Offroad Trailblazers and Envoys

COMPLETED: Sand extraction, Badlands, Truckhaven - Jan 2008

Trips/trails in the western coast of the U.S. (loosely follows the Pacific Time Zone)
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by The Roadie » Sat Aug 25, 2012 1:46 am

After getting stuck in the sand two trips ago in [url="http://forums.trailvoy.com/showthread.php?t=35533"][COLOR="Blue"]this thread[/COLOR][/url], I vowed to bring my winch EVERY TIME, and also test it and the Pull Pal winch anchor, which I hadn't done under real-world conditions since buying them. It was also a great day to beat the approaching storm.

No Trailvoy buddies were available, so I went with a friend from Expedition Portal - Mark aka: SWR/Scenic Wonder Runner. He wheels a 4Runner, lifted but no lockers.

The first set of pics are from Mark:

At the edge of the Badlands

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Getting stuck on purpose in loose sand. Side hills are surprisingly annoying with heavy doors and swing-away spare holders. (Video coming)

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Assembling the fold-out Pull Pal winch anchor. In a place without trees or rocks or another vehicle, this is the gadget of choice. Alternatives include burying your spare tire in a deep hole to connect your winch line to. That's real work.

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Pull Pal placed where its blade will bite in and dive down to whatever level will let it get traction. It's rated for 12000 pounds force. I know it's off-center from the truck and the winch, but this was supposed to be a worst-case test - me doing it all alone with Mark just taking pictures.

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Connected up and ready to pull

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The uhaul blanket is a safety precaution everybody should take with winch lines, to absorb a bit of energy in case anything breaks loose.

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Tensioning up the winch line made the Pull Pal dive almost three feet, and it moved toward the truck by 6-8 feet as it got underground traction.

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Almost out now.

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Some Borrego Badlands shots:

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User avatar
The Roadie
Founder
 
Posts: 5011
Joined: Mon Sep 07, 2009 11:29 pm
Location: CA, Vista, San Diego County
Name: Bill Carton
Vehicle Year: 2004
Vehicle: GMC Envoy
DriveTrain: 4WD w/ G80
Rank: Expedition Guide

by The Roadie » Sat Aug 25, 2012 1:47 am

The Roadie's lucky shirt - wearing this shirt has prevented me from rolling down ravines, running out of fuel, and disabling breakdowns on the trail.

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Colorful badlands

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The Pumpkin Patch, a unique collection of spherical concretions formed underground by sand and minerals in the groundwater. When the sand blows away when dry, these are left on the surface. Very rare to find the conditions necessary to grow them.

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Hiking up to a palm oasis, possible only with an underground stream.

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17 Palms oasis

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Down a shelf road into a wash. The Envoy is in this picture.

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Glad we missed this collapse

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Down into another wash.

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And up out of the wash to flat land again

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Look up Truckhaven Trail for more reading
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User avatar
The Roadie
Founder
 
Posts: 5011
Joined: Mon Sep 07, 2009 11:29 pm
Location: CA, Vista, San Diego County
Name: Bill Carton
Vehicle Year: 2004
Vehicle: GMC Envoy
DriveTrain: 4WD w/ G80
Rank: Expedition Guide

by The Roadie » Sat Aug 25, 2012 1:48 am

Badlands (for more reading click [url="http://www.desertusa.com/anza_borrego/du-abpbobad.html"][COLOR="Blue"]here[/COLOR][/url])

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Pull Pal assembled

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Currently I have a 12 foot winch control lanyard. But I bought an RF version that will work up to 100 feet away, but it isn't installed yet. I prefer being well outside the danger radius with as much as 9000 pound stress on the winch, cable, and other parts. This wasn't that hard a simulation, though.

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Trench dug by the Pull Pal as it dove down to get traction

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In mud or dirt I'm sure it won't be this easy to retrieve

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Trench left behind. I probably should have raked it flat so people wouldn't think I got stuck doing something dumb.

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SWR cresting a rise

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Narrow gap - H1's need not apply

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"Prospector's Post Office" in one palm grove at 17 Palms Oasis

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Yearly log books and geocaching stuff

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Decent size rockfall in Truckhaven Trail

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User avatar
The Roadie
Founder
 
Posts: 5011
Joined: Mon Sep 07, 2009 11:29 pm
Location: CA, Vista, San Diego County
Name: Bill Carton
Vehicle Year: 2004
Vehicle: GMC Envoy
DriveTrain: 4WD w/ G80
Rank: Expedition Guide


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