shouldn't you be in bed? I know I should.
CK5
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'91 K5 Four Wheel Camper
This is the build for my 1991 V1500 Blazer, AKA the K5.3. It started out life being sold to the U.S. Government with a 350 TBI/700r4/241 combo. 4 years with a 5.3/700r4 Combo and now moving to an 8.1L Vortec and NV4500 5-speed.
shouldn't you be in bed? I know I should.
Should we call in a wellness check?
If I knew you were staying in Bouse, I could have hooked you up with a friend who has nice piece of land with anything you might need. He lives there 8 months out of the year.
I may be late to the party, but I'm always up for a trip report! 
Sand washed in the Arizona desert are a blast.
Now he’s driving in circles…
Meet up with @ZooMad75 , and his friends Bill & Jen. Last night after they pulled out of a sand pit I found in the dark( shoulda put light bars instead of winch).
We had a good morning of wheeling. Other than a few forestry fire roads, this the first trip off road for this beast. Learned a few things, need tie downs in back. Have to finish the front, (axle gesrs, drive shaft, suspension). Going up size tires, 35 12.50 or so.
Need on board air, with it I probably would have aired downed much more and sooner.
Meeting Zoo was great. He is a great guy, Stormy is a sweet pup.
It never rains in Az
We had a good morning of wheeling. Other than a few forestry fire roads, this the first trip off road for this beast. Learned a few things, need tie downs in back. Have to finish the front, (axle gesrs, drive shaft, suspension). Going up size tires, 35 12.50 or so.
Need on board air, with it I probably would have aired downed much more and sooner.
Meeting Zoo was great. He is a great guy, Stormy is a sweet pup.
It never rains in Az
No dust wheeling, nice.
going with a compressor or CO2?
compressor I think
Rolling. Nick entered the chat. 
Quarterpanel still doesn't match, eh? That thing really is a time capsule.
Glad to see it's still out and about.
Love that thing! Wish he was still active on here.
Martin
Martin
Kind wish I had gone to quartzite with now just to get up close to the 3 door.
Looks like you had a nice day on the trails by the tracking.
Looks like you had a nice day on the trails by the tracking.
Kinda on the grid for the night. Parked less than a mile to a Titan II missile base according to my map. We crossed no fence but if we turn up missing check with the feds first. 
Ok let’s catch up.
So Monday had us camped out on BLM land outside of metro Phoenix off of us60. Little did we know we camped where all the snow birds would pull in with tow rigs loaded with side by sides to go play on the trails out there. I was up first and got out so business could be attended to for both me and the pooch. Still early. But my bladder is still on my work schedule despite not working for almost a month. Still free of visitors.
Within 30 minutes the blue hair toy haulers rolled in most with far away out of state plates. Storm actually barked at the first one rolling up. Jenn was in the cab of the waggy changing clothes when it rolled by. Some old fart almost got a free show!
The angry bees started revving and we packed quick and got on the road. Those following my InReach caught we were tooling through Apache Junction. We needed to hit a camping world so Bill could get a new campfire in a can and they had some in stock. Prior to that stop we hit up a Waffle House since we skipped breakfast in camp due to the snowbirds. We went because Bill and Jenn were shocked I never ate at one before. Talked more about the experience than the quality of food. But in the location we were at lacked the normal seedy ambiance most Waffle Houses have. I’d say I wasn’t hung over enough to rave about the food either. But it’s hard to screw up scrambled eggs, bacon and a waffle. Meh, I can say I’ve been there and my instinct to not go there was on the mark.
By stopping at both places we avoided most of the rush hour traffic. But it was still madness. It’s been a solid 15 years since the last time I was in Phoenix and I think the 202 loop was still under construction. It’s got more crazy since then.
This days target was camp Bouse and the Swansea mine complex. We book for the west side of Phoenix. Stop for fuel and for me to get propane at a local Lowes since the gas station didn’t have any.
I had seen pics of these stickers but never actually saw one in person. I laughed until the pump stopped. Then I cried. 8.1’s are thirsty.
Funny thing. I was in line to pay when the guy behind me noticed my Blazer Bash shirt. Got to talking and he’s got a blazer he’s building. Told him mine was outside.
We continued west on I-10 dealing with the traffic.
Meanwhile through the day @Wes Harden and I had been texting about where he could meet us. We finally bail off the interstate and make are way to a town for a last splash of gas prior to dirt.
