-2ZvnjA-124" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/bgqf1i6tbkhop4he5b6q.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid62">
Time to sit and enjoy the view with a cold frosty beverage.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid63">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-125" id="tag-2ZvnjA-125" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s19d0q4usrb87mi1qhzh.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid64">
Our seats worked perfectly in the frunk.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid65">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-126" id="tag-2ZvnjA-126" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/aqmopwel8zcijoxtzgoj.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid66">
Simple, but effective.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid67">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-127" id="tag-2ZvnjA-127" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/strkvllgk45sajjlleij.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid68">
Good night!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid69">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-128" id="tag-2ZvnjA-128" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/z5s87chhbokljxuowii3.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid70">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-129" id="tag-2ZvnjA-129" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qkculzqt0zwo0d16sw5n.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid71">
<img data-uid="tag-2ZvnjA-130" id="tag-2ZvnjA-130" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/cfpzxhw3kug7tiideclq.jpg" />
</div>
SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-346327900298067862015-11-05T15:29:00.002-07:002015-11-05T15:29:57.880-07:00Exploring the White Mountains<div id="uid1">
You’d think after Overland Expo East that I would want to spend a weekend at home relaxing. You’d think, but you’d be wrong. Overland Expo is fun, but in a different sense. A very hard working, people everywhere sense.
</div>
<div id="uid2">
<br />
</div>
<br />
<aside class="embed-inset" contenteditable="false" data-vdom-uid="tag-AykNbb-108" id="uid57"><br /></aside>
<br />
<div id="uid4">
For a loner and someone who enjoys seldom used roads and quiet nights OVEX tires me out to an extreme level.<br />
I enjoy solitude, exploring, getting lost and finding dead ends. I love seeing all of my friends and smiling strangers at OVEX, but I long to getaway. I long for quiet and adventure. That’s why the week after OVEX East this year I was stir crazy. I was dreaming about quitting my office job and hitting the road. Some weeks I almost feel natural sitting in my office working away. Almost, but never fully. The week after OVEX I felt like someone who woke up one day with no memory how to be the person you are. I went into work and thought “How do I do this again. How do I pretend to be a business person successfully? I can’t remember right now...”
</div>
<div id="uid5">
I needed to get away. So, on Friday night K and I headed out. We just wanted to explore some new dirt roads, get a bit lost and see what we found.
</div>
<div id="uid6">
We hit dirt at Mt. Ord. The front road to this smallish mountain takes you up over 5,500 feet in elevation which was enough to feel some cool air, but something was still not right. The road, it was too nice. We saw a couple other trucks parked and camping so we had to go further. On the backside was a smaller disused track I’d heard about. The back way down the mountain to an old mine.
</div>
<div id="uid7">
After crossing some wash outs that would eat up a small SUV we started to feel better. My heart rate slows when I hit dirt, even more so when I find a remote road with no tire tracks.
</div>
<div id="uid8">
Camp on night 1.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid9">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-AykNbb-85" id="tag-AykNbb-85" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/noosvv6rae0z0iilfwh7.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid10">
When you get to camp after sunset you never really know what you’re going to wake up to. I’ve woken up 50 yards from someones house in Baja before. It’s amazing what you can’t see or don’t expect to, at night.
</div>
<div id="uid11">
Thankfully, we woke up to a great view and solitude.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid12">
<img data-uid="tag-AykNbb-86" id="tag-AykNbb-86" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/mxdt2fpg0cw07t8ese0t.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid13">
Part of the joy of sleeping inside you vehicle with the doors open is that you instantly are in your surroundings. No zippers, flaps or other visual barriers to see the outside world. You open your eyes and are greeted to your view of TODAY.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid14">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-AykNbb-87" id="tag-AykNbb-87" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/slzbmnl0jjhkfmrktohb.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid15">
After some eggs and bacon (you have to have bacon camping!) we headed further down the ever degrading back road. We stopped on one of the many washouts and water bars to grab a couple photos of Goose doing his thing.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid16">
<img data-uid="tag-AykNbb-88" id="tag-AykNbb-88" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/gljq1wt0tnqvs3k7jurn.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid17">
<img data-uid="tag-AykNbb-89" id="tag-AykNbb-89" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/rjsmfs1j2po1ktbrbgck.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-large" id="uid18">
<img data-uid="tag-AykNbb-90" id="tag-AykNbb-90" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/xisxdns3jj6i6jjq0vtv.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid19">
We ran into some hunters at the bottom of the road on quads. “Where are you guys coming from? Where does this road go to?” Those are the kind of questions I like to hear because it means that a road is still fairly unknown if hunters don’t know about it. <br />
After hitting tarmac we headed up to Payson, AZ and then right back to dirt on a little backroad I know to bypass the town. Up and up we climbed until we were on the Mogollon Rim. (What we call this part of the edge of the giant Colorado Plateau)
</div>
<div id="uid20">
Not a bad view along Forest Road 300. (The “Rim Road”)
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid21">
<img data-uid="tag-AykNbb-91" id="tag-AykNbb-91" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/x8th4gfohw9ws9exhxsy.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid22">
Everyone who enjoys adventure should get a minor in geology. So many amazing formations in the world:
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid23">
<img data-uid="tag-AykNbb-92" id="tag-AykNbb-92" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/pwjrqdbvwfxzafqwg9va.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid24">
<img data-uid="tag-AykNbb-93" id="tag-AykNbb-93" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/xhfwz2isp1vjk4bfbhvd.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid25">
The busier area beneath the rim was smokey with camp fires.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid26">
<img data-uid="tag-AykNbb-94" id="tag-AykNbb-94" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/nkgusgi3snl57lg8gguc.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid27">
The road ahead skirts this edge.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid28">
<img data-uid="tag-AykNbb-95" id="tag-AykNbb-95" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/bqdjxi72ibjoku0ihbs5.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid29">
The closer you look at vistas the more you want to get out there and explore it. Hike canyons and find cliff dwellings.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid30">
<img data-uid="tag-AykNbb-96" id="tag-AykNbb-96" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ynmzgqneye1pflnr1xti.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid31">
<img data-uid="tag-AykNbb-97" id="tag-AykNbb-97" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/wlrbvormdhm2ebi1kokp.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid32">
We got to Woods Canyon Lake which has paved roads, “campsites” etc. It’s just about the last place I like to be, but thanks to a mountain bike ride I did with a local many years ago I knew that the trail leading to the backside of the lake was always nice and quiet. There was also some nesting Bald Eagles over there. So, we did a little jog around the lake stopping for a beer and sandwich mid run.
</div>
<div id="uid33">
(Danger: Cell Phone Photos ahead.)
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid34">
<img data-uid="tag-AykNbb-98" id="tag-AykNbb-98" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/pplo4zahgr9miu0ozzcq.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid35">
<img data-uid="tag-AykNbb-99" id="tag-AykNbb-99" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/xuxu2kmbe4idgncjf9ho.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid36">
No bald eagles this time, so we escaped the crowded parking lot of the lake and started to explore some seldom used trails. We ended up near Apache Reservation where the road had waist high grass. That is a great sign that we’re on our kind of road. No one had been here in a while!
</div>
<div id="uid37">
We took a side road that looked a little more used and ran into a local rancher with 10, yes ten, dogs following him. Nice fella, but wow that’s a lot of dogs. One of them had been attacked by a Javalina (A Peccary <a class="inset-skip" href="https://azgfdportal.az.gov/hunting/species/biggame/javelina">https://azgfdportal.az.gov/hunting/species/biggame/javelina</a> )
</div>
<div id="uid38">
They are fearless mean little suckers. The dog was cut wide open, but as you do when you live on a ranch, you take care of it yourself. The injured dog had staples holding it together and looked as happy as can be. The dog was more concerned with joining his brothers running behind the UTV, but was relegated to sit in the front seat.
</div>
<div id="uid39">
Oddly, he didn’t have any sort of map so we showed him the trails and let him know which ones go through and which dead ends we’d hit. We filled their water bottles and headed out on our way.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid40">
<img data-uid="tag-AykNbb-100" id="tag-AykNbb-100" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/wzscsua1u4jhalty2xid.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid41">
Food? Do you have food?
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid42">
<img data-uid="tag-AykNbb-101" id="tag-AykNbb-101" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/cvenqrq28fu73gyp2qva.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid43">
Let’s see, here’s another dead end.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid44">
<img data-uid="tag-AykNbb-102" id="tag-AykNbb-102" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/m85gxph3tabaioqpye7j.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid45">
And another...
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid46">
<img data-uid="tag-AykNbb-103" id="tag-AykNbb-103" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/cnewmqojmpvtsahnlkmt.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid47">
Eventually after doing a full loop on one trail we finally found an old track that would take us south, towards Phoenix. The goal was to get onto a trail that would meander without any permanent dead ends until we reached Phoenix. After putting along we found a very faint side trail and made camp.
