Travel Day 3 - July 28

The E-W crew left Yellowstone National Park and Wyoming behind, and traveled north into Montana to I-90. Once they hit I-90, they traveled west to Butte. At Butte they made a lunch stop, then it was on to Missoula. After a break at Missoula, it was on to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.

Round Lake SP

Mike gave me a call as they waited for our daughter Jen to arrive from Spokane. Jen loves Red Lobster, so the headed across the street to eat.

After dinner, the group travelled north to Round Lake State Park, which is just south of Sandpoint.  The photo at right is a snip from Mike's mySPOT, using the satellite image background.  I can even tell which site they are spending the night at.  Kinda creepy--big brotherish.

- Ellen

Travel Day 2 - July 27

About 0800, the Rocky Mountain collection convoy (still just numbering 1) left the Jackson Hole area and headed through the Tetons to Yellowstone National Park.  They spent the day in Yellowstone, making their way counter-clockwise around the Grand Loop.

They hit the best places, like Mammoth Hot Springs and Old Faithful.  At the end of the day, they headed back to Mammoth Hot Springs.

I had hoped for some pictures.  When I get some from the crew, I will surely post them.  I did not hear from them today, so I hope all went well, and that they had a blast in Yellowstone.

- Ellen

Travel Day 1 - Jul 26

The first component of the Rocky Mountain collection convoy left Thirsty Dirt Ranch on July 26. They traveled north through the Colorado Rockies to Leadville. From there they went over the pass where Climax Mine is and onto the Dillon area. From Dillon they went north over Rabbit Ears Pass to Steamboat Springs and Craig.

After lunch in Craig, they headed north through Baggs, Wyoming to I-80. West on I-80 brought them to Rock Springs, where the headed north again towards Jackson Hole. They camped the night just north west of Jackson Hole.

Day 01
(route estimated by me from SPOT data)

At lunch time, I had a chance to talk to Mike. He said they must have crossed the Continental Divide at least 5 times that morning.

- Ellen

Time to hit the Road

Rainbow over the Valley

Bright and early this morning was First Gear from the Thirsty Dirt Ranch. I was a afraid they would be still packing at midnight last night, but the crew was all tucked into bed by 10:00pm.

They had a fine evening for packing. It was a very hot day, but just about the time they were ready to start loading, we had a brief rain shower. It cooled things off nicely, and gave us a partial rainbow and a colorful sunset.

Nate tying things down

After hooking up The Cave to Greg's F350, they got Electro-Willys and the Juice Box loaded into The Cave. Then the fun began loading up all of the rest of the gear. When you're going to be on the road for over a month, how do you decide what you really need, and what can stay behind? Seems like the guys have thought of just about everything.

All loaded up!

A big thanks to Jack and Steve for assisting in the loading. Neighbor Tom stopped by, and come to find out, he and Owen grew up about 10 miles apart in Minnesota! Another neighbor, Debbie, had stopped by earlier in the day with a copy of her just published book about one of her great adventures.

Owen, Mike, Greg, Nate

After a good night's sleep, the crew was up by 6:00am. A few last minute things were packed into The Cave, and a few last minute photos were taken of the crew with the travelling rig and The Cave.

I will miss the adventure. A tight hug and good-bye kiss with Mike, and they all climbed into the rig and headed down the driveway. I watched til they got to the paved county road, and then I couldn't see them anymore. They are heading north through the Colorado Rockies and into Wyoming today.

Heading out

After lunch, I checked Mike's SPOT page to see their progress. It looks like they had lunch in Craig, CO, and 30 minutes later crossed into Wyoming.

- Ellen

The Electro-Willys Crew

Lots of people have given Mike a hand, but just 3 will be going with him on the AC'12 adventure. Joining him for the trip will be Greg, Nate, and Owen.

Owen, Mike, Nate, and Greg

Mike is retired Army. His love of old jeeps started in high school when he bought a surplus 1952 M38 and rebuilt it. We still have that jeep, and call it the Blue Mule. Electro-Willys shares the garage with the Blue Mule, Kate's Karriage, and a pile of parts that may someday be Green Jeanne. We also have another jeep in there that we are storing for a young man on duty in Afghanistan.

Greg is retired Navy, and lives about 2 hours east of us. We met him when he had some questions about an old jeep he had acquired. Mike and Greg hit it off very well, and discovered that they had many interests and stuff in common. We both have dark green Ford pickups of about the same vintage. One time when they went on a winter adventure, they discovered they even have the same snowshoes! Greg will the the "chase" vehicle driver, and will pull The Cave from camp to camp.

Nate is Greg's grandson from Washington state. He's still in high school, but has a great sense of adventure. When Greg and him have come over to help with the construction of the Juice Box, Nate has shown himself to be a great hand. I've heard he even might be cooking for the team?

