We arrived at the Laurel Lakes trailhead just after 9:15am on a Sunday morning. Aware that this was a reasonably well-known destination, we were a little worried that the trail - and lakes themselves - would be crowded. On the flip side, I knew that portions of it were considered rough, and the trail had been - at least temporarily - closed for a washout several months earlier, so we could always hope. Unsure if it was good or bad, there were two SUVs parked at the bottom of the trail, and a single F150 parked about half a mile…
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We awoke on the third morning of our trip, full of anticipation. Or at least, full of something that starts with an "a." Perhaps apprehension. Whatever it was, we knew we needed to get an early start on our day, and so were down the ladder before the sun rose above the horizon. Solar panels don't do much before sunrise, buddy. (windshield) We'd gotten a good night sleep, and as @mrs.turbodb set about assembling tuna sandwiches and other lunch fixings, I stowed the tent in case there were others who visited the trailhead during the day. No need to air…
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Our night below the The Hunchback couldn't have been more pleasant. Though we were at 10,500-feet, temperatures never dropped below the mid-40s °F, and even getting up for a bathroom break and some less-than-mediocre star photos was an enjoyable few minutes. Unlike the previous morning when I hadn't set my alarm, I made sure I was out of the tent a little before sunrise to capture that magical time when the sky is transitioning from dark to light and the earth's surface is shadowless. Here, with views of the Sierra all around, it was spectacular. Before the sun rises, its…
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The Eastern Sierra. I don't know if they are less well known, harder to get to, or I was just oblivious, but while I've driven past the majestic peaks numerous times - on my way to and from Death Valley - I've never really taken the time to explore the mountain range that boasts the tallest peak (Mt. Whitney, at 14,505 feet) in the contiguous United States. But, over the last few years - as I've ventured into the Volcanic Tablelands, and here and there within the Owens Valley - I've reveled in the rocky faces and snowy peaks. Now,…
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I have to say, it was so pleasant sleeping next to the Hoh River, as it quietly rippled by through the night, bringing cooler temperatures along for the ride. Those temperatures - along with the fact that we were parked in a valley - meant that sunrise wasn't on the agenda, and it was nearly 8:00am when we finally climbed down the ladder to get our day underway. I'm usually a fan of cliff-side camp spots, but this one turned out to be great. Note: I'm kicking myself a little bit that we didn't camp *in* the river, which was so…
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Wanting to get an early start, we were up before 7:00am - right along with the sun as it crested the ridges to the east. Climbing out of the tent, we were pleasantly surprised to find the rain fly completely dry, having expected that it'd be dripping wet after a night in the rainforest. Nestled off the road, we'd slept well, undisturbed all night. As with a couple of our recent trips, we decided to skip official breakfasts on this adventure, opting instead for snacking on trail mix and blueberries - something that allows us to get out of camp…
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It was a little strange to be heading back to the Olympic Peninsula only a few days after having bailed on a trip to the same location, but such is life sometimes. This time - not wanting to retrace our steps through the same terrain to kick off the trip - we decided to pick up the loop around the peninsula at the five-o'clock position, near Skokomish. From there, we'd run the loop clockwise, the opposite direction of our previous attempt. This meant that rather than take a ferry to kick off the trip, we drove down and around the…
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In all of our exploration, we've done relatively little in our home state of Washington. Partly, this is because the weather window here is relatively short each year; partly, it's due to our desire to explore lands further afield; and partly it's due to the landscape. Western Washington is so wet that finding a route that is more than simply a tunnel through trees can be challenging. Roads are quickly overrun with brush, structures rot away in the blink of an eye, and with much of the land owned or leased by logging companies - the roads are gated and…
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September 2, 2022. Overall, the Tacoma has been doing great since my last rig review back in March, so I haven't felt any need to write anything about it. Still, there have been a few things worth noting on the last several trips, so let's get down to it. 250 Miles of Washboard - Bradshaw Trail (Mar 2022) Oh, So, (San Rafael) Swell (Apr 2022) Rock Art Overload - Nine Mile Canyon (Apr 2022) Owyhee Out-and-Backs (May 2022) A Tour of Cabins atop Steens Mountain (May 2022) Slowing Down in the Sierra (Jun 2022) Wyoming Backcountry Discovery Route (Jul 2022)…
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September 1, 2022. Note: There is an important update below. It was more than three years and 120K miles ago that I installed SPC UCAs on the Tacoma. Shortly after installation, SPC came out with an improved design that was a single forged piece of material, with an entirely new type of joint. That joint - which they call the "X-Axis" joint - was essentially a sealed spherical bearing that replaces the polyurethane bushings where the UCA is mounted to the frame. And so, when I took the truck in for an alignment and the alignment tech (a good one,…
