Capo Valley Four Wheelers Club
Capo Valley Four Wheelers club is a family oriented and environmentally sensitive group made up of highly experienced as well as "rookie" off-roaders. Their members' ages range from the late teens to "seasoned citizens." Their mission is to promote camaraderie, share experience, and promote the sport of off-roading. They also sponsor the Adopt-A-Trail program and are members of the California Association of Four wheel Drive Clubs. You can visit their trail 2N90 in the San Bernardino, California National Forrest which goes to the top of Tip Top Mountain. Their trips vary from moderate to moderately difficult and they welcome new members of all experience levels.
While the club has a sense of humor and likes to have fun, they know the "fun level" of a club outing is dependent on the "weakest link" factor and because of that, they have a Camping Primer of information on being self-sufficient which helps make everyone's trip more enjoyable. Here are some excerpts...
A CAMPING PRIMER
For those of you who haven't been camping in awhile, here's a reminder of the kind of things to bring and other helpful hints:
First off, you're going to be camping in the middle of absolutely nowhere. It's high fashion for camping but it's not a Motel 6 situated next door to a Denny's, so here's what to expect. No toilets, bring TP and a shovel. No water, bring water. The desert is a land of extremes (we call this charm) so be prepared for a windy 30 degrees at night with 101% humidity and 100 degrees in the day time with 0% humidity; and be pleasantly surprised when it turns out to be starry sky 50 degrees at night and a sunny 75 degrees in the day with an even 70% humidity. If you want to look like a really serious 4 wheeler, bring a stupid bubba hat. Sunny days at high elevations or out in the desert often add to the charm. Bring sunscreen (SPF 200 if you can find it) and clothing that will keep the sun off. Tank tops and shorts are great until you can't tell it is getting cold in the evening because you got fried to a crisp during the day. Bring clothing for all seasons.
Beverages and ice... bring it and bring it cold. The nearest restaurant doesn't exist, so bring food. The nearest log or rock big enough to sit on is in the restaurant parking lot, so bring a folding chair. Let me introduce you now to the club chef... that's you. Everyone needs to bring what it takes to prepare his or her own food. You can stay real basic with Fritos and Pepsi, but most of us bring a stove, pans, and cooking utensils. Sometimes it gets so charming (windy) that you can't light a stove and then it's back to basics. You thought I was kidding about the Fritos. You need light to cook dinner by, not candles as they may blow out (additional charm at no extra charge), bring a lantern and a flashlight that works.
Speaking of no extra charge, we often camp on BLM land in the middle of nowhere so camping is free! Bring green money for the gift store...oh wait, there is no gift store in the middle of nowhere, but it comes in handy to buy gas. And buy that gas when the rest of the club stops for gas. We ALWAYS stop at a place we call "Last Gas" to top off our tanks. We do this just before leaving pavement behind and any hope that the Auto Club will come to your rescue if you forget to top off your tank. Last Gas is usually located next door to "Last Ice" and "Last Bag O' Fritos." Hint, Hint.
In the evening, we'll sit around the campfire with beverages in hand, chow down, and tell lies. Bring a folding chair, food, and cold beverages... notice we're starting to repeat some of the more critical items.
Camping implies a tent, tent stakes, rain fly, ground tarp, sleeping bag, and sleeping mat, or you can crash in the back seat of your rig under a Winnie The Pooh blanket. Personally, I like the tent concept. Bring your tooth brush and other personal sundries, medications, water enough to wash up, and a towel to dry off. Do not bring a blow dryer, curling iron, blender, waffle iron, or other 110VAC appliance unless you are a comedian ‘cause we'll laugh at you if you do.
If you bring your dog, then bring dog food. If you have a junkyard dog, leave it at home in your junkyard. There may be a change in the dinner menu if your dog bites someone. Further, your dog should be trained to come when you call it. We always camp in the middle of coyote country, unless we are camping in bear country, which is located right next door to mountain lion country. These frisky critters often come around at night to see if your dog wants to come out and play.
If there's no chance of you having any vehicle trouble or injury, leave the tools and your first aid kit at home. This implies you won't hurt yourself, or your rig often enough to matter... fat chance, accidents happen. Bring some tools, spare parts, a tow strap, and Band-Aids. Be prepared for an Indiana Jones adventure and be delighted if it turns out to be a drive in the park.
The rule of thumb is, if you don't bring it — you won't have it.
The club meets at 7:30 pm the first Tuesday of each month at the Wind and Sea Restaurant, in Dana Point Harbor, CA. Show up at the next meeting or give Bruce Rausch a call at 949-361-3411 about a future trail run. They make trail runs every month.
Their website has hundreds of action photos from past runs. There is also a schedule of future runs, and contact names/phone numbers. Check out www.capovalley4wheelers.org
Keep the rubber side down.