Every Wednesday, Porch Pup takes whoever wants to go for an off-road adventure somewhere near Imperial Dam. James had mentioned it on the Desert Ratt Pack net a couple of times. Melissa has a Toyota 4Runner, and has enjoyed off-roading in the forests back in Arkansas, but had never played in the desert before. So we decided to tag along. A bunch of the other Ratt Pack people came along, too.
By chance, we ended up second in line behind our fearless leader himself, Porch Pup. He’s an extremely kind and knowledgeable older gentleman who regaled us with stories and history about the place throughout the drive. He and some others were on CB radio, but James relayed his information over the ham radio for us Ratt Packers.
The trip took all day, culminating in a half-mile walk to the old cabin where the miners used to stay. It’s open to all to come up and spend a night yourself if you’d like. The mine itself was closed to visitors to help prevent the spread of White-Nose Syndrome, which has been killing many bats in the area. But we poked around and checked out the rest of the area that was open.
It was quite a change, being a passenger for once, and especially on a four-wheeled off-road excursion. I found it far more relaxing and enjoyable than bouncing a motorcycle down the trail. While most of the drive was pretty easy, there were a few sections I probably could not have gotten through on my bike, but Melissa and her 4Runner handled them with no problem. I could see myself taking up this form of off-roading at some point in the future. For now, I’ll just hop in with Melissa.
The desert scenery was nothing less than spectacular. You really need to watch the video to fully appreciate it.
Smokey Da Van 