I have a few pics to upload, as soon as the batteries are charged up again. The camera ran dry taking all those shots of 'balloon boy' making all those unsuccessful attempts in that one little mud pit. 
August Long Weekend '08 - Whipsaw
- Thread starter Granite Grinder
- Start date
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Another great trip up the Whipsaw. Too bad I didn't get a chance to wheel with anyone from the group, but I think I chose right for taking Jenni through the area for the first time. She really enjoyed the trip. The southern section of the trail is very scenic with the mountains and the meadows covered in wildflowers. Other than a few quads we didn't meet anyone on the trail until the heinz and suzuki groups rolled into Wells. We camped on Whipsaw Creek Friday, Wells on Saturday, and joined the group on Sunday. I have to say the mosquitos were worse this year than I've seen them up there before. I think some of the rocky obstacles are improving in difficulty as the trail gets more wear and tear. Unfortunately there is more off trail wear as well.
I'm really happy to have my 40 back up and running. Other than the carb running rich at the high elevation the truck worked great. I was considering heading out via the quad trail down to Champion but we decided to head directly to Tulameen for ice cream and a swim in Otter Lake instead. I was worried we might not have enough fuel to head out on the Coquihalla with the added side trip, though the half a tank remaining from Chilliwack would have easily been enough. A few pics from our trip:
I'm really happy to have my 40 back up and running. Other than the carb running rich at the high elevation the truck worked great. I was considering heading out via the quad trail down to Champion but we decided to head directly to Tulameen for ice cream and a swim in Otter Lake instead. I was worried we might not have enough fuel to head out on the Coquihalla with the added side trip, though the half a tank remaining from Chilliwack would have easily been enough. A few pics from our trip:
Well, the Whipsaw Run has come and gone for another year. It was a good time for everybody with a minimum of mechanical difficulties. Coastal Cruiser members and guests present were: Steve T with daughters and Father Wayne, guest Ken ?, Glenn B & friend Tim, Phil S and daughters, Aaron K & Carolyn, Jeff S & Becky & daughters, Gary T & friend John, Gary T’s sister Nancy and husband Bill, Marcin C, Mat R & Erika, Sopel, Rob Cz, Pawel Z, Layne with son, Rob Millson, Jason with 3 kids, Paul K, Traci & lovely dog, Drew E & energetic dog, Martin S & Jenni, Shane & Sue with daughter, Barry P, Chris H with 2 sons, and Bill W. I hope I haven’t forgotten anybody.
Phil went into Lodestone Lake on Tuesday and faced cold temperatures, snow showers, and plenty of rain. It was unseasonably cold at night and they had to dig out lots of layers to keep warm. By the time most of us arrived on Friday and Saturday, it had warmed up somewhat but was still pretty chilly at night at 6000 feet of altitude. There were lots of wildflowers this late in the summer. Some nights were clear skys with the starry Milky Way spread across the heavens. There were shooting stars too. Guest Tim jumped into the lake Saturday morning and said the water temp was better than the air temp. The Good ol' Boys from Princeton were fewer and quieter this year. Funny how you miss those noisey Rednecks!
Our Saturday run went in two directions: the Polish Team decamped and went over the mountains to Champion Creek and on to the Tulameen River area and beyond. Most of the rest of us went down the Hope-Brigade Trail to Wells Lake to meet Aaron. Later we returned back to Lodestone L and road conditions were pretty good. Trail traffic was light although we did see four FunInBC vehicles (one a Toyota!). That night Gary T set off lots of fireworks over the lake to entertain the group. We had great campfires every night and people ran for their sleeping bags to keep warm.
Sunday was warmer and we decided to take the old Badger Creek trail down to the Arrastra Creek and around the loop back to Loadstone. That Badger Creek trail was a challenge with narrow steep descents and deep mud holes. We met a few trailbikes coming the other way, and they couldn't believe that trucks could come down that trail! We lunched at the bottom and Aaron decided to return back up that trail but the rest of us carried on to explore an old cabin and also to try to reactivate an old road leading from Arrastra Road up to the Watcom Trail, but it was beyond our efforts and we finally abandoned that idea.
