clark77type2
Samba Member
Joined: March 18, 2012
Posts: 24
Location: Cooper Landing, AK
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 Posted: Thu Feb 07, 2013 9:30 pm Post subject: Bus stories, first bus, crazy road trips, ect. |
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So, I own a bus, its a '77 bay window. She's a little rough around the edges, and most flat surfaces. But I love her and she's been dubbed "Dory". My good friend and I actually went in halves on her back in April of last year. Bought her in our home town, the great Austin, Texas, for about $2500. It started life as yellow (more yellow/orange) transporter, and by the time she made to us, was painted white and the interior was replaced with '80's era westy bits, bed, closet, cabinets.
Now, we didn't just buy her to tote us around Austin (not that she's not perfect for it), we had an, ulterior motive, if you will.
For the past couple years, we have been working in Alaska during the summer season, my friend at a lodge, and myself at Wildman's, a little country store in the valley of the great Kenai river. The first year we went i was blown away by the number of VW busses there were, I don't think i've seen more anywhere besides a special gathering. This in turn sparked an idea that fueld a dream. We planned our trip, Austin, TX to Cooper Landing, AK and set out looking for a bus late January. Came across a few that looked prommising, but were either out of our price range or traveling capabilities. And then we came across her, all clean and white, and made our minds. Paid for her, brought her home, and stared making it our's.
Now, I have never owned a VW, and have heard many a thing on thier integrity. I'm also fairy mechanically inclined, I work on my own vehicles. That being said, I did absolutely NO mechanical work (cue cringed faces/gasping remarks). Now, clearly i was well aware of the 5,000+ mile trek ahead, so I did stock up on oil, and extra parts (a few, that is).
We packed our stuff inside, and strapped the rest to the front (in some air mail box or something, not really important). We left Austin late in the morning with all the confidence in the world, and Dorry ran like a top. Driving through the U.S. was great, perfect weather most of the way, great cruisin' with the windows down. We slept in the bus in Colorado just fine, and again in Montana. Then came the U.S./Canada border, that was fun, of course we had to get searched, and luckily for us we made it through. The drive through Canada was beautiful, long, and damn cold. Dorry has the misfortune of having a rather sizable dent in the front, which opened up quite an airway, and in turn we had to wrap ourselves in every blanket we had, this is where i mention that we didn't have
a heater. Suffice to say, we did not sleep in Dorry at all through Canada.
Now, you're probably saying to yourself, "when are they gunna break down, didn't they NOT do a single ounce of work on this thing?" Well, it came in Canada, though to the relief of a near nervouse wreck, we just had a dead battery, one of two or three in our journey abouve the U.S..
Canada overall was great, we made some friends(also on thier way to The Last Frontier), dodged some prostitutes, and found $300! The last leg of Canada is a long one, a 900+ mile drive down the Al-Can highway. Once you reach the Yukon territory it feels like a no-man's land, the roads are pretty poor and bumpy, but still a beautiful drive. Being a Texan, I'm taken aback by snow and mountains and lakes that are frozen over.
We finally made it to Cooper Landing, AK six days after leaving Austin. We spent about $1500 in gas, and added about 5400 miles. While we were there, I lived out of the bus in an R.V. park behind where i worked. I continued to drive Dory around to wherever we wanted to go, from Seward, to Anchorage, and everywhere else. She ran better up there too, while i would have to try two or three times to start her back in Texas, she would start the first time, nearly every time. Anyway, to start wrapping this up, I lived out of that bus for 5 months, in one of the most beautiful places on earth, right off the Kenai River, one of the largest salmon runs in the world. I had the time of my life, then came the time to head on home.
For one, even as much as I love driving, I don't think i could make that drive more than once a year. Secondly, the day i was leaving (flying out of course) i was dropping Dorry off at a friends house to store it for me (which is the current state of my bus), one of the spark plugs popped out, and after investigating found out the threads were completely stripped out, and not on the plug, but the head (or where the plug gets screwed in, like I said, first VW and FAIRLY mechanically inclined). Obviously my blatant neglect had something to do with this, and it didn't just happen over night. So, to get the bus where it needed to be, I had to fit the plug as best i could into its hole and try to start her, this didn't prove too easy, but i finaally got it. Of course it did just pop right back out, but it stayed running (thats 3 cylinders now!) and the drive through those mountains to her storage spot was incredibly nerve wracking, but she made it! That bus lasted just as long as i had needed it to, for that year at least. I'm going back this year to see if i can't bring Dory back home to Austin.
Anyways, I've left out bits and other mishaps during our time in AK, so please feel free to ask questions, and i would love to hear about other's trips. |
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VAVWFAN
Samba Member
Joined: January 16, 2010
Posts: 758
Location: Middletown, Virginia
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| Posted: Mon Feb 11, 2013 3:45 pm Post subject: |
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Back ihn te 70's, a buddy I was stationed with had a splitty that we use to drive back n forth from home on weekends (about 280 miles).
Being the 70's, there wasn't much issue with popping open a beer (or whatever) and making the trip go by faster.......... or at least better!
One time we were driving through NY state, I was asleep in the passanger side, and I felt the bus come to an abrupt stop, and my friend emitting a low-moaning scream.
I woke up and we were stopped at a red light. I said; "WTF" and my friend replied "I DUNNO!" I'm like, totally confused, and asked "what?" He said "I DON'T KNOW!" I of course asked, "what do you mean, you don't know?" And he looked at me glossy-eyed and said it again I don't know!" (and was shaking his head)
Still confused I said; "whatever" and then he said; "I, I, I just don't know how I got here (at a red light, at an off-ramp intersection off of I-81)......
I said - "you drove!" and it was at this point he corrected me and said - "the last I knew, we were travelling on the highway, and now we're HERE!" (apparently he fell asleep, and luckily wandered off the highway and down an off ramp)
I said,,,,"oh - why don't you pull over at that gas station and I'll drive the rest of the way!!!"
A month or so later, we drove back home (we both had girlfriends in the same town), and got an oil pressure light. Stopped to check oil, and it was OK... Drove another 20 miles until the crank welded itself, at which time we parked it on the side of the road and hitched-hiked the last 100 miles or so. We found a replacement engine, and drove back the next day. It was my first engine change on a bus....... It took us about 45 minutes, and we were back on the road. I loved the simplicity of them ever since!!
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If it weren't for "last minutes;" -- nothing would ever get done! |
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