</div>
<div id="uid48">
Right next to what we decided to call Hood Ornament Tree.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid49">
<img data-uid="tag-AykNbb-104" id="tag-AykNbb-104" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/c9dhqjke6wdcwn4ygptx.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid50">
Simple pleasures. :-)
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid51">
<img data-uid="tag-AykNbb-105" id="tag-AykNbb-105" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/pmpznumrwiltvt2kkwii.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid52">
We sat around the fire and talked. The quiet was so absolute that I knew I had found what I was looking for. It’s like hitting the reset button on stress.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid53">
<img data-uid="tag-AykNbb-106" id="tag-AykNbb-106" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/yzpklnlukmt9vh98niy4.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid54">
The following morning we woke up and started making breakfast, yes more eggs, bacon and green chile! As we were cooking we heard a UTV come speeding along. It drove up to within 20 feet of our camp and 2 hunters got out and started gearing up to go hunting. I stood there in front of my truck staring at them, wondering how long it would take them to see us. Eventually one looked over and his eyes grew big. He waved, they got back into the UTV and reversed very quickly running over some branches and almost running into a tree. We could hear the engine speed off down the forest road and then it was back to silence for breakfast.
</div>
<div id="uid55">
We enjoyed driving the back road and seeing new views around every corner. Slowly descending into the desert. Eventually we started seeing signs of human development again and we begrudgingly admitted to ourselves that the trip was over. It was exactly what we needed to make it through another week, but we’d need another dose soon.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid56">
<img data-uid="tag-AykNbb-107" id="tag-AykNbb-107" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/iamw7vob0usenlroo83c.jpg" />
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SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-58744943561235638542015-11-05T15:28:00.003-07:002015-11-05T15:28:54.109-07:00Wandering the Southwest... Part III<div id="uid1">
<em><strong>“This is really one of those all or nothing jobs.”</strong></em> Badump bump.
</div>
<div id="uid2">
(Pictured: <a class="inset-skip" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nothing,_Arizona">Nothing, AZ</a>)
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid3">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-105" id="tag-9U7Odm-105" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qenorjbkxjzhr0flmre5.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid4">
The next area I was headed to was Wikieup. If you know the name it’s because you’ve driven from Phoenix to Vegas or vice versa. It’s a fuel stop and not much else along a pretty stretch of road in AZ.<br />
</div>
<div id="uid5">
<em><strong>BLM Guy: “Don’t go up that road too far or you’ll run into the Militia’s land. They even have a Blackhawk helicopter. These guys don’t mess around.” </strong></em>
</div>
<div id="uid6">
So, this should be fun. I’ll bring some fresh baked cookies or something for my new neighbors, it will be fine.
</div>
<div id="uid7">
This time we’d be living in a trailer park again. I much preferred to stay out remotely, but when you need as much fuel, supplies, Wifi contact with home office and team planning as we did you had to stay in touch a bit.
</div>
<div id="uid8">
In this area we put up signs and mapped some more. The terrain was refreshingly different that the flat and dry area around Yuma.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid9">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-106" id="tag-9U7Odm-106" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/pe87y9prun2upc0irhf9.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid10">
You see some staggering elements of scale in nature. In this case, a man made one. The entire white mountain you see is just a small part of the tailings from the copper mine in <a class="inset-skip" href="http://www.desertusa.com/desert-arizona/bagdad-arizona.html">Bagdad, AZ</a>.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid11">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-107" id="tag-9U7Odm-107" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ymrmdryaypgtosxjg2wm.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid12">
This area doesn’t actually see a lot of tourist action. Meaning, on holiday weekends droves of giant RV trailers with Jeeps, Quads and dirt bikes DON’T show up. Surprising then, that there are so many hundreds of miles of perfect trails. Now, shhh, don’t tell anyone. I ran these small sand canyons for hours. When you’re mapping I’ve said it’s tedious, but once in a while you find that perfect road. This one was it!
</div>
<div id="uid13">
It was always in a wash so no changes to the data there, it was the same width so no changes there, we hadn’t been given the GPS Camera’s yet so there was no reason to stop for pictures and so as long as I knew where I was and needed to map I could have a little fun.
</div>
<div id="uid14">
:-D So I did.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid15">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-108" id="tag-9U7Odm-108" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/igf2q62n1hfaqyuxhmcm.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid16">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-109" id="tag-9U7Odm-109" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/lxuqc81q4tqvnm59sm73.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid17">
I kept driving until it spit me out at the aforementioned Nothing, AZ.
</div>
<div id="uid18">
Yes, this sign is very very accurate.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid19">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-110" id="tag-9U7Odm-110" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/je53rkv97vg2glod3wc3.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid20">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-111" id="tag-9U7Odm-111" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/wmcryjgybkyt5lbdjcbq.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid21">
Well, we spent some time mapping, pounding in signs and enjoying the outdoors for a few days. Eventually I had to sign a few trails right up to a large white square on the map, which designates private land (“The Militia’s” as the BLM guy called it). Off I went to the area I’d been warned about. I learned after doing this job that even someone like a Park Ranger, BLM person or Game and Fish person rarely know what their talking about as far as what’s down a road, how long it takes or what dangers there might be, but you still have to assume there is some truth to it, so I proceeded with caution.
</div>
<div id="uid22">
Once I got to within a mile of the land I came to an intersection. East was the private land, I’d come in from the Northwest, and I was headed Southwest back out. Each road needed a sign. The odd part was that there was a brand new white Dodge dually sitting next to the road to the east. Two guys were sitting there, doing nothing, but watching me. I pounded in one sign, then two, and then three. I was tempted to bring them some cookies, but I chose not to.
</div>
<div id="uid23">
As I drove southwest down a seldom used road I wondered if it would take 5 minutes of 5 seconds for all of those signs to be pulled out of the ground after I left. I never did end up back at that quiet trail intersection, but I wondered for a while. Years later I found out that the largest Machine Gun Shoot gathering happens each year out there. I don’t know anything about the group, but they are hardly the secretive group I’d been told about at the time. In fact, I think I’ll go this year.
</div>
<h3 id="uid24">
<strong><em>(Record screeching).....</em></strong></h3>
<div id="uid25">
As is fairly normal with this job, we were told to leave Wikieup. We would return and have some adventures there another day, but for now, we were off.
</div>
<div id="uid26">
It was winter so in true Government tradition we were headed to the mountains and a place called Pleasant Valley. It was home to the bloodiest conflict in AZ history, the <a class="inset-skip" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pleasant_Valley_War">Pleasant Valley War.</a> It’s a beautiful area with a bit of a creepy history. (There are a lot of more accurate books on the feud, but an entertaining read is the book called “To The Last Man” by Zane Grey. Arizona can feel like a small town sometimes as I know folks who’s relatives were part of the posse who ended the war as well as one friends that’s even a Tewksbury)
</div>
<div id="uid27">
You’d see occasional graves scattered related to the feud/war.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid28">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-112" id="tag-9U7Odm-112" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/bfctzwqzueh0wqjc3pwi.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid29">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-113" id="tag-9U7Odm-113" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/v4me7jcbedef3qdwqppu.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid30">
This time we were living it up in a Forest Service Cabin. (By cabin, they often mean “An old mobile home that we put Wildland Firefighters in.”) Hey, it was still better than sleeping under a “shoe tree” in Salome.
</div>
<div id="uid31">
So, here we were. Thus began the motorcycle portion of my mapping career, in the mountains, in the beginning of winter, with no truck/heater to surround me. Perfect!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid32">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-114" id="tag-9U7Odm-114" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/zw4kbbfalnetpnd53u8n.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid33">
Yes, it was:
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid34">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-115" id="tag-9U7Odm-115" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/hh0vxknacux1bpmenfgl.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid35">
Each morning we’d let everything warm up for a while before heading out. The only problem was that the cold would kill my battery each morning so I’d kick and kick to bring the KTM to life. There were some long mornings!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid36">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-116" id="tag-9U7Odm-116" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qludeiyk48kjwesnakez.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid37">
We would ride at fairly high speeds on graded dirt roads to get to the area we needed to map. I can’t describe how cold this was. Only that you couldn’t actually open your hands once you got there. They were frozen in the curled position around the handlebars while you sat, letting the engine heat warm you up a bit. Still, the views were worth it.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid38">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-117" id="tag-9U7Odm-117" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/zncxwdr4qaz7ln54nzzq.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid39">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-118" id="tag-9U7Odm-118" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ld0hwdux94dvxb9o9glh.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid40">
We saw Wild Turkey, Elk, Deer, Bobcats, Coyote and although saw Bear tracks, I was happy not to see one.
