Overland Series: Arkansas | The Trans-America Trail | Jeep Gladiator Camper
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- Опубліковано 23 лип 2024
- I take my 2020 Jeep Gladiator Rubicon on its first off-road expedition, navigating the Arkansas backcountry for three days through the Ozark National Forest along the Trans-America Trail.
If you enjoy following the build, check out my current gear below, and feel free to subscribe for more!
The area below contains some affiliate links. I may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you when you purchase items through these links.
My Equipment:
Exterior
Baja Designs | Cowl Light Mounts - amzn.to/3soAF4F
Frontrunner | Roof Racks - www.frontrunneroutfitters.com...
iKamper | Rooftop Tent - www.ikamper.com/products/skyc...
Method | Wheels - amzn.to/3bub8jF
Nitto | Tires - amzn.to/3pvMcgz
Road Armor | Front Bumper: ebay.us/v1mYMo
Road Armor | Rear Bumper: ebay.us/hYdBaX
RockHard 4x4 | Rock Sliders - www.rockhard4x4.com/product_p...
RokBlokz | Mud Flaps - rokblokz.com/products/jeep-gl...
RSI Smartcap EVO Sport | Camper Shell - www.na.rsismartcap.com/
Interior
BuiltRight | Bed Components - builtrightind.com/collections...
Cargo Glide | Sliding Bed System - ebay.us/r6bdZc
Command Center
67 Designs - www.67d.com/collections/jeep-...
Aikenuo | USB Hub - amzn.to/3d3uYCW
Bulletproof Mounting Solutions - www.bulletpointmountingsoluti...
Carolina Metal Masters - cmmoffroad.com/
Garmin | inReach Explorer + - amzn.to/2P75IUp
GoPro | Dash Camera - amzn.to/3s7g5Gq
RAM Mounts - www.rammount.com/
Samsung | Galaxy Tab Active 2 (Nav/Utility Tablet) - amzn.to/3tRNftN
GPCA | Grab Handles - www.gpca.us/shop/gp-grip-lite/
Lightning X | First-Aid Bag (Empty) - amzn.to/2QByuNf
Lightning X | Trauma Bag (Empty) - amzn.to/31l6r76
Plano | Cargo Boxes - amzn.to/3lTg9Xu
PRP | Seat/Console Covers - www.prpseats.com/product-cate...
Electrical
ARB | 12v Fridge Port - amzn.to/3d6P3Zd
ARB | Air Compressor - amzn.to/39dL2RC
Bussmann | Circuit Breakers - amzn.to/3rsRlqp
Genesis | Dual Battery Kit - ebay.us/xfByy8
GoWISE Power | Onboard Inverter - amzn.to/3lVQ9em
Grand General | Roof Clearance Lights - amzn.to/38RMEjC
Innovative JK Products | Compressor Kit - innovativeatproducts.com/jt-g...
Nilight | Cargo Lighting - amzn.to/2NS2nb6
Odyssey | Batteries - www.morris4x4center.com/odyss...
