Any (4-wheel) Overland types in here?

[wannabe]

Sweet! Thanks for sharing the pics! Looks like an awesome trip!

 

[ScorpioVI]

Great pictures! Did you have to go through the Black Rock area to get to Summit Lake or did you come in from the north?

This guy caught my eye on the way out...

Ok, my eyes are getting old. What am I not seeing?

 

[WoodsChick]

Sweet! Thanks for sharing the pics! Looks like an awesome trip!

Thank you! It was so great to get out of Oakland. I used to be gone every single weekend but life has changed dramatically (caregiving for an older parent) and now it's a major treat to escape. I needed the desert badly.

Great pictures! Did you have to go through the Black Rock area to get to Summit Lake or did you come in from the north?




Ok, my eyes are getting old. What am I not seeing?

The guy that looks like Hitler at the bottom of the red part of the rock! I noticed it immediately, but don't feel bad because Eric didn't see it either. I don't know how to do those fancy circles and arrows on the photos or I would

And, yeah, we dropped down from the north. We basically got to the border of the res and hung a right and went into the wildlife refuge on this trip.

 

[ScorpioVI]

I used to be gone every single weekend but life has changed dramatically (caregiving for an older parent) and now it's a major treat to escape. I needed the desert badly.

Welcome to my life. My mom had a stroke in March 2020. I've been her primary caregiver since. She's still largely independent but the days of me just disappearing every weekend into the wild are gone. I just don't like the thought of her falling and laying on the floor for days because I was out camping (she has one of those LifeAlert necklaces and Alexa in every room but... she forgets).

The guy that looks like Hitler at the bottom of the red part of the rock! I noticed it immediately, but don't feel bad because Eric didn't see it either. I don't know how to do those fancy circles and arrows on the photos or I would

Ok I see him now. Definitely see the Hitler hair.

I spent hella minutes trying to find a lizard or a snake in the rocks.

 

[ThumperX]

The desert beckons for sure. I had the little van out last weekend and allowed the Beta to stretch her legs. We need the desert. Can one overland an old Sprinter van or must I take the Tundra?

 

[Map8]

A WoodsChick trip report and photos!!! Have missed your travel posts so much. Thanks for posting.

 

[WoodsChick]

A WoodsChick trip report and photos!!! Have missed your travel posts so much. Thanks for posting.

Thank you! Believe me, nobody misses it more than I do. And it's not just the going and being out there that I miss, although that's the part that sets my soul free...it's everything...the perusing maps and wondering where to go, the planning, watching the weather, taking photos, making a story out of it, and then sharing it with you all here. I miss it all!

And speaking of trip reports...perhaps a 4-wheeled forum wouldn't be a bad thing for us to have, rather than just one long thread? I had to search for this thread as it hadn't had any posts since July!

I've got another day's adventures working in another window right now

 

[ScorpioVI]

Can one overland an old Sprinter van or must I take the Tundra?

Overlanding is just "vehicle-based travel". Ain't no rules about what type of vehicle. Instagram be damned.

 

[ThumperX]

Overlanding is just "vehicle-based travel". Ain't no rules about what type of vehicle. Instagram be damned.

I'm digging that 31mpg

And speaking of trip reports...perhaps a 4-wheeled forum wouldn't be a bad thing for us to have, rather than just one long thread? I had to search for this thread as it hadn't had any posts since July!

+1 on the 4wd with 2wd exceptions forum; keep it in the family no need for us to wander off to that f**kface place.

 

[WoodsChick]

I'm digging that 31mpg



+1 on the 4wd with 2wd exceptions forum; keep it in the family no need for us to wander off to that f**kface place.

Well, by 4-wheeled I meant vehicles with 4 wheels, no matter how many of them are putting power to the ground

 

[atoyf]

Pictures from Usal Beach this past weekend.

Hi Alan,

what’s that road by the GG and how to enter it ??

 

[WoodsChick]

The next day we headed in a different direction...

There's an unsoakable hot springs out there...

It's been fenced off since the last time I was out here, which is a shame. Lots of cows here in the spring when it's green and I'm sure they wouldn't survive a fall into that water...

Stopped for gas in Denio Junction. I really wanted to go back and get the copy of Stranger in a Strange Land but never did...

This area looked to me like there should be water nearby. Lots of grass and that white flaky soil. We went to check it out...

'There was a cold spring spilling into a cattle trough, although I didn't get any close-up photos of it. Those are the Jackson Mountains in the background...

