Enthusiast III
Although I grew up camping with my family (New England), it wasn't until I moved to New Mexico in May of 2019 that I fell hard for the outdoors and eventually with overlanding and the freedom / sense of peace associated with both.
Initially I moved out with as much as I could fit in my 2005.5 A4 Avant (6 speed
) and I drove this up many forest service roads on my way to trail heads. I kept trying to go further and explore more as I started to cherish the surreal and varied landscapes in the Land of Entrapment. I realized soon that if I got this wagon stuck or it broke down miles down a trail, I'd have to just give the damn thing to the tow company.
Sometimes I think I miss the Audi but having worked on it myself, I knew there were only more and more expensive and time consuming maintenance ahead. I also knew I wanted to be out exploring this state and not wrenching on an almost 20 year old, over-engineered German car.
On March 20, 2021 I snagged a 2020 Ram Rebel with 27k miles on it (rental truck) with the quad cab and 6'4" bed. Once I determined I was going to need a different vehicle to adventure I spent entirely too much time reading up, on sites like this very one, on the many ways people got themselves out into the backcountry. While exploring in my Audi I generally stayed in camp grounds until the pandemic, until I gave up and discovered what public land was. This solidified my desire / need to get a truck or SUV. I grew enamored with the truck bed camper and settled on a truck. Having never owned a truck before I routinely rented one for the weekend from the Sunport and set out into the woods. I drove a few Ram 1500s, a Silverado, and F-150 Eco Boost.
The EcoBoost was FAST, the Silverado I found to be hideous (that front end) and while I fully intended to, never drove the Tundra. I have friends how have had Rams and I blame them for guiding me down this path. I drove a Rebel in ABQ, the first vehicle I test drove, and determined it was too much truck for me and some 6 months later I ended up buying one in Colorado Springs, dealerships in AZ and NM were a pain and I was out the door at $43k and Nirettzy got as much done before I drove up, making it as painless as I could have imagined. I knew going in that I was buying entirely too much truck and spent more than I thought I'd have to (although seeing older Rebels go for more today than what I paid then makes me feel pretty solid).
My plan / dream is to eventually live out of this truck, so I never really considered something smaller than a half ton. The Tacoma sure has incredible aftermarket support but I didn't want to outgrow or overload the truck with my overlanding plans. I dream of putting 500k miles on the Ram and someday putting a flatbed / pop up camper on. It remains to be seen if I'll upgrade to a 3/4 or 1 ton truck. For now the truck is set up, phase 1, for weekend outings and some week long trips but we'll get there
On the way home to ABQ from Colorado Springs, I detoured up to Jemez Mountains and then south to Tijeras to drive a few dirt roads and get acquainted with the Rebel Yell. In the subsequent post I'll march through the changes I've made and outline where I hope to go from here, albeit slowly.
Initially I moved out with as much as I could fit in my 2005.5 A4 Avant (6 speed
) and I drove this up many forest service roads on my way to trail heads. I kept trying to go further and explore more as I started to cherish the surreal and varied landscapes in the Land of Entrapment. I realized soon that if I got this wagon stuck or it broke down miles down a trail, I'd have to just give the damn thing to the tow company.
Sometimes I think I miss the Audi but having worked on it myself, I knew there were only more and more expensive and time consuming maintenance ahead. I also knew I wanted to be out exploring this state and not wrenching on an almost 20 year old, over-engineered German car.
On March 20, 2021 I snagged a 2020 Ram Rebel with 27k miles on it (rental truck) with the quad cab and 6'4" bed. Once I determined I was going to need a different vehicle to adventure I spent entirely too much time reading up, on sites like this very one, on the many ways people got themselves out into the backcountry. While exploring in my Audi I generally stayed in camp grounds until the pandemic, until I gave up and discovered what public land was. This solidified my desire / need to get a truck or SUV. I grew enamored with the truck bed camper and settled on a truck. Having never owned a truck before I routinely rented one for the weekend from the Sunport and set out into the woods. I drove a few Ram 1500s, a Silverado, and F-150 Eco Boost.
The EcoBoost was FAST, the Silverado I found to be hideous (that front end) and while I fully intended to, never drove the Tundra. I have friends how have had Rams and I blame them for guiding me down this path. I drove a Rebel in ABQ, the first vehicle I test drove, and determined it was too much truck for me and some 6 months later I ended up buying one in Colorado Springs, dealerships in AZ and NM were a pain and I was out the door at $43k and Nirettzy got as much done before I drove up, making it as painless as I could have imagined. I knew going in that I was buying entirely too much truck and spent more than I thought I'd have to (although seeing older Rebels go for more today than what I paid then makes me feel pretty solid).
My plan / dream is to eventually live out of this truck, so I never really considered something smaller than a half ton. The Tacoma sure has incredible aftermarket support but I didn't want to outgrow or overload the truck with my overlanding plans. I dream of putting 500k miles on the Ram and someday putting a flatbed / pop up camper on. It remains to be seen if I'll upgrade to a 3/4 or 1 ton truck. For now the truck is set up, phase 1, for weekend outings and some week long trips but we'll get there
On the way home to ABQ from Colorado Springs, I detoured up to Jemez Mountains and then south to Tijeras to drive a few dirt roads and get acquainted with the Rebel Yell. In the subsequent post I'll march through the changes I've made and outline where I hope to go from here, albeit slowly.
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