Partsam | Rear Bumper Brake/Turn Lights - amzn.to/2NSlbHd
Renogy | Solar Panel - amzn.to/3soCdMn
Rigid | Cowl Driving Lights - amzn.to/2P8i5Q3
Rigid | Cowl Spot Lights - amzn.to/39gfMBm
Rigid | Front Bumper Driving Lights - amzn.to/3vZ4NG8
Rigid | Front Bumper Light Bar - amzn.to/31lwomM
Rigid | Front Bumper Spot Lights - amzn.to/31hvVlL
Rigid | Rear Bumper Diffused Lights - amzn.to/3tUFYcz
Rigid | Roof Rack Flood Lights - amzn.to/3w22ORh
sPOD | Electronics Controller - www.4x4spod.com/
Victron Energy | Solar Charge Controller - amzn.to/2PaTslR
XBEEK | Vent Replacement Signals - amzn.to/3fgm3kc
Recovery Gear
BubbaRope | Kinetic Rope - amzn.to/3rondg2
Factor 55 | Winch Hook - amzn.to/2NZHVFu
GearAmerica | Snatch Blocks - amzn.to/39iXJcN
GearAmerica | Straps - amzn.to/3hXUzPL
Hi-Lift | Jack - amzn.to/3ntwx07
Hi-Lift | Jack Base - amzn.to/2P0ocpL
Hi-Lift | Jack Handle Keeper - amzn.to/3spvD8g
Hi-Lift | Jack Mount - amzn.to/2Ll88gj
Lotus Development | Hi-Lift Tube Adapter - amzn.to/3fgllne
Rhino USA | Shackles - amzn.to/2XoLt4X
WARN | Fairlead - amzn.to/3lRMwWE
WARN | Winch - amzn.to/3btyNCb
WARN | Winch Cover - amzn.to/3spqAVk
Camp Gear
Cliq | Camp Chair - amzn.to/2XpiQoe
Coleman | Sleeping Bag - amzn.to/2XpHnKb
Coleman | Stove - amzn.to/3oIFG6F
Dometic | Fridge - amzn.to/2MLDjBH
GCI Outdoor | Camp Table - amzn.to/2LyP1PI
GSI Outdoors | Camp Dishes - amzn.to/3d5tVlY
Reliance Products | Camp Toilet - amzn.to/2L8FQFP
Tools
Amerex | 2.5 lb Extinguisher - amzn.to/3i6zVNy
Amerex | 5 lb Extinguisher - amzn.to/3wb1Hz4
Fiskars | Axe - amzn.to/3hZJg9G
Fiskars | Hatchet - amzn.to/3q3SWCX
Fiskars | Shovel - amzn.to/35qBkJM
Miscellaneous
Airaid | Intake - amzn.to/3tU1PAX
Rydonair | Stubby Antenna - amzn.to/2NS6KTy
Audio/Video
DJI - amzn.to/3nBR2YM
GoPro - amzn.to/3s7g5Gq
Music - bit.ly/38rUgcK
Olympus - amzn.to/2XrHXak - Авто та транспорт
your videos are so relaxing to watch. good stuff
Haha thanks man! Appreciate it!
Very nice. Love exploring these areas. 🙂☝👍👍
Thanks for checking out the video! This really was a fantastic trip. I would like to hit this area again in the fall. I imagine the colors on the trees would be incredible.
@@TerraOutdoors Yes, fall is magnificent.
beautiful rig Sir. keep the vlogs coming.
Much appreciated! Thanks for checking it out.
Really cool video! Awesome trip!
Thanks for checking it out! More trip videos to come this year!
Amazing video.
Thanks for the kind words!
Great video!
Thanks man!
Nice, thanks for taking us along!
For sure! I hope you enjoyed.
Awesome! You need a four legged fur buddy to travel with.
I did take my cat out on a trip once. He actually seemed to enjoy it haha. But yeah, some day I would like to have a pup to take along for the ride.
not sure if anyone gives a damn but if you guys are bored like me during the covid times you can stream pretty much all of the new movies on Instaflixxer. Have been binge watching with my brother for the last weeks :)
@Jasiah Ian Definitely, I have been using instaflixxer for years myself :D
Great video! I have enjoyed watching you put this setup together and it's nice to see it on its initial run! I look forward to seeing any other mods you do and to see the adventure you have in it! Enjoy all the hard work you have put into it you have an awesome rig!
Thanks for checking it out and for following along!
I definitely do plan on putting up more content, so stay plugged in if you're interested! 🤙
great route!!
It sure was. I had a blast! I'd like to swing back through in the fall. I'll bet that it'd be much more scenic.
Now we're talkin, hitting the road with you was excellent! I gotta say, each video just gets better and better. "Keep on Jeepin"...
Thanks Bruce! ✌
Such inspiring videos❣️🙏
Thanks!
Nicely done! Glad you had a great trip through Arkansas.
Thanks! It was a fun run. I'd like to go back in the fall when there is some color on all of those trees!
Thanks for the video. Just sub'd to your channel. I really like your setup, especially the Smartcap. It's a lot of extra work shooting video, we appreciate the time you put into it.
Thanks for the kind words, and the sub! Glad to have you on board.
It really can be a good bit of extra effort, but I actually had more fun doing it than I anticipated. I'm looking forward to sharing the next trip.
Just ran across your channel. Nice video. I’ll start working through your others. 👍🏼
Appreciate it! Glad you enjoyed!
