The Arizona Strip, May 9-15 2009

[xpdishn]

Just revisited this thread. Fantastic stuff here.
I would love to make this trip but the fuel would be issue number one. No refer on board would be another issue to consider. Even a 3 day trip to Death Valley has me loading the Tacoma for bear. I applaud those of you who make these trips in FJs or other vehicles with lesser storage capacity than a truck. You definitely have me thinking about a reserve fuel tank.

In case I missed it...what maps (paper) did you use for your trip?

Wow, Thank you for your comments.

The 2 best, by a mile, mods I have done are the reserve fuel tank and Waeco fridge. They go hand in hand and, of course, without either one, we could not have done it. Maybe freeze dried-not. For that trip the roof rack was full as well as the back of the FJ. I have done a major remodel to the rear for extra storage.

As for maps, BLM has an Arizona Strip map that covers the whole area. With that, the scale is such that it is very difficult to read. As I said, it took quite awhile to mark a route in NatGeo TOPO software and that is what we used. Still ran into dead ends but that is what exploring is about.

Fantastic trip report, great pics! Don't know how I missed this when it was originally posted.

The logistics for this trip are really a challenge. Not many have the fuel storage capacity to attempt something like this. I envy you for that!

Thank you. The wife took the pics and has a much better eye and me.

The extra tank was not cheap, but after months of discussion with the wife, we finally saw that without one, we would not be able to do want we envisioned for expedition runs. We have not regretted for one minute the money spent on it.

 

[Pathfinder]

Is there a link or a thread discussing your installation of your fuel tank in an FJC? I am interested in that discussion.

I did google and find these links


http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=14908

http://www.man-a-fre.com/fjcruiser/fjcruiserauxiliarytank.htm

http://www.alongdrive.com/fj-cruiser-3/

 

[xpdishn]

Is there a link or a thread discussing your installation of your fuel tank in an FJC? I am interested in that discussion.

I did google and find these links


http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=14908

http://www.man-a-fre.com/fjcruiser/fjcruiserauxiliarytank.htm

http://www.alongdrive.com/fj-cruiser-3/

The best I can do is this:
http://www.fjcruiserforums.com/forums/man-fre/54845-fj-cruiser-auxiliary-fuel-tank-installed.html

Can't really say how much technical info is in there, but I do know individuals have installed their own tanks.

I just opened the first link and it's probably the same as the one I posted.

 

[Pathfinder]

I just reread the beginning of this thread and want to express my thanks for your posting this trip.

I spent the weekend of July 17-19 in Toroweap with a few friends ( just a couple months after your trip ), and this report brought back a lot of good memories. That trip was one of the reasons I replaced my Honda with an FJC too. It was warmer than you reported though, 115 - 118 degrees in the shade in July.

 

[SLO_F-250]

WOW! Great Trip report! Thanks for taking the time to write this one up! I'm headed out to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon and Southern Utah for a 10 day trip. Going to start a thread for my plan, but reading through your thread just got me even more excited!!! :wings:
Cheers and Safe Travels!

 

[LaOutbackTrail]

Holy cow! Great trip report, amazing pictures. This is the first trip report I have seen where I am enticed to actually go to the Grand Canyon. Sure I've seen the documentaries and some photos, but you guys did an excellent job capturing the grandeur of the canyons! Being able to reach those points in the 4x4s makes it even more enticing to me! I absolutely hate the overly touristy areas where my photos would be a duplicate of a few hundred thousand other tourists' photos.

Thanks for sharing!

 

[xpdishn]

WOW! Great Trip report! Thanks for taking the time to write this one up! I'm headed out to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon and Southern Utah for a 10 day trip. Going to start a thread for my plan, but reading through your thread just got me even more excited!!! :wings:
Cheers and Safe Travels!

I'll be looking for your write up. Have fun.

Holy cow! Great trip report, amazing pictures. This is the first trip report I have seen where I am enticed to actually go to the Grand Canyon. Sure I've seen the documentaries and some photos, but you guys did an excellent job capturing the grandeur of the canyons! Being able to reach those points in the 4x4s makes it even more enticing to me! I absolutely hate the overly touristy areas where my photos would be a duplicate of a few hundred thousand other tourists' photos.

