LuckyHenriksen
New member
This has been a great report, thanks for sharing
Tight-lines and Timelines, a Wyoming and Montana Wandering
- Thread starter 40tude
- Start date
40tude
Adventurer
Thanks for sharing the report and pics. Looks like an awesome time was had.
Next time you head out West maybe my GF and I can tag along if you allow Xterra's in the mix
Ha! You from FL? My only problem with Xterras is that they aren't Land Cruisers (kidding)
40tude
Adventurer
Day 14
This was easily the best day of the trip, and one of the best days of my life at that. It was somehow magical (yes for everyone that knows me, I just described something as magical), I remember the whole day as being nothing short of amazing.
After our usual quick breakfast, we quickly made our way back down to the river (this time with two rods). The fishing again turned out to be great, with another 30-40 trout landed.
As is usual, we quickly got hungry and decided to stop into the little town of Polebridge to hopefully find something to eat, we instead found perfection. The little town of Polebridge is entirely off the grid, no power other than solar and generators. At the Polebridge Mercantile we found some exquisite offerings. We got sandwiches first, which were amazing, but then came the turnovers. The turnovers apparently take 3 days to make, but they are so worth it. The Polebridge Mercantile is in my opinion one of the seven wonders of the world. We were in heaven, and half a weeks paycheck later we figured we should carry on with the day.
We saw a little ad in the Mercantile for bike, ducky, kayak rentals etc.. All the stuff was right next door, so we walked over to inquire. We rented a two person ducky for the afternoon, and talked the guy into shutting down shop for a few minutes and shuttling us upriver in our rig. With ducky loaded on top of the tent we headed upriver.The guy said that it should only take us 2-3hrs to float back down to town, so we grabbed the fly rods (by now Mrs. 40tude was obsessed as well) and began our impromptu ducky float trip.
The fish were everywhere and we pulled over quite often to fish different runs here and there, no one else was around to be seen (except for a group of 25 or so superheroes on the river bank who cheered for us...????). We had all this adventure (and maybe a few cookies from the Merc) all to ourselves.
We knew we were stopping a lot, and just couldn't help it, as the fish needed catching. I should not neglect to mention that Mrs. 40tude and a beaver nearly scared the pants off each other (to my delight).
The sun kept getting lower, and we kept expecting to find the takeout point (bridge) around every bend. Not to name names, but someone in the boat decided she was going to start getting worried that we somehow passed the bridge (the only bridge), and was not amused at my giggling. We were both cold and wet and it was getting dark fast.
We finally found it (shocking), and after loading up for the little jog into town we took off. Apparently the guy from the rental shop was also getting a little worried (it had taken us 6hrs). We boiled up the water extra hot for the showers this night.
Oh, I should not forget to mention that we had caught 120-140 cutthroats in the last 24hrs. mmm mmm good
This was easily the best day of the trip, and one of the best days of my life at that. It was somehow magical (yes for everyone that knows me, I just described something as magical), I remember the whole day as being nothing short of amazing.
After our usual quick breakfast, we quickly made our way back down to the river (this time with two rods). The fishing again turned out to be great, with another 30-40 trout landed.
As is usual, we quickly got hungry and decided to stop into the little town of Polebridge to hopefully find something to eat, we instead found perfection. The little town of Polebridge is entirely off the grid, no power other than solar and generators. At the Polebridge Mercantile we found some exquisite offerings. We got sandwiches first, which were amazing, but then came the turnovers. The turnovers apparently take 3 days to make, but they are so worth it. The Polebridge Mercantile is in my opinion one of the seven wonders of the world. We were in heaven, and half a weeks paycheck later we figured we should carry on with the day.
We saw a little ad in the Mercantile for bike, ducky, kayak rentals etc.. All the stuff was right next door, so we walked over to inquire. We rented a two person ducky for the afternoon, and talked the guy into shutting down shop for a few minutes and shuttling us upriver in our rig. With ducky loaded on top of the tent we headed upriver.The guy said that it should only take us 2-3hrs to float back down to town, so we grabbed the fly rods (by now Mrs. 40tude was obsessed as well) and began our impromptu ducky float trip.
The fish were everywhere and we pulled over quite often to fish different runs here and there, no one else was around to be seen (except for a group of 25 or so superheroes on the river bank who cheered for us...????). We had all this adventure (and maybe a few cookies from the Merc) all to ourselves.
We knew we were stopping a lot, and just couldn't help it, as the fish needed catching. I should not neglect to mention that Mrs. 40tude and a beaver nearly scared the pants off each other (to my delight).
