2014 Toyota Tundra Adventures in PA- 07.25.13
It’s been a crazy summer of trying new things, which has inevitably lead to more unexpected travel, surprise encounters, and non-stop summer inspiration. Well, adding to the list of firsts ~ Toyota just brought me out to Farmington, PA for the last two days to play with the new 2014 Tundra, which has meant: my first time shooting a shotgun (and getting a taste of “golf with a shotgun”) as well as my first time properly playing with trucks (towing large things and off-roading in lots of water!)… So fun, so exhausting, and while somethings are embargo’d till next week, i did get the ok to share the experiences and design details with you now! It is definitely more angular and more aggressive visually… and designed right in socal at Calty!
So, take a peek on the next page to see my adventures at the bizarrely epic Nemacolin Woodlands Resort (which has everything from shooting, fly fishing, golf, spa, LIONS, airstrip, casino, classic car collection, ziplines, dog sledding, and so much more…) to our quick visit to Frank Lloyd Wright’s Kentuck Knob, to off-roading and exploring with the new 2014 Tundra, as well as a few of my favorite details!
As you can see, Nemacolin Woodlands Resort, is quite massive. It takes a few minutes by car to get between most spots on the property! (Click to view larger)
The “Fat Bird” is their mascot/logo and can be found in both bronze statue forms and in 2D logo form, on just about everything around…
Yesterday, as soon as i flew in to Pittsburgh, i was whisked away in a car for 1.5 hours down to Farmington, where i was immediately told to drop my things off and catch the shuttle over to the lodge for some shooting and dinner. It was my first time trying it, and it was a blast! Took a few to get used to it, but was definitely blowing clay traps to bits in no time… though my shoulder is feeling it a bit today. Following the shooting, we had dinner in the lodge where these stuffed creatures (only two of many) were found…
This morning kicked off with breakfast and a 2014 Tundra and 4Runner introduction…
… and being greeted by the full line up, ready to be driven!
Interesting detail on the new Tundra is the actual TUNDRA text being pressed into the tailgate, which creates nice subtle reflections and surprisingly easy readability from just about any angle.
And then we were off driving some of the gorgeous roads around Farmington on our way to Kentuck Knob.
Though we weren’t allowed to take pictures inside while at Frank Lloyd Wright’s Kentuck Knob House, the wildlife and details outside were hard to miss… this huge yellow mushroom was stunning! And they have the craziest, speedy, long legged spiders throughout the property…
Lunch was on the back field of Kentuck Knob with a stunning backdrop of the rolling hills in every direction. There was even a Tundra CAKE!
… then we headed back to Nemacolin for a variety of adventures to put the Tundras through their paces…
I’ve never really played with a proper truck before… and certainly never towed anything large… Now i’ve towed a tractor! and an RV! On an airstrip! And the rearview camera gives you a great view of the tow hitch too…
The rainy weather last night definitely helped create a more challenging (and splashy) off-road course…
Unlike the Range Rover Experience in UT, which talked about how deep you could submerge the car and still drive ~ with the Tundra we really did it (a few times!) ~ and you can have the water halfway up the door and not worry…
View out of the sunroof…
… back in the car while driving…
The new Tundras have an exclusive (patented) tire tread, which they are saying performs better than their previous ones in just about every condition…
Since I was having too much fun driving to get out of the car to take pics as we drove through the crazier stuff… here are some of the press photos of what we were doing…
A peek at the mud puddles behind in the rearview cam…
Things get pretty muddy in the engine! (But hosing it off makes it look good as new apparently…)
On some fun details - the rear lights have little fins to help with aerodynamics… inside the center console, there’s a special TISSUE holder (it surprised me), the seats in the back fold up for more usable space, and the tow hitch plugs are conveniently located in the light of the license plate light!
Love this seat flipping up detail…
And on fun random inspiration to end this post… found this little guy in the bushes up at Pete’s Cabin ~ which is the amazing giant cabin of the Nemacolin owners that we did a drive to…
Ok ~ i’m off to sleep, more to come on the Tundra later… this all has me wondering if perhaps NOTlabs needs a truck for projects and adventures… and Bucky would fit so well in the back with the rear seats flipped up?
UPDATE ~ the next morning before heading home, had to go see what their “wildlife” area was like… turns out it’s like an odd little zoo in between the golf courses and kid’s playground areas… with some rather domesticated large cats and such…
Ooh and amongst the press photos, I just found this one where they are hauling the white tiger around! (This one is so domesticated, when people come up, it rubs along the fence purring incredibly loudly.)
Also here’s a peek at the whole 2014 Toyota Tundra Family.
Looks like a great trip. I love Toyota trucks. I have a 1988 diesel Landcruiser I imported from Japan. It has over 300000kms on it and still runs great, build like a tank. Unfortunately its starting to rust out so I will have to replace it soon.
----- Kevin 15.01.15 11:22