 Taking a Jeepcation. Day 1 It’s an early start to fly out to Nevada and meet Randi’s sister and fiancé. While there we plan on riding trails in the Las Vegas area and Southwest Utah. I took the time to download some maps from Trailsoffroad and send them to Gaia GPS to navigate with. The flight was around 5 hours and had a cool start. Within minutes we flew over Richloam and Croom. Eventually over citrus and Chasawitzka. They look very different from up there. Eventually we reach 36,000 feet and settled in for the long haul. This was all before 10 am. We landed and picked up the Jeep from Avis. From there the first stop was of course... In and Out burger. This was a proper introduction to the Nevada area. Petroglyphs, wild horses, and a halo around the sun. Off in the distance a rain storm could be seen moving down the mountains. We made a decision to continue on. The end of this trail was through a wash and that could drastically change with rain. We pushed on. This trail moves around the back side of Vally of fire and took us a little over 3 hours. All this after the flight and still Valley of Fire to get to and see. I thought we were goners... Day 2You know that sinking feeling when you make a decision that is leading you into trouble? When you are 4 hours down a easy trail and it unexpectedly turns into the kind of trail that is going to leave you stranded 40 miles out and up in the Nevada mountains. You know, when the stock Jeep you rented from the airport with street tires is being pushed beyond its limits. The kind of trail that makes you pray that you will just somehow make it to solid ground. Well that’s where we just were. The vehicle in front of us started down the next hill as the road began to get soft. With no warning the hard pack turned into mess. Mud started to fly off his tires, the tail end started to slide. As he slid to a stop almost in the ditch. We still had momentum and were able to get around and to the top. He backed down the road and gave it another shot. At the top we assessed the situation and what to do. The road had been graded recently and not packed down. We could not turn around nor could we even make it back up. We were forced to move forward. Praying for the next 5 miles we did our best to keep centered. Eventually we made it off the mountain and worked our way to a town called Caliente. Lunch at 4:15pm A drive to a nearby mountain top radio tower, and the Cathedral gorge. Finally, to our evening destination and off to sleep. Looking for wild horses in Western Nevada’s White Rock Range. Day 3Exploring the White Rock Range and Parsnip Peak Wilderness area. We took the day to keep around in the Great Plains basin just north of springs Vally state park. Our goal was to find and photograph the wild horses that roam the area. Our guide Ike lives right next to the park and basin. Volcanic tuff and sediment give Spring Valley State Park a beautiful light-gray, pink and white backdrop. Old homes dot the area from settlement day of the old west. Now farm land runs in the basin and cattle, deer and horses roam the land. Tumbleweeds blow down the road as you drive up and down rolling hills. A small trail off to the side leads up to snow covered peaks. A vehicle with off road tires and good ground clearance helps. As we drove up to 6,000 feet you could see herds of horses just off the trail. Here wild mustangs are common. We then drove back down to the main road and headed to a higher peak with a view to Utah. Passing small packs of snow along the way, we made it to the top of a peak around 7,500 feet. It was cold and windy, and that makes for mic issues. The last 150 feet were a rocky trail up a steep hill, but the Jeep did fine. From there we went back down to the main road and headed north to an area filled with volcanic tuff rocks. The area looked like white lava that bubbled up. Almost an alien looking landscape. When the finish line is just in sight... Day 4 Remember that old rule “never wheel alone” ? Today that rule came into play. We were deep in the Nevada desert searching for the ghost town of Delmar. In the late 1800s a couple found gold up in the mountains East of Alamo and west of Caliente. The gold was dry mined by grinding the quartz down and separating the gold. The dust caused many of the miners to die from Silicosis. The nick name was given widow maker. After navigating down the mountain the Explorer being driven by our future brother in law just died. We did stop and buy a tow strap early on just in case. Currently we are sitting on the side of Hwy 93 in the desert waiting for a tow truck... after it’s towed to a shop we will head down to Vegas and fly home. The explorer has two fuel pumps. One failed and that caused the other to have to work harder. The fuel one of them is in the gas tank which had to be lowered. A costly bill. The trip home. Day 5Wash the Jeep, return the Jeep, have breakfast at Denny’s.... now the fun part, go to the Vegas airport. South west was a mess and the line to the gates were crazy long. We travel with carry-ons. Now we sit and wait. We are over 3 hours early. NP I have a ton of writing to do. You can’t take that water... you can buy some in the terminal... it’s only $5 for a bottle. The flight... a little over 4 hours. Sitting in front of us a family with kids. Brothers, and like most brothers they were having some issues. Parents get call to front of plain, In their absence the youngest son slung his cup of ice at the whole row. Including across the isle to other passengers. Ahh the joys of flying. We finally land and make it home by midnight. A great vacation and a pleasure meeting a future brother-in-law.
