Bye to the last AATREC-FM204…

November 29 2009 by Darrin.

You may notice a new color scheme on the blog.  If you’re observant, you’ll also notice the header has changed from “Stories of our travels near and far with the AATREC-FM204″ to simply “Stories of our travels near and far.”

Yup, the AATREC-FM204 is gone from the header, AND gone from our lives.  A well-traveled couple saw the last FM204 we built (and delivered to San Diego in 2008)  and became very interested in owning one for themselves.  The choice to sell what was built to be “our camper” was tough at first, but  we knew they’d use the vehicle more than we would.  When we coupled that with their desire to donate medical help around the world, we had peace with our decision to let it go.

For now, I have no idea what to do next.  New emissions laws for diesels make it impossible to fuel new chassis in developing countries, and also make it tough to do the required 4WD conversion.  Time will tell.

So we’re left with the old 1980 Unimog U1300L camper I built in 2002.  It was the project that encouraged me to incorporate, and build the next three AATRECs.  Thus, the old ‘Mog has a special place in my heart.  How special?  Offer me money and see. 

That whole project is online on our personal website if you’re curious.  If you’re not, here’s a photo…

 She’s been in storage for a few years, and needs new batteries due to a charger failure.  Otherwise, she’s well-equipped and ready for local travel within 500 miles.  Unimogs aren’t great highway cruisers, and ours tops out at 55 mph.  Fortunately, WY and CO alone offer tens of thousands of miles of remote dirt roads and numerous camping opportunities.  Our Unimog has a new engine and is in excellent shape, so we can still get out in the wild!  The Unimog chassis is, without a doubt, a formidable off-road machine.  It can carry our shelter to places we’d never have the courage to try!

Seasons Greetings to everyone.  Specifically, Merry Christmas!

Darrin and Anna

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Back at the Ranch

November 4 2009 by Darrin.

We’re home again and enjoying our weather here!  It was 65F when we left, and 64F when we drove home.  While in Hawai’i the ranch saw 17″ of snow.  The only signs remaining are a few drifts around the house, and some serious mud.  We arrived last night after being up for 36 hours, which ended in 4 hours of driving from Denver to the ranch.

We’ve exhausted most of our photos, but there are a few left.  On our last day at the cottage, I found a friendly gecko not afraid of a flash, and an ominous (but harmless) arachnid…

That night, the haze cleared out to give us a great full moon setting over the ocean.  It’s a little fuzzy - I had no tripod, and it’s a 1/4-second exposure…

And after seven nights of a red ball setting into the ocean (without much color or cloud), we saw this on the way to the airport…

Back in the Rocky Mountains, another nice sunset gave us something to compare on the drive back to Wyoming…

Know what?  We like it here!

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The Big Island, Cont’d…

November 1 2009 by Darrin.

DISCLAIMER!!!  I have fixed the formatting on this thrice now.  It just reverts to its screwed up form.  I’m at Denny’s on a VERY busy Sunday morning.  There was no where to park at the beach, so no nice coffee and coastal view.  Here kids screaming and running around, parents yelling, poor waitresses dropping stuff.  It took me 25 minutes to get an iced tea.  I’m going to blow off my final proof-read, and head for the solitude of the cottage.   I freaking HATE civilization.

Before I get started, here are a few photos of the Sheraton resort where Anna’s doing her course.  The wild goats are on the golf course across the road.

If you stay there for the course (which most people did), it was like $269/night.  Rooms with no view were a little cheaper - maybe $175/night.  I tried connecting to their wi-fi, but it was $24.95 PER DAY, which could be paid with your credit card, OR billed directly to your room.  What a rip-off.  $269/night, and they can’t provide the internet?

