2018 4WDrive Overland SE - June

TIPS FROM THE TRAIL - FOOD, GEAR & SURVIVAL 

CANADIAN OVERLAND 

SPECIAL EDITION 2018 

BY 4WDRIVE MAGAZINE 

TALES FROM 

TUKTOYAKTUK 

EXPEDITIONS IN BC 

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CONTENTS 

Publisher Perry Mack 

Editor-in-Chief Perry Mack 

Sales Manager Jason Tansem 

Online Editor Tracy Ubell 

Technical Editor Bryan Irons 

Art Director Cassandra Redding 

Advertising Consultants 

Lisa Di Marco 

Kate Parfitt 

Business Administration Cindy Mack 

Administration Assistant Callie Tansem 

Social Media Megan Campagnolo 

Contributors 

Bryon Dorr, Perry Mack, Brady Melville, Steve 

Rock, Tom Severin, Budd Stanley, John Volc, 

Kristina Wheeler 

Cover Photo 

4WDrive 

@4wdrivecanada 

4WheelDriveCanada 

youtube.com/c/4WDMagazine 

SUNCRUISER PUBLISHING INC. 

1503 - 1160 Sunset Drive 

Kelowna, BC V1Y 9P7 

Telephone 1-866-609-2383 

www.suncruisermedia.com 

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Publishing Inc. take no responsibility for 

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in this magazine or our website. 

FEATURES 

5 INTRODUCTION 

6 IT'S TIME TO GO OVERLAND CANADA 

12 SOLO MISSION: AN ADVENTURE FOR ONE 

18 HOW TO SURVIVE IN CANADA'S ARCTIC 

22 BC OVERLAND RALLY 2017 

26 5 DAYS IN A MOG: PART 1 



44 OFF-ROAD FIREFIGHT: PART 1 

50 FIGHTING FIRES: PART 2 

56 AN ARMY MARCHES ON ITS STOMACH 

60 THE GREAT NEWFOUNDLAND ADVENTURE: PART 1 

66 THE GREAT NEWFOUNDLAND ADVENTURE: PART 2 

70 BRALORNE BOUND 

74 TAKE IT WITH YOU 

78 EXPEDITION CAMPING TRIP 

84 RETURN TO MOLY 

90 LAST CALL FOR TUKTOYAKTUK

Stay where you’re to 

‘til I comes where you’re AT 

Meeting and travelling outdoors 

- I doubt there is another 

activity that is more Canadian 

- we call it overlanding. The dictionary 

definition is too literal and limiting. 

Overlanding encompasses exploring, 

overcoming hardships, improvising 

(dare I say MacGyver’ing), camaraderie, 

learning, self-sufficiency, appreciating 

history, fishing, camping, immersing 

yourself in nature, the list goes on. The 

list goes on because although we share a 

number of common passions, we also have 

our own unique personal reasons to go 

overlanding, activities that we enjoy over 

all others. 

Overlanding is something you need 

to experience to appreciate. Spending 

the time and money to book a Caribbean 

vacation is easy. You know what to expect 

and you’ll probably get it - a safe repetitive 

relaxing (or not) time off work. 

I find that I’m not always relaxed 

when I get home from these ‘vacations’. 

What I did last week is easily explained to 

colleagues and friends. ‘I was in Mexico’. 

That’s all you need to say as everyone has 

experienced the same vacation. In fact, I 

find these vacations have a tendency to 

run together in my own mind as I can’t tell 

the difference from one year to the next, or 

even from one destination to the next. 

Which is one reason I have come to 

abhor them. There are others (including 

man's newest forms of torture - airports 

and airplanes). 

An overlanding trip on the other hand 

is always unique. It’s often a new trail 

or destination, a slightly different group 

dynamic, new gear to test, or unpredictable 

weather that can change your trail from 

week to week, and with the seasons. 

‘What did you do last weekend?’ now 

becomes a tale worth telling and re-telling. 

Which brings us to this 4WDrive 

Overland Special Edition - a collection of 

tales from the pages of Canada’s 4x4 and 

off-road publication. It is a retelling of 

Canadian adventures and achievements, 

including some epic fails. But even 

the failures have great merit, since the 

adventure, the journey, was (and is) the 

reward. As the fortune cookie said, ‘only 

the person who reaches too far knows how 

far they can reach.' 

I hope you enjoy the tales and tips, 

and that they inspire and encourage you 

to plan another trip for yourself, whether 

it’s a weekend, a week long, or longer, 

preferably much longer if possible. 

We would love to hear your tales. You 

can submit your stories and photos for 

publication to editor@suncruisermedia. 

com, or share photos, videos, links and 

comments on our social media; 

Facebook: 4WDrive 

Twitter: @4wdrivecanada 

Instagram: 4WheelDriveCanada 

YouTube: youtube.com/ 

c/4WDMagazine 

I especially enjoy living vicariously 

through your adventures on the days I’m 

stuck in the office, a small apple and a large 

screen acting as my windshield to the world. 

Until next time, remember the sage 

advice of that lowly fortune cookie, 

and keep an ear to your radio - I’ll look 

for you on the trails - and we’ll meet 

if you ‘stay where you’re to 'til I comes 

where you’re at’. 

Perry Mack 

Editor, 4WDrive

Words and Photos by Steve Rock 

It’s Time 

TO GO 

Overland 

CANADA 

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Overlanding is a relatively 

new word in the off-roaders’ 

dictionary, but self-reliant vehiclebased 

travel is hardly a new phenomenon. 

Ever since the invention of the automobile, 

people have wanted to travel further in 

their quest to experience adventure and 

new cultures; none more so than littleknown 

Canadian overland pioneer, Aloha 

Wanderwell. 

The aptly named and restless teenager, 

who was born Idris Galcia in 1906, sought 

more than Winnipeg had to offer and 

when at sixteen years old, she saw an 

advertisement in the Paris Herald looking 

for young women with “Brains, Beauty, 

and Breeches” to join a round-the-world 

expedition, she jumped at the chance. 

The expedition lasted for six years and 

her story of overland travel in a Model-T 

Ford, through a world which wasn’t 

prepared for the automobile, is really 

something else and well worth the read; 

imagine having to use mashed banana 

skins as grease, or getting labourers to tow 

you for 129 kilometres because fuel wasn’t 

available, now that’s real adventure. 

Even though todays’ over-lander has 

a much easier life than the Wanderwell 

Expedition, being thoroughly prepared is 

still paramount as self-reliance is the key 

to any successful overland trip. 

After a series of personal losses 

including his real estate career, 

ethnographer Eric Lobo embarked on a 

therapeutic 35,000 km around-the-world 

motorcycle trip without so much as a map 

or GPS, relying instead on the advice of 

other motorcyclists that he met along the 

way. His subsequent trip to the Canadian 

arctic on a 2015 Harley Davidson Street 

Bob was approached very differently, as 

serious planning was required to minimize 

risks from the extreme dangers that Lobo 

would face from the weather and terrain. 

One particular modification, outrigger skis 

to keep the bike upright, proved extremely 

effective as Lobo was stopped by local 

police who thought that their radar gun 

was broken and wanted to confirm that he 

was actually travelling at 115kmh on ice. 

Way to go, Lobo! 

Every trip is different, and the essentials 

for equipping your vehicle are going to 

vary according to what it is that you want 

to get from your overland experience, 

so spend some time working out where 

you’re likely to go, and what it is that 

you want to achieve, before you spend 

your hard earned cash on items that you 

later discover you don’t really need. Mike 

Cerutti spent two years planning exactly 

what he wanted from his vehicle before he 

went crazy spending money, but even so, 

he’s already re-configured his FJ Cruiser’s 

interior storage solutions five times. 

Vehicle selection is equally important 

for the over-lander and the FJ Cruiser was 

an automatic choice for Cerutti, just as the 

80 Series Landcruiser was for Jason Butt. 

The FJ, while being an extremely capable 

vehicle, has limitations because of its size, 

but the roomier coil-sprung 80 Series with 

a solid front axle was a more obvious and 

practical choice for Butt and his teenage 

sons, who were already avid campers. 

An off-road vehicle isn’t essential for 

overland travel but it definitely helps if 


you really want to get off the beaten track and away from the 

maddening crowds. You can travel across Canada in a mini-van 

and legitimately call yourself an over-lander, and even though 

you won’t get to experience quite as much of the country as the 

4x4 driver will, you’ll definitely experience much more than the 

motel-hoppers ever will. 

There are also 4x4 panel vans available that would make 

perfect overland vehicles. The VW Syncro is a popular choice 

but is becoming increasingly rare and if you’re lucky enough to 

find one, a good clean model can be very expensive. At the other 

end of the scale is the Mercedes Sprinter 4x4 that comes available 

with limited factory options but would make an awesome base 

vehicle for your custom overland build project. 

Once you’ve decided on which vehicle you need, the next 

priority is where you’re going to sleep and you have one of 

three choices; in the vehicle, on the vehicle, or on the ground. 

Traditional ground-level camps usually require 

considerable amounts of equipment, time, and energy to set 

up, unless you sleep under the stars of course, but for many 

this is all part of the fun. Although if it’s raining, this can be 

the most miserable experience ever. Originally Cerutti had 

a three-man tent but “needed more space” and so purchased 

an Oztent RV5 Tagalong, which attaches to the Rhinorack 

Foxwing awning, that he says has been a great setup. The one 

downside is that it’s not a free standing unit, as it requires the 

awning to hold it up, which is only ever a problem if you need 

to move the vehicle away from camp. 

The over-lander embarking on a longer trip may prefer the 

safety and convenience of sleeping inside the vehicle, but they 

will either need to be very selective with their gear or choose 

a vehicle that can accommodate a larger, more comfortable 

sleeping area. 

The third option is sleeping on the vehicle in a roof top tent, 

and according to confirmed RTT fan Butt, “Every night is a great 

sleep and it frees up lots of room inside the truck”. In use for over 

seventy years, these ingenious devices can be set up in less time 

than it takes to photograph the process. And providing you’ve 

given a little thought to where you park your truck, you’ll have a 

flat surface to sleep on that is guaranteed* to keep you free from 

bugs, bears and bumbling buddies during the night. 

*Not really guaranteed, but it’s definitely safer than sleeping on 

the ground, more fun than sleeping inside your vehicle, and if you 

pick the right spot, you’ll get an awesome view in the morning. 

For that home-away-from-home camping experience, Butt 

uses a -7 degree Celsius sleeping bag year round, with memory 

foam compression pillow, a two burner propane Coleman stove, 

a tent fan in the summer, and a reliance folding toilet with popup 

shower tent for privacy. Cerutti’s camp luxuries include a 

Luggable Loo 5 gallon portable toilet and a Buddy heater that 

keeps the sleeping quarters warm during cold Canadian winters. 

And yes, these guys are hard core four-season campers. 

An 800w - 1000w power inverter is also a nice-to-have 


accessory so that you can charge your 

devices, boil a kettle -or if you really 

miss the conveniences of home - power a 

microwave, says Cerutti. A permanently 

mounted, or portable solar panel, is also 

a great addition if you’re planning to 

stay in one spot for several days. 

Ultimately, whatever fits your wants, 

and your wallet, will have to work; you 

might wish to fit a tailored brand-name 

awning that provides shelter for cooking 

or simply relaxing away from the mid-day 

sun. Unfortunately awnings don’t come 

cheap, but there’s nothing wrong with 

securing an auto-store tarp between your 

truck and the nearest tree with bungee 

cords if it does exactly the same job. 

A cooler is a necessity whose features 

can range from basic to rugged to 

residential. A properly installed unit, like 

Cerutti’s favourite purchase, a Whytner 

45qt fridge, does more than just keep 

your beer chilled - it will ensure that food 

remains both fresh and secure on those 

longer overland trips. 

If your fridge packs up and you have 

nothing to eat don’t worry, us humans are 

a resilient bunch and can survive without 

food for up to three weeks. But go without 

water for a week, or less during Canada’s 

hot summers, and you’re going to be in 

serious trouble. Make sure that you take 

enough water, roughly five litres a day per 

person, to last your entire trip. And that’s 

just for drinking and cooking, if you’re 

planning on taking showers or washing 

clothes en-route, then an auxiliary water 

tank will be a necessity. 

For emergency situations Butt keeps a 

Lifestraw handy and it does pretty much 

what it says on the tin; up to 1000 litres 

of contaminated water can be made safe 

simply by drawing it through this strawstyle 

filter. 

Now that you’re rested, fed, and 

watered, if you plan on going off-road as 

part of your overland adventure, it doesn’t 

matter how good or experienced a driver 

you are, you need to be prepared for the 

possibility –no, certainty- that you’ll get 

stuck. A basic recovery kit is essential. 

Stowing all your gear safely and 

securely can be quite the headache, but 

there are several companies providing off- 


the-shelf or custom-built storage solutions. 

For a price. The alternative is to build your 

own; my truck has a DIY lift-up-lid box 

in the rear that does a very good job of 

carrying recovery gear safely and quietly. 

The only downside is that it doesn’t give 

the same ease of access to the gear which 

sliding drawers provide. 

Cerutti removed the FJ’s rear seats to 

make room for his German Shepherd 

dog and also to incorporate a 50” x 20” 

x 8” sliding drawer on one side, and an 

adjacent slider for the fridge on the other. 

Butt has a full width, thirty six inch deep, 

two-drawer-sliding system. Custom built 

by his brother, it houses recovery gear and 

tools in one side, with the other containing 

all the ‘domestic’ camping utensils that 

have been accumulated over the years. 

Both guys are happy with their current 

set-up and agreed that if they had to do 

it again they’d take the same route with a 

couple of exceptions; Butt says that he’d 

prefer a diesel powered 80 for the economy 

and usable torque, while Cerutti says that 

although thirty five inch tires are cool and 

visually appealing, the increase in fuel 

consumption just isn’t worth it on long trip 

so he’ll be reverting to thirty three’s. 

Next on Cerutti’s list of modifications 

is a complete rewire of the electrical 

accessories that are fitted to his truck 

and also to replace the tired six year old 

suspension; which is pretty important 

when you drive off-road as often, and 

carry as much gear as Cerutti does. 

The choices are seemingly endless when 

it comes to choosing and spec’ing your 

overland vehicle and equipment, so take 

your time and think very carefully about 

your intended destinations and objectives. 

A successful overland trip depends on 

good planning. 

One thing is certain, you shouldn’t need 

to worry about mashing banana skins to 

grease essential components. 

RECOVERY GEAR 

Below is a suggested, but by no means 

comprehensive, list of items that you may 

want to consider for inclusion in your 

recovery kit. For your safety, please make 

sure that you’re familiar with the use and 

operation of any gear chosen. 

• Winch with synthetic rope 

• Fire extinguisher 

• First aid kit 

• Rope 

• Tow straps 

• Tug straps 

• Kinetic recovery rope 

• Shackles 

• Tree strop 

• Snatch block 

• Hi-lift jack 

• Krazy beaver shovel 

• Chain saw 

• Splitting axe 

• Tools, voltmeter, jumper cables, 

• Fluids; WD40, oil, coolant, etc. 

• Track-mats 

• CAA membership 


SOLO 

MISSION 

An adventure to Poison Mountain 

and China Head for one 

Words and photos by Kris Wheeler 


Sometimes we do things for 

other people; sometimes we do 

things solely for ourselves. This 

summer I had the opportunity to finally 

take on a challenge that I’d had on my 

bucket list for years - learning to wheel 

and camp on my own with no written 

agenda other than a destination. 

Last summer I hit up Shea Lake and 

Cabin Lake twice, Sloquet hot springs a half 

dozen times, Hale, Sunrise, Kookapi four 

times, Yalakom twice, Kenyon a half dozen 

times, Whipsaw and several other of my 

favourite haunts on weekend excursions. I 

mastered the skill sets of swapping out my 

own U-joints, brake pads and differential 

fluid, and other minor maintenance items 

with the help of an amazing group of 

friends. All in all, I felt my Jedi training was 

complete and it was time to test my nerve 

in the field on my own. 