</div>
<div id="uid41">
Poor pictures, but that’s a Turkey.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid42">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-119" id="tag-9U7Odm-119" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/gskijabzvmd7btphvhty.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid43">
My goodness I was bad with the camera back then, but this is the last in a heard of about 14 Elk we saw.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid44">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-120" id="tag-9U7Odm-120" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/fnzu3x6johey1fyzquls.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid45">
Mule Deer
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid46">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-121" id="tag-9U7Odm-121" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/uguv4zagsgwesfewjbni.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid47">
Grip warmers, grip warmers would have been nice!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid48">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-122" id="tag-9U7Odm-122" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/yjpyyikmcvdqsjuj4sky.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid49">
The views around the area of Young and Pleasant Valley were some of my favorites from the years of mapping. It was nice to fall into being a part of the community that had no paved roads in our out of town. Isolated in the mountains. Fridays were pizza night at Antler’s Bar where you had to pre-order your pizza earlier in the week because someone had to go and get enough to make them! Saturdays were steak night at Alice’s and again, you’d better reserve a steak or they would all be spoken for. I loved this small town communal approach to life. We all did.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid50">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-123" id="tag-9U7Odm-123" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/tdqaqv7ndd0xdi6sn1en.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid51">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-124" id="tag-9U7Odm-124" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ykmzwsuedmyvm2gmkxdv.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid52">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-125" id="tag-9U7Odm-125" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/kf7rfzkloxxs72b66bpa.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid53">
Another lesson I learned from the guys while working here was this: “Everyone get’s an icecream. Not everyone gets one everyday, but everyone get’s an icecream eventually.” <br />
What the hell did that mean? Basically, that everyone get’s a gimme or treat. Well, after a few days freezing I was able to jump back in the truck for a few days and soon after I snapped the top of my Old Man Emu shock off while mapping.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid54">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-126" id="tag-9U7Odm-126" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/vgo3ozimagcgcorath60.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid55">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-127" id="tag-9U7Odm-127" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/st4qycq2stbb5ljyijwi.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid56">
So, the guys told me it was my icecream day. Go to Phoenix, grab a new shock, check your mail, say hello to your girlfriend and then come back tomorrow night. We’ll cover for you.
</div>
<div id="uid57">
And that’s how it worked. We all worked our tails off, but on occasion, for some unforeseen reason, everyone would eventually get an icecream.
</div>
<div id="uid58">
Speaking of working in the truck again. Here was the basic setup.<br />
</div>
<div id="uid59">
Company Spot, Personal Spot, Satellite Radio, Car Radio, Ham Radio, (not to mention the unpictured Gvt GPS and maps, and Lulu, the hula dancer, all a critical part of mapping.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid60">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-128" id="tag-9U7Odm-128" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/pshiwgsxbahcg9bm0jow.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid61">
After driving down a trail so tight that it flipped both my mirrors back, then it even started to pull off what was left of my fender flares. It was terrible to listen to, but this was work so I just turned up the music and kept driving. Finally I came to this old cabin with a mine at the back of it.<br />
Some old prospector lived and worked all in the same small spot.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid62">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-129" id="tag-9U7Odm-129" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qtsvlrren6bie3rzeafr.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid63">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-130" id="tag-9U7Odm-130" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/su0y6ly2iqsmqphp2t5m.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid64">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-131" id="tag-9U7Odm-131" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/dugprmg1wfb61z4abc1e.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid65">
You know it’s remote when glass is still intact.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid66">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-132" id="tag-9U7Odm-132" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/q0m5hmxe6fy2wqkggfhi.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid67">
At your back door, the office.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid68">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-133" id="tag-9U7Odm-133" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/cwbd5ym0zhkwfnypfa7o.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid69">
Shoes boxes as walls.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid70">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-134" id="tag-9U7Odm-134" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/rrwqd212jo4ifan0srg8.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid71">
The birds and rats had been living here for a while, but it was still in remarkably good condition.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid72">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-135" id="tag-9U7Odm-135" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/icxm6uwplpzm9sphj6xe.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid73">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-136" id="tag-9U7Odm-136" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/opn7bclcwfqwoedvpg6a.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid74">
Stove, ready to go.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid75">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-137" id="tag-9U7Odm-137" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/wm0cslh2zfjeb6olydkz.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid76">
I would sometimes wonder how many fence gates I’d opened and closed. Was it hundreds or thousands?
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid77">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-138" id="tag-9U7Odm-138" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/wd7qwgrjm8konhadyopv.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid78">
One day I found this sketchy old road leading down to a watering hole. It was a tight fit with the fallen rocks along the uphill side, but it was worth it.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid79">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-139" id="tag-9U7Odm-139" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/vfikhals4wqu7vurp9pe.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid80">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-140" id="tag-9U7Odm-140" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/idzrzp1evxpwqzlpdaph.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid81">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-141" id="tag-9U7Odm-141" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/nqtnmhbmks9xbc3eqpyu.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid82">
That was one of my favorite lunch spots. I’ve never seen another person here and each time I’m hard pressed on remembering how to get back!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid83">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-142" id="tag-9U7Odm-142" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/f7fk8oe58cm2cmtaubug.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid84">
There are some large ranches up here as well. It’s always nice to see horses roaming free. Que the Rollings Stones “Wild, wild horses....”
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid85">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-143" id="tag-9U7Odm-143" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ihcx90sefecq8csbaktr.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid86">
The most common man made thing you see are roundup corrals. They are all over and most look like they fell out of use 50 or 60 years ago.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid87">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-144" id="tag-9U7Odm-144" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qvuby9fejl7mwtueira6.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid88">
Here’s is a one way door, still in use.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid89">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-145" id="tag-9U7Odm-145" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ocpydv5a8cvkix9zcyjt.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid90">
Of course, lots of sporadic cattle to go with them. These couple are hanging out in the shade of some Alligator Juniper.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid91">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-146" id="tag-9U7Odm-146" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/wychjhluswwk2zz44fmy.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid92">
Thanks for tagging along while I relive these “good ol days.”
</div>
<div id="uid93">
Next time we head into an interesting area to map. <strong><em>“Don’t breath in the dust and don’t stop very long and you should be fine”</em> </strong>they said...
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid94">
<img data-uid="tag-9U7Odm-147" id="tag-9U7Odm-147" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/d6qzp7hztmnywdkedvfl.jpg" />
</div>
SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-21908567503226014642015-11-05T15:28:00.000-07:002015-11-05T15:28:06.934-07:00Wandering the Southwest... Part II<div id="uid1">
“You’re expected back at the Crazy Horse Trailer Park in Kanab, UT by this Friday.”
</div>
<div id="uid2">
Does that mean I get the job? I guess so.
</div>
<div id="uid3">
Ah yes, home sweet home next to a cemetery. Nice!
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid4">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-98" id="tag-17znnF-98" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/rzjy1sho28wdmnn2tfka.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid5">
Time to head back with my own truck and start mapping alone. We’d always check in via radios. Having a HAM radio license was a prerequisite. We also used an early version of the now popular Spot GPS device. In the early days the company was so new that the CEO would return a call if we had an issue or question about the device they were so small... not so much anymore.
</div>
<div id="uid6">
Jake Brakes Denied? :-( (For all of you non-trucker types <a class="inset-skip" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compression_release_engine_brake">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compression_release_engine_brake</a>)
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid7">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-99" id="tag-17znnF-99" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/gdf791zavvdxr6xawceh.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid8">
Yah, SOAZ, because SoCAl sucks. Not really, but after moving to AZ from California I got tired of everyone worshiping CA. I wanted the folks in AZ to take pride in their awesome state. So, as a joke I started using the word So Az for Southern Arizona. It stuck so I went with it.
</div>
<div id="uid9">
You come across a lot of interesting things while mapping. The amount of mental notes you start to take get out of hand. (Remember to find out what the town remains you came across were called. Find out who settled this are. etc etc)
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid10">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-100" id="tag-17znnF-100" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/dauihipthwfsdomurcaw.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid11">
Wait, what? Oh, okay.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid12">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-17znnF-101" id="tag-17znnF-101" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/uqmlndjvmbgsp5kni8rn.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid13">
Don’t burst into flames out here. The fire department won’t be there for a while...
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid14">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-102" id="tag-17znnF-102" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/xmyrepeosuo7qazn6crh.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid15">
You’re damn right I stopped to get a T-Shirt from here.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid16">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-103" id="tag-17znnF-103" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/miajqqy9hr6qmw9yg3sw.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid17">
The next few weeks of work went well. I worked hard to prove to the guys that I could be trusted. After all, there are no checks and balances during the day. If you screw around, you’ll get away with it, so you really have to just trust that everyone on the team will work hard. Over time, those that don’t are weeded out. I didn’t want to be that guy. Some days you get 100 miles mapped, other days you get 5 and we all knew that there was no reason to question it. It just means you had a hell of a tough day.