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One of the jokes we always make about the folks (ok, let's be honest, it's 99% guys) we hear talking on the 146.520 simplex ham radio frequency that we have tuned in the Tacoma most of the time, is that they are always talking about their radio setup. Whether they have just tuned a new antenna, are calling for CQ ("anyone out there") from the top of some mountain, or are reorganizing their "shack" to fit a newly acquired transceiver, every radio operator seems to be... a nerd. Guilty as charged. My first mode of communication in the Tacoma was…
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August 17, 2022. On our first day of the trip to Plumas National Forest, on our way down to Poker Flat, we heard a new banging noise. It reminded me of the noise I'd heard when I'd broken a leaf spring, so I was out of the truck quickly to look for the problem. I wasn't able to isolate it entirely, but I was pretty sure that I found where the bed had split (more than in the past) in the passenger front corner. Luckily, it only seemed to rattle around on significant downgrades with rocky conditions, and I knew…
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Having returned to Radium Hot Springs from our run up a glacier that was Hallowed Ground, Mike @Digiratus and I put a bit of fuel in our tanks. Prices had dropped 7 cents/liter in just two days, but I still used gas from my Scepter jerry cans, since I wanted to be sure to use up my cheaper "USA gasoline" before buying more than I needed in Canada, where prices were about $1.50 USD higher per gallon. Filling our tanks didn't take long, and after a few more minutes of internet connectivity to ensure that everything was still OK on…
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Even before we entered Canada, I knew that our run on "the glacier trail" was going to be a highlight. This was a trail that Mike @Digiratus added to our itinerary, having discovered - and run - it several years earlier with Monte @Blackdog and Ben @m3bassman. There was more that made this a special place, but I'm already getting ahead of myself. First, we had to get there. As with many of the routes so far, this one started in a valley, granite peaks soaring high above. Horsethief Creek wasn't bursting at its seams, but there was no shortage…
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All aired up, Mike @Digiratus and I were about to spend the rest of our day on pavement. Well, pavement or its equivalent at any rate, since there are a good many highways - like BC-31 - that are gravel, but are so well groomed that we could easily achieve pavement speeds. Like the state of Nevada, southeastern British Columbia is comprised of a series of ranges that run north-south, separated by valleys and lakes. And, while the trails we wanted to run - out of the Radium Hot Springs area - were only one range east, and less than…
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It was nearly 4:00pm when we turned onto the Rady Creek Forest Service Road and popped out of our trucks to air down our tires. I'd thoroughly enjoyed this trail when I'd rushed to Canada nearly a year earlier - worried that it was about to be deactivated (closed) forever - and from our conversations prior to departure, I knew that Mike @Digiratus was really looking forward to seeing this place as well. I didn't choose the best spot to air down - I was both blocking the trail and in the sun! As with our run up Mt. Buchanan,…
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Ever since my very first trip - The De-Tour - with the guys from TacomaWorld, we've tried to get together every year for a week or two in order to explore some amazing place and enjoy time around the campfire together. I was lucky back then that Monte @Blackdawg organized the trip in a public thread, and invited anyone who could, to join. This year, after privately planning trips for five years, we tried it again - organizing a trip to the Kootenays in southeast British Columbia, Canada - with the hopes that we could meet some cool new folks…
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It was just after 5:00pm as we pulled out of Mineral, opting to get started on the third leg of the Lassen National Forest (NF) Backcountry Discovery Trail (BDT), rather than simply finding somewhere nearby to camp. We hoped that somewhere - preferably early in the section - we'd find a nice ridgeline, or spur-road-to-a-ridgeline, where we could set up the tent and deploy the kitchen for the evening. I suppose we did eventually, but now I'm getting a few hours ahead of myself. Section 3: The Crossroads - Land of Transformation It is here where the granitic Sierra Nevada…
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Growing up in Northern California, I always thought of "the mountains" as The Sierra. I had no idea at the time that there was another range - one that I'd become familiar with in Washington - The Cascades. With their southern end in the Lassen National Forest, they stretch all the way into Canada. Conveniently - having recently completed the Plumas National Forest Discovery Trail - we found ourselves at the border between the Plumas NF to the south and the Lassen NF to the north. And so, with a couple days to explore, we made the decision to climb…
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Valve stems that insert from the outside!
TL;DR - My Cooper ST/Maxx tires finally gave me a bit of trouble. Still, I'll probably buy a 5th set when these wear out because they've performed better than any other tire I've seen others run on the trail.
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