Tuesday, July 5, 2016

2016 NW Overland Rally

Teal Terror, Dinoot trailer, CVT RTT: Our beloved Suzuki Sidekick, the Teal Terror along with our Dinoot trailer and CVT rooftop tent set-up.
Teal Terror, Dinoot trailer, CVT RTT: Our beloved Suzuki Sidekick, the Teal Terror along with our Dinoot trailer and CVT rooftop tent set-up. 
By Mercedes Lilienthal

The NW Overland Rally is quite possibly our most favorite event of the year. We’ve been to almost every one of them and as each rally comes and goes, we see dozens of familiar faces, friends, fellow off-road adventurers, and meet many new travelers. This event is akin to a yearly homecoming or gathering of like-minded folks: The adventurers at heart, the thrill-seekers, or “push-your-boundaries” type of people. We learn so much from these people every year, such as how to trouble-shoot an ailing engine, tie specific knots, and tips and tricks to living cheaply on the road. An extended weekend of classes, workshops, happy hours galore, trail runs, and a huge nightly raffle and prizes to give away around a bonfire! What is not to love?



Although last year was stupid hot, I mean delaminating my “been through everything” 25 year-old Teva sandals hot, this year was filled with rain showers, some wind, sun, and much cooler temps. Thank heavens! The rain rolled through early during the event, sucks if you have all your gear strewn about, but good for keeping dust down. A mixed bag of weather it was, but as long as you prepare for said challenges, it is no problem at all.

1992 Subaru Loyale, equipped with the original push-button 4wd system.
1992 Subaru Loyale, equipped with the original push-button 4wd system. 
As usual, there were tons of cool vehicles to see. From small old Subarus, Land Rovers, or Nissan Patrols to much larger Mitsubishi Fusos—a plethora of eye candy was on display. From brand-new to severely old-yet-running rigs, there was something there for everyone. Everyone was happy to share stories about their builds. It didn’t matter if you had a booth and vehicle there like we did, or were out in the guest camping areas, it was a ton of fun getting your walk on to see these four-wheeled set-ups. Ground tents, rooftop tents (like our CVT), teardrop trailers, home-builds, truck toppers, and more. There was even a contingency of Mitsubishi Delicas that came down from Canada. Several of them showed up, one of them just as ailing as our beloved Teal Terror (it had problems with an oil line and was getting fixed on the fly). Many Canadians, US folk, Europeans, and others represented. It was almost as neat to hear their accents when venturing around as it was seeing all the license plates and rigs from around the world.

Feverishly opening over two cases of wine for our wine class. Photo courtesy of Bryon Dorr, Exploring Elements.
Feverishly opening over two cases of wine for our wine class. Photo courtesy of Bryon Dorr, Exploring Elements
The classes and workshops, as usual, were informative and well-attended. From the class we hosted (PNW Wine Class and Tasting), to the Expedition Overland’s Ladies’ Specific Off-Road Class or Warn’s Winch and Recovery Workshop. This year’s wine class was the best attended yet! Approximately 70 people imbibed in wines from four featured wineries: Dobbes Family Estate and Anam Cara Cellars from Oregon, Portteus Winery and Cultura Winery from Washington. Oregon chardonnay, grenache blanc, and pinot noir, to Washington orange muscat, red blend, and merlot. Common theme this year: awesome happy hours. To be exact, 10 separate organized happy hours. Talk about happy campers.

With over 800 people in attendance, this years’ free raffle and prize giveaways were popular!
With over 800 people in attendance, this years’ free raffle and prize giveaways were popular!
Andy and I had another fantastic time at this year’s NWOR. About 800 people attended, 3,000 tacos from the taco truck were eaten, 80 classes/workshops/trails/activities were held, and two traveling cats in attendance! Although we didn’t buy much from the 60+ vendors there, as we are saving for our upcoming trip to New Zealand (got just two shemaghs) we loved seeing what the latest featured products, learning who had what adventures going on, and solidifying another new bundle of friendships. The comradery, willingness to help or share information, and the common love for travel brings us back every year. Mark it down. It’s the last weekend in June. Plain, WA. It’s the best event. Hope to see some of you there next year!

Alaskan Subaru Outback: complete with drawer system and solar set-up.
Alaskan Subaru Outback: complete with drawer system and solar set-up.

Andy's famous omelets: created campside are the best!
Andy's famous omelets: created campside are the best! 
Rhonda Cahill from Exhibition Overland and Bryon Dorr from Exploring Elements strikin’ a pose.
Rhonda Cahill from Expedition Overland and Bryon Dorr from Exploring Elements strikin’ a pose.
No matter where you sit, stand, or are on top of, the NWOR has cool views from any angle.
No matter where you sit, stand, or are on top of, the NWOR has cool views from any angle.
Ladies’ off-road class attendee, along with her playful puppy dog.
Ladies’ off-road class attendee, along with her playful puppy dog.  
Mitsubishi Delica rear view: Seen last year, this Delica is one of our favorites at the event!
Mitsubishi Delica rear view: Seen last year, this Delica is one of our favorites at the event!
Rare to us, this Mitsubishi Delica turbo is a rad ride but was recovering from an oil line issue. Let’s hope they made it home safely back to Canada!
Rare to us, this Mitsubishi Delica turbo is a rad ride but was recovering from an oil line issue. Let’s hope they made it home safely back to Canada!
Overlanding Mitsubishi Montero—nice rig!
Overlanding Mitsubishi Montero—nice rig!
Mule Exhibition Outfitters' new beast: a Traka 4x4 Range Rover conversion, and its street legal! It's based off of a Range Rover Classic. How cool is this thing?
Mule Expedition Outfitters' new beast: a Traka 4x4 Range Rover conversion, and its street legal! It's based off of a Range Rover Classic. How cool is this thing?
Anyone want a 1989 Nissan Patrol? It's got a newly rebuilt engine as well as a host of other goodies. It is legal to import into the USA, too.
Anyone want a 1989 Nissan Patrol? It's got a newly rebuilt engine as well as a host of other goodies. It is legal to import into the USA, too.
Ray Hyland's Series 1 Land Rover, was recently driven from London to Singapore. It was ray, his wife, and three kids in this little rig for months! Again, you don't need a big rig to see the world!
Ray Hyland's Series 1 Land Rover, was driven from London to Singapore. Ray, his wife, and three kids were in this little rig for months! You don't need a big rig to see the world!
Our wine class aftermath: PNW wine awesomeness was shared and loved.
Our wine class aftermath: PNW wine awesomeness was shared and loved. 
Who doesn’t love a good ol’ VW bus? It's the classic travel vehicle, and it's even the right color.
Who doesn’t love a good ol’ VW bus? It's the classic travel vehicle, and it's even the right color. 

WA Subaru Outback, outfitted both rally and overlanding style.
WA Subaru Outback, outfitted both rally and overlanding style. 
Winch class attendee, nice style!
Winch class attendee, nice style!

1 comment:

Brian said...

Awesome coverage! Wish we could have been there. Perhaps next year!

Also love the Mitsubishi coverage. Despite being on my second Pajero, I still dream of Delica.