</div>
<div id="uid18">
<em>-One thing did stand out during my time on the North Rim. One day, as a treat, the BLM arranged for us to spend the night in a Government owned cabin up in the pines. They gave us a key and so we headed out to use our day off from offroading.... you know, offroading some more. We got to the cabin and realized very quickly that the key they gave us in St. George was NOT the correct key. This cabin, like many Gvt owned buildings, had a large fence around it with many scary keep out signs mentioning the FBI and the boogeyman will get you if you don’t. We however, knew, that we were allowed to be there.</em>
</div>
<div id="uid19">
<em>So, we hopped the fence and I found an unlocked window. We’re in! We got a fire going in the outside firepit and began to relax. This cabin was amazing. It had so many rooms that it could have slept about 30-40 people so it felt empty even with the 6 of us there. All of a sudden I hear some commotion... Apparently Forest Ranger _______ was at the entrance with her gun pulled on one of us. Huh?? She was sure we’d all broken in and she had caught us red handed. No amount of explaining can make someone believe the unlikely. “Yes, we’re supposed to be here. Yes, we parked out here because this key didn’t work, yes we hopped the fence. No, we have no proof that any of this is true.”</em>
</div>
<div id="uid20">
<em>It all got a bit tense as she was looking through our trucks. We wondered if she was going to get more... jumpy when she realized we all had a sidearm or two in our trucks. That wouldn’t help the situation. Just when she was ready to start cuffing folks a small white truck with a BLM insignia came whizzing around the corner and slid to a stop. “Hey, I’m Carl from the St. George office. We gave you guys the wrong key!!” (no shit...) In one moment and with one sentence all of the tension evaporated and we sat around the fire with the Park Ranger drinking beers. Phew! That took a turn for the better. </em>
</div>
<div id="uid21">
A common saying within our group was, “don’t wake up dead.” It seemed to almost be foreshadowing sometimes. Although morbid, I loved the little sayings of the folks I worked with. I don’t know how half of them came about, but we all know what they mean. To this day I sometimes get an email simply giving a date on the calendar and ARE YOU IN, OR OUT? You just have to respond and be up for whatever is happening on that date... OR not.
</div>
<div id="uid22">
The time working out by yourself went slow, but also fast. I know that makes no sense, but one day you were thinking the that time had stopped and the next you were leaving an area never to return.
</div>
<div id="uid23">
We moved on to an area not far from Phoenix next. This area of desert is explored by drug runners, but not many others. It’s actually beautiful in the right season. I’m thankful that this job pushed me into areas I would not have seen otherwise.
</div>
<div id="uid24">
Sometimes we’d pound in signs. Hence the orange piece of metal.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid25">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-104" id="tag-17znnF-104" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/nj0farnuxwj1pa7dghwb.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid26">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-105" id="tag-17znnF-105" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/vfpcdlcnag7jk5zvgwj6.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid27">
Areas that seem barren start to show signs of previous inhabitants the more you explore.
</div>
<div id="uid28">
1800’s era ranchers building dams or feed tanks to capture the occasional monsoon rains.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid29">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-106" id="tag-17znnF-106" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ylipypuifkdejg28yvyh.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid30">
Rocks covered in ancient petroglyphs.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid31">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-107" id="tag-17znnF-107" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/g6wpma3cjfldltuxfasc.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid32">
So much graffiti! Thank goodness it was old, from hundreds of years ago. I stared at these rocks for a while. They tell a lot, but I’m just not sure what they’re saying.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid33">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-108" id="tag-17znnF-108" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/p1zkjrtakdgvajox4qpf.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid34">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-109" id="tag-17znnF-109" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/bacoc5czljl2oqwbq2kk.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid35">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-110" id="tag-17znnF-110" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/oa4vd2429gowqilfaf4n.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid36">
Old adobe homesteads.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid37">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-111" id="tag-17znnF-111" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/w42oxokero49zclsscqc.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid38">
As is the nature of this job, you had good days and bad days. You had good home base campsites and not so good ones. Here I was, out in the desert in a mostly deserted town, living in a tent under the shoe tree. What kind of a place do you think this one was....?
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid39">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-112" id="tag-17znnF-112" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/julrogdq86h3kzdbd54a.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid40">
Still, even a bad campsite, has a better view than being inside.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid41">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-113" id="tag-17znnF-113" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/rwntlihgsbiqyweukrzx.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid42">
The trails were sometimes easy and sometimes you needed lockers and sliders.<br />
Fresh sign for the trail ahead:
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid43">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-114" id="tag-17znnF-114" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/beofwzqi4hdefjyy0rdx.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid44">
Nice lonely trail in a wash.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid45">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-115" id="tag-17znnF-115" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/xj1si1n9nhzrescgpbwr.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid46">
I came across a strange looking section of freight train cars. They looked somewhat abandoned in the desert. They hadn’t moved in a while. It turns out that most of them were car haulers. Some were even these old car haulers developed to ship cars vertically.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid47">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-116" id="tag-17znnF-116" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/xpqcgy8kmhecgqp77giq.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid48">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-117" id="tag-17znnF-117" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ynpj3h0p9pboylsqhteb.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid49">
Are there desert deer? Yep! Mule Deer and Cous White Tail.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid50">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-118" id="tag-17znnF-118" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/twmztr5lktud9lwipcch.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid51">
After a week out in beautiful Salome, AZ we moved again. Some of the group went one direction and three of us headed to Dateland, AZ. Go ahead... look it up. I’ll wait... Yep, nothingness outside of Yuma. There is a gas station and a place to buy dates and date shakes. Welcome to your new home Tim!
</div>
<div id="uid52">
I slept by the train tracks and would wake up 3 or 4 times a night for the freight trains to rumble by. It was oddly quiet there between trains. Almost hauntingly beautiful. It actually opened up my eyes to give the ugly places, the middle of nowhere places a chance.
</div>
<div id="uid53">
Home sweet home was about 50 yards to the right of this shot.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid54">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-119" id="tag-17znnF-119" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/auec1gctod2zm34eflqb.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid55">
“Good evening, happy midnight, it’s 3am, good morning!” Said the train, every damn day.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid56">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-120" id="tag-17znnF-120" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/wm5iimrcmh6mclhnruet.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid57">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-121" id="tag-17znnF-121" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/e2hgaxo4hg4gt5qeupab.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid58">
The closest thing to a sky line in Dateland.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid59">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-122" id="tag-17znnF-122" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/mzmsikpp3b5pvyluj9dq.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid60">
Still, the sunsets were amazing.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid61">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-123" id="tag-17znnF-123" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/pz1hxtoxgu3ta62s9fdw.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid62">
One morning we even saw this odd fellow. He was riding his bike backwards across the US. Why? I don’t think he knew, but he was sure the government was watching him. Okay then.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid63">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-124" id="tag-17znnF-124" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/pqljebxrnivpdr0s1svx.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid64">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-125" id="tag-17znnF-125" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/l1klhp45xz6wfkv5m3ir.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid65">
When we first started in Dateland the Border Patrol advised us to be armed and check in often on the radio. How reassuring.
</div>
<div id="uid66">
The terrain out here went from the softest to the hardest. Silt to lava rock. Our tires paid dearly in sidewalls.
</div>
<div id="uid67">
Soft
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid68">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-126" id="tag-17znnF-126" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qkuc1mbjqnhztbl9snze.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid69">
Hard and sharp.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid70">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-127" id="tag-17znnF-127" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/wntfqwppypl4xbvf3kl8.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid71">
Don’t stray too far...
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid72">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-128" id="tag-17znnF-128" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qlfjlzvbvt5fn8z80qbc.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid73">
Big VS Small
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid74">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-129" id="tag-17znnF-129" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/kuaj483qqm9ra1cmtgbh.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid75">
Somewhere in this pic is “Stretch” my coworkers LJ Jeep Rubicon. When you caught site of a friend/coworker it felt good. You felt a little less alone, a little less at risk.
</div>
<div id="uid76">
Also, thank god for Satellite Radio. I have no idea how I would have lasted without it.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid77">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-130" id="tag-17znnF-130" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/j8wkr5ftvkyypsafmpqg.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid78">
Some didn’t make it.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid79">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-131" id="tag-17znnF-131" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/zwdn72hnd7c4dbzcegeo.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid80">
Doing this job made me rack my brain trying to remember details from my Geology classes in college. So much neat layering and stratigraphy in the world, so little time.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid81">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-132" id="tag-17znnF-132" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/gcxuobgmnwsrjbqqslaa.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid82">
We finished out our mapping in the hottest flattest bits of AZ about the time summer was ending and it was starting to cool down. One thing is for sure, if you leave it up to the government you’ll go to the coldest places in winter and the hottest in summer, because GVT...
</div>
<div id="uid83">
Thankfully, we were headed to Wikieup next which was a bit cooler and had some occasional water.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid84">
<img data-uid="tag-17znnF-133" id="tag-17znnF-133" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/bptmp2mpjdm7myvzc6dh.jpg" /></div>
SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-82508579092665581122015-11-05T15:26:00.003-07:002015-11-05T15:28:17.708-07:00Wandering the Southwest... PART I<div id="uid1">
Dateland, Bagdad, Young, Fredonia, Salton Sea, Salome, Wikieup, and Nothing, AZ. These are just a few of the places I called home while mapping the southwest.
</div>
<div id="uid2">
I’d live out of a tent and my truck. If we were lucky, we’d stay in a forest service cabin which was generally just a doublewide trailer. Getting up each morning to put on either motorcycle gear or jeans and a cowboy hat depending on the type of mapping for that day.
