V7E6 - North Bound and Down Written By: Chris Shontz / @venture4WD The electronic sway-bar disconnect that comes standard on the Jeep Wrangler Rubicon is one of my favorite off-road performance enhancing gizmos. To summarize, it allows you to disable your front sway-bar to maximize the flexibility of your suspension system. A supple suspension that facilitates good weight distribution to all four contact-patches enhances traction and comfort on varied terrain. Back in the late 1990s, we used to crawl under our Jeeps to manually disconnect our sway-bars with hand tools prior to every trail ride. Even quick disconnects that were held in place by pins became extremely tedious, especially when they became rusty, corroded, or dirty. When I finally got my Wrangler Rubicon with the push-button electronic disconnect, I let out an enormous sigh of relief. My days of fighting with stubborn swaybar disconnects were over. Or were they?   Sway-Bar Woes For over three years of frequent use, the Rubicon’s electronic disconnect system worked without even the slightest hiccup. Then, when I passed through some deep water in southern California, the actuator stopped working. Weeks thereafter, I installed a replacement actuator and we were back in business. Now, only a few months later, the “Sway Bar” light on my dashboard is blinking again, with no response from the button. This time, the sway bar was stuck in a disconnected state. While at camp in northern New Brunswick, Canada, I broke out my wrenches and decided to take it apart, to see if there was anything I could do before I resumed driving… After turning out the three bolts that hold the actuator in place, a good bit of water poured out. Water ingress was clearly the issue! I plugged the detached actuator back into the wiring harness and it functioned perfectly, which was great news, as that would be a costly issue to resolve. The problem must be seized or corroded mechanical components. So I cleaned out the plunger housing to the best of my ability, cycled the sway-bar with my hands to test movement, and then I reassembled everything. After that, it resumed working properly! What I learned is that the mechanism can benefit from being disassembled, rebuilt and cleaned, or replaced with new components. Water is able to get into the system freely due to worn bushings, so this will likely happen again. For the time being, I was happy that it was a simple mechanical issue that could be resolved with a paper towel and some lubrication.   Cape Spencer Adventure With my teenage son, Cole, flying into Maine next week to join me for an adventure, I had a limited amount of time left in New Brunswick. However, before I left the province, I wanted to be sure to connect with North Bound Expeditions. Virgil and Nick live near Fredericton, the capital of New Brunswick, and they’re like-minded adventurers who both drive well-kitted Jeep Wrangler Unlimiteds. Through North Bound Expeditions, they host trips and events, and they have intimate knowledge of New Brunswick’s vast backcountry and remote destinations. When Virgil offered to introduce me to a couple of their favorite destinations, I jumped at the chance! Virgil’s Jeep, a bright green Wrangler Unlimited, pulled a military trailer outfitted with a rooftop tent. Nick drives a white Jeep with a roof-top tent mounted to an external rack. Both vehicles are lifted with oversized tires, winches, auxiliary lighting, air compressors, and ample recovery gear. I followed Virgil while Nick took up the rear as we traveled south from Fredericton to Saint John. After about an hour of highway driving, the pavement gave way to dirt, and then quickly degraded into an overgrown, water-logged two-track. First, we encountered some small puddles. Then, they became hub-deep water holes. Finally, we encountered long stretches of bumper-deep water. Although this was well within the fording capability of my Jeep, its interior space isn’t well-prepared for deep water as I store countless items on the floor. This is something I’ll likely improve upon as time goes on, but since storage space is at a premium - I’ll admit - I did not give deep water preparedness enough priority! The trail continued like this for kilometers - occasionally splashing through deep water, negotiating short ascents and descents, and winding through the forest. We encountered varied and colorful terrain as we crept along, however one thing was constant… Branches scraped the sides of our Jeeps for the entire length of the trail. The three of us didn’t mind this so much, as we forfeit our pristine paint-jobs to the backcountry years ago, but if you’re not a fan of listening to “SKREEEEEEeeeeEEEE,” this route might not be for you! While the trail is interesting enough, the payoff is epic. After several kilometers, the trail emerges from the treeline overlooking the Bay of Fundy. It continues for a short distance and then terminates in a grassy clearing flanked by boulders atop the jagged coast. The views up and down the coast and into the bay are unreal, and fishing vessels often pass a short distance from the shore. There is a small fire circle here, and while the ground isn’t perfectly level, with some ingenuity, the campsite can accommodate three to five vehicles. We parked our rigs, deployed our tents, and settled in for the night around a crackling campfire. The setting was absolutely sublime, and I couldn’t be more grateful to Virgil and Nick for bringing me to such an amazing place!   Tricked by the Tide The next morning, after spending some time enjoying the coast, I fondly parted ways with the guys from North Bound Expeditions. I had one more day to experience New Brunswick before I had to return to Maine, so I continued east to Martin Head. This was another bayside camping location recommended to me by Virgil, and although the road wasn’t as challenging or degraded as that of yesterday, it was still a very long, bone-jarring slog down to the coast. While yesterday’s campsite was atop a rocky cliff, this one was directly on the beach. The peninsula, Martin Head, extended from the shore, culminating into a rocky tree-lined landmass. Only a narrow stretch of beach, composed entirely of rounded stones, connected Martin Head to the mainland. In my folly, I waded across shallow water, to the peninsula, mere meters from the Jeep, and spent 45 minutes exploring Martin Head. Upon my return, the shallow water was now at least ten feet deep, and coursing into the sound. I had completely misjudged the rate at which the tide was coming in, and it ended up being a round-about four kilometer hike back to the Jeep… which I could hit with a rock, were I to throw one across the water. Misadventure aside, I had a phenomenal night on the beautiful coast of New Brunswick. Bright and early the following morning, I was on my way back to Maine! 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