I’m far from being an expert of 4 wheeling with a trailer, but I have learned quite a bit in the last year. I’d like to think I am doing something right if I can drag one through Rubicon.
The original intent for building a trailer was for the to and from camping duties, much the same as Tony’s, without the “utility feature” his has. Extra room, extra supplies, sleeping in a roof top tent, and the idea of keeping camping supplies packed up ready to go in the trailer all sounded perfect. I have done some towing in the past, other vehicles (flat and dolly), a weekend camp trailer, and drove 18 wheeler trucks for a short time.
After “Mini-me” started taking shape I started thinking about using it on the trails, more specifically the upcoming Rubicon Trail trip 8 months away. Yup, I wanted to tow a trailer in a SUA wagon through the Rubicon Trail, which I have never been. So the motivation was there.
There was a club run in April down to Tillamook, OR with Cascade Cruisers. This was to be the shake down run for the trailer off-road. I had to get the trailer down there to see what I would be getting myself into on the Rubicon. It was close, but I was able to get the trailer registered and road legal the week before the trip, minus a tent on top. Now Whitney and I knew the trailer was going on the trails, I even pitched the question of trailer capability on these trails to the some of Cascade Cruisers, but I know there was some opposition to just the idea of taking it wheeling amongst the group.
The road trip down went well. Mini-me behaved well on the highway, she just followed along. The best part of the trip, and still is the best part, were the looks and thumbs up from people passing. I can only imagine what it looked like for the first time seeing it. One thing that helps pulling the trailer is the 4spd conversion of the 62. Without it I would have had less power and less mpg. Lilly was getting 14-15 mpg this trip.
The morning of the run everyone met up in a large parking lot. There was a big turnout from both clubs and a few others. After others figured out that the trailer was indeed tagging along, we all headed out. It was during this time I said to Whitney, “Maybe this isn’t a good idea.” After all, I didn’t want to be the delay of the group and listen to all the “I told you so”s. But we continued on and ended up at our first trail, Fire Break 5. Of course it starts out pretty good going up this one hill, which of course is rotted out some and filled with loose rocks. After watching others in front of me getting hung up and some backing up and getting another line at it and what not, it was then I said again to Whitney, “Maybe this isn’t a good idea.”
My turn came. This was it. Succeed or fail.
My mindset at the start was get some momentum and keep it going. The one thing I did not want to happen was to get stuck and have to back down somehow. On the climb, the rig did well. Lilly kept moving along and the trailer just bounced back and forth along for the ride. One thing that did get caught on and brought me to a halt was my trailer jack on the tongue. Apparently it was just digging into a big rock. After a bit of maneuvering and re-picking another line, I was on my way up to the top. Making it to the top under Lilly’s own power, with spectators cheering, was a rush. But this wasn’t all that I was concerned about, that part was coming up.
It’s a challenge already to maneuver a 60 series Land Cruiser through tight corners with trees and rocks, now I have to do this with another 8 ft of wagon behind me. The thoughts of “is the tongue length good, how wide do I need to take this corner, am I going to be able to back up, jack knife?” were running through my head as we continued along the trail. Next obstacle: a tight left turn into another tighter left in between two trees. I had seen the rig in front of me do a two point turn on the second left and that just made me think otherwise. At this moment I knew I had to re-learn how to 4wheel. I had to forget the past 10 years of picking the right line for my 62, and come up with new lines. I realized I have to sacrifice Lilly’s line for a line which will allow Mini-me to follow through. That is the hard part and the fun part. It was like I was starting over again. It wasn’t routine anymore. There was a huge challenge in just the smallest of obstacles, and I was thriving on that. I took the first left wide of course, which went well, but I really didn’t know how to setup for the next one. I took Lilly as far right as possible with a more delayed left turn followed by keeping right as much as possible. In one try Mini-me just cut the inside of the turn, climbing up the side of a small stump and continued on like it was nothing. That’s when I knew that this off-road trailer concept was going to work.
The rest of the day was more relaxing. I was much more confident in all three of our abilities and was now seeing what worked and what didn’t. The tongue length turned out to be perfect. Short enough for the trailer to just follow Lilly’s lines, and long enough to jack knife it, which I did a couple times. I did end up removing the trailer jack the rest of the day. I think the rest of the group was more at ease knowing I wouldnt be the one holding the group up, can’t blame them. I was fortunate to have such a great group to put up with me that weekend.
The shakedown run was a huge success. Rubicon was looking better and coming up fast. Still the thought of taking a SUA wagon for the first time on the Rubicon Trail while towing a trailer for the second time on a trail was pretty daunting. I of course had my doubts, as did everyone else, but I knew this would work and I was up for the challenge. The drive down to Rubicon was the most stressful part of the whole trip for me. Just the thoughts of what could go wrong was flooding my head the whole way. I didn’t want to be the one who caused the group to turn back early and ruin such a big trip for everyone. But once all six tires hit the trail, all worries and stress stayed at the trail head. Being on the Rubicon Trail with my 62 and towing my custom 60 trailer was the most relaxing and fun time I have had in a long time. I was one with the trail.
The first two days of the Rubicon were spent figuring out new lines for the trailer. There were plenty of times I knew that a particular line would be very hard for Lilly to get through, but would make the trailer getting through a lot easier. I remember only having to ride the clutch once the entire time, and don’t recall why I had to, but the added weight of the trailer didn’t affect Lilly as much as I was thinking it would. There were also a few times in which the trailer would not make it around a turn without great damage. Let me tell you, the people you wheel with can make or break a trip. I was lucky enough to be amongst such great guys that reluctantly put up with having to push a hunk of dead weight around on the rocks at times. It was a combined effort from everyone that made it possible to get Mini-me through this trail, and I thank them all.
Days three and four were a bit different. I came to the conclusion that Mini-me is on her own. She was tracking so well that I just let her do her own thing and just concentrated on getting Lilly through. A side effect of that was a bit of visual upgrades for the trailer, but after that long of abuse on this trail you just accept it and want to get through to the end. Could I have gotten through without any damage to the trailer? I think so, but things just wear on you, along with the others around you. Some people thought I should just forget what happens to the trailer and press on, but I had to show them as well as myself that this can be done successfully. It would have been too easy to just let the trailer bash its way though without a care. I am glad I took the extra few minutes to re-examine a line, or winch the trailer over to the side to save a tail light. In the end it showed more of what I accomplished.
Would I do the Rubicon again with the trailer? Yes! I have found wheeling is more fun with the trailer than without. I have that challenge that I need and want on the trail. So what’s next? Well being in Florida doesn’t bring much to be desired right now. Right now it’s just doing the finishing work on Mini-me for the next adventure. Lilly is wanting to go back to Moab soon, and I think she wants to bring her wheeling partner along.
