Logan Wetzel: Nomad Spring

Part 3 of blog posts from my 7 week road trip!

Now on the road to Moab, with the day’s goal of covering as much distance as reasonably possible. In general, this wasn’t the way I wanted traveling on this trip to be, but after a last minute change of route, I was left with hundreds of miles of interstate after Prosser, SE to Boise, and then down through Salt Lake City.

Elkhorn Mountains of NE Oregon

My original route plan was to head south from Prosser, through Eastern Oregon to Alvord Desert, then southeast across Nevada to Ely, then finally Hurricane, UT. That drive would have been done over three days on mostly backroad highways. The problem was that Ely, one of the main riding destinations along the route, was still snowed-in. Moab was my backup plan, and I wasn’t exactly disappointed, seeing as I’d never been there. It just meant I’d be racing along interstates instead of taking my time driving backroads where the Brown Loaf is most happy.

The day’s drive was a big one with a total of 700 miles covered. A proud achievement for the Brown Loaf! The van was mostly running great, but was occasionally idling funny (while coasting downhill in neutral) and was a little low on MPG at between 17 and 19. That would need to be monitored…

Sunday night was spent dispersed camping in a beautiful area near Soldier Summit, east of Provo, UT. In the morning there was fresh snow on the hills just above camp and I enjoyed running the Espar heater while drinking coffee.

Dispersed camping near Soldier Summit, friendly neighbor nearby!

Back on the road and there were only a couple hours remaining to reach Moab. Now traveling through canyons and mesas, I found myself mesmerized by the geology and vastness of the landscape.

New meaning to "the open road" expression.

Excited to reach Moab, I settled into a lovely campsite at Horsethief Campground. Being Monday, and having not taken the entire week off work, I put in a few hours on the laptop. Yes, I was one of those hated vanlifer nomads working from a campground. Hopefully, doing it discreetly from an old VW redeemed me somewhat.

Horsethief Campground.

Many people have asked if I use Starlink for working from the road. The answer is no. You can read all about the pros and cons of different options, but I decided to go with cellular instead of Starlink. With a dual modem router and multiple carriers, cellular gives me redundant connections and the reliability I need for working uninterrupted on design projects and Teams calls. Starlink is also known for slow upload speeds versus cellular, and uploads are important to me for saving (uploading) large models. Adding a directional MIMO antenna to my router was inexpensive and allows me to pull in usable data speeds in most cases, even in locations where there are only 0-1 bars showing on my phone. The last reasons for me personally not opting for Starlink are space and time. The Brown Loaf is small and carrying a somewhat large portable thing is less than ideal. It also has to be set up outside, oriented, and initialized every time you need internet. With cellular, it can quietly do its thing in the background and provide wifi to the van at all times, as long as there is a cellular connection available. And that last comment is really the big selling point for Starlink. Afterall, nothing can make a cellular connection out of no signal whatsoever. Maybe someday I will invest in Starlink, but for now I’m finding that I have cell signal almost everywhere I spend time.

The Brown Loaf is a sleeper with tech hidden within its classic exterior.

After working a couple hours, I was anxious to troubleshoot the van and figure out the funny idle issue. It had become more prevalent on the morning’s drive and I’m not one to ignore a problem solving opportunity.

Campsite auto repair shop.

Doing the standard electrical tests of the ancient Digijet fuel injection system, no issues were found. Next up was the possibility of a vacuum leak. Removing the intake, I found the two screws securing the throttle body to the intake plenum were loose. Ding ding ding! This surely was the source of the problem. More to come later…

Horsethief trail network.

Alas, it was time to go explore the mountain bike trails around camp! One problem-a thunderstorm had rolled in. Taking shelter in the van and working while watching and smelling the desert rain was a surreal moment. After the storm subsided, I was out on the bike and exploring! The novelty of riding Moab was incredible. After decades of mountain biking, I had finally made it to this legendary destination.

Amasa Back trail network, also within riding distance from Horsethief CG.

Day 2 in Moab, I was back on the road but just to move campsites and explore the next area. Moving from Horsethief CG over to Sand Flats Rec Area, I found a lovely campsite in a quiet spot between the rocks. Sand Flats is a hectic place, with the epitome of Moab atmosphere. Mountain bikes, dirt bikes, jeeps, RVs, you name it. A paradise for recreation! Despite that, I felt peaceful and relaxed in my little campspot.

Sand Flats campsite at night.

Unfortunately, the Brown Loaf had still idled funny on the drive across town. It seemed better, but still wasn’t right. I had to be on the right path to solving the problem. Thanks to a couple Vanagon friends, Alika and Mat, for ideas, I found more vacuum leaks and added hose clamps from my emergency stash to the hoses between the intake plenum and intake runners. Time would tell if this solved the issue…

Moab Slickrock trail - a unique riding experience!

The bike ride for the day was Moab Slickrock. This is the most popular trail in Moab and one of those world famous rides. To be honest, my expectations were low because of this. However, the novelty of riding miles of continuous sandstone was well worth it. Some of the climbs are incredibly steep, but the traction is practically limitless. Get out of the saddle and sprint in the lowest gear!

Some of the climbs were incredibly steep but still rideable!

View from Slickrock across town to the Colorado River canyon.

That night, I took advantage of the old tripod that I’d lugged along in the van and captured some photos using my phone. It’s no substitute for a true camera, but it was exciting to get some decent shots.

A rare shot of Brown Loaf and me together.

Day 3 in Moab and I was back on the road driving across town and through the Colorado River canyon to Captain Ahab, a more “new school” classic ride. Good news, the Brown Loaf was purring like a kitten! At the trailhead, I met another Washington resident named Ben Harris. Turns out he works for Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance and has friends in common. At the trailhead, we watched base jumpers huck themselves into the canyon. Impressive!

Captain Ahab was a lot of fun, despite several comments regarding my TransAM hardtail not being enough bike. Little did those folks know how much this bike shreds!