Yay, I got drawn for male Deer, female Elk! Looking forward to fall!

TC's fuel starvation problem does appear to be fixed. Pulling the carter electric pump revealed, of all things ... sand caught in the mesh filter screen. The problem hasn't recurred since replacing the pump with a spare. An inline clear filter prior to the pump is on the to do list.

Before departing for Ouray on July 16, I'm once again partaking in the traditional todo scramble-fest. It's always easier to talk about stuff one wants to do to their rig than actually doing any of it.

Fortunately it looks like routine maintenance is all that's in the must do column (unless TC throws a fit and blows up something). Meanwhile, a brake upgrade and some interior comfort upgrades are in order for the want to do list. To wit: installing AC and window tinting, sound deadening, car alarm, and stereo. There's been enough perspiration inside this truck already.

Way back in 1999 I discovered a jewel among the Rockies, a getaway offering some of the most beautiful alpine views in all of Colorado. My pal Clay over at 4x4 Offroad Adventures in Colorado knows exactly what I'm talking about!

The mountains are flecked with the history of adventurous miners. Old buildings in the towns of Ouray and Silverton silently stand watching the decades pass, sparking the imagination, painting a ghostly panorama of life around the turn of the last century. Out on the old trails, feelings of awe can be found around most every turn.

How do you explain to someone who voluntarily incarcerates themselves among streets and concrete what it is they're missing? Pictures are pretty but a 4 inch by 6 inch flat piece of paper doesn't convey the size and space standing among eons old mountains, or the brilliant splashes of color in crumbling rock and delicate flowers clinging to them.



I've been to the San Juan Mountains a half dozen times in ten years and the adventure never gets old. My wife and I have made plans to return in July -- we took our honeymoon there during winter 2003.

We'll travel the old trails with other Full Size Jeepers on the annual FSJ Invasion that we started way back when. So the Big Adventure for 2008 is set!

Ouray is three hundred miles away. Not a long jaunt, but for a 20 year old rig, one has to be prepared. The to do list is made up, so the next couple months will be spent prepping TC for the highway and trail!

Barring catastrophic failure or any other unseen adversity, we are not missing this.

Ouray or bust!

Took TC out Sunday for some fishing. Was going to run the raft at Aurora but gave up on that after forgetting my license and having to drive all the way back home.

Ended up shore fishing at nearby Centennial Park. Fish were rising once in awhile. Others were having reasonably good luck. Got a nibble or two right before leaving but no fish. Ah well. Will try boating next time after installing the fish finder.

Meanwhile, TC is running pretty well and didn't even get strand me. Gorgeous Colorado day today, perfect temps, clear skies, a good day to while away some time out of the house.