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 Ron runs a channel called Yellow Florida Jeep and takes people into Ocala National Forrest. I had an approximate 2 hour phone call with an Ocala National Forest LEO a couple days ago. The call started because I found a stolen, stuck, abandoned Honda mini van on the southern portion of the Tread Lightly Four Wheel Drive Way trail! We talked about many different things because Don Cox and I are not just volunteers but are also in a Field Ranger program with the Ocala National Forest! The main reason for this post is to reveal a couple of things that I learned from that call! This LEO uses FaceBook, YouTube and Instagram to scan for violations in the Ocala National Forest. If they can read a license plate or find someone that can positively identify a violator, they will write a ticket, save a copy of the video and send you a fine or even a federal court date. They stated that they have written up to $2,200 in fines using FaceBook to a single person. They are allowed to go back as far as two years from the violation date and issue you a fine using social media. They also stated that if they discover a violation the FWC ticketed you for, they can also ticket you for the same violations. I don’t know the details on how they can do that. I’m just relaying the information I was told. You are allowed to drive on both of the two roads along the power lines and nf-09! But it’s more responsible to drive on the side that’s more established. Not all power line roads are numbered! Meaning you are not allowed to drive on one that is not listed on the Avenza app! There are also seasonal roads that are numbered but have a different appearance on the Avenza app. You cannot drive on those roads out of season. Also, the Avenza app is the only map app that they recognize to display the correct, proper roads for us to navigate. They are aware of other good GPS apps like Gaia but you can add layers to Gaia that show other trails that can confuse folks and get them into trouble. First, always adhere to Tread Lightly standards. Second, know the local laws! Third, if you’ve posted videos that show you or someone else in your video are in violation of laws, you should consider removing them or make them private with a limited, controlled audience. If you are in someone else’s video breaking the law, ask them to remove it if you fear the consequences. Be safe! Ron Rogers YellowFlordaJeep. https://www.avenza.com/ https://www.youtube.com/user/ronr66 https://treadlightly.org/
 Have you noticed the lack of drone footage in the last few videos? Well back when we went to visit the Stewart homestead in Green Swamp we had an Issue. On the way out we crossed a large open area and went to launch but the gimbal just kept twitching around. I did not crash it and no hard landing. The message said “Gimbal Overload.” I tried resets, on the side, upside down and yet not change. No obstruction found. Two months later I final ordered a new ribbon. The repair… how hard could it be? The gimbal is small, very small. The screws that hold the shell together are 1.5MM that kind of small. The ribbon is fragile, thin, and flat. The ribbon winds and folds its way around each of the 3 motors. The tabs are very, very small and each one must be attached to a small toothed plug. There is only one way to attach it correctly, or it will fail. If you pinch it wrong it will break. Heavy sigh… I have done many repairs on electronics and vehicles over the years and this has to have been one of the most brain wrecking one ever. The whole thing is around the size of a walnut. After removing the old ribbon with no visible damage, I put it back on a couple of time just to work out how it would wind its way around. The 3rd time I put on the new one, hoping that it was going to fix the issue. If I had hands the size of a squirrel it would be a breeze. With that all said and done, I have rebooted the drone and was able to calibrate the gimbal. How long will it last? Not sure but the next time it should be easier because I have done it 3 times so far. Now to chase down that squirrel and get the gimbal back. THINGS OF NOTE: Follow a video when taking apart the drone. The front of the shell is hard to get apart. Take plenty of photos along the way. Don't pinch the new ribbon. Practice with the old one. Make sure you remove the glue on each connection. especially the two right behind the forward sensors. Take your time. TOOLS: Small Philips head. Tweezers. 