jgaz

I saw the info for these on another site. They looked like an interesting design. http://www.lynxhooks.com/ Sorry if this is old news but I had not heard of these before. Jim

X2 on the REI pad. The one I have is 3.5 inches thick. For car camping I'd buy it again in a heartbeat. It will be on sale starting tomorrow for $89.99. http://www.rei.com/item/870757/rei-camp-bed-35-self-inflating-sleeping-pad Jim

Excellent write-up, great pictures, thanks for posting! If you don't mind me asking, what maps and /or guide books did you use to plan this trip? Jim

Nice Job! You mentioned on the linked site that you were not happy with the latches or the way they are mounted. What would you buy/do over if you were to do a 2nd set of drawers?

Looks great! Nice work Steve!

Nice work Steve...What have you been doing in your spare time? With all these major fab projects you may need another "care package" before you know it.

Thanks to all for their efforts to bring us the pictures of an awesome trip.

Sir, You are correct in observations about factory gauges being nonlinear. I was told several years ago by an engineer in charge of instrument clusters that he could program a factory gauge to read however he wanted. For example, in Michigan when you are freezing your but off on an early January morning you want HEAT. He said the gauges are programed to jump to the first mark very quickly so the customer has the perception that warm air from the heater core will be coming soon. Inversely, the gauges are programed not to be too sensitive on the high end so that the customer doesn't see his gauge move when he is climbing a steep, but fairly short duration, grade. This applies for not only newer vehicles. Many (too many) years ago I was twisting wrenches in a Chevrolet dealership. I was present when a GM factory rep told an unhappy customer that he should consider his temp gauge "an indicator, not an instrument". That's a pretty accurate statement IMHO. Great write up Steve, and as others have said, an excellent example of logical problem solving.

Over the last couple of years I've tried to obtain duplicates of the items that seemed to be common between the different pack rigs I use for backpacking or day hiking. For example each of my packs now has its own first aid kit, flashlight, whistle, compass, and appropriate emergency kit. Since I usually fly to a trip location and can't carry a knife, each bag also has the items I carry in my pockets on the trail in a small zip lock bag. It contains a knife, a lighter, small letterman w/scissors, chap stick, bandana, etc. Each sleeping bag also has a dedicated stuff sack stored in the large bag it hangs in between trips. You get the idea. This method has saved me from having to worry about a lot of small items that can still make a big difference on the trail. The cost has seemed minimum when spread out over a couple years. This has really seemed to help when I want to go on a quick day hike. Just grab the right bag and go. Jim

These are extremely durable. I used one for my camera on a 10 day raft trip down the Colorado. It protected the camera for the whole trip. Most of the time I just stuck the bag with camera in the pocket of my PFD. Other times it held the camera, was folded over, and stuffed in a small pelican box that was clipped my PFD. Bag is still in use in my first aid kit and still waterproof.

I agree your photos are way better then any I have taken out there. Thanks for clearing up the mystery (at least to me) of the Buick. I saw Steve spotting it in some earlier photos but I was thinking that unless they really improved the trail in the last three years it wasn't going to make it to the campground. BTW: According to an article I read, you will need a permit for all of the campsites at Toroweap starting Sept. 1, not just for the group site. Thanks for posting.

LOL. I'm still driving the 2001 Dakota I bought when I lived in AZ. The paint fades but the desert pin striping remains the same

Hello, I just wanted to share a couple of pictures of my "new" Jeep. I bought it a couple of weeks ago while in Phoenix before a Grand Canyon hike. I had been looking for an Arizona Jeep for a couple of months with indispensable help of ob1jeeper. I had given up looking here in Michigan due to the rust issues that are so common. I've fixed rust issues on my daily drivers for most of my driving life and had no desire to deal with them on a vehicle I plan to keep long term. I plan to use this vehicle to explore and basecamp for hiking in AZ and Utah. I thought I wanted a TJ/LJ so Steve and I began the search. Below is by far the nicest vehicle we found. It is so stock that it's almost a time capsule for the 2006 model year. I would much prefer to make my own modifications then to deal with someone else's. Don't get me wrong, I intend to get it plenty dirty and desert pin striping doesn't bother me. For the next year or so the Jeep will reside in AZ until I can buy a house there and retire. My long term plan is to let the Jeep evolve to fit how I find myself using it. Once again this long distance acquisition would not have been possible with out the help of ob1. It is much appreciated. Jim

