AdventureTaco - turbodb's build and adventures

I'm surprised you skipped the Salt Tram Station at the crest. That's a spectacular overlook and very interesting structure. I drove up to Cerro Gordo and out via the way to the Salt Tram and then continued down the mountain and exit at Swansea.

 

Once Again, thanks for the pics and post. Since I'll never make it out West to explore these places, I can live them through your photo's and colorful descriptions. Keep up the good work, I enjoy reading these adventures, and you obviously have decent camera, since the photo's always turn out nice and crisp. I can't believe you wouldn't crawl inside that wormhole, although I wouldn't have either. Now the solid rock walled mine, yeah I would have to go farther inside just too look. I hope you picked up a few pieces of turquoise, for your wife to keep. Again, great writeup, and good pics.

 

Schatt's is the one place we always stop whenever we go through Bishop. Too bad it's basically a tourist destination these days, always so crowded. Still, hope you enjoyed!

 

I think the blue/green rocks are copper. Looks the same as the tailings at another mine local to that region.

 

Yeah, the Swansea Road is one that we'll have to do another time. I had it on the map just in case this time, but we just didn't have time for it this trip, given the ~20 hour drive home. But hey, just an excuse for next time, amiright?! Really what I'd like to do is go again and attempt the Salt Tram hike from the bottom with a bit more gear and way more daylight - hopefully to Control Station #1. Then, head up to the top, and look down on the tram from there. I think that'd be super cool.

So. Much. To. Do. Need. Clone.

Absolutely, glad you are enjoying! And hey, who knows - maybe you could make it out on a plane some day, and rent a Jeep, and say "Yes, I want the insurance - ALL OF IT BWAHAHAHAHA" and check out a few places!

As far as the turquoise goes - we left it there, as I hope enough people do such that there is always some for explorers like us to see.

Man, definitely a nice find. @mrs.turbodb had to twist my arm to get us to stop there, but even with the crowds (which were thick), service seemed fast, and we found a table outside to enjoy our meals.

I thought so too, and there are nearby copper mines. But the bible (you know the one) says, "peppered with a profusion of minerals, particularly garnet. ... they all display varying amounts of malachite, turquoise, galena, calcite, and a profusion of dark reddish brown garnet crystals." Nothing at all about copper, which - if there was really as much as we saw on the ground - I assume would have been mentioned. The blue also seemed to extend into/through the material, where copper oxidation is generally a surface patina.

Even at that though, if I ran into it somewhere else, I'd have called it copper, so .

 

..i thought copper, looked it up. it is copper. turquoise being a hydrated phosphate of copper and aluminum.

 

In addition to Schatts, check out Great Basin Bakery, Mahogany Smoked Meats, and of course Copper Top BBQ. Those are my usual stops.

 

You had me at Mohagany Smoked Meats. For sure set a waypoint for that place.

 

Had Mohagany for the first time last January. Daaaaaamn that stuff is good. Pricey, but good. I don't think the $30 i spent lasted the drive home. Mostly because it was only a little bit haha.

 

Clean Energy for My Tacoma - Time for a Fuel Filter

Well, the Tacoma got a new fuel filter today. It's a part I've had sitting around for maybe 18 months now or so, just taking up room in the garage. Because, who needs to install a new filter when the one that's on there seems to be working just fine.

Right?

Well, it finally dawned on me why they call it preventative maintenance, and I figured I might as well get it done. Interested in doing this yourself? Here is a handy little how-to that lists the tools and parts you'll need:

How-to: Replace the Fuel Filter in a 96-04 Tacoma or 96-02 4Runner​

First thing I did was to set myself at ease that I wasn't going to have a ¾ tank full of gas all over the floor by doing a little internet surfing to determine that - while a bit of gas would leak out of the lines - without the fuel pump going, it wasn't going to be all that much. Then, I grabbed a few tools and the new filter and got to work - mentioning to @mrs.turbodb that this would either be a 30 minute project or the truck would be undriveable!

