Robie
Active member
When I first hit the road I was probably at best brain dead from all that had happened in the previous year and half. I was laid off, lost my house in the So Cal area (sold upside down), blew through my 401k, getting rid of my possesions to try and stay afloat, and finally had to move out of where I was staying because the owner sold the place.
At that point I was in the dumps. It was quite obvious my life was not going the way it was supposed to or at least as I thought it should have. But somewhere in the back of my mind I remembered a pact I made with a friend I was stationed with in Hawaii. "After the Navy we promised to get together and wander the world."
That was it! I decided that I need to hit the road. I needed to remove myself from the great American lie, live a life as a nomad, I had my pension, there was nothing holding me back now. Great Idea! Sadly, it is here, I must admit my thought process following that initial epiphany was less than stellar. First I decided that I needed an RV, I did have 3 dogs after all, and I thought having some creature comforts wasnt asking much. After doing some research and evaluating my expenses and pension, I enlisted 2 younger friends to join me. They both had already made attempts to travel that ended in disaster. They eagerly agreed to head out with me, seeing in me their final hopes of making the escape they had sought.
My first big mistake; I bought a real piece of work RV...if I had waited 3 days I could have gotten a much better RV for a better price. But I was getting desperate, I had less than a week before I had to move out. Be that as it may, I bought this RV that had expired tags and couldnt pass smog...I am in California! SMOG! What idiot buys a questionably running old ('86) RV out of registration, that cant pass smog in California!? Me 《---- dummy. Did I mention that had I waited I could have gotten a nice 2004 for $500 more. Well after another $1000 (needed new carb, plugs, wires et. al.) and much begging of friends to let me park it while I worked on it, I got it smogged, got vent covers replaced, found and repaired several holes in the roof, fixed a leak in the propane system and kind of fixed the cabin door that wouldnt open or close without beating it into submission (thats a whole nother story).
But even knowing it was a piece of junk we were excited with the idea of hitting the road and putting behind us the wrongs of the world and explore the wonders ahead. I felt confident enough in my mechanical skills, I didn't think we would have any mechanical issues I couldn't fix, I mean hell I have an extensive technical and mechanical background, I have worked on some very complex and high tech stuff.
In the first days of Aug we left left San Diego and headed north. We were looking for someplace to go for our first adventure. Lo and behold we found on the great WWW 'Gobblers Knob'!...well how in the hell can we pass that up?
Off we go!
For those who are not familiar with southern California, Gobblers Knob sits about 6000' up in the mountains north of San Bernadino and straddles the Pacific Coast Trail (PCT). The road up is a twisted, potted, hair pin turning, sheer cliff sides, loose boulders and slate, rain gullies, mountain road. Basically an awsome road for any off road enthusiast in a good 4 wheel drive vehicle.
Ohh did I mention I was in an old beat up RV? When we approached at first I was a little skeptical and hesitant, but I do have alot of off road experience, Ive owned 3 Jeeps, done many off road excursions in my time and sometimes have balls bigger than needed. So up the road I drove. The RV handled the trip up well enough, after getting the engine tuned and fixed it had plenty of power, though I should mention that the shocks were OEM (did I mention this was a 1986), resulting in the interior decorations being rearrainged in a very exciting and violent manner (thankfully the bong survived that episode). After about a couple of hours or more creeping up we got to Gobblers Knob...what a view! We did get a few strange looks from some 4 wheelers when they drove by this 24' RV sitting on the PCT. But hey who says you need a 4wheel vehicle.
So we camped up there, did an oil change (yes I packed out old oil with me), hiked part of the PCT, relaxed, smoked good bud to some sweet sunsets and sunrises and just had a blast.
After the 3rd day we decided to continue on. We start heading down the mountain and after about 1/4 mile I hear the very distinct sound of escaping air and start to feel my stability changing. I stop and find that I had not 1 flat but 2 flats. The RV had rear dualies and the passenger side lost both tires. Not good considering we were still 3/4 up the mountain.
Imagine if you will, trying to steer an elephant on roller skates? Thats what it felt like. The road was narrow and now my rear was wanting to go wherever the hell it wanted. I was expecting to hear the other tires going out at any moment. The road seemed far worse going down than I remember going up. It seemed the gullies were deeper, the rocks slipier and the turns more hair raising; but then again it may have been my nerves. After less than an hour of creeping and sliding and riding the brakes, which were now starting to smoke and smell, I told my friends to get out with the dogs and walk in front (far in front) of the RV as I drove down. I had my seatbelt off and my door open just in case I lost it and my home decided to head over the cliff. Looking over the side at one point, at least 2000' down, I fully expected to loose all that I had left...I had a death grip on the sterring wheel, the worst cotton mouth in the world, I would have shit bricks but my sphincter was so tight a fart would have sounded like a shrill dog whistle
After what seemed like an eternity I made it past the last turn and was making it along the flat to the base of the mountain. I finally got to the main road. My hands were shaking so bad one of my friends had to hold and light the bong for me. I smoked the fattest bong rip and had sit for a bit to calm my rattled nerves...what the hell was I thinking trying that?