1.5 mm Allen head. Tray to lay out the parts. Jewelers Magnifying glasses. The ribbon we bought on Amazon: https://amzn.to/36xDHJ9 Jewelers Magnifying glasses. https://amzn.to/2sYryya  Randy bought a new Jeep! We love to take friends out for trail rides. There is something special about getting people out to see the real Florida and our diverse wildlife. Gators are commonplace here and now it looks like we will always be guaranteed to see some, at least on this Jeep. Introducing the newest Jeep to our Family.... drum roll please,,,, 2010 Wrangler JKU It is a one owner with a stellar car fax report. All service done at the same dealer on time with service and recalls. Thank you Walter Hall for taking care of her so diligently. She has gone to a good home and going to be loved on. First things first, new tires, 31” Milestar Patagonia Mud terrains. Some grab bars, and LED headlights and fog lights. A new cover seal for the Dana 44 in the back. Randi will pick out a stubby bumper for the front and a winch. Some sliders for the side and eventually a rear bumper. Down the road a slight lift and e lockers, that all depends on where she wants to take it. We are looking to build a mild trail ride vehicle for stock trail rides. Why a JKU? Her main reason was 4 doors and 3 rear seat belts. Another big pulse is the automatic transmission. I may be 6 3 but she is down in the low 5 foot something range. On the 07 she had to move the seat all the way up and still had issues pushing the clutch all the way in. The dash also is so low that you rub your shin while shifting. That also puts the airbag very close. The new Jeep is for her and she loves it so far. Easy to drive and handles smooth. Now to address the elephant in the room... or because we are in Florida, the GATOR in the room. Walter, the original owner, is a BIG gator fan. His new Gladiator is getting a Florida Gator overhaul as I write this. Congrats on the new Jeep Walt. For anyone who knows me, I grew up in Tallahassee. FSU has always been my team a choice as is the same for my Mom who got her PHD from there. Sisters, brothers and friends. My summers in middle school were spent there at what I called snake school. We studied reptiles and birds as well as gathered specimens from the panhandle area. Randi showed me a photo and said “ I want to go see this Jeep” one look and my replay was No, No , No NO! The hood was a work of art, the doors a statement, the tire cover a bold proclamation of domination, and to top it off the seat were covered in blue and orange... like the University of Florida blue and orange. There were little chrome gator logos fastened about. Swamp bound... don’t touch my Jeep she said. No you can’t get a FSU tag for the front, it’s mine. The Jeep is nice, you will love it or hate it, me I just will love with it. That is unless some super gator fan wants to trade hoods. The air brush art is outstanding. Too good to ever cover. So like it or not, here comes the Gator Jeep.  Jeeping in North- West Richloam We started the day off by meeting up at a place in Clermont know for having some of the best donuts around, Donut King. After making a tough choice on which 12 to get we headed out and down Hwy 50 to Tarrytown. We took the first trail past the Little Withlacoochee river. A small numbered road that winds along the south side of the river. This brought us to Riverland Rd and eventually the Richloam General Store. This quaint store has been around for almost 100 years and the items you will find are all reminiscent of the late 20s. Old school candy, toys, cooking supplies and hand crafted nick-nacks. A very short distance away you will find the old forestry tower. You can no longer climb up because much of the wood is rotting away. We launched the drone to give you a view of what you could see if you did. If you have ever been to Richloam you know there will be water, lots of water. Well the section north of 50 is probably the dryer section. We choose a route that would take us down Boggy road. More of a trail then a road. There were deep puddles and water pits on every other turn. But there were also room to bypass the potential disaster. After a stop at the General store we headed North West on 50. The first leg was a well maintained crush and run road that even a car could drive down. That would change when we turned onto Boggy Rd. You should stop and check any water holes before hap hazardously plunging in. If you get out to scope out a line, use caution. We encountered 2 cottonmouths this day and a banded water snake. There was a small creek crossing that was nice and pristine. Flowing water the color of ice tea. Not deep and a nice sold bottom. It was a nice ride and we will return to check out another possible crossing of the little Withlacoochee River. That would be an adventure.  