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32 minutes later, the old filter had been exchanged for a new one, and the truck fired right up. With no leaks, it was time to cut open the old filter to see if preventative maintenance was overrated.

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The used Fuel filter looks pretty good

 

Did you cut open the fuel filter the exciting way with a grinder and cutting wheel?

 

Agreed. I was expecting much worse. I am however reasonably careful about filling the tank, and keeping the inside of my jerry cans clean, so . Could just be lucky.

Of course! hahahahaha I thought about using the bandsaw, but decided that would contaminate with metal shavings more than the grinder (which left almost no contamination).

 

Favorite Photos - 2019 Edition

Well, another year is nearly in the books - with a lot more trips to amazing places, memories made with old and new friends alike. As the end of the year rolls around, I generally find myself looking ahead to what's coming rather than looking back - so I thought I'd step out of my groove and make a pass through all the photos from the last year, pulling out the ones I really liked for one reason or another.

So let's get started.

My Top 11
It's not easy coming up with my ten favorite photos, so here are eleven. Turns out, also not easy.

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In the clouds.
Parking on this helipad on one of the highest roads in Idaho, the truck was literally up there.
The harsh light and extreme blues make this even more dramatic for me. (Idaho)​

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Soft tranquility.
Snapped at 62mph. (Oregon)​

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"Wow, look where we get to go."
All I could think as we drove down this road. (Anza-Borrego)​

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Energy!
I like the dirty water as well, which means it must have been my second time through the same puddle. (Hell's Canyon)​

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My first attempt at lightning, so a cool shot with some sentimental value. (IDBDR)​

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Solitude.
Mornings in camp always seem to offer some of the most peaceful moments. (Colorado)​

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Joyous moments,
where our guard is completely down are so hard to catch.
Cool that it happened here, holding a lizard. (Canyonlands)​

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A special place.
The color of these badlands in the afternoon sun, and their fractal-like patterns make for a place I would return at the snap of a finger. (Death Valley)​

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Into the moonrise. (Alvord Playa)​

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The perfect pose.
There are some shots that show off just the right angles; and I happened to find it for the Tacoma here. (Death Valley)​

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We're all so small in the face of it all.
I always feel small when we're taking it all in, and Mike standing in front of a run-down mine - itself small in the world - seems to capture that perfectly. (Colorado)​

Maybe Just Four More

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Those before us.
It was both special and eerie to follow Jessi Combs final tracks. (Alvord Playa)​

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Barren landscape.
I wasn't a huge fan of Craters of the Moon, but there's no denying this dramatic view of hiking up a cinder cone. (Craters of the Moon)​

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Spring in the desert. (Anza Borrego)​

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Up we go.
A group of Tacomas winding their way up to the top of the highest peak around is one of the coolest things to watch.
I'm lucky I get to do it as much as I do! (Red Cone, Colorado)​

Like I Could Somehow Limit Myself to 15!?

There's just no way, really, that I could filter everything down to 15 photos for the year, so here are the other 60 or so that I thought were in the running. No particular order. Link below the photo to the story that contains it. Enjoy!

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Anza-Borrego Part 5 - Palms, Pups, and the Longest Trestle​

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Unfinished Business in Oregon #1 - Hiking Steens Mountain​

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From City of Rocks to Craters of the Moon​

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Hiking Death Valley Part 3 - We Trek Miles Across the Desert​

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Redhead Down #6: Chihuahua, Webster, Red Cone and Radical!​

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Ruining Around Utah 2 - Don't Miss Druid Arch​

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Anza-Borrego Part 4 - Elephant Knees, Wind Caves, and Dinosaurs​

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Hells Canyon Part 3 - Dug Bar, Gold Mines, & and Horses​

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Redhead Down #8: Exploring the Champion Mill​

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Anza-Borrego Part 4 - Elephant Knees, Wind Caves, and Dinosaurs​