Anyway, with Anna occupied I spent the remainder of Thursday back at the cottage and then Honomalino Bay.  This time the sun was shining and I ventured far enough south to get to a bit of white(r) sand beach.  I did swim a little, but not comfortably!  There are rocks everywhere, and with the surf churning up sand, the snorkel stayed in my pack…

Friday, after dropping Anna off at the Sheraton again, I went farther south to South Point (Ka Lae).  It’s the southern tip of the Big Island, and the southern tip of the USA.  (No, it’s not Key West, as some would have you believe.)  There are two distinct wind farms there.  One is a rusted out vertical junk heap, with broken turbines missing their blades.  The other, in the background of the photo below, is more current, and operational.  If the trees look like this, it’s a safe bet that a wind farm will pay off…

My goal was Papalokea: Green Sand Beach.  However, on the way I visited Heiau o Kalelea.  These are ancient canoe moorings on the west side of the point.  The fishing here is fantastic, as the blue waters are loaded with tuna, mahamahi, and marlin…

Many years ago the locals fished these waters in canoes.  To keep from drifting away, they tied the canoes off to holes in the rocks.  Without the safety line to land, the winds would easily drive the boats out into the southern currents, where they would be carried directly to Antarctica!  In the following shots, you can see one of the boat hoists that they still use to launch small craft.  Today, this hoist is anchoring a heavy fishing line that’s floating offshore…

To get to Green Sand Beach, you have to travel 2.25 miles of rugged coastline via a sand/dirt road.  As that’s forbidden in the 2WD rental car contract, and totally impossible anyway, I decided to hike it.  The walk north east to the beach was pleasant with the afternoon sun on my back and ocean breeze in my face.  This is what I walked through…

About a mile away, if you’re following the coast, NOT the roads, you’ll start seeing green sand among the black lava rocks.  I’m very happy I did this, as the contrast really shows the color of the sand well.  The color comes from a semi-precious gem, olivite, that’s ground up by, you guessed it, the crashing surf…

 

At the beach itself, it’s all green and you have a hard time noticing the true color of the sand.  Nevertheless, here’s the secluded beach…

For what it’s worth, I had to Photoshop five people out of the photo and I did NOT walk down to the beach itself.  (Time constraint for picking up Anna.)  Clearly, you need a 4WD for this one.  In fact, the people at the beach drove past me on my hike in.  When I got there, they had been swimming for likely a half hour or better.  And the buggers passed me on my hike out.  I was covered in sweat, beaten by the sun, and then had to eat their car dust AGAIN.  In LESS than my transit time on foot, they’d made the drive in, enjoyed swimming, and come out again.  The next time, we’re renting a Jeep.

A few geckos back at the cottage…

Saturday, I decided to see the rest of the island.  Yes, that’s an ignorant statement because you’d never see it all if you lived your whole life here.  I mean that I drove the rest of the “main” roads around the island.  You can think of the Big Island as having a funky figure eight of main highways.  There’s basically a ring or belt road somewhat around the perimeter, and a road cutting across the island in the saddle between the mountains (volcanoes) Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa.  This central road is thus called the Saddle Road.  It reminds me of Wyoming, and is high desert…

Here’s Mauna Lea to the north, with a couple of the observatories visable at the top.  (Extreme hand-held magnification!  Sorry for the quality!)

You can drive to the top, but here’s another 4WD road.  There’s a Visitor’s Center at a bit above 9,000′ in elevation.  (The peak is 13,796′)  Here’s a still from my video camera, overlooking the center…

From the Visitor’s Center, they lead caravans of private 4WDs all the way up the mountain.  (On Saturdays, at least.)  When the cars come back down, the guys at the Center set up telescopes and have a star party for the guests.   They have an impressive array of “amateur” glass there…  (The “big guns” are up top, of course.)

Also, safely inside, I noticed an Astro-Physics set-up (apochromatic refractor telescope and motor-driven German-eqatorial mount) with an SBIG CCD imager.  I’ve been on the AP waiting list for a lens and mount for four years now.  That stuff is in high demand and of the best quality.  Never seen one in person!  I got video, but no photo.  One day, I hope to build a small observatory at home, behind the house, using very similar gear.

