North American Adventure

[kcowyo]

I went to college at Appalachian State U in Boone. Nullifier has some great suggestions for that area.

I would add Blowing Rock, Grandfather Mtn and Banner Elk as must sees in the area as well. If you like old mercantile's, the Merc in Valle Crucis is another one worth popping into.

They have several great fairs and festivals in the area too. We love the Wooly Worm festival in Banner Elk and the Apple Festival in Valle Crucis. Great food, music and crafts.

A drive down the Blue Ridge Parkway is hard to beat too.

 

[pwc]

If you're coming through the North and hitting Yellowstone, you might as well hit Glacier National Park if you want some hiking, then on over to Washington. Some things to 'see' in our fine state:

• Grand Coulee Dam
• Mt Rainier National Park
• North Cascades National Park
• Olympic National Park
• Diablo Dam, or maybe it's the other one.....just off Hwy 20 and you can drive over it
• Mt. St. Helens
• Raft the Skykomish, Tieton, White River or more

Lots of other little stuff, but those are the big things to stare at. There's a good series of books by Tom Huegel. http://www.amazon.com/exec/... If you want some dirt in your travels, these are simple forest roads and such that won't leave you worried about getting stuck, but let you see some of the unseen places in the states you're going through.

And then head down the Oregon coast, do some rafting in the Rouge River, hit up Crater Lake National Park and on and on and on...

 

[paulj]

[*]Diablo Dam, or maybe it's the other one.....just off Hwy 20 and you can drive over it

There is a string of 3 dams on the Skagit River along WA 20. The highway dosn't cross any of them, though it does cross the Skagit just down stream from the Diablo Dam. Seattle Light and Power runs tours of these dams
http://www.seattle.gov/light/tours/skagit/

http://www.nps.gov/noca/
gives information on the North Cascades National Park, and the associated National Recreational areas. That WA20 corridor is well worth a leisurely traverse.

Here are pictures of the Spring 2007 opening of this highway.
http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic/passes/northcascades/2007/pictures.htm
Avalanche danger is too high to safely keep this road open throughout the winter. Just below one pass they had to cut through a 50' deep pile of snow. A unique discovery this year were a pair of 24" ice wheels.

Chinook pass on the east side of Mt Rainier is another highway that requires a lot of spring snow removal.
http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic/passes/chinook/

Nearby Cayuse Pass will not open this year, due to major damage in last November's floods.
http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Traffic/Passes/Cayuse/November2006.htm

paulj

 

[Series1Rangie]

If you're coming through the North and hitting Yellowstone, you might as well hit Glacier National Park if you want some hiking, then on over to Washington

X2 for Glacier, leave yourself 4 or 5 days there at least.
Sleeping Bear Dunes in MI
Lassen NP (close to Yosemite which you should also see)

FWIW My recommendation / experience is to not get too tied to a schedule. Stay off main highways, talk to people in town, and really find the hidden gems. Its amazing how nice people are if you take the time to listen. If you want to make time and still see a lot of good stuff while trying to get across our great country, try the old interstates like US50.

Luck

Mike

 

[ox4mag]

Cross country in a Rubicon Unlimited...that is awesome! Everyone's suggestions are great but nobody has recommended Texas yet! There's some beautiful stuff here in Texas including Big Bend National Park, Guadalupe Mountains National Park, and the panhandle region which includes Palo Duro and Caprock Canyons. Definitely check out any or all of these while you're on this trip.

So, do you have any photos of your rig and trailer you can post? This sounds so exciting!!

 

[DaktariEd]

Well, I'll tell ya...
Just head west, do some zigs north and zags south and you'll never want for some great exploring.
The ideas above are all great.
Way back in college I took my VW bug up the Pacific coast into Canada, the Rockies, Banff, down through Glacier, Yellowstone, Utah. An amazing couple of journeys.
You will no doubt have a great time no matter where you go.
Enjoy!

