Back country discovery

[b. rock]

That looks awesome. How hot is the engine/trans getting?

[Scalf77]

Looks like your having a great time, thanks for the updates.

-greg

[Railvan]

Hope the trip goes well. I've seen reports of snow still blocking the WABDR in the middle of the state so I hope it melts off before you get there. Enjoy! Hope to see you on the road again someday.

[arctictraveller]

Originally Posted by b. rock

That looks awesome. How hot is the engine/trans getting?

Engine and transmission both a bit over 200 degrees. . Not out of control, but higher than normal and I didn’t let it go higher.

[arctictraveller]

It was another great day. I made it to Lake Chelan, fueled up and stoped at a beautiful lake side park for lunch. From there it was back to the trail. The map showed two routes with a notation on one that said “overgrown but passable” so of course I chose that one. Well after an hour of steep uphill in four low I got near a section labeled on the map as “the jungle” it quickly became obvious that it was “passable” if you were on a motorcycle, or you had a chainsaw, a winch and a lot of ambition, and I lack the ambition to work that hard. So, turning around on the narrow trail was another interesting challenge requiring a 19 point turn. It required me to move a foot or so and then get out to judge how far i can move in the opposite direction. Half way through that cluster, the starter failed to engage the flywheel for the first time ever. Oh great, if I continue going South, it’s two days to the next little town or an hour and a half back to the lake. A couple hours and $190 later I had a new starter and headed back up the mountain to a great camp spot overlooking the lake. I wonder what tomorrow will bring?

[marret]

Glad it worked out with the starter. Unclear, but I hope it finally engaged and you drove back to the lake. Thanks for taking us along.

Lesson here I think for the BDRs, “overgrown but passable” on a motorcycle route might not work for a van. Either chose a different route or be prepared to turn around as you were.

I’ve been contemplating a small trailer for toys and your situation is the biggest reason I haven’t yet. If I do, it must be light enough to detach and move by hand.

Thanks again for posting.

[1der]

Originally Posted by marret

I’ve been contemplating a small trailer for toys and your situation is the biggest reason I haven’t yet. If I do, it must be light enough to detach and move by hand. .

And narrow enough! Because after detachment you have get by it after turning around.

Arctic - was this a side of the mountain w drop off turnaround? I am guessing our EB would have been a bit more challenging to get turned around. The back end would have been hanging over during the 19 point turn given the wheelbase is the same as your RB.

Great write ups and pics! Thxs!

[marret]

Originally Posted by 1der

And narrow enough! Because after detachment you have get by it after turning around.

Good point on width. Too narrow brings other factors into play. In Arctic’s situation, any trailer may have been too wide.

[1der]

My first thought was as wide as the van since the van is 19 to 21 ft long would be no problem since the van is about 7 ft wide with ladder, etc. plus trailer at 7 ft equals times way less than 19 to 21 ft.

But then I geeked out and realized it is not the length of the van but the diagonal of wheelbase, which is 160", that is the limiting factor with NO safety margin. Less than 160" of supportable ground and the turn does not happen because the tires are over the edge. Van width plus trailer width exceeds 160" on the narrowest turnaround and it will be near impossible to get by. And where does the trailer sit while disconnected.

Now back to our regularly scheduled programming

[arctictraveller]

The starter only failed to engage the flywheel twice, but without a spare I would have been pretty stressed had I continued. Now that I’ve added the starter to my spare parts collection the original one will probably go another year but if it doesn’t I’m prepared to change it but I prefer to do it at home. For those who don’t know, starter failures can often times be temporarily fixed with a couple sharp taps with a hammer or a rock but it’s only a short term fix. If that fails to get it spinning, last resort is to have someone hold the key in the start position while you give it one last attitude adjustment.

As for the turn around, this one wasn’t a cliff side but the down hill side was blocked by fallen trees and the uphill side was dense brush. I was super careful because I didn’t want to dent my Aluminess box again (although it was pretty easy to straighten out after I backed into a utility pole).

I knew taking the harder route was a risk, but where’s the fun in taking the easy way every time? Still, no way would I have taken a trailer on that road, but if I did have one, at the first hint of trouble I would have parked and walked the route first. A chain saw would have solved the issue, but it could have taken all day. In my younger days I might have gone after it, but now I prefer less strenuous challenges.

By the way, posting photos on this site is a pain. I can post ten photos on my Facebook page in the time it takes me to import one into a photo editor, manipulate it, save it to a file and then Open the file manager, find the file again and down load it here, so sorry for the sideways ones, but I just prefer the ease of Facebook.