Quote:
Originally Posted by uncle_bob
Hi
One interesting "tidbit" .... the typical "drag it behind a horse" full time RV'er moved around a lot. They typically didn't spend a whole lot of time in one location. Resources ran down and they moved on. Most of us spend more time in one spot than they did. Yes, as you look all over the world there is a bit of variation. Some groups moved less than others ....
Bob
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The American Plains Indian, before the second introduction to the Horse... was what one could carry. Much like a back packer limiting what is most important to survive onto the trails in the Wilderness. ...some don't. You made what you needed with the natural supplies found existing when traveling during the Seasons.
A bit of domestic 'dog travel' for some groups was popular. Traveling any distance required what you currently have IN your Airstream, the Native American had to know WHERE to find what was needed along the way. Think about that for a bit...
Obsidian from Yellowstone Park can be found hundreds of miles from the source. Also other Flint Quarries like Alibates, Spanish Diggings have their debris scattered for hundreds of miles in the Western USA. An amateur archaeologist can pick up a few flakes and KNOW where the material originated. We do... it is very interesting to Nancy and I. Most people would not understand why this interest... but need to sit down and take some time to listen and understand.
An Airstream with tow vehicle is limited to paved and improved roads. Improved roads in the National Forest today... can be good for decades and today.. barely passable...if at all. Brush and low branches are growing too close into the road, making it more difficult.. now. Some fallen timber has to be pulled off the road or chainsawed. A huge tree blocking a Mountain Road? Backing up is not only difficult in the High Country... but not very easy for those experienced drivers!
In ten years... impassable if you do not want to scratch all exposed surfaces panels...
Thus the 3 inch lift kits and 16 inch E rated Michelin tires popular among some owners, today.
This Year in our Rocky Mountain travels, many roads that were good in past years are TODAY ruined by ATV's and 4x4's with mud tires leaving pot holes and trenched roads. No need to maintain these roads... today as you need the next level of equipment to travel over them. ATV's now are the most common Off the Grid road travel today. Entire families with small children sizes to four and six passenger models. Watch out on mountain roads... Those we have encountered on the NFS roads have been very considerate... kids to adults.
Some on the New Mexico Adventure may describe the condition of these roads... Some have been passable now from use. Some... impassable for any Trailer Traffic. These same areas had been occupied by Native Americans that survived for hunreds of years in one area. We might manage for six weeks... and be eating our shoe leather. Think about getting stuck without Cell Service... better get native quick.
Maintenance of Mountains Roads is often taking a 'grader' and pushing dirt and rock. It exposes boulders and rock that you must avoid for clearance and tire safety. There are few funds to grade and then gravel roads used primarily by Hunters. At a time in the Future... the NFS and BLM road system will be difficult to travel upon.
Logging and mining roads are fantastic combinations of imagination by those maintaining the roads. They have to be well groomed and mixed with gravel and binding soils to keep heavy lumber trucks and ore trucks rolling out of the mountains. The caveat... you do not want to be too confident that they will slow down if you are in their way coming down with a load of timber or ore.
Even the DeLorne Atlas only lists a small number of what roads exist at any one place. Many of these untraveled 'two ruts' are great for a trailer in tow. You must watch the clearances of Drag the bumper or under body... although the 3 inch Lift and 16 inch E rated Tires help significantly. Experience is built up for some Off Road towing, but others have no concept of where their tow vehicle wheels are or their trailer's that are not traveling the same.
Low branches. High spots in the center of the road. Culverts. Pot Holes change clearances. Going UP a dip may be passable, but going DOWN will drag your bumper off or pull it into the shape of a Archer's Bow.
How deep is the water in a pot hole? If you do not have an idea, you had better know... No 4x4 option for your tow vehicle... can that momentum going UP the mountain be maintained for as long as you have traction? Horse Power has four legs. You have one wheel or two with some vehicles. Even 4x4 is not four tires turning full time at full power... unless you have a Lock 4, even then you have to be careful to use it when it should be used.
Watch the series Wagon Train and work up to Wally Byam's Airstream 'travel trailer' adventures in Africa, although here in the USA. You learn by making mistakes. Those who know the most... learned one step at a time. Mistakes are a learning process to become independent and Off the Grid smart.
Those who have done nothing new, usually succeed at doing nothing old, as well. Be careful. Have fun. Life is short.
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