Oh, and welcome to ExPo!
:sombrero:

 

[LJRockstar]

I really want to avoid the major highways. I have no problem with doing 75 mph on a highway, but it's a lot easier on the rig to do some where in the 50's on older highways and side roads. Probably better on gas too!:arabia:

Is there any where where I can cover major ground with out the aid of pavement? I've always envisioned driving for day's on dirt roads. I'm sure that driving for days is probably stretching it, but you get the idea!:smiley_drive:

 

[pwc]

Will that snow doughnut fit on a 16" rim and keep a bead?

I didn't mean to say hwy 20 went across Diablo Dam, but that you take a quick side trip to drive across it. At least you used to be able to drive across it, can't you now?

 

[LJRockstar]

So, do you have any photos of your rig and trailer you can post? This sounds so exciting!!

Here you go!
The rig

The most recent photos of the trailer. There has been much progress, but I'm working on it at a friends fab shop in Kingston NY, and I always forget my camera when I go up there!

 

[ox4mag]

That is one very cool setup! :clapsmile

By the way, is that a Garvin wilderness rack from their bumper rack system attached to your M416?

 

[LJRockstar]

It is a Garvin Wilderness rack, But it is the one that goes over the trunk area of a 04-06 unlimited. I had bought it to use in the rig, but I ended up going with the tuffy drawer instead. I lengthened the tongue by almost a foot and It ended up fitting perfectly. It's just sitting there in that pick but I made a nice bracket for it. Just no pics yet.

 

[Nullifier]

Nice looking set up you should be able to anywhere in that.

I thought of a few more places. In NY specifcally the adirondaks just west of lake placid the is the town of blue mountain lake. They have a really great museum there. THey hav ea section there for canoes that is truely amazing. Stuff that is going way back. I would suggest renting a kevlar canoe from blue mountain lake outfiters for a couple of days to paddle some of the great lakes and rivers near there. longlake with a hike to the top of the mountain and lookout tower is awesome. As well as the 7 carries trail. In june or July wooden canoe heritage association has their annual get together you can take a class and build a paddle or a stich and glue boat. It is an awesome event where people come from all over to show off and paddle there old wood canoes. The icons of the industry are there. It is held at paul smith's college. You can rent out a dorm room or camp near by. Also in Lake placid on the east side of town there is a little hot dog stand that pours a perfect black and tan. :beer:



Also in North carolina there is a neat place called the cradle of forestry. It is where modern foresty was taught way back.

If you make it to Florida then you want to hit a few places.

I would suggest ocala N.F. great for a 2-3 day stop. Great hikes, padling, fishing etc.
Then come to tampa we'll put you up and hang for a few days. Show you manatee's, alligators, and other rare Florida wildlife via canoe or kayak. Or take the sail boat out for a sunset cruise on Tampa bay. If you come here you need to eat at 2 places. Skippers Smoke House for great food, live music, and an atmosphere like no other place. Then the Columbia a traditional cuban restaurant in the historic district.
THere is alot of wheeling down here too we'll show you around.

Then on to south Florida. Take a guided Slogging trip in Big cypress and then on to miami's Biscayne bay for some permit fishing. I would also hit a place called Shark valley in Flamingo. the park has a 9 mile paved bike/hike trail that goes to an observation deck. There is nothing like riding 3' past a 10' gator! they come out on the trail to sun in the a.m. AFter that a quick trip to the keys to get a pic of the rig in front of the southern most drivable point in the u.s. and a sunset on the west side of the island. If you dive you can go diving in the john pennekamp park. THey have a great underwater statue of Christ that makes for an interesting dive.

 

[The BN Guy]

I'm a bit late on this one but I happened to see the Alamo mentioned. Still planning on coming this way? If so I may be able to point out some things for ya as well as a place to crash (not literally!).

 

[OverlandZJ]

Hi Erik, welcome to EXPO. Dont know how i missed this thread.

Awesome setup you have there, i'm sure it'll serve you well on the road for a few months. I'm envious of your adventure already. :smiley_drive:

I see your from Lawrenceville..about 1/2 hour from me. We should get together for a cold :beer:

 

[LJRockstar]

:tent:

Does any one know if there is places where I can Camp on the beach out on the west coast? I really want to drive a good stretch of the PCH it would be neat to be able to drive out to the beach and camp out for a day or two!