Leaving Mauna Lea, I headed back to Hilo where we’d been Wednesday.  I was heading to the Farmers’ Market again, after more fresh veggies for Anna, and some salsa and green papaya salad (Thai) for me.  Here’s my loot, and salad feasting, back home…

North of Hilo, I visited Akaka Falls.  The sun was wrong, but I made the short, paved hike anyway.  Four hours earlier, it’d have been perfect with the lighting much better…

Still farther north, into rainier country, the Big Island has plentiful rivers flowing into the ocean.  These gulches are gorgeous, and more of what Anna and I expected in Hawaii.  As you drive north, there’s big green on your left, and big blue on your right.  I then visited Laupahoehoe Point, an incredibly beautiful but historically tragic place.  Tsunamis in 1949 and 1960 killed 220 people, and destroyed the little town.  It’s a park now, and just the natural waves are ominous.  I can’t imagine “the big one” rolling in…

That’s all for now.  It’s Sunday, and I’m going to enjoy the cottage.  I might even shoot some video for our host, Harry.  Edited into a five minute movie, he might pick up more business for his rental.  And maybe give us a break for the next time, when we come back with a 4WD to cruise in.

Best to all…

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The Big Update from the Big Island…

October 29 2009 by Darrin.

Thursday morning here, and I find myself at Kona Coffee Company in Kailua-Kona.  Yup. the same Kona we hate.  Too many people, WAY HOT and HUMID.  But the coffee’s decent (100% Kona, of course) and the internet is free.

Anna’s started her four-day course this morning, so I’m on my own for the rest of the daytime here in Hawai’i.  I left Anna here at the Sheraton Keahou Bay Resort and Spa.  Here’s what that looks like, from the road above…

[DAMN!  Forgot my cable.  Oh well…  Here’s one from where I’m sitting right now, a few miles away, from my phone instead…]

So what’s been going on for the last few days?  Beaches, relaxation, and listening to stories from home about the Blizzard of October, 2009!  (That’s not snickering you hear.  Really.)  To recap for you, Kona sucked(s).  But the cottage 30 miles south is really nice, and owned by a school teacher (art) from Pennsylvania, by way of 21 years teaching in Seattle.  It’s pretty tastefully done in an Indonesian style that Anna just loves.  Here’s what you find driving in.  The directions say, “turn right at the Buddha”…

And the porch, through the foliage…

Down below, there’s a meditation hut.  In the following pix, you’ll see the hut, a great airchair (for meditating with a beer, and the view from the chair.)

Flowers are everywhere (as are geckos, mongoose, tropical birds, turkeys, chickens, rats and bugs) and here’s the bouquet that greets us on the table…

Outside, it’s, well, tropical paradise…

We hung out at Makalani Cottage the rest of the day Monday, and Tuesday ventured just a few miles south to Maloli’i Beach.  From there, we took an intimidating 20-minute hike through spooky jungle and Hawaian burial grounds to Honomalino Bay.  It’s georgeous!  The hike it littered with “NO TRESSPSSING” signs, but our host and all the books assured us it IS legal, and public access.  The people just don’t want you in their front yards! Here’s the Bay that evening…

No - no sunset to die for.  We haven’t seen ONE since we’ve been here.  The mornings are beautiful, the heat and humidity come on at around 1000, and by 1300, it’s overcast and hazy.  Is it the time of year, bad weather, the location on the Big Island, or just Hawaii in general?  Where are those sunsets?

Yesterday, Wednesday, we planed a “big one”.  We headed for Hilo in the northeast of the island.  There’s a great farmer’s market there, and it was  packed with all sorts of stuff.  Coming out of the trees near Naalehu, Rt. 11 opens up by the ocean, and Honuapo Bay.  Here’s that, through the building haze…

 Hilo is a little more “homey” and less touristy than the Kona area, and there were lots of hippies there.  (Everywhere…)  At the market, veggies, foods, baked goods, Asian prepared stuff, and flowers overflowed.  These buckets were $5 each…