A few miles north we finally turn off pavement to power line road to get to camp Bouse.
We make it just a point where I notice a new noise. Sharp clunk, happens during suspension movement. Call to Bill on the radio to check it out. We do and I wasn’t sure what it was so we decided to head back to pavement and regroup. I text Wes through the InReach app since we were off grid there. Pretty slick to be able to do that.
Bill thinks about it and before we bail completely and head to Nick’s place in Phoenix we go out together to id the noise. Bill hears it higher like in the body not in the suspension or steering. I think about it and reach my hand out to feel the fender as I’m going over rough stuff. Yep he’s right. It didn’t sound the same as before. Mainly because the bolt in the door jamb to the fender wasn’t loose. The damn captured nut in the body pulled out. Great. Ain’t fixing that until I come home. We sling a ratchet strap across the inside of the engine compartment to pull that corner of the fender in to limit the rattle. It helped a little. But crisis averted we went back to the plan. Those watching are movements might have seen me go up and down a miles worth of power line road to listen to it.
I texted Wes on the InReach to say we intend on camping at camp Bouse instead of the Swansea cabin at the mine. I gave him the frequency we were on and told him we’d listen for him. We drove around on the old camp roads and checked out the historic markers in different spots. Yes we looked like we were driving in circles, because we were. lol.
Ok let’s catch up.
So Monday had us camped out on BLM land outside of metro Phoenix off of us60. Little did we know we camped where all the snow birds would pull in with tow rigs loaded with side by sides to go play on the trails out there. I was up first and got out so business could be attended to for both me and the pooch. Still early. But my bladder is still on my work schedule despite not working for almost a month. Still free of visitors.
Within 30 minutes the blue hair toy haulers rolled in most with far away out of state plates. Storm actually barked at the first one rolling up. Jenn was in the cab of the waggy changing clothes when it rolled by. Some old fart almost got a free show!
The angry bees started revving and we packed quick and got on the road. Those following my InReach caught we were tooling through Apache Junction. We needed to hit a camping world so Bill could get a new campfire in a can and they had some in stock. Prior to that stop we hit up a Waffle House since we skipped breakfast in camp due to the snowbirds. We went because Bill and Jenn were shocked I never ate at one before. Talked more about the experience than the quality of food. But in the location we were at lacked the normal seedy ambiance most Waffle Houses have. I’d say I wasn’t hung over enough to rave about the food either. But it’s hard to screw up scrambled eggs, bacon and a waffle. Meh, I can say I’ve been there and my instinct to not go there was on the mark.
By stopping at both places we avoided most of the rush hour traffic. But it was still madness. It’s been a solid 15 years since the last time I was in Phoenix and I think the 202 loop was still under construction. It’s got more crazy since then.
This days target was camp Bouse and the Swansea mine complex. We book for the west side of Phoenix. Stop for fuel and for me to get propane at a local Lowes since the gas station didn’t have any.
I had seen pics of these stickers but never actually saw one in person. I laughed until the pump stopped. Then I cried. 8.1’s are thirsty.
Funny thing. I was in line to pay when the guy behind me noticed my Blazer Bash shirt. Got to talking and he’s got a blazer he’s building. Told him mine was outside.
We continued west on I-10 dealing with the traffic.
Meanwhile through the day @Wes Harden and I had been texting about where he could meet us. We finally bail off the interstate and make are way to a town for a last splash of gas prior to dirt.
A few miles north we finally turn off pavement to power line road to get to camp Bouse.
We make it just a point where I notice a new noise. Sharp clunk, happens during suspension movement. Call to Bill on the radio to check it out. We do and I wasn’t sure what it was so we decided to head back to pavement and regroup. I text Wes through the InReach app since we were off grid there. Pretty slick to be able to do that.
Bill thinks about it and before we bail completely and head to Nick’s place in Phoenix we go out together to id the noise. Bill hears it higher like in the body not in the suspension or steering. I think about it and reach my hand out to feel the fender as I’m going over rough stuff. Yep he’s right. It didn’t sound the same as before. Mainly because the bolt in the door jamb to the fender wasn’t loose. The damn captured nut in the body pulled out. Great. Ain’t fixing that until I come home. We sling a ratchet strap across the inside of the engine compartment to pull that corner of the fender in to limit the rattle. It helped a little. But crisis averted we went back to the plan. Those watching are movements might have seen me go up and down a miles worth of power line road to listen to it.
