Advocate I
So after planning for ~2 weeks for a trip to Utah (grand staircase) last Tuesday I called up the ranger station and asked how the weather was. They got snow and a hell of a lot of rain... which meant the roads I wanted to drive down would likely be impassable. So a quick replan and I created a route though Death Valley with the first night being at the Trona Pinnacles (google map link).
My friend was planning on coming with his brand spanking new 2021 Tacoma TRD Pro just to make sure The Beast could get unstuck if needed. We coordinated a meeting place for friday knowing we likely wouldn't have signal around DV.
So Mrs Spaze and I headed out Thursday around 11am after packing the van, and ate lunch along the way and stopped for cold stone... because we are on vacation right? After a slight google error we spent the last hour of the trip on a "road" through BLM land. It was slow and rough going, and after nearly beaching the beast on a dirt embankment Mrs Spaze suggested she drive :lol:
The Pinnacles are cool and there are 3 "groups" of them with roads around them and hiking paths within them. We found a place with a fire ring and set about leveling the van on rocks... as you do. After some puppy play time the sun set and we made some dinner busted open a bottle of wine and enjoyed food by the fire.
Friday morning was slow and we made our way to Panamint Springs to meet with my friend. Once we realized we didn't have any signal even at the meeting point I asked the gas station staff to steal their wifi, and they told me the password, and that the winds are going to be blowing at 40+ mph at nights for the weekend... and that they make amazing milkshakes. My friend turned out to be delayed so Mrs Spaze and I went to Darwin Falls for a short hike. It was a cool place and we were surprised just how many cars were at the trailhead. However, when we got the falls, we had it all to ourselves, and played fetch with Baloo for a while. We returned to Panamint Springs ordered a milkshake which "were the best in the valley" (also the only ones in the valley) and waited a little while. When my friend arrived we filled up and headed out.
Once we turned off the paved roads we aired down and rolled toward Hunter Mountain. When we started to climb higher my friend tossed his truck into 4wd High "just in case." Really he saw the first of 4 larger mud puddles/ruts and wanted to traverse it slowly. Mrs Spaze saw it, asked if we'd get stuck and I said "not with a little momentum." Little did I know I had just unleased a monster. Foot nearly to the floor we easily traversed the first mud puddle and the amount of spray off the van was crazy. Mrs Spaze REALLY enjoyed it... and the following 3 deeper areas of mud as well... :lol:
We slept at a the Homestake Dry camp, which was packed full of people. In the morning we hiked up to Lippincott mine to look around a little at all the old buildings, trailers, and parts still up there. From there we headed down Lippincott road which is known to be narrow, steep, technical and have beautiful views... it was all those things. On our way down we were passed by a caravan of jeeps (spotting a few of them) and Mrs Spaze ended up spotting another Tacoma coming down solo. Overall it was a ton of fun and we surprised a few people with the van especially since the first thing Mrs Spaze told people was "we don't even have 4wd!" We did end up losing the steering dampener bolts on the washboards that followed... but I have all the parts, so I'll just locktite new bolts in.
We were supposed to spend the night at the Eureka Dunes, but between the hike and Lippincott road taking longer than I had planned we pulled up short and camped at the Saline Valley warm springs. We pulled in next to some of the tall grass and set about exploring. The next morning we woke up and headed for a dip and some friendly conversation with the care taker. After breakfast we ventured a little further down the road for more springs (which are supposed to be hotter in temp) and once we saw the "road" and the fact it was already noon, we decided to take "paved roads" to the dunes.
A few hours and some amazing views later we got to the tallest dunes in North America (I think?). They were neat but we were in a hurry to get to the Alabama Hills area (2.5 hours away) before dark. We chose that area because we thought Mrs Spaze needed to be up and in a Telcon that next morning. So back on the road to one of the most beautiful areas I've ever seen. The backdrop for the Alabama Hills is the (snowy) eastern Sierra's... it was quite a site. After quickly finding a site to camp we pulled in and began to level the van when CRUNCH my friend managed to run over a huge rock that lifted the passenger front of his Tacoma right off the ground. So out with the jack, some makeshift leveling plates, we jacked the truck up and managed to pull the rock out. The only damage was some scratches to his from skid plate! Sadly I have no pictures of this... I know we were all tired so I'm not surprised when he told us he thought the rock was another 3' from his truck.
That next morning was slow (and cold) as I don't think any of us wanted to leave. After breakfast we drove the ~25 mile ring around the AH area before we parted ways and headed back to reality.
Needless to say the more I go to DV, the more I want to go back to DV.
Damage to the Beast was uhh, "minimal." Steering dampener and bolts need to be replaced, we popped a hose off the gas tank for the charcoal canister, broke 2 exhaust hangers at the weld to the exhaust, and there is a serious metal on metal bang coming from the front drivers side. So it wasn't without its sacrifices, but when a van is doing 45+mph on rutted roads trying to keep up with a Tacoma... s**t happens.