Time has been scarce lately, so I havent been able to get out much. I'm hoping to get a trip or two in this fall. I'll be sure to put something together when able!
Cool! I’m jealous!😊
A little bit of jealousy isn't necessarily always a bad thing! After all, that's one of the things that drove me towards taking this trip. I'd watch various channels and their adventures to get my fix when trips weren't feasible. Thankfully, I found a brief window of time and just decided that it was my time to make it happen.
Get out there and explore! 👍
Great video! Have a 2020 Gladiator Rubicon myself. Love the RSi Smart cap you put on there! I've yet to pull the trigger but this video gives me great incentive. Keep up the content! Definitely subscribing.
Thanks for the kind words and the sub man. More content to come for sure!
RSI recently announced a new version--the SmartCap EVOa Adventure, coming out early this year (projected February for the Gladiator). It has solid side windows with molle panels on the inside, for $100 less than the original version. Everything else appears to be the same. If you're looking in to it and you don't need windows, that may be worth waiting for for you. If that version were out when I purchased mine I definitely would have went with that option
If it's just a simple window swap, I may see what the cost of that is. That'd be the perfect place to put my medical bags and a few small kit boxes.
Good to see your video :-)
I hope to see more adventure and news MOD.
Be careful in the wild :-)
Thanks for watching.
Appreciate it. You as well! I'll have more content soon. 👍
Great video! Looks like it was a great trip. Thanks for sharing with us.
Appreciate it! It was a great time, and I can't wait for the next trip. Keep an eye out for more. Thanks for coming along!
Nice video and looks like a fun trip! You earned a subscriber!
Appreciate it!
Back at you! Great content. I love the Fallout shirt from your intro on the Hoosier National Forest video, and that X is awesome. Great build!
I'm hoping I'll be able to make it up to the M.O.O.R.E. myself. It's not terribly far away from me, being in TN. Maybe I'll see you there!
@@TerraOutdoors Yeah man! Come out! Would love to meet ya. Keep up the good work!
I’m just starting my build and you have the same things I’ve wanted... hopefully going hit the trails next year.... just got the red echo diesel February 15th... ordered my rsi as my first mod... actually I put 35s right away.... had a defender 90 with 35s lockers etc and that was fine..... would love to do the deserts and mountains Midwest and southwest... big dreams but first part is in place...
Awesome! Well, if you have any questions, feel free to ask!
Those EcoDiesels are nice. Congrats on that! I had the previous generation EcoDiesel engine in my 2015 Grand Cherokee. It's a great engine in my opinion. Lots of power, especially tuned. This time around, I couldn't live without a manual transmission though, so I opted for the gas. The extra fuel economy and torque would definitely be nice, but no regrets so far.
I'd love to take a big trip through the southwest to hit all of the major areas out there. I'll have to see how it fits in to my trip planning this year.
great video, the time flew by. nice cinematography and editing to the music with sections of natural noises and fast sections punctuated with cuts. could you review how the tent handled the wind/rain and the tires on and off the pavement?
Thanks for checking it out and for the feedback! The trip definitely did go by quickly.
The tent worked flawlessly. I don't know what the peak wind was that night, but I would say it was at least in the high 20 to low 30 mph range. No issues or damage to the tent whatsoever, and the inside was bone dry.
As far as the tires, they handled everything I threw at them on this trip, both at street pressure and off road pressure. I've heard people say that the Ridge Grapplers aren't great on slick roads, but I didn't notice any degraded traction.
Nice to get a look at the Mini mounted on the RSI. I'm seriously considering the bed cap but was unsure about the combo with my tent. Good stuff man, we should link up when you come out to Colorado.
I may be partial, but I think that the two components mesh really well. With the small Frontrunner rack up there between the two, it creates a really compact, versatile package. I'm a big fan so far.
For sure man! After filming this, I ended up out in the Denver area for another few days, but didn't really get a chance to hit any trails. As of right now, I'm planning on taking another trip out that way probably late summer. We'll see!
@@TerraOutdoors Dope man, let me know. I’ve been trying to maybe put together a gladiator group to hit some trails and do some camping, get some content and have a good time. I’m located in Colorado Springs. Again nice set up, seed planted deep about the smart cap haha.
