Building a new "adventure vehicle" or I guess, my retirement exploration vehicle.

[redneck_billcollector]

Spent a few days in the mountains of N. Ga. scouting out future camp sites for both hunting and fishing. I logged the off pavement trails I traveled on and put in just over 200 miles on FS Trails, some of which were apparently not maintained. Marked around 2 dozen camp sites that were rather remote and off the beaten path, scouted out some decent higher altitude blue line brook trout streams. Saw a lot of deer and not many deer hunters at all, the acorns a literally falling like rain in many parts of the mountains. And what I really enjoyed was finding a lot of rather massive Eastern White Pines (I used to cruise timber and well, love old growth trees). One last observation, they need rain, the blue line streams were really, and I mean really low. It is sad, one of the streams I used to catch brook trout on years ago used to have beaver ponds in its upper reaches and they would keep them flowing even during the worst of droughts, it appears they have all been torn out by someone who wrongly thinks beaver dams and trout don't mix. I encountered one beaver dam that has been torn out in the last year. I talked with a guide I know up there and he verified that there are some locals who think beavers eat trout and somehow harm the population....you can't fix dumb.

 

[Triple C]

Really enjoying your updates. Hope you keep em coming.

 

[John Cooper]

Love it RBC!!!!!

 

[redneck_billcollector]

Well, I got to test the vehicle out in the cold. I camped for five days in the Chattahoochee NF and the Nantahala NF and boy did it get cold, well at least for a south GA boy, got down into the low teens last night way high in the Nantahala NF. Had a couple of snow dustings, nothing much, but continued snow showers for a couple of days. First off, the Dickenson 9000 Propane fireplace/heater keeps it toasty inside and uses very little fuel. The "tent" portion of the camper is insulated and really holds the heat in. Hit a couple of hard trails, saw some grouse, which surprised me, and a lot of turkeys. Met up with a long-time buddy of mine and his 14 yo son, the last two days. My buddy is into "overlanding" and we did some exploring and camping. After them freezing one night in a tent, and the next night sleeping in his vehicle, which he was cranking every couple of hours, he has decided he is building a vehicle like mine, especially after he saw receipts and realized it was a good bit cheaper than he thought, It got so cold one night, I think the campfire froze....The red picture is of me warming my feet by my camper's fireplace after I went outside.

 

[Tight Lines]

Awesome!

 

[John Cooper]

I love it RBC!!!!!


I really love it!!!!

 

[John Cooper]

I would be remiss if I did not include a video of the most filmed water crossing location in Georgia. https://www.facebook.com/586644691/videos/pcb.10163164799664692/233589899780240

I can't view it as I don't have Facebook. Any pictures??

 

[NCHillbilly]

I would be remiss if I did not include a video of the most filmed water crossing location in Georgia. https://www.facebook.com/586644691/videos/pcb.10163164799664692/233589899780240

I can't see it, but I'm guessing it was the one on the Tallulah?

 

[NCHillbilly]

I'm starting to see a few more grouse the last couple years. Still scarce as hen's teeth, though. They used to be literally running everywhere in the woods here and standing in the roads picking gravel everywhere you went until about the late 90s, then they just almost disappeared seemingly overnight.

 

[redneck_billcollector]

I can't view it as I don't have Facebook. Any pictures??

For the life of me I cannot figure out how to post a video on here other than pasting my Facebook link. The files that have my videos never come up when I hit the attach files link on GON.

 

[redneck_billcollector]

Ok, gonna try this again. I would be remiss if I did not upload a video of the most widely filmed water crossing in Georgia. Notice, my "rock sliders" do not even get wet. Oh yeah, like my YouTube video, I don't know why, but everybody says that.

 

[redneck_billcollector]

I can't view it as I don't have Facebook. Any pictures??

I figured out how to upload a video on here finally, created a YouTube Channel.

 

[redneck_billcollector]

I can't see it, but I'm guessing it was the one on the Tallulah?

I figured out how to load a video now, actually thanks to your advice in the help forum.

 

[redneck_billcollector]

I'm starting to see a few more grouse the last couple years. Still scarce as hen's teeth, though. They used to be literally running everywhere in the woods here and standing in the roads picking gravel everywhere you went until about the late 90s, then they just almost disappeared seemingly overnight.

I was pleasantly surprised at seeing the ones I saw. They were all in NC, if you want the general location Msg me and I will tell you because I know it is your neck of the woods and I will never hunt the area and no, I ain't telling anyone else, if NCHillbilly asks I will tell him and he can tell you. It had been decades since I would come across them eating gravel on the road up there. We had a cur dog take up with us in Ga for a while, just wanted to run with us for a few miles, he would be running in front of us down the trail and then drop down into a deep valley and would bust flocks of turkeys, he busted a few flocks in just 3 or 4 miles. I finally picked him up, put him in my truck and took him back to his home where he started running with us. He was a great dog and had a collar on but no name or phone number. Sweet and obviously was used to hunt, because he wanted to run in front of the vehicles. He would make an excellent old school fall turkey dog.

 

[Geffellz18]

Saw @redneck_billcollector ‘s twin rolling down I85 this afternoon.
Swore it was him, but this one had a tag that put him a residence in @NCHillbilly ’s home state!

Pretty sick rig-For a Jeep

 

[redneck_billcollector]

Saw @redneck_billcollector ‘s twin rolling down I85 this afternoon.
Swore it was him, but this one had a tag that put him a residence in @NCHillbilly ’s home state!

Pretty sick rig-For a Jeep
View attachment 1287562

There are a number of these in NC, Ashville is the location where a lot of these campers are sold in the Southeast, a shop called Ashville Vehicle Outfitters. If that is the vehicle I think it is, they started the camper install the week that I picked mine up. Looks like the vehicle.