I've been a long time lurker on this site and have been in awe of the build threads and some of the expeditions people have put together. As someone who struggles to switch on the windscreen wipers without a qualified mechanic to show me how, it blows my mind that people are able to build awesome offroad trucks with a few dollars and a lot of ingenuity. More power to you all!
I thought I would share some pictures of a trip we did as a family and some friends over the last weekend- through the northern edge of the Empty Quarter (the Rub al Khali) in the southern United Arab Emirates. It followed a similar trip with some friends (A gentlemen's excursion!) a year ago, a 10 day effort to Southern Oman and the junction of UAE, Saudi and Yemen border. This time, I wanted my wife and kids to be able to join in the fun so we took my Raptor (quite heavily mod-ed- and serving as the mothership, carrying fuel, food and firewood), her LX570 (completely stock) and a couple of friends along for the ride in Landcruisers. Oh- and my visiting mother came as well. So three generations of my family, ranging from 4 to 73, plus 4 other adults. Not exactly the A team, but no stress and no hurry seemed like good ingredients for a few days in the desert.
First- meet my Raptor. I love it more than anything else I've driven- power, balance and lots of squeaks and rattles. But built Ford-tough, or so the sticker says. It's a 2012 Supercab with the standard 6.2l and a CAI. Upgrades include suspension (Icon bypass), winch and other bits and pieces.
View attachment 319563
One thing- it drinks fuel. I think it manages around 8mpg in 4wd and soft sand, so I carry a few jerrycans wherever we go. This is the Raptor bed- a big old coolbox, wood, and bags of recovery gear and parts (if you have a problem in the desert here, it's a real problem).
View attachment 319564
The morning we left Dubai, we had the usual mad scramble to get stuff ready, in the cars and on the road. It's a three hour drive to the start point, so we hauled through flat desert and tried to stay awake.
The plan was to meet in a gas station in a town called Mazaaira, at the 12 o'clock position on the Liwa crescent. It's an oasis- and full of young guys in trucks, hoary old camel farmers and traders. We met at 11. It was already pretty hot. We drove on to the start point where we aired down and got started into the sand after a sandwich lunch. Here's my LX570- my 12 year old is the co-driver and her 4 year old sister in the back giving feedback.
View attachment 319565
The first hour or two were pretty easy- we drove from West to East, mainly on salt flats called sabkhas, linking across fairly easy patches of dunes. It's pretty- and as the sun comes a little lower, the shadows get a little longer, and it makes it even more beautiful.
View attachment 319566
We hadn't started into the sand until 1330, so we didn't have long to drive on the first day. We wanted to stop in time for cocktail hour, and for the kids to enjoy themselves in the sand. So we started looking for somewhere to camp. Not too hard- the whole desert was empty and the views, in every direction, blow your mind.
View attachment 319567
View attachment 318460
We stopped when we had our biggest stuck of the day- in fact of the trip. I was scouting the route in the Raptor, looking for a nice west-facing spot and thinking of my first cool drink.
And drove right into a tight little bowl. I managed to get out, but as I did, congratulating myself on a lucky escape, my wife followed my tracks. It seemed a good place and time to call a halt while we stood around and contemplated the problem.
View attachment 319569
Problem is, we got busy setting up camp while some of the men scratched chins and other parts, and I can't find a picture. I'll track one down, I hope...
It looks pretty innocuous- but the photo doesn;t show how steep the sides were to the little bowl, and the sand was like caster sugar. But digging, and some tracks, and lots of revving and chugging. Then it was beer o'clock.
View attachment 319561
I thought I would share some pictures of a trip we did as a family and some friends over the last weekend- through the northern edge of the Empty Quarter (the Rub al Khali) in the southern United Arab Emirates. It followed a similar trip with some friends (A gentlemen's excursion!) a year ago, a 10 day effort to Southern Oman and the junction of UAE, Saudi and Yemen border. This time, I wanted my wife and kids to be able to join in the fun so we took my Raptor (quite heavily mod-ed- and serving as the mothership, carrying fuel, food and firewood), her LX570 (completely stock) and a couple of friends along for the ride in Landcruisers. Oh- and my visiting mother came as well. So three generations of my family, ranging from 4 to 73, plus 4 other adults. Not exactly the A team, but no stress and no hurry seemed like good ingredients for a few days in the desert.
First- meet my Raptor. I love it more than anything else I've driven- power, balance and lots of squeaks and rattles. But built Ford-tough, or so the sticker says. It's a 2012 Supercab with the standard 6.2l and a CAI. Upgrades include suspension (Icon bypass), winch and other bits and pieces.
View attachment 319563
One thing- it drinks fuel. I think it manages around 8mpg in 4wd and soft sand, so I carry a few jerrycans wherever we go. This is the Raptor bed- a big old coolbox, wood, and bags of recovery gear and parts (if you have a problem in the desert here, it's a real problem).
View attachment 319564
The morning we left Dubai, we had the usual mad scramble to get stuff ready, in the cars and on the road. It's a three hour drive to the start point, so we hauled through flat desert and tried to stay awake.
The plan was to meet in a gas station in a town called Mazaaira, at the 12 o'clock position on the Liwa crescent. It's an oasis- and full of young guys in trucks, hoary old camel farmers and traders. We met at 11. It was already pretty hot. We drove on to the start point where we aired down and got started into the sand after a sandwich lunch. Here's my LX570- my 12 year old is the co-driver and her 4 year old sister in the back giving feedback.
View attachment 319565
The first hour or two were pretty easy- we drove from West to East, mainly on salt flats called sabkhas, linking across fairly easy patches of dunes. It's pretty- and as the sun comes a little lower, the shadows get a little longer, and it makes it even more beautiful.
View attachment 319566
We hadn't started into the sand until 1330, so we didn't have long to drive on the first day. We wanted to stop in time for cocktail hour, and for the kids to enjoy themselves in the sand. So we started looking for somewhere to camp. Not too hard- the whole desert was empty and the views, in every direction, blow your mind.
View attachment 319567
View attachment 318460
We stopped when we had our biggest stuck of the day- in fact of the trip. I was scouting the route in the Raptor, looking for a nice west-facing spot and thinking of my first cool drink.
And drove right into a tight little bowl. I managed to get out, but as I did, congratulating myself on a lucky escape, my wife followed my tracks. It seemed a good place and time to call a halt while we stood around and contemplated the problem.
View attachment 319569
Problem is, we got busy setting up camp while some of the men scratched chins and other parts, and I can't find a picture. I'll track one down, I hope...
It looks pretty innocuous- but the photo doesn;t show how steep the sides were to the little bowl, and the sand was like caster sugar. But digging, and some tracks, and lots of revving and chugging. Then it was beer o'clock.
View attachment 319561
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