Overland Training Alumni Baja Adventure

[1leglance]

I am at work so pics will have to wait 24hrs or so but I thought I would start a thread for everyone who was on this adventure to post pics, tell stories and share expereinces....

I am not sure who is willing to admit they were present in case sick calls were used to get out of town
So I am not using names until folks post up themselves.

A last minute cancelation by my disabled vet had me making frantic phone calls...
But my #2 guy had childcare issues....
and my #3 guy had skipped over the "passport required" part...

So a 24hr notice to our own J Brandon here on expo resulted in his fast flight from Reno to Phx and a shift in focus to a shakedown run for the W.A.V.E.
As an amputee and First Disabled Explorer I like the idea of scouting the trip out for future adventures with other disabled folks but it would have been great to have a newbie along.

However J was a great traveling buddy, navigator, photographer, and humidor hound.

Overview..
We met at a campground north of Tecate Sat Nov 28th..
2 dualsports, a Jeep, a 70 series, a Scout, a Defender 110 pulling a smooth looking Adventure Trailers Teardrop, 4 Sportsmobiles, an Earthroamer LT (the big one) and a sublte but very capable Tacoma....most folks had traveled through the rain from various areas but it was nice by the time we showed up.

Sunday -
Tecate to Melling Ranch
The first and most important drivers meeting & trail repair session.

Border crossing a breeze, banks closed on sunday but the immigration guy stamped us with a "will go pay later" thing that made life easy.
The Scout got searched but it was quick and not a problem.
Hiway time through Ensenada with a great taco stand for lunch somewhere..you got the meat of the day regardless of what you ask for

Finally some dirt right before Melling Ranch and what a cool place that is..
Some folks choose to stay in rooms, some of us were driving our rooms

 

[1leglance]

Monday-
Melling Ranch to El Rosario beach camp....
Mama Espanoza's Lobster Burrito Day!
or
The Great Locked Gate Adventure!

We ended up in 2 groups, those who wanted to see Missions and get to beach camp..
and those who wanted to try an unknown route by dirt out of Melling Ranch.
I was part of the explorer club..Hey we are Disabled Explorers after all.

The bike were a huge asset for route finding especially since they had ham radio also.

Lots of locked gates but still a great time.
Some of the SMB's enjoyed this little washout to play in.

Our second trail repair happened when we figured out my passenger side front hub wasn't unlocking or locking.
The Scout owner was an amazing resource and a huge thanks go to him.

Hiway to El Rosario, fuel up, fill up on good food and then to Beach Camp.
The WAVE doesn't seem so big when you bring an Earthroamer along!

I know there are some great stories from the Mission crowd so I will let them tell those.

We had our first stuck & recovery moment when I learned a bit too late that 3 wheel drive requires that I engage my front locker.
But with a tug from a fellow Sportsmobile and taking a bit more air out of the tires (the Nitto Trail Grapplers were far beyond my expectations!) were were set for camp.

I pulled out the Fire Dancer Propane fire pit and after the laughter died down folks liked the no smoke beach fire.

Cigars, food, beverages and everyone went to sleep happy.

 

[p1michaud]

:lurk:

Looking forward to the pics...

 

[1leglance]

Tuesday-
Beach Camp...dirt routes..diving pelicans..surfacing dolphins...and a secret canyon full of cool pictographs.
This was a day of finding out just how valuable ham radio can be. We were able to spread out for dust, keep in contact and advise about fast moving oncoming traffic.
Route finding in this area was tough but between keeping an eye out for each other and long range radios we did great.
Of course some of the rigs were big & bright enough to see even in the distance!

The tracks were killer in that we ran along the beach, up on ridges, down in wadi's and canyons and across wide washes.

Lunch was on a cliff edge watching roosting sea birds and lounging harbor seals....truely epic.
The ocean has undercut this area and it just goes to show that Sportsmobiles are not as heavy as people think

The bike boys crashed hard as the sun went down...luckily it was the crash asleep vs the over the bars style. Even when we tried to use a spot light to damped the wild animal level snoring it was no use.

One thing about being on an Overland Certified Alumni trip is you know you will eat well. How else can you get cherry cheesecake tarts under the stars in a box canyon in baja?

Another thing I loved was the quality of knowledge on a wide range of subjects meant our fireside chats were very cool. And the photographers on the trip showed us some cool night tricks.

Most folks turned in early with the annoucement of a crack of dawn hike to see pictographs but we were happy none the less.

 

[Brian McVickers]

Paul and I are at Pete's camp now. Just north of San Filipe. After Mission Impossible we found the DR200 to have a blown clutch. We put it up for safe keeping and headed to a great palapa beach camp in Gonzogga Bay!

 

[1leglance]

Paul and I are at Pete's camp now. Just north of San Filipe. After Mission Impossible we found the DR200 to have a blown clutch. We put it up for safe keeping and headed to a great palapa beach camp in Gonzogga Bay!

