Oregon Back Country Discovery Route

[rlwjaw]

My son and I are planning a trip on the OBCDR to begin around July 7 2008. We are looking for others to hook up with to help show us the way and some of the other sights along the way. We will becoming from Tracy CA and beginning the trip from south to north to Washington. We will do the eastern portion on the way up and the western route on the way back. We are also interested in some side trips along the way. Also we are looking for any info that might help with this expedition .
Thanks

[Jerry]

I would like to do that trip, but have to compare schedules with other folks before committing. Also, the PNW4WDA Trail Jamboree starts on Jul 9th and goes thru the following weekend, another event I would like to participate in. Just have to do some juggling.

Interesting side trips along the eastern OBCDR are abundant depending upon how far you are willing to drive sideways. I'm sure others will make suggestions, but if they don't I will later.
Jerry from Yakima

[RidgeRunner]

Welcome to the forum.

That's a pretty ambitious undertaking but if you have enough time you can certainly do it.

I've completed about 80% of Route 5. I still have the northern part of Section 3 and the southern part of Section 4 to finish. I haven't done any of Route 3 or 4 but they are on my list.

I also have several commitments already lined up for next May and June, then two weeks worth in August so I'm not sure that I can shoehorn another trip into July. But, I will keep it in mind and let you know if things change.

You may know about Benchmark Maps. They make a very good addition to the OOHVA maps which you will definitely need.

Good luck on your planning and keep us posted of your progress. I'd be happy to answer any questions if I can. You can PM me for my email.

Mick

[rlwjaw]

Time isn't too much of a problem however we do want to be in Ellensburg Washington for the W.E.Rock comp. June 20- 22. My son wants to enter the RC comp.
One thought about GPS , which one would you suggest for this kind of trip and which topo program to go with it?
Thanks
Keep the comments coming .

[Jerry]

After re-reading ToyMan's trip reports of the OBCDR #5 it would seem my Ford F-150 4x4 should make the trip with no problem. Assuming there is no snow of course. He was in a group that had 2 or 3 full size pickups among them. I guess there was one tight spot where a running board scraped a rock. He also said there was only one place they needed 4-wheel drive. See his trip reports under "Completed Trips" in this forum. There are also all sorts of trip reports about Route 5 on the net, everything from motorcycles to big 4x4's, all interesting.

I would not want to drive my Wrangler day after day for 750 to 900 miles, besides that it sucks gas like crazy. The Bronco II would work great except neither the Wrangler nor the BII have enough room to carry my necessities. I am hoping to have the pickup equipped for overland travel by next summer and the OBCDR sounds just right.
Jerry

[rlwjaw]

My son and I will each be driving a 1989 Toyota 4x4 pickup, 22RE, SAS , Marlin dual cases, 5.29 spool in rear and Detroit up front, and 37 MTR's.

[Jerry]

Nice ride!

[RidgeRunner]

Originally Posted by rlwjaw

Time isn't too much of a problem however we do want to be in Ellensburg Washington for the W.E.Rock comp. June 20- 22. My son wants to enter the RC comp.
One thought about GPS , which one would you suggest for this kind of trip and which topo program to go with it?
Thanks
Keep the comments coming .

I use a simple Garmin Legend. I've had it for years and it works great. The maps you get from OOHVA have GPS Waypoints printed on the trail and I just put those into Easy GPS and download them into my Legend as a route. Seems to work great and I don't use a topo in the GPS. I tried following the trail at first without the OOHVA maps, just trying to follow the Benchmark Oregon map and found it was very difficult. You could probably get from CA to WA alright but you would have a hard time following Route 5.

Originally Posted by soggymountain

After re-reading ToyMan's trip reports of the OBCDR #5 it would seem my Ford F-150 4x4 should make the trip with no problem. Assuming there is no snow of course. He was in a group that had 2 or 3 full size pickups among them. I guess there was one tight spot where a running board scraped a rock. He also said there was only one place they needed 4-wheel drive. See his trip reports under "Completed Trips" in this forum. There are also all sorts of trip reports about Route 5 on the net, everything from motorcycles to big 4x4's, all interesting.

I would not want to drive my Wrangler day after day for 750 to 900 miles, besides that it sucks gas like crazy. The Bronco II would work great except neither the Wrangler nor the BII have enough room to carry my necessities. I am hoping to have the pickup equipped for overland travel by next summer and the OBCDR sounds just right.
Jerry

Jerry, I think you're right, the pickup should work great.

Originally Posted by rlwjaw

My son and I will each be driving a 1989 Toyota 4x4 pickup, 22RE, SAS , Marlin dual cases, 5.29 spool in rear and Detroit up front, and 37 MTR's.

If they both look like that one, they are great rigs. You should have a really fun time.

Mick

[rlwjaw]

If they both look like that one, they are great rigs. You should have a really fun time.

Mick[/quote]

They are both just about the same rig except his is red.
Thanks for all the input.