Hey there.
Back in early 2012 I was driving a Nissan Versa, which I'd picked up after my wife bought a Nissan and had a really positive experience. The car was fine, great gas mileage, and I've never really been a car guy so it got me form point A to point B and back again. I'd never been super fond of the thing, and when I started to hear worrisome engine noises I decided to just be done with it. Around that time I'd been spending a fair amount of my free time helping a buddy out on his deer lease (hunting property) and wanted something that was off road capable. I decided to buy a Jeep, and ended up with a 2012 JK.
Zed, my Jeep, has been more than capable as a hunting vehicle, but I've wanted to do more. Earlier this year I happened across some YouTube channels devoted to adventure riding and decided to buy a KLR 650. I took a basic motorcycle rider's course and loved it, got approved for a loan and headed out to a dealership. My wife was not thrilled with the idea, but didn't want to be the reason I didn't buy one so she pushed me to follow through. My experience with the dealership was so negative that it took all of the fun out of the concept, and I'll honestly probably never buy a motorcycle as a result.
I learned about some awesome trails in New Mexico though, and took a couple of camping trips. The first was a bust, my jeep was having worrisome electrical issues and I was honestly too nervous to shut it off in the middle of nowhere, so I drove from Lubbock to Dell City, through a section of the Lincoln national forest, up 24 for 82 and back home. It was a long, beautiful day, and I really wanted to get back to it.
A couple weeks later I decided to drive back to the same area, but to stay at Dog Canyon Campground in the Guadalupe Mountains National Park. This time I did NOT forget my tools, so I figured if I had another electrical issue, I could at least TRY to do something about it. Did I mention that I'm not a car guy? I'm not a car guy.
Everything was fine from Lubbock to Carlsbad, and as I turned off of the main road to head to Queen, I thought "Well, lat time must have been a fluke." Within seconds, my Jeep gave me a ding and the check engine light came on. I figured I was about an hour from my destination, with nothing but paved road ahead, and I'd just sort it out when I got there. I never got there.
About three miles from Dog Canyon, route 137 was closed, and months later it still is. There is no alternative route. I stood in the middle of the road, in the rain (forecast did not call for rain) and just shouted at my phone for a few minutes. I knew at that moment that if I went home again, I'd probably never give this a third try. I had to decide, right then and there, if this was the sort of thing I really wanted to do. It was. I turned around to head back towards Queen, but turned left onto a dirt trail in the Lincoln National Forest. I took the first trail off of that main trail, and found strong evidence of past camp sites almost immediately. I found some vaguely level ground and set up camp. I made dinner and listened to podcasts until the sun went down. I lay in my hammock for a couple hours after that, amazed at how well I could see under the nearly full moon. I watched a rabbit explore my camp. I slept. It rained that night, but not much. It was exactly what I was looking for.
In September I spent a few days hunting with my father in law and camping to spend a little more time sorting out whether or not the gear I already own is sufficient. The last night I was out we had a very powerful thunderstorm, and my lightweight hiking tent was not quite up to the job of keeping everything dry. Truth be told, I hadn't done a great job of setting up the rain fly, but even so my particular camp site ended up with about a half inch of water running through it for several hours. It was not awesome, and led me to opt for a better tent.
A 'better' tent turned into wanting a roof top tent, or a trailer. I'm still trying to decide which.
Oh, and while I'm still far from being a car guy, with the help of YouTube and a lot of trial and error, I've successfully done all of my own maintenance and upgrades on my Jeep so far.
Back in early 2012 I was driving a Nissan Versa, which I'd picked up after my wife bought a Nissan and had a really positive experience. The car was fine, great gas mileage, and I've never really been a car guy so it got me form point A to point B and back again. I'd never been super fond of the thing, and when I started to hear worrisome engine noises I decided to just be done with it. Around that time I'd been spending a fair amount of my free time helping a buddy out on his deer lease (hunting property) and wanted something that was off road capable. I decided to buy a Jeep, and ended up with a 2012 JK.
Zed, my Jeep, has been more than capable as a hunting vehicle, but I've wanted to do more. Earlier this year I happened across some YouTube channels devoted to adventure riding and decided to buy a KLR 650. I took a basic motorcycle rider's course and loved it, got approved for a loan and headed out to a dealership. My wife was not thrilled with the idea, but didn't want to be the reason I didn't buy one so she pushed me to follow through. My experience with the dealership was so negative that it took all of the fun out of the concept, and I'll honestly probably never buy a motorcycle as a result.
I learned about some awesome trails in New Mexico though, and took a couple of camping trips. The first was a bust, my jeep was having worrisome electrical issues and I was honestly too nervous to shut it off in the middle of nowhere, so I drove from Lubbock to Dell City, through a section of the Lincoln national forest, up 24 for 82 and back home. It was a long, beautiful day, and I really wanted to get back to it.
A couple weeks later I decided to drive back to the same area, but to stay at Dog Canyon Campground in the Guadalupe Mountains National Park. This time I did NOT forget my tools, so I figured if I had another electrical issue, I could at least TRY to do something about it. Did I mention that I'm not a car guy? I'm not a car guy.
Everything was fine from Lubbock to Carlsbad, and as I turned off of the main road to head to Queen, I thought "Well, lat time must have been a fluke." Within seconds, my Jeep gave me a ding and the check engine light came on. I figured I was about an hour from my destination, with nothing but paved road ahead, and I'd just sort it out when I got there. I never got there.
About three miles from Dog Canyon, route 137 was closed, and months later it still is. There is no alternative route. I stood in the middle of the road, in the rain (forecast did not call for rain) and just shouted at my phone for a few minutes. I knew at that moment that if I went home again, I'd probably never give this a third try. I had to decide, right then and there, if this was the sort of thing I really wanted to do. It was. I turned around to head back towards Queen, but turned left onto a dirt trail in the Lincoln National Forest. I took the first trail off of that main trail, and found strong evidence of past camp sites almost immediately. I found some vaguely level ground and set up camp. I made dinner and listened to podcasts until the sun went down. I lay in my hammock for a couple hours after that, amazed at how well I could see under the nearly full moon. I watched a rabbit explore my camp. I slept. It rained that night, but not much. It was exactly what I was looking for.
In September I spent a few days hunting with my father in law and camping to spend a little more time sorting out whether or not the gear I already own is sufficient. The last night I was out we had a very powerful thunderstorm, and my lightweight hiking tent was not quite up to the job of keeping everything dry. Truth be told, I hadn't done a great job of setting up the rain fly, but even so my particular camp site ended up with about a half inch of water running through it for several hours. It was not awesome, and led me to opt for a better tent.
A 'better' tent turned into wanting a roof top tent, or a trailer. I'm still trying to decide which.
Oh, and while I'm still far from being a car guy, with the help of YouTube and a lot of trial and error, I've successfully done all of my own maintenance and upgrades on my Jeep so far.