I can only imagine the clutch took a beating the way that buzzing bike was beating the trail dashing from rig to rig, tail sweep to trail leader. Jeremy was riding the snot out of that bike.

Oh and Brian your stormtropper body armor was pretty trick out on the trail

Glad to hear you guys are still on the dirt and keep enjoying the adventure.

 

[1leglance]

Wednesday-
Summiting the hill just after sunrise...pictographs let you make up your own story..divide & roll on...trail repair deja vu...on asphalt divides us into 3 groups...a voice on the air & a great lunch meetup...onyx mine ruins & cemetary...Coco and his Corner...night romp to beach camp on the other coast...

Our trip leader led the early riser club on a hike over one of the box canyon walls to see some pictographs on the other side. It was a very cool place to make up all kinds of historic stories

Then we had a drivers meeting where we split into the Mission Impossible & the see it slow groups. Mission Impossible needed to scoot down the hiway since the dirt route after Catavina is known to be very tough.

With the knowledge that we would be doing more tough 4wd action Alan the owner of Sportsmobile made the choice to swap his working hub with my failed one and that is just part of why Sportsmobile West is such a great company. Oh and before any of you say it is because I was driving the W.A.V.E. I honestly feel he would have done it for any of the other rigs just as quickly.
Another huge thanks to our hub tech resource who walked (or in my case, limped) me through the hub swap so I could help others in the future.
And thanks to another party in the group who packed up the gear of my resource while he helped me...that is beyond even Overland Certification right there!

Our group was more of the slow rolling, see it all along the way crowd so we left camp a bit later and had a great time on a long twisty turny spread out due to the dust section of trail.

At the end of it we had a little bit of trail repair deja vue as one of the group members experienced the same failure that had plagued him at the start of the trip (not me).

Once we hit aspalt the choice was made to split groups again so that those needing some mechanico ayuda (help) could get to Catavina...while our Sportsmobile convoy rolled down the road to see some onyx mine ruins.

Along the way we heard a faint voice over the air which turned out to be our wayward moto friends who had given up the hunt for the fast moving group and discovered a shack serving killer lunch (1 item on the menu and it was worth waiting for).
Alas part of our mini group needed to move on to an early camp so our group shrunk a bit more, but with our killer radio setups we knew contact was possible.

Our buddies were just finishing up when we rolled in which worked out great as the place had 1 table and 5 chairs (the 5th was a bit shakey though).
As we were hanging out we spyed a familar rig on the wall and lo & behold the Turtle Expedition also often stopped for lunch at this same place. The laughter around the table was great as Jeremy & I chatted in spanish with the owner about his friends Gary y Monica..and we left the place looking much better with it's new Overland Journal & Sportsmobile Stickers.

The moto's motored on and our 3 SMB's aired down for a bit of dirt road searching for the onyx mine. The cemetary next to it was the first thing to appear in the distance and was worth a look.

The site was cool and in the future it would be a blast to try to drive around the place but with the day dwindling and a long way to go yet we hit the dirt, aired up at asphalt and moved on down Mex 1.

At Catavina we heard friendly voices over the air and learned that there would be 3 camps that night...the Mission Impossible crowd, the Catavina group and our 3 rigs which had the goal of hitting the opposite coast!

A strong bit of navigating by J helped us find our turn off and we got to air down again for some dusk dirt running. I have been a huge fan of the Extreme Outback setup I had on the FJ Cruiser and the even more powerful version on the W.A.V.E. means it is cake to air up & down many times through a day. Not to mention cleaning out dust from the interior, air filters, and more is super easy.

We arrived at Coco's Corner with full dark just on us but that just meant we got to light up his place with the Rigid LED's for some great conversation. He speaks decent English and with my Spanish we were able to talk about his life in this remote area, the Baja Races and life as a disabled person who creates his own solutions. He is a true character and worth spending time with.

But alas the beach was calling and with it being on a different coast than we started from it was time to roll on. From Coco's to Gonzaga was a fast moving wavy, washboard driving rush. A real test of night driving with good lights and the LED's led the way.

The first camp we came to was called Baluga and was recommended by Coco so it was an easy choice to pull in.
$15 each for parking in front of a palapa and we were set for a great dinner cooked up by Alan of Sportsmobile.
Another memeber of our group supplied the firewood and the evening was perfect with the moon over the waves and the rigs waiting for a restful nights sleep.

 

[1leglance]

Thursday-
Beach sunrise...surf fishing...the hunt for breakfast...getting beat up on a terrible dirt road...the new superhighway....paying at the bank...lunch on the malecon...the time to decide....border-bound and border-stuck...camping on the Devils Hiway...