Now it was time for a trip of a lifetime 

– an adventure to Poison Mountain and 

China Head. I’d seen the pictures from 

friends’ journeys and was mesmerized by 

the area. I’d been to the abandoned jade 

mine up between Lillooet and Bralorne 

and explored the ruins of Pioneer Mine 

but I had never made the full trip from 

Pemberton, over Poison Mountain to 

Boston Bar. With three free days, and a 

couple extra hundred dollars for gas and 

expenses, I told the guys where I was 

going. The only reply was, “Have fun.” 

Thursday night I made sure the 

Jeep was fully stocked and got extras of 

everything. I picked up my first Jerry Can 

and was ready to head out as soon as I got 

home Friday night. I made sure to have 

enough supplies to last a week, just in case 

something terminal happened on the third 

day, and it took the guys a couple of extra 

days to rescue me. 

I wanted an early start and hit the road 

at 6:00 am. Making the pilgrimage of stops 

to get to West Harrison Road - Mohawk for 

Gas, Deroche for their “to die for” beef jerky, 

the Sasquatch Inn for some bevvies and 

finally the hatchery to air down. It was here 

that I realized that I’d be free for three whole 

days with nothing but adventure waiting. 

I made my way up West Harrison 

with the VHF on 146.460. Part way up I 

picked up the signal of a convoy visiting 


The author making her way up to 

second camp at Mud Lakes. 

from Alberta. They were on their way to 

Hale, and I helped guide them down to 

Hale via the radio. It was kind of a cool 

experience knowing the markers and spots 

off by heart. We managed to keep in touch 

on the radio until I hit the north end of 

Harrison. I pulled into Tipella at the north 

end of Harrison Lake. This area is well 

worth a walk through, I stopped to take 

some pictures of the abandoned structures 

and the history here is quite mesmerizing 

when you allow yourself to get lost in it all. 

My next stop was the Sloquet Hot 

Springs; my faithful first night sojourn. I 

arrived, set up my tent and went to the hot 

springs for a hot dip and a cold drink. I 

don't know why the hot springs are home 

to me, but they are. Sitting in the magical 

pools by yourself, with your head on that 

rock in the middle, staring up at the stars 

on a clear night will melt any stress away. 

Surrounded by the dozens of tea lights 

that others have left on the walls, the glow 

sticks hanging in the trees, the sound of 

the river rushing behind you; to me that 

kind of solitude is irreplaceable. 

Morning called and I quickly woke 

up, ate, packed up and then headed on 

up the road to Pemberton. I’ve always 

enjoyed the drive up Lillooet Lake, 

especially stopping at the little cemeteries 

that are along the way. Looking at the 

graves, and the care that was taken when 

the tombstones were placed is thought 

provoking, so many little children lost 

at an early age. I once swore I heard 

children laughing in the background 

when I was taking pictures. 

In Pemberton, I fueled up then made 

my way up and over the Hurley Pass, 

which is a sight to behold, and a lot easier 

to travel through in the Jeep then in my 

Civic. My next stop was Pioneer Mine 

located a bit beyond Bralorne. I love 

this mine, and the corresponding ghost 

town with its house of ill repute. The 

structures, equipment, and history are 

quite intriguing because so much of it still 

exists; it makes for a great photo study. 

I tore myself away from Pioneer town; 

next stop was to be Mud Lakes. And here 

is where the brand new adventure started 

for me, terrain I’d never been on, roads I’d 

never explored. I pulled out the Backroad 

Mapbook, turned on the GPS and told 

it to find Mud Lakes. Of course, like all 

good adventures, not all forks you come 

to are documented. 

I always take the road less traveled; 

and it was nice to know that the roads 

into Mud Lakes fit right into that 

category. The signs are worn out and 

battered, flowers grow in the middle 

of the roads and deer look up at you 

in surprise when you pass by. I had no 

idea what to expect, I had in my mind a 

muddy patch filled with bugs. I passed 

by the first campsite filled with the young 

kids and settled into the one on the east 

end of the lake in the open meadow. 

What I found blew me away - the fish 

doing their 5 o’clock jumps in the lake, 

barely a bug in sight, the warmth of the 

sun enveloping me, and a slow breeze 

blowing the long grains of wheat in the 

empty meadows. 

I lucked out and there was enough 

spare wood floating around that I didn’t 

have to take from the supply in the Jeep, 

and I started a nice little campfire. It’s 

funny that a year ago I had never started 

my own campfire, now it’s second nature, 

same as any skill you learn when taking 

part in a sport that you’re passionate 

about. I quickly set up my tent, put out my 

appetizers of Jalapeño asiago bread with 

balsamic vinegar and olive oil dip, paired 

with a delicious glass of Malbec, and for 

the main entrée - Ribs. 

I then settled into the tent and dozed 

off with a satisfied grin on my face, 

knowing that tomorrow I was going to 


Tracking your route will also 

come in handy on future trips. 

Mud Lakes on a beautiful evening. 

tackle an even greater unknown road, the 

legends that are Poison Mountain and 

China Head. 

Climbing into the mountains the 

next day, I reached a beautiful viewpoint 

where I could see Mud Lakes. There were 

many bridgeless water crossings and no 

confusion as to which direction to take, 

as there were no forks in the road. I’ll 

never forget the drive out of that valley, it 

will stick in my mind as one of the most 

memorable hill climbs. No obstacles just 

slow and steady first gear low-range all the 

way to the top. There were a few moments 

of anxiety along the way, as the road 

never seemed to stop climbing up into the 

mountains. I’d gladly do it again though, 

as I caught myself giggling the whole 

way up thinking, “I’m really doing this, 

I’m challenging myself and I’m out of my 

comfort zone.” 

When I got to the top, I parked the 

Jeep, put the emergency brake on, got out 

and actually did a little dance to the music 

on the Sirius satellite radio. I think that 

the chipmunks and squirrels were slowly 

backing away from me wondering who is 

this crazy girl? 

There is a sign that displays all the 

different routes in the area. I wish I had an 

unlimited gas budget, as I wanted to take 

all the different routes. The roads from 

this point got a bit trickier, but I had my 

GPS to lead me. The weather at the higher 

elevations was starting to change; there 

When there are forks in the road, it's 

smart to carry maps and a GPS. 

Sister Lake from the road. 


There were a few challenges up China 

Head but a landslide a few weeks later 

would make it impassable. 

was rain, hail and even a few snowflakes. 

From the valley forests, I was now rising 

up into alpine country and an all-new kind 

of natural beauty. Again, I caught myself 

with this ecstatic smile on my face, dancing 

in the Jeep to 80’s music. I eventually came 

to a 3-way intersection, with China Head 

in one direction and Yalakom in the other; 

I opted for China Head. This is where the 

roads became a bit trickier. 

Between the GPS and Backroads 

Mapbook, I only made a few wrong turns. 

My theory was that the correct route 

would be a road that looked like the least 

traveled. It was a beautiful road through 

the valley, filled with Muppet flowers and 

The view from the top of China Mountain. 

gorgeous colours. 

I descended slowly into the next valley 

and missed the sign that said “China.” I 

crossed the bridge here and made my way 

up a couple of dead ends before coming back 

down to the bridge. This time I could see 

the sign and had a “hand to the forehead” 

moment. Roughly three days after crossing 

through this small valley, a 700-metre 

landslide crashed down across the road I was 

driving. Had I waited another day or so, I 

would have either been in that landslide, or 

have missed my opportunity to follow this 

route all the way out. 

The drive through the valley was 

beautiful, the streams meandering in 

and out of the delicate meadows, the 

wildflowers, the birds and the rock faces 

were spectacular. My GPS stated I was 

only 5.1 km away from my first geocache. I 

made my way through to the heavens; the 

sights that awaited me were like no other. 

I’ve long thought that Whipsaw was one 

of the most beautiful destinations in BC, 

but honestly, nothing can take the place of 

the sights of the Chilcotin mountain range 

stretching into the distance. 

Leaving the spirit-lifting views and 

meadows, I approached a stand of burnt 

forest. I’ve always found that driving 

through the haunted remains of a forest 

to be one of the eeriest experiences - the 

blackened trees outlined in white with 

tints of red fire retardant, random trees 

stand companionless healthy and green, 

some of the dead devoid of needles, others 

with the charred remains of needles on 

crippled limbs, strangely brown instead of 

black and the roots of the trees unnaturally 

surrounded by lush green grass, 

mushrooms and wildflowers. 

As I descended further along the trail, 

the gas gauge approached empty and shortly 

after the forest fire area, it was time to pull 

out the Jerry can. Down the road, I came out 

on the main forest service road (FSR). The 

scenery quickly changed from alpine forests 

to the badlands of the Fraser River valley, 

something the Chilcotin is well known for. 

Time to make a decision whether to take the 

Big Bar Ferry back to Lillooet or to take the 

east side of the river south. 

I decided to take the Big Bar ferry. I had 

a great talk with the ferry operator about 

the various trails around, Kookapi, Mud 

Lakes, Whipsaw and a few others, he of 

course claiming that they were all walks 

in the park now, and I for the most part 

agreed with him. The more use the trails 

get, the easier they are to overcome. For me 

this is a good thing, I don’t take the trips for 

the obstacles, I take them for the scenery. 

Knowing I’m less likely to have issues 

encourages me to do more solo trips. 

I chose to take the Big Bar Road back 

to Lillooet and proceeded through the 

reserve land. It finishes with a 23% grade 

and I enjoyed the long slow climb. This 

route back allowed me to witness and 

capture some of the most amazing terrain 


From alpine vistas to barren 

river gorges, this trip visits many 

different environments. 

Big Bar Ferry is a cable 

ferry that will get you 

across the Fraser River. 

in BC. I love my mountains and meadows, 

but the washed terrain of the Chilcotin 

is my favourite. I stopped after the 

ascent and to grab a few geocaches, and 

appreciate what I had around me. 

I had one more night and I opted to 

head to Boston Bar, fill up with gas, and 

take my favourite alternate route, Kookapi, 

instead of the canyon. 

After being held up by a couple trains, 

I made my way up the Nahatlatch Valley 

to the last campsite before the Kookapi 

FSR and set up camp for the night. I was 

awoken the next morning by a parade of 

logging trucks, and after quickly packing 

up, I was on the road. I swapped the 

VHF channel to the one being used on 

Kookapi, as they were actively hauling and 

I really didn’t want to meet a logging truck 

unexpectedly coming around a corner. 

I finished the home stretch with a quick 

stop at Clear Creek to wash the worst of 

the dust off me before heading home, and 

it felt great, aside from the black flies. I 

dried off, climbed back in the Jeep and 

headed down the last few kilometres of 

dirt road to get home and unpack. 

While the China Head/Poison 

Mountain safari was a bucket list trip 

for me, this really needs to be on every 

wheelers list of must do’s. It is where I saw 

and experienced more in three days then 

some people may in a lifetime. Thank you 

to all the friends that support me, without 

you I wouldn’t have the courage to be a 

solo female wheeler. 


How to 

Words & photos by Budd Stanley 

SURVIVE 

in Canada’s Arctic 

Equipment and tactics for overlanding 

in severe winter conditions 


As propane freezes 

at -20°C, a multi-fuel 

stove running white 

gas was used for 

Arctic regions. 

Going in search of the unknown 

is what makes the overlanding 

lifestyle such an attractive one for 

so many. It produces adventure, puts you in 

front of spectacular views and challenges 

your senses and problem solving abilities. 

When overlanding deep into the wilds of 

Canada, it is important to be well prepared 

for whatever issue might arise. However, 

if you plan to take on winter or even the 

Arctic, the game changes big time. 

When planning the Titan Arctic 

Challenge completed back in March, 

to say I had steep learning curve is an 

understatement. It was near vertical. 

However, I learned a great many things 

on that expedition, things to help you 

whether you’re just going out for a spot of 

winter camping, or planning a full Arctic 

adventure of your own. Here is just some of 

the valuable information I took away from 

that expedition. 

Educate Yourself 

If there is one thing I can suggest to 

someone looking to challenge themselves 

as we did, it is to be as best prepared as 

one can. Do not fool yourself, the Arctic 

is a seriously dangerous place if you’re not 

prepared, it will happily put you in a life or 

death situation. 

The best thing I did in my preparations 

was to talk to people who have done this 

sort of thing before. Take the time to do 

your research and find people who already 

have experience. They will likely be very 

excited for you, and more than happy to 

feed you all the information they’ve already 

learned. They will be able to recommend 

books to read, routes to take, campsites to 

utilize and local contacts. Most importantly, 

they will help you think of equipment and 

techniques that you haven’t thought of 

yet. A good resource for finding the right 

people, and even getting training, is to visit 

an overland rally or expo. 

Specialized Equipment 

As a camping and off-road enthusiast, my 

camping kit is rather extensive and of good 

quality. That being said, I was amazed how 

little of it I could actually use when dealing 

with temperatures below -20°C. 

Let’s start with clothing. Obviously, 

layering up is essential. When living in 

-40°C, make sure you have Merino wool 

long underwear with several changes. We 

made sure we had a dedicated set just for 

sleeping in, you don’t want to go to sleep in 

freezing condition in materials that have 

been subjected to sweat. Good fleece midlayers 

are your best friend, try to have many 


At -40°C, five layers of Merino 

wool, fleece and a down 

jacket was still not enough, we 

countered this with Canada 

Goose Expedition parkas. 

MEC down booties and -30°C 

sleeping bags made sleeping in 

-30°C rather comfortable. -40°C… 

not so much. 

different options. We opted for a down 

winter jacket with a weatherproof shell 

for our main top layer, topped off with a 

Canada Goose Expedition jacket for severe 

conditions. 

A set of Baffin Revelstoke boots were 

ideal footwear, offering enough warmth for 

-40°C, while small enough to drive in. 

Don’t cheap out on sleeping gear. We 

had MEC -30°C sleeping bags that were 

nice and toasty until -20°C, a bit chilly 

at -25°C, then progressively worse as the 

temperature dropped. We combated this 

by wearing MEC’s “Get Down” booties 

and Merino socks as well as a good earflap 

toque and balaclava. 

Propane freezes at -20°C, so you will 

want a white gas burning stove for cooking. 

Any water you take will freeze, so have a 

large covered pot for melting snow on a 

campfire. Fire starters and fire logs also 

make life a lot easier in camp. 

A blowtorch comes in handy, like when 

your rubber doorstops freeze and you can’t 

shut the doors to the truck. Throwing a bit 

of heat on them softens them up enough to 

be operational. Fuel bought in the North 

should already be conditioned with antifreeze 

but having a generator will keep 

the block heaters running at night so the 

vehicle will start in the morning. 

Stay Warm 

It might seem like a foolish comment, but 

it is easy to underestimate just how cold 

-30, -40 or even -50°C can be when you 

are living in the outdoors. Don’t leave the 

warmth of a vehicle without gloves and a 

toque – frostbite sucks, trust me. Carb up 

before bed to keep the inner fire burning 

and wear goggles to keep your eyes from 

freezing shut with ice crystals from your 

breath – ask me how I know. 

Don’t go to Bed Alone 

When it gets down to -20°C, I highly 

suggest that you don’t go to bed alone. 

When it’s this cold, everything freezes 

overnight, so you want to sleep with some 

select items to warm with your body heat 

so that they’re not frozen in the morning. 

That means a change of socks, deodorant, 

toothpaste, and a canister of propane for 

cooking breakfast. In my case, due to the 

additional media I had to produce, I had 

a lot of batteries on me as well. My cell, 


Water freezes, so bring large covered 

pots to melt snow over a campfire. 

camera, GoPro, GPS and flashlight batteries 

were all stuffed into my cargos before bed. 

It didn’t always make for the best sleep, but 

when everything I needed worked in the 

morning, life was a lot easier. 

An organized 

vehicle can’t 

be overstated 

enough. 

Everything runs 

smoother when 

you know where 

everything is. 

