It's been another great year to be out exploring! It was a bit tougher to get out for much of the year - I haven't mentioned it anywhere, but my main task this year was a kitchen remodel for @mrs.turbodb. An nine-month project that started with building the cabinets, we consistently progressed through a down-to-the-studs demolition, load-bearing-wall-removal, replumbing, rewiring (bye bye knob and tube), and then rebuilding everything from there. I'm not a fan of hiring work out, so only the granite countertops were done by someone else. Still, I was quite happy to have still gotten out on a…
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We've reached the end of the year again, a good time to look back at the last 12 months, contemplating everything that's happened and - as always - overanalyze it. Trips: 19 | Tent nights: 74 | Total photos: 4636 This year, looking through my favorite photos, I realized that more and more, I enjoy photos that don't contain the Tacoma. I don't know why this is exactly, and I don't expect that there will be fewer Tacoma shots in the future - it is the roaming gnome of my adventures - but I find it to be an interesting…
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In what is becoming a tradition, I've combed through my photos from 2021 to find my favorites. In doing so, I realized that some are photos that I think are really good compositions, some are ones that have - to me - interesting coloring, and some are photos that recall a special - again, to me - memory or accomplishment. Trips: 20 | Tent nights: 87 | Total photos: 4361 I hope everyone enjoys them, and please - feel free to share your favorite below, or if you think I've overlooked one of my photos - of which I know…
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Well, another year is in the books. It wasn't normal - not by any stretch of the imagination, but we were lucky to get a lot of great trips in despite the precarious situation that the world found ourselves enveloped by for most of the year. As the end of the year rolls around, I recalled enjoying the process I went through for the first time last year - picking through my photos from the year, re-remembering all the great times, so I figured I'd do it again! So let's get started. My Top 24 I see the light. (Exploring…
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For a couple years now, I've been using a Coleman Camp Grill/Stove. While the stove isn't perfect, I don't consider its drawbacks to be that big a deal, and as far as camp stoves go, I think its one of the better values out there. In fact - both of my (only) complaints about it are related to its fuel system: first, the burners aren't adjustable enough - they tend to be fully on, or off. This is annoying, but not really that big a deal for what I do on the trail, primarily boiling water or reheating food I've previously…
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I get asked - not infrequently - whether I carry gun(s) with me on my numerous outdoor adventures. So without further ado, here is what might be my most controversial post ever. You've been warned. First a few ground rules: I want to try to stay non-political. I recognize that this is a highly politicized topic in society today, but I'm not approaching it from that perspective. These are my current opinions. I reserve the right to change them at any time and I may or may not update the post. I'm totally fine with anyone else having the same…
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If you missed the first part of this story, you may want to read 4Runner Accident, and the Saga of Repair when you're done reading this. It was a Monday morning when we showed up at Jim's Body Shop in Seattle. Arriving a few minutes after they opened, they were in the process of assessing where they were on their various projects and one of the guys made an off-hand remark that they might be "overbooked." I wasn't worried though - in my dealings with Humberto, he'd seemed genuinely interested in working on the 4Runner - and a few minutes…
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If you own vehicles long enough, it's a safe bet that one will be in an accident. Luckily for us, when the 4Runner was hit, no one was in it. This is the story of what happened, and the saga that followed. So, it was the first Friday in December when @mrs.turbodb drove the 4Runner a few miles to a school where she volunteers as a tutor, around 10:00am. I'd gone to help a buddy with some landscaping at his place. He and I were eating lunch when @mrs.turbodb called to let me know that a 17-year old girl had…
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Well, another year is nearly in the books - with a lot more trips to amazing places, memories made with old and new friends alike. As the end of the year rolls around, I generally find myself looking ahead to what's coming rather than looking back - so I thought I'd step out of my groove and make a pass through all the photos from the last year, pulling out the ones I really liked for one reason or another. So let's get started. My Top 11 It's not easy coming up with my 10 favorite photos, so here are…
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I've built a couple of storage platforms in the past - a slide-with-a-slide style platform for my 1st gen Tacoma, and a fridge-slide style for my 3rd Gen 4Runner - so when a buddy of mine asked for help building one for his 5th Gen 4Runner, I was happy to help. The goal was relatively simple for this build - a simple platform with some L-track to secure loads, and a way to level out the back of the 4Runner to sleep at night. No fridge slide (yet), but the ability to add it in the future. And, lastly -…
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May 27, 2019. That sure didn't take long. It's been two years that we've been upping our adventure quotient, and the odometer is a stark reminder of what living in the northwest corner of the country can do. Still, it's a nice gig if you can get it! And while we're reminiscing - let's take a look at the truck a mere 3 years ago and today. Definitely a different beast! Looked good stock. Looks better now. As always, stay tuned for more .