Monday people began to decamp and slowly head home. We did encounter Heinz 57 guys when heading down to Coalmont. Gary T and I went to visit the old Coalmont Cemetery and on to Tulameen and a dip in Otter Lake. We took the Lawless FSR over to the Coquihalla Highway, around the bypass, and down to Hope. That Lawless road is high-speed gravel and had virtually no traffic. As usual the Freeway from Hope to Abbotsford was slow and overloaded, so we took the Mission Bridge and found Highway 7 quiet and easy.
Although most of us have done Whipsaw several times now, we always enjoy it and hope to do it again next year.
So, where are we going on the Labour Day weekend? To be determined at the August 14 meeting. See you there!
Phil went into Lodestone Lake on Tuesday and faced cold temperatures, snow showers, and plenty of rain. It was unseasonably cold at night and they had to dig out lots of layers to keep warm. By the time most of us arrived on Friday and Saturday, it had warmed up somewhat but was still pretty chilly at night at 6000 feet of altitude. There were lots of wildflowers this late in the summer. Some nights were clear skys with the starry Milky Way spread across the heavens. There were shooting stars too. Guest Tim jumped into the lake Saturday morning and said the water temp was better than the air temp. The Good ol' Boys from Princeton were fewer and quieter this year. Funny how you miss those noisey Rednecks!
Our Saturday run went in two directions: the Polish Team decamped and went over the mountains to Champion Creek and on to the Tulameen River area and beyond. Most of the rest of us went down the Hope-Brigade Trail to Wells Lake to meet Aaron. Later we returned back to Lodestone L and road conditions were pretty good. Trail traffic was light although we did see four FunInBC vehicles (one a Toyota!). That night Gary T set off lots of fireworks over the lake to entertain the group. We had great campfires every night and people ran for their sleeping bags to keep warm.
Sunday was warmer and we decided to take the old Badger Creek trail down to the Arrastra Creek and around the loop back to Loadstone. That Badger Creek trail was a challenge with narrow steep descents and deep mud holes. We met a few trailbikes coming the other way, and they couldn't believe that trucks could come down that trail! We lunched at the bottom and Aaron decided to return back up that trail but the rest of us carried on to explore an old cabin and also to try to reactivate an old road leading from Arrastra Road up to the Watcom Trail, but it was beyond our efforts and we finally abandoned that idea.
Monday people began to decamp and slowly head home. We did encounter Heinz 57 guys when heading down to Coalmont. Gary T and I went to visit the old Coalmont Cemetery and on to Tulameen and a dip in Otter Lake. We took the Lawless FSR over to the Coquihalla Highway, around the bypass, and down to Hope. That Lawless road is high-speed gravel and had virtually no traffic. As usual the Freeway from Hope to Abbotsford was slow and overloaded, so we took the Mission Bridge and found Highway 7 quiet and easy.
Although most of us have done Whipsaw several times now, we always enjoy it and hope to do it again next year.
So, where are we going on the Labour Day weekend? To be determined at the August 14 meeting. See you there!
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sounds like it was fun cant wait to see the pics.
good thing i didn't go because i had to rip all the brake lines out of my truck dew to leaking out a pin hole in the metal line.( not good for wheeling)
good thing i didn't go because i had to rip all the brake lines out of my truck dew to leaking out a pin hole in the metal line.( not good for wheeling)
Just a few attendance corrections; Steve had both his kids this trip, I had both my kids, and my friend Jason (the F350) had 3 kids but no wife this trip. 10 kids in total? Seemed like more 
Also, the 4 trucks that waited for us near Falcon hill were from funinbc.com, not the heinz crew.
Also, the 4 trucks that waited for us near Falcon hill were from funinbc.com, not the heinz crew.
Just a few attendance corrections; Steve had both his kids this trip, I had both my kids, and my friend Jason (the F350) had 3 kids but no wife this trip. 10 kids in total? Seemed like more
Also, the 4 trucks that waited for us near Falcon hill were from funinbc.com, not the heinz crew.
Thanks for the corrections Jeff, good to see that somebody actually reads this stuff!
Say! We are looking for somebody to volunteer to do some write-ups and you are just the man for the job.....