Thanks for sharing!

Thanks for your comments. That has been our favorite trip so far. Over 400 miles and seeing only about 4 people (not counting Toroweep).

You got me thinking with your comments about tourists. Toroweep has mutitudes of tourists but the other "points" had no one. It's interesting that at the east end, Kanab and SB points are within just a few hours drive from Fredonia. The same with Twin Points to the west from St. George. Kelly point, though, is a whole other experience though.

Someday we might get to the South Rim, but it is not that high on our priority list.

 

[JJMAC]

Looking to make this trip this year. But only for a 3 night stay at SB Point or Kanab Point. Do I need to get permits??? Are thier reservations needed for campsite?

Thanks for your help....

 

[Lichen]

Fantastic trip. The flowering bush appears to be cliffrose.

 

[brngk]

Fantastic trip report! The pictures actually make the trails seem fairly well
maintained. Any thoughts on whether this trip would be doable in lower
clearance vehicle ~8 inches? Were there any only 4x4 sections.

 

[xpdishn]

Fantastic trip report! The pictures actually make the trails seem fairly well
maintained. Any thoughts on whether this trip would be doable in lower
clearance vehicle ~8 inches? Were there any only 4x4 sections.

The complete run could not be done in a low clearance 2x vehicle. But much of it could be done with that type of vehicle. Driver experience would be a hugh factor as well as the quality of off pavement tires. Usually these types of vehicles run highway tires - not conducive to long off pavement trips. Sidewalls should have more plys - think BFG AT's.

We saw a car going in to Toroweep, the BLM portion of the road is great but once you hit the NP boundary, they don't seem to care (read money) about maintaing it. Don't know if the car made it though.

Overall, I would recommend a high clearance 4x4

 

[WildHare]

Hello, I'm glad to see you're still responding to this old thread.

I need some trail advice!

I'm planning a trip to Twin Point and Kelly Point this May. However, carrying 3-4 people + gear is putting a strain on the cargo space in my 2005 4Runner.

My question: could I use a hitch mount cargo basket while on this trip? I'm especially concerned about the trail to Kelly Point, which is supposedly very rocky.

This picture represents the basket on my vehicle pretty well:

My Vehicle:
2005 Toyota 4Runner w/ 3" Overland Warehouse lift, 285x70R17 (read: 33") tires, plus a few other mods.

So, is it possible, or should I ditch the carrier?

Thanks!

-Dan

 

[xpdishn]

Hello, I'm glad to see you're still responding to this old thread.

I need some trail advice!

I'm planning a trip to Twin Point and Kelly Point this May. However, carrying 3-4 people + gear is putting a strain on the cargo space in my 2005 4Runner.

My question: could I use a hitch mount cargo basket while on this trip? I'm especially concerned about the trail to Kelly Point, which is supposedly very rocky.

This picture represents the basket on my vehicle pretty well:

My Vehicle:
2005 Toyota 4Runner w/ 3" Overland Warehouse lift, 285x70R17 (read: 33") tires, plus a few other mods.

So, is it possible, or should I ditch the carrier?

Thanks!

-Dan

Dan,
I'm racking my little pea brain trying to remember any severe dips or wops in the road. .................................. I can't think of any that would prohibit you from adding the basket, though a disclaimer here as I think the FJ has a shorter wheelbase than the 4R, so maybe minor dips to me may prove more of an issue with you. I really don't think you will have a problem.

The Kelly Point road as you can see in the pics is just a lot of rolling over lava. It's not really all that technical, it's just slow. I didn't want to get a flat on it and have to turn around.

The views from each Point are worth it. Enjoy. :smiley_drive:

 

[WildHare]

Thanks for the advice. If necessary, I'll go ahead and use the cargo basket. I'm hoping to figure a way around without it, though. I'll just make sure to carry non-essentials if I have to ditch it.

This was the first thread that inspired me as to the best locations for the North Rim/Parashant. Before, I had seen pics of Toroweap. However, the pics of views from Twin and Kelly Point are just fantastic!

I hope it all goes well!

Thanks again!

-Dan

 

[Ed Bravo]

Tent

What manufacturer made the tent? Size? Was it decent? looks like what we are after.

Ed