</div>
<div id="uid3">
These were long days. We’d be out in the “work area” by 8am to start catching some trails. How early we got moving depended on whether the work area was 15 minutes or over an hour away. There were days we road through some of the best trails around to get to the work area with giant smiles on our faces. Hitting jumps on the way to the first trail. There were also days we were huddled over our motorcycles driving down a straight paved road in below freezing temps. Alternating our hands onto the case of the engine just to keep them warm enough to move.
</div>
<div id="uid4">
It was a great and terrible job, but looking back you forget the rough times and the minimal money. You just remember the sights, the adventure and the guys who you became best friends with.
</div>
<div id="uid5">
In fact, one of those friends is marrying me next month...
</div>
<div id="uid6">
The first job I showed up at was for the Arizona Strip. Would you believe it’s actually really hard to find people to do this work? It’s not hard to get people to SAY they want to do this work or even show up for a weekend, but it’s almost impossible to find people to do it and do it well.
</div>
<div id="uid7">
You’re not cruising along offroading. You are sometimes stopping every 10 feet to log in yet another cattle guard, or water tank, or rare plant the Gvt wants recorded, or a game trail, or a side trail etc etc. It can be very tedious. Also, many of these trails have been logged in previously so you don’t want to double record. That means that via looking at GPS and paper maps you need to calculate your position within feet. We tried to start and stop mapping EXACTLY where it was needed as a point of pride.
</div>
<div id="uid8">
First home, Kanab, Utah trailer park.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid9">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-89" id="tag-Rj3XcS-89" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/imxvepwtkcytjvjtwkrg.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid10">
Here we go into the unknown.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid11">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-90" id="tag-Rj3XcS-90" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/fdh1mhuoxgfu0jxgeu6t.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid12">
This trail ends... right... here.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid13">
<img data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-91" id="tag-Rj3XcS-91" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/m5rzoljvi4poudkrxpoz.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid14">
This is Buck. Dennis owned him and was teaching me how to do this job before I would head out on my own. We all stay in contact via HAM radios. It’s nice to reach out and check in with a teammate even if they are 50 or more miles away.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid15">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-92" id="tag-Rj3XcS-92" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/yhu02vhab5puj45g51kj.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid16">
A lot of these trails are so slight that you have to squat down and just look for 2 tracks via the slightly different height of the brush and plants growing. Others, like this one have giant spiders hanging out on them, but are otherwise easy to see.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid17">
<img data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-93" id="tag-Rj3XcS-93" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qpemreavngdcv5k7u5cj.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid18">
Dennis, checking out the road ahead.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-small" id="uid19">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-94" id="tag-Rj3XcS-94" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/j6ate6bykyrh7lc4inxu.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid20">
The best part about this job is that you aren’t driving roads that are in any book or even on most maps. They are just there. Created by a rancher or a miner a long time ago. Mostly forgotten except by a few wandering souls. I still love finding these roads. <br />
Sure, I love the MUST SEE named trails that are in 4x4 books or websites, but these roads are still where I feel at home. You never know what you’re going to discover.
</div>
<div id="uid21">
We’ve found old mining shacks still stocked with old canned food and clothing, we’ve found springs or waterfalls, we’ve come across bones, we’ve found connecting roads from one part of the state to another. Heck, one time we even found a toilet cemented to the top of a hill with a great view in all directions, but that’s a story for another day.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid22">
<img data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-95" id="tag-Rj3XcS-95" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/bow9fmdqv5nha00twbzz.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid23">
You could go nuts with photos doing this job, but once you settle in you set the camera down and just enjoy life. You keep the sights and sounds for yourself and no one else.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid24">
<img data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-96" id="tag-Rj3XcS-96" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/jlojblqo97rivqxnkked.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid25">
By the end of the 10 plus hour day you are exhausted. Exhausted from staring at maps that are generally 4 feet by 4 feet. (Many of them because they are in great detail) You’re tired from walking ahead to see if the trail continues. You’re tired from bouncing along a dirt road. You’re tired, but you’re happy and satisfied.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid26">
<img data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-97" id="tag-Rj3XcS-97" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ymftqaqcqaniiibppeou.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid27">
Jeremy and I headed out together a few days later. He was doing a little supplemental work while working for Overland Journal to make ends meet.
</div>
<div id="uid28">
The head of R2D2 on the hood is the old GVT Gps’s we used to use.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid29">
<img data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-98" id="tag-Rj3XcS-98" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/nengleicwo5smikmka4d.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid30">
<img data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-99" id="tag-Rj3XcS-99" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/n0fw4ofszxabi22yx36i.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid31">
<img data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-100" id="tag-Rj3XcS-100" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/fa1lerjsmk9pftulon3r.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid32">
Some of these trails would end right on a hill. We all got very good and backing down and UP hills. You can’t always turn around.
</div>
<div id="uid33">
A big factor with this work was vehicle reliability and maintenance. When you are offroading 10 hours a day, every day you break things that no one else does. I often recommend trucks without the electronically engaging 4wd. Sometimes, the foremost offroader in a group will say “I offroad the most of anyone I know and I’ve never broken it. So it’s fine.” I’m sure that’s true, but after a month of doing this work we’d break things that you’d never even think about wearing out. And then again, and again and again.
</div>
<div id="uid34">
Keep It Simple Stupid, became the model for our trucks. Anything not needed was discarded and anything temperamental or electronic was replaced with a manual or mechanical alternative.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid35">
<img data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-101" id="tag-Rj3XcS-101" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/twngknyjy6la8ewtcbvv.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid36">
On the way home we stopped for a photo from Fredonia’s Finest. ;-)
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid37">
<img data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-102" id="tag-Rj3XcS-102" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/fsbhssl5krc0pdddqy1y.jpg" />
</div>
<div id="uid38">
We lovingly referred to these at dinosaur poop. Geologists, we are not.
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid39">
<img data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-103" id="tag-Rj3XcS-103" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/pdky9l0imlf1tygxuuly.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid40">
<img data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-104" id="tag-Rj3XcS-104" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qe8nxi4y3uf8ocff4f7a.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid41">
<img data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-105" id="tag-Rj3XcS-105" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/efbi2173azb5fo8lisso.jpg" />
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<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid42">
<img data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-106" id="tag-Rj3XcS-106" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/gbk22l7cfsotkl62vzpf.jpg" />
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<div id="uid43">
Old road grater.
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<img data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-107" id="tag-Rj3XcS-107" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ethca94d8cidmyj8xjkg.jpg" />
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<img data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-108" id="tag-Rj3XcS-108" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/unrgyh8idwgzn9qre5g3.jpg" />
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Day off? Let’s go to the Grand Canyon for an afternoon.
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<img data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-109" id="tag-Rj3XcS-109" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/gzyykbrwwx9hsdflfokz.jpg" />
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<div id="uid48">
A few product photos for the magazine. Sure, why not.
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<img data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-110" id="tag-Rj3XcS-110" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/t303jvd3uzwsxnovgij2.jpg" />
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<img data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-111" id="tag-Rj3XcS-111" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/hcpx7qxmp69bz84mid2a.jpg" />
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Yah, we sorta wished we were down there.
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<img data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-112" id="tag-Rj3XcS-112" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qsped6mqnshaategboix.jpg" />
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<div id="uid53">
Some more of the team. The good part was that we’d hit these “busy” places mid week usually so there wouldn’t be another soul around.
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<img data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-113" id="tag-Rj3XcS-113" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/zztyyqoabqybalzlvzyd.jpg" />
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<div id="uid55">
A real restroom? This was a luxury to us! Woohoo!
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<img data-uid="tag-Rj3XcS-114" id="tag-Rj3XcS-114" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ny522gmpaeq8mufzof1g.jpg" />
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<div id="uid57">
So, that was the first week, of many, doing what I did for a living.
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I’ll share more as the stories come back to me.
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SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-11844150309128592902015-11-05T15:25:00.003-07:002015-11-05T15:25:41.059-07:00Dare to meet your heroes??<div class="has-image media-medium">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-88" id="tag-Apt1Og-88" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ni2ihs8yjwehhhatlzft.jpg" />
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This is a story about my decision to go for it by selling my practical modern car and buy my dream car.
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<em><strong>Where does the line between daring and stupid lie?</strong></em> I’m not sure, but I’m sure I could tell you in 20 or so years looking back on this decision. Hindsight is 20/20 and all that Bullshit.
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Here I am, with the perfect vehicle setup for me: An old, but well maintained Landcruiser for the offroad trips I so love. A nice and reliable, fun as hell, good MPG Subaru BRZ for everything else. What more could a guy want? I’d spent many years driving a $4,000 Corolla saving for the fun car, the BRZ. I had finally bought it about a year and a half ago. I honestly felt guilty that I finally had such an amazing setup! There was just one nagging thing. I didn’t LOVE the BRZ. I loved driving it and in every sense it was perfect for what I wanted. It checked all the right <strike>boxers</strike> boxes.