Thanks, Reybie. I think I got it now. Jim

http://offroadpassport.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=2209&stc=1&d=1401306153 Hello, Would somebody please give me a little IT help? I would like to start a thread and post a picture or two with it. I can get the file to the above point in the body of the text but am unable to get the picture to appear larger. It shows up as an attached thumbnail at the bottom. I'm sure it should be obvious but I'm more of a #2 pencil and a 3X5 card type of guy. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

Looks like a great trip! Nice Job on the pictures, especially at Toroweap. Thanks for posting.

What ever it is. If Steve couldn't fix it, then it's really, really broke.

Steve, Looking at your last picture showing the fabricated skid plate on the floor. I meant to compliment you on your power, micro adjustable, under hoist jack stand. Nice use of an OEM bottle jack! Nice work on the skid plate as well.

When I lived in Phoenix there used to be a column in the AZ Republic that featured an AZ hike. A friend and I used to try and do one of the featured hikes a month. I hiked up to the top from what I'll call the front side about 10 years ago. The trail was rougher then I expected but a good hike overall. This is exactly the kind of trip I would like to do with you all in a year or so. You are able to cover so much more area and see a lot more then I can on foot. I'm not looking to give up my boots, just supplement them with 4 wheels. Thank you for sharing the pictures.

Two North Dakota good old’ boys are out hunting, and as they are walking along they came upon a huge hole in the ground. They approach it and are amazed at the size of it. The first hunter says, "Wow, that's some hole, I can't even see the bottom. I wonder how deep it is? The second hunter says," I don't know. Let's throw somethin' down there, listen and see how long it takes to hit bottom. The first hunter says, "Hey, there's an old automobile transmission over there. Give me a hand, we'll throw it in and see.” So they pick it up and carry it over and count one, two, three and heave it in the hole. They are standing there listening, looking over the edge, when they hear a rustling behind them. As they turn around, they see a goat come crashing through the underbrush, run up to the hole and, without hesitation, jump in headfirst. While they are standing there staring at each other in amazement, peering into the hole, trying to figure out what that was all about, an old farmer saunters up. "Say there," says the farmer, "You fellers didn't happen to see my goat around here anywhere, did you ?" The first hunter says, "Funny you should ask, but we were just standing here a minute ago and a goat came running out of the bushes doin' bout a hundred miles an hour and jumped . . . headfirst into this here hole!!!! The old farmer said, “Naw, that’s impossible..........I had him chained to a transmission. P.S. Don't feel bad if you didn't see it coming . . . Neither did the goat!!!

Fantastic planning! Impressive workmanship!!!

Hello All, I figured it was time to introduce myself and cross off a New Year's resolution. I'm Jim and I'm currently stuck in Michigan and wishing I was back in AZ. I'm a hiker and a backpacker who is coming to grips with the fact that I'm not as able to hump 35+ lbs. as I used to. I came across this site while looking for information on the Maze district. I found the pictures of Mr. Sam White's trip there last year. In them I thought I spotted ob1jeeper's picture and thought I recognized Ol Blue. I contacted ob1 and he suggested that this might be a group I'd like to follow. Ob1 and I go back a number of years, in fact he was responsible for AZ being my former residence. I'm currently considering what to buy/build heading into retirement that will allow me to base camp in the AZ, and Utah backcountry for day hiking and exploring. Ob1 was correct in that Matt's Experience AZ and other threads are exactly what I'm looking for. Thanks and hello.