|
Post by DarylJ on Jun 12, 2011 17:26:26 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by Matt H (aka Tiger Rag) on Jun 12, 2011 17:56:23 GMT -5
Fun trip! A little different experience which I was looking for with the camping on the trail. A little tougher than expected to find good flat spot in WV to camp though. We'll have to do it again....learned a good bit and know more what in the gear stash worked and what was not needed. Will streamline a little next time.
I'll upload some pics in a bit to add to what Daryl posted.
|
|
|
Post by Matt H (aka Tiger Rag) on Jun 12, 2011 19:30:27 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by Drew RZR 800 on Jun 12, 2011 20:09:57 GMT -5
Fun Weekend , at the time I was misarable ( heat , bugs , not packing enough suff ETC ) but looking back mostly it was my own lack of being prepared , but Daryl and Matt helped me along and looked like vetrans . This is that next step in this riding , ride camp ride , Daryl and I have talked for years about doing this on those rides up to camp . Formost I missed my ranger on this ride , the RZR is not a easy machine to pack to camp , but have some ideas on how to do it better next time .
|
|
|
Post by Randy_R on Jun 12, 2011 20:41:23 GMT -5
Sounds like fun. That's a nice 5th wheel trailer. Is it Matt's?
|
|
|
Post by Matt H (aka Tiger Rag) on Jun 12, 2011 21:00:20 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by Bob T on Jun 12, 2011 21:16:43 GMT -5
Let's hear some details. Where did you start out from, where did you ride, where did you camp?
And Drew does look miserable in a couple of those pics.
|
|
|
Post by Matt H (aka Tiger Rag) on Jun 12, 2011 21:24:00 GMT -5
Let's hear some details. Where did you start out from, where did you ride, where did you camp? And Drew does look miserable in a couple of those pics. Drew wasn't that miserable a couple rum drinks in. Bob, we were north of Welch. Pretty close to a coal mine. I've got the camp marked on my gps. I guess I could upload the location or I could just give you lat/long.
|
|
|
Post by Matt H (aka Tiger Rag) on Jun 12, 2011 21:26:24 GMT -5
Sounds like fun. That's a nice 5th wheel trailer. Is it Matt's? It's my brothers. Came up with this plan when we started talking about a trip starting in Gilbert and working our way down to Ashland. We would just need a shuttle vehicle when we got the Ashland to retrieve the truck/trailer.
|
|
|
Post by Randy_R on Jun 12, 2011 21:51:26 GMT -5
Gilbert to Ashland is only a days ride. Might wanna do Beckley to Gilbert....
|
|
|
Post by Matt H (aka Tiger Rag) on Jun 12, 2011 22:16:20 GMT -5
Gilbert to Ashland is only a days ride. Might wanna do Beckley to Gilbert.... I don't think we are hell bent on clicking over miles on the odometer and you have to back down the speed some carrying all the camping gear/food/drinks. A lot more stress on the engine braking (not as effective) and your brakes on the downhill stuff. Not to mention the time spent trying to find a decent campsite (harder than you would thing).....and one that you can hang hammocks on and not be on the side of the mountain. Also want some hours to get camp set up right. But point taken. Basically just a though to go from point A and end up at point B (kind of like a canoe trip). We decided to just return to the same trailhead on this trip to kind of guinea pig it. Figure out what works and what doesn't. Nothing wrong with doing a loop and ending up at the same trailhead......the loop can big as big as you want it to be. The A to B thing might basically be a pain in the backside and just be more $ spent in diesel.
|
|
|
Post by David B on Jun 12, 2011 22:21:15 GMT -5
I am glad you guys did this trip. It has been discussed before.
|
|
|
Post by DarylJ on Jun 12, 2011 22:51:29 GMT -5
I am glad you guys did this trip. It has been discussed before. I really enjoyed it David, I would do it again in a heartbeat. But like Matt said, its harder to find a good spot than you would think. That is mostly because we wanted off a main trail and not out in the open. I would suggest that anyone who does a trip like this keeps the group small to make it easy to find a spot. You are welcome to join us when we do it again! I would like to try it again around September, when its not as dusty and not as hot. (but I would do it again next week if I could)
|
|
|
Post by David B on Jun 13, 2011 8:06:20 GMT -5
I see that you used hammocks instead of tents. At least you do not have to find flat ground for tent placement. Also no ground pad to carry with a hammock. How did they sleep?
|
|
|
Post by DarylJ on Jun 13, 2011 8:09:15 GMT -5
I see that you used hammocks instead of tents. At least you do not have to find flat ground for tent placement. Also no ground pad to carry with a hammock. How did they sleep? Actually I did use a pad in the bottom of my hammock, it helps spread it out a little bit but I really think it would be perfectly fine without it. It slept fine, the one I have is an asymmetrical one with a foot box off to the side so you can sleep pretty flat.
|
|
|
Post by Matt H (aka Tiger Rag) on Jun 13, 2011 8:32:51 GMT -5
I've got the same hammock Daryl has. I've got the same foam pad. The main reason for it is really more for insulation than anything. Hammock camping is known for being chillier than the ground dwellers. I slept very comfortably. This hammock also has a bug net sewn into it. This is the hammock: warbonnetoutdoors.com/blackbirds.phpIt appears to be the most popular hammock on hammockforums.net as well.
|
|
|
Post by David B on Jun 13, 2011 9:19:32 GMT -5
I had no idea that the hammocks could be that versatile. I want to see one now.
|
|
|
Post by Matt H (aka Tiger Rag) on Jun 13, 2011 9:27:47 GMT -5
I see that you used hammocks instead of tents. At least you do not have to find flat ground for tent placement. Also no ground pad to carry with a hammock. How did they sleep? David, one thing they say is "don't hang higher than you want to fall" ....or something like that. That's where the hills can be a little bit of an issue for hammock camping. For our first hammock hang, we were a little concerned with hanging our hammocks on some of those steep WV mountain sides. Flat, or somewhat flat is still preferred which is difficult there. Seems like up there, if the land was flat, someone has taken a bulldozer to it for mining, building homes/towns, or possibly farming; ie. no trees on the flat ground. In the pictures, note the little charlie brown tree I'm tied to on the other side. By all accounts, I had it doubled over. My sleeping pad actually did come in handy for padding as my butt was on the ground. I was still comfortable though.
|
|
|
Post by DarylJ on Jun 13, 2011 13:32:04 GMT -5
I had no idea that the hammocks could be that versatile. I want to see one now. Come by the house one day and we will set it up and you can try it out. I really liked it and it packs down to nothing. Much easier than a tent too. This model even has a built in bug net and a built in shelf to place things.
|
|
|
Post by David B on Jun 13, 2011 15:37:34 GMT -5
The hammock is a suspended tent. Even with the nylon fly it weighs about 3 pounds which is less than a two man tent. A single bivy tent is the closest thing in weight for packing. With a hammock you don't have to worry about the floor leaking! It would be useless in the desert with no trees.
|
|