The Lake Michigan Overlanding Tour is an attempt to make it entirely around Lake Michigan through this week-long excursion. We'll be confirming the route for our Overlanding mapping section of the web...
The Lake Michigan Overlanding Tour is an attempt to make it entirely around Lake Michigan through this week-long excursion. We'll be confirming the route for our Overlanding mapping section of the website.
This route will go through WI, UP MI, Lower MI, IN, and IL.
We'll be playing for a day at Silverlake Sand Dunes.
We'll be stopping at some of the most historic landmarks around the lake including lighthouses.
This trip attempts to stay off the pavement and under 60mph at all times.
You will need a High-Power GMRS or 2m/70cm Ham Radio for this trip. Ham radio is preferred. APRS is preferred.
Your rig will need to be in excellent working order to minimize the chance of breakdowns. It must be stable at 60mph.
There will be a lot of gravel and dirt roads. You will need to bring an extra air filter along or a good cleaning kit.
We will be wilderness tent/camper camping or staying at campgrounds. Campers must be 4x4 capable and low profile.
You will need a functional winch, recovery gear, fire extinguisher, and good first aid kit. It's recommended to take the basic first aid and cpr course.
It is highly recommended to get an alignment on your rig prior to the trip, have fresh oil, top off fluids, and bring extra oil, gear oil, brake fluid, radiator fluid, and radiator stop leak along with light oil like WD-40.
You will need a tire repair kit, tools, and a good jack that allows you to change your own tires. You will need a functional spare tire that is of equal wear to your rolling tires. This is so if you need to replace your tire, it rolls at the same speed of your other tires, this avoids drivetrain damage.
We will be making stops all along this tour. Be ready to do some "touristy" stuff for a bit of this trip. It won't be too much, but we'll try to let you know what tours we plan on going on as a group. Bring enough money and backup plans if you need a tow, locksmith, a driveshaft breaks, etc.
We will be wilderness camping so please bring food and food storage for extended nights. We will hit grocery stores as needed, but please plan on having enough for 2 nights worth of food and water at any given time. Meals are your responsibility and, while we may do communal mealtimes, it's not ok to expect others to cook for you. Sure, we may share food, but don't' expect it. Remember your manners and respect all members of the group.
We want to stay friends after this trip so keep conversations light-hearted. Stay away from controversial subjects. In this day and age, everyone is butt hurt for everything so just chill and keep it fun! Think of this like one of those scripted reality survival shows. If you're being a tool and fighting with the group, you can be voted off the excursion. It's never come to that because 4x4 peeps are good peeps, but I'm just tossing that out there as this is a very long trip.
This trip will max out at 15 rigs in order to keep run times smooth. We will try and run at least 2 hours at a crack before resting so this trip may not be suitable for small children or animals. We can't be stopping every ten minutes to pee if we expect to cover this much ground.
We'll use this event to post updates and have discussions about the trip. Please do not RSVP unless you plan on going the entire route for the entire length of the journey. Please ask questions and such! We'll have the rough draft of the map files for everyone before the end of Winter. Again, we'll try and toss in many points of interest along the way.
This is the longest excursion I've ever planned and it will be the trip of a lifetime!