We eventually made our way back out to 50 and headed to 471 and made our way to Green swamp. Our destination was a small cabin deep in the woods. This was the location of a grizzly crime scene just over 100 years ago. It was a time of depression and poverty. A couple had taken their savings out of the bank and brought it home for safe keeping. Some how, the grandson of the woman found out about the money. He and a friend came at night and ax murdered them in the very shack that still stands today. The bodies were found a week later when a relative was returning a horse. Near the shack you can find the grave stones and a plaque telling the story. The boys were caught and sentenced to 20 years each. Truly the love of money is the root of all evil. Despite that, there was no feeling of creepiness there, and that makes me wonder if the couple were Christians and secure in their faith. No lingering spirits here... Deep Florida history, found miles off road. Get out in your Jeep and explore some of the incredible views Central Florida has to offer.
 I have been riding in Jeeps since 1966 when my Dad bought a Wagoneer. It was the perfect choice for a Scout master. We had that vehicle in the family at least through 5th grade back in the 70s. We are on our 4th Jeep now and still love going out and riding through Florida’s vast wilderness.
One of the comments we get are in regard to Jeep clubs destroying the habitat. On trail rides we frequently see small side trails off Forrest roads. Though they look fun, it’s a area that needs to be left alone. The natural habitat is full of wildlife and plant life that all hangs in a delicate balance. It angers me when I see trash thrown out on the side of a trail. Often beer bottles are smattered in the woods along with shotgun shells. Somehow drinking, shooting, and 4wheeling have been a thing as long as I can remember. Here is a big tip: Keep it simple while wheeling, don’t throw trash in the woods, and don’t use trails that are marked no vehicles. The concept is simple but out of grasp to the impetuous 4 wheeler. What is the difference? Glad you asked. There was a big place to wheel near I drive but over the years idiots trashed the place so bad that it is all marked no trespassing now. Stone hill was a big place to wheel in the 70s and 80s, now it’s all homes. Developers are destroying land and packing houses within feet of each other. The run off of storm water is flooding out creeks and local ponds. In this area they rip out every tree and clear cut the land all for money. Jeep clubs are not the issue. Jeeping will bring people out to see what a great state we live in. Most Jeep clubs have clean up events to pick up waste left behind by others. If your off road club rides off trails tearing up the ground, throwing trash out, and has no respect for the land, then find another club. We share the wildlife management areas and need to not infringe on others, like hunters. There is plenty of time to ride when it’s not hunting season. There good places to ride all over the area and we do have some off road parks near by. Imagine going out and finding the perfect spot and then spending the better part of the morning in a tree stand. Now along comes a 4 wheeler crashing through the brush making a bunch of noise, you would not be too happy. To the hunters out there, remember that most WMAs don’t allow off road vehicles. There are plenty of hunt clubs, lease lands, and private areas to hunt. There you can hunt undisturbed by anyone else who might want to use public land. Does it seem like I am a bit passionate about this? Well for good reason. I have been hunting, documenting, and catching reptiles for over 45 years in the Florida area. Snakes are my specialty. When the area is disturbed, the snakes leave. What’s left is common species like black racers, and water snakes. Some species require large areas of land to survive. Most Indigo snakes need 200 acres of land. Take care of the land or we will see more endangered wildlife disappear forever. The land is a symbiotic environment that depends on many parts to thrive. Stop over developing the woods, stop rutting up the environment, STOP throwing trash out of your vehicles. We all need to be responsible for the land we use. The first job given to mankind was to keep and tend the land way back in Genesis. We still need to do that today. Tend to the land like it’s a gift from God, because it is. For more info on treading lightly, visit the site at https://www.treadlightly.org/  Marriage is like driving a Jeep.
