Our Motto: A bad day hunting/fishing/camping is still better than a good day working.

The Monache Gang consists of several friends of long standing who share a common interest in hunting, off-road exploring, and campfire tall tales. Members of have come and gone over the years, but the core group remains in touch. Various expeditions are undertaken on a sort of regular basis, depending on time availability.

The name Monache Gang comes from Monache Meadows, located in the southern Sierra Nevada mountains of eastern California. This area is reached by a road to the Kennedy Meadows area off US Highway 395 just above the village of Pearsonville (hubcap capital of the world). Four wheel drive is necessary for access, but the meadows and surrounding mountains are beautiful and well worth the trip. The gang has a favorite campsite by the Kern River, and many a camping and hunting expedition have used this as a base.

The names below have been changed to protect the innocent - they correspond to the Citizen's Band Radio handles that we normally use. The original gang consisted of Hawkeye, The Perfessor, and Portagee Bob. Their first expedition was via a very well worn out (read no brakes) WWII jeep into Jawbone Canyon, a desert wash south of Monache. From that point in time, many trips were taken and the Gang expanded to Shaver Lake on the west side of the Sierra, many locations on the east side, and as far away as Utah and Wyoming. Alas, we do not have a good photographic record of most of these trips, but the samples on the site will give you a general idea.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Hawkeye - The instigator of the whole thing and fearless leader. A former US Marine with over 40 years in the elevator business, Hawkeye has been the organizer and general cheerleader for the group. He usually plans the general itinerary and food for three square meals a day for those on an expedition. He is an accomplished shot and deer tremble at the sound of his name. He drives a fully restored Type MB 1942 military Jeep with trailer that he shows in parades and military gatherings.
The Perfessor - A retired community college teacher, The Perfessor was pretty green regarding camping and hunting until Hawkeye took on the formidable task of training him many years ago. He now is a veteran camper/fisher/hunter (not much in the way of catching or killing, however), and enjoys roaming the backwoods of the eastern Sierra in search of ghost towns and gold. He drives a 1982 CJ5 Jeep.
Portagee Bob - A retired Field Engineer for a major computer company, Portagee Bob grew up in the Central Valley of California and has been involved in camping and hunting since the beginning. He now lives on the Central Coast where there are many opportunities for fishing and four-wheeling. He is an accomplished shot and enjoys sport shooting as a hobby. He drives a pristine 1984 CJ7 Jeep.

SureShot - Sureshot is son of Hawkeye and has been a avid four-wheeler for many years. He currently runs his own fence and steel fabrication business. He is the ultimate tinkerer, and can fix almost anything on the trail. His CJ7 Jeep has been heavily beefed up with suspension and convenience add-ons. He usually gets the job of towing the trailer off-road.
Big By - Big By is a retired attorney who has always been an active camper/hiker. His son and Hawkeye's son were in Little League together and from that sprang a lifelong friendship. Big By and Hawkeye have done the John Muir trail and a myriad of other hiking/camping trips over the years. He participates in many of the Monache Gang adventures and has driven both a Jeep Grand Cherokee and a Jeep Cherokee.
The Colonel - The Colonel really was a Colonel in the US Army and is very active with the Boy Scouts. He enjoys introducing scouts to camping, cooking, shooting, and outdoor crafts. He works for a major television studio and teaches television production at a nearby university. He can usually be found around food - we let him join the gang because he is very skilled at cooking with Dutch Ovens and makes some wonderful camp dinners. He has driven a variety of small trucks and currently has a Jeep Wrangler.

Ol' Horny - So called because he is a professional musician and Trombonist, Ol' Horny has joined us on a variety of outings and adds a touch of class to what might otherwise be considered a ragtag group. He and Big By like to ride in By's air conditioned jeep listening to classical music.
The Mad Russian - Another elevator guy, the Mad Russian isn't really mad but we couldn't think of anything else to use for a CB handle. He was a regular participant in most of the earlier hunting expeditions, and had some real adventures in his "corn binder", an International Harvester Travel-All that regularly had tire hassles and a penchant for getting stuck in some deep mud.
VaporLock - So called because of a speech impediment, VaporLock is another elevator guy who participated in several earlier hunts on the western Sierra. At one time he drove a beautiful Chevy Blazer K5, until his now-ex-wife drove off with it into the sunset.
Crazy Ed - A co-worker with Portagee Bob, Crazy Ed was always the life of the party with a continual stream of colorful comments on life, hunting, and camp cooking. His specialty was to bring along his Haselblad camera with which he got some wonderful photographs, only one of which appears on these pages.
Cuz - A cousin of Hawkeye, Cuz is a genuine cowboy complete with horses and a ranch in the mountains east of Los Angeles. He has taken horses on hunting trips to Wyoming and has been active in a variety of search-and-rescue and Sheriff's Posse activities. He is retired from the motion picture business in the crafts area. He likes Diesel engines and has had several big trucks with campers and trailers of various configurations.
Unc - Cuz's father and Hawkeye's uncle, ol' Unc was involved in a few outings including the infamous snowstorm at Summit Meadows (see Tall Tales page). He would keep the campfire going while the rest of us went out and froze our butts off in the snow. Always a camp philosopher, he provided many stories of the good old days and lots of laughter. He will be greatly missed.

Guys We Have Lost Track Of

Lyle - Lyle joined us on several early hunting trips to Monache Meadows. He had a knack for sharpening knives and would do so for our hunting knives. On one trip, he arrived late at night riding a small Honda Trail 70 motorbike, having left his 2-wheel drive truck at the trailhead. He was so cold we had to wrap him up in sleeping bags and feed him warm stuff so that he wouldn't go into shock. He recovered OK, fortunately. He was also interested in fly fishing.

Bugout Larry - Read the story of the Summit Meadows snowstorm for the full detail of where the name comes from. Bugout joined us on a single trip and became famous as a result. He was working for Lyons Van and Storage at that time but we have lost track of him since.

Big Bob - A friend of the Perfessor's, Big Bob joined us on one trip to Summit Meadows carrying a giant shotgun with solid lead slugs that were supposed to be for deer. He didn't get a chance to shoot, but we were all wondering how that thing would work.

Sneaky Ed - This guy more or less invited himself along on some trips and showed up at one in Utah unexpectedly. Yet another elevator man.

All contents of this site copyright © 2007 by The Monache Gang. Individual photographs indicated are the property of the respective owners. Nothing here may be copied, paraphrased, stolen, used, or replicated by any device now existing or yet to be devised without express written permission of the Gang.