The sun kept getting lower, and we kept expecting to find the takeout point (bridge) around every bend. Not to name names, but someone in the boat decided she was going to start getting worried that we somehow passed the bridge (the only bridge), and was not amused at my giggling. We were both cold and wet and it was getting dark fast.
We finally found it (shocking), and after loading up for the little jog into town we took off. Apparently the guy from the rental shop was also getting a little worried (it had taken us 6hrs). We boiled up the water extra hot for the showers this night.
Oh, I should not forget to mention that we had caught 120-140 cutthroats in the last 24hrs. mmm mmm good
Last edited:
40tude
Adventurer
Day 15
The last real day of the trip, another one through. We said good bye to our lovely campsite and spent a few more hundred dollars on pastries and what not.
We spent the first half of the day traveling up the Going to the Sun Road in Glacier NP, it was pretty stunning to say the least.
They certainly don't build things quite the same as they used to.
After finishing the road, it was time to head home...
The Cruiser pulled into the driveway with another 6,000 flawless miles on her clock (I hope I don't jinx myself).
I would like to give a hearty thanks to all those on the forum who helped me in the planning stages of this trip, this place is a wealth of knowledge.
The last real day of the trip, another one through. We said good bye to our lovely campsite and spent a few more hundred dollars on pastries and what not.
We spent the first half of the day traveling up the Going to the Sun Road in Glacier NP, it was pretty stunning to say the least.
They certainly don't build things quite the same as they used to.
After finishing the road, it was time to head home...
The Cruiser pulled into the driveway with another 6,000 flawless miles on her clock (I hope I don't jinx myself).
I would like to give a hearty thanks to all those on the forum who helped me in the planning stages of this trip, this place is a wealth of knowledge.
ButchsAdventures
New member
Phenomenal report and pictures :wings:. I read through your 2012 trip on Mud and then found this one.
I am in the midst of planning a similar trip and I have a few questions.
A little background - Wife and I are 28, I have a well prepped expo oriented 97 FZJ80 and we have July and August of 2014 to travel through the west.
I have spent time in CO and UT on Dual Sports, and typical touring of WY and MT - but this will be the first time out west with the Cruiser.
Plan is to start in NW CO and head into WY, MT, Idaho down through OR and back through the basin and range in Northern Nevada.
Here are a few questions:
1. In '12 I saw you used the Ikea mattress and platform and this year the Airtop RTT. Any thoughts on which afforded a better nights sleep - and any thoughts around overall value of RTT given driving dynamics, weight, expense etc?
2. This trip seems like you base-camped more for multiple nights - instead of moving as frequently. Any thoughts on ideal amount of time to spend in one place vs. staying on the move?
3. In Utah you were way off the beaten path solo - and also here as well. What was your Plan B if you had a serious breakdown? In UT it seemed so hot that walking out could be lethal. Any thoughts?
4. Any way I can get your GPS tracks from the trip - and also Utah?
My main love is route planning and dual sports. If you are ever going through Virginia and looking to make the trip off road - check out a project of mine here on ADV: http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=632804
Also here is my prep thread on Mud for my 80: http://forum.ih8mud.com/80-series-tech/782671-prepping-high-mileage-80-10k-mile-road-trip.html
Thanks in advance for your help.
David
I am in the midst of planning a similar trip and I have a few questions.
A little background - Wife and I are 28, I have a well prepped expo oriented 97 FZJ80 and we have July and August of 2014 to travel through the west.
I have spent time in CO and UT on Dual Sports, and typical touring of WY and MT - but this will be the first time out west with the Cruiser.
Plan is to start in NW CO and head into WY, MT, Idaho down through OR and back through the basin and range in Northern Nevada.
Here are a few questions:
1. In '12 I saw you used the Ikea mattress and platform and this year the Airtop RTT. Any thoughts on which afforded a better nights sleep - and any thoughts around overall value of RTT given driving dynamics, weight, expense etc?
2. This trip seems like you base-camped more for multiple nights - instead of moving as frequently. Any thoughts on ideal amount of time to spend in one place vs. staying on the move?
3. In Utah you were way off the beaten path solo - and also here as well. What was your Plan B if you had a serious breakdown? In UT it seemed so hot that walking out could be lethal. Any thoughts?
4. Any way I can get your GPS tracks from the trip - and also Utah?
My main love is route planning and dual sports. If you are ever going through Virginia and looking to make the trip off road - check out a project of mine here on ADV: http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=632804
Also here is my prep thread on Mud for my 80: http://forum.ih8mud.com/80-series-tech/782671-prepping-high-mileage-80-10k-mile-road-trip.html
Thanks in advance for your help.
David