 After a Thai lunch, we headed for Rainbow Falls, just out of Hilo…

Feeding the Falls, you find the Boiling Pots.  Not sure why they’re called that.  The water’s not hot.  Just turbulent…

From Hilo, we headed back and on the way hit Hawai’i Volcanoes Nation Park.  It was mostly closed due to high levels of SO2 gas, which Anna’s trying to suck up.  Compared to Yellowstone, it’s oderless…

At least we could see Kilauea Crater…

The only other thing open to visit was a huge lava tube, which you can walk through.  Here are a few photos from that very cool experience.  Note Anna way down at the end in the last one…

And finally, on the way home, we hit Punalu’u Park - famous for the black sand beach.  The sand is rare, and is created when lava hits seawater and shatters like glass.  It’s then ground into sand by the crashing surf.  Absolutely gorgeous!  Here’s some lava as it approached the sea…

…and the beach just left (north-east) of it…

Oh well.  Enough for now.  I’m sweating into the keyboard as I type.  I’m going to get some fuel, hit Safeway for some more bagels, sausages, and half-and-half, and then head “home”.  After a nap, I think I’ll hit Honomalino again, this time with snorkel and mask.

Did I mention it was snowing in Wyoming.  Oh yeah, I did.  It’s breaking my heart.  But THANKS MOM for holding down the (snow) fort, watching the dogs and cats, and not complaining.  You never do.

 Until the next time, unless I’m eaten by a shark…

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Greets from the Big Island

October 26 2009 by Darrin.

Yes, it’s true…  We’re in Hawai’i.  No fooling.  Alaska didn’t work out, and that was the second to the last state of the union Darrin had never visited. (Anna has LOTS to see yet!)

Hawai’i was the last, so here we are.  No photos yet, as we got here yesterday and had to stay in Kailua-Kona at a temporary hotel last night.  We booked a vacation cottage, and will see it in a few hours.  Look for more stuff in a few days.

We hear there’s a foot of snow predicted tomorrow at home, but the sweat is rolling here.  Feels like Baltimore in summer!  Anna loves it!  Darrin’s not sure, and his bitching only him hotter.  Anna’s got him in flip-flops and he feels a little better.  Now he can bitch about his toes hurting!

More later from Paradise.

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Early October, and below 0ºF?

October 9 2009 by Darrin.

 Wow, winter’s here.  We didn’t expect it this early, but we’ve had it easy for years.  It’s snowing now, for the third time this season!  Here’s the view to the south just a few hours ago…

The prediction is for a wind chill of -5ºF (-21ºC) tonight, with the mercury at 5ºF (-15ºC).  Right now, it’s 19ºF (-7ºC).  It’s a good thing we cut some firewood a couple weeks ago, to keep this baby going strong.  I actually thought we’d make it fire-free until November!

 

 Anna’s got is squared away, with a dose of Dutch boerenkool on the stove.  Boerenkool is literally translated “Farmers’ Cabbage” and is simple and excellent - especially on a night like this.  It’s potatoes, kale, and a smoked sausage, all cooked together.  Eat it with mustard!  Awesome.

All I can say, or rather, hope for, is “In like a lion, out like a lamb.”  We’ll see - in another seven months.

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PREVIEW: Troopie Restoration Projects Begins

September 20 2009 by Darrin.

I’m just back from southern California, having done a quick trip down and back Tuesday through Friday.  My friend Michael from Ohio rode along, and we had an uneventful journey.  No mechanical problems, good roads, good weather, and good “loot”.  The goals of our excursion included picking up:

• tools from my friend and camper customer, Dan, who’s outside of San Diego
• a used Toyota 12H-T diesel engine I’d ordered in February
• anything else I could scrounge up for the related Toyota restoration (that wound up being a new windshield, some oil filters, and a windshield gasket)

This winter, with a little luck, I’m taking a break from the big camper construction projects.  I am going to restore our 1985 Toyota HJ-75 Land Cruiser 1-ton Troop Carrier - called a “Troopie” in the Land Cruiser world.  She’s an Australian-market right-hand-drive vehicle that was imported into the USA for ultrasonic railway testing back in 1986.  She accumulated over 300,000 km in service with SS Tech, running on hi-rail gear on the train tracks.  She eventually came to me in 1993.

