ad·ven·ture noun \əd-ˈven-chər\
: an exciting or dangerous experience
: danger or excitement
Those on the Eastern shores of the United States often turn their gaze toward the North when the topic of adventure and the unknown wilderness creeps into water cooler conversation. As one enters the Northeast via the typical I-95 corridor during the fall season, you can't help but to notice a change as the miles disappear below the moan of All Terrains. The view becomes distorted with Evergreen Trees. The roads become rough. The people, though friendly, have a look in their eye which is evidence of the coming seasons and of the months of darkness which lay ahead.
Welcome to Maine, The way life should be.
Maine happens to be my home state, so when I have thoughts of adventure, I need only look out the nearest window. One of the many special features about my state is that you really can't drive very far without coming across a dirt road. Once you set your first tire off pavement, there aren't many spots within Maine that you can't go. To travel from one end of the 23rd state in the union to the other is feasible, and this is the inspiration behind DRAM. My first foray into the idea of Trans-State travel came to life in 2009 when I attempted to navigate a route from the boarder of New Hampshire across the state with an ending point in Lubec, one of the farthest easterly destinations in the United States. The path would cross mountains and rivers, and pass by gigantic lakes, tranquil streams, and dense forest.
In November of 2009 I had a route planned from just off Route 16 at the NH boarder to Millinocket, a mid-point in the journey. The planning was based on local and regional maps, advice from friends who were familiar with certain areas, and lots of hope. With frost on the ground I set off with my dog into the woods for a great adventure.
The trip was a great success as I had managed to get from New Hampshire to Millinocket on 95% dirt roads. The landscape was extraordinary, the roads were entertaining and overall I was hooked. The following spring I had every intention of completing the route to the Atlantic Ocean.
Fast Forward 5 years.
I now have 2 beautiful daughters, a rig which is considerably more capable than it was in 2009, the same old dog, and an incomplete DRAM trip.
For a few years Boomer the Camper Van didn't get much love, but as our family has matured just a bit, our collective appreciation for the adventures that this old van allows has grown. We recently completed a trip to the Northern Shores of Nova Scotia, and ever since our return my brain has been dedicated to dreams and plans of continued adventure travel. As I continue to work down the never-ending list of vehicle repairs and improvements, I have also been planning DRAM 2.
This time, the trip will not end in Millinocket. The starting point will be the same as it was 5 years ago, but for DRAM 2 the only acceptable finish line is at waters edge in Lubec Maine.
3 days
630 miles of dirt
35 miles of pavement
A call went out for team mates to join me on this excursion. Heading into the woods alone is seldom a grand idea, and the thought of sharing this experience with like-minded overland travel enthusiasts appealed to me. As the interest started building, my route planning commenced and a thorough driver packet was assembled to ensure everybody would enter this informed and ready for what lay ahead.
A date was established to correspond with the local deer hunting season. This was done for a couple reasons. Primarily, being in the woods when there are others in the woods is a good thing from an overall safety standpoint. Hunting season draws thousands of sportsman to Maine, and we would have a good safety net in the event of an accident or other situation requiring outside assistance. Secondly, the routes would be taking advantage of logging roads which are typically traveled by vary dangerous logging trucks. During the hunting season, these trucks are far more aware of "civilians" being on the road which makes traversing these otherwise fearsome areas far more pleasant. As the date of departure approached, each team worked to prepare their rigs and themselves for the adventure that stretched out ahead.
The group of people and rigs who represent the DRAM 2 convoy couldn't have been hand picked any better. Leading the charge would be myself, Spence with the big blue camper van, Boomer.
Next on the ticket is Ryan from ExploringNH with his remarkable Excursion.
Jon showed up with just about the coolest Nissan Titan I have ever seen. It came equipped with a Flippac camper, complete slide out kitchen setup, and all the goodies that come with the Pro4X package.
Will and Ralph arrived with a very nicely equipped Nissan XTerra which was ready to tackle anything we could throw at it. Ralph was co-pilot on this adventure, but being the professional photographer in the group, he had his work cut out for him.
Last, but certainly not least, was Ashwin and his co-pilot Elise in the rediculasly capable Toyota 4-runner. This rig does it all. They sleep inside, cook on the "step", and travel in enviable comfort.
The meeting place for the beginning of DRAM was a set of LAT/LON coordinates which each team needed to find on their own. We would meet the night before the journey would begin, each party never having met the others. With a sense of excitement and a little bit of apprehension, I set off around 7pm toward the rendezvous point, approximately 2 hours away from home. A light rain fell as the moan of my own tires formed a distant harmony with the 4 other vehicles pointed to a converging spot on the map.
