Stockwell45's Adventure Thread

[Stockwell45]

Many of you know I've been out on an awesome solo road trip for the past month, so I figured I'd start a thread of my travels.

The reason I'm out here roaming around is because I just graduated college in the spring, and I work summers. Now that school is over with I have all this free time this winter, and my plan is to attend the park ranger academy in the fall of 2013 and start my career as a park ranger soon after. This means that this may be my only free time to get out and explore this great country until I retire. I felt my 4runner was up to the task, and so far it's had a couple problems but nothing that will keep me off the road.

The start date was November 2, at my home near Sonora, CA. 236k miles on the clock. 5700 pounds when fully loaded.

I had just replaced my front passenger axle seal because it was leaking and draining my front diff. Locker was working great, good to go.

I had to test out how those 9 wraps flexed with 600 pounds of gear in the back. Did great!

The first night I stayed at our cabin on the Nevada border, then onto my parents house in St. George, UT.

Then the first night with my tent was in Grand Junction, CO. Here's my bed, sheets, two down comforters and a sleeping bag on top.

I immediately learned that my 185 pound body can't keep that big bed warm, so after that night I've been stuffing another sleeping bag between the sheets that I sleep in. Nice and toasty now...

Pretty much headed straight for Williston, ND and spent a few nights in between. That part of the trip was boring because I was on the freeway the whole time. Here's a few pics from my trip north.

Near Rangely, CO

Midwest, WY

Terry, MT

Here's where I camped in Williston for a week, an empty lot.

Dinner served every night on the back bumper

Had to bring my favorite local California beer with me!

Why Williston? I wanted to see what all the hype was about, supposedly you can get a job pretty easily that pays 60k a year in the oil fields up there. That's a bunch of 4runner mods!

In short, I was able to find work. A great paying job that would have given me a bunch of extra money until I started the academy. But I couldn't find housing to save my life, unless it was $3000/month. There was no way I was gonna live in my tent for an extended amount of time up there, plus my heart wasn't really into living up there. So I said goodbye to North Dakota...

 

[Stockwell45]

After Williston, I headed west into Billings, MT and dropped down into Lovell, WY. There I met up with farmerjon from the forums. He’s an awesome guy, and showed me around Bighorn Canyon Natl Rec Area. I definitely would not have known where to go without him, and it was nice to have someone to talk to after 3 weeks of no friends to hang out with. Thanks again bud!

That place was incredible, I hope to go back someday and hike around out there.
Sometime after I left home, my front driver side axle seal gave out, and my front diff is nearly drained of oil. I don’t want to use my 4wd if I can help it unless I really need to get over an obstacle, but I don’t plan on hitting hard trails when I’m this overloaded.
On top of that, my locker got stuck in the open position. I had to crawl under there, take off the actuator and free the gear inside. Seems to work now, hope it works fine the rest of the trip.

Oh yeah, I did all the work in a pasture with cattle watching me.

From there I pretty much headed straight south towards Utah. I heard weather was supposed to be getting bad up there, it was already dumping snow in Williston.

Here I am now, sitting in McDonalds parking lot in Moab, UT. It’s been a dream of mine to wheel here ever since I got my 4Runner 6 years ago. Tomorrow I’ll be exploring around Arches National Park and the next day go check out the Top of The World trail and others. I don’t have a fancy smart phone like most of you do, so my internet has been coming from McDonald’s wifi this entire trip. I’ll post up more pic’s when I get back to the McDonalds. Until then, I’m hitting the trail!

 

[OzSurf]

Looks like an awesome trip so far! Those pics from Bighorn Canyon are amazing. I'll be watching this thread closely.

 

[SantaCruzRunner]

awesome man, cant wait to see how it goes.:frisky:
you've inspired me to go on a coast to coast journey here soon

 

[farmerjon]

thanks man! Was good to meet up with another serious T4R owner. I enjoyed showing you around the canyon, it was fun. Good luck with the academy and keep me posted how that goes! Best wishes!

 

[BeachWagon]

Subscribed just because I saw a case of PBR in one of the pics. Great looking trip and looking forward o seeing more of this!

 

[GSPRunner]

So jealous. Thanks for sharing.

