Re: post up your camping pics
 

Man diesel,I know I've said it before....but that's a great looking truck eh!!!!! Great pictures too!

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Looks good dawg! I like that your tailgate can still shut with the camper in. Makes for a nice porch too I bet.

Re: post up your camping pics
 

Hope no one minds me joining in. I've always been a tent camper, done several miles of the AT and hiked/ice climbed a lot in Alaska while I was lucky enough to live there. Always had GM trucks to get me out there too ;) Most weren't 4x4 though, until a couple years ago I couldn't swing for much more than a 2WD longbed... they always got me in and out though!

I found some pics from camping with my first 72 before it was stolen. This had to have been around 2006ish and was up near Raven Cliffs and Unicoi Gap in North Georgia.

Parking by the campsite, found a cool little pad right downstream from a waterfall.
http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p...ps1b9d3dc4.jpg
http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p...psa1fc4b9d.jpg

Riding around on forestry roads after setting up
http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p...psf3a628d7.jpg
http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p...ps7ee8ad26.jpg

Here is Camping/hiking in Alaska around 2011, my second full time year up there. Drove out the Denali Highway and saw an amazing part of the world!
http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p...0715110902.jpg
http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p...909110024a.jpg
Crossing the Susitna River
http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p...713111553a.jpg
Got a moose on that trip! :)
http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p...902111448a.jpg

My last camping trip in Alaska, didn't know it was or I would have made it longer but hopefully I'll get to visit again. Went from my place in Healy, AK down through Anchorage and over to Copper Center, McCarthy, and Valdez. An epic trip I will always remember! The daily routine, drive 5-6 hours and find a nice place to set up camp!
http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p...ps65d13795.jpg
Always want to keep warm...
http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p...psf462f3aa.jpg
http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p...ps744ec877.jpg
Might have overpacked a bit but my retired parents were with me, still can't believe I suckered them in to tent camping!
http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p...psd7b8ce2f.jpg
The views speak for themselves...
http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p...ps50051b0a.jpg
http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p...psfcd01500.jpg
Never a real trip in AK without a wildlife sighting!
http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p...ps8dc44c14.jpg
Hopefully as my son gets older I'll be able to update with pics of us camping!

Re: post up your camping pics
 

Thanks for sharing and nice bull! That Denali highway is a great drive...

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Dont go camping much, but here are a few. this was when i still had my '04

http://i94.photobucket.com/albums/l8...camping036.jpg

http://i94.photobucket.com/albums/l8...camping055.jpg

http://i94.photobucket.com/albums/l8...camping065.jpg

http://i94.photobucket.com/albums/l8...camping073.jpg

http://i94.photobucket.com/albums/l8...camping075.jpg

The camp site was on the bank of the Rio Grande, just shy of treeline. a little trip over Stony pass and the divide. there is a place on Stony pass that you can literally stand in the snowpile that is the beginning of the Rio Grande. i thought i have pics, but i guess not.

Re: post up your camping pics
 

These photos are driving me nuts. I've had the boat out for a little fishing a couple times, but now I'm really jonesin' for a long weekend camping trip. I've scheduled a day the last Friday in April. If the weather cooperates...

Re: post up your camping pics
 

Great pictures! I can’t wait for the season to get going! It’s been a long hard winter and I can’t wait to get out. Our first trip is coming up in May. Headed to the Overland Expo in Flagstaff then heading back up to explore more in the Utah Canyonlands area. I can’t wait for that week to get here!

I haven’t done much to the truck itself in preparation for this season other than addressing some annoyance items and cosmetic things on body and interior (pulled doors to adjust, readjust and adjust some more, adjusted the entire front clip and installed new door panels). The body needed a lot of adjustments here and there from years of getting flexed and tweaked off-road. The doors were getting to the point they didn’t want to shut anymore and the bottoms were rattling on the rocker panels. They shut better than new now.

Even though the truck hasn’t gotten much attention the camper sure has. I ran it up to the camper builder in March where they remodeled the kitchen area by removing the old sink set up and old stovetop. The old stove top was a Suburban brand unit, which are in just about every RV built in the last few decades. They are great pieces but they rattle like crazy and I was looking for something more modern and takes up less space. They hooked me up with a Stove/sink combo unit and I really love it! Can’t wait to get a chance to use it in the real world. While it was at their shop they also installed the 100W solar panel for me. Once I got it home I handled the controller wiring and rearranged just about everything I had packed in there. When I was done I found a hidden compartment which I opened up revealing over 1 cubic foot of storage. 1 cubic foot of storage is HUGE in a little truck camper. The solar should really help on those trips where we may sit in one spot for more than a day as the National Luna refrigerator is 100% electric. Even though it is 100% electric it doesn’t draw much current but after about 3 day of the truck not moving the fridge starts to run pretty flat.

Before: This worked alright for a few years.
https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5051/...49972946_b.jpg

After: This opens up a lot more room when the stove and sink are not in use. No more rattles either! I hate rattles!!
https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2827/...7d0a78f3_c.jpg

https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3709/...2761daaf_c.jpg

Added a 100W solar system as well. Will be perfect when parked in the same spot for a day or more.
https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7239/...d044e89b_c.jpg

Anxious to get out and see how this new stove/sink and solar perform!

This is where we are going in Canyonlands! The Doll House in the Maze District. We briefly rolled through this spot in 2010.
https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4093/...08cafb91_b.jpg

We'll be seeing lot of this too. Camping next to this cliff is a thrill. Just becareful when you get up at 2 AM to use the beer return station. That first step is a doozy! :lol:
https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4094/...ab62c631_b.jpg

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Bullwinkle died?

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thanks rubble! in truth though it's a 20 footer, picked up a few more "pinstripes" out 4bying with the kid last weekend

MTCK, thanks, yeah it's nice having the porch, i did have to drill holes threw the gate, or it fills up with water when it rains. also got 2 sets of step brackets bolted to it! but it's just my camping 'gate, i have a nice one with clearance lites & full alum. checkerplate t.gate guard, not enuff room to shut the gate with the alum on it though

Tropical, awesome pics, love going up there even though aint been there since '07. feel free to post more pics!

some nice looking country ryanroo, good looking '04

DirtyLarry, VERY cool looking stove & sink, that thing would like double your counter space!, how much do something like that go for? solar is great to have too, (got a real small one for the truck batteries) but your only getting 3-4 days? does,nt your eight point one have dual batts?
yes, let us know how it works, i'm really liking the concept

Re: post up your camping pics
 

It did free up a lot of counter space. Not sure what they cost, I think the SMEV stove/sinks go for around $500 but I did some trade work with the builder that built my camper for it. I did a bunch of work to their GMT400 truck and they remodeled my galley and installed the solar panel on the roof. On the other hand, the solar system was pretty inexpensive. $200 for the 100W panel, charge controller, wiring, etc. Not a bad deal. I’m not sure how many days I will get but I’m hoping for endless days with sunshine.

The truck actually has 3 batteries. A chassis start battery on the RH side of the radiator support, a camper/winch battery on the left side then another camper battery in the camper. The camper battery under the hood and inside the camper are tied to each other. There is also an isolator to separate the two camper batteries from the chassis battery.

Re: post up your camping pics
 

Thanks! I loved every minute of it (even working outside when it was 72 below 0F!). Still trying to convince the family to head up there, too bad it's 80 degrees in Atlanta today and my other half is in a sweatshirt! :waah:

Shouldn't have tasted so good! ;)

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amen!

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This thread was an awesome idea. Isn't this what we have the 4x4's for? Besides all the great location pics, I love the picture of the mama bear with her cubs. Awesome! Please keep the great pics coming. When I'm done with my '64 K10, camping is one of the first things I'm doing with it.

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http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...0380FCFC08.jpg


Poser shot in the driveway. New camper, taking it out for the first time tomorrow

Re: post up your camping pics
 

Nice photo. Enjoy your trip.

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looks good willett!
be seeing you up this end of the valley, or you going sea to sky direction?

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We went up the elaho. I usually go Squamish way as its a bit quicker then heading out to the valley. With all the fun going on I forgot to snap pictures of my truck in the woods :lol: Ill have to ask my friends if they got any.

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And thanks!

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not camping pic's, me & my son went up to chilliwack lake today.
awesome weather, just kill a few cold ones and let the dawg be a dog
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Bought a pop up last wednesday and took it camping that weekend. I had my little boat on the back as well.

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Another pic. Of course I forgot to take a pic while we were all set up. Just remembered as we were pulling out. Oh well.

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Annual family men's fishing weekend at Nancy Lake in NW Wisconsin. Blue Bell, the rusty old 87 K20, pulled the 1953 Lone Star boat and my nephews and I slept in the 60s vintage Hetrick tent. That's my Dad's posterior in the pic as he helped me set it up. He did away with sleeping in tents years ago and he and my brother were in his camper trailer.

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Mt Whitney hike for the weekend.

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-L...0/DSC_9832.jpg

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-p...0/DSC_9846.jpg

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-l...0/DSC_9877.jpg

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Just got back Saturday night after a 10 day / 1,717 mile trip around AZ and UT. We left home on the 15th and started off at the Overland Expo in Flagstaff, AZ then headed up to Utah’s Canyonlands for the rest of the time. Once the rest of the pics and videos get uploaded and I get some time I’ll post up a trip report. The Canyonlands Doll House trail was awesome!

A few shots until the rest are uploaded….

Our little city within the Overland Expo from Friday the 16th through Sunday the 18th.
https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3689/...7b992bd5_c.jpg

Monday we headed North to Utah for the rest of the week...

https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5520/...96fcc2fb_c.jpg

https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5079/...9674810c_c.jpg

https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2908/...1eb99b8e_c.jpg

https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5577/...ba0fcf98_c.jpg

https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2902/...ee71362a_b.jpg

4 other rigs joined for the 4 day off-road journey in and out of the Doll House. The Doll House is remote!
https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3706/...be2433c7_c.jpg

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Been tracking your entire run on Spot since you left. Just zooming in on the sat map
had some great views, I can only imagine what some of your latest shots look like. Waiting patiently for the trip report!