I played with her for four years, then retired her in 1997 when her oil pressure became too low to trust.  She’s been in storage under roof for 12 years now.  Yesterday, Michael and I managed to fire her up with a fresh battery and a tiny shot of ether.  While the brake pedal went to the floor, the clutch hydraulics were spot-on, and I was able to drive her under her own power onto my car trailer…

 

Now that she’s back home, I’m going to let Anna’s two kitties de-rat the car for a couple weeks while the Troopie is outside.  Next, I’ll give her a good cleaning and strip everything off of the vehicle’s interior and exterior.  The goal will be a body in my paint booth, and a rolling chassis in my other workshop bay.

 The chassis will get stripped, painted, and then:

• a new Dobinson’s (Aussie) suspension
• rebuilt axles with ARB diff-locks
• new brakes
• new wiring
• a second fuel tank yielding a near-1000 mile range
• a direct-injection turbo-diesel engine

Here are a few shots of the “new” used 12H-T engine and 5-speed manual transmission, bought from a JDM (Japanese Domestic Market) parts dealer in Los Angeles…

 

The above turbocharged direct-injection 12H-T engine will replace the stock 2H indirect-injection naturally aspirated diesel that’s tired and needing lots of love.  (My plan is to get the 2H rebuilt, turbo’d, and then slid with her 5-speed transmission into another old Land Cruiser we have - a 1985 FJ-60 that’s currently powered by a gasoline 2F engine with 4-speed tranny.)

 Are you seeing any pattern here?  Multiple Land Cruisers, multiple Unimogs…  Having lived off-road for over 20 years now, these old vehicles are the only ones that hold up in such severe service.  Live and learn.

Posted in HJ-75 Restoration | No Comments »

Boost Gauge

September 10 2009 by Darrin.

I finally got a chance to get the new VDO boost gauge installed.  I was really looking for a voltmeter on the Alaska “attempt” so decided to install one along with the pressure gauge.  Here’s the dash, torn apart…

…and back together again, ready to go…

I love this FM chassis for its ease of dash access.  Three screws, and the whole central fascia comes off.  This truck was sure a pleasure to work on.

On a side not, I do have a very serious buyer and may sell.  It’s a tough decision for me, as I know I can’t replace the FM with another “any diesel” truck.  They’re all requiring ULSD now.  Any other fuel will destroy the DPF (diesel particulate filter) in the exhaust, and it’s that damned DPF which will likely interfere with my chances of building another 4×4 conversion.

Oh well.  Just when you get it all figured out and working really well.

 I think I give up.

 

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Final Mileage and Trip Report

August 26 2009 by Darrin.

It’s time to go through the receipts.  This is mainly for my own record, so will likely be pretty boring for everyone but me.

We left Douglas on the 13th of August, after filling our tanks as full as possible.  We also filled them to the top upon returning Monday.  Mileage was taken from a Garmin GPS 276C, which is far more accurate than the mechanical odometer - known to be reading 10% higher than actual.

• 8/13/09   Billing, MT           323 miles    44.118 gallons       7.321 mpg
• 8/14/09   Shelby, MT          317 miles    40.496 gallons      7.828 mpg
• 8/15/09   Calgary, AB         261 miles     42.860 gallons      6.090 mpg (wicked crosswind)
• 8/20/09   Edmonton, AB    346 miles    45.800 gallons      7.555 mpg
• 8/20/09   Hinton, AB           183 miles    23.613 gallons      7.750 mpg
• 8/22/09   Whitefish, MT     497 miles    69.731 gallons      7.127 mpg
• 8/23/09   Great Falls, MT  247 miles    30.661 gallons      8.056 mpg (nice tailwind)
• 8/23/09   Billings, MT         282 miles   40.604 gallons      6.945 mpg
• 8/24/09   Douglas, WY        322 miles    43.213 gallons      7.451 mpg