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Sure, she was a nice girl. She was perfect really. I couldn’t complain about anything. The BRZ was the choice that Mom and Dad are proud you made, but it just didn’t do it for me. It didn’t get me going... I needed something more...
<br />
For me, it started when I was a little kid. Seeing the bad guys drive Porsche 911’s or watching road racing on Speedvision TV I was captivated. I love the simple, no frills way of the 911. I loved that it was different than every other car on the track. Different and maybe wrong. Engine in the back, parts more related to a VW Beetle than any supercar. It looked like a friendly, simple little car coming at you and then looked and sounded like the devil from the back as it drove away.
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I blame it on Condorman, the horrible Disney movie. I was a little kid when it came out and I was obsessed with the black 911’s and 935 racing around in the movie.
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-89" id="tag-Apt1Og-89" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/wqkqsjco8u5xrxeozy41.jpg" />
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Let me just reiterate. This movie was HORRIBLE. Is there a thing as C movies? I don’t know, but I loved it.
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-90" id="tag-Apt1Og-90" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/x7uvkoiyv1gmukabxq0e.jpg" />
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As bad of a movie as it was, I guess I can just be happy I was excited about the cars and not the leather jumpsuits. Life could have taken a bit of a turn there...
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-91" id="tag-Apt1Og-91" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/txxyiapfolssgj9zl5vw.jpg" />
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I was a bit obsessed, but alas, I live a practical life so cars like this I’m content to relinquish to day dreams and far off thoughts. Those cars are for rich guys and folks with a trust fund. After all, I had it good, how dare I want for more. After being laid off and broke once in my 30’s, I’d worked a lot to get back on my feet. No time to get greedy.
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The BRZ. “Zed.”
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-92" id="tag-Apt1Og-92" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ilwqgl3eu03hwzzg4vbu.jpg" />
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-93" id="tag-Apt1Og-93" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/epycddo3drezsewwshdp.jpg" />
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Until this one day...
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A buddy of mine that I race mountain bikes with was leading a ride from his house. There I was, ho hum, are we ready to leave and then <strong>hoeleeshiteisthata911inyourgarageyoujustbecamemybestfriend!</strong> I helped him out a couple times with his 4runner fixing things. I’d like to think I’d help him regardless since I help other friends, but I honestly was hoping he’d offer up the 911 for a few hours as payment. Sure enough, one day, he did. I drove it around for a night and had the most amazing experience. I wanted it. I wanted it more than anything. It was the car version of my Landcruiser. It was so simple and overbuilt. The smell of oil, leather and germany (or at least that’s what I’m calling it) It had that certain something. It got me going... It was the girl you don’t tell mom and dad about, but I wanted to make it legal anyway.
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-94" id="tag-Apt1Og-94" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/kuovuxnkpl4esbcqjmw6.jpg" />
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Fast forward about a year and he mentions that he might sell it. My first response was, NO. I just got engaged and we’ll need the money and a nice and reliable car for us so the BRZ will be fine for now.
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<em>Enter the fiance: “Why don’t you go for it?” </em>
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<em>Me: “Exsqueeze me?!”</em>
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<em>Her: “Yah, you have no other debt, you save your pennies and work hard. You have no kids, why not? Now’s the time to do it. You say that this will be your forever car and prices are going up. Plus, we could take the honeymoon in it.”</em>
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<em>Me: “Hmmm, that would be amazing. Maybe I’ll just run a carfax and take it for a PPI.” (Pre-Purchase Inspection)</em><br />
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I was still thinking it was a silly idea I shouldn’t go forward with, but then the math just kept making sense. Not a LOT of sense mind you, but some. I could almost perfectly swap out my modern, reliable, warrantied Subaru for a 30 year old Porsche with non-working AC as my primary car... in Phoenix, AZ.... in summer.... during a heat wave where it was 117...
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<strong>Look, I said it made some sense, not a ton of it.</strong>
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Yep, I see no issues. Let’s move forward. I put the BRZ up for sale and heard... nothing. Not a peep. Not an email. No calls. I was debating going to Carfax or a dealership and seeing what paltry offer they would give me. Then one day the internets woke up and I received 4 or 5 calls. A gent in his 40’s came buy and offered cash. I countered and we agreed. It was sold. <strike>HolyshitwhatdidIjustdoI’msorryZed</strike>. That was actually a sad car to let go of. It was just so damn fun. Onward...
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So, I buy the 911, sell the BRZ. That all went smoothly enough. Now I’ve spent almost every night with a break here and there working on the car. The list is too immense, but here are some of the items I can remember:
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<strong><em>New braided Brake lines, flushed brake fluid, bled clutch, raised ride height through reindexing the torsion bars (3 times to get the right height because I stoopid), removed Catalytic Converter and replaced with test pipe (Cat-bypass since old cat was plugged up), Plugs, Wires, Cap, Rotor, Adjusted all the Valves, Plastidipped the wheel centers back to their original black color, Scotchbrited the outter lip of the wheels back to a flat finish, installed a fire extinguisher and mount in front of drivers seat, replaced all fuel lines, fuel filter, air filter, oil change, new door seal, door sills, wipers, new battery, strut bar, waxed it 5 times so far (the paint is good from 20 feet, but not closer. It’s ROUGH), New Hood Struts so it stays up, new sound/heat shield in engine bay, new exhaust tip (old one was ground at a 45 degree from the car being so LOW.<strike> STANCED BRO!)</strike>, Drain refill diff/trans, install new working speakers using factory covers so it looks oem, Fix driver door lock so I can lock the car!, replace heater control knob, remove original floor mats and install some decent rubber mats, remove bumperettes on rear bumper, install cool air intake for oil cooler on front bumper, new brighter head lights and fog lights, new Michelin Pilot Super Sports and an alignment. </em></strong><br />
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Phew, I hope you skipped through that boring list, but needless to say it’s been a busy few weeks. It’s also been the most rewarding in a long time. I’ve never, besides the Landcruiser, fixed a part on a car only to think “Ah, good, so that’s good to go for another 15 to 30 years.” Its so different than replacing a part that you know you’ll have to replace again in 30,000 miles. It’s so much more rewarding! Every single thing I improve on the car, I feel like it’s permanent. It’s remarkably easy to work on and there is better access to the engine than I would have thought! Of course the online resources are thorough and literally anything I could want to do to the car has a step by step guide.
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The parts aren’t even very expensive?
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<strong>Genuine Porsche Oil Filter = $13.75 vs. </strong><strong>Genuine Ferrari Oil Filter = $85.00</strong>
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<strong>Maintanence kit for Porsche = $163.50 vs </strong>
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<strong>Maintenance kit for a Ferrari 355 = $1,697</strong>
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<ul>
<li><small><strong>Oil Filter</strong></small></li>
<li><small><strong>Air Filter</strong></small></li>
<li><small><strong>Fuel Filter</strong></small></li>
<li><small><strong>Valve Cover Gaskets</strong></small></li>
<li><small><strong>Oil Drain plug gasket</strong></small></li>
<li><small><strong>Spark plugs</strong></small></li>
<li><small><strong>Distributor Cap</strong></small></li>
<li><small><strong>Distributor Rotor</strong></small></li>
</ul>
<small><strong><br />
</strong></small>
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<small>So far the most “exclusive” part has been a door seal that cost $165. I thought that was a bit much, but on the door seals everyone says go Porsche genuine and not Bosch or Uro. </small>
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<small>I don’t have a fancy workshop, a lift or fancy tools. Hell, I don’t even have walls on the sides of my garage. I think they call these carports....</small>
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<div class="has-image media-medium">
<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-95" id="tag-Apt1Og-95" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/m5ufb0jy5zvkly1qqvxj.jpg" />The work in process. Not a single job was done without my Fiance by my side helping and handing me tools. Yah, I’m a lucky guy. Yah, she chose poooorly...
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-96" id="tag-Apt1Og-96" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/rfajly8kxmm17wrvabza.jpg" />
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-97" id="tag-Apt1Og-97" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/swmihy59xr6fpetab5dr.jpg" />
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-98" id="tag-Apt1Og-98" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/h4pplxqz1blossda0p6v.jpg" />
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Old battery, new battery. Of course the old boat anchor died on my on third day of ownership....
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-99" id="tag-Apt1Og-99" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/qs1uh786tnf4gxmkrjtv.jpg" />
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I can’t accurately describe the feeling of working on a car in a carport, in Phoenix, in summer. It’s a unique kind of hell. It has been a particularly rough couple of weeks ranging from 105 which equates to: F-in hot, I am drinking a glass of water every 15 minutes to stay conscious!
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All the way up to 117 (I may snap and start punching people because I’m hot angry and disoriented... rrrrrrhkjlgha;siuhnfueiacuineywbyuawe23io56!)
