Garcia Thanksgiving Tradition

[ragboy]

For years, we have always gone riding on the friday after thanksgiving. Ever since I have moved up here to the mountains, I have looked for a place to camp, and ride in the same place, but even more particular, a place where the little ones can ride right in front of the camp safely, and the bigger kids, and adults can take off into some fun trails. Thats pretty hard to do. There is a place a couple of hours away called stonyford, that most people in NorCal know about, but its VERY crowded, people going every which way, especially thanksgiving. And its pretty ugly for camping. Chappie-shasta is great, but you can't ride where you can camp. So I have been scouting places for a couple years, and this year, found the greatest place. Its at about 4000 ft along the indian creek, just below antelope lake. It is spectacularly beautiful. We celebrated Thanksgiving on Wednesday, and left early Thursday, about 90 minutes around the mountain. Its a beautiful drive, so I don't mind driving a bit. Here are some pics:

Getting ready to go, ATVs loaded in front of our house, its amazing the looks I get with this monster trailer and the 8 ATVs:

http://homepage.mac.com/ragboy/Thanksgiving2007/pictures/picture-1.jpg

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Ashley setting up the tent, it was cold, but my kids are diehards:

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Jesse bundled to go out:

http://homepage.mac.com/ragboy/Thanksgiving2007/pictures/picture-5.jpg

RJ getting ready to head out on his blaster, Whitney's blaster right behind, my Raptor, and then my wife's BigBear:

http://homepage.mac.com/ragboy/Thanksgiving2007/pictures/picture-6.jpg

Right in front of our camp, the little guys can make circles, and then there are some small trails up in the trees, completely visible while sitting at the campfire:

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Start of one of the trails:

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Keeping warm:

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This is taken from the USN Forest road that goes by, these roads go off for miles and miles in several directions with harder trails shooting off everywhere. It would take years to ride it all. Its all public land, and legal, as long as you stay on trail, and are stickered properly.

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You can't quite see it, but right behind the campers, is Indian Creek, about 20 ft behind. When we ran out of fresh water, we just filled up from it, didn't drink of course.

http://homepage.mac.com/ragboy/Thanksgiving2007/pictures/picture-15.jpg

The BeastMaster Quincy. 200lb mastiff watches over my kids, and protects us wherever we go. Especially an out in the boonies place like this.

Stopping for pizza on the way home.

http://homepage.mac.com/ragboy/Thanksgiving2007/pictures/picture-20.jpg

It was a blast, and I can't tell you how cool it is to finally find that perfect spot I have been looking for. Postcard beautiful, with riding right from the camper for all skills.

[chpthril]

Awesome looking weekend Ragboy :ro: Those are some great memories for your kids to hold on to.

[Lunchbox]

Wow dude!! No wonder you needed a warehouse to store all your toys...

[Bibbs]

That is great!Those are the times the family remembers for ever.We love going out camping and dirt biking as a family.Thats a great trailer set up.

[larryueckert]

i go to stoneyford twice a year maybe we should hook up its only 40 miles to paridase.But the place you went on thanksgiving looks bad a$$.

[ragboy]

Awesome looking weekend Ragboy :ro: Those are some great memories for your kids to hold on to.

Thx

Wow dude!! No wonder you needed a warehouse to store all your toys...

Yeah, it is so nice. We came home, and I just pulled the trailer in front of the warehouse, the kids jumped out, and drove the bikes in and shut and locked the doors. Took like 20 mins, and then I just leave the trailer there also. Today, the kids are going to go down there and clean them up and put them back. I love that warehouse.

That is great!Those are the times the family remembers for ever.We love going out camping and dirt biking as a family.Thats a great trailer set up.

