So it’s time for our first adventure of the year. Living so close to Mt. St. Helens you would expect to find snow all over the place. Unfortunately for us we had to travel well away from the house and up in elevation to find the snow line. Kalama horse camp was a great starting place for us. Just south we found a great gravel pit that was perfect for some target practice before we blazer ahead.

Was the perfect start to our adventure with some target shooting for the kids with BB guns and .22 rifle. Then the adults (mom & dad) got to shoot some clay pigeons out of the sky. I’m so thankful that the rest of the family has taken to the outdoors and shooting sports that I enjoy so much.

After a good time shooting, we packed the truck back up and headed up the mountain to see what kind of trouble we could find. After passing through a typically locked gate, we passed a minivan that had headed up for the same reason. Luckily we could make it a lot further up the toad than they could. After passing some snow on the road we found a couple guys that were heading off to do some hiking/snowshoeing, maybe we’ll try that some day. We decided to take the road towards Ape Cave on the south side of the mountain, unfortunately after a few miles the H3 just didn’t feel like going too much further. We decided to turn around and head back but that turned out to be way more difficult than expected. We had to do a little forward/reverse dance and even break out the shovel, but we got out fairly quick. Definitely a learning experience on the 4WD capabilities of the H3 and when to use the different options. After we got turned around we took some time to let the kids play in the snow.

Fairly hard pack snow but the kids didn’t care, there were plenty of snow balls (or snow chunks) flying about.

A total of about 40 miles off highway and we had some fun. Plenty of side trails that would’ve been awesome to explore but for the first time in the mountains with the rig we weren’t going to push it at all. We just wanted to get the kids out for some family fun and we certainly did that.

Well we finally did it, our new-to-us Hummer H3 has made it’s way home. The struggle was real though, the dealership we bought from had trouble getting several things fixed in a timely manner and the entire process took almost 3 weeks. However since it’s been home, it’s been busy carting the kids off to school and picking up the groceries just waiting for the first trip to the mountains.

There was plenty of options out there to choose from but we ended up staying on the lower end to match our budget. As I mentioned in the last post, the Alpha package would’ve been great to have however the 3.5L I5 doesn’t seem to have any problems getting moving. One thing to understand is that it’s designed for off-road, it’s by no means a sports car.

So what we ended up with is; an ’06 Hummer H3, Slate Blue, black leather interior, adventure package, 33″ Toyo M/T tires and 137,000 miles. Fortunately the truck is in good shape, no accidents or major body issues, clean inside and out. There’s the typical maintenance things that we will have to do over time but right from the start it has been good to go. With the lack of running boards or step bars, the kids have had a challenging time getting in and out. So obviously step bars will be on order soon to fix that problem.

There are plenty of projects on the list for this truck but before that happens we have to get out and have some adventures with it! Unfortunately you’re going to have to wait for some pictures, I just don’t have any that do it justice yet.

 

 

 

So with the weather changing and the rain and occasional snow settling into the Pacific Northwest, it has come time to find our first adventure rig. So far we’ve been using the old family Honda Pilot for exploring but 2WD can be a little limiting. So we’ve decided to pursue our options for an adventure truck that can get us in and out of the mountains with ease while having plenty of room to keep all our gear and being decent on highways as well. I started thinking about the Jeep lineup but brand new is not in the cards for us and honestly not ideal as we’ll surely be getting it dirty and the occasional scratch.

To give a little background in what I’m planing on doing with the rig and the important features I’m looking for, lets take a look at where we’ve been. With Yacolt Burn State Park being within 30 minutes of the house, it tends to be our go to for shooting and exploring. There are plenty of heavily used logging roads throughout the park that aren’t an issue in good conditions. With the rain and snow heading our way though 4WD is a necessity. There are also plenty of rarely used roads and off-road trails throughout the park that require some more flexibility and ground clearance to get through. Also once we get out in the woods we need to have all the gear we could need whether it be firearms to go shooting, packs for some hiking, shovels and sleds to play in the snow, and always the standard survival gear. This leads us to an SUV with the enclosed backend instead of a truck. Jeep Wranglers, Cherokee’s, and Toyota 4Runners are very popular in this category but unfortunately there is a pretty large gap between the “newer” vehicles that are in good shape that are well above our price range and those that have already been used for this purpose which are usually in rough shape and not as reliable.

Enter the Hummer H3! The Hummer doesn’t seem to be nearly as popular as the others which definitely helps the cost but these trucks have been built for off-road. The smaller size makes them very nimble and maneuverable on the trail while having good ground clearance right from the factory. There are several packages to choose from over the years but two of the important factors for me have been the adventure package and possibly the Alpha model. The adventure package gives us some additional protection to the undercarriage but the main advantage is the locking rear differential on earlier model years and later years have locking front and rear differentials. Having the locker can certainly help get out of some sticky situations when in the backwoods and would be ideal to have. The Alpha package on the other hand is an upgraded engine, welcome V8! With the stock ’06 using the 3.5L I5 engine and subsequent years getting the 3.7L I5, the V8 brings a substantial amount of performance to the table.

I’ve determined that ideally I would like an ’09-10 Alpha with the adventure and luxury packages, however that would be driving up our price. With the ’06 being the first year in production and the slightly smaller engine, prices are definitely reasonable. I’ve narrowed my search down to ’06-07 with the adventure package, this should fit nicely into the budget. This leaves us with enough room to get leather seats with seat heaters which will help us stay a little cleaner and warmer.

So that’s enough of the planning and searching stage, it’s time to get out there and and get this party started. I’ll be back soon to fill you in on what I find and ultimately adding to the family soon.