You have to have a seriously bent streak not to wake up happy to the sun rising over a beach camp. We found ourselves just all around feeling good as we watched the sea birds dive into the water. Of course 1 person in our group used this as an excuse to grab a pole and venture into the water searching for a bit of breakfast. The rest of us were more than happy to watch our buddy dance the fly's on the water but Lady Luck was not looking on him with the same grin.

We could see the buildings of Gonzaga in the distance and knew there were a couple of eating options so with bit of quick packing we were pack on the dirt in search of tortillas, eggs and meat.
One of the homes in the area had this cool sign

Rancho Grande is a fuel, food, market, RV camp with bathrooms and showers. Cool place and the breakfast was top notch.
Across the street was a Pemex station where we sighted the Overland Chihuaha and after a good laugh at our new khaki clad canine friend we were heading north.

Previous adventures by me in the area had taught me that the route between Puertocitos & Gonzaga is a tortuous washboard, mogul filled mess with no proper speed or way to make it better. The only 2 good things we found in this stretch was an Action Mobile (4wd Sprinter RV Conversion) owned by an Austrian couple that had started in South America, been north and was now returning South...and they had heard of the Overland Expo!!!
The other good thing we found was a track beachward of the main road that gave us a few dozen miles of smooth running before it died at a cliff edge.

But the march of the modern world was focused on Gonzaga as we found when we hit a new section of hiway that is under contruction. Big bridges and wide lanes will really change things south of San Felipe in the next few years.

A short stop in Peurtocitos to take some pics next to a whale skeleton and then we were San Felipe focused.

The need to be legal travelers meant a quick stop at a Banamex where we paid for our tourist card tax. Then it was a late lunch on the Malecon where we sat outside and watched people stop and stare at the 3 Sportsmobiles.

Finally it was time to decide...would we camp in Guadalupe Canyon and try a pre-sunrise dash to the border or head to the USA that night? With the recent rains causing unknown trail conditions across lakebeds and salt marshes and my worry about J missing his flight we knew border bound was the right thing to do.

The ham radios were giving us a great bunch of laughs as we motored on and were a huge help as we navigated Mexicali. But the way was confusing and we went amiss, however a kind lady drove here truck right to where we needed to be which just goes to show there are far more kind people in the world than the modern media would want you to believe.

Every checkpoint along the way had been a breeze for the WAVE as those meant to inspect were more often captivated by the wheelchair lift, national luna fridge or some other bit of kit that was beyond what they saw on a daily basis. And my ability to blather on in 2 langauges helped some. However my traveling companions were not so silver tongued and both got tagged for secondary searches by our nations protectors.

Over the radio they each assured J & I that the best thing was for us to roll on and camp and they would head to home (both not far at that point) once they were released.
It was very tough to drive on but with repeated urging J & I did move on and with the ham radios we were able to hear them clear customs and hit the hiway safely.

So now we were a single massive rig rolling down the road and fatigue was getting to know us both too well.
On the other side of Yuma I knew where the Camino del Diablo (Devils Highway) ended right off the hiway so we made camp and started to feel that deep yearn for the next adventure that always strikes me when I know I am ending a trip. Home is wonderous place filled with family, friends and fond memories. However the horizon is was truely calls me and ending a trip is always a mix of emotions.

 

[1leglance]

Friday-
Finding breakfast...home is calling and a half day for the rest of the family makes for a fun lunchtime reunion.

J & I awoke with little desire to cook breakfast within hours of home so we packed up and went looking in the town of Welton for breakfast. However our economy has ravaged many a small town eatery and this was the case. But corp-america yeilded up a fast food option and we took it as a last resort.

And with a few more hours of hiway we could see Phoenix in the distance and a text message from my wife got us a lunch with the entire family as the kids had a 1/2 day Friday.

J made his flight back to Reno and I hit the showers before going into to work...pulling a 24hr shift is my norm my first day of the week and this time is was no problem as there were so many memories of our Overland Training Alumni Baja Adventure to sift through.

 

[1leglance]

Trip thoughts....

Overall the trip was a huge success in my mind. Traveling with fellow Overland Certified folks meant little concern over who might have enough food, water or not know their fuel range. Everyone did a great job of working out our different travel styles and what few frustrations popped up were not worth worrying over.

Like any large group we needed a couple days to sort out our expectations and desires but the quality of the group meant that dividing up or having seperate camps weren't trip enders for anyone.

It was very interesting having such a wide range of rigs...the range & speed of the dual sport bikes as compared to the Earthroamer would seem a diaster on paper but for this group it was just part of the adventure.

There was never any pressure to eat any particular place, see any particular site or any other rigid set of rules. It was more of a fluid movement of like minded people making use of those who had traveled the area before.

There was no concern about alcohol induced trail antics or late night insanity as we were all folks who knew when to put the cap back on the bottle.

There was no brand bashing or trashing someones vehicle choice, instead we passed a few jokes over the air but in reality we knew each rig fit it's owner and each owner was happy to give tours and then look over the other vehicles.