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[quote=DirtyLarry;6694424]
https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5079/...9674810c_c.jpg
i like this one
looking out your window & seeing this, what an awesome way to start the day!
looks like you had stellar weather DirtyLarry

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https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5520/...96fcc2fb_c.jpg

https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5079/...9674810c_c.jpg

https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2908/...1eb99b8e_c.jpg

https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5577/...ba0fcf98_c.jpg

https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2902/...ee71362a_b.jpg

https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3706/...be2433c7_c.jpg[/QUOTE]

awesome veiw,if i woke up and saw that......I must be lost!

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couple of shots from last weekend

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Dirty Larry - I notice everyone in you group has popups, is that because the trails are not suitable for small towed travel trailers? We are thinking of getting a vintage canned ham to tow behind the 59 when its done. A lot of my hunting buddies have them with axle mods to get more ground clearance.

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Yeah, trailers become very burdensome on most of trails that get you out of the KOA campground. In fact, a few years ago my buddy Bill and I cobbled together an off-road trailer to pull around. We used it on our 2009 and 2010 desert trips and while it was handy to have along with the ability to haul more goods the trailer became an absolute burden on these tight Canyonlands trails as well as mountain trails. We found it no fun to make 3 and 4 point turns on narrow cliffs with pinpoint switchbacks and backing up on a technical trail is practically impossible without winching the trailer on spot. We since sold the trailer and do not miss dealing with it.

Interestingly enough we started our week at the Overland Expo which is like the Sturgis of the overland / backcountry adventure crowd. They had every imaginable off-road camper from 6 digit Earthroamers to any size and shape of roof top tent on display not to mention every imaginable decent off-road camp trailer. There were some outstanding trailers that leave you salivating but the bitter taste of pulling our homemade trailer quickly curbs any envy of those nice little trailers. I’ve also noticed over on Expedition Portal the retention rate of off-road camp trailers is pretty short. People go crazy over them then after a few trips in the wild they learn trailers suck on technical trails and up for sale they go. About 6 years ago I seriously considered a Jayco Baja or the Fleetwood version off-road popup trailers and so glad I did not pull the trigger on one of those.

Here is the trailer we built and pulled for two desert trips. Good riddance! I did like sitting on top of the trailer in the camp chair at night though. Less likely to have a bitting critter encounter during beerthirty!
https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2479/...435dfa89_b.jpg

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Thanks for the insight. Most likely trailer will be for when the wife is with me hitting campgrounds. I'm still fine with a tent and cot, or even under the stars if its not raining.

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by the way DirtyLarry, how did that new stove/sink combo work? inquiring minds want to know:)
i could see that freeing up some major counter space in our old Travelmate

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It worked great! When the stove top and sink are not in use having the ability to close it and create a large counter top is so handy. It worked flawlessly too. I highly recommend one of these if you ever do an interior remodel.

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have the second week of july for holidays, but after reading DirtytLarry's desert trip, couldn't wait. kids teachers are on strike, so i skipped out of work friday & made a long weekend of it. no quads this time, just a quickie to make sure everything ok for our vacation in july.
heading up to American Creek area. been a few yrs, creek is usually 15-20 ft wide, but snow meltdown sure brought them up
Attachment 1269346Attachment 1269347

road has really gotten overgrown
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getting narrower....
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we be pruning now...
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hmmm..., hole was a little deeper than i remember
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a nice spot to be:)
it's good to be out in the bush again, drinkin'wood & burnin' beer....
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reeeal good....
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bummer...heading home, but 2 more weeks! (yay!)
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got back from what may be our only vacation this yr. day before we left boss told me we got a big job that will tie us up for a month or so. that bites.
we stayed fairly local, went to a corner of the coquihalla hiway area. took the wife's envoy so we could also go for a day trip down to Tulameen.
made a slight detour to let the dogs out & have a bite
Attachment 1276873Attachment 1276874
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dawg just started doing this weird thing, rock licking. doesn't actually lick them, he drapes his tongue on them & moves his head around
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kz83VRdsQGs

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back on the coquihalla.
Attachment 1276877

they have signs that say "high mountain road, weather changes suddenly".... it sure does, one minute bright sun, the next, rain
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'bout halfway up the "smasher" the rain stopped. 10% grade for 9 or 10 miles. if you have a heavier vehicle, your cooling system has to be top notch
Attachment 1276879

there's the sudden weather change again. breaking up at the top
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turned off the "coke" again
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turned on this road, 'bout 10 miles of single lane to our turn off. sent the wife ahead to make sure it was clear, no hope of turning 40 feet of truck & trailer around on this road
Attachment 1276884

so far so good, only see her tracks
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yay! almost there & still only seeing her tracks
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got to our turn-off, Pike mt. 'bout 10 miles of more 8-10% grade with a real crappy surface. there goes the beer & pop
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was messing around & tried some different angles. it's a little shaky, my go-pro is me holding my 10 yr old canon out the window. climbing pike mt.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kupZwyXRgjE
a constant climb
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FSdAIiJoEqo
still climbing
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rdaKnW3tb0A
made it to the top!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CC1rpIkHvcU