freeze
07-19-2010, 04:22 PM
It originally started with the PATH's team with David E, Chris K, David W. and myself to make the journey down to Whipsaw to pre-run the trail to ensure we have a good plan for exit strategy, camping and scenery.
It came down to just Chris K. and myself actually making the trip with David W. being the last to pull chute.
Thursday Evening we left Calgary at 7:00PM and decided to take the scenic route up through Revelstoke then down through Nakusp, Nelson then to Princeton. We arrived at the Galena Bay ferry in 5 hours of our departure. Chris and I were pretty excited to have made good time as the last ferry was at 12AM PST. So we had an hour still but as we arrived to the ferry dock, the line up was about 750M long and a ferry can fit about 10-15 cars at a time.
oh no....
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\An hour goes by and there's still a 300M line up! Luckily we found out there's a ferry that will leave at 1AM PST. Luckily we just made the last ferry. Incredible clear sky and sitting on the roof top tent to enjoy the stars and the open water. The ferry ride is about 40min to the otherside of the lake. We were able to make it past the few cars and RV's in front of us on the curvy road with Vision X HID and Lightforce 240's burning through the darkness. Chris's Vision X HID's are so bright that my truck was a shadow infront of him. I had noticed my shifting was a bit sticky after the ferry ride which may have been the humidity.
We roll into Nelson about 2AM PST and hit the Best Western for their facilities and asked where we could camp that night. The nice desk clerk said the Wal-Mart should be good for a few hours of sleep! So off we went. Well almost... I couldn't get the Tacoma into reverse! I had to shut off the truck to click it into reverse and luckily it did as there was a car parked infront of me.
A few left and rights and we land at Wal-Mart's parking lot which is right next to a lake/river, RTT's deployed and tried to get some sleep. Semi's, birds, joggers and the sun trying to rise at 3AM.. sleep was non-existent. Not to mention some guy trying out my ladder... ripped open the front screen and saw a man running away with a hi-viz vest. He was marking the camped out vans and us with a paper which read... Please move your vehicle by 4PM today or it will be towed!
6AM a friend of mine (Danielle/skibum) texted to see if we were in town as she had just recently moved there. Chris and I were up at 6AM and going for a coffee with Danielle. Packed up the tents... tried reverse again and no dice. After a Oso Negro coffee (which is pretty amazing) I decide it would be best to hit the Nelson Toyota dealership!
Chris and I rolled into the dealer about 9AM. Heads popped up over the desk to look at the two Tacoma's that rolled into the service side. Ross was the man behind the desk, he was super polite and was really happy to help as much as possible. They fitted the Tacoma in at 10AM to take a look. Luckily I purchased the extra Toyota warranty as the clutch itself cracked which is a TSB and the release bearing had completely gone and the Transmission bellhousing was warped (also TSB).
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4080/4813083384_c6a0e2faa4_b.jpg
They ordered the parts for Monday. I then wanted to take a look at the sales side and noticed quite a few Japanese decorations in the clean modern dealership. Ross also came into from another door and he mentioned his grandfather started it 45 years ago! I gave him a CT4WD business card and he looked at it really weird like he knew already who we were. "Do you know A-a-ddison Rickby?" he said. "Yea from Lethbridge?" I replied. "Yeah.. he actually is from Nelson but is going to school there!".... Wow what a small world. Ross is good friends with Addison (rickashay) and apparently was there for a wedding!! Ross mentioned Addison's father ran the hotel downtown and was an excellent place for a breakfast bagel and coffee.
So after a bagel and juice box, I received a call that they had finished analyzing the issue and parts had been ordered. Back to the dealership Ross mentioned he was 1/4 Japanese... I almost called BS on him as he's white and his cousin is also white with blue eyes!! Grandfather is Japanese!... last name: Naka. Good thing I didn't call him out on it..haha! :D I was able to take the truck and sleep in it as it is my home! I can go forwards but not really reverse so it's all good!
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4116/4813083902_129ed9d95d_b.jpg
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So down to one truck.... Whipsaw pre-run out the window... time to enjoy Nelson. What a place!!
Chris and I went to the beach and laid in the sun for the morning... very nice "scenery" in Nelson by the way! Danielle took us up to Whitewater ski hill and we sat on the chairlift visioning what it would be like in the winter... awesome looking terrain! Then went up to Cottonwood lake. Took out the resident barge and paddled around till sunset. A quick BBQ of steak, asparagus, corn and potatoes it was time to camp again. This time a good sleep till sunrise.
The next day we debated to push for Whipsaw but as we have to practice what we preach... we decided against a solo run.