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March 24, 2018. "I feel sorry for anyone who needs a cam bolt sleeve in the Seattle area this weekend." said Mike @Digiratus as he and Zane @Speedytech7 walked in the door a little after 4:30pm. See, they'd just driven a 50-mile loop to get every last one they could find - since we were in the process of destroying all four of Mike's. But we are way ahead of ourselves. For several months, Dan @drr and Mike have been planning a shop day. Mike wanted to install a new set of W53377A Whiteline LCA bushings as well as a new steering rack…
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December 31, 2017 Well, this happened yesterday. Definitely racking up the miles faster than I used to, but there are a lot of good miles to go!
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This is a whole different kind of trip report. In fact, it doesn't involve my truck at all, and is yet perhaps the most Tacoma-heavy trip report I'll ever make (and that has perhaps been made to date) on TW! You see, we have somewhat of a tradition each winter - as the weather gets cold and gloomy in the Pacific Northwest, we escape for a week to Kauai. We always try to stay in the same cottage; we eat lunch every day at our favorite café on the island. We walk the beach, we snorkel, and we relax. We…
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October 13, 2017. Two wise men once told me: If you're going to get bigger tires, then you should consider bigger wheels at the same time. Because with bigger wheels, you can fit Tundra brakes. So yeah, these showed up today... When they did, the UPS guy said, "Were you expecting me?" and "What kind of vehicle?" and it was clear that he'd been checking them out. @mrs.turbodb suggested that he may have been even more excited than me.
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July 26, 2013. We're headed home from work, just about to get on the freeway and I push the clutch in to change gears. The clutch never comes up. I reach down while trying to keep an eye on the road, squirm my fingers behind the pedal, and physically pull it back out. I'm now in 3rd gear. Not happy, we pull over before getting on the freeway and I give the clutch a try again. The clutch never comes up. At this point I know something's wrong, but I have no idea what, so I put the truck in…
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January 19, 2012 We had our biggest snowstorm ever in January 2012 - 6+ inches that stayed on the ground for over a week. Of course, in Seattle, that wreaks havoc and this day was no different. At 8pm a call came in from Shahar - he'd slipped into a ditch and needed help. An opportunity to tow? Traction chains required? Yes and yes and sign me up! Of course, the truck didn't just pull him out of the ditch. It dragged him home.
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2008. I forgot to lock the truck last night. Actually, I rarely lock my truck. I mean, we live in a neighborhood of 75-80 year-olds. But apparently there is some hooligan in Woodridge too. A hooligan who opened the truck, rummaged through the glove box, and took several invaluable artifacts: My Tacoma owner's manual. My gas log The piece of door jam sheet metal that had my VIN information They did not take: My Maglite flashlight My tape measure The $20 in the change tray OK, obviously this guy was a moron. In terms of real value, he missed the…
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November/December 2006 It's snowing! The truck loves snow. Snow means pulling people out of ditches, driving on roads that are impassable by cars, and having an all-around good time. One night I headed over to pick up Gina from school (the buses had stopped running) and the unthinkable happened. Getting off the Montlake exit in Seattle, the car in front of me slammed on it's brakes. I did the same, and started to fishtail. Already going slowly, it didn't take long (time or distance) to come to a stop, but just as the truck came to a rest, the font…
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I found out today that the truck loves landscaping. That is all.
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