• Hikes,  Illinois,  Trips

    Salt Lick Point and Water Reserve Hike – 8/19/17

    We started out early on a Saturday morning with hopes of beating the heat and pointed the nose of The Mighty Merc down Bluff Road: As we pulled into the parking lot, the hopes of beating the heat were quickly dashed as it was warm and humid already: But we loaded the kids on our backs and pressed on heading up the Salt Lick Trail which winds its way up to the top of the bluff: It wasn’t long before…

  • Off Road Trips

    3rd ORT at Flat Nasty 8-12-17

    The first trip out in the Merc with both kids in tow was a success! So hopefully we can work on getting out more frequently than we have been. We spend the better part of the day on the “Tourist” loop in consideration for the younger folks that were with us, but we still managed to play on a few things here and there: There were a couple of pit stops to let the kits out to wiggle. It was…

  • Garage Projects,  Trips

    The Mighty Merc – 2nd ORT Flat Nasty 5-20-17

    Hey we managed to go wheeling again! I had a brief reprieve from work and other life activities so the boy and I ran down to Flat Nasty again to get a little more seat time in the Merc. We stayed on the easier trails as my friend had his daughter out for the first time and we were trying to make sure it was a fun experience (it was!). With all the rain down there lately, there were a…

  • Garage Projects,  Gear Review

    So Long Stinky! Let’s Get Fit!

    After many household runs, work trips, and other commuting, it was time to let Stinky go. There were many times when I was needing to haul more than one person around with me. So I took the boy for one last ride in “Dada’s Truck” And went up to the local Honda Dealer: …to pick up my new to me ‘truck’ Which I promptly tinted the windows to make it less of a fish bowl: And immediately put it to…