Owen is retired Air Force. He was looking for a seat in the convoy and posted to the Facebook page, saying something to the affect of "I'll probably end up sitting on the batteries of that electric jeep". Well, of course, Mike had to contact him after that. The rest is history. Lucky for Owen, he won't have to sit on the battery pack. Owen and his wife came down for a visit a couple of weeks ago to met us all. Owen is the relief driver for the "chase" vehicle, or will rotate in and out of the passenger seat in E-W.

Tonight, the crew converges on our place to pack up Electro-Willys and the Juice Box into The Cave. I know E-W and the Juice Box will fit, but I hope all the other stuff will too! It's T-1 and the hours are ticking by.  First gear from The Thirsty Dirt Ranch will be in the morning.

- Ellen

THE Cave!

The method for hauling Electro-Willys and the Juice Box up to Dawson Creek and Mile 0 has been an evolving process. At first, they were going by the flat-bed car hauler we have. It's a bit short, but with some adjustment, and removal of Juice Box's trailer tongue, it was gonna be a tight fit. The plan was, once they got to Dawson Creek, the flat-bed would then be converted to covered wagon of sorts for sleeping, showering, etc.

Our nephew then offered his enclosed car hauler. It too, was going to be a tight fit length-wise. This spring when we went to check it out, we discovered that the height wasn't going to work. E-W was just too tall with his artic cab.

A quick check on Craig's List showed there were a few larger car haulers for sale. We made a great score on one that was sufficiently long enough, with a bit of room to spare. It is 24' long and 8 1/2' wide.  However, we didn't think about the fact that a change from lead-acid to lithium ion batteries allowed E-W to ride a bit higher on the springs. So once again, height might be an issue.

Greg's F350 will be hauling The Cave

The guys have been custom fitting The Cave, as the car hauler has become know as. They have added propane tanks, a water drum, an on-demand water heater, and a shower. A large tarp will used as a kitchen fly.

View from rear

Last Saturday they put Electro-Willys and the Juice Box into The Cave for the first time.  There's plenty of room side-to-side.  However, the whole combo is longer than anticipated, leaving a bit less from up front for storage.

Front side door

We envision that The Cave will be used for years to come to take E-W, the Blue Mule, or our ATV places. Some day we'd like to add fold-down bunks, and cabinets in the front in end. For now, they guys will be using cots and storage bins. It won't be luxurious, but it will be out of the elements!

- Ellen

A Blog About Blogging

Several people have asked me about how to blog. So, what did I do? I created a blog about blogging for the AC'12.

Okay, so I am too obsessed about the web. It isn't enough that I create and maintain several web pages, now I have blogs!

I hope that the How to Blog for AC'12 Convoy blog is helpful. Let me know what you think, and feel free to ask the "how to" questions over at that blog. If I can't answer them, there is a huge resource at Blogger with lots of helpful forums, etc.

When I went to create a new email for the How to Blog for AC'12 Convoy blog, I had several get rejected, which goes to show that there are probably a ton of blogs on how to blog!

I have lots to learn about Blogger myself, and it seems each time I create a new posting, I learn something new.

Now, back to finishing up some things for Mike!

- Ellen

Meet and Greet with some of the AC'12

AC'12 Convoy

AC'12 Convoy

Some sassy looking old

military rigs!

Mike and I took the day off from Electro-Willys' preparations for the AC'12, and went down to the Front Range. It gave us a chance to test out the SPOT unit.

A collection of participants in the Alaska Highway convoy had converged north of Denver. It was fun to go down and meet everyone, and to see their rigs! They will be heading out Monday and beginning the trek north towards Edmonton, Alberta.

Many are travelling in style in old deuce and a half's that have been retro-fitted with camper accommodations in the back. One even as a patio built on the back-end complete with BBQ grill. Another has beautiful wood cabinets and a REAL toilet--not a camper model. One has a very nice kitchen setup with micro-wave and stove.

AC'12 Convoy

AC'12 Convoy

A Fine Looking Deuce complete with patio!

The place they were all camped out was a private residence with a mega-barn full of OLD trucks and tractors. Among the military vehicles stabled there is an very old truck from WWI--looking much like a mechanized freight wagon instead of a truck. There were a variety of Fords, and even a very old Coca-Cola delivery van.

1950's F-100

Old rusting headlight

I think I'm in love with this Ford on the left!

It was hot and dusty, so mostly we sat in the shade talking and telling stories. As the mini-convoys arrive in Dawson Creek, I'm sure the stories and tales will just get bigger and bigger. By the time they reach Dawson City on the Yukon, they may rival those of Robert Service.

- Ellen