I texted Wes on the InReach to say we intend on camping at camp Bouse instead of the Swansea cabin at the mine. I gave him the frequency we were on and told him we’d listen for him. We drove around on the old camp roads and checked out the historic markers in different spots. Yes we looked like we were driving in circles, because we were. lol.
Not as easy on my phone doing this as it is on my laptop but I’ll trudge through.
Missed showing my captured nut pulled out of the cowl.
After we stopped driving in circles we set up camp by the flagpole. We cooked up some fajitas for the three of us and hung out waiting for Wes. Our last text had him getting in after 7:00 pm. By 7:30 we had not heard from him but we did have cell service so I shot a text asking where he was at. He was on Main Street in town. We bounced back and forth with directions and coordinates and went back to bs’ing. I had brought out my handheld baofeng radio to listen for him so we didn’t have to leave the base units in the trucks on. Point to note baofeng radios shut off after a certain amount of time with no activity. It shut off. Didn’t notice. About 9:00 I get a text from Wes. He’s stuck and can’t get out. Shot us his coordinates. Shit! He had been trying to call us on the radio but mine was off. I turned mine on and called out for him. Got some spotty reception back but I could tell it was him so a fired up the radio in my truck and got through. Wes was really sorry and made an attempt to just have us wait until morning and deal with it in the light. Bill and I both agreed we aren’t leaving him out there. There was a chance of rain and even though it wasn’t for much coming down the last place you want to be is in a wash when it rains. We mapped it out and he was maybe 4 miles as the crow flies, 6 miles by the trail.
Jenn and Storm hop in my truck to hang out with the furnace going and she would monitor on my radio. Bill and I take off in his regular cab Power Wagon which is a rare bird in its own right. We can talk to Wes on Bill’s radio and call out how close we are so he can start shining a light to locate him. Part of our problem was the wash was below the trail and there was enough vegetation to block our view. The second part of the problem had looking in wrong direction due to google maps saying he was on the other side of us when he wasn’t.
We finally see his spotlight and found our way in the wash. He was buried up to the rear axle in river sand. We got him hooked up with his recovery strap and Bill threw the waggy into low range and lucked the diffs and popped him right out. Ended up having to do it again on a really deep soft spot getting out of the wash. Another tug and we were on the way.
Back at camp we talked for a little while and turned in just as the rain started to fall. It had rained off and on all night.
Wes’s burb is old school cool. A little bit of southwest patina on the paint, Steelers and a barn door truck too!
No dust in the desert today! Gray overcast and continued to rain on and off all day.
The Swansea mine was not to far away so we decided to check it out. Easy trail only a couple of spots required a lower gear to climb or go back down.
The mine complex is huge. Some buildings still standing, some just foundations. Chunks of metal all over. Steel pull tab cans everywhere. We left them be for others to see after us.
I have more pics from the mine I’ll share later. We came back to the city of Bouse just in time for lunch. Wes pointed out all the camp Bouse in a roadside display on the main drag. Complete with a couple of tanks. The morale officer plaque was funny.
We had lunch at a local joint and after parted ways with Wes. He went north and we went south trying to get past the weather.
Missed showing my captured nut pulled out of the cowl.
After we stopped driving in circles we set up camp by the flagpole. We cooked up some fajitas for the three of us and hung out waiting for Wes. Our last text had him getting in after 7:00 pm. By 7:30 we had not heard from him but we did have cell service so I shot a text asking where he was at. He was on Main Street in town. We bounced back and forth with directions and coordinates and went back to bs’ing. I had brought out my handheld baofeng radio to listen for him so we didn’t have to leave the base units in the trucks on. Point to note baofeng radios shut off after a certain amount of time with no activity. It shut off. Didn’t notice. About 9:00 I get a text from Wes. He’s stuck and can’t get out. Shot us his coordinates. Shit! He had been trying to call us on the radio but mine was off. I turned mine on and called out for him. Got some spotty reception back but I could tell it was him so a fired up the radio in my truck and got through. Wes was really sorry and made an attempt to just have us wait until morning and deal with it in the light. Bill and I both agreed we aren’t leaving him out there. There was a chance of rain and even though it wasn’t for much coming down the last place you want to be is in a wash when it rains. We mapped it out and he was maybe 4 miles as the crow flies, 6 miles by the trail.