Wow never again would I try something that stupid.
...yeah right!
So I'm driving the RV along a river bed....
At that point I was in the dumps. It was quite obvious my life was not going the way it was supposed to or at least as I thought it should have. But somewhere in the back of my mind I remembered a pact I made with a friend I was stationed with in Hawaii. "After the Navy we promised to get together and wander the world."
That was it! I decided that I need to hit the road. I needed to remove myself from the great American lie, live a life as a nomad, I had my pension, there was nothing holding me back now. Great Idea! Sadly, it is here, I must admit my thought process following that initial epiphany was less than stellar. First I decided that I needed an RV, I did have 3 dogs after all, and I thought having some creature comforts wasnt asking much. After doing some research and evaluating my expenses and pension, I enlisted 2 younger friends to join me. They both had already made attempts to travel that ended in disaster. They eagerly agreed to head out with me, seeing in me their final hopes of making the escape they had sought.
My first big mistake; I bought a real piece of work RV...if I had waited 3 days I could have gotten a much better RV for a better price. But I was getting desperate, I had less than a week before I had to move out. Be that as it may, I bought this RV that had expired tags and couldnt pass smog...I am in California! SMOG! What idiot buys a questionably running old ('86) RV out of registration, that cant pass smog in California!? Me 《---- dummy. Did I mention that had I waited I could have gotten a nice 2004 for $500 more. Well after another $1000 (needed new carb, plugs, wires et. al.) and much begging of friends to let me park it while I worked on it, I got it smogged, got vent covers replaced, found and repaired several holes in the roof, fixed a leak in the propane system and kind of fixed the cabin door that wouldnt open or close without beating it into submission (thats a whole nother story).
But even knowing it was a piece of junk we were excited with the idea of hitting the road and putting behind us the wrongs of the world and explore the wonders ahead. I felt confident enough in my mechanical skills, I didn't think we would have any mechanical issues I couldn't fix, I mean hell I have an extensive technical and mechanical background, I have worked on some very complex and high tech stuff.
In the first days of Aug we left left San Diego and headed north. We were looking for someplace to go for our first adventure. Lo and behold we found on the great WWW 'Gobblers Knob'!...well how in the hell can we pass that up?
Off we go!
For those who are not familiar with southern California, Gobblers Knob sits about 6000' up in the mountains north of San Bernadino and straddles the Pacific Coast Trail (PCT). The road up is a twisted, potted, hair pin turning, sheer cliff sides, loose boulders and slate, rain gullies, mountain road. Basically an awsome road for any off road enthusiast in a good 4 wheel drive vehicle.
Ohh did I mention I was in an old beat up RV? When we approached at first I was a little skeptical and hesitant, but I do have alot of off road experience, Ive owned 3 Jeeps, done many off road excursions in my time and sometimes have balls bigger than needed. So up the road I drove. The RV handled the trip up well enough, after getting the engine tuned and fixed it had plenty of power, though I should mention that the shocks were OEM (did I mention this was a 1986), resulting in the interior decorations being rearrainged in a very exciting and violent manner (thankfully the bong survived that episode). After about a couple of hours or more creeping up we got to Gobblers Knob...what a view! We did get a few strange looks from some 4 wheelers when they drove by this 24' RV sitting on the PCT. But hey who says you need a 4wheel vehicle.
So we camped up there, did an oil change (yes I packed out old oil with me), hiked part of the PCT, relaxed, smoked good bud to some sweet sunsets and sunrises and just had a blast.
After the 3rd day we decided to continue on. We start heading down the mountain and after about 1/4 mile I hear the very distinct sound of escaping air and start to feel my stability changing. I stop and find that I had not 1 flat but 2 flats. The RV had rear dualies and the passenger side lost both tires. Not good considering we were still 3/4 up the mountain.
Imagine if you will, trying to steer an elephant on roller skates? Thats what it felt like. The road was narrow and now my rear was wanting to go wherever the hell it wanted. I was expecting to hear the other tires going out at any moment. The road seemed far worse going down than I remember going up. It seemed the gullies were deeper, the rocks slipier and the turns more hair raising; but then again it may have been my nerves. After less than an hour of creeping and sliding and riding the brakes, which were now starting to smoke and smell, I told my friends to get out with the dogs and walk in front (far in front) of the RV as I drove down. I had my seatbelt off and my door open just in case I lost it and my home decided to head over the cliff. Looking over the side at one point, at least 2000' down, I fully expected to loose all that I had left...I had a death grip on the sterring wheel, the worst cotton mouth in the world, I would have shit bricks but my sphincter was so tight a fart would have sounded like a shrill dog whistle
After what seemed like an eternity I made it past the last turn and was making it along the flat to the base of the mountain. I finally got to the main road. My hands were shaking so bad one of my friends had to hold and light the bong for me. I smoked the fattest bong rip and had sit for a bit to calm my rattled nerves...what the hell was I thinking trying that?
Wow never again would I try something that stupid.
...yeah right!
So I'm driving the RV along a river bed....