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Whipsaw Trail 2 - Some Winching Necessary​

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Anza-Borrego Part 7 - So. Many. People.​

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Whipsaw Trail 3 - Four, Three Wheeling Tacomas​

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Ruining Around Utah 1 - Stopped in our Tracks at The Needles​

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IDBDR Pt. 8 - Driving the Lolo Motorway​

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Ruining Around Utah 5 - Canyoneering Natural Bridges National Monument​

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Alvord Desert - We Return to Explore (Apr 2019)​

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We Take Up Residence in Idaho's City of Rocks​

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Into the Sierra Wilderness - We Set Out On Foot​

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Getting High in Idaho​

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Redhead Down #2: WTF, There's a Bat in My Tent!​

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Excel in the Wild​

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IDBDR Pt. 2 - Across the Snake River Plain​

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Redhead Down #9: The Last Hour​

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Unfinished Business #3 - We Find Jessi Combs Last Track​

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IDBDR Pt. 3 - Stymied By Gates​

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IDBDR Pt. 6 - Macgruder Corridor and Hell's Half-Acre​

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IDBDR Pt. 7 - The Curse of the Lolo Motorway​

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IDBDR Pt. 9 - Move Over, Moose!​

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Whipsaw Trail 1 - Finally Four, We Venture North​

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Whipsaw Trail 1 - Finally Four, We Venture North​

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Whipsaw Trail 2 - Some Winching Necessary​

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Whipsaw Trail 2 - Some Winching Necessary​

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Whipsaw Trail 2 - Some Winching Necessary​

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IDBDR Pt. 2 - Across the Snake River Plain​

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Whipsaw Trail 3 - Four, Three Wheeling Tacomas​

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Whipsaw Trail 4 - My Trip-Ending Discovery​

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Into the Sierra Wilderness​

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Into the Sierra Wilderness - We Set Out On Foot​

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Whipsaw Trail 2 - Some Winching Necessary​

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Redhead Down #2: WTF, There's a Bat in My Tent!​

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Redhead Down #3: We Cross into Colorado​

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Redhead Down #4: Follow Me on the Trail, Not on the 'Gram​

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Redhead Down #6: Chihuahua, Webster, Red Cone and Radical!​

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IDBDR Pt. 3 - Stymied By Gates​

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Redhead Down #6: Chihuahua, Webster, Red Cone and Radical!​

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Redhead Down #6: Chihuahua, Webster, Red Cone and Radical!​

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Redhead Down #6: Chihuahua, Webster, Red Cone and Radical!​

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Unfinished Business in Oregon #1 - Hiking Steens Mountain​

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Unfinished Business #2 - Highest Truck in Oregon​

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Redhead Down #8: Exploring the Champion Mill​

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Unfinished Business #2 - Highest Truck in Oregon​

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Redhead Down #9: The Last Hour​

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Double Dose of Indian Hot Springs​

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Redhead Down #9: The Last Hour​

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Redhead Down #9: The Last Hour​

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Unfinished Business in Oregon #1 - Hiking Steens Mountain​

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Unfinished Business in Oregon #1 - Hiking Steens Mountain​

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Whipsaw Trail 2 - Some Winching Necessary​

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Unfinished Business in Oregon #1 - Hiking Steens Mountain​

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Unfinished Business #3 - We Find Jessi Combs Last Track​

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In Search of Overlooks - A Fall Trip to Western Death Valley #1​

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Saline Warm Springs & Cerro Gordo: Once is Enough - In Search of Overlooks #4​

 

Most of these should have been TW calendar submissions.

Edit: on second thought maybe this should have been the TW calendar.

 

Do you happen to sell any of those as prints?

 

Next year.

 

Amazing!

 

SIMPLY EPIC!

Im tellin you man, Start producing some AdventureTACO calendars. You got my money

 

The like button is way too small.
Your photos are all amazing. Thank you so much for sharing them.