Monterorider
Adventurer
After participating twice before in Nevada Trophy, 2009 and 2011 I was quite disappointed to say the least when it was canceled this year. What is Nevada Trophy? As organizers put it: "NVTR was born in 1995, and after a season of work, the first event was run in December of 1996 in Fernley, Nevada. That year seven teams, of two cars each, participated in this special event, an event that combines GPS Navigation, the searching for Waypoints and off-road driving. NVTR is a combination of Camel Trophy, the Warn Challenge, and Geocaching, which we pre-date by some years. Everyone is welcome!"
Unfortunately somehow sometime even great things don't get enough traction in the fourwheeling community. Some people feel they should be paying for playing. Some find excuses. Some simply can't make it. Regardless when you don't get enough attendees rally is not going to happen.
Not to be dismayed we've set out to organize small private even following tracks of Nevada Trophy circa 2009, 2011 with group of friends. We would attempt to find those waypoints we missed in events. Big thanks to Nevada Trophy orgs who supplied us with old log books to keep us on target.
Number of invites went out. 3 vehicles and 6 people showed up. So it happened drivers had prior NVTR experience all us being part of same team in 2011 , navigators were all anew to this type of entertainment. Well suited vehicles presented including my 2008 Dodge Power Wagon, 2008 Toyota Tundra, and 1996 Lexus LX450 (Land Cruiser).
Coincidentally or not we all sported same tires Goodyear Duratrac. Maybe we should have gotten some sponsorship. Why Duratracs? Land Cruiser sported them last year. Everyone like their performance then. They didn't disappoint now. I put a set of fresh 35 inch meats a day before setting off. We all wanna be prepared don't we. Although hwy ride gotten a little mushy compared to previous set of stock size Toyo ATs. Rough and gravel road ride was far more comfortable. Off-road they tackled everything with aplomb and ease.
We set out to meet Nov 1 in hotel in Fernley, NV. Day long drive across beautiful central-southern OR was as uneventful as beautiful. Stunning sunburned grassy mountains and plateaus under deep blue sky parched with low clouds kept us staring out the window in awe. We crossed into CA/NV in nearly darkness catching glimpses of Surprise Valley from crest of Fandango pass. Got to come back for some exploring some day.
Next morning we headed out east for 2 days of adventure. Back in 2009 my team turned around about mid-way up Jobs Peak Canyon Road because of deep snow. This time we faced no such obstacle. Several steep, loose hill climbs put out trucks to moderate test. Power Wagon performed admirably but really every one made there way up unfazed. Along the way we were able to locate few deteriorating tags from 2009. We even made out scribblings on those after extensive forensics. Deep rumble from low flying, canyon skimming NAVY Seahawk with canon sticking off to side was just icing on the cake.
After mountain top lunch at 7100 ft with commanding views of Dixie Valley we headed down narrow winding road. My initial worries that Power Wagon would prove too unwieldy for this kinds of pathways proved to be unfounded. It's big but not big enough.
By this time everyone had such a blast that we decided to blast few things to pieces. Mandatory introductory lesson in fire-arm safety was followed by shooting practice. Multitudes of impromptu targets were destroyed in confines of canyon. We made a point to cleanup after ourselves. In reality it's hard to set a foot on the side of the road in NV without stepping on spent gun shell.
We payed a homage to tight little canyon at the valley floor. Just like in 2009 well hidden geocache was still there.
Being only one attending 2009 trophy rest of a crew was set for a little surprise. Back in 09 we located some hidden gems in a desert. What man doesn't feel like a boy when presented with some heavy military machinery? Still Nevada held another surprise up it's sleeve. With thundering sound of jet engines bouncing through valley US NAVY presented us best air show ever. Sit back, relax and observe real pilots playing real dog-fight from front lawn seats.
Days in fall wind down quickly we had to find a place for camp that night. My eyes were set on one particular canyon that could possibly afford us early exit north next day. In approaching darkness we setup our camp near stream under old cottonwood tree. Out came the tents and sleeping bags, pots and pans. Out came the chatter and jokes. We consumed copious amounts of canned chili and soup and some hot and cold drinks. Camaraderie was setting in. Night wasn't nearly as cold as forecast would have it I was sweating in my sleeping bag in early morning.
Next day we set off up that canyon. Eventually we came to halt facing seriously steep dry waterfall. While not insurmountable it would present a considerable challenge, require some rock stacking and almost surely winching. From tire marks and scrapes on the rock I could tell people driving through here but what lies beyond. While preparing for our little trip studying maps and satellite imagery I knew there was a road descending into canyon from above. Now trekking half a mile or so up the stream bed I could see there were few additional more or less challenging obstacles, tread marks and more scrapes on rocks, and finally as expected less traveled road on the other side.
