Anybody taken their truck out west?

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R

rickysa

Joined
Feb 1, 2017
Threads
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Location
Central NC
I've never visited the western half of our great country and was curious if anyone local has made the trip? I'd like to plan an extended vacation to cruise to some of the sites/trails, but am overwhelmed by the options. I'm new to the 4WD thing, but have taken the UORTC 101 class and plan to take any other class they offer at Big Creek...

If you were to plan a trip, what would be the general destination (planning on camping), and how would you get there?
 
I went to Utah, but was time constrained. Had to make the trip in 4 days. So the trip there was drive forever, sleep in the roof tent at rest stops/truck stops.... drive forever again rinse repeat until you are there. Moab is very easy to spend a few weeks exploring, as is the nearby canyonlands. If you are going by yourself i would stick to the easier trails and make sure you plan for solo trips, spares, etc etc. Cell phone might work in moab but once you get out, good luck. There are repeaters if you have a HAM setup, otherwise you are looking at inreach or spot if you get into trouble.

I went for cruisemoab, if i were to have 2 weeks to take off and do it again, i would do my own thing. There are a few multi day trails that take you all over utah and into colorado. On my way back i visited some fam in Tuscon, so the trip down i got to see a bit of the grand canyon.
 
west... I40 :D

kidding aside, pick a general area or a state..... better yet stick with area. Not to discourage linking some long distance destinations; A long meandering route can be fun, just dont try to cram too much into too little time is more appropriate i suppose. There is lots to be found without an itenerary and you could spend a week alone at one of several spots and not have enough time to see it all.

I've made 6-7 one way trips across the states now and have always had a blast. Some of my best trips ever actually. Leave plenty of travel time and dont forget that the trip there and back is part of the adventure as well. One week should already be dedicated to travel, so your already setup for a two week trip minimum to get some good away time in. Of course it can be done in much less but you rush through so much potential.

Destination/trail selection may depend on if you are solo or not. Maybe plan your own trip but chime in to some local clubhouses ahead of time and see if you cant tag along on a small trip so that you have company or assistance when far from familiar territory.

colorado
dakotas
montana
nevada
baja
or for something west but a few days closer try big bend state park in TX

dont forget to prepare for and plan dates around weather at the time of your planned travel.

and enjoy!!!
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Andrew, that sounds just like what I'd like to do...not much up for group events


colorado
dakotas
montana
nevada
baja.........like I said, overwhelmed :D!

Big Bend sounds great...I've got a buddy in Austin that we visit with every year or so. Yeah, we be in no hurry...we've spent the last 30 years doing the beach thing, and with the kids growing up, the wife and I thought we might try something new. Camping, exploring, seeing something new.
 
I started wheelin' when I lived in California. Spots I used to frequent were Oceano/Pismo Dunes, Frank Raines OHV park and Hollister Hills SVRA. If you ever make it out to Pismo, keep in mind that the Pacific coast is cold and windy even in the summer. It can be a harsh environment to camp in.
 
We are planning a road trip to the Grand Canyon. We have two weeks allotted to travel there, visit, and travel back. We will be visiting the South Rim, route 66, and any other local spots. We are not planning on wheeling but I wanted to take the truck in case we wanted to get off the beaten path for a bit.
 
If you have the chance, you should check out the north rim for remote but easy access spots. Complete opposite of the south side access' majority tourist scene. Then you have BLM land and canyons right next door to explore. Easy to spend a whole week on north rim alone with some long day trips to see more of it....lots of space out there.

If primitive camping would suffice a nice compact run would be
[south rim lodge to relax after drive lol]
North Rim 3/4 nights 2 locations with daytrips to some area highlights (easy to do 4 locations as well)
exit and hit valley of the gods for a night
climb the moki dugway and camp up top for a night and then easy shot back to 40 back through monument valley
 
I've done 2 trips west, CO in 2006 and Moab in 2008. Drove in 06 in a 2004 LR Discovery II on 32s with sliders/winch roof tent, trailered in 2008 in my Series III coil conversion. Moab is cool but I'd say CO was my favorite trip. Bought a guide book and added a week of trails after the national Land Rover Rally in Leadville. Camp as you go , back and forth over Continental divide trails.

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I've been lucky in my life and enjoyed 4 trips coast-coast and annual trips of some sort (either N to NH/Maine or Rockies) since moving to NC. I have 3 more states to tick off (AK, LA and ND), hoping to tick 2 off this summer. When I raced bicycles, I started my training program by riding from SF Bay Area to Mission Viejo during Christmas, along HWY 1. Needless to say, I love being on the road in some form or another. It's my dad's fault, he insisted on a summer vacation every year I can remember, tent, truck camper, small trailer but a vacation or die.

I love this friggen country, am amazed every time I drive across it and love doing so at every excuse I can come up with. I've done everything from sleeping in rest stops in my car to "credit card" camping. Just friggen do it, I've drug my family through my need to travel, just remember its about the journey, not the destination. Some of my most memorable trips, where life-long friendships were made did NOT go as planned.

Make a plan, obsess about it if necessary but leave knowing its a template that can (and should) be modified as the journey takes it. I can get very anal about planning but build in several options in case stuff happens, like finding an amazing spot that nobody wants to leave just because somebody made a plan.

