Wouldn't have been able to do that in my Tacoma

[Snookup]

Over this last weekend the girlfriend, dog, and I decided to hit the road and head to the coast for some camping and fishing. We decided to go to Fort Fisher which is south of Wilmington, NC. We chose that place because they allow you to drive on the beach and there is some good fishing near by.

We were able to load up the 4Runner with gear, 2 kayaks, 2 people, and a dog and still had plenty of room inside. We even slept in the back of it with a 65lb German Shepherd and felt comfortable. The nice thing about it was that we encountered heavy wind and rain headed to the beach and while we were there. Having the back of the 4runner to keep gear dry was awesome to have. Everything would have been soaked in the Tacoma and we would not have been able to sleep in it. I am not regretting a thing switching from the Tacoma to the 4Runner.

Having the 2 kayaks on the roof was a big test. We had 160lbs of kayak up on a rack (factory) that is only rated for 120lbs. Anyone who lives in the eastern NC area knows the winds that we had this weekend were bad (gusts up to 40mph). I had it strapped so that if anything was to fail it would be the whole rack system being ripped off my roof. In the end it felt fine but that will probably be the limit of weight I put up there before I get a new rack.

4Runner ran great. About half way there my radio went out for some reason. No power is getting to it at all. The person who had it before me had a sound system in it, so I figure it has something to do with that. Will investigate more later.

 

[oljedi11950]

Yeeuup

Same reason I traded up from 03 dbl cab to 05 4r & had just about modded it out but no room ,same reasons & very uncomfortable seats also ! I don't know if you saw my lame post about dog beds , but canine covers makes a nice 1 ! Better bed than I could come up with plus I'll use it as much or more than the boys !

 

[BlackWorksInc]

You need to tell your dog he needs to flop is tail faster if he's gonna propel the boat!

 

[Snookup]

You need to tell your dog he needs to flop is tail faster if he's gonna propel the boat!

:rofl:

I was just glad she didn't jump out!

 

[kris022]

Awesome!! Same reason I traded in my 08 Tacoma. Great pictures, I also have a German Shepherd that didn't like sitting in the double cab. The 4R solved all that.

 

[BOSMECH]

That looks like you had fun with the trip, and your German Shepard is very good looking.
And yes you are right it would have never worked with a Tacoma.

 

[KidVermicious]

Two of you plus that moose? You must be a lot smaller than me.

 

[col26b]

We decided to go to Fort Fisher which is south of Wilmington, NC.

Saw you out there on Sat. I was the guy in the gold 4Runner who waved. Small world. Ended up actually taking a picture of my truck right around the corner from where you were parked on inland side; unfortunately the camera chewed up the film and only got a couple from the trip. Looks like you guys had fun. And yes, it was very windy.

 

[Icepuck72]

Very cool!!! I've been wanting to try to get my GSD in my kayak....can't wait to try...she's a little older than 5 months.

 

[Snookup]

Two of you plus that moose? You must be a lot smaller than me.

Its snug in there but it works lol

Saw you out there on Sat. I was the guy in the gold 4Runner who waved. Small world. Ended up actually taking a picture of my truck right around the corner from where you were parked on inland side; unfortunately the camera chewed up the film and only got a couple from the trip. Looks like you guys had fun. And yes, it was very windy.

No way!! Thats awesome. My girlfriend caught me admiring your T4R when you drove by. We should meet up sometime. The Carolinas sub forum doesn't get much traffic so PM me if you want to meet up. Im new to NC so looking for some NC people to wheel/explore with.

Very cool!!! I've been wanting to try to get my GSD in my kayak....can't wait to try...she's a little older than 5 months.

She was a little hesitant to get in at first but she ended up liking it. She tried to nudge her way to the front of the kayak a few times but that was it.

 

[Snookup]

Same reason I traded up from 03 dbl cab to 05 4r & had just about modded it out but no room ,same reasons & very uncomfortable seats also ! I don't know if you saw my lame post about dog beds , but canine covers makes a nice 1 ! Better bed than I could come up with plus I'll use it as much or more than the boys !

I did see that post. Im looking at something for back there but debating on what route I am going to go. I think I am going to make some MOLLE pads to attach to both sides of the back, that way I can store things off the floor in the "dead space."

Awesome!! Same reason I traded in my 08 Tacoma. Great pictures, I also have a German Shepherd that didn't like sitting in the double cab. The 4R solved all that.

I ended up not bringing her certain places just because it was inconvenient. Now that we have the T4R it is awesome to just have her load up in the back and give her the window to hang out of.

 

[bvc]

How did you get your fishin rods to stay up there? I'm trying to figure something out...

 

[Snookup]

How did you get your fishin rods to stay up there? I'm trying to figure something out...

It was a huge pain and ended up not being very effective. I used paracord and just ran it from one hanger holder to the other one on the other side. I then used tape to hold the p-cord in place. The one over the middle of the vehicle was easy since it had something to actually tie to.

The reason it wasn't effective was because the back one wouldn't hold (especially on the dunes at the beach).

I will be figuring something out soon to work better.

 

[col26b]

Im new to NC so looking for some NC people to wheel/explore with.

PM sent (I think? I'm struggling at this forum thing)

 

[RTAYLOR]

It was a huge pain and ended up not being very effective. I used paracord and just ran it from one hanger holder to the other one on the other side. I then used tape to hold the p-cord in place. The one over the middle of the vehicle was easy since it had something to actually tie to.

The reason it wasn't effective was because the back one wouldn't hold (especially on the dunes at the beach).

I will be figuring something out soon to work better.

I use a bungee attached to the grab handles. You can pickup extra handles pretty cheap to replace those hanger holders.

 

[Snookup]

I use a bungee attached to the grab handles. You can pickup extra handles pretty cheap to replace those hanger holders.

Ahh good thinking. I didn't even realize a grab handle would fit in that spot. I will try and track some down. That will make life a lot easier.

Thanks!