After deliberating over state of affairs: 3 large trucks, one winch, lots of rock stacking, and maneuvering in tight spaces. It is doable but it's going to take considerable time. Most particularly we've had our eyes set on specific destination, camping spot maybe some 100 miles north. Sadly we've had to turn around. Will save something for future.
Unfortunately somehow sometime even great things don't get enough traction in the fourwheeling community. Some people feel they should be paying for playing. Some find excuses. Some simply can't make it. Regardless when you don't get enough attendees rally is not going to happen.
Not to be dismayed we've set out to organize small private even following tracks of Nevada Trophy circa 2009, 2011 with group of friends. We would attempt to find those waypoints we missed in events. Big thanks to Nevada Trophy orgs who supplied us with old log books to keep us on target.
Number of invites went out. 3 vehicles and 6 people showed up. So it happened drivers had prior NVTR experience all us being part of same team in 2011 , navigators were all anew to this type of entertainment. Well suited vehicles presented including my 2008 Dodge Power Wagon, 2008 Toyota Tundra, and 1996 Lexus LX450 (Land Cruiser).
Coincidentally or not we all sported same tires Goodyear Duratrac. Maybe we should have gotten some sponsorship. Why Duratracs? Land Cruiser sported them last year. Everyone like their performance then. They didn't disappoint now. I put a set of fresh 35 inch meats a day before setting off. We all wanna be prepared don't we. Although hwy ride gotten a little mushy compared to previous set of stock size Toyo ATs. Rough and gravel road ride was far more comfortable. Off-road they tackled everything with aplomb and ease.
We set out to meet Nov 1 in hotel in Fernley, NV. Day long drive across beautiful central-southern OR was as uneventful as beautiful. Stunning sunburned grassy mountains and plateaus under deep blue sky parched with low clouds kept us staring out the window in awe. We crossed into CA/NV in nearly darkness catching glimpses of Surprise Valley from crest of Fandango pass. Got to come back for some exploring some day.
Next morning we headed out east for 2 days of adventure. Back in 2009 my team turned around about mid-way up Jobs Peak Canyon Road because of deep snow. This time we faced no such obstacle. Several steep, loose hill climbs put out trucks to moderate test. Power Wagon performed admirably but really every one made there way up unfazed. Along the way we were able to locate few deteriorating tags from 2009. We even made out scribblings on those after extensive forensics. Deep rumble from low flying, canyon skimming NAVY Seahawk with canon sticking off to side was just icing on the cake.
After mountain top lunch at 7100 ft with commanding views of Dixie Valley we headed down narrow winding road. My initial worries that Power Wagon would prove too unwieldy for this kinds of pathways proved to be unfounded. It's big but not big enough.
By this time everyone had such a blast that we decided to blast few things to pieces. Mandatory introductory lesson in fire-arm safety was followed by shooting practice. Multitudes of impromptu targets were destroyed in confines of canyon. We made a point to cleanup after ourselves. In reality it's hard to set a foot on the side of the road in NV without stepping on spent gun shell.
We payed a homage to tight little canyon at the valley floor. Just like in 2009 well hidden geocache was still there.
Being only one attending 2009 trophy rest of a crew was set for a little surprise. Back in 09 we located some hidden gems in a desert. What man doesn't feel like a boy when presented with some heavy military machinery? Still Nevada held another surprise up it's sleeve. With thundering sound of jet engines bouncing through valley US NAVY presented us best air show ever. Sit back, relax and observe real pilots playing real dog-fight from front lawn seats.
Days in fall wind down quickly we had to find a place for camp that night. My eyes were set on one particular canyon that could possibly afford us early exit north next day. In approaching darkness we setup our camp near stream under old cottonwood tree. Out came the tents and sleeping bags, pots and pans. Out came the chatter and jokes. We consumed copious amounts of canned chili and soup and some hot and cold drinks. Camaraderie was setting in. Night wasn't nearly as cold as forecast would have it I was sweating in my sleeping bag in early morning.
Next day we set off up that canyon. Eventually we came to halt facing seriously steep dry waterfall. While not insurmountable it would present a considerable challenge, require some rock stacking and almost surely winching. From tire marks and scrapes on the rock I could tell people driving through here but what lies beyond. While preparing for our little trip studying maps and satellite imagery I knew there was a road descending into canyon from above. Now trekking half a mile or so up the stream bed I could see there were few additional more or less challenging obstacles, tread marks and more scrapes on rocks, and finally as expected less traveled road on the other side.
After deliberating over state of affairs: 3 large trucks, one winch, lots of rock stacking, and maneuvering in tight spaces. It is doable but it's going to take considerable time. Most particularly we've had our eyes set on specific destination, camping spot maybe some 100 miles north. Sadly we've had to turn around. Will save something for future.
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