Choose the Right People 

Choosing who you take on a long-distance 

expedition is a lot more important than 

you might think. Team chemistry is huge 

when you are together for days or weeks 

on end, dealing with tense situations 

and extreme weather. You want good 

strong headed and dedicated people that 

aren’t going to breakdown or snap in an 

emergency. People who are irritable or 

temperamental are poison when pressure 

builds. It’s also good to have a team leader 

who is not scared to delegate tasks and 

make the tough choices when decisions 

need to be made. 

Stay Organised 

Time is never on your side, hours before 

departure are usually spent flinging 

everything into the truck, thinking you 

will organise it all later. Don’t! Take the 

time to put together a checklist, make 

sure that everything has its place and be 

sure to keep the vehicle tidy and sorted. 

It may seem anal, but trust me, it makes 

camping much more efficient and keeps 

aggravations to a minimum. 


BC Overland 

RALLY 2017 

The Canadian overland tribe finally 

has a place to call home! The 

first annual BC Overland Rally 

was held at British Columbia’s Sasquatch 

Mountain Resort June 22-25th. The event 

was a huge success, by all accounts, and is 

sure to have at least a second installment 

in 2018. 

Around 500 people gathered for 

By Bryon Dorr 

Canada’s first overland rally. The crowd 

was mostly from BC and Alberta, but there 

were a few travelers from Saskatchewan, a 

variety of west coast US states and even a 

few international travelers on their global 

overland adventures. 

The Rally was action-packed with 

vendors, classes, seminars, roundtable 

discussions, driving classes, trail runs 

and so much more. There were amazing 

happy hours to enjoy each night, put on 

by a variety of vendors. The Saturday night 

wine tasting class, put on by Crankshaft 

Culture, had to be a crowd favourite. The 

highlight for many was the nightly raffle 

around the campfire. The prizes got bigger 

each night, culminating with big prizes 

like a Warn Winch and a CVT RTT at the 


ig raffle Saturday night. 

You’d expect a gathering like this to 

offer up a ton of off-road specific learning 

opportunities, and the BC Overland 

did just that. Participants got some topnotch 

instruction from Camel Trophy 

competitors, Land Rover instructors 

and off-road training experts. Besides 

hands-on workshops about topics like 

winching, non-winching vehicle recovery, 

tire repair, vehicle electronics and 

trailside welding. There were also lots of 

opportunities to get behind the wheel and 

tackle the onsite off-road course. Getting 

out and exploring the local trails was also 


encouraged, with trail runs throughout 

each day of the event. 

Sure there were off-road skills to be 

learned, but there was so much more 

on offer, for everyone. The BC Overland 

Rally is a family and dog friendly event 

that encourages everyone to get out and 

explore. There were classes for everyone 

that included action photography, drone 

photography, navigation, yoga, border 

crossings and more. There were womenspecific 

classes that covered off-road 

driving and recovery, as well as vehicle 

electronics. The kids were not forgotten 

either, as they had programs like survival 

skills for kids, which mostly showed 

them how to start a fire and roast a 

marshmallow. There was even a class that 


covered tips and tricks for traveling with 

your dog. 

The Rally concluded on Sunday 

morning with the first-ever BC Overland 

Challenge. The Challenge was made up 

of two separate events, with winners of 

each and an overall winner crowned. The 

first challenge was called the “Goldilocks 

Challenge.” It consisted of going around an 

off-road course while trying to hit a target, 

without using any timing devices or going 

over the target time. The second challenge 

is always a crowd favourite, called the 

“Embarrassing Wetness Challenge.” This 

year it consisted of driving backwards 

through a short off-road course with a cup 

full of water taped to the hood. The idea 

was that you had to reverse through the 

course in the fastest time, without going 

outside the course, and keep the most 

water in your cup. Time penalties were 

given for both infractions. The Challenges 

saw a wide variety of vehicles and 

participants, with everyone having a good 

time before packing up and heading home. 

There are already big plans in the works 

for the second installment of the BC 

Overland Rally in 2018. Be sure to sign up 

early and come out for the festivities. The 

Overland Tribe is a welcoming bunch, and 

always stoked to meet new faces. 


5 Days 

IN A MOG 

Exploring in true overland style 

Words and photos by Kristina Wheeler 

Heavy Trails. 


They let me drive. 


Sun-kissed canyons. 

Churn Creek Bridge, 

I 

normally wheel alone, but once a 

year I’ll team up with people and take 

off on a different kind of adventure. 

This offer was too good to resist, five 

days riding shotgun in a Unimog (known 

as ‘Heavy’) as part of the Tribe’s annual 

man camp. The idea behind the trip was 

simple; follow up on an idea I’d gained 

from reading a book a few years before by 

Chilco Choate – “Unfriendly Neighbours”. 

We planned five days of open trails 

that would include running Kookapi, the 

west side of the Fraser Canyon, the Churn 

protected area, the lands of the Gang 

Ranch, hopefully finding the legendary 

Chilco Choate, then back down through 

Poison Mountain, Mud Lakes, a quick run 

over Highline Road out of Seton Portage 

and home via West Harrison. It was to be 

an epic trip; and the comradeship gained 

with my companions in seven other trucks 

would last a lifetime. 


Playful stags. 

It was Friday night and most of the 

other trucks had already headed up to 

Clear Creek hot springs, with the guys 

and Heavy swinging by to pick me up on 

the way. We quickly loaded, and headed 

towards the East Harrison Forest Service 

Road (FSR) with a quick stop to fill the 

humungous fuel tank, where I learned that 

about anything can be added if needed, 

including vegetable oil. We pulled into 

the hot springs just after dark, quickly 

set up camp, and luckily had the hot tubs 

to ourselves. The trip to the springs is a 

nice day trip and can easily be done in 

a 2-wheel drive vehicle; however, keep 

it mind that it’s a popular location with 

limited tubs, so it’s best to be prepared for 

close quarters. 

The next morning, we rose early and 

after a quick breakfast over the campfire, 

continued heading up East Harrison to 

meet up with the Kookapi FSR. As Heavy 

Clear Creek Tubs. 

is not always known for her speed, we 

followed behind the other trucks and 

started noticing that there was a trail of 

trash in the middle of the road. Shawn and 

I got out and started walking in front to 

pick it up, as it closely resembled our own 

trash from the night before. Turns out that 

the Trasharoo on Pat’s truck had come 

loose and was attempting to redistribute 

its contents back to mother nature. 

The Kookapi FSR, connecting East 

Harrison to Nahatlatch offers incredible 

panoramic views and numerous mountain 

glaciers. After a few hours on a fairly 

paved FSR, you will find yourself in the 

Nahatlatch Lake area. There are many 

options for camping, which include the 

lake, along the river, or spending the night 

in the Fire Lookout Tower high above 

valley with a starlit view of the Fraser 

Canyon below. 

Due to time constraints we opted to 


Empire road. 

Setting up camp. 

take the paved road out of Boston Bar 

heading into Lillooet. There we topped up 

on gas, grabbed ice cream, and headed up 

the West Canyon dirt road towards the Big 

Bar Ferry; pulling on to a plateau above 

the Reserve to have lunch. We spent some 

time watching the fisherman below; it was 

like stepping momentarily back in time, 

as they have been using the same fishing 

techniques for generations. 

It was time to continue north up the 

Canyon, our next goal was the Leon Creek 

Rec site, the Backroads Mapbook had 

noted a hot spring accessible from there, 

which seemed odd. Most of the trucks 

continued at their own pace up to the 

Big Bar Ferry, with little interest in the 

additional exploring. However, the three of 

us in Heavy, after a few wrong turns, found 

the sought after Rec Site. It was obvious 

that it had been neglected for a long time; 

it also became quickly apparent that many 

years had passed since the road to the 

supposed hot springs had been driven 

down. Hundreds of fallen trees lining the 

way indicated that hours of good chain 

saw work would be needed to clear them 

out, or take the time to complete the hike 

on a hunch. As frustrating as it was, we 

decided that the venture in to verify if the 

Backroads Mapbook was correct would 

have to wait another day. 

We continued north, in awe of the vistas 

and landscapes, stopping for a moment to 

take in a rather large herd of deer with two 

playful stags. The views along the Fraser 

Canyon in this area are mesmerizing, with 

a thousand shades of gold reflecting off the 

long grasses and sandstone ridges. 

We shortly came upon the Big Bar ferry, 

which usually runs on demand, unless the 

operator is having dinner, then you need to 

be prepared to sit and wait for a bit. Some 

of the group were already across, and you 

could see the operator’s face light up when 

he saw Heavy. There’s something about 

a Unimog that always brings out a smile 

when people see one on the trail. 

A short way after coming off the ferry, 

we started passing through the Gang 

Ranch Area. Although several of the 


Gold Canyons. 

Calving barn. 

older structures remain, it’s important 

to remember that while they may look 

abandoned, they do remain the property of 

the Gang Ranch, so any visits to them may 

result in you interacting with the staff. 

At this point you want to give your gas 

tank a hard look. There is a small service 

station in a nearby town of Dog Creek, 

but there is no guarantee that they will be 

open, so have fuel on hand, as from here to 

the Seton Portage area there are no further 

opportunities for fuel. 

A few of the group went to top up their 

tanks and Jerry cans. We just carried on, 

as Heavy holds more then enough fuel 

to safely get you where you need to go. 

Along the winding road towards the Churn 

protected area, I was in heaven surrounded 

by the meandering grasslands, which were 

cradled by the painted colours on the 

tablelands that rose above us. 

Traveling the snake-like roads we 

descended upon the old iron Churn Creek 

Bridge, where we stopped on the bridge so 

everyone could take their tourist photos, 

our entire tribe coming alive with smiles. 

Heading east on the Empire Valley 

Road we found a quaint camping spot at 

the well-worn calving barn and settled 

in. Something about pitching tents on 

manure wasn’t that appealing, so everyone 

got to the business of setting up camp in 

the grass fields outside. Soon the campfire 

was ablaze, dinner on, and I settled in 

listening to the guys, lost in the falling stars, 

serenaded by crickets and feeling like I was 

finally at home. 


5 Days 

IN A MOG 

Part Deux 

THE LEGEND OF CHILCO CHOATES 



Empire views. 

Closed Blackdome. 

The second part of 

our story begins on 

day three in the Churn 

Creek Protected Area. 

We awoke and headed down the 

Empire Road to further explore the Gang 

Ranch Lands. Those of us in Heavy had 

an alternate goal which was to get as close 

as possible to the peak of Black Dome 

Mountain. Travelling up the quickly 

increasing elevation lines, the vistas 

opened before us, awash in the strokes of 

every imaginable hue of gold. As much as I 

enjoy all of the 360-degree views at the top 

of BC’s mountain ranges, there is a unique 

beauty found in the Chilcotin that seems 


Winding Smiles. 

almost surreal, like an artist sketching 

them on a canvas. We unfortunately ran 

into a gate and had to turn back, and 

although it was disappointing not to make 

it to the peak, we were grateful to make it 

as far as we did. 

On the way back along the winding 

road we found a variety of very well 

maintained hunting sites. Like most areas 

frequented by true backwoods men, traces 

of the human element were hard to find; 

except a poor lost fork that needed to be 

rescued and given a new home. 

We re-joined the Tribe in an area that 

seemed as devoid of life as frozen tundra, 

but when you take a deeper look, you will 

see it is teeming with life, from butterflies 

and crickets to the numerous larger 

wildlife that frequent the area. This was 

made even more obvious by the beautiful 

two year-old bear tumbling down the hill 

after darting across in front of us. 

As Heavy isn’t the fasted vehicle, we 

spent the majority of the trip watching 

the dust settle in front of us, relaying road 

choices on the VHF. We travelled past the 

remainder of the Gang Ranch structures, 

including several very picturesque rustic 

cabins. Hitting the main road, we parked 

at Dead Man’s lean-to for lunch; a sight 

obviously used and loved by hunters. 

The welcome mat hanging on the wellworn 

frame did its job, and you could feel 

the warm memories and comradeship 

radiating from the shelter. I wandered 

around the area for a bit as everyone ate, 

pausing at a memorial for someone whose 

ashes had been spread here. 

We continued west on the old 

abandoned trail alongside the marsh, 

passing the ancient remnants of the 

implements that had worked the land over 

the years. We came across the reservoir at 

the dammed end of Gaspard Creek and 

stopping to explore it, I discovered and 

feasted on the most delicious batch of wild 

raspberries. 

We reached the end of the trail and 

the start of beautiful Gaspard Lake; a 

large dam marked the gateway to an area 

that gave ‘bountiful fishing’ a whole new 

meaning, as you could simply scoop your 

net in and bring it out chockfull of fish. 

We continued on, passing through the 


Right where I belong. 

Mosquito Island. 

cattle gates and old cabins that are still 

used by cowhands and as emergency 

shelters during inclement weather. 

We came across an alluring little spot 

called Mosquito Island with a beautiful 

outlet on the lake, which I was hoping to 

call home for the evening. We continued 

past it, as our first priority was finding the 

Chilco Choates' (an infamous local guide 

and outfitter) homestead. We rounded 

the west end of the lake, and knew we 

were in the right area when sarcastic signs 

appeared on the trees. Soon enough the 

gates to Chilco’s home, with horns and the 

warning that all vehicles must stop there, 

greeted us. 

We wandered onto what can only be 

described as a flash back to days gone 

by. Numerous shacks, a line of classic 

Jeeps, and assorted knick-knacks spoke 


BC’s oldest Unimog. 

Dead man’s lean-to. 

of the years Chilco had spent building 

his homestead. The man himself came 

out and greeted us, the wry expression, 

which had made him well known in these 

lands, could easily be seen. He was taller 

than I had expected, but had that smile 

on his face that you could tell held a 

thousand tales. I didn’t just read his book; 

I devoured it - its pages permeated with 

beguiling campfire tales only old guides 

can tell. 

The guys asked for a tour of his 

property, and a Unimog in particular 

caught their eye, apparently the first one 

to ever be imported into Canada. It was in 

charming condition considering its long 


Gaspard Fishing. 

Strawberry Eternity. 

history working in a harsh environment. 

Shawn asked him to turn her over, it took 

a few tries but then the throaty sound of 

the ancient engine roared to life. I watched 

with a smirk as I taped the conversation 

between the Tribe and Chilco, knowing I 

was witnessing a lifelong memory being 

made for all involved. 

Over a few hours the Tribe got their 

fill of guide stories, including how Chilco 

challenged the Gang Ranch, and I wandered 

around his homestead. The land is still used 

to take guests on guided tours, although he 

has handed off most of the duties to a new 

couple. There were curios everywhere that 

spoke to the heart, and I fell in love with a 

sign on one of the walls that said: “There is 

room for all of God’s creatures, right next to 

the mashed potatoes”. 

We made our way back to Mosquito 

Island, most of the Tribe pulling out 

their poles and making their way to 

the lakeside, catching some huge trout. 

The sunset over the horizon of the lake 

resembled a canvas catching the artistic 

strokes of Rembrandt. Dinner was to be 

an overland-expedition test - pub night! A 

few of the Tribe got the campfire started, 

as Shawn pulled out the deep fryer; 

tonight we would be enjoying authentic 

pub treats including rib bites, mozza 

sticks, wings… if it could be ordered in a 

pub he had it for us. I poured a few drinks 

for Shawn and Glen and everyone settled 

around the fire, sharing stories while 

enjoying the finger food. 

Light melded into darkness, and the 

night sky took centre stage, with falling 

stars as silent fireworks. As I climbed 

into my tent, it made me think of just 

how many wishes I could make, for me 

it was simple – just one wish to live this 

life every day. 


5 Days 

IN A MOG 

Part 3 of 3 

EXPLORING IN TRUE OVERLAND STYLE 



Hidden Trails 

We were now starting Day Four at Gaspard Lake. 