To Be Continued.
: an exciting or dangerous experience
: danger or excitement
Those on the Eastern shores of the United States often turn their gaze toward the North when the topic of adventure and the unknown wilderness creeps into water cooler conversation. As one enters the Northeast via the typical I-95 corridor during the fall season, you can't help but to notice a change as the miles disappear below the moan of All Terrains. The view becomes distorted with Evergreen Trees. The roads become rough. The people, though friendly, have a look in their eye which is evidence of the coming seasons and of the months of darkness which lay ahead.
Welcome to Maine, The way life should be.
Maine happens to be my home state, so when I have thoughts of adventure, I need only look out the nearest window. One of the many special features about my state is that you really can't drive very far without coming across a dirt road. Once you set your first tire off pavement, there aren't many spots within Maine that you can't go. To travel from one end of the 23rd state in the union to the other is feasible, and this is the inspiration behind DRAM. My first foray into the idea of Trans-State travel came to life in 2009 when I attempted to navigate a route from the boarder of New Hampshire across the state with an ending point in Lubec, one of the farthest easterly destinations in the United States. The path would cross mountains and rivers, and pass by gigantic lakes, tranquil streams, and dense forest.
In November of 2009 I had a route planned from just off Route 16 at the NH boarder to Millinocket, a mid-point in the journey. The planning was based on local and regional maps, advice from friends who were familiar with certain areas, and lots of hope. With frost on the ground I set off with my dog into the woods for a great adventure.
The trip was a great success as I had managed to get from New Hampshire to Millinocket on 95% dirt roads. The landscape was extraordinary, the roads were entertaining and overall I was hooked. The following spring I had every intention of completing the route to the Atlantic Ocean.
Fast Forward 5 years.
I now have 2 beautiful daughters, a rig which is considerably more capable than it was in 2009, the same old dog, and an incomplete DRAM trip.
For a few years Boomer the Camper Van didn't get much love, but as our family has matured just a bit, our collective appreciation for the adventures that this old van allows has grown. We recently completed a trip to the Northern Shores of Nova Scotia, and ever since our return my brain has been dedicated to dreams and plans of continued adventure travel. As I continue to work down the never-ending list of vehicle repairs and improvements, I have also been planning DRAM 2.
This time, the trip will not end in Millinocket. The starting point will be the same as it was 5 years ago, but for DRAM 2 the only acceptable finish line is at waters edge in Lubec Maine.
3 days
630 miles of dirt
35 miles of pavement
A call went out for team mates to join me on this excursion. Heading into the woods alone is seldom a grand idea, and the thought of sharing this experience with like-minded overland travel enthusiasts appealed to me. As the interest started building, my route planning commenced and a thorough driver packet was assembled to ensure everybody would enter this informed and ready for what lay ahead.
A date was established to correspond with the local deer hunting season. This was done for a couple reasons. Primarily, being in the woods when there are others in the woods is a good thing from an overall safety standpoint. Hunting season draws thousands of sportsman to Maine, and we would have a good safety net in the event of an accident or other situation requiring outside assistance. Secondly, the routes would be taking advantage of logging roads which are typically traveled by vary dangerous logging trucks. During the hunting season, these trucks are far more aware of "civilians" being on the road which makes traversing these otherwise fearsome areas far more pleasant. As the date of departure approached, each team worked to prepare their rigs and themselves for the adventure that stretched out ahead.
The group of people and rigs who represent the DRAM 2 convoy couldn't have been hand picked any better. Leading the charge would be myself, Spence with the big blue camper van, Boomer.
Next on the ticket is Ryan from ExploringNH with his remarkable Excursion.
Jon showed up with just about the coolest Nissan Titan I have ever seen. It came equipped with a Flippac camper, complete slide out kitchen setup, and all the goodies that come with the Pro4X package.
Will and Ralph arrived with a very nicely equipped Nissan XTerra which was ready to tackle anything we could throw at it. Ralph was co-pilot on this adventure, but being the professional photographer in the group, he had his work cut out for him.
Last, but certainly not least, was Ashwin and his co-pilot Elise in the rediculasly capable Toyota 4-runner. This rig does it all. They sleep inside, cook on the "step", and travel in enviable comfort.
The meeting place for the beginning of DRAM was a set of LAT/LON coordinates which each team needed to find on their own. We would meet the night before the journey would begin, each party never having met the others. With a sense of excitement and a little bit of apprehension, I set off around 7pm toward the rendezvous point, approximately 2 hours away from home. A light rain fell as the moan of my own tires formed a distant harmony with the 4 other vehicles pointed to a converging spot on the map.
To Be Continued.
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