 

[mizzle415]

Looks like an awesome trip. Traveling solo forces you to interact and be more social than you may be naturally. But at the same time, it's you're pace, you're route, and you're whims.

Hopefully the snow doesn't limit your exploration too much.

 

[rickashay]

Thanks for posting this thread... Im living vicariously through your adventure!

 

[woodro]

i wish i could do that

 

[ddking]

Looks like a great time!
I've always wanted to do something like that. You are right, once you start your career its hard to get away for an extended period of time. Have fun and keep it coming!

 

[BigFishAllDay]

I'm so happy you made this thread!!!! :banana:

It is inspiring, and I'll be looking forward to your updates.

 

[Dous]

Sounds like a really cool career choice!

Look forward to seeing updates

 

[JamesDean91]

I was just in williston for 3 days on the 14/15/16 I hated it haha worst trip ever and I'll second the 3k a month for housing. Freaking ridiculous the cost of living up there.

 

[Hepar]

Amazing pics. I know the ones from Moab are going to be killer too.

 

[Dirtco]

Awesome, but it does look cold! I would love to do this but it seems that work and life in general get in the way. I'm good at getting one day and multiple day trips in though.

Here I am now, sitting in McDonalds parking lot in Moab, UT. It’s been a dream of mine to wheel here ever since I got my 4Runner 6 years ago. Tomorrow I’ll be exploring around Arches National Park and the next day go check out the Top of The World trail and others. I don’t have a fancy smart phone like most of you do, so my internet has been coming from McDonald’s wifi this entire trip. I’ll post up more pic’s when I get back to the McDonalds. Until then, I’m hitting the trail!

That's great that you were able to make it down to Moab! Did you get your front diff leak fixed? It would drive me crazy being in Moab and not having 4 wheel drive; there's just too many trails to run, places to check out, and scenery to take in.

Good old Moab McDonalds! I didn't even think about them having Wifi, I hit the drive through every night for .99 bags of ice (I was camped down Kane Creek so it was on the way, and I didn't even have to get out of the 4Runner ).

 

[the great him]

i just want you to know that i hate you right now lol! you are a lucky man enjoy this time you have and treasure it. i have always wanted to do something like this, but some how i either talk myself out of it or life just gets in the way. and now that i have kids and a family with adult responsibility like a mortgage and a career(if you can call it that) i can not seam to get away for more than a few weeks(and if i can my wife cant or we just dont have the $$$). also im not so sure i could be alone that long, i like the company of another person. i can only talk to myself for so long before i think i probably should be institutionalized for a while... in short savor this time you have take lots of pictures and dont leave any stone unturned... make the most of this adventure. you are a lucky man my friend! -for everyone of us that say we are jealous of envious of you there are probably at least 5 more that think the same thing but just dont say it -dont let us down! :thumb3::cheers::driving:

 

[fluffeh]

Wow this is a great trip. I hope to do something like this. This is what an SUV is built for. Can't wait to see what's coming.

 

[Stockwell45]

Thanks for posting this thread... Im living vicariously through your adventure!

I'm glad...and I really am super bummed I didn't head further north in Montana to wheel with ya. I'm already planning to take some time off work this summer, I'll be back!

awesome man, cant wait to see how it goes.:frisky:
you've inspired me to go on a coast to coast journey here soon

Head out buddy, we'll convoy the country!

Awesome, but it does look cold! I would love to do this but it seems that work and life in general get in the way. I'm good at getting one day and multiple day trips in though.



That's great that you were able to make it down to Moab! Did you get your front diff leak fixed? It would drive me crazy being in Moab and not having 4 wheel drive; there's just too many trails to run, places to check out, and scenery to take in.

Good old Moab McDonalds! I didn't even think about them having Wifi, I hit the drive through every night for .99 bags of ice (I was camped down Kane Creek so it was on the way, and I didn't even have to get out of the 4Runner ).

This is awesome, after I read this I ran inside and got some ice! Way cheaper than the gas stations I was getting bags at before. At this point every bit of money I can save helps! And yeah, I added some gear oil this morning, the thought of not being able to touch that transfer case was driving me crazy.

And even though you are tied down now, you pretty much have the perfect expedition setup. When the time comes that you get more free time, you'll be set!

i just want you to know that i hate you right now lol! you are a lucky man enjoy this time you have and treasure it. i have always wanted to do something like this, but some how i either talk myself out of it or life just gets in the way. and now that i have kids and a family with adult responsibility like a mortgage and a career(if you can call it that) i can not seam to get away for more than a few weeks(and if i can my wife cant or we just dont have the $$$). also im not so sure i could be alone that long, i like the company of another person. i can only talk to myself for so long before i think i probably should be institutionalized for a while... in short savor this time you have take lots of pictures and dont leave any stone unturned... make the most of this adventure. you are a lucky man my friend! -for everyone of us that say we are jealous of envious of you there are probably at least 5 more that think the same thing but just dont say it -dont let us down! :thumb3::cheers::driving:

Thanks man! I'm definitely enjoying every minute of this. I'm sure I'll miss being out on the road when it's all over with, even those cold northern nights in the tent. It's been way more expensive than I originally though it would be, but I wouldn't change it for anything.

As far as the whole traveling solo thing, yeah it's a drag not being able to talk to anyone while driving. Those of you that know me know how social I really am, I've been chatting people's ears off in the store, gas station, parking lots, everywhere I see a person I talk to them. I've seen a few people doing the same thing I'm doing, and we'll talk about our trips, so it's not too bad. I've talked to quite a bit of truckers too on the CB, I usually go between ch 17 and 19, seems like they've had the most activity.

 

[Stockwell45]

3,905 miles into trip

Oh boy, where do I begin? It’s been a crazy day here in Moab, I never want to leave!

Last night I got in pretty late, I didn’t really have a chance to scope out good camping spots. So I ended up dishing out some money to stay at Arches National Park campground. It was the first time I spent money for a camp spot, and the first time I’ve actually camped around people. It was weird, hearing doors shut, tent getting zipped open and closed, footsteps. I’ve been used to silence or the sound of the wind so I didn’t sleep well.
The full moon was nice (looked pretty full, might actually be full tonight). My night shots didn’t turn out well, but this one at dusk is pretty sweet.

Got up bright and early, had the tent packed up and was out of the campground by 6 am. Figured I’d make the 1.5 mile hike to watch the sun come up at Delicate Arch.

After that I headed into town, found a lube shop and got my front diff topped off. Not a permanent fix, but at least I’ll have oil in the diff for the rest of my trip in Moab. Being stuck in 2wd was driving me nuts.
Next I headed north toward Onion Creek, plenty of trails out there, and I had my sights on the Top of The World trail. After seeing snowrunner’s pics from the top, I had to get up there.

My temperamental locker decided to work today. Good thing too, apparently this trail gets tougher every year. I definitely put the 4Runner through its paces, even with the tent up top though I felt in control the whole time, never overly tippy or anything. A spotter would have been nice today though, some of the rock gardens were tricky, especially going down. I had to get out quite a bit to check my lines.

Checking my line, good to go

Up and over. This one was tricky.

The top was truly spectacular. I’ve seen some incredible views in the Sierra’s before, but this one beats them all. Pics do not do it justice. Anyone wheeling in Moab has got to check this out.

Everything was going great, until I decided to have lunch right on the edge. Stupid me decided to set my phone down next to my drink. I go to grab my drink, and pretty much punched my phone off the cliff. I sit there in disbelief, watching my phone falling, getting smaller and smaller until it disappeared. Didn’t even hear it hit. There’s no roads down there, so I’m sure it’ll sit there for the next 500 years. I wonder if it still works, it was a Motorola Tundra and it was tough, it’s been ran over before and worked great after. I guess I’ll never know.

So now that I don’t have a phone, I really don’t want to hit any more of those remote trails. If I were to break something I would be screwed. Kinda a bummer, but I’ll just stick to the national parks for now and save the other trails for another trip. Only a Verizon store in Moab, No AT&T. Just my luck.

I’ll check out Canyonlands National Park tomorrow, and some of the national forest below it. I’m exhausted tonight, too tired to get the tent set up. I’m gonna try to crash in the 4Runner tonight. Should be interesting, seeing as my whole life is packed in here as well…