Thx, the trailer took me a long time to find. I needed one that would hold 8 full size ATVs. I looked at side loaders and stuff, the one I had before was a ramp gate like this one, but only 16ft. Also, the bed was BETWEEN the fenders, so not as wide, and the rails were taller, getting in the way. I went to my local trailer place, where I bought the one before, and he showed me these, made by same manuf. just for ATVs. Bed is as wide as possible, over fenders, so you can fit full size ATVs side by side wide, rails lower, don't get in way, and great ramp gate. Its great, cuz the bikes are so stable in there, you need very few straps, you just ride them off and on, and go. You just have to watch how you load so the weight is distributed correct with such a big trailer. They make them in 4ft increments. They make a 12, 16, 20, and this is a special build to order 24 ft. With 6 kids, everything takes longer, and its a pain to load up and go do the stuff we do, so I spend extra time finding ways to be more efficient. This trailer super efficient.

i go to stoneyford twice a year maybe we should hook up its only 40 miles to paridase.But the place you went on thanksgiving looks bad a$$.

You are pretty close. This place is up near indian valley. Get on the web, and go to the national forests sites for plumas and lassen, and you can see all the places in the forest you are ALLOWED to ATV. Its pretty much anywhere, they just don't want you riding off trail. Its easy to find great places to ride with my older kids, just up the road, we fly up logging trails. Those trails are only 3 miles from us, and head off into hundreds of miles of BLM land. But its real hard to find a place where the big kids and the little ones can ride in same place, and I can watch the little ones so close. That is why I was so excited about this place. And NO ONE is out there. If you go to Stonyford, you know how nice that is. Stonyford is crazy, especially if you have little guys trying to stay close to camp.

[ragboy]

I just realized, I put a caption in for our BeastMaster Quincy, our loyal dog and protector, but didn't add the image. This dog is what makes these trips possible. I wouldn't take my family out into the public lands without him and my .45. No one comes near our camp with him around. His bark alone puts fear into grown men.

http://homepage.mac.com/ragboy/Thanksgiving2007/pictures/picture-16.jpg

[Wake Bandits]

Great pics.
Family memories in the making for the kids.

[talltigeguy]

That is so awesome. Thanks for sharing!

The growl of the .45 probably also puts some fear into people. ;)

[ragboy]

That is so awesome. Thanks for sharing!

The growl of the .45 probably also puts some fear into people. ;)

Y, but that stays tucked away, locked. Quincy gives me the time I need to get it!

[Ruune]

thats so awesome!!! where is that? looks like northern California!

[ragboy]

Yes, it is northern california in the sierra nevada mountains. Here is the exact location, if you pull out you can see all the lakes in the area, and if you zoom in, you can see its right on the creek from Antelope lake, called Indian Creek. This place doesn't have a name, but we call it "Fumundalope", because the creek comes "from under antelope".

MAP (http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&ll=40.126555,-120.624132&spn=0.117868,0.32135&z=12&om=1&msid=101838954449750071751.00043fcb22e14ed5142e6)

[Ruune]

oh nice... thats up 395 a bit from mammoth!

[Moki]

Beautiful scenery! That is quite the trailer! It looks like a lot of fun. Riding on Thanksgiving has become a tradition for us for at least the last 3 years. And now wakesurfing with LovinPowell when the weather cooperates!:)

[ragboy]

Too cold for wakesurfing here, it was 58 where I live at 3000ft, and 50 was the high where we camped. On saturday morning when I woke up at 6am, the temp said 14. Thats cold for a dude from southern california!

[Moki]

14 is cold for any dude! You are making some great memories. I grew up with a trailer and motorcycles. I think often about those good times.

[da.bell]

I was just about to say it was probably freezing at some point. We were at New Hogans Res. and didn't camp. But, it was cold at night when the sun went down. Great pictures. Thanks for sharing. :ro:

[ragboy]

Y, it was cold this past weekend. I thought at first, man its cold up here, but drove home, and it was only like 7 degrees warmer.

Also, I couldn't get a picture, but I have never been under a full moon so bright. It was like someone had the light on out there, cuz it was SO clear. I took a trip back to socal to visit my granddad a few weeks ago, and forgot how hazy everything was all the time once you hit bakersfield. It was so clare out there, the moon was the most amazing thing. My daughter actually got up in that cold to walk her dog in that moonlight.

[Matt Garcia]

Wow that looked like a hell of a time!. I'm officially jealous! :)