You're in!! 
Nothing wrong with Good ol' Princeton Boys provided they bring some Good ol' Princeton Girls! ;p No one checked out the new Princeton Pub? Mat? Next year I will try to make sure I am around for the run. No old Chev 4x4 beater like in my Good ol' Boy days but I suppose I could make a good smoke show with the NA Safari climbing up to 6000'.
Probably heading up to Princeton area next week for a week or so of camping and back road touring with the kids. Planning to base out of Dry Lake camp. If anyone else is around the area and is up for some wheeling and fishing let me know. Hijack out.
We had a great weekend relaxing around the camp. We are getting ready for a week trip to the Rockies and Kootenays then hopefully a weekend in Golden in September to photograph wolves and we are pretty much done for the year. It was nice seeing all of you and we will see you again in the spring.
photos at Lodestone Aug 2008 - a set on Flickr
photos at Lodestone Aug 2008 - a set on Flickr
I guess I should do a write up from the Polish team. We all met up on Friday morning in Maple Ridge, then were joined by Marcin at Lickman and finally Pawel in Hope. The drive up was nice and we headed for the South (front) entrance to Whipsaw. After a quick pit stop in Princeton for lunch and fuel we hit gravel and took a nice drive up. Since we did not actually hit the trail until after 12:30 we were expecting to not get into camp until late. 1/2 way up on the trail I was able to get Aaron on the CB, who was ahead of us and we met up with him (sort of) at Wells. Since it was still early we kept going and to our surprise, even with the occasional pic and scenery stops, we got to camp by 5:30 - 6pm. Camp this year was large and we managed to take over almost 1/2 the lake. In the morning we were joined by Glenn on our scouting trip towards Tulameen FSR which started off great with a tight and muddy trail but soon turned into a bigger gravel FSR. A couple of dead ends and we were unable to get to where we wanted so we had lunch at Vuich Falls camp site where I fixed an air leak in my tire. Glenn followed us until Jacobson Lake then headed back. We explored a lot of trails in the area hoping to connect to Sowaqua Creek but were unable to do it. There is one trail that I found that leads into Manning that looks way too cool but we were short on time. We manage to find an excellent camp by Cunningham creek that was secluded and pretty much perfect. On Sunday we all headed back up the Tulameen FSR and said goodbye to Sopel and Marcin while Robert C., Pawel and I continued to Tulameen town, Princeton, Hedley and took Ashnola FSR South. We found a secluded camp spot with no one around and set up camp early. At night we were visited by what we assumed were coyotes (could only see their reflective eyes) and tons of stars. We enjoyed some more of Robert's excellent cooking and movie night of our trip so far thanks to Pawel. In the morning we took the trail leading to Placer Mountain and were rewarded by amazing views, steep 700m drop offs and a tight and windy trail up the mountain. We connected with the Simikameen River and had a late lunch. With a group sigh of disappointment we hit the highway and headed home via Hwy 7. I always feel like I'm giving up when I head back into town.
Since I am in Ft. St. John right now I will not be able to attend the meeting and the only thing I can say about the drive here is don't do it without AC!
Since I am in Ft. St. John right now I will not be able to attend the meeting and the only thing I can say about the drive here is don't do it without AC!
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Try driving to Belize and back in July and August without AC you dandy...and yes I do now own an 80 with AC.
10 kids in total? Seemed like more
OMIDOG!!
there were 18 kids there dude!!!
Phil - 2
Chris - 2
Shane & Sue - 1
Jeff & Becky - 2
Layne - 1
Jason - 3
Steve - 2
Ken - 5
why do you think I was sick and left early??
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OMIDOG!!
there were 18 kids
why do you think I was sick and left early??
Com'on Traci, you know that you secretly love kids...that's why you treat Rojo like a kid.
Anyway, thanks for looking after camp Saturday, we appreciated it. Good to see you again.
Pics are up.
OMIDOG!!
there were 18 kids there dude!!!
main reason I never go on the whipsaw run.......................
nice pics Mat!
thank you.
You're time is coming Dan! That B clock is doing its count down. ;p
I third that!