Also after seeing Jarrod put his truck in 4wd Low and just creep down things, I'm REALLY thinking about a truck and a pup up truck camper. The more I run the numbers a 4x4 outfitted van is $60k+ and for a little over half that I can get a pickup AND a camper....
My friend was planning on coming with his brand spanking new 2021 Tacoma TRD Pro just to make sure The Beast could get unstuck if needed. We coordinated a meeting place for friday knowing we likely wouldn't have signal around DV.
So Mrs Spaze and I headed out Thursday around 11am after packing the van, and ate lunch along the way and stopped for cold stone... because we are on vacation right? After a slight google error we spent the last hour of the trip on a "road" through BLM land. It was slow and rough going, and after nearly beaching the beast on a dirt embankment Mrs Spaze suggested she drive :lol:
The Pinnacles are cool and there are 3 "groups" of them with roads around them and hiking paths within them. We found a place with a fire ring and set about leveling the van on rocks... as you do. After some puppy play time the sun set and we made some dinner busted open a bottle of wine and enjoyed food by the fire.
Friday morning was slow and we made our way to Panamint Springs to meet with my friend. Once we realized we didn't have any signal even at the meeting point I asked the gas station staff to steal their wifi, and they told me the password, and that the winds are going to be blowing at 40+ mph at nights for the weekend... and that they make amazing milkshakes. My friend turned out to be delayed so Mrs Spaze and I went to Darwin Falls for a short hike. It was a cool place and we were surprised just how many cars were at the trailhead. However, when we got the falls, we had it all to ourselves, and played fetch with Baloo for a while. We returned to Panamint Springs ordered a milkshake which "were the best in the valley" (also the only ones in the valley) and waited a little while. When my friend arrived we filled up and headed out.
Once we turned off the paved roads we aired down and rolled toward Hunter Mountain. When we started to climb higher my friend tossed his truck into 4wd High "just in case." Really he saw the first of 4 larger mud puddles/ruts and wanted to traverse it slowly. Mrs Spaze saw it, asked if we'd get stuck and I said "not with a little momentum." Little did I know I had just unleased a monster. Foot nearly to the floor we easily traversed the first mud puddle and the amount of spray off the van was crazy. Mrs Spaze REALLY enjoyed it... and the following 3 deeper areas of mud as well... :lol:
We slept at a the Homestake Dry camp, which was packed full of people. In the morning we hiked up to Lippincott mine to look around a little at all the old buildings, trailers, and parts still up there. From there we headed down Lippincott road which is known to be narrow, steep, technical and have beautiful views... it was all those things. On our way down we were passed by a caravan of jeeps (spotting a few of them) and Mrs Spaze ended up spotting another Tacoma coming down solo. Overall it was a ton of fun and we surprised a few people with the van especially since the first thing Mrs Spaze told people was "we don't even have 4wd!" We did end up losing the steering dampener bolts on the washboards that followed... but I have all the parts, so I'll just locktite new bolts in.
We were supposed to spend the night at the Eureka Dunes, but between the hike and Lippincott road taking longer than I had planned we pulled up short and camped at the Saline Valley warm springs. We pulled in next to some of the tall grass and set about exploring. The next morning we woke up and headed for a dip and some friendly conversation with the care taker. After breakfast we ventured a little further down the road for more springs (which are supposed to be hotter in temp) and once we saw the "road" and the fact it was already noon, we decided to take "paved roads" to the dunes.
A few hours and some amazing views later we got to the tallest dunes in North America (I think?). They were neat but we were in a hurry to get to the Alabama Hills area (2.5 hours away) before dark. We chose that area because we thought Mrs Spaze needed to be up and in a Telcon that next morning. So back on the road to one of the most beautiful areas I've ever seen. The backdrop for the Alabama Hills is the (snowy) eastern Sierra's... it was quite a site. After quickly finding a site to camp we pulled in and began to level the van when CRUNCH my friend managed to run over a huge rock that lifted the passenger front of his Tacoma right off the ground. So out with the jack, some makeshift leveling plates, we jacked the truck up and managed to pull the rock out. The only damage was some scratches to his from skid plate! Sadly I have no pictures of this... I know we were all tired so I'm not surprised when he told us he thought the rock was another 3' from his truck.
That next morning was slow (and cold) as I don't think any of us wanted to leave. After breakfast we drove the ~25 mile ring around the AH area before we parted ways and headed back to reality.
Needless to say the more I go to DV, the more I want to go back to DV.
Damage to the Beast was uhh, "minimal." Steering dampener and bolts need to be replaced, we popped a hose off the gas tank for the charcoal canister, broke 2 exhaust hangers at the weld to the exhaust, and there is a serious metal on metal bang coming from the front drivers side. So it wasn't without its sacrifices, but when a van is doing 45+mph on rutted roads trying to keep up with a Tacoma... s**t happens.
Also after seeing Jarrod put his truck in 4wd Low and just creep down things, I'm REALLY thinking about a truck and a pup up truck camper. The more I run the numbers a 4x4 outfitted van is $60k+ and for a little over half that I can get a pickup AND a camper....
