Cool pictures!

 

Uh, just don't go alone. Carry a tow strap and a cell phone . . . check it for "bars" now and then, that "Can you hear me now?" guy may not have been there.

I had my AWD RX 300 pretty far off road on a couple of occasions, once running the dunes from High Island to Sabine Pass on the Texas coast - a distance of about 30 miles off road. The road washed out about ten years ago, but if you are careful, it's not a bad run. It's a pretty good way from civilization, but because it runs through a bird sanctuary and wildlife refuge with a beach on one side and a salt marsh on the other, it has only a few visitors but lots to see. The only vehicles I met were "marsh buggies" driven by surf fishermen . . . who were kinda stunned to see a Lexus cruising through "their" territory. Lotsa drop-jaw stares followed by friendly waves. Of course it helps that I grew up in this area and have run the beaches for years knowing where the hazards lie.

The RX is certainly no rock crawler or dune buggy, but if you are careful and take it slow, you'd be surprised where it will go. The secret is to get out and walk any section that might be too soft, steep, wet, or slippery - just to be sure what kind of surface you are dealing with - and what lies beyond. There is no shame in turning back.

I'm headed out into the East Texas oilfields tomorrow for a little off-roading in my FWD RX 330 - it's not too much more hazardous than my AWD, but there are times I wish I had the security of two more drive wheels. Next week I'm bound for Eastern Oklahoma and more rig locations. These places have "roads", but no pavement, lots of mud that ranges from the local caliche (limestone and clay) to gumbo (black, heavy clay) and Red River clay (red heavy clay). Just add water (rain or snow) and mix thoroughly to a consistency that ranges from grease to gunk. Note to self: call the detailer and make appointment.

Thinking about what you will tell your insurance company will help keep you safe. If it sounds moronic, it is.

 

That seems like good, sound advice.

I've often wondered how that trip would be. I used to drive TX-87 (the highway that went along that route) to go eat seafood in Sabine Pass. Your timeframe is a bit off, though: it washed out in Hurricane Alicia, in 1983.

I've never had either RX on the beach. I did try to get my 1996 AWD RAV4 stuck down by San Luis Pass, though. (Wasn't successful.)

More sound advice.

 

Yeah, Alicia got Hwy 87 all right, but most of it was still passable (except for a couple of complete washouts of about a quarter-mile each). About ten years ago between hurricanes and winter storms the road was completely destroyed, with only a few fist-sized hunks of asphalt scattered in a few places as late as two years ago.

The funny part is that for several years after the first washouts appeared, the highway was abandoned and state maintenance ceased; the Sabine Pass end of the route was marked by large Texas state road signs saying "Road Closed" and "No Passage" that were placed in the middle of the remaining pavement to block traffic. Of course, then the state paved a 100-foot bypass around the signs to restore access to the beaches.

Does the right hand know what the left hand is doing anymore?

 

BTW, anyone considering off-roading their RX would do well to check into a local 4WD club meeting, or as a primer, read Ivan Stewart's new book, "Ultimate Off-Road Adventure Guide":

http://www.amazon.com/Ironman-Stewar...e=UTF8&s=books

for a wealth of information for both the novice and experienced adventurer.

 

Acht, just watch an old Dukes of Hazzard rerun and do what they do! Yee Hawww!

 

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