Obstacles are not challenges, they are opportunities. There are always things that need repaired. Maintenance required. Just Empty Every Pocket. Life is a bumpy road. Follow you heart, it leads to the best places. Obstacles are not challenges, they are opportunities. While driving off road, one of the cool things that you can do is overcome something that is blocking your path. You should never enter this hastily because it can lead to disaster. Always step back and get a good look at what you are facing. A spotter can help you make sure you have picked the right line. Plowing into a puddle, mud hole, or hill climb often results in broken and damaged parts. In marriage you will encounter problems that can block the path. There is always a way around, and with help, together you can make it through. Don’t just react to a situation, pray about it, examine it, and think it through. Learn from mistakes and move forward. There are always things that need repaired. Even those who tread lightly can find themselves in need of repairs. You should always treat your Jeep with care. Don’t abuse it or you may lose it. How you repair your Jeep makes a difference. You get what you pay for. If a Job is worth doing, it’s worth doing right. It is an investment that you will need to rely on while driving down life’s trails. In marriage when things break, you need to fix the problem properly, if you don’t they will come back again. Communication, trust, cooperation, and agreement all need to work properly to get you through. Maintenance required. You need to change the oil, check the filters, and keep it clean. Examine the vehicle to make sure things are not broken. Check to make sure it not overheating. Are the fluids and seals all correct? How is the alignment? Fail at these basic tasks and you are doomed. In marriage you have to make sure the relationship is healthy. Continue to date, be friends, and complement each other. You need to take care of yourself physically. Make sure your life filters are clean; don’t spend time around people that could damage your relationship. Filter out the negativity when people speak against your spouse. Every word you hear is a seed that goes into your heart. Don’t let it grow. Keep your temperature under control, don’t blow your stack, don’t let the sun go down on your anger. Stay on track, you are now a team, the race can be finished, just work together. Just Empty Every Pocket. Money, owning a Jeep will have you spending plenty. It seems like there is an endless amount of things to buy. When you buy a Jeep, you are in love with it, just the way it is… Then you decide you want bigger tires, new bumpers, lockers, a winch… the list goes on. If you use your Jeep you will have to repair it, that coast money. Fixing it right the first time can save you misery later. “Lockers, before light bars.” Spend your money on what makes it go where you want it to go. In marriage you have to learn to draw a line between what you want, and what you need. It is easy to spend a bunch of money and get all into debt for things that are not a necessity. Set a budget and work together. Money, it is the number one thing couples fight about. Life is a bumpy road. If you can get your speed right you can skim the top of the bumps and ride smooth. If you go to slow you will feel every bump, go to fast and you might lose control. You should look ahead and know what’s around the corners. Unexpected washouts can throw you off the road or worse cause you to roll. Roots, rocks, mud, and water can change your plans and you will need to adjust as needed. In marriage you will also encounter bumps. It won’t be a honeymoon forever. You will have to keep focused on moving forward in your relationship all while watching for the unexpected. Take things at the right pace and skim over life’s small bumps. Slow down for the big bumps. Don’t get bogged down in the mud of life. And most importantly, don’t drown when you get in over your head. Find your pace together and grow in your relationship and this bumpy road we call life will go a bit more smooth. Follow you heart, it leads to the best places. Why do we drive Jeeps? Because, it will take you where others can’t go. The best views are at the top of the trails. There is a destination with a reward that is earned through travels. It’s not an easy trail and the ride may get tough, but how you get there is as important as where you get to. God had made an incredible and diverse environment with wonder around every corner. From forests, swamps, deserts, mountains, beaches, meadows, and lakes there is great beauty. To get there and enjoy life at the end of the trail ride is why we drive a Jeep. How you spend time together on this journey called marriage can be a rewarding experience that few people enjoy in life. Most give up because the road is too hard, and the commitment is too low. Grow old together, finish strong, and know God can see you through all life’s rough trails. Marriage is like driving a Jeep.  