Total distance 2778 miles  /  Total fuel 381.096 gallons = Total average consumption of 7.290 mpg

That’s awful, when an identical truck does almost 10 mpg.  Just my luck, eh?  Since the truck starts well, and idles fine, I can only think “turbo”.  This was the initial gut feeling of an old friend from Fuso, and it makes sense.  We were all led astray with the over-full oil sump.  Last night, I ordered a VDO boost gauge, a two-gauge dash pod, and a VDO voltmeter (to fill the second hole.)  I’ll get it all installed next week and take a little trip (maybe to Glendo Lake 40 miles form here) to see how much additional atmosphere is getting pumped into the intake manifold.

Remember the original map of the proposed journey, back in March?

Here’s what we actually did, according to the GPS…

  We really didn’t have to recycle too much country, so that was okay.  Now the question remains:  Will I have this AATREC-FM204 available next summer, for another run, or will she be long gone?

My next trip is to San Diego, to pick up the tools and stuff I took down there last June when we delivered the identical twin to this camper.  I also have to pick up a Toyota 12H-T engine I ordered earlier this year, so I can start the restoration of an Aussie-market HJ-75 Land Cruiser Troopy I bought over fifteen years ago, and have had in storage.  She’s 25 years old now, and finally  legal to drive in the USA.

Thanks to everyone for reading!  I’ll let you know when the movie’s done, or something happens with the truck.

Posted in Alaska 2009 | No Comments »

Home, Baby!

August 25 2009 by Darrin.

Okay, so we didn’t make Alaska.  It’ll be there next year.  (Unless the Norks get their rocketry right….)

But we did get home safely, and we love it here.  True serenity.  Dad, I know you went with us, and you’ll go again next time!

Here’s one last photo of the camper, taken this morning next to the dumpsters at the rest area…

 How’d the camper do, overall?  I’m really pleased with it in general.  Here are some key observations:

 

• It’s comfortable to drive, and easy to maneuver, even lost in Calgary
• There’s plenty of elbow room inside for two people and a 55-lb. dog
• There’s ample storage space for clothes
• The extra freezer means you can really take a lot of food along
• Electrically, it’s just perfect.  260W of solar feeding a 600 AHr battery works great.  Overnight, even with TV running off the inverter for an hour or two, the morning voltage is 12.55 to 12.60 VDC under load.  That’s around 85% to 90% state of charge
• We never needed the halogen lighting, as the new LED lights worked really well.  They’re warm in color, and low in consumption - a tenth of an amp each
• The shower, though small, works fine and is always refreshing.
• There’s plenty of hot water too, all from engine heat.  We never ran out, and only let coolant circulate through the camper for an hour or two each morning
• While heating water, the coolant also passes through three heat exchangers.  This feature kept the camper nice and toasty when Anna wanted heat back there
• The auxiliary lighting from Hella is extremely good.  I always use them, so it’s no surprise.  I would never be without them.  On this vehicle, I added side work lights and they’re really handy for finding late-night campsites

We were approached by many people.  Surprisingly, even some who noticed my Palin sticker and wanted to say how much they thought “America” was currently going wrong!  I was really amazed, and didn’t expect that in Canada.  I guess Hugo Chavez ain’t the only person who thinks he and Castro could be more right wing than Obama.  (read it yourself at Reuters if you only watch mindless mainstream media and think I’m nuts)

 And if you think I’m cynical, or even anti-social with some of my comments about “crowded campgrounds” and too many people on holiday, here’s my special camper keyring, which Anna found in a shop and Douglas and couldn’t resist…

To close out this story, I’ll attach two more photos of those Bighorn Sheep we saw on the way into Jasper…

Now it’s time to get some stuff done around here, like fall painting, cleaning, staining, and firewood prep.  It’ll actually be nice to have the extra ~3 weeks available.

 

Thanks to everyone who read the blog!

 

- Darrin and Anna

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