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I got a call from a good friend Paul Attalla (http://www.solotheatlantic.com/a_word_on_paul_attalla.php) from Fernie saying he was in Calgary for the annual Stampede gamble and caesar fest. I had told him I was out of town and stranded in Nelson. "Ted has a cabin there just built 20min outside Nelson you should stay there" he said. I politely declined as I wasn't sure if Ted would like that... "Ted's right next to me in the car... he says use it and use the motorboat too!!" WOW! Thank you Paul for calling when you did and thank you Ted!!
I asked Chris..."do you want to go check out a brand new cabin on the lake and take a rip in a motorboat?" :D
A small drive to a small ferry. The ferry was about 10 minutes to cross the lake and a quick drive we were at the cabin. Incredible view of the lake and the Osprey ferry which crossed once in a while. Tents deployed, jump in a motorboat and off we were down the lake!
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4095/4813088230_21a8c997b3_b.jpg
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Spaghetti for dinner on the patio hang out on the pebble beach till the stars were ablaze then to bed in the RTT's. After packing up and taking off, Chris had to go back to Calgary to work the Monday. I then was off back into Nelson to cruise the shops and await for my parents to swing into town from their drive back from Seattle.
A nice lunch at the pizzeria with the folks they had to head off to get home at a reasonable time. Their FJ was looking pretty good after the OME suspension, All-Pro bumper/skid and winch!
I headed off to Cottonwood again for a RTT siesta. I was woken by the Storm Alarm on the Suunto... I had to find a final camp spot to sleep that night. I texted Addison for some cool locations and got Kootney Creek Camp. Off I went before the storm came... got a spot, opened the RTT, started a fire, ate some food and bam.... lightning, thunder and rain... lots of rain! I got a text from Chris saying he made it home ok with 6" of snow in Longview AB!! Love Alberta!
I somehow fell asleep with the deafening noise of rain and thunder. 6AM came very quick which high humidity. Tent packed and off I went to the Nelson Toyota Dealership.
And here I am. Sitting awaiting the new bell-housing, release bearing and clutch, typing one of the craziest but amazing adventures that came out of a Tacoma that didn't want to go into reverse. Very fortunate!
Thank you Chris for being a great travel buddy, Nelson Toyota for being incredible and super hospitable, Danielle for putting up with our antics, Addison for providing some amazing locations and Nelson for being so rad!
We'll be back next weekend!
As for the pre-run.... well Harry... careful what you wish for :D
It came down to just Chris K. and myself actually making the trip with David W. being the last to pull chute.
Thursday Evening we left Calgary at 7:00PM and decided to take the scenic route up through Revelstoke then down through Nakusp, Nelson then to Princeton. We arrived at the Galena Bay ferry in 5 hours of our departure. Chris and I were pretty excited to have made good time as the last ferry was at 12AM PST. So we had an hour still but as we arrived to the ferry dock, the line up was about 750M long and a ferry can fit about 10-15 cars at a time.
oh no....
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4140/4812446759_97cac3526e_b.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4102/4813070096_8c133515f0_b.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4094/4812447199_6369957c18_b.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4102/4813071650_b499cf981b_b.jpg
\An hour goes by and there's still a 300M line up! Luckily we found out there's a ferry that will leave at 1AM PST. Luckily we just made the last ferry. Incredible clear sky and sitting on the roof top tent to enjoy the stars and the open water. The ferry ride is about 40min to the otherside of the lake. We were able to make it past the few cars and RV's in front of us on the curvy road with Vision X HID and Lightforce 240's burning through the darkness. Chris's Vision X HID's are so bright that my truck was a shadow infront of him. I had noticed my shifting was a bit sticky after the ferry ride which may have been the humidity.
We roll into Nelson about 2AM PST and hit the Best Western for their facilities and asked where we could camp that night. The nice desk clerk said the Wal-Mart should be good for a few hours of sleep! So off we went. Well almost... I couldn't get the Tacoma into reverse! I had to shut off the truck to click it into reverse and luckily it did as there was a car parked infront of me.
A few left and rights and we land at Wal-Mart's parking lot which is right next to a lake/river, RTT's deployed and tried to get some sleep. Semi's, birds, joggers and the sun trying to rise at 3AM.. sleep was non-existent. Not to mention some guy trying out my ladder... ripped open the front screen and saw a man running away with a hi-viz vest. He was marking the camped out vans and us with a paper which read... Please move your vehicle by 4PM today or it will be towed!
6AM a friend of mine (Danielle/skibum) texted to see if we were in town as she had just recently moved there. Chris and I were up at 6AM and going for a coffee with Danielle. Packed up the tents... tried reverse again and no dice. After a Oso Negro coffee (which is pretty amazing) I decide it would be best to hit the Nelson Toyota dealership!
Chris and I rolled into the dealer about 9AM. Heads popped up over the desk to look at the two Tacoma's that rolled into the service side. Ross was the man behind the desk, he was super polite and was really happy to help as much as possible. They fitted the Tacoma in at 10AM to take a look. Luckily I purchased the extra Toyota warranty as the clutch itself cracked which is a TSB and the release bearing had completely gone and the Transmission bellhousing was warped (also TSB).
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4080/4813083384_c6a0e2faa4_b.jpg
They ordered the parts for Monday. I then wanted to take a look at the sales side and noticed quite a few Japanese decorations in the clean modern dealership. Ross also came into from another door and he mentioned his grandfather started it 45 years ago! I gave him a CT4WD business card and he looked at it really weird like he knew already who we were. "Do you know A-a-ddison Rickby?" he said. "Yea from Lethbridge?" I replied. "Yeah.. he actually is from Nelson but is going to school there!".... Wow what a small world. Ross is good friends with Addison (rickashay) and apparently was there for a wedding!! Ross mentioned Addison's father ran the hotel downtown and was an excellent place for a breakfast bagel and coffee.
So after a bagel and juice box, I received a call that they had finished analyzing the issue and parts had been ordered. Back to the dealership Ross mentioned he was 1/4 Japanese... I almost called BS on him as he's white and his cousin is also white with blue eyes!! Grandfather is Japanese!... last name: Naka. Good thing I didn't call him out on it..haha! :D I was able to take the truck and sleep in it as it is my home! I can go forwards but not really reverse so it's all good!
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4116/4813083902_129ed9d95d_b.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4143/4812460991_3ebd5bfa4e_b.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4097/4812461443_3ee322c928_b.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4074/4813086072_36a565aedb_b.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4100/4812462335_5a44241fa9_b.jpg
So down to one truck.... Whipsaw pre-run out the window... time to enjoy Nelson. What a place!!
Chris and I went to the beach and laid in the sun for the morning... very nice "scenery" in Nelson by the way! Danielle took us up to Whitewater ski hill and we sat on the chairlift visioning what it would be like in the winter... awesome looking terrain! Then went up to Cottonwood lake. Took out the resident barge and paddled around till sunset. A quick BBQ of steak, asparagus, corn and potatoes it was time to camp again. This time a good sleep till sunrise.
The next day we debated to push for Whipsaw but as we have to practice what we preach... we decided against a solo run.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4122/4812451223_189c7d3f53_b.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4115/4813076096_78fd26cb63_b.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4114/4813076540_134c3014f2_b.jpg
I got a call from a good friend Paul Attalla (http://www.solotheatlantic.com/a_word_on_paul_attalla.php) from Fernie saying he was in Calgary for the annual Stampede gamble and caesar fest. I had told him I was out of town and stranded in Nelson. "Ted has a cabin there just built 20min outside Nelson you should stay there" he said. I politely declined as I wasn't sure if Ted would like that... "Ted's right next to me in the car... he says use it and use the motorboat too!!" WOW! Thank you Paul for calling when you did and thank you Ted!!
I asked Chris..."do you want to go check out a brand new cabin on the lake and take a rip in a motorboat?" :D
A small drive to a small ferry. The ferry was about 10 minutes to cross the lake and a quick drive we were at the cabin. Incredible view of the lake and the Osprey ferry which crossed once in a while. Tents deployed, jump in a motorboat and off we were down the lake!
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4095/4813088230_21a8c997b3_b.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4082/4813076962_bf66019fb9_b.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4097/4812453161_304abbd989_b.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4074/4813078184_3e46e93d97_b.jpg
Spaghetti for dinner on the patio hang out on the pebble beach till the stars were ablaze then to bed in the RTT's. After packing up and taking off, Chris had to go back to Calgary to work the Monday. I then was off back into Nelson to cruise the shops and await for my parents to swing into town from their drive back from Seattle.
A nice lunch at the pizzeria with the folks they had to head off to get home at a reasonable time. Their FJ was looking pretty good after the OME suspension, All-Pro bumper/skid and winch!
I headed off to Cottonwood again for a RTT siesta. I was woken by the Storm Alarm on the Suunto... I had to find a final camp spot to sleep that night. I texted Addison for some cool locations and got Kootney Creek Camp. Off I went before the storm came... got a spot, opened the RTT, started a fire, ate some food and bam.... lightning, thunder and rain... lots of rain! I got a text from Chris saying he made it home ok with 6" of snow in Longview AB!! Love Alberta!
I somehow fell asleep with the deafening noise of rain and thunder. 6AM came very quick which high humidity. Tent packed and off I went to the Nelson Toyota Dealership.
And here I am. Sitting awaiting the new bell-housing, release bearing and clutch, typing one of the craziest but amazing adventures that came out of a Tacoma that didn't want to go into reverse. Very fortunate!
Thank you Chris for being a great travel buddy, Nelson Toyota for being incredible and super hospitable, Danielle for putting up with our antics, Addison for providing some amazing locations and Nelson for being so rad!
We'll be back next weekend!
As for the pre-run.... well Harry... careful what you wish for :D