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-100" id="tag-Apt1Og-100" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/xy7rje0nqrfm5tle6amf.jpg" />
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-101" id="tag-Apt1Og-101" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/uu2p83hjaniiwsip7uuc.jpg" />
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I did have some extra parts left over...
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-102" id="tag-Apt1Og-102" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/wkjkkgci9qu21qxwrf0n.jpg" />
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She can’t be scared of dirt or grease and be married to me.
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-103" id="tag-Apt1Og-103" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/n8ukazuext1t0bipeucs.jpg" />
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-104" id="tag-Apt1Og-104" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/szy1hzhh5dcidkrqfmlu.jpg" />
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So, after all that, here is how it sits. Meet<em><strong> “Condor.”</strong></em>
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-105" id="tag-Apt1Og-105" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/kp3sjqfpjqskuinbuhey.jpg" />
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-106" id="tag-Apt1Og-106" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/iavalatbuvcakkvaklfo.jpg" />
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<h3>
Will it bike? </h3>
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-107" id="tag-Apt1Og-107" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/bnhgdf0xqw8lojcnqqrh.jpg" />
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-108" id="tag-Apt1Og-108" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/onvhqcvblnxstu9fsovm.jpg" />
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-109" id="tag-Apt1Og-109" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/aknbswoytr35onqy6isf.jpg" />
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Will it Costco?<br />
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-110" id="tag-Apt1Og-110" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s9xmgcdieqsabvsdjfku.jpg" />
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Will it overland??
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-111" id="tag-Apt1Og-111" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/rxlzmpxupokrkgmi94vg.jpg" />
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-112" id="tag-Apt1Og-112" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ushxvsmvyjwu4g71zvwg.jpg" />
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Hmmm, I think I’ll keep it on the easier dirt roads for now...
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I could... , but should I? YES. Yes, I should and I will. We’ll be taking a several thousand mile trip in it for our honeymoon. Hopping from hotels to camping and back again as we make our way up Pacific Coast Highway from bottom to top!
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Stay tuned.
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<img class="img-border" data-uid="tag-Apt1Og-113" id="tag-Apt1Og-113" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/e5epi5gggg5lypxj4vd1.jpg" />
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Porsche 911 aircooled vw bug dreamcar carrera 3.2 g50 gertrag impactbumper flatsix flat boxer brz subaru
SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-10280131800689861412015-11-05T15:14:00.003-07:002015-11-05T15:24:25.508-07:00"Going Plaid..." My first ride in a Trophy Truck<div class="has-image media-medium" id="uid1">
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The truck in action:
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<div id="uid6">
So, there I was minding my own business getting all too little work done and browsing Jalopnik when I got an email from a friend. His Uncle was getting too old for the triple digit speeds of navigating a Trophy Truck and so he’d like to have me out for a ride while they were Testing to see how I did.
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Sure, why not!
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Oh... you need me there mid-week? Cough cough, I feel a cold coming along, I said. Then, the day before testing I get sick. Actually sick. Really sick. I run to the doc and he finds it serious enough to give me Codine Cough medicine, Antibiotics, Steroids and instructions to start popping mucinex. Oh fun. I sleep all day and then we hop in a truck bound for Plaster City, CA. (Basically, it’s nothingness outside of El Centro, CA.)
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<div id="uid9">
We grabbed a hotel room and got up early for some seat time. Professional driver and generally good guy <a class="inset-skip" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_Lofton">Justin Lofton</a> came out to consult on the truck’s setup. After putting on the familiar gear from racing a 1600 desert car (fire suit, helmet with air pumper) I sorted through the new to me gear. A hans devise head restraint and wired in ear buds were a nice change from what I’m used to. After all, if you’re going to go about twice the speed I’m used to racing, you’d better take safety up a bit.
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“Oh, I’m so sick and half asleep this is going to hurt a bit!”
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<div id="uid14">
I got to ride with Justin first and despite being in an unfamiliar truck, he drives it like it’s so familiar that it must be his. Within a couple seconds the 850HP monster was breathing at top RPM and it was deafening... Wonderful deafening fun!
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<div id="uid15">
Although I’m used to adapting my mental focus from mountain bike speed where you look at EVERY rock and bump to dirt bike speed, where you look at all major bumps, to 1600 car speed where you look for lines within the bumps, I was ill prepared to speed up my cold medicine induced brain for TROPHY TRUCK speed. Wow. It happens fast. Everything...
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<img data-uid="tag-BPR5ZH-77" id="tag-BPR5ZH-77" src="https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/igid5ry8umrw7bdiw14q.jpg" />
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Corrections to steering input, shifting, line adjustments, hitting bumps that are a 1/4 mile out. You see it and then it just happened. Not right now, now is too late. Everything, was, so, fast. I love it. Within a few miles I was still overwhelmed, but a calm came over me. This is the speed life should happen at, at least for an hour or two each day. It somehow brought an immense calm, underscored by a bit of terror by not being in control. I’m a control freak. Hence, why all my sports involve piloting something. You have to decide quickly whether you trust the person driving. I trusted Justin, but I felt that he was young enough to not have had as many crashes as me and no family yet so I was worried he took more chances than I would. Not many, but just a bit more. Oh well, this was an experience so hold on and enjoy! You can’t open the door and roll to safety at 100MPH plus.
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The fluidity of his driving was impressive. Small inputs and small corrections, make for few and far between small mistakes. No see-sawing the wheel. There were good lessons to remember from watching him.
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Then Rob and I rode together. Rob has seat time from racing in the desert his entire life (class 12, Protruck, dirt bikes), but less Trophy Truck seat time than Justin. It took us a lap of our impromptu course to get bearings. He did just what I would in a new truck. (He’s raced this truck a few times, but it’s been 6 months since he’d been in it so to me, you consider that a new truck. These trucks are almost completely rebuilt after each race. This one had an entire new top half put on it after a recent crash) We tested the brakes with some hard stops and messed around with the transmission to test the new sequential setup (it was a new fancy Fortin 5 speed transmission). Then it was time to put in a quick one for fun.
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You don’t accelerate so much as you light a bomb and it explodes. The truck throws you back into the seat despite trying to get traction from two GIANT 39” BFG Baja Project tires spinning in the sand and silt. Before you know it you aren’t bouncing in, but on top of the bumps. 70MPH passes, 80 then 90 before you blink again. Now you hover around the 90’s to about 110 through the rough terrain. You slow to 50 or so for tight turns and hit 120 if there is even a slight straight away. In the turns you lean so far that you feel like you’re going to roll, but you just start to accept that this is where the truck is happy and go with it.
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Most of the big bumps are soft and smooth. Much smoother than the slower racecars I’ve experienced in desert racing. Occasionally at high speed you hit a bit G-out or a deep trench throws the truck sideways into the air. These are the moments where the hits are harder than other classes. The speed is so great you feel your spine compress, but the truck always recovers. It has too much mass moving forward very quickly to spend much time sideways, unless it all goes very wrong.
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At almost the end of the day we backtrack to hunt for a lost spare tire. After finding it we proceed to the trailer and hear the failure we’ve been somewhat hoping to induce. A muffled metallic whirring noise sounds like some sort of gears are not happy. Being ground down or something. No big clunk, no big metal noise, just a whir... No more forward progress and the truck is done. Ready for a big rebuild before the next race. The splines on the drive shaft appear to have been spun. We’ll know more later, but it’s time for every single heim jont, the transmission, shocks and engine to all come apart anyway. Time to get ready for the next race.
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I just hope I’ll get to be a part of it.
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That’s it, the cherry is popped, and the sick, money wasting disease known as desert racing has been given a fresh hit directly into my veins and I fear for what it might mean for my future savings, life expectancy and ability to hold down a normal job. Oh well, I just want one more ride and then I’ll quite ditching work. Just one more and then I’ll refocus on advancing my practical office based career. Come on, and then I’ll get back to saving and putting into my 401k. I promise!
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Click HD and turn the volume up!!
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Thanks for reading along,
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www.degooseadventures.com
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SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695775465427147821.post-86897676146633746492015-07-21T11:33:00.001-07:002015-07-21T11:33:06.035-07:00The Galloping Goose goes home... (Part III)<br />
The good news is that by morning... her answer hadn't changed. So far so good!<br />
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We headed into Crested Butte to "buy" coffee. It's fun to buy something on a camping trip because you get used to making everything. Plus, it's a fun excuse to leave the vehicle behind and meet some locals.<br />
Crested Butte is beautiful, but not for me. The town was packed to the gills. Everyone was "on" if you know what I mean. Very expensive restored classic 4x4's, Escalades etc. This was not a working town. Everyone was nice, but it seemed like even the people running or biking around had spent some time to look cool before they dared step outside. I like a more relaxed feel. Oh well, the coffee was good, but a bit watered down.<br />
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On the way out of town we saw a Bear Dog. That's what I'm going with anyway. He was huge. He also liked to stand precariously up there and he'd lean into each turn as they drove up the canyon. Scary, but I can tell the dog must do this often because he was in a state of pure happiness and concentration.<br />
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After a few dirt roads down the mountain and some miles of pavement we finally hit dirt again.