 

[1leglance]

W.A.V.E. thoughts...

With my only previous 4wd ownership consisting of the FJ Cruiser and a 70's Chevy Blazer in High School I have to say that I LOVE driving a Sportmobile.

I went into the WAVE project knowing it was what Disabled Explorers NEEDED but might not be what I would like on a personal level. But I don't do DE for me personally. It would be far cheaper to just go out and play on my own than work overtime to cover the majority of cost for DE.
The WAVE is what DE needs in order to serve a wide range of persons with mobility issues and the rig exceeded that goal by miles.

A Sportsmobile isn't the right solution for everyone but I was very happy with the ability to have a living space I could walk upright in or that a powerchair user can sit upright in.
The build quality of Sportsmobile West is very impressive. I doubt there are any other member of the RV Manufacturers Assoc who make rigs that can take the beating these things do.

The Espar heater was a HUGE bonus feature for comfort, less concern over sleeping bag rating and much nicer in the morning to wake to a warm floor

The National Luna fridge highlighted my operator error in that I wasn't properly securing it to the base plate. Once I took the time to figure out things it stayed locked in during some horrible washboard and whooptie-doo roads.

Now that the Atlas Transfer case has almost 5k miles on it the on-the-fly shifts into 4wd are smooth (coasting the throttle helps also).

The front ARB locker gave me 3 wheel drive for almost an entire day and never skipped a beat.

The B&D Independence power drivers transfer seat was never meant to take the punishment of the trails we went on but it never gave any sign of a problem.

The Rigid LED lights were amazing..and they already want to remove the reflectors from the side/rear ones to get more of a flood pattern for camp.

The Aluminess bumpers with the built in storage was more handy than I expected and the roof rack performed perfectly.

Having 46gal of fuel @ 15mpg and 16gal of fresh water without touching a jerry can is something I was still amazed about while pulling into my driveway at home. The range, the lack of worry about keeping fuel stops close and the volume of water all made the trip more enjoyable.

There are some things to work on...
-dust entry into the rig..gotta solve that one.
-antennas on the roof..it is great having them way up there for range, but it sucks for the longjevity of the install..motorized mounts are coming soon!
-Trail habits..all my great trail habits like dusting off the air filters, vehicle checkover, gps data logging and pic backups all seem to go away when I am in a large group since it is so much more fun to hang with folks. However these are vital task and I need to become more disiplined.
-Cooking vs resturants..I always bring too much food even though I know one of my favorite things about travel is eating at little shackes and dives.
-securing the interior..I need to work out a better setup for stowing gear and securing it. The Sportsmobile has a wealth of cubbies and options. I just need to make use of it all.

And the big one is bounce/vibrations...the ARB Dakar springs are pretty amazing for working as well as they do on a 10500lb rig. The OME shock also did very well. But for our very specialized participants there are some very high standards to meet.
I learned from an outing with Corbin that para's, quads and others without lower body muscluar stability need alot of seat support/securement and don't tolerate bouncing/vibrations well.

Before SEMA we were working with Corbeau seats and I want to go back and explore a racing style seat again with some 4pt harness setup. In addition I think an active bumpstop like the Jounce Lightracing setup might help with the sudden impact of finding the bumpstops

We will also need to add some additional grab handles and other ways for persons to use their upper body to give support.

I am really really looking forward to working with Rock Slider Engineering on the sliders with a power step. As an amputee getting in & out of the rig is some work and I am sure friends & family of the disabled folks we take out will like them also

Lastly I think I will be spending more time sleeping outside the rig than in it I can see guys wanting to bring their friends, family, kids and such on outings and that will mean me in a tent. But that would be a great problem to have and I am looking forward to solving it soon.

 

[surfgeek33]

W.A.V.E. thoughts...

And the big one is bounce/vibrations...the ARB Dakar springs are pretty amazing for working as well as they do on a 10500lb rig. The OME shock also did very well. But for our very specialized participants there are some very high standards to meet.

Lance,

Have you thought about Deaver Springs and Bilsteins. Those are one of my major wants for SMB part Deux. Good to hear you made it home safe. Take care.

 

[adventureduo]

Yep, my biggest complaint too was the ride.... our SMB was bouncy and stiff off road. I hated it. If we would have kept it, i would have tossed the original suspension and went Deaver myself too.

 

[jcbrandon]

pictures

A few snapshots from the trip:

Meling Ranch:

http://ranchomeling.com/



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Meling Ranch lawn and swimming pool:



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Airing down for El Rosario Beach at night:



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Night recovery operations on El Rosario Beach:



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Morning on El Rosario Beach:

 

[jcbrandon]

This is either an arroyo, or a gulch, or a wash, or a wadi:



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Some of our trucks:



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And some more:




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A bluff on the Pacific Ocean: