I took the new Jumping Jack X4 on its inaugural run this past weekend, and I couldn’t think of a better test road than the PET (Pony Express Trail)! I added a new
Max Coupler for my rig as well, and I wanted to see how it towed compared to a ball. I can tell you that it's much much quieter and the articulation is really nice to have! The extension that have to use to clear the spare tire of the Liberty is still really noisy though...gotta work on that...
This was initially going to be a full weekend with a trip out to the Simpson Springs area one night, and Keg Mountain area or elsewhere the next, but I found out at the last minute that I needed to be home Saturday night, so the trip was rather short and sweet. I was hoping to run across DAA or maybe even Tonkaman, but that will have to wait for another trip.
I got loaded up and finally on the road late Friday afternoon.
At this point, I was still planning to be out in the desert until Sunday, so I had everything packed up and ready to roll, including my two Scepter cans of fuel. Unfortunately, I have yet to build holders for them to mount on the trailer, so I cinched the lids up tight and tossed them in the back of the Liberty next to my 5-gallon water jug. I wrapped towels around the lids of the Scepters just in case, but they went the entire trip without leaking a drop.
I took the easy paved route west on I-80 and topped off my fuel in Delle, then backtracked to the Skull Valley Road and headed south to the PET.
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Just before I was out of range, my phone rang and I was alerted of the need to be back on Saturday for some last minute work stuff. Ugh...Go figure. Oh well…off I went anyway. I noticed that Simpson Springs was pretty full of weekend warriors, as I had expected, so I thought I’d check out the area where we camped on the
Quarterly ExpUT “West Desert Wanderings” run. Crazy…two vehicles were already there, too! So…I continued North up Indian Spring Rd which was pretty rocky and quite a bit more rough than the rest of the roads we had been on to this point…that's when I noticed some rattling that I hadn’t heard earlier. It was driving me a little crazy, so I stopped and checked things out. I had my first casualty…a trailer fender.
It appears the PET was just rough enough at 50 mph to pop a few of the welds in the aluminum, and the rocky road I was on just made the poor thing call out to me for some attention!
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Not to worry though. This is an early pre-production model, and I’ve been told the fenders have been updated to eliminate this issue, so I'll get them taken care of sometime this week. I waited until the next day to pull them both off and simply hauled them back on top of the trailer on my way home...
A mile or so beyond the first campsite, I came upon a nice clearing that was pretty flat and had a decent view, so I set up there for the night. (39.9811, -112.7688)
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The tent goes up in about 10 minutes and provides lots of room inside. It really does make camp setup a breeze! I think I’m going to really enjoy it!
After I got a nice little fire going, it was time to grab a pic or two. The sunset came on quickly, and didn’t disappoint…
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I was hoping to get some long exposure sky shots, but the cloud cover prevented that along with the very bright moon that poked through when the clouds moved aside. The sky simply wasn't cooperative...this time.
My only other issue was that the 3” foam mattresses on each side of the tent just aren’t enough for my old rickety back. So...since no one was with me to use the other side, I swiped the other mattress and doubled them up and got a good night’s sleep!
Morning came and I wandered around the area a bit and just took in the views and enjoyed some quiet time...in between the few small groups of Quads and OHV's that I crossed paths with.
Not a whole lot to see in the area...unless you look around a little. Even the littlest plants and flowers can make for some decent pictures!
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Even the native Junipers can be pretty cool...I think...
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...and of course, the sage brush...lots and lots of sage brush...
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Oh...and if anyone needs a pair of slightly worn-out sock, I know where you can get some...
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After wandering about a bit, I came back to camp, made some late lunch, and decided a nap was in order. The tent kept the sun out pretty well, and is ventilated enough to allow a nice breeze through...when there was one...
I napped and read a book for a bit...just enjoying the peace and quiet. Then late afternoon came around, and it was time to break camp and head back to civilization...
As you can see, it's called a desert region for a reason...IT'S DRY! There was very little breeze to blow the dust to the side, so trying to follow someone on the roads would have been a trick unless you let them get a mile or more ahead of you!
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On my way back out toward I-80 on Skull Valley Road, I ran across this poor little guy again. I say "again" because I saw him on my out there the day before, in the same area, doing the same thing...anxiously pacing the fence-line. It appears that he got separated and lost his herd. Poor little dude...
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Just a couple last shots along Skull Valley Road that I thought would be kinda nice to capture...you decide...
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Anyway, other than the fender issue, the trailer performed perfectly! I have a couple little modifications I want to explore to make things a bit nicer on the trailer, but not much. It pulls great, and travels well even on the worst roads. I need to tighten up a little play in the hitch pieces I have on the Jeep, but other than that, it passed my inaugural test and I hereby certify it as Expedition Ready!
I'm looking forward to many more trips this year