Tried to head up into the Pine Forest Range...again...from the Leonard Creek Ranch side but still couldn't get to the road. Spoke with 2 of the 3 brothers that own and live on the ranch and they confirmed it is private property and the road is not accessible from the ranch side. I'll have to let Benchmark know that the road is now gated and closed. It was great talking with the brothers, though. The ranch was bought by their grandfather in the 1920's. He was a Basque sheepherder and worked the land before he bought it. It is a beautiful oasis at the base of the mountains right at the northern end of the Black Rock Desert. Stunning piece of property! The brothers gave me lots of tips on how to get to the northern end of where the property ends. That will have to wait til I'm back out there on 2 wheels. Hopefully before I'm dead of old age...


Drove through the ranch and headed up the canyon. Lots of abandoned hopes and dreams out here...

Nevada, and deserts in general, always look so dry and barren. A little poking around (after spotting an explicable puddle in the middle of a bone-dry road) proves otherwise. The pool is almost 3' deep...

In fact, the road we were on was supposed to be taking us to some high mountain lakes. Looking back on the road we had just come up on. The Black Rock Desert lies just beyond that tallest mountain in the middle of the frame...

This road just climbs and climbs...

I guess that's why Eric decided to stop here and investigate the burning oil we started smelling...

Welp...we won't be continuing on to the lakes today. Eric checked the oil and it wasn't too low, but he said the undercarriage was covered in oil and he was being cautious. He topped off the oil and we headed back down the hill.


Wy would someone build a house here?

Ahh...that's why...

We usually see lots more wild burros, too, but this was the only one we saw on our way back to camp...

Checked the oil again, all was ok, but we decided to head back home early in the morning. We woke up to rain and snow. It snowed on us all the way to Winnemucca, and then on and off (mostly on) all the way back to California. Blowing snow over Donner Pass was most excellent and beautiful! This was on October 18th. It snowed and rained all the way to just before Auburn. We were checking the oil every 100 miles at first but it wasn't changing so we just blasted home and will deal with it next week. Sure felt good to get out into the great wide open. Hopefully our new and slightly more forgiving schedules will allow a little more opportunity for fun in the future!

 

[berth]

Thanks for the stories PixChick

We actually have one of those Little Libraries one street over.

 

[Charles R]

Great trip report Woodschick! Fantastic pics too!

 

[m0t0_ryder]

Great stuff wheelin-chick!
Good to see ya back.

 

[WoodsChick]

Welcome to my life. My mom had a stroke in March 2020. I've been her primary caregiver since. She's still largely independent but the days of me just disappearing every weekend into the wild are gone. I just don't like the thought of her falling and laying on the floor for days because I was out camping (she has one of those LifeAlert necklaces and Alexa in every room but... she forgets).








Ok I see him now. Definitely see the Hitler hair.

I spent hella minutes trying to find a lizard or a snake in the rocks.

Hah! Sorry about that!

I'm sorry to hear about your mom It's pretty hard to switch gears, I know. Especially after never having to take care of anyone but myself and my husband. My father-in-law had a heart attack and fell out of the shower. He laid on the floor for hours until we went over there to see why he wasn't answering the phone. This happened the night before I donated a kidney to my sister! Poor Eric...he was a nervous wreck the next day! Pop spent the next 3 weeks in the hospital, came home on Jan 1st, and ever since he has needed round-the-clock assistance. He shouldn't have been living alone in the first place (dementia, severe OCD, and diminished decision-making skills) but now he has no choice. I declined to return to my job of 27 years, and instead handled Mon-Fri days (10-12 hour days) while everyone else was at work, and his 3 sons handled all the other shifts. It's been life-changing (on so many unexpected levels) and oh so hard... We have outside help now so there's a little bit of breathing room.

I hope things are running smoothly for you and your mom, and that you get the chance to stretch your legs every now and again!

 

[FLH03RIDER]

Nevada Trophy Rally... Feb. 16 - 19, 2022 (The 16th is a practice day.)

Just posting this for those that may be interested. (Note: Not my event, although I've helped with setting way points for previous NTR's.)

Teams: Two vehicles, each with Driver and Navigator.
Course: Based on past events, Fernley (SW corner), Gerlach / Black Rock (NW corner), Hiways 140 / 95 (NE corner), and the area North along 80 from Fernley out to Winnemuca (SE corner). On occasion the course has included areas SSE out of Lovelock.

Three Classes this year:
1) 4X4 class as always (must have low-range transfer)
2) AWD X-over type suv (no low-range transfer box)
3) Pre-Runner 2WD Stock. (ie: Tacoma, Frontier, etc)

Detailed info here: https://www.nevadatrophy.com/

 

[ThumperX]

Man, I love this thread!

 

[ScorpioVI]

Haven't been anywhere noteworthy in the last couple of months. But I do have a couple of trips lined up towards 395 in February and March.

 

[berth]

Goggies.