I'm moving to middle tennessee in month and buying a gladiator. Gonna have to find people to wheel with!
Nice! It's definitely a great area. Not as much "free-for-all" type space like there is out west, but there is still plenty to do for sure.
@@TerraOutdoors I'm super excited to do some multi state trips. It's something you can do Just in a weekend. That's something that's really hard to do in CA due to the size, and personally I find it much prettier in TN and the surrounding areas.
@@Harps555 That is true. There are some incredibly awesome areas out in CA, but I imagine it is a bit tough to make your way out of the state.
Nice set up...you look like a pretty tall guy..how comfortable is the gladiator on a long trip like that..I heard that the seat doesn't go back that far. Thanks for sharing
Thanks!
I find it surprisingly comfortable honestly. This is the second 20+ hour trip that I've had it on, and I haven't had issues either time. I'm 6'4"-6'5", and I can get the seat just right to make constantly stepping on the clutch comfortable, while still having extra adjustment room.
Great video. I have a Gladiator as well and just bought a Black Series Alpha camper trailer to go with it. Were there any places along the route that I may have issues with if I pull a trailer? It will go through anything the jeep can but worried about tight turns.
Thanks!
Nice! Those are some awesome units. I don't think you'll have any trouble whatsoever with the trailer. The top down drone footage turn in the video was one of the few switchbacks that I encountered. There were one or two tighter, uphill ones along the route, but definitely nothing crazy.
Did this trip happen just after Christmas by chance? I swear we passed you on the Interstate on the way to Texas to visit my fiancés family. Remember seeing a gray JTR waving like a dummy?
Lol! It did, actually. Between Christmas and New Year.
I can't say that I do, but I'm sure that I did wave back! I always do haha. I felt like a zombie on the highway stretch, trying to make up time after the end of the trail. I think that was about 16 or so hour driving day by the time I stopped to rest in Colorado.
Hey I was going to ask you if you have had any leaks with your camper shell?
Your Gladiator is looking pretty cool.
Thanks man!
Nothing major. I do get some spray on the inside when I'm washing it--I'm assuming it comes in through the tailgate gaps, which is really no fault of the cap itself. I've never had it leak from rain/snow though.
Are you on the Jeep Gladiator forum? I need to know everything about your air compressor setup in a bad way!
Sure am! You can check out my build thread here if interested: www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/forum/threads/ares-build-thread.26187/
The compressor install is the last post on page 1. 👍
FYI: I did reroute the the wires from the door jamb. They now exit the cab through the passenger side floor drain. I kept getting water intrusion through the door jambs, because rainwater would just ride my wire loom straight in to the floor. My carpets were soaked after every rainfall until I figured out that that was the cause haha.
If you have any questions, feel free to ask here or there.
Dope video man.. I have a question do you know these trails already or are you using a app or something and if so how can you get Service to use a gps? and also how can someone find camp spots like this?
Nope, many of these I've never seen before! I do pretty extensive planning with satellite imagery on Gaia GPS. I can preload maps in the event that I don't have service, but usually don't have much issue.
I'd just recommend pulling satellite imagery of points of interest. I'm legitimately just looking for what looks like trails, or breaks in trees, mark then as points of interest, then drive and check them out. I usually try to find 3 or 4 per area in case of any contingencies.
So my daughter and I are just getting started with overlanding, and just bought a Nissan Armada, rooftop tent, and Napier SUV tent for coverage during rain/snow. She will be sleeping inside on an air-up SUV mattress, while I'm up top in the RTT. We are adding a simple 2" lift and more aggressive tires, and eventually building a platform in the rear for storage. We are not new to adventure camping, as we have done it for years via motorcycle, and have an amazing system to keep it all simplistic, so overlanding shouldn't be any harder. We also live in northwest Arkansas, just 30 minutes from Lincoln where you ended, and make many trips thru the year to Sparta, TN to see her mother, so this seems like it could be a perfect start to a trip east along the trail to see her mom. Is there any section of this that you believe would be too technical for a beginner with a setup like ours? I had never even heard of this trail, so I'm completely dumb to it.
Sounds awesome Chad!