Waking up in the tent, I crawled out before our group (aka “the Tribe”) woke 

up and made a cup of tea. Life never feels more peaceful than when viewing a lake 

covered in early morning mist. The algae of the lake in full bloom, and the beach 

covered in hundreds of itty-bitty baby frogs, turned this into a true wonderland where 

I felt like Alice in search of her Mad Hatter. Sadly, it was time for the guys and I to 

pack. I’m never one to stay in the same place for very long, yet this is one place that 

my mind returns to again and again and feels like home. 

I tossed my gear in the back of Heavy, then took my seat as co-pilot and we 

traversed back through the marshes and meadows to the dead man’s lean-to. Here we 

connected with the main line of paved Forest Service Roads (FSR’s) in the area that 

would allow us to power through some kilometres with greater speed (well as much 

speed as Heavy could manage). We stopped, pulling out the Backroads Map Books 

and my GPS to forecast which trails could successfully help us find our way through 

to the Poison Mountain area. 


Highway to Heaven. 

After powering through for a few hours we came to one of the most iconic middle of nowhere 

signs in BC. Standing in front of the words Poison Mt, Big Bar Ferry, Lillooet and Gold Bridge always 

makes me smirk, never more so in a Unimog. Normally it’s the lack of gas that keeps me from going 

deeper into the rugged terrain, but with a Unimog that’s not an issue. It truly hit home just how much 

more appropriate Unimogs, and these types of well-outfitted trucks are than my Jeep for long overland 


Swartz – Mud Lakes. 

expeditions. 

Those of us in Heavy started down 

the washed out, switchback, off camber 

traverse to Mud Lake. Having previously 

travelled these routes solo, I now realize 

how crazy I am to do them on my own 

in the Jeep. However, sitting in the back 

of Heavy going down, brought a whole 

new feeling to this section. Oddly, I have 

never felt safer, yet more at risk of rolling 

or sliding sideways than ever before. 

After reaching the bottom, the rest 

of the Tribe continued in front of us 

along the well-known trails between 

here and Swartz & Mud Lakes. The trails 

are beautiful, slightly off camber, not 

enough to scare you, but enough to make 

it fun, and they traverse through some 

of the most beautiful terrain in BC. We 

approached Swartz Lake, and stopped 

to have lunch, while a few of the guys 

grabbed their poles to try their luck in the 

lake. Unfortunately, unlike Gaspard Lake, 

Iconic mileage marker. 


Hanging at Minto. 

Bridgeless crossings. 

there wasn’t anything that was biting 

on their lines. I took the opportunity 

to lie back in the tall summer grass and 

close my eyes, taking in the sounds of 

the crickets chirping, and letting the 

butterflies land on me. 

Pat decided he wanted to take the 

lead from here, luckily there were radios, 

and I talked him through the turns and 

routes to take us to Carpenter Lake. In 

general, it worked fairly well, but when 

someone is a few kilometres ahead 

and you don’t know exactly where they 

are, it can be a bit challenging. It truly 

highlights the importance of having a 

radio when travelling in a group. 

As we reached Carpenter Lake, we 

sought out one of the must see spots for 

a few of the guys - the long abandoned 

Minto Mine. I’ve always enjoyed walking 

through mines, but they do have their 

dangers. If you do decide to venture 


in, please take the proper precautions. 

We spent about an hour walking 

through the caves, before continuing 

down Carpenter Lake; here the tides 

of fortune began to change. We found 

Graham pulled over to the side of the 

road. Stopping, Shawn did what the 

Tribe has come to depend on him to do, 

be a mechanic. He climbed under the 

vehicle and managed to MacGyver it 

into running shape once again. However, 

it would be the end of the trip for them 

as they headed to Lillooet for parts. The 

remainder of us continued on up and 

over the Shalath Road towards Seton 

Portage. Along it, near a small spring 

waterfall, there is a memorial that has 

been dedicated to Boom Chain. 

We found our way into town, passing 

the hydro substations, stopping at one 

of the local stores to grab a few things. 

Seton Portage has a few interesting 

sights that I will return to explore one 

day. Travelling over the mesmerizing 

Highline Road, Travis oddly got a flat in 

one of his new Duratrax. 

We reached D’Arcy, and everyone 

gassed up, while I grabbed the one thing 

that every road trip needs – ice cream! 

Our next stop was to be Skookumchuk 

Hot Springs, and tonight was a special 

night, as it was the one-year anniversary 

of when the Tribe and I met. They towed 

me out of Hale with Heavy when the clip 

broke in my rear yoke, and my winch 

caught on fire. 

The next morning after breakfast, we 

packed up and continued down the West 

Harrison FSR. I had one last spot that I 

wanted to show the guys, and that is the 

abandoned logging camp near the 50 

km marker. There is something special 

about this place with its private cove, 

the lake lapping at the shores, and the 

ghostly structures. Most of the decaying 

buildings have fallen down, but it is a 

gorgeous camping location. 

As we neared the Sasquatch Inn, and 

the trip was coming to a close, I knew 

life would never be the same. I had tried 

multi-day overlanding in a whole new 

style; one that created a craving for more. I 

know many who would find the travel too 

utilitarian, but for me it fit just right. 

The fun begins.. 

Skookumchuck settled. 

Remains of the past. 


Off-Road 

PART 1 

A quest for the Mexican border completely off-road 

Words and photos by Budd Stanley 


What the hell do we do now?” 

I couldn’t help but mumble 

these painful words, head 

in my hands, as we poured over a map 

spread across the dusty hood of a Jeep 

Grand Cherokee. “What do we do now?” 

had become the motto of our annual epic 

summer expedition. 

Blake, an adventure rider with a 

Kawasaki KLR650 as his steed, has 

already travelled all over America and 

clear across Canada. However, exploring 

the Baja peninsula was a box still left 

unchecked on his bucket list. That 

planted a seed in my brain, because I 

had always wanted to drive from the 

Canadian border to the Mexican border 

completely off-road. Over beers one 

night, we came to the brilliant conclusion 

that we should combine our dream 

adventures into one epic expedition. 


It didn’t take long to find the 

remnants of a mighty burn, 

this was early morning on 

day two. 

Our plans started with the Cascade 

Mountain Range. Luckily, Backcountry 

Discovery Routes (BDR) has already done 

a vast amount of the trail planning for 

us, with dedicated maps running back 

road routes from the Canadian border 

to the bottom of Oregon. From here, one 

of Blake’s two-wheeled buddies supplied 

us with waypoints to get us through 

California. Once across the border, we 

would follow the Baja 1000 route as far 

south as we had time for, and find a nice 

beach to enjoy a Corona. 

With a route pinned into our GPS 

systems and back-up maps at the ready, 

our first challenge was trail-ready 

vehicles. As it turned out, one of the 

biggest challenges was simply getting 

to the starting line. Blake’s KLR was 

losing power and he was contemplating a 

rebuild. He would forego the rebuild, but 

did install a Progressive suspension kit to 

upgrade the bikes abilities off-road. In my 

camp, the VW turbo diesel engine slated 

Two vehicle expedition pushes on over easy terrain. 


The Yanks do a good job of marking all the trails. 

to power the Samurai was still sitting on a 

worktable in Vancouver. 

I knew Blake would have to muscle the 

bike through hot, dry, dusty conditions, 

and assumed I would have to do the same 

in my half finished Samurai. But with 

D-Day approaching, there was no realistic 

way we would be able to have the Sami 

up and running. Plan B was hatched with 

only a couple days before our scheduled 

departure. I called tech editor Irons to 

see if he would volunteer his Jeep. All I 

heard over the phone was uncontrollable 

laughter followed by a “click.” Calls to 

friends produced the same results. 

The call went out to Jeep. I had 

expected to be sweating it out in the 

summer heat with my two-wheeled 

friend; instead I would be forced to sit 

in the full leather interior of a Grand 

Cherokee Summit Edition EcoDiesel (with 

infotainment and air-conditioned seats). 

We hit the road early in one morning 

pointed towards the Knighthawk border 

crossing in the Similkameen Valley. It 

was a blisteringly hot day, even for the 

Okanagan, and it didn’t take long to get 

jammed up in traffic, stopped while water 

bombers made their attacking runs on a 

Our first detour routed us through some 

devastating sights. This burn lasted nearly 25 km. 

forest fire next to the highway. 

Crossing the border, a fun tarmac 

road carried us past Palmer Lake where 

we turned off onto the gravel for the first 

time. Airing down at the turn off, we 

were overcome with euphoria. No more 

cell phones, no more email, no more 

computers, just two friends and the long 

trail to Mexico. 

The road was almost disappointingly 

good, but the arid desert mountain vistas 

were amazing. The environment is the 

same as the Okanagan, even shares the 

same name, but it seems you must travel 

to a new region to truly appreciate the 

beauty of your own. 


This was becoming a 

frustratingly common 

occurrence. 

For our first day, we decided to only 

tackle the first mountain range. On the 

far side, we stumbled upon the North 

Fork Ninemile Campground, a beautiful 

campsite situated right on a creek without 

a soul in sight. We set up camp, fried up 

some sausages for dinner and toasted ‘day 

one’ on the road with a beer. 

We needed to traverse Washington 

State in three to four days if we had a 

chance at Baja. Day two began as Blake 

blasted off on the KLR and I followed 

behind with a GPS tracking my every 

For every roadblock, we 

would try to salvage some 

non-tarmac roadway. 

move on an iPad fixed to the dash. We 

came across several burns from previous 

forest fires, the blackened trees made an 

eerie backdrop for all the purple flowers 

covering the ground. Once we reached the 

top of the first mountain, the view of the 

surrounding area was spectacular. Some 

mountains had only partially won the 

battle with fire, others were lush, and a few 

looked as though they had been bombed 

into submission. 

We finally came across a couple rough 

sections with sharp rock covered roads. 

I aired down once again to 18 psi, and 

lifted the air suspension to “Off-Road” 

to keep the front chin spoiler of the Jeep 

from bottoming out. We then pushed up 

over Skull and Crossbones Ridge, Thunder 

Mountain and Lone Frank Pass, bringing 

us down into civilization once again. The 

town of Conconully was a sleepy little 

town, good for a lunch stop, and a fuel up 

for Blake. 

A short jaunt on asphalt took us to a 

turnoff onto gravel once again. It was here 

that we stumbled on the ghost town of Ruby. 

There was very little of the town left save for 

a few crumbling foundations and a clearing 

with a plaque proclaiming the mining towns 

once great existence. From there, we pushed 

high into the mountains. It was at this time 

that I started to notice our views were being 

obscured by haze. 

As we rumbled up Loup-Loup Canyon, 

the view was becoming ever more opaque. 

Fine, talcum powdered dirt from the road 

was running off the Jeep like water. 

Obliviously passing a Toyota 4Runner 

with “FIRE” written on the hood, we 

pressed on through an ever-thickening 

smoke-filled forest. We moved onto a 

smaller tight winding mountain road 

leading up the side of Thrapp Mountain. 


The smoke was now hanging like a thick blanket of fog in the 

trees, the constant smell of campfire filling the Jeep. After a close 

bear encounter, we popped off the small trail and out onto a 

main service road where we surprised a group of fire fighters 

pulled off the front lines to recover. After a quick situation report 

with them we learned that A: we were not supposed to be where 

we were, and B: our route over Thrapp Mountain and Woody 

Mountain was in flames. 

Forced to backtrack to highway 20, we pulled out the map and 

realized we would have to circle around Thrapp on highways 20 

and 153 to then link up with the next section of the BDR. 

The next section was Gold Creek. It didn’t take long for our 

hopes to be dashed as yet another fire blockade impeded our 

progress. Out came the map but again, there were no gravel 

roads that would see us through to the next leg. The decision was 

to push on to Chelan. 

Setting up in a coffee shop in Chelan, the situation was clear. 

Pretty much all of Washington state was on fire. Entire ranches 

and towns were razed to the ground and charred black. Nearly 

every mountain range was closed to traffic but thankfully, the 

next leg in the route was clear, and we could push to Cashmere 

to end an already painfully long day. 

The route over Chelan Mountain (aka Stormy Mountain) was 

striking. The sun was setting, the smoke filled air making it glow 

an eerie red. The higher we climbed, the more arresting the view 

as old forest fires had cleared the top of the mountain. Before long 

the road meandered down into the next valley as darkness set in. 

It was at this time I started feeling uneasy. It had been an 

incredibly long day and Blake’s energy was beginning to fail with 

the light. Coming into a rutted section of road, I could see the 

bike swing wildly as Blake fought to stay upright. He just saved 

it; the consequences would have been a long fall down a steep 

embankment. It was time for a break, some water, some calories and 

a chat about pushing on. Blake sparked up a little and really wanted 

to make it to the next town, so off we went into the darkness. 

This was not the best decision, as the road we would come 

upon would prove to be the most challenging of the trip. Massive 

ruts and washouts gave way to an incredible drop into a black 

abyss beyond the headlights. It wasn’t an impossible trail, but 

with fatigue, lack of food and potentially lethal consequences, 

our pace had slowed to a crawl. After a particularly tough 

section, we took a hike 500 metres up the trail and we decided 

enough was enough. Another map studying session under LED 

light revealed a maintained road down to the highway. We made 

the decision to get out while we still could and live to drive 

another day. 

Arriving Ardenvoir, we found a sleepy little town with 

nothing open. Even worse, a fire crew camp closed the route that 

would take us into Cashmere. By now it was well after midnight, 

no choice but to head straight for Wenatchee. 

We arrived in Wenatchee physically beaten and mentally 

defeated. By this point, all we wanted was some food and a hotel 

room with a hot shower. To add insult to injury, a local concert 

had every single hotel in town sold out. Getting some cheap fast 

food for nourishment, we headed towards Cashmere and set up 

camp as soon as we hit the forest. What a difference a day makes. 

The first day was easy and tranquil, while the second was long, 

dirty and exhausting. Four of our seven legs were impassable, and 

we weren’t even a third of the way through Washington. 

A beautiful trail leading to a smoky end 

The trails we did find open were 

spectacular, along with a smoky sunset. 


Words and photos by Budd Stanley 

PART 2 

FIGHTING 

FIRES 

Battling wild fires, wild policemen and crazy 

heat in a bid for the Mexican border 


Someone’s made the trail impassable! 

I 

awaken to a feeling almost as bad as 

a hangover. My back is in shambles 

from two nights sleeping on the 

ground and two days pounding down 

pothole filled forest service roads (FSR). 

My mouth is dry and parched with a hint 

of dust; my sinuses are the same. My head 

is groggy from an inadequate amount 

of sleep and my skin is sticky with the 

mixture of dust and sweat as I peel myself 

out of my sleeping bag. It's late (9 am) and 

we haven’t gotten out of the tents yet. 

The disheartening situation is a result 

of a horrific series of failures suffered 

the previous day. My good friend Blake 

and I had a dream of off-roading from 

the Canadian to the Mexican border. 

That dream was dashed on day two when 

we ran into no less than four separate 

wildfires blocking our route, forcing a 

detour down paved highways. Despite a 

late night with a couple near disasters, 

we were not physically defeated, however 

we were mentally. After nearly 500 km, 

roughly 50-percent of our travel was on 

dirt trail, as we were forced to bypass five 

trails. Our priorities had now changed, no 

longer are we trying to get to the Mexican 

border off-road, now we were just trying 

to get there with as many off-road 

kilometres as possible. 

Disappointed, but at ease with the 

realities of goals lost, we broke camp and 

continued along the first leg of the day 

towards the town of Ellensburg, WA. 

The trail was a nice technical winding 

lane through an arid forest that slowly 

became more and more narrow. With 

our Backcountry Discovery Route maps 

programed into the GPS systems (iPhone 


on the Blake’s KLR650, iPad in the Grand 

Cherokee EcoDiesel), the route seemed 

to make a turn into a very overgrown side 

trail. Dismounting, we scouted ahead 

to find our first disappointment of the 

day. The trail had been excavated with 

a large ditch and hill and turned into a 

horse trail. Blake could have likely gotten 

the KLR through the obstacle, but there 

was no way a stock Grand Cherokee was 

going to make it without a winch and 

total disregard for the aesthetics of the 

bumpers. 

