Death Valley and a Kamparoo

[MontanaBBQ]

This is my first trip report, so please be patient.

I had a week off in February. The wife is busy with work and planning for a new baby. The Montana Winter is getting old and I need a road trip. All of you folks are always going on about Death Valley, so I had to see what all the fuss was about. Here on the Portal I found a neat little Cub Kamparoo for sale in Long Beach (thanks weasel123) and figured what the heck, it's not that far out of the way. Normally I do these trips on two wheels, but I needed four wheels for this one so I loaded up the Engel fridge in my 4runner and hit the road. February 6, 5PM and I'm off...

I gotta say I love to drive solo - long miles, late nights, and good tunes are truly heaven for me. I drove long into the first night, stopping for a few hours of sleep in southern Utah. Next stop - Vegas, baby, and the In-N-Out burger! I don't drink or gamble much, but I always seem to enjoy a night of people watching in Las Vegas. I know - not very "Expo". I spent a cheap night at the Motel 6, wolfed down a steak from Wolfgang Puck, and soaked in the sights, sounds, and debauchery of the Strip. I managed to score a $99 deal on a new (old stock) Streetpilot 2620 over at the mega Bass Pro Shop. I made my first trip to a 4 Wheel Parts store in search of some much needed goodies. I left empty handed. A winch is high on my list and they usually have some pretty good prices. The Smitybilt XRC8 looked pretty good to my untrained eye, but I couldn't get a straight answer about fitting it into my ARB bumper. A Warn M8000 would've been better, but they didn't have one. Oh well, the employees weren't very friendly/helpful/knowledgable anyway. I think it rained the whole time I was in Vegas. The storm drains couldn't keep up...

On to Long Beach to check out the Kamparoo. I'm not very SoCal savy - never driven into the greater LA area. Weasel123 (Ian) gave me great directions to his house - and by 1PM on day two I was the proud owner of an inexpensive, ugly, Australian tent trailer in remarkably good shape for its age. We tried to flip/raise the ball on my hitch, but Ian's big wrenches weren't getting it done - and it's still raining - so I'm outta here.

To be continued...

 

[RedDog]

You just know when a guy's got a handle like "MontanaBBQ we've got a dandy report coming up.

I'm also anxious to hear experiences about the Kamperoo.

 

[Taz]

Should have said hi while you were out here! Heck I might have even met you at 4 wheel parts I am need of some straps for the company vehicle. I can't wait to see some pictures from you adventures on this trip.

 

[MontanaBBQ]

I wasted little time getting off the interstate and onto the two lane. I was surprised by the law that requires all towing vehicles to use the right lane with a max speed of 55MPH. It seemed silly for me and my 600lb trailer, but the laws the law :Wow1:

After a stop in Trona for beer and meat, it was on to Death Valley. My plan was to enter the park from the west side. First stop: the charcoal kilns off of Trona-Wildrose road. Curious thing though - there was a road closure and no access. Oh well, off to Stovepipe Wells for my first night in the new trailer. I pulled in just after dark and took a spot in the RV campground. It wasn't much more than a big, open, gravel lot. Not quite what I had pictured in my mind, but it was a level place to park. The easy setup of the Kamparoo is cool - maybe 30 seconds once you undo the two latches. Mine is really just a tent on wheels (no kitchen box etc), but it's a tent with 7' of headroom and a queen size bed. I threw out some bedding and fell fast asleep as I planned my adventures around the park.

I'm not a morning person, but I was up with the sun. The skies had cleared some. The rain I'd been in for last few days was gone... but not forgotten. Come to find out, Death Valley had received its average annual rainfall in the preceeding 24 hours. 90% of the paved roads, and basically all of the dirt roads, were closed. There would be no visit to Dante's View, no Saline Valley Road, no rocks at the Racetrack. Basically all I could do was traverse the park on Hwy 190! I made the best of it - checked out the sand dunes beyond Stovepipe Wells, the ruins of the Harmony Borax Works, and the Furnace Creek visitors center.

The NPS and DOT road crews were all over it - they had snow plows and front end loaders for the clean up. I took a few pictures and was on my way less than 24 hours after my arrival; so much for my week of adventure.

I went out to Death Valley Junction and took the long way up to Scotty's Castle. I didn't get in on the tour because there was a bus load in front of me. I had a nice chat with the ranger. She showed me some pictures from the devastating flood in 2004 - cars washed away, roads disappeared, and a few people died. It's hard to believe 2" inches of rain can have such an impact. She said they are very cautious with traffic control because of these past experiences. I can see why. Atleast I have a reason to go back.

More...

 

[wesel123]

I couldn't tell you how jealouse I was when you drove away. I was thinking to my self those were the days when I could just get up and go. :victory: Im glad to see the Cub worked out for you. But we need more pics!!!!!!!!

 

[adventureduo]

Very cool, you got to make a trip and you picked up a new toy! I'm jealous too!

 

[Explorer 1]

Rangers very cautious indeed

My experience has been that all it takes is water at some point on one of the roads within the parks to cross the pavement and they close that road. In cases that I was able to see what cause the road to be closed, it was a bit overkill on the parks part. I assume they figure worse case with someone traveling in a private passanger car with no experience with dirt or sand.

I've had to drive 95 miles out of my way to go around a "closed" road to get where I was going only later to find that it was closed because there was some sand and small gravel that had washed over the raod at one point.

Sounds sike you didn't let it get into the way of you having a great adventure.

Thanks for sharing,
Fred
Explorer 1

 

[MontanaBBQ]

And a few pics from Nevada...




Well equipped Expo Rigs

I never left the pavement other than the Stovepipe Wells parking lot, but I spent some time in 4Hi on the drive from Ely to Wendover. There were some excellent winter white-out conditions.

The 4runner / Cub Kamparoo combo worked like a champ. I think it will be a great start for the new baby and a couple of "senior" basset hounds. Now it's time for a trailer build thread - I've got some upgrade plans...