The only area that may potentially cause an issue is the stretch on Warloop Rd. There are several small shelves and off camber spots to negotiate, and going west to east you'll be tackling it uphill instead of downhill like I show in my video. It's definitely doable though. I came across an F-250 heading east, and he was able to get up the hill without much fuss.
I highly recommend the trip! It's beautiful, and there are some great campsites to be found.
@@TerraOutdoors thanks for the reply. That was the main part I was worried about. Are you going to the Rendezvous In The Ozarks in 2 weeks? We will be there, and would like to meet and shake your hand!
Just curious if you choose between the RLD and the RSI and how you made your decision. I'm currently looking at the two and looking for some user knowledge to help come to a conclusion. Thanks any input is greatly appreciated. One of my concerns was the ability to have a window on one side and a solid windoor on the other RDL has that option but I don't see much info about them compared to the about of info out there for the RSI.
To be completely honest, for me, this is one of the few choices on my Jeep that came down to aesthetics. I'm typically all about function over form, but functionally those two caps were very similar to me, perhaps with a slight nod to RLD. Having said that, I would never begin to approach the capacity of the RLD--the RSI offered plenty (330 pounds dynamic, 770 pounds static, if I recall correctly). To me, the RSI looked much better and fit the lines of the Jeep better, so that's the route that I went. Also, the modularity of the RSI (breaks down for shipping, swappable parts, etc.) won me over.
That is a legitimate concern if that's what you need. To my knowledge, RSI does not offer that. I'm about 98% certain you can swap out the windows/windoors, however that would mean finding someone else what also wants to trade just one windoor, which may be a hassle.
I wouldn't be put off by the lack of reviews on the RLD. From everything I've seen, they're stellar, and are incredibly rugged. They just weren't the cap for me personally.
Best of luck in your search!
@@TerraOutdoors thank you this is so informative and beyond helpful.
@@Ucmirolln Happy to help! If you have any other questions, feel free to ask!
Cool video...
do you feel the extra weight of the camper and tent while on an off road? have you noticed a drop in MPG?
Thanks!
The weight is noticeable. Honestly, I think I felt it more on road than off road though. The center of gravity is a bit higher now, so I consider that while making maneuvers.
I didn't notice much of a mpg drop with the camper shell installed, but with the rack and tent on, I lost maybe 1-1.5 mpg at highway speed. At a comfortable backroad speed, I didn't notice much difference.
What source did you use to find the trail? Nice video.
Appreciate that!
The GPS tracks for the trail and pertinent info can be found here (paid product): www.transamtrail.com/
I highly recommend picking them up. There are thousands of miles of trail in them. The gentleman that assembled the tracks did an excellent job, and he continuously updates them.
Awesome video! Where can I reach you to pick your brain about the trip. Great editing on the video, can tell you spent a lot of time on this, especially doing it all solo! 👍🏽
Thanks Jehan! I appreciate that!
I'd be more than happy to answer any questions that you may have right here. I'm typically pretty responsive!
Doing it solo definitely adds an extra element to the challenge, but I really do enjoy it.
@@TerraOutdoors thanks so much! Will reach back to you with some questions!
@@jehanmustafa2011 Of course!
Where can I get a map for this trail ride?
The official trail maps/files can be found here:
www.transamtrail.com/
There are other variations out there, but those are the ones that I use. FYI, a little bit of the footage were slight detours off of the main trail (I can't drive by an interesting trail without checking it out), but 95% of it was on the mapped trail.
Cool video. What part of the country do you live in?
Thanks!
I live in middle/west-ish TN--about 45 minutes west of Nashville. We don't have as much over here as the folks out west do, as far as sweeping rocky mountain vistas or large camp-anywhere swaths of land, but we do what we can!
@@TerraOutdoors I'm in Texas and we do a lot of stuff up in Oklahoma. Since you were up in the Ozarks I was wondering if you might be from the area. If you ever get back this way hit me up and I can show you some cool stuff up there.
@@lovablepersona5000 For sure! Thanks for the offer!
I did the entirety of the OK leg of the Trans-America Trail in the summer of 2019. I wish that I had filmed that, but it was before I considered logging my trips. The prairie preserve was a beautiful area, and I really enjoyed the drive.