Destination...who cares, just go...I may have said that already. Time of year can make a big difference, there are amazing places close if you want to go somewhere and chill, I love heading west of the Mississippi. Driving from the Mississippi to the Rockies sucks, no matter which way you go, I prefer I40 but that's because I usually shoot for Southern CO, UT, NM and AZ. I'd take the time the week before departure to check with DOT websites for construction/closures to modify the route.

I enjoy going to "group events" like Rubithon, FJCruiser Summit, Katemcy, GSMTR, etc where one goes, unpacks once, off-roads with new friends and goes home, hitting some cools spots along the way. I also enjoy parking my trailer along a random stream in CO and being alone, I've incorporated both in a couple trips. I'm asking myself many of the same questions as well regarding this summer's plans...

Loon Lake on Rubicon Trail CA...
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Moab Rim Trail UT...
Moab Day 2 241.webp


Black Bear Pass above Telluride CO...
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Yellowstone Lake, WY...
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Valley of the Gods, UT
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lumbee1 said:
We are planning a road trip to the Grand Canyon. We have two weeks allotted to travel there, visit, and travel back. We will be visiting the South Rim, route 66, and any other local spots. We are not planning on wheeling but I wanted to take the truck in case we wanted to get off the beaten path for a bit.
Click to expand...

Being from AZ I can tell you the South Rim is for people that have never been to the North Rim.
 
Like Jason said, to me the hardest part of the trip out west is limiting how much you try to cram into your time there. If you are driving out and back, there is a week right there. I don't think you can get there and back any quicker unless you have a co-pilot that drives while you sleep and you don't stop at all.

I feel that my biggest mistake on a lot of my trips is trying to cover too much ground. I am constantly on the move. Next time i head west i plan to stay parked in an area for a few days to enjoy it and have little mini day trips from that spot.

But once you are there, the possibilities are endless.

I agree that the north rim of the grand canyon is absolutely amazing. I would only spend about 15 minutes at the south rim to get a selfie shot with all the tourists, then leave them and go really explore.
 
Wow. Stunning pictures.

Thanks for the feedback!

I spent a month packing in the South San Juans CO years ago and would love to go back. I have to do some research on the "north rim", as I know nothing about the Grand Canyon, but it sure sounds great.

eta: Holy cow!! After just a few minutes of looking, there are like a bazillion trails to ride, just in CO! If I didn't love NC so much, I just might have to move out there.
 
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I grew up in Sacramento, Cali, been all over Nevada and Cali. My favorite places is Death Valley and the Eastern Side of the Sierra Nevada Mtns down near Bridgeport/Mammoth Lakes area. Lots to explore and see. I'm still looking to move back West.
 
The first factor is determining time frame. Once you know how much time you have allotted for the trip it is easier to make a template of locations, places or routes that you are going to take. I say template because things change for us and we only use my templates as guides when we travel. I don't think we have ever completely stuck to a plan of travel ever, but it helped us get a rough outline of where we needed to be in order to make it back home in time.

2015 - 30 days - my wife, myself, and 3 kids went out west and had a blast. Too much to list here but we pretty much decided that we would bypass most of the eastern states and concentrate on activities from Texas to California and back.

I can provide more detailed info if needed.
 
I'm thinking two weeks (+) and our first destination will be the Silverton area in CO...I spoke with the San Juan Mountain Forestry folks and ordered a bunch of maps, as well as two books of the area from Slee. Probably no real itinerary other than getting to the area and doing some of the trails....probably ear-mark an area to camp. Since it will be our first road trip we'll just keep it simple and call it a "shake-down cruise", learning what else we might need for future trips. The truck was our neighbors and my wife borrowed it to haul a bunch of kids to the beach a few years ago and fell in love with it. She wants to do a lot of the driving out and back, so I'll probably just chill and sip on some gin and juice while in transit. :)
 
Yeah that whole area is pretty cool. One of the things that works for my family is to not rough it too much. I usually plan long road days (interstate travel) as days that we will sleep in hotels, unless we find a cool place and decide to stop. This helps myself and the rest of us be more rested when arriving to Colorado or wherever you plan to explore.

Additionally, on longer trips, my wife has a tolerance of about 3 - 4 days of camping before she wants to stay in a hotel room for the comfort of a bed and showers. I can extend camping days by camping on established campgrounds. We did this in the north rim area of the Grand Canyon and were able to explore the area a bit a longer.
 
This is a very timely thread, @rickysa - thanks for starting it.

I am in my 50's and have never driven cross country. I've wanted to for a long time, finally things have come together - accrued vacation, savings, the right vehicle.

If I can get 2 projects done this weekend, next Saturday (Mar 25) I'll start a solo 1700mi trek across I-40 to NM and the Moab area. I have no set destinations, just a rough idea of where I'd like to go, what I'd like to see, what I might do. After spending a week+ out there, I need to head down to Phoenix for a few days, then drive home. (Sadly North Rim is closed until mid-May, bah.)

I really appreciate people sharing their knowledge and experiences. Kind of affirms my plan (which is no plan).
 
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