Jenn and Storm hop in my truck to hang out with the furnace going and she would monitor on my radio. Bill and I take off in his regular cab Power Wagon which is a rare bird in its own right. We can talk to Wes on Bill’s radio and call out how close we are so he can start shining a light to locate him. Part of our problem was the wash was below the trail and there was enough vegetation to block our view. The second part of the problem had looking in wrong direction due to google maps saying he was on the other side of us when he wasn’t.
We finally see his spotlight and found our way in the wash. He was buried up to the rear axle in river sand. We got him hooked up with his recovery strap and Bill threw the waggy into low range and lucked the diffs and popped him right out. Ended up having to do it again on a really deep soft spot getting out of the wash. Another tug and we were on the way.
Back at camp we talked for a little while and turned in just as the rain started to fall. It had rained off and on all night.
Wes’s burb is old school cool. A little bit of southwest patina on the paint, Steelers and a barn door truck too!
No dust in the desert today! Gray overcast and continued to rain on and off all day.
The Swansea mine was not to far away so we decided to check it out. Easy trail only a couple of spots required a lower gear to climb or go back down.
The mine complex is huge. Some buildings still standing, some just foundations. Chunks of metal all over. Steel pull tab cans everywhere. We left them be for others to see after us.
I have more pics from the mine I’ll share later. We came back to the city of Bouse just in time for lunch. Wes pointed out all the camp Bouse in a roadside display on the main drag. Complete with a couple of tanks. The morale officer plaque was funny.
We had lunch at a local joint and after parted ways with Wes. He went north and we went south trying to get past the weather.
Thanks dude. I enjoy putting these together to share.
Long road day today. Pulled into Pueblo an hour ago. Crashing at Bill’s as another 2 hours to Denver is not possible now. Too tired.
Getting back to the action. Being that we’ve been in rain since the night before the plan was to head further south. In order to get some miles down we air up at the restaurant. We take pavement down to Quartzsite.
The way down had a little more rain and it cleared for a little bit. Tried to check out the flea market but most was covered up due to the rain. So we gassed up and took off. Before getting out of town Bill wanted to show us a crazy local house built out of huge boat. He delivered.
That town is nutty for stuff like this. Saw this gem at the truck stop.
Sightseeing done we hit the highway south as the rain starts up again. We are heading for the Kofa cabin to meet up with Nick and his son Leland. Nick have us some history of the area the next day. Kofa is an acronym for King of Arizona mine. The land was given to the feds who quickly turned most of it into a wilderness preserve. Meaning most of it is off limits to wheeled travel you could hike in on foot. We are running designated trails that cut through the wilderness area but you can’t travel off the trail by 20 feet or so. Signage is all over to remind you.
The target cabin is a relic of the mining area that has been kept up and available to use by anybody if they want too. We had to redirect due to a dubious road closed sign.
With the rain going we did get to see a rare sight in the desert, a rainbow. Hard to catch but I think I got each side of it.
Some might get bummed out by the crappy weather on vacation but given how rare it is for the area to get rain not many get to see it. The rain just acted light a highlighter making what little vegetation was green and made it more vibrant.
The new trail roughly follows a underground pipeline so it was pretty easy terrain to cover. The trail did wind off and back on the pipeline road and when it did go off usually dipped in and out of dry washes which are fun to run.
The closer we got to the cabin to more clear the sky got. A stiff breeze was blowing but the idea was to use the cabin as the wind break and park out of the wind. Problem was the cabin already had folks parked around it so we backtracked a little way and found a flat patch of dirt to call home for the night. Bill fried up a batch of his famous camp stove fried chicken as the sun went down. This stuff is legendary. I had two pieces. An 8ft bed packs a lot of gear and room for two to sleep comfortably. The mr buddy heater takes the chill off but the main source of heat is a 12v heated sleeping pad on top of the 6” thick memory foam mattress. I tried it out. It’s better than most beds at any house. I’ll be getting some for mine.
Desert sunsets are always spectacular. This one didn’t disappoint.
We tag teamed the dishes and turn in to escape the cold. Storm and I hide out in the Blazer with the furnace keeping it toasty enough to only have to use a 40 degree sleeping bag. Somewhere around 9:00ish we could hear the distinct sound of a 12v oil burner rumble up to our patch of dirt. Neither of us get out to welcome as nobody wanted to let out the heat to do so.
I’m up early as usual but it was too cold before sunrise to hang out. But I did spy the familiar orange patina of Nick’s suburban. It looked good bathed in the early morning light.
With a little more light and warmth I hopped out of the Crawlabago with the dog and my little crawler to kill time until the rest finally roll out of bed.