We moved up to a clearing at the top 

of a hill to get our bearings and break out 

the map. There was a “Y” in the road a 

kilometre ahead that provided an alternate 

route into Ellensburg, so we pushed ahead 

with plan B. 

Plan B came to a rapid halt at the 

“Y” junction where we met a local bow 

hunter who gave us the rundown on the 

current fire situation on the west side 

of the range. “Don’t bother going down 

there, you’re just going to get turned 

around in 20-miles, it’s all on fire.” With 

the map on the hood once again, our only 

option was to take a service road back out 

to Wenatchee, the town we were in the 

night before. We were effectively moving 

backwards. 

A smoky haze followed us throughout the trip. 


We drove a great twisting mountain road down to the 

highway and cruised our way to Ellensburg with smoke getting 

thicker by the minute. Connecting to some Wi-Fi at a Dairy 

Queen, we could now reevaluate the situation. The local forestry 

news had reported that the fire situation was bordering on crisis. 

Nearly every mountain range had a fire burning out of control 

and the air quality was getting toxic. By some miracle our next 

leg was clear, an easy climb over the grassy hills of Umptanum 

ridge, followed by a steep climb over Cleman Mountain. The 

second half of the day was looking up. 

The smoke cleared as we climbed out of Ellensburg, and the 

sobering sight of massive wild fires burning on the side of three 

mountains dropped my jaw in awe. It looked like volcanoes spewing 

ash into the air. 

Arriving at the entrance to the Umptanum pass, we aired down, 

and proceeded into the wide-open hills. The road was extremely 

wide and we had vision for kilometres, until some crazy driver in a 

Subaru passed us rather recklessly in a great cloud of dust. My first 

thought was it must have been a rally driver getting some practice, 

with such a wide and smooth road. Nope, I was wrong. 

The Subaru pulls Blake over and the two get into a rather 

long chat. At first, I didn’t think anything of it, likely another 

friendly local giving us some helpful advice. Then the Subaru 

backs up to the Cherokee and an arrogant little mirrored aviator 

sunglass-wearing dude, proceeds to lambaste me. He identified 

himself as a volunteer police deputy; I will refer to him as 

Deputy Cranky Pants. Well, Deputy Cranky Pants goes on the 

craziest of all power trips, spewing gibberish for the first three 

minutes, something about speeding, radioing ahead to the police 

up the road to arrest us, then accuses Blake of doing 70 mph. 

“Whoa, whoa, that bike doesn’t even do 70! You go ahead and 

call your buddy up ahead and get him to arrest us.” I was in no 

mood to take any more abuse, but it was time to exit without risk 

of upsetting an already irate American who likely had several 

firearms within reach. 

The Umptanum Pass was a fun, rather wide-open gravel road; 

however once we passed through a gate into the Oak Creek 

Wildlife Area we finally got our first proper off-road track. 

The steep climb up the valley wall was on a road base of jagged 

rocks the size of softballs. Blake, with his brand new Progressive 

suspension installed, blazed off into the distance, while I had 

to stop, air down and raise the Grand Cherokees suspension 

to “Off-Road II”, as high as the air bags would let me go. The 

rough jagged road through the wide-open scenic vistas slowly 

transformed to a more challenging washout track through the 

higher altitude forest. 

The challenging terrain was just what I needed after all the 

frustrations. Beautiful views and quaint winding roads are 

great, but I needed to be challenged, and Cleman Mountain was 

doing just that. We worked our way up to the peak to reveal 

a magnificently clear view of the whole Cascade Range. After 

so much disappointment, we were finally rewarded after a 

successful climb. 

We decided to celebrate that night by getting a motel and 

The trail up Cleman Mountain was 

tough on tires – and backs. 

The ridgeline along Cleman Mountain 

was the most scenic vistas. 


heading down to a local pub for a welldeserved 

dinner and beer. Making friends 

with the locals, we shut the pub down late 

after closing time. 

The luxury of a hot shower, good food 

in my belly and a queen size bed all to 

myself was milked for all it was worth. I 

don’t think we hit the road before 10:00 

am. The entry to our first leg of the day 

was only a few kilometres down the road 

from the motel. As usual, we came upon 

a challenge first thing in the morning, 

although this was only a herd of sheep 

blocking the road. 

The leg was yet another scenic climb 

through an arid canyon up onto a high 

plateau. The morning heat and talcum 

powder road surface produced massive 

plums of dust. Behind the bike, I had to 

slow to a crawl just to see. By 11:00 am, it 

was 33-degrees Celsius as we came down 

onto the White Pass for a road section into 

Packwood. 

Despite climbing to the passes high 

point, the temperature continued to 

climb along with the thickness of smoke 

filling the air. Cresting the top, we were 

welcomed with an eerie sight. The thick 

smoke obscured the view of the monster 

in the distance. Mount Rainier in all its 

majesty is a daunting sight; even more 

mystic when it seems as though it does not 

want to be seen. 

We rolled into the small town of 

Packwood where the temperature 

continued its upward movement, reaching 

38-degrees. We stopped at the local market 

to grab some fruit, veggies and beer, only 

to be blasted by the heat reflecting off the 

asphalt of the parking lot. The market 

was air-conditioned and we realized we 

walking in circles just to prolong our 

exposure to air conditioning. 

Back at the Jeep, I took time to bang 

out the air filter, leaving an impressive pile 

of Washington State’s finest dust on the 

ground at the Chevron before we pushed 

back into the hills on our final leg of the 

Washington Backcountry Discovery route 

(WABDR). Our last night in Washington 

would be Wallup Lake. After a rather busy 

run up several dusty winding roads, we 

arrived at the lake earlier than planned. 

I was relieved to learn it was $18 for the 

night and there was lots of room. A cold 

dip in the mountain lake was our reward 

for a long hot day in the dust. 

Leaving camp on day number five, 

we were inspired on the first leg by great 

vistas of Mount Adams and the backside 

of Mount St. Helens. An amazing number 

of campsites litter this region; people here 

really like to get out into the wilderness. 

We left the roller coaster mountain 

runs behind, following a wide forest 

covered valley south towards the Oregon 

border. These roads were driving me 

nuts, potholes becoming the bane of my 

existence. Blake’s bike was soaking up 

every little bump, but I would have to 

almost come to a stop for every series of 

holes. 

After some playful driving through 

several large mud pits and water crossings, 

we arrived in Stevenson, the end of the 

WABDR. What had been a hot, dusty, 

exhausting, fire plagued route, ended 

in a mud bath as we reached the routes 

ceremonial end at the Bridge of the Gods. 

But where now? 

Finding some Wi-Fi in town, we 

contemplated the rest of the trip. To our 

horror, we found that fire was blocking the 

Oregon route as badly as the Washington 

route, and California was even worse. 

We had to abandon our off-road quest. I 


The Cherokee washing some of the dust off. 

needed to get the Jeep back to Chrysler, 

but Blake made the run to Baja on the 

Coast Highway, making a pilgrimage 

to the iconic Mikes Sky Ranch outside 

Ensenada, Baja. 

While our goal of completing the 

border-to-border expedition failed 

epically, it was nevertheless a grand 

adventure. The Washington Backcountry 

Discovery Route is a magnificent route 

that takes you through some of the most 

scenic terrain in the North West. The 

Grand Cherokee turned out to be the 

perfect vehicle for the task. The roads 

were easy enough that you could pass 

with a stock vehicle, challenging enough 

that it needed to be a Jeep. Even more 

impressively, the EcoDiesel completed 

the entire 900 km of the route on a single 

tank of diesel. For those who are looking 

for an overland adventure, I can’t say 

enough about the WABDR. It is a hugely 

rewarding trip, but whatever you do, for 

the love of God, don’t go in August. 

The end of the Washington Backcountry Discovery Route. 


WORDS AND PHOTOS BY TOM SEVERIN 

An Army 

Marches on 

Its Stomach 


And so does a 4x4 trail ride 

57

Catering would be great, but not practical unless you 

have a large group with dedicated volunteers. 

We were in a real jam. Two days 

into a 10-day trip, mechanical 

problems forced two vehicles 

to head home. We hated to lose our fourwheeling 

friends, but more importantly, 

we ran into a minor food crisis: How do 

we account for the meals those individuals 

were scheduled to prepare? 

Each of us brought food for our 

designated meals, but we were counting 

on those individuals to contribute on 

their assigned days. Suddenly we were 

scrambling to account for their departure. 

This incident, while not typical of a 

4WD experience, does happen. A good 

Trail Master understands and accepts this, 

and factors it into trip planning. Of all the 

myriad decisions you make, one is how to 

handle meals. 

Having each truck provide a meal is an 

easy way to distribute cooking duties, 

as long as no one drops out. 

There are three possibilities, 

although only two are practical 

for the average 4WD trip. 

1 Everyone cooks his or her own meals 

2 Cooking duties are rotated among the 

participants 

3 All or most of the meals are catered. 

At the end of a long day, I am not 

interested in cooking for a large crowd, 

so I won’t deal with the catered meal 

option. It can and does work if you have 

a club (with lots of volunteers) putting 

on an event. 

Make this decision early on so you 

can move forward with your planning. 

Generally this is a fairly easy decision 

when traveling with friends or family 

members. Even better, you might have 

a cook in the group. That’s a huge plus. 

It gets a bit more complicated when you 

travel with those you don’t know as well. 


Want to make it easy on yourself? Ask 

everybody to be responsible for his or her 

own meals. 

Added food packing space is always ideal, just 

in case you loose a couple vehicles. 

Let’s study your options for meal 

preparation. 

Participants Cook Their Own 

We talk a lot about self-sufficiency in four 

wheeling. It’s important for participants to 

have the right gear and supplies with them. 

Responsible four wheelers never go off-road 

hoping they can lean on others. Food is no 

different. At a minimum, all four wheelers 

need to prepare for emergencies, which 

can include being stranded alone. A big 

advantage here is that everyone enjoys his 

or her favourite meals. Remember that we’re 

talking about breakfast, lunch and dinner. 

The entire party doesn’t encounter issues 

related to personal preferences, allergies or 

other matters. In theory, everyone is a happy 

camper, at least as far as meals go. 

As Trail Master, your trip plan 

should include enough information so 

that participants can plan their meals 

accordingly. Even so, be prepared to help a 

guest who forgot a key item or utensil. 

And, you may have a cook in your 

group—that’s a big plus. On my last trip, I 

heard “cook you breakfast if you have the 

bacon and eggs.” I did and enjoyed it. 

There are a couple drawbacks to 

this model. 

If one group forgot to pack a particular 

food item or utensil, those folks may have 

to go without. It just depends on whether or 

not anyone else has what they need. 

The larger issue I’ve seen is more of 

a social one. Everyone tends to gravitate 

toward and hang around his or her own 

campsite. We don’t get as much interaction 

and bonding. I prefer that in my outings. 

Family Style 

There is a hybrid model that works pretty 

well for dinners. With this, we set up a big 

grill over the campfire. Everyone cooks his 

or her own food on the grill. Participants still 

congregate, and there is no squabbling over 

preferences. Those who don’t like grilled 

food, of course, are encouraged to bring 

something else. 

Rotate Cooking Duties 

With this arrangement, each vehicle/ 

group cooks at least one day’s worth of 

meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner). That 

can entail a significant amount of food for 

larger parties and longer excursions. Each 

vehicle/group would be responsible for 

more than one day of cooking. 

This arrangement promotes familystyle 

dining. Everyone gathers around 

a campfire at day’s end, and then enjoys 

what the “cooks of the day” have prepared. 

It’s a great way to spend an early evening. 

It is nice to have several days off from 

‘cooking detail’. The diversity of meals is 

generally enhanced. But ask everyone for 

his or her menu to avoid chicken every 

night. The next outing might promote 

some competition among the chefs to the 

benefit of the “eaters”. 

It takes significantly more planning and 

coordination. You need to know all the 

participants can cook a reasonable meal 

for everyone’s enjoyment - beyond hot 

dogs and beans. 

One risk with shared meals is that 

you’ll get shorted if a vehicle backs out, as 

on one of our trips. The remaining meals 

are now spread among fewer participants. 

Those leaving offered us the food 

planned for their meals. Problem was, 

we were really tight for space, especially 

for perishables. One guy lent us an ice 

chest, but the on-board refrigerators left 

with their owners. The remaining vehicles 

didn’t have the room for those anyway. 

Had those vehicles departed later in the 

trip, everyone’s supplies would’ve been 

lower and storing the extra food would not 

have been a problem. 

If this happens during your trip, make 

sure you grab any utensils, spices or other 

ingredients necessary for those other 

meals. They are easy to forget in the chaos 

of the moment. 

Dinners can also go potluck style. Make 

sure everyone is clear on what they’re 

expected to bring. Otherwise you could 

end up with nothing but chips and salsa. 

As Trail Master you have many 

responsibilities. One of these is 

coordinating the meals. What are some 

issues you’ll face, and how will you address 

them? Based upon the make-up of your 

party, try to determine what offers the 

most enjoyment for your participants. 

Lots of other things can go wrong on a 

trip. That just adds to the adventure. But 

great meals and plenty of food make the trip! 

Tom Severin, 4x4 Coach, teaches 4WD 

owners how to confidently and safely use 

their vehicles to the fullest extent in difficult 

terrain and adverse driving conditions. 

Visit www.4x4training.com to develop or 

improve your driving skill. 


PART ONE 

The GREAT Words and photos by John Volc 

Newfoundland 

ADVENTURE 

A QUEST FOR LA POILE OVERLAND 


There are only two conventional ways into La Poile, Newfoundland. You can 

travel over water by ferry, or you can travel by air in a helicopter. One way to 

visit La Poile that has never been accomplished is to traverse the wilds of western 

Newfoundland overland by 4WD. Our goals were simple; be safe, don’t wreck the 

trucks, don’t make a mess, and have fun. Our mission; La Poile overland. 


Rose Blanche, Newfoundland. The end of 

paved road and the beginning of a great adventure. 

“Olive,” the Mercedes G-Wagon 

tackling one of many obstacles. 

The crew consisted of Jim and John 

Newell in “Olive” the Mercedes 

G-Wagen and Dwight Elliot and 

I in our trusty Jeep, the “Bad Dog”. Ideally, 

we wanted to try and push as far in towards 

La Poile as possible without breaking any of 

our cardinal rules. From our research, two 

things seemed abundantly clear. First, there 

was a very high probability that we would 

not make it through the bogs that formed 

the headwaters of the La Poile/Bunker Hill, 

Garia and Crabbe. Second, if we couldn’t 

find a quad track to lead us through, we 

would probably get stopped by either bogs 

or impenetrable woods as we planned to stay 

truthful to our “don’t make a mess” rule. 

Preparation was paramount when 

assembling gear and packing the trucks 

for anywhere between one and two weeks 

in the backcountry of Newfoundland. Key 

was keeping the load reasonably light while 

carrying enough fuel, food and water to 

last our worst-case scenario. We assumed 

that given the bogs we would have to 

negotiate, there probably wouldn’t be any 

opportunities for taking on clean water 

once we got out of the Crabbe River valley. 


Day One: 

We had a night crossing booked from 

North Sydney to Channel Port Aux 

Basques (PAB) so I had a leisurely start 

to the day. Jim and John were not that 

fortunate as they had to do a last-minute 

re-build on their winch when a quick 

check determined it was no longer 

functioning. It turns out that the brushes 

had seized, but once they were loose, all 

was well in the world again. 

After a very long drive and a stop in 

Sherbrooke for iced coffees and Panini’s, 

we finally made it to North Sydney, 

where we lined up for our ride across 

Cabot Strait on the MV “Highlanders”. It 

was 11:00 pm when we got on board so 

we had a quick drink at the bar and went 

off to our cabins for a snooze. 

The night crossing is an excellent 

option as long as you can get a cabin. 

Spending 6-7 hrs in a half-reclined seat is 

just too much like air travel. 

Enjoying a first sunset on the trail. 

