It only takes a few years of living in the American West to relate to the mixed emotions of realizing that fall has reached its final act. As we embraced the feelings of an impending winter that would soon cloak the region in snow and darkness, our bags were packed and the trucks were loaded. It was shortly after lunchtime at our office in southwest Montana when Andy, Jakob, and I departed with our sights set on a remote area just over the western border in Idaho.
The three of us were divided between Andy’s 2014 Toyota Tundra and Jakob’s 2011 Tundra, both vehicles set up quite differently but built properly for the quick trip ahead of us. While Andy’s truck is outfitted with an older Four Wheel Camper (recently renovated in his garage) and a supercharger, Jakob’s Tundra has a Go Fast Camper with a minimal buildout. Safe to say, the vehicles are in completely different weight classes when it comes to modifications. With that said, they share a few tasteful additions, like various Rigid Industries lights and Nitto Terra Grappler G3s in a 35-inch size. With the noticeable loss of daylight as winter closed in and many miles to cover, we were all thankful for the impressive and aggressive light thrown by a few differing models of Rigid lights on the trucks.
So where were we headed? While Montana has more backcountry to explore than I ever might get to in my lifetime, the three of us were curious about a few unique geographic features that our neighboring state boasted. Andy had been to the Saint Anthony Sand Dunes in years past, but Jakob and I had never been to the area, despite knowing about it for years. Sand dunes in Idaho are weird enough to wrap my head around, but the idea of driving on them freely with minimal rules is what really drew me in.
Jakob had carefully planned our route for the whole 36 hours via onX Offroad, and we were thankful for all the mixed terrain that was included. After heading south through Big Sky and West Yellowstone, we hit the backcountry just as we began losing light. There’s something so romantic (and maybe slightly anxiety-inducing) about airing down tires as the darkness settles into the surrounding woods. By the time our Nittos had reached 24 psi, it was time to embrace the darkness and seek out a campsite for the evening. Previously running tires from different brands on both trucks, all three of us were impressed with how quiet the G3s proved to be on the drive so far. Little did we know about the mud, deep ruts and chunky rocks that were in store for us.
A few hours later, we were all fighting our nagging hunger as we continued the search for a scenic campsite. Determined to not wind up in a cow pasture or a gravel parking lot, we relied heavily on the astonishing light thrown by the Rigid Phoenixes that each truck had installed—10,000 lumens is a staggering amount of light to be utilizing. Bouncing between state land, BLM and well-marked private parcels, we found an intriguing two-track that led to a lightly wooded and sagey area that caught our eyes from a distance.
Our evening was filled with steak fajitas, sparkling waters, arguments about GVW, and shared excitement about the following day. We decided to shorten the bonfire chatter and hit the hay by 9:00 pm, knowing full well that we’d be thankful in the morning.
The Saint Anthony Sand Dunes were the treasure of this 36-hour Adventure, but Jakob had a few other unique plans up his sleeve. When we awoke, Andy and I got the full rundown. Jakob had stumbled across an elusive cave system in Idaho on onX that had a riddled past, and the three of us agreed it was too intriguing to avoid while we were in the area. Before hitting the dunes, we admired a gorgeous view of Wyoming’s Grand Tetons as we navigated a rutted clay road to find these mysterious caves. Supposedly they were nearly used as a nuclear fallout shelter of sorts many years ago, but the caves would have been creepy enough without this context. We spent a half hour wandering through them, questioning graffiti and trying our best to disregard the flutter of disturbed bats around us. Not only were the caves freezing, but they were far darker than we expected.
As luck would have it, the sand dunes were only a short drive from this cave system, and all the three of us were antsy for the open air and opportunity to put the pedals down. One of the only rules of using the area with 4x4s and vehicles in general is utilizing whips that must be at least 8 feet off the ground. After installing these on both trucks, we were good to go. Andy gave Jakob and I several ground rules for driving safely in the dunes, but despite this, we were both overwhelmed with stress pretty quickly. How fast is too fast? Too much throttle and it’s easy to roll a vehicle without knowing what’s on the other side of a dune. But drive too slow and you’re bound to bog down in the intimidating and soft sand. With that said, we’d never been so thankful for tires that could take abuse and quality lighting to keep others aware of the trucks.
We spent a few hours zooming around the dunes and only managed to get stuck once, which was no issue with Maxtrax on board. There was something magical about playing in a giant sandbox in Toyotas with one of the most iconic mountain ranges in the country watching us the whole time. After deciding we had had our fill of sketchy dune crests and impressive sand throwing, we had a quick lunch of chips and dip while chatting about what remained of the day.
Jakob’s plans included a “warm spring” (not to be confused with a hot spring), which sounded like a treat before hitting the highway home. We attempted to fill up the truck tires at a nearby gas station, but at $5 and 10 minutes per tire, it was worth it to dig out our portable air compressors. After all, we found ourselves racing for light again with the days getting shorter.
As we pulled up to the warm spring we were met with defeat, as it was completely dry and deserted of any moisture. But in the grand scheme of things, there wasn’t much room for disappointment; we had truly made the most of our 36 hours together. Two capable trucks, three enthusiastic guys and many miles of chunky terrain to explore with breathtaking views made for a heck of an adventure.
Read more: 36-Hour Adventures: Sedona
Images: Roman Schnobrich
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