poplar road

And that's probably how, the following spring, Richard and I managed to set that trip behind us and do it all again. Except that by 2001, we had a tow vehicle to haul the Toyota on a trailer, and a camper so we weren't sleeping in (or under!) our truck. What I remember most about that trip was the photography expedition in Arches National Park with Maria and Chad. (I got some gorgeous photos of the stone arches and the cacti in bloom, and a serious case of sunstroke.) The weather went from scorching heat to a surprise snowfall, but the only real excitement on the trail came when Derrick and Shana tipped their Cruiser on a staircase and baby Gweneth cried bloody murder at being pulled out of the snug safety of her harness to land in the unfamiliar arms of a hairy Venezuelan.

After that, our working lives got so busy that long vacations like Moab and the Rubicon were out of the question. In the fall of 2002, Richard entered the Toyota in one last extreme rock-crawling competition, drove it into the ground, and parted it out so he could begin designing a new 4x4 built from scratch that didn't have to fill any "daily driver" duties (like having to run highway-size tires). He envisioned it as an easy-to-modify "Mechano set", and Stubby Mechano was born.

We've done a lot of wheeling in Mechano since its first competition in August 2004, most recently at the Hammers in Johnson Valley (above - thanks Steve for the pics), which rivalled the Moab 2000 road trip for nightmarish bad luck on the road, but with even better wheeling on the trails – which I try to remind myself of, rather than think about the road trip part. Because, we're about to do the pilgrimage again.

Yes, we're going back to Moab. It's been five years, and our wheeling buddies have even more responsibilities, some with work, some with kids, so it's a different group heading to Utah this time around. We wouldn't consider driving our rigs down anymore, and I know it's not just the ladies who relish the thought of ending a day on the trails at a campground that boasts shade trees, picnic tables, a swimming pool, and showers. Not to mention the town of Moab itself, which hopefully still has fantastic shopping. I tossed the rag formerly known as Richard's first Red Dirt Shirt last week, knowing he'll forgive me now that I can get him a new one (which I'll make sure stays red, not pink).

We're going down the week after the annual Jeep event, so hopefully will have the trails more to ourselves. I think there are a few Moab virgins among our caravan, so some of the awe and excitement from my first visit will be in the air. I'm hoping the desert has had a wet spring like in 2001, when the rock was stained the colour of rust and cacti bloomed in every imaginable shape and colour. Last time I had my conventional camera, the lenses ground with dust. This year we have the digital, and with luck, perhaps an internet connection in town, so I can post the photos as we go. Most importantly for me, I can spend some time behind the wheel as well as behind the camera. Mechano is a thrill to drive and I'm sure Richard will spot me through some hair-raising "easy" challenges between those extreme obstacles he's looking forward to playing on. And the road trip, well, it had better be good, because we really need a vacation.