Day 2: “Hamburgers in Paradise” 

Our ferry arrived right on schedule at 

7:20 am NDT, just in time for breakfast 

at the St. Christopher Hotel. Once 

we were working from a solid dietary 

foundation we headed off to a friends’ 

place (Austin) to drop off the doors to 

the Jeep. Thankfully, he saw us coming 

as we drove right by his house. Leaving 

the doors behind freed up 110kg of 

dead weight. Seemed like a good idea 

in theory and the weather forecast was 

strangely positive. Heck, what could go 

wrong, eh? 

Austin also lived in La Poile (aka 

“Little Bay”) so we asked him about 

access. As with pretty much everyone we 

spoke to, he was very nice but pretty firm 

on the idea that not only does no one go 

there overland without snow, but that it 

would be impossible. 

Not to be deterred, we headed out of 

town for the hour-long drive to the St. 

Fintan Irving station. This would be our 

final fuel stop, which would require: 

Dog Food (aka “gas”) 

- 70L (in tank) 

- 40L (on rear rack) 

- 30L (on roof rack) 

When in doubt, go for a walk. 

Water 

- 20L (in Sceptre can) 

- 15L (as ice in cooler) 

Liquids added an additional 150 kg, 

which more than made up for the missing 

doors but we would get lighter with time. 

Stocked, we found the trailhead, aired 

down and headed in country. The scenery 

was spectacular as we travelled along the 

north side of the valley. We stopped for a 

quick lunch and continued across to the 

south side of the valley. 

It turns out that Bowater developed this 

area for logging a couple of decades ago 

but actual logging operations never took 

place. This means you drive along very 

well engineered roadbeds and bridges, and 

then the road just vanishes into the forest. 

Needless to say, things got interesting 

pretty fast. 

We made a bit more progress over the 

next hour but it was clear that we were not 

going to make the next 10 km required 


Route recalculation in analog. 

Several trails lead to impassable bogs or rivers. 

to make Berteau Hill. With twilight on its 

way, we backtracked to a level spot and set 

up camp. 

Jim and John got dinner started with 

Jimmy Buffet playing from the speakers, 

so we dubbed this “Camp Burgers in 

Paradise.” Dwight cut down a dead tree 

and “junked ‘er up”. Quick work with the 

axe and we had a nice fire to keep the few 

bugs at bay. Captain Morgan and I made 

sure no one went thirsty (hydration is 

very important) and I took up my post 

guarding the fire. 

After a great first day on the trail, we 

were encouraged to head to bed when a 

light rain started. 

Day Three: “You Can’t get There 

From Here” 

Over night, right on cue, the wind 

whipped up and the rain hammered in 

soaking pretty much everything. We made 

breakfast in some light drizzle. It looked 

like the day might actually clear so spirits 

were high in spite of the cold wind, soggy 

clothes, sleeping bags and gear. Taking the 

doors off didn’t look like such a great idea 

any more. 

We worked our way through breakfast 

and packed up the tents during a brief lull 

in the drizzle. Just to show we knew how 

to close the barn door after the horse had 

all bolted... we covered up our gear with 

the very nice, dry tarp we had stowed in 

the back of the Jeep. 

The sky continued to brighten as 

we tried to get on a bare ridge to our 

north, in the hopes that we could get 


Camp is set for day two on the trail. 

out onto the hard, rocky barrens to the 

east. Curiously, we found a screen-grab 

of Google Earth that was very useful 

in giving us an overview of the various 

trails as the printed topography maps 

did not show most of the smaller trails. 

It was difficult to get an overview of the 

surrounding country while just seeing 

trail info with our GPS. Ideally, having a 

ruggedized laptop with the area cached in 

Google Earth would allow you to pick off 

elevations as well as latitude and longitude. 

We found the right trail and worked 

our way up onto the ridge, only to find 

ourselves in a small bog on the wrong side 

of a pond. After getting “Olive” unglued, 

we walked the small trails to find that they 

all lead to great shooting nests for duck 

hunters, but nothing to lead us around 

the pond. We also found that the area was 

a strange mix of steep terrain and small 

bogs. It was all very picturesque, but tough 

to traverse. 

Turning around was an exercise in 

balance and we worked our way back to 

the main road. More out of “what the 

hell” than anything else, we tried a track 

to the west leading into the Long Range 

Mountains. It had another branch that 

may have headed south but the bridge 

was out of commission and the brook was 

not crossable without major roadwork, 

so we continued to curl up to the north 

while climbing a ridge looking down onto 

the Highlands River. Great views but the 

After the defeat of the southern route, a campfireside 

northern route plan is hatched. 

direction and terrain was not going to 

help us get to La Poile. 

The sun was out, the weather was mild 

and we were getting close to feeding time. 

We decided to head into the backside of 

Bill Shears Pond and find a place to camp 

and re-think our plans. On the way in, we 

ran into some nice folks in side-by-sides 

who were very adamant “You’ll never get 

them rigs in there!” We found this odd in 

that they were sitting in what amounted 

to a glorified golf cart on 25-in tires, 

while we were sitting in a fairly capable 

truck sitting on 38-in tires. Simply 

stated... getting in was no real issue. We 

found a nice, level site looking out over 

a pond and got to setting up camp. Job 

one was digging out all the soggy clothes, 

sleeping bags and gear and getting some 

sun on them while it was light. 

We set up our tents as soon as things 

got the least bit dry-ish. The next job 

was dinner. As we were having Italian, 

the red wine seemed appropriate. We 

scarfed down a big load of spaghetti with 

meatballs and spicy Italian sausage and 

then sat back to enjoy the fire, moonrise 

and discuss “where-to-now?” 

A wiped-out bridge blocked the northern 

route over a small gorge, the southern 

route ended in bogs and dense forests. 

We had failed to find the elusive quad 

track in country. There was still a desire 

to make the destination, so we discussed 

the possibility of the first approach route, 

which was north from Ilse aux Morts, then 

east across Garia Brook and then south 

to La Poile. We decided to head into PAB, 

camp in a campground, get a hot shower 

and ask around a bit for advice. We now 

had purpose and sleep came quickly in 

anticipation of new scenery. 


PART TWO 

The GREAT Words and photos by John Volc 

Newfoundland 

ADVENTURE 

RIDE ALONG IN A QUEST FOR LA POILE, NL, OVERLAND 


After four nights on the trail, 

camp gets a bit disorganized. 

We left the first part of this 

ambitious little adventure on 

the wrong side of a wipedout 

bridge that blocked the northern 

route over a small gorge. The southern 

route, east of Port aux Basques (PAB), 

ended in bogs and dense forests and 

we had failed to find the elusive quad 

track. There was still a desire to make the 

destination, so we discussed the possibility 

of a northern approach, which was north 

from Ilse aux Morts, then east across 

Garia Brook and then south to La Poile. 

We decided to head into PAB, spend the 

night in a campground, get a hot shower 

and ask around a bit for advice. We now 

had purpose and sleep came quickly in 

anticipation of new scenery. 

Day Four: “Table Mountain” 

We found out about some trails leading 

east from Table Mountain that were well 

worth a look. The plan was head north 

to Table Mountain and if we made any 

progress east, we would camp the night 

and then push on, or head back down to 

Ilse aux Morts for “Plan B.” 

It was a cool morning but bright and 

sunny as we prepared for the drive to 

Table Mountain. That meant digging out 

earmuffs and my old ski mask; the ‘no 

doors’ is not as awesome on the highway 

as it is on the trail. 

The drive up to the top of Table 

Mountain is pretty easy as long as you take 

your time. We were both in low range to 

keep the transmission temperatures down 

below 125°C as we were still both pretty 

heavy, but the view was awesome. We took 

a crack at pushing east from the top of 

Table Mountain but called it quits after I 

got mired, got out, and then hit a patch of 

bridging intended for Quads that we did 

not want to destroy, but could not find 

another way around. Our northern route 

was a no-go, time for “Plan B”. 

Note: Our plan for bogs was as 

follows: 

1) Push in with the first vehicle as 

far as you can 

2) Winch forward using a tree or 

rock as an anchor 

3) If (when) in trouble, the second 

vehicle winches you back out 

This was an excellent plan as long as there 

was a tree or rock to use as an anchor, 

but out in the Newfoundland wilderness, 

there wasn’t. This meant there was an everincreasing 

possibility that we would get 

two trucks stuck in the same bog, and that 

would suck. 

Up at Table Mountain, daylight was 

waning so we worked our way down and 

decided to bed down in J.T. Cheeseman 

Provincial Park. This is a must see park. 

The Park rangers are the nicest guys you’ll 

ever meet and the park is well maintained. 

Even the outhouses are spotless. 

Tomorrow we were off to try our luck on 

the barrens. 

Day Five: “Beach and Barrens” 

We packed up and rolled out of the 

park via a road that seemed to skirt the 

shoreline. As we cleared the trees, we 

were met with a tropical paradise. It was 


a shock to find a white sandy beach in 

Newfoundland, but there it was! 

We then found a piece of the 

“T-Railway” system that runs between 

Argentia and PAB, worked our way onto 

the road to Ilse aux Morts, and the start of 

the “Mine Road”. This is a well-maintained 

road that leads deep into the backcountry. 

The scenery is really breathtaking, very 

stark, but still beautiful. 

This was my favourite part of the 

trip and I had never been in this kind of 

terrain. We continued along the road all 

the way into the old gold mine. There is 

still active geology and exploration work 

going on in this area. 

Pushing north off of the main road, 

we quickly met with more boggy ground. 

Finding a bit of solid ground we hiked 

the quad trail leading east. There was a 

lot of bog and no trees to winch to. This 

seemed to be the right area to turn east 

but this was not the spot. Our last plan 

of attack had failed, and we were forced 

to retreat back to the trucks, set up camp, 

and started talking about what we would 

do differently next time. Dwight actually 

conjured up a load of dry wood for a fire - 

quite the trick in this barren landscape. 

A white sandy beach in Newfoundland? Who knew. 

Checking out Table Mountain. 

Day Six: “Room with a View” 

“Friggin’ cold!” That was the thought going 

through everyone’s mind as we slowly 

crawled out of our warm sleeping bags. We 

had established a very smooth, workable 

pattern to our days: wake, eat, pack, drive, 

get stuck, drive, set-up, eat, sleep. In 

between there was ample time for reading, 

telling a good yarn, or venting about some 

minor irritant back in the “real world”. 

Today was a tough day though, from here 

on in, we would be slowly re-entering the 

“real” world instead of pushing out away 

from it. Meh. We had sunshine, hot coffee 

and a lot more trail to run before then. 

We decided to air up and do a bit of 

sightseeing at Rose Blanche. It’s a very 

picturesque town. There was a $5 fee to 

walk out to see the historic lighthouse 

(“You want $5 for what!?!?”) so that came 

off the list out of principle... then there was 

the Tea Room - closed. 

We drove out to Barachois Falls and 

enjoyed the 3 km hike, took a bunch of 

photos and had “kaffee und kuchen” or 

“high tea” in the parking lot. 

Driving back to PAB we noticed the 

Jeep (“Dog”) was being mischievous... 

taking random runs at passing cars and 

trying hard to roll-over and play dead in 

the ditch. Kind of scary! I started thinking 

we had destroyed a ball joint or bent a link 

so we pulled over for a look-see. Dwight 

worked the wheel back and forth and I 

checked for loose joints... all was tight 

and looked good. I stood up and was 

just about to tell Dwight to stop when 

I noticed the hood of the truck seemed 

to be moving back and forth - not good. 

Back down on all fours and I saw that the 

lower connection of the front track bar 

was cracked in two different spots. 

We gingerly drove back to PAB, 

arriving a 5:00 pm, not a good time to 

look for a garage. Jim and John in the 

G-Wagen headed back to J.T. Cheeseman 

Park to set up while we looked for a shop 

that was still open. The kind folks at 


Canadian Tire directed us to Spencer’s, so 

off we limped. 

They were almost ready to head home 

to wives for dinner and a cuddle when 

we showed up. They listened to our tale 

of woe, got us on a hoist, welded up the 

cracks, checked to make sure it was safe 

and sent us on our way. They are the 

best! If you are ever find yourself there, 

ask Frank Spencer about his mini-van 

dragster. 

Day Seven: “Last Tango in Port 

aux Basques” 

We woke up to the sound of rain... 

ugggh... went back to sleep. A little later, 

I heard a light drizzle and the sounds of 

guys getting coffee on. Now it’s time to 

get up. Dwight managed to set my trusty 

Coleman on fire... he claims demonic 

possession of my stove... I say he’d better 

stick to burning wood. 

Science Time – did you know that 

Cheezy’s burn like gasoline? We found 

some stale ones in the bottom of the food 

box and chucked them in the fire to see 

what would happen. Holy Crap! 

We finally packed up and wandered 

into PAB for a few games of pool in 

Lukey’s Boat. Then it was off to the 

ferry for our ride back to Cape Breton. 

When we got to the Agriculture Canada 

Inspection Station (an unhappy man in a 

coat), we were informed that due to the 

state of our trucks we were “a problem”. 

We apologized and said that if there had 

been a car wash of any sort in town we 

would have used it. We were ushered to 

“the inside lane” where miscreants and 

very dirty types are sent. There we were 

met by undoubtedly the happiest young 

lady in all of Newfoundland. She blasted 

the mud off of our truck with a huge fire 

hose all the time smiling like she was the 

luckiest girl alive. 

Our goal of La Poile may have failed 

but the adventure was a fantastic one. 

Let's call it a scouting mission, as we are 

planning to head back. This time we will 

stay longer; have two to three trucks, two 

quads, a base-camp trailer and possibly 

a truck doing a fuel run mid-trip. I can’t 

wait, and we will be sure to have another 

great story to tell. 

Table Mountain may have been a dead-end, but it had a great view. 

No doors on the highway means bundling up. 

The happiest carwash 

attendant we’ve ever seen. 


Bralorne 


BOUND 

One of the 7 Wonders of BC 


Bralorne, an area that rolls off the 

tongue of any knowledgeable 

explorer of BC back roads, is a 

must see destination. However little is 

usually mentioned of the hidden gems you 

will find along the way. It was May Long 

weekend, and I had a dream destination, 

one that had been on my list for years. 

I left the lower mainland Saturday 

morning heading up the 180 km of the 

beautiful West Harrison FSR; this route 

is a great beginner off-road exploration 

opportunity. Nothing too challenging, 

however it will leave you breathless with 

mesmerizing waterfalls, hidden coves off 

trails along the lake, and the vast beauty of 

the mountains that embrace the waters. After 

a leisurely drive, and taking a few hundred 

pictures, I was nearing the Pemberton area 

as the sun was starting to set. 

The Hurley wasn’t open for the season, 

so I found a quiet camping spot a bit 

off the main road. The next morning I 

enjoyed spectacular mountain views as I 

drove one of my favourite paved scenic 

routes, the Duffy Road to Lillooet. I made 

my way to Horseshoe Canyon, stopping to 

grab a few geocaches along the way, 

The Horseshoe Canyon could easily be 

one of the 7 Wonders of British Columbia, 

there is nothing more calming then sitting 

on the edge of the precipice, looking down 

at the sandy cliffs that hold you up, and 

gazing over at the walls of the canyon 

surrounding you. Visible layers show the 

passage of time, displaying BC’s geological 

past in a single glimpse. 

The primary road from Lillooet to 

Bralorne is a scenic route that offers 

a unique half pavement, half off-road 

experience where you can see the ravages 

of past forest fires, the culture of the 

aboriginal peoples, with the option to 

explore many tougher side roads and 

offshoots leading to amazing vistas with a 

little bit of low-range use. 

Along the Carpenter Lake road, you 

have the opportunity to visit the historic 

sites that still remain since the flooding 

from the dam, including Minto Mine, 

located at the well-marked campsite on 

what used to be the town of Minto. I don’t 

recommend exploration of abandoned 

mines, however I could not resist grabbing 


The Horseshoe Canyon could be one of the 7 

Wonders of British Columbia. 

An old pickup truck left 

to the ravages of time. 

a headlamp and taking a quick glimpse. 