What? You were fortunate as a kid, if you had the chance to play with one of these labyrinth marble mazes. Hey, we did not have video games growing up and it’s better than cans on a string. The concept was simple, move the knobs on the side to roll the marble through the maze without falling into a hole. Sounds simple, but the challenge was real. Everything had to be done with thought and finesse. Crazy moves often ended with a pitfall. This is what Jeep life can be like. Getting crazy often ends with someone in a mud hole or stuck on an obstacle. Saturday’s ride was like that, we rolled around in the Citrus WMA following a maze of roads filled with holes and obstacles that could get you stuck. The ride was made to teach you how to respond in different problems that you might encounter on any given trail ride. Here are a few questions and results on this day’s trail experience. What do you do if someone breaks a leg or suffers a deep cut? First Aid. How can a spotter help you? Trust. How well do you work as a team? Two heads are better than one. What’s articulation? Jeeps are capable vehicles. How do you change a tire? Beware the high-lift. How do you plug a tire? Carry a repair kit. When and how do you winch someone? Safety first. What is a tow strap and how do you tow someone? Don’t just launch it. How can stepping back and thinking outside the box help? Sometimes the solution is too easy to see. What is tread lightly? Preserve the environment for future generations. How much trash is out there? Take out more then you take in. So what was it like? We started off pretty early. 7:30 am check in at the Holder Mine campground. Some camped the night before and others drove up that morning. 5AM … Wakey, Wakey… Here we go. Teams were pre assigned and numbers given, each group had three Jeeps. Sealed envelopes were passed out with maps and way points. The concept was simple, go to each point and follow the instructions. Then take a photo of you completing the challenge. The way points were shuffled so that each team would be scattered about the forest. Follow maps, follow instructions, work as a team, and solve problems. Lunch was on a lower part of the forest and we had some instruction on plugging a tire with a live demo. So how many plugs does it take to plug a tire slice to get you off the trail? 27? That’s more than an average kit contains, so get some extras. (Emergency repairs are for getting you back to civilization, when in town you should always do a proper fix.) While driving about we all took the time to pick up any trash we saw. By the end of the day a trailer was filled with everything from a Bumper to a baby crib. We gathered for a time of sharing what was learned and prizes were given out. Need that Buba Rope… That was followed with a BBQ dinner with all the fixins. There was a good amount of things to be learned from this type of an event, and you can take that knowledge and apply it next time you get into a situation. So if you ever get the opportunity to attend this type of event make sure you go. Overall we had a fun day with opportunities to stretch your Jeep skills and learn new stuff. The event was part of a monthly ride by the Orlando Jeep Club a local club that puts on events and trail rides multiple times each month. Find out more about them at Http://www.orlandojeepclub.com See you on the next trail.
 SO you went out and bought a Baofeng radio, but what do you do now? Why get one? They function much like a CB, less expensive, and easy to use. It probably won’t replace the CB any time soon, but is a great alternative. One of the key benefits is that a spotter can communicate with the driver directly. Our Model: BF-F8HP there are cheep ones but like anything in life you get what you paid for.
Programming:
Remove radio from package and put antenna on. A better antenna will give you slightly better range. Charge the radio. Make sure you know the exact model number. Down load Chirp. https://chirp.danplanet.com/projects/chirp/wiki/Home Connect radio to PC or lap top with a proper USB connection. Download channels from your Club page. Open file with CHIRP Under Radio File select Upload to radio. That’s it. Under settings you can change the name of channels, set a welcome message, and change radio name. If you are having issues with uploading make sure name is right. If not known keep selecting names till it works. Got Questions? Comment below.  THE TWO JEEPS HEAD DOWN TO BARTOW. It’s 6:30am and we are ready to head out the door. Another day of Jeeping is just what you need to unwind after a week of work. Randy will be in the 2007 JK and I will take the 1995 YJ. We gassed up and got geared to go; today we will meet up with my Son and his Wife and all 4 grandkids. They took the van to keep all the kid related items and food and water and I made the slow haul down the road. 60mph is about the top speed in the 2.5L YJ with 33s and stock gears. She does fine in low range and off road, so I have just lived with it. That by the way is 60 when going downhill with a tail wind. Uphill and we are down to 4th or 3rd and 45mph. We made it in about an hour and a half.