The volcanic rock around was fun to try to climb.
Once the rest of the troops get up I made some bacon and eggs for burritos.
Breakfast complete we all pack up and follow the lead of Nick who has a lot of experience here. We line up and pull out.
We stopped for lunch by another homestead site. No cabin but there was a horseshoe shape row of cactus planted a long time ago.
Storm was enjoying running around with not a care in the world. Her troubles from the last month are long gone. She was doing a great job honing her skill of mooching food. Nick didn’t fall for it but Leland, Bill, Jenn and I did.
It’s a fun time watching her explore, sniff around and discover new stuff. She found a quick respect for everything that pokes. We only had to pull stuff out of her paws twice.
Long road day today. Pulled into Pueblo an hour ago. Crashing at Bill’s as another 2 hours to Denver is not possible now. Too tired.
Getting back to the action. Being that we’ve been in rain since the night before the plan was to head further south. In order to get some miles down we air up at the restaurant. We take pavement down to Quartzsite.
The way down had a little more rain and it cleared for a little bit. Tried to check out the flea market but most was covered up due to the rain. So we gassed up and took off. Before getting out of town Bill wanted to show us a crazy local house built out of huge boat. He delivered.
That town is nutty for stuff like this. Saw this gem at the truck stop.
Sightseeing done we hit the highway south as the rain starts up again. We are heading for the Kofa cabin to meet up with Nick and his son Leland. Nick have us some history of the area the next day. Kofa is an acronym for King of Arizona mine. The land was given to the feds who quickly turned most of it into a wilderness preserve. Meaning most of it is off limits to wheeled travel you could hike in on foot. We are running designated trails that cut through the wilderness area but you can’t travel off the trail by 20 feet or so. Signage is all over to remind you.
The target cabin is a relic of the mining area that has been kept up and available to use by anybody if they want too. We had to redirect due to a dubious road closed sign.
With the rain going we did get to see a rare sight in the desert, a rainbow. Hard to catch but I think I got each side of it.
Some might get bummed out by the crappy weather on vacation but given how rare it is for the area to get rain not many get to see it. The rain just acted light a highlighter making what little vegetation was green and made it more vibrant.
The new trail roughly follows a underground pipeline so it was pretty easy terrain to cover. The trail did wind off and back on the pipeline road and when it did go off usually dipped in and out of dry washes which are fun to run.
The closer we got to the cabin to more clear the sky got. A stiff breeze was blowing but the idea was to use the cabin as the wind break and park out of the wind. Problem was the cabin already had folks parked around it so we backtracked a little way and found a flat patch of dirt to call home for the night. Bill fried up a batch of his famous camp stove fried chicken as the sun went down. This stuff is legendary. I had two pieces. An 8ft bed packs a lot of gear and room for two to sleep comfortably. The mr buddy heater takes the chill off but the main source of heat is a 12v heated sleeping pad on top of the 6” thick memory foam mattress. I tried it out. It’s better than most beds at any house. I’ll be getting some for mine.
Desert sunsets are always spectacular. This one didn’t disappoint.
We tag teamed the dishes and turn in to escape the cold. Storm and I hide out in the Blazer with the furnace keeping it toasty enough to only have to use a 40 degree sleeping bag. Somewhere around 9:00ish we could hear the distinct sound of a 12v oil burner rumble up to our patch of dirt. Neither of us get out to welcome as nobody wanted to let out the heat to do so.
I’m up early as usual but it was too cold before sunrise to hang out. But I did spy the familiar orange patina of Nick’s suburban. It looked good bathed in the early morning light.
With a little more light and warmth I hopped out of the Crawlabago with the dog and my little crawler to kill time until the rest finally roll out of bed.
The volcanic rock around was fun to try to climb.
Once the rest of the troops get up I made some bacon and eggs for burritos.
Breakfast complete we all pack up and follow the lead of Nick who has a lot of experience here. We line up and pull out.
We stopped for lunch by another homestead site. No cabin but there was a horseshoe shape row of cactus planted a long time ago.
Storm was enjoying running around with not a care in the world. Her troubles from the last month are long gone. She was doing a great job honing her skill of mooching food. Nick didn’t fall for it but Leland, Bill, Jenn and I did.
It’s a fun time watching her explore, sniff around and discover new stuff. She found a quick respect for everything that pokes. We only had to pull stuff out of her paws twice.
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