The growths on the ceilings and walls 

were mesmerizing, and the colours that 

I could see through the headlamp were 

beautiful shades of red, and pearlescent 

white. Remnants of the working mine 

could still be seen in the little signs 

hanging along the walls, the metal spikes, 

and the wires running along the ceilings. 

I turned a corner and saw the wooden 

structures that still remained. Several 

chutes branched off, along with a larger 

central room that had a rather large 

hole in the middle of it, along with what 

appeared to be drop-in ramps for the carts. 

I closed my eyes for a moment, and 

could hear echoes of the men that had 

worked here decades ago. I could hear 

their laughs as they made their way 

through the day, and their frustrated 

grumblings when things didn’t work, and 

feel their pain as they were injured from 

the carts slamming fingers. It was time 

to go, I could smell a whiff of air that 

wasn’t quite right, and knew that I’d return 

another day to explore more. 

Next up was Goldbridge and Bralorne. 

When you first come into the town, there 

is a little side road to the right, which will 

lead you to the magical Will Haylmore 

Heritage site. You can explore the site, 

step into the buildings, and see the pieces 

of machinery that still litter the grounds. 

It’s a great introduction to what you can 

expect as you head further into town and 

outlying areas. 

On your way you’ll pass by “The Model 

Bakery”, which put out 6,000 loaves per 

week at one time. A little further on are a 

few businesses that remain running and 

abandoned cars that will bring a smile 

to your face. Then, like an episode out of 

the twilight zone where time has stopped, 

you’ll see the rows of neat tidy houses, 

which have stood vacant for years. 

A short jaunt up the road, an 

unexpected afternoon of adventure, 

exploring and wonder await. Your next 

stop is the Pioneer Mine and the town 

built for those who pulled gold out of the 

mountain. This historic area was one of 

the most important gold mines in B.C. for 

most of the 20th century. As you crest the 

hill, you can see a decaying structure to 


Deposits inside the old Minto Mine. 

the left on a hillside, making you wonder 

which will give way first. To the right of 

you is a mechanical graveyard, which will 

make any photographer feel like a kid in a 

candy store. 

Among the gears, discarded wires, and 

wood splintered by rusty bolts, you can 

hear the murmurs of abandoned dreams. 

You can stand in the dynamite room, a few 

root cellars, and the remains of the bridge 

where vehicles once crossed. 

A little further up the hill (which can 

be accessed either by hiking, or directly 

by road if you go back into town and 

take a side route) you will find another 

hidden gem. The homes of “Pioneer 

Town” are starting to lose the war with 

Mother Nature. You can still find a 

lightbulb in a socket, and under the floor 

joists, plumbing lines that brought all the 

modern conveniences to this now desolate 

locale. I was amazed at how well preserved 

some objects were, standing along side 

items ravaged by the passing of time. 

It was nearing dark and time to head 

to the Yalokum River Recreation Site, 

however I made one last stop at the house 

of ill repute. It really hits you when you’re 

The Model Bakery in Bralorne. 

standing in archways of the abodes of our 

ancestors how different life was, in a way 

that you can’t comprehend until you are 

surrounded by the ghosts of the past. I 

had attempted, but failed, to find the old 

RCMP detachment I’d heard rumour of. 

So many places up here that I still need 

to explore, an area that will keep me 

entertained for years to come. 

The house of ill repute 

at Yalokum River. 


Words by Tom Severin, photos courtesy of Wavian, Daystar, Rotopax, Flo n Go and Never Stop 

Take it With You 

Jerry Cans can make sure you 

see the end of the track 

Due to a number of variables, it’s 

difficult to say precisely how 

much extra gas you need for a 

particular trip. Generally, 20L to 40L 

is enough for most trips. That will get 

you to another source of fuel in most 

circumstances. 

One factor is your vehicle’s mileage 

while off-road. As a newer driver, 

you’re not likely to know that. Your first 

few trips should be on shorter routes 

close to civilization. These give you the 

chance to measure the difference in fuel 

consumption of your vehicle off-road, 

and of course, build some skills. 


One well-known 

model is the “jerry” 

can (sometimes 

called NATO style). 

Rotopax Gas Cans RotopaX cans are 

rectangular and feature handholds 

and openings that allow you to mount 

them in a variety of ways. 

Sizes, styles of gas cans 

You have several styles and brands to choose 

from. In most cases, the style is dictated by 

how you plan to mount the gas can. 

One well-known model is the “Jerry” 

can (sometimes called NATO). Wedco 

and Wavian make this type in steel. The 

most common size is 20L, which easily 

holds 5 gallons. Incidentally, the 5L 

just the right size for holding wine, but 

probably not food grade. 

The “Jerry” can has been around since 

WWII. An important feature is the special 

cap. Note that it clasps securely, thereby 

eliminating leakage while you’re bouncing 

along on the trails. 

The cans must now be sold with a 

unique funnel. With that special funnel 

the gas can is CARB compliant. CARB 

stands for California Air Resource Board. 

Look for the “CARB Compliant” label on 

all gas cans and spouts, even if you live in 

other states or provinces. 

RotopaX cans are rectangular and 

feature handholds and openings that 

allow you to mount them in a variety of 

ways. They come in smaller sizes than the 

Wedco cans, too. The 7.5L version is very 

popular. The cans can be stacked together 

for easy transport. 

Cam Cans, by Daystar, are designed to 

mount on the inside of the spare tire with 

the hardware provided. They are available 

in convenient 7.5L versions. When you 

are first setting up your rig and need a 

quick solution, before you have had time 

to add tire racks and roof racks, look at 

the Cam Cans. 

Another option is the fuel caddy by 

AEV. This is designed to mount between 

the spare tire and tailgate. A nifty 

arrangement, and at 20L, it has a lot of 

capacity. The caddy is quite heavy with that 

amount of gas, so it stays mounted while 

you refuel. You’ll want to use something 

like a Super Siphon, described below, to 

transfer the gas to your tank. 

A final option is to install another gas 

tank. That’s an expensive route, although 

a very nice solution for long-range 

overlanding. Make sure the gas tank is 

installed properly and that your vehicle still 

meets air quality standards; that is your 

vehicle will still pass any local emissions test. 


Another modular 

system is the Daystar 

Cam Can. 

You don’t always need that much 

extra gas while four-wheeling, though 

and 10 to 20 litres is usually plenty. 

How to mount the gas can 

The most common method involves 

mounting on an after-market bumper. 

Most replacement bumpers are designed 

to accommodate the spare tire and 

at least one 20L gas can - many come 

with two slots for cans. RotopaX cans 

and AEV’s fuel caddy, as mentioned 

above, mount nicely to the spare wheel 

assembly. (Some extra hardware may be 

needed.) 

Gas cans may also be transported 

on the top of your vehicle. By far the 

largest drawback to roof top storage 

is lifting the cans into place. As a rule 

of thumb, you can assume gas weighs 

about 3 kg per 4L (depending on the 

blend and additives it can be a bit more 

or less). So a full 20L can of gas is in the 

neighborhood of 14 kg (30 lb). Not too 

bad, until you have it overhead. 

By the way, 4L of water is nearly 4 kg, 

which explains why a 20L can of water 

at 19 kg is so much harder to lift onto 

Cam Cans can be stacked and 

attached to the spare tire assembly. 

the roof rack. Also you should use these 

calculations to determine the load you 

are placing on the roof rack. Six cans 

at 14 kg is 82 kg, which might actually 

exceed the rated capability. 

I have a backup plan for the days I feel 

too weak to muscle a can of gas onto the 

roof rack. I strategically placed the gas cans 

behind the sunroof so I can pop through 

and lift one up from the front seat! 

How to safely fill and use gas cans 

Safety is paramount, even when you’re 

filling gas cans. 

Static electricity is a real concern when 

working with fuel. Turn off your vehicle 


There are several ways to 

transfer fuel from can to tank. 

Siphoning doesn’t require you suck gas anymore. 

before filling. As you step out of your vehicle, 

touch some metal part of the car. Fill the gas 

can only when it’s on the ground. 

Never smoke while filling. Turn off 

your engine and extinguish any flame 

that is nearby. Don’t transport gasoline 

inside a vehicle. The fumes can build up, 

overpowering the occupants and creating 

an explosive situation. 

Make sure you use the proper colour of 

gas can for fuels: red for gasoline, yellow 

for diesel and (typically) green or blue for 

water. The one drawback to Cam Cans 

is that they don’t come in red or yellow. 

Make sure you clearly mark which ones 

are used for fuel and which contain water. 

Siphoning gasoline (and other fuels) 

used to be a challenge. Remember getting 

gas in your mouth? Well, times have 

changed. Safety Siphon and Super Jiggler 

have developed a nifty siphon that doesn’t 

require you to suck the gas. The siphon is 

simply a clear piece of plastic tube with 

a special brass valve on one end. After 

inserting the brass end in the source of 

fuel, you jiggle it a few times. That will get 

the fuel flowing. It’s like magic. 

Both brands are relatively inexpensive, 

and they’ll drain a gas can in minutes. 

These siphons rely on gravity flow, so the 

gas can should be above the gas tank inlet. 

Funnels work in a pinch but be careful 

to minimize spillage. 

If you plan to store your gas for at least 

a month, add fuel stabilizer (STA-BIL or 

Motor Medic) to the fuel. Typical mix is 

60 ml for every 20L of gas. Manufacturers 

claim it’ll last up to one year. I’ve had gas 

remain in good condition for upwards of 

18 months. 

Carrying extra gas is important for 

every 4WD trip. Use this information to 

help you determine which type and size(s) 

of gas cans are best for your vehicle and 

driving. You can then go four-wheeling 

confident that you have some spare gas if 

your tank runs low. 

Tom Severin, 4x4 Coach, teaches 4WD 

owners how to confidently and safely use 

their vehicles to the fullest extent in difficult 

terrain and adverse driving conditions. 

Visit www.4x4training.com to develop or 

improve your driving skill. 


Words and Photos by Brady Melville of Pathmaker Productions 

EXPEDITION 

Camping Trip 

Hitting the road with a very basic itinerary and a 

wish to see some of the untouched corners of the USA. 


The Milky Way hangs over the camper in the 

Alabama Hills near Lone Pine, CA. 


A lone Bison stands beside a lazy river in 

Yellowstone National Park 

I 

had left my full time job, equipped a 

small pop-top camper, put it on the 

back of my Chevy, and hit the road 

with a very basic itinerary and a wish 

to see some of the untouched corners 

of the United States as I travelled from 

one off-road event to another. With one 

to two weeks in between events, I had a 

ton of freedom to choose my path. The 

route would take me towards Colorado 

for a W.E. Rock and Dirt Riot Event, 

through Utah, Nevada and California, for 

an Ultra4 race, then back north through 

Oregon and Washington for another W.E. 

Rock event. Along the way I planned to 

hit as many National Parks as I could, 

but because of my tight budget, I tried to 

find free camping every night of the trip 

(which turned out easy once I learned a 

few tricks on the road.) 

Setting off from home base in 

Victoria, BC, every road trip starts with 

a ferry ride, which costs you around 

$80 for one person and a vehicle one 

way. Heading south through the Peace 

Arch border crossing, I started heading 

east with eight days to get to Rangely, 

Axel checking out the moonscape 

at the Alabama Hills 

Camping in the grand Tetons 

with thunderheads above 


Colorado. After a long day of driving and 

getting all the way to Spokane, I had the 

fantastic luck of starting the first night of 

my trip in a fender bender while listening 

to the GPS. We exchanged numbers and 

no one was hurt, but I learned a valuable 

lesson, if you’re not in a hurry don’t drive 

for 11 hours straight! Wal-Mart allows 

camping in their parking lots, and while 

it was great in a pinch, it wasn’t really 

what this trip was all about, so I vowed to 

leave myself more time each afternoon to 

find a place to camp. 

I started to learn that if I really 

wanted to see anything (and not burn 

a ton of fuel at 65-80MPH) I should 

stay off the Interstate and look more 

for the smaller State Highways. Mostly 

two lane roads, they take you through 

the backroads and small towns that I 

was looking for. The other benefit of 

the smaller highways was a much better 

chance of finding some backcountry 

to camp. My number one tip for 

backcountry camping in the States is to 

keep an eye out for “National Forest” 

not National Park. If you pick a highway 

that travels close to these forests, 

you’ll find small brown signs that say 

National Forest Access and they are 

ungated roads into the backcountry of 

the National Forest. Sometimes driving 

a few kilometres down a gravel road 

allowed me to find a small campsite 

with fire ring that had been created by a 

previous traveller, allowing me to camp 

for free in some of the most beautiful 

places on earth with nothing more than 

a 4x4. 

Figuring this out as I travelled from 

Washington, through Idaho and into 

Montana, I began to get a daily routine. 

Getting up early for breakfast, and on the 

road in time for the morning stop at a 

nearby gas station, allowed me to survive 

quite well without a washroom in my 

camper. I also learned that buying a Wi- 

Fi range extending antenna is invaluable 

with all the free Wi-Fi offered these days. 

I could park in the back corner of the 

Starbucks parking lot (faster free Wi-Fi 

than McDonalds) and update my daily 

blog, staying connected with the world. 

Next I would drive for 3-6 hrs, depending 

Brandy Southall does 

a huge drop in her 

custom moon buggy at 

WERock Rangley. 

Camping in a secluded spot in the Pacific North West 

Clean 4runner rollover 

at WERock Goldendale. 


Levi Shirley kicking up 

dust at Glen Helen. 

Kicking up Dust at Dirt 

RIOT Agate. 

Masa Tsuda flys in 

from Japan for every 

event to participate at 

WERock Goldendale 

on stops, and in the early afternoon I 

would start looking for a camping spot. 

On sunny days I would toss my sunshower 

on the roof of the camper to 

warm up and take Axel (my dog) for a 

bike ride to explore and take photos. 

Entering Yellowstone National Park 

at the north entrance I learned that a 

12 month National Parks pass for $80 

would grant me access for the next year 

at all National Parks and save the $10-25 

daily fee. If you plan on visiting more 

than four National Parks in the next year, 

the pass is a fantastic investment! With 

all the camping in the park booked up 

(and packed with people), I spent the day 

exploring then left the park to setup camp 

in Wyoming. This let me cross back into 

the park the next day (with my new pass) 

and see more of the sights. 

On to Colorado and my first offroad 

event of the trip. After the Dirt Riot race 

I headed into the Rockies, camping for 

free near glacial streams and hiking at 

over 4200 metres near Independence 

Pass. I then worked my way out of the 

mountains and into Utah, passing through 

Moab (often referred to as the mecca of 

off-roading). Free camping options were 

slim near Moab, but some searching on 

www.freecampsites.net found me a place 

to stay for the night, allowing me to visit 

Arches and Canyonlands National Parks, 

a must see if you’re in Moab. Continuing 

southwest towards Nevada I stopped by 

Bryce Canyon and Zion, before heading 


Jason Blanton at Ultra4 

Glen Helen Race. 

Me and Axel taking a minute to enjoy the 

sites in Yosemite National Park. 

across the desert to California and my 

only paid night of camping on my entire 

trip at Joshua Tree National Park. Summer 

being the “off-season” the park is quiet and 

fantastic for exploring, hiking and night 

photography. 

Next up was an Ultra4 race at 

Glen Helen Raceway. After the race I 

continued north through California, 

finding lots of great camping on US395 as 

I travelled along the Sierra Nevada’s, and 

the east entrance to Yosemite National 

Park. Heading west I saw the Pacific 

Ocean for the first time in 47 days, but 

I also found a lot less free camping as 

I made my way through the Redwoods 

and up the Pacific Coast Highway to 

Goldendale for my last offroad event 

of the trip. Leaving Goldendale it was a 

single day drive back to the Canadian 

border after travelling 18,000 km over 63 

days, hitting 11 states, 13 National Parks, 

4 Offroad events and countless photos. 

Check out the entire blog here (http:// 

www.pathmakerphotography.com/blog). 

