4x4 Systems Education Sites?

[M Rose]

I'd call it unlucky :) There are sites/apps that cover some of the trails out there but they don't come close to covering all of the trails out there. The tracks covered by internet sites/apps are going to be well traveled and often full of people; the unknown (to the internet and crowded masses) tracks are the real gems IMO as they are quieter and allow more communion with nature. Last Labor Day we found a GREAT spot down a local well traveled track and I was almost taken out a couple of times by the Dukes of Hazzard; pretty sure @M Rose had the same experience on that trip.

Part of the joy for me and my ilk is exploration and getting the heck away from everything that bogs us in that which masquerades as "real life".

Yea, we were lucky to make it out alive. (No exaggeration.).

 

[Anak]

Tire shops won't even touch a regular truck anymore. Lifts are only good to 9000#.

Won't do a rotation on a truck because they can't lift it. Todays techs are retards. I never jack my tires more than two inches off the deck to do a rotation. The last thing I want to do is lift a 100# F rated wheel 3-4 feet up.

We had to find a local guy that specializes in fullsize trucks and work vehicles. But I have to move into a GMC Express van for a week while my truck is getting fixed. Minus well lock up all my ammo and pills in a safe, and toss the keys in the truck when I drop it off. Because it's depressing driving the vans.

Your average tire shop and car dealer only wants to service little Subarus and wear pink sweater vests. A Dodge dealer couldn't even do the tires on my Ram truck.

Because of the complete lack of emergency repairs, I've permanently canceled all ideas of foreign overlanding. I'll just fly in. Every major expedition has repair stories, and they get worse every year. Going through the headaches of keeping a truck on the road is such a nightmare in the US, I don't even want to consider our 3rd world neighbors.

Boy do I hear you on the tire shops. What a bunch of clueless wonders.

It has been over ten years since I have even let them touch one of my vehicles. I pull my tires/wheels at home and load them in the bed of the truck (and yes, I have spare wheels for the truck). Even then there have been times when I have had to make them pull tires off and re-mount them because they put them on wrong. They will always find a way to screw up something. I think they largely get away with it because the average customer can't tell the difference.

 

[G & J]

I guess I've been lucky then. Aren't there ways to check for information about a trail before driving them? I thought I saw something about trail ratings? Something like that.

There are a few rating systems out there. It started with a 1-5 scale and then moved to a 1-10 scale. There is now a 1-15 scale as well.

The internet and you tube can help a lot with reviews of named trails and local clubs can help a lot with local stuff. There are a number of trail books out there that are a great resource as well. I recommend the books by Roger Mitchell and Funtreks.

The hard part, at least in my area, there are a lot of offshoot trails and sometimes it can be hard to tell if you are staying on the correct trail. We have found some pretty cool areas by missing a turn though.

The key is getting out there. Go with an experienced trail driver in your area if you can and build up experience. But even if you go solo, get out there. Start with easy and moderate trails and gain experience before you start tackling the difficult stuff. Learning to pick proper lines through obstacles is the key. Moderate trails will let you try stuff without getting into too much trouble.

 

[Sailmike]

Trouble is I don’t look for trails, I look for free campsites and they are always in the backcountry. One way to check if a big truck will fit is if the description of the campsite says it’ll fit vehicles up to 25’.

 

[Anak]

The hard part, at least in my area, there are a lot of offshoot trails and sometimes it can be hard to tell if you are staying on the correct trail. We have found some pretty cool areas by missing a turn though.

One of the best trips we ever went on was a small group run on which the leader came down sick a few days before the run and couldn't lead. He gave the waypoints to group though. The rest of us went ahead with the run with the full expectation that we would get lost. And we did. For the record, a drone is actually a useful tool for figuring out if a turn actually gets you somewhere or just dead-ends around the next hill. Nonetheless we found places to camp and found our way back home by the end of the weekend. And the leader was able to go lead that run several months later and take the group all the places we were supposed to have gone.