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This area was beautiful. No other people around oncoming or going our direction. That sort of peace and quiet starts to put you into an extreme relaxation mode. Just some ranches here and there, but everything was spread out and the overcast skies made for perfect weather to open up the windows and sunroof. I was happy!<br />
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Eventually we made it around Lake City again and onto the lower (southern) section of the Alpine Loop.
There is a turn worth taking onto road to the Carson Ghost Town. I've been there several times, but this time we eventually came around the corner to a mud pit. It was several feet deep, on an incline and covered the entire trail. There were 4 UTV's slinging the mud and trying to get through it... After watching for a while we decided to turn around. That made for some nice and muddy work just backing to a safe spot to turn around!
Yum!<br />
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Sorry Goose.
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Funny how one hill on a pass can be filled with flowers and the other still covered in snow!
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Just amazing. Each pass and each valley is different. Sure, they are all mountains, but never the same. This valley is devoid of any trees in stark contrast to most of these areas.
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One valley, gulch or whatever you want to call it over:
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Don't drive off the edge. I repeat, don't drive off the edge. Also, don't drive into the upslope side of the hill. It can be done and you'll still end up over the edge like this guy. If you've ever driven Black Bear pass you know that there is no way to roll it here, or you'd think. Two vehicles could fit side by side on this section of trail, but the driver must have not been paying attention. Who knows. Don't be this guy!<br />
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It can get a bit steep around here.<br />
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Toyota Commercial.
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So, after all of this exploring around we decided to go to Clear Lake. It's a nice set of switchbacks to reach it and since the Holiday weekend was ending it should be quiet up there. You climb some tight switchbacks for 45 minutes or more and are treated to this view.
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If, like us, you go too early in summer you'll also be treated to a hike! :-) Several of the final switchbacks were still blocked with snow. So, we parked and headed up.
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To say that it's a nice hike is underestimating it. I'm glad we had to hike. It made what was to come even more special.
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This is not Clear Lake. This is a puddle just downhill from it. Come on Colorado, this is insane. How can a puddle be this pretty. You're just toying with us now!
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Clear Lake... was a bit icy.
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Still, it was amazing. The blue color was showing through and it always looks fake to me. I love it.
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When the clouds start cascading down the hillsides around you... it's time to go! We could see the clouds moving in and knew it wouldn't be long before it was pouring rain and low visibility.
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Then as you are hiking back to pause at the most beautiful stratigraphy you've ever seen, knowing full well it won't translate to a photo with the same gravitas it hit you with.
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This photo is from our campsite up in the valley looking back to the switch backs we were just on. Clear Lake is right at the top of that mountain. Mind blown.
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Ohh, flowers!
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We found a great campsite and enjoyed the rain. We sat in the truck with the back and side windows open. We laid there listening to the rain and a Louis L'Amour book where the characters were having an adventure not far from the part of country we were currently in. It was perfect. There is no where else on earth I'd rather be. I slept like a log too.<br />
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The next morning I was excited to know out the beautiful, but crowded trails of Black Bear Pass and Imogene.<br />
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The drive up to Black Bear Pass itself is easy. Steep, but easy. To the top two way traffic is fine.
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The only problem was the snow field in front of us on the way down...
I had the pleasure of backing up a steep shelf road in reverse for a bit, but at this point it was all second nature I had done so much of it over the last few days.
The view was amazing. At the far end of this valley you can almost see where two slopes come together. That's the sketchy bit of Black Bear pass you see pictured everywhere.
Oh well, I'll scare her another time!<br />
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Well, it looks we'll be headed down and over to Imogene Pass!! You could tell that the dozers had just carved a path on Imogene. This wouldn't have been passable with that help!<br />
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Made it!
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The top of Imogene was crowded and it seems there are less people every day that know basic offroad etiquette. I was tired of being stuck behind slow drivers who refused to use turnouts so we took a couple quick pics and saw our chance to get ahead of some slow pokes!
(You can see the Eastern part of Telluride in this shot)
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Tomboy was a big mine to the point of being it's own town. The reason Telluride is there is because of Tomboy as these surrounding mines. It's sad to see it has deteriorated more than most of the others since my first visit up here.
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Coming down Imogene you do get a great look at the Black Bear Pass switchbacks. The top switch back you can see is the one where the driver in the video above rolled it. As you can tell, it could have been a LOT worse.
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Simple pleasures. Driving through a tunnel no matter how small. You MUST take a photo, you MUST.
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Both ways? Isn't that excessive. Nope.
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As it started to rain we took a quick look at Bridal Veil falls and the power house. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smuggler-Union_Hydroelectric_Power_Plant">Read more about this amazing building here.</a> It's mind boggling. Look for a picture of the little bucket the people who live there have to ride in to reach the home in winter. Woof!
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Telluride... busy, expensive, beautiful, fun, friendly, busy, expensive. That sums it up as far as how things repeat in my head when I'm there. We kept on truckin to the Telluride Brewery and grabbed a bite to eat.<br />
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After that it was time to select our campsite for the FINAL NIGHT. :-(<br />
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This one had a muddy pool of water with more mosquitoes flying out of it to attack us than I'd ever seen. There were literally running into the window they wanted a bite so badly!
I almost wanted to stay anyway. Just look at it! We hadn't seen anyone on the road to this 11,000 foot location either. It sat right on the Colorado Trail so the most we might see if a mountain biker or hiker cruising by.
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/7-4-2015%20Colorado%20Engagement%20Trip/DSC01783.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC01783.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/7-4-2015%20Colorado%20Engagement%20Trip/DSC01783.jpg" /></a><br />
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Further down the road, (how far can a mosquito fly?) this fella told us we should camp here. Okay then, I can't argue with that.
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/7-4-2015%20Colorado%20Engagement%20Trip/DSC01785.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC01785.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/7-4-2015%20Colorado%20Engagement%20Trip/DSC01785.jpg" /></a><br />
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Okay, works for me.
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/7-4-2015%20Colorado%20Engagement%20Trip/DSC01792.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC01792.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/7-4-2015%20Colorado%20Engagement%20Trip/DSC01792.jpg" /></a><br />
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Making a fire in a drizzling rain is interesting, but it can be done. (No, I didn't cheat and pour fuel on it, this time...)
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/7-4-2015%20Colorado%20Engagement%20Trip/DSC01797.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC01797.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/7-4-2015%20Colorado%20Engagement%20Trip/DSC01797.jpg" /></a><br />
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Even Colorado mud is artist. Come on, really Colorado? That's just too much.
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/7-4-2015%20Colorado%20Engagement%20Trip/DSC01788.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC01788.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/7-4-2015%20Colorado%20Engagement%20Trip/DSC01788.jpg" /></a><br />
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It was pretty though.
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/7-4-2015%20Colorado%20Engagement%20Trip/DSC01789.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC01789.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/7-4-2015%20Colorado%20Engagement%20Trip/DSC01789.jpg" /></a><br />
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We had a simple dinner and just soaked in the final night on the road. It was too short, it was always too short. Remember that when you plan your next trip. If you don't feel a panicked feeling that you've made the trip TOO LONG and asked for too much time off, you didn't ask for enough!
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/7-4-2015%20Colorado%20Engagement%20Trip/DSC01799.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC01799.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/7-4-2015%20Colorado%20Engagement%20Trip/DSC01799.jpg" /></a><br />
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This is DeGoose. There are many like it, but this one is mine. It is my best friend. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life. My Cruiser, without me, is useless. Without my Cruiser, I am useless. I must drive my cruiser true. I must drive straighter than my enemy (mud) who is trying to kill me.<br />
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Too much?
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/7-4-2015%20Colorado%20Engagement%20Trip/DSC01801.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC01801.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/7-4-2015%20Colorado%20Engagement%20Trip/DSC01801.jpg" /></a><br />
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As I was driving through Dolores, I saw it. A Galloping Goose. #5 to be exact. These ramshackle, nearly homemade trains captured my imagination when I first read about them. One used to be located on main street in Telluride, but sadly, had been moved. I was glad to catch sight of one and show K where the name for Goose game from.
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galloping_Goose_(railcar)">Read more about them here.</a><br />
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After this stop we made tracks, very slow, poor MPG... tracks back to AZ...<br />
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/7-4-2015%20Colorado%20Engagement%20Trip/DSC01804.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC01804.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/7-4-2015%20Colorado%20Engagement%20Trip/DSC01804.jpg" /></a><br />
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With that, I bid you farewell as does K and Goose. Some day, we won't let the trip end and it will become life, but until then, see you next time.<br />
<a href="http://s72.photobucket.com/user/soaz/media/7-4-2015%20Colorado%20Engagement%20Trip/DSC01803.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSC01803.jpg" border="0" src="http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i190/soaz/7-4-2015%20Colorado%20Engagement%20Trip/DSC01803.jpg" /></a>SOAZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18076822932624214455noreply@blogger.com4