The Coastal Cruisers started as a small group meeting in a garage in Surrey, B.C. in early 1991. The issue that brought the club together was the need to raise money for maintenance of the cabin and hot tubs at the Clear Creek Hot Springs. The Coastal Cruisers became a chapter of the Toyota Land Cruiser Association on November 25, 1991.
Membership grew slowly but steadily, and the popularity of Clear Creek skyrocketed. With an ever increasing number of drunken idiots (NO, not club members) attempting the drive into the springs, maintenance became a challenge. The largest pool was destroyed, cleaning out the cabin required shovels, and in the spring of 1995, the Forest service closed the road, claiming the many creek crossings on the road posed a hazard to salmon fry at the mouth of the creek. The road to Clear Creek is now open again and accessible even to Subaru Outbacks. It is used and enjoyed by many diverse groups, however we could not hope to maintain the facilities considering the number of people using it. The cabin was eventually burned down as well, the only sad reminder of its passing had been the stove that the club had built, but that too has been destroyed.
Membership has steadily grown and is now around 45 members. When the club was formed, V8 FJ40s were the overwhelming majority. Although gasoline powered 40s are still common, the high price of fuel has popularized the use of turbo diesel power plants. The club includes vehicles ranging from a 1968 FJ40, through BJ40s, BJ42s, FJ45s, BJ60s, FJ60s, HJ60s, HJ61, BJ70s, BJ74s, HDJ81,a PZJ75, FJ80s, 1996 HZJ75s, and new FJ Cruisers, making for arguably the most diverse collection of vehicles of any TLCA chapter. The trucks range from bone stock resto-mobiles, to rusted out bush-beaters, to a newly modified FJ Cruiser with a 45 watt VHF radio that can contact Hams in the Caribbean.
The demographics of the club range from 18 to 75 years old with a bulge in the middle of the thirty/forty-somethings. Or are those somethings bulging in the middle? We are a tread-lightly group and act responsibly in the wilderness. We are family friendly and do not condone heavy drinking or obnoxious behavior on the trail. We are also now affiliated again with the 4WDABC and support their efforts to maintain trails and offer a voice opposing road closures.
The club now meets on the second Thursday of each month at Extreme Bends, 1650 Broadway Street, Port Coquitlam B.C., Canada. The official business usually gets under way around 8:00 p.m. but the schedule isn’t TOO rigidly enforced. Steve T, whose shop doubles as a club meeting place, usually boots the last few hardcores out of the shop around 11:00. Discussions in the parking lot have been known to stretch on until pretty late, regardless of weather.
We get out on local runs on average once a month, usually to the Harrison Lake area. Some of the past Long Weekend runs have included many years of Clear Creek, Big Bar, Churn Creek, Whipsaw, Graystokes, Black Tusk, Vancouver Island, and China Head. Some club members have attended TLCA events such as Rocky Mountain River Shiver, Rubithon, and the Pismo Beach Surf n Turf, all traditions that continue to grow.
Some other annual events include a Christmas Party in December and Land Cruiser Days in July or August.
First-time membership dues are CA $20. Come to two meetings and we’ll vote you in on your second meeting, or go on a wheeling trip with one of our members and we’ll vote you in on your first meeting.
Renewed memberships are CA$20 due in January each year.
Since we are a chapter of the Toyota Land Cruiser Association and the 4WDABC, we encourage members to join them also.