Brady Melville of Pathmaker Productions 

made a fantasy a reality by leaving 

corporate construction to pursue a career 

as offroad photographer and videographer. 

Share in his adventures offroad at 

www.pathmakerproductions.com and 

www.youtube.com/pathmakerproductions 

for a front row seat on his next journey. 

Sun hangs in the sky over CanyonLands National Park in Moab, Utah. 


Return 


to 

Moly 

A Tale of Murphy’s Law 


We had 36-hours, five trucks and a lot of ground to cover; a few years 

back I’d made my first attempt at Molybdenite Lake; a trip that went so 

spectacularly well, in between the snow and off-camber slippery sections, 

that I thought let’s try this again! Over the years, I’ve learned it’s important 

to go back and revisit the challenges that almost stopped your heart. 


Ferrily along. 

4x4’s in a row. 

The Mistaken Moly. 

We headed up the canyon towards the 

Lytton reaction ferry, our first stop being 

for the legendary Deroche Beef Jerky! 

Reaction ferries are living proof that 

rudimentary functionality is all that is 

generally required, and it is a quite often a 

better return on our investment. 

It turned out our timing was 

impeccable, after half of us crossed it was 

afternoon coffee break for the ferry men, 

and I had a good chuckle waiting for the 

others. It was a reminder that life and time 

work differently here, and you appreciate it 

differently in these remote locations. 

The slower, more picturesque west side 

of the Fraser canyon provides that “almost 

home” feeling for me as wild horses 

greet me through my window, ghosts of 

decaying structures call my name, and 

time stops. We reached the Texas Creek 

forest service road (FSR), turned off, and 

as we approached the four-kilometre 

marker I got my first ever, flat tire while 

wheeling. As we stopped and swapped out 

my tire, I carefully read the signs speaking 

about fines for environmental damage and 


closures during breeding season. 

We continued along the FSR 

surrounded by pristine mountains, 

however none of the area seemed familiar. 

We explored several of the side roads, and 

in the distance, could see the mountains 

cascading down into a valley, which I 

was certain contained Molybdenite Lake. 

Becoming confused I pulled out the GPS 

to load fresh batteries, at which point 

I realized the map chip was now likely 

floating around in the bottom of the Jeep. 

Taking the latitude and longitude, and 

comparing it to the Backroads Mapbook, I 

realized we were somewhat off. 

We headed back taking the correct 

turn off to Molybdenite Lake, with 

further adventures in Murphy’s law 

occurring. Shortly after it became 

apparent that Adrian did not have 4WD, 

and was attempting the climb in 2WD, 

so they attached a tow rope to bring him 

through the rockier sections. As this 

comedy of errors was ensuing, another 

one my tires seemed to be sinking below 

the low tire pressure that I’d normally 

suggest on this run. I’ve travelled 150,000 

km on dirt roads and never had a single 

tire issue. But today, I get two flat tires 

within an hour of each other. As we 

plugged my tire, the tell tale signs of 

overheating struck Shaun’s Jeep, so he 

had to leave it running so the fans would 

keep working – and it didn’t help that his 

e-brake wasn’t at its best when parking 

uphill. 

It was late and I made the executive 

decision to create base camp for the night. 

It was obvious that continuing to the lake 

would push our luck to an unsafe level. 

As I parked the Jeep, I could see that the 

patch job on my tire was failing. 

We started up the fire with the spare 

wood I carried, as it turns out the 

chainsaw I was given will need a bit of 

work before it can be depended on. A few 

stories were shared around the campfire, 

as people got to know each other, and then 

we retired under a perfect star filled sky. 

The next morning, we got up to finish 

the work we needed to continue our trip. 

Shaun got his drone up and running, 

however in the attempt to charge the 

batteries the inverter had shorted out his 

0 PSI. 

Eternal H20. 


cigarette lighter. 

Work started on my tire, taking it off its 

bead so Jody could patch up the sidewall, 

along with re-plugging the other puncture. 

We were then back on the trail, heading 

up a road where even riding as a passenger 

can raise your anxiety level. Half way up, 

Jack’s rear track-bar bracket imploded, so 

Jody secured it by attaching ratchet straps 

to the various tie points to allow a safe 

journey. 

The rugged areas of BC are 

breathtaking, with narrow roads, and 

small slides that increase the off-camber 

sections; the kind of roads that you can 

feel decay as you pass. 

The road snaked along the mountain 

side, with the earth’s ore sliding onto the 

roadway in front of us. To our left we 

could see the rocks scattering down the 

steep hillside to the valley floor far below. 

As much as that makes your heart skip a 

beat, it is quickly offset by the serenity of 

an experience that mixes the child in your 

heart with the adult in your soul. 

We slowly made our way to the lake, 

spots of snow still clinging to the walls of 

the surrounding mountains. One I called 

the Spirit of Moly, as it resembled Casper 

the Ghost. Shaun brought out his drone, 

smiling like a kid in a candy shop. 

I sat on the shore of the lake, my knees 

up to my chin, arms wrapped around 

them, feeling at peace; the drone passed 

over head, zipping along the mountain 

sides and river, heading out over the lake. 

It was time to head back. Shaun wanted 

the tail gunner spot so he could capture 

some footage to put together a video. 

Back at base camp, we swapped out 

my Jeep’s tire, Jody then tackled the 

next project; an on-the-trail welding 

job! Bringing out two batteries from the 

trucks, they were connected with jumper 

cables. Adrian had a few welding rods 

on him and I got a lesson on the science 

behind welding. Several variations in 

the set up were made to get the voltage 

correct, alternating between two and three 

batteries. After some trial and error, Jody 

was successful in getting a firm weld on 

Jack’s bracket. 

Off Camber Humps. 


The beauty of Moly. 

Moly’s Trio. 

Welding 101. 

In the meantime, Jack realized he’d lost 

his phone where he’d stopped to recheck 

the ratchet straps. Shaun drove him back 

up, but over shooting the location, they ran 

back all the way back to the lake; luckily the 

phone was found unharmed. We headed 

into Lillooet, gassed up, grabbing the ice 

cream required at the end of any good 

expedition; then it was time to make a bee 

line for home. 

As we neared Lytton, the very familiar 

big horn sheep were at their five o’clock 

spot, I pulled over with Shaun to grab a 

few shots of them. As I entered town, I 

sighted the waving metal giant, faded by 

decades of service. He has faithfully greeted 

me each time I’ve passed, and I realized at 

that moment where home was; the open 

road amongst those who refuse to settle for 

comfort. 

For video of the trip please visit 

www.shotbyaninja.ca 


WORDS AND PHOTOS BY BUDD STANLEY 

Last Call for 

TUKTOYAKTUK 

Driving the iconic ice road over 

the Arctic Ocean for the last time 



What am I doing here?” These 

are words I’ve uttered several 

times before, and while the 

situations I was in when muttering them 

were extreme, the conclusion to each 

scenario would become an adventure of 

a lifetime and only prove to inspire even 

more extreme adventures. 

In this particular instance, I was 

shivering away in -35°C in a roof top tent 

perched above a 2017 Nissan Titan XD in 

the middle of the Northwest Territories. 

My breath was pushing past my balaclava 

and creating ice crystals on the roof of 

the tent and all around the small facial 

opening in my -30°C sleeping bag. Rolling 

over to cover my face would shake the ice 

off the ceiling, falling as snow. However, 

covering up would melt the ice already on 

my face, getting water into my eyes, which 

would then freeze as soon as I rolled back 

over. It was a rather annoying catch-22 

that kept sleep to a minimum on the 

Dempster highway. 

The Titan Arctic Challenge was an 

overland expedition from Vancouver, 

BC, to the Arctic seaside hamlet of 

Tuktoyaktuk, NT. By “overland expedition” 

I am referring to the fastest growing genre 

of the off-roading lifestyle, that of selfsustained, 

long-distance adventures to 

explore new cultures and environments, 

foregoing the luxuries of hotels, restaurants 

and paved highways – as much as possible. 

The ice road to Tuktoyaktuk was in its 

final year of operation, as an all-season 

road has now been completed. This would 

be the last chance anyone would have to 

drive over the Arctic Ocean on the Tuk ice 

road; something I had always dreamed of 

doing, so it was a now or never decision. 

Nissan provided my team with two 

Titan XD’s – a Cummins 5.0L turbo diesel 

and an “Endurance” 5.6L gasoline V-8. In 

PRO-4X trim these trucks were already 

suited for the task at hand, however, 

such an adventure calls for some specific 

modifications. We grabbed a standard 

tradesman ladder rack and proceeded to 

hack, cut and weld it into the shape we 

needed to fit the Titan XD and mount the 

required expedition equipment. 

On top, we mounted Canadian sourced 

Treeline Outdoors Tamarack roof top tents, 

Budd fabricating the 

expedition rack to fit 

the equipment needed. 


Mark mounting the Wavian 

Jerry Can holders. 

well-built and ready to give shelter in the 

extreme environments we would find in 

the Arctic. Rigid Industries SR2 lightbars 

would provide synthetic daylight in front 

of the trucks, while the company’s Scene 

LED lights would flood the camp with 

light during the cold dark nights. Being 

self-sufficient means being able to extract 

yourself from a sticky situation, as such we 

fitted a set of TRED traction mats, carried 

Gemstone off-road kinetic tow ropes and 

had a Warn Zeon 10-s winch at the ready 

should we really find ourselves in trouble. 

A good tool kit, shovels, radio’s, camping 

kit, first aid kit and Arctic weather clothing 

were also important packing. 

For food, we precooked several stews, 

curries and hardy soups and pre-froze them 

in baggies for easy cooking on the trail. 

After the usual last minute running 

around, Mark Jennings-Bates, Steph 

Jeavons and I found ourselves on the 

Vancouver waterfront, dipping our tires 

into the Pacific Ocean to begin the 17-day 

journey north to the Arctic. It was an oddly 

warm and sunny day in Vancouver, but 

just over the mountains, dark clouds gave 

warning of harsh conditions to come. 

The clouds didn’t lie. Only a few hours 

Expedition start in Vancouver. 


An oddly sunny and warm day in Vancouver. 

While cold, some of our best sleeps were in 

the Treeline Outdoors Tamarack tents. 

The long road 

north. It was 

a 3,800-km 

trip from 

Vancouver to 

Tuktoyaktuk. 

out of Vancouver we ran straight into a 

snow storm. The road quickly disappeared 

under a blanket of white; falling snow in 

the LED lights hypnotizing us as we drove 

through the night to Prince George. Day 

after day, the snow kept falling. Low cloud 

obscured our view of the magnificent 

peaks throughout the BC leg, and gave 

a ghostly feel to the environment as the 

scenery slowly came into view, then faded 

to a dull grey in the rear-view mirror. 

In Whitehorse, we picked up our fourth 

member, Bryan Irons, then made a full day 

push for Dawson City. 

Dawson City is one of my favourite 

places, its small town charm blending with 

the infamous soul of the wild days of the 

gold rush. It was here that I decided it was 

time to initiate my teammates; a Sourtoe 

cocktail was in order for that night. For 

those who do not know, a Sourtoe cocktail 


The sun broke just for a moment to show 

the Cassiar mountains. 

Our off-road portion of the trip 

was impassable due to heavy snow 

fall, but we still found some roundabout 

routes that called for 4Low. 

is a shot of whisky that is taken with a 

human toe. Performed at the Downtown 

Hotel by Captain River Rat, the toe itself 

is usually a frost-bitten amputation 

donated by a trapper to keep the tradition 

alive. The Captain wasn’t on hand for my 

comrade’s experience, but they still got the 

same decree, “You can drink it fast, you 

can drink it slow, but your lips have gotta 

touch the toe.” 

With all four of our team now card 

carrying members of the Sourtoe cocktail 

club, we set out on the iconic Dempster 

highway the next morning. We were now 

getting into real wilderness, unexplored 

terrain and frigid temperatures. 

Finding a campsite was surprisingly 

easy as there are several plowed pullouts 

and abandoned gravel pits - the key is to 

find shelter from the wind. Our first night 

on the road saw temperatures fall to -35°C, 

not extreme cold in the Canadian sense, 

but to camp in these conditions… we were 

pushing the limits of our gear and our 

own stamina. One thing you learn when 

camping in these temperatures is that you 

don’t want to sleep alone. That is, you want 

to have your deodorant, toothpaste, cell 

phone and a canister of propane in your 

sleeping bag with you to keep them from 

freezing, so your morning is a little easier. 

It’s bad enough changing underwear and 

slipping your feet into boots that have sat 

in -35°C all night long. 

A true sign of a good diesel is if it 

Getting up in -30°C is not an easy thing to do. 


Yes… that is a real human 

toe in that Sourtoe 

Cocktail. 

Titan Arctic Challenge reaches the Arctic Circle - 66° 33 North. 

can start in freezing temperatures. The 

Cummins-equipped Titan XD did just that 

in -32°C, with a slightly longer starting whir 

followed by compression ignition. Warm-up 

was surprisingly fast and the heated seats 

and steering wheel were a welcome relief 

from the frigid mornings. 

After another frigid night in the tents, 

we packed up camp and treated ourselves to 

a truckers breakfast at Eagle Plains, only to 

find that the road had closed due to massive 

winds and snow drifts. As a regular visitor 

to New Zealand, the visuals of a wizards 

staff being slammed into the ground while 

the phrase, “You shall not pass!” is shouted, 

echoed in my mind, as the weather gods 

were obviously upset we challenged them by 

camping in such extremes. 

Our wait would not be long, only a few 

hours and a chance to warm our extremities 

indoors with the aid of hot coffee, along 

with several other car and truck loads of 

travellers. Within half an hour we came 

across our first real milestone of the 

expedition, the Arctic Circle. From here 

on in, we would truly be in the Arctic, and 

experiencing weather to suit. 

After crossing the invisible line 

demarcating the Arctic Circle, the clouds 

cleared and the sun came out, and what 

great timing. We were just entering the 

Richardson mountains and the Northwest 

Territories, one of the most spectacular 

landscapes I’ve ever laid eyes on. This 

magnificent area makes a person feel like 

they are on another world, with the wide 

open tundra bathed in white that rolls into 

Greeted by locals as we enter 

Tuktoyaktuk. 


Nissan Titan XD’s at lands’ end. 

Driving over the Arctic 

Ocean is a very surreal 

experience. 

The Robertson Mountain range provides 

some of the most spectacular scenery 

along the 3,800-km route. 

mysterious mountaintops, without a tree in 

sight. 

From Inuvik, we took our first timid steps 

out onto the Mackenzie river, the bitter cold 

billowing clouds of steam from the exhaust 

pipes as the tires threw up ever greater 

clouds of dry snow. 

Driving on the ice road was a very 

surreal experience. High winds had shaped 

the snow into waves next to our trucks. 

As we passed these 'waves', we also passed 

nautical markers placed on the shore, 

making us feel as though we were piloting 

our vehicles down a white river. The ice 

is mostly covered with snow, but every so 

often a bright green hue of ice will show 

through. The road meanders with the rivers 

tributaries, slowly working its way out to sea. 

As soon as the bank on the left side 

disappears, you are out on the Arctic Ocean 

and the ice becomes much clearer. Clear 

enough that you can see the bottom in 

some shallow sections. The ice is thick, great 

cascading cracks sink down nearly 3-metres 

giving away the ice’s thickness. This is a very 

special place, the coast of the Northwest 

Territories to the right, an endless expanse of 

windswept snow to the left. 

Our expedition pulled back onto shore 

in the hamlet of Tuktoyaktuk, a sleepy and 

friendly Inuit town. Driving out onto a point 

that stretches out into the sea, we arrived at 

lands’ end, the furthest north you can drive 

in Canada and our expeditions “mission 

accomplished” point. 

Pushed off the road by a trucker on the Dempster. 

The Titan XD was totally undamaged and was 

extracted easily with the help of Gemstone Off-Road 

kinetic tow ropes. 

Nissan Titan XD 

Cummins on the 

Tuktoyaktuk ice road.

2018 4WDrive Overland SE - June

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