The Clear Springs Ranch is home to the Jeepin with Judd event each year. This is a yearly fund raiser that benefits the Polk County sheriffs’ charities. It is held on private property but the club had permission to be there for the day. The Orlando Jeep Club leads the trails each year. They travel around exploring good routs though the 19,000 acres finding the track that provides a good amount of Jeeping fun. Today we had the chance to see what it looks like in late summer. It was hot but a beautiful day to ride around in the tall lush green grass. In some places the grass was so high that it was hard to see where Randy was standing. The drivers meeting was a 9AM with the waivers signed and inspections done, we headed out to see Pine Run. So just what are we doing out here today? First off, it’s the club’s August trail ride. One of the things that drew us to the Orlando Jeep Club was that they were about trail rides. No supper shinny glitz, just Jeeps ready to explore the Orlando area in a family friendly group. This day when they asked who would lead I raised my hand to lead a somewhat stock friendly ride. No crazy stuff, just some small hills, shallow water, and a tad bit of mud.  Pine run was overrun with tall weeds and fallen trees. I opted to take the ride backwards and not use the GPS. We had 2 new Gladiators for the ride and took that opportunity to test the departure angles. A few recoveries on hill tops and mud holes, but they did well. Street tires with no lift and a 30day tag. We had some fun and before we knew it we were out of the run and heading to Gator Run. No gators insight but the lakes was up pretty high so some of the trail was bypassed. We made a turn to a new area that ran down the edge of the river till we found Abigail’s tree. (See story on Ghost Hill from last February.) After a quick recap of the story we drove right under the ghost tree and headed down to the side of one of the many small ponds. The ruts were deep and the mud was soft. “Stay to the top or you will get stuck.” Some tried to make it through and had to be pulled out. My son got to do a recovery and pulled one up and out. This is another good reason to ride with a club. Getting stuck way out in the sticks with no help can be a bummer. Time to head back to camp for lunch so we took a quick ride down though a creek that caused a issue with one of the Jeeps. His battery died right after the crossing and would not jump start. We ended up towing him back to camp and Clay took him to a local auto parts place. The battery was completely dead. End of life for that, but an easy fix. The new battery was installed and lunch was finished so off we went.
The afternoon ride took us down to the south part where we could make a cool water crossing with a hard gravel base about 18 or so inched under. A favorite spot to take some great shots of the caravan traveling across the edge an old wash out. Not today, gate after gate hampered our path. The last gate was roped, chained, Bail wired, and bob wired shut. You shall not pass… We then headed around to the Mud fish run to cross the creek and climb the ditch bank. No mud fish today but some flying tires. The place had been washed out causing some steep banks. Just the kind of fun Jeeps are looking for. From there we headed to the sand pit for some runs around the bowl, no recoveries needed. By now it was 3:30 so we headed back and prepped for the ride home. When we arrived I did find that at some point the rear drivers tire had gotten a good size groove carved through the lugs. We will have to change that out with the spare for now. With two muddy Jeeps in the driveway it was time for dinner. Over all it was a good day and we all had fun. Anyone see the Giraffe? What is next? … Richloam in September and them something we don’t know up in Citrus.
For more info on the Jeep Club feel free to visit. http://www.orlandojeepclub.com
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Matt N RandyJeep Enthusiast, Pastor, Photographer, Artist, A husband and wife team that loves going out and seeing God's Creations. Archives
June 2021
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