Summer is here and that means fall is quickly to come, and most of us will be out on the land fishing and hunting through it all. We may be restricted to our home waters and state borders—for the most part—this year, but we are fortunate to live in a country that values and protects its wildlife species and offers access to hunt and fish via a network of public lands and the people who continually protect them.
There is nothing I like better than packing up the truck and heading away from the home for a three or four day hunting and fishing fest. No internet. No chores. Nothing to consider except the landscape and what it offers. That means I’m usually finding really off-the-beaten path locations in the West, many times over rough four-wheel-drive-only roads. I’ve done this my entire life and burned through a lot of tires. I used to run Les Schwab Wild Country treads but those popped nearly every time I went over Trail Creek Pass and through Copper Basin outside Sun Valley, Idaho. I popped tires in other locales, too. Became an expert at pulling and replacing tires. If you are looking for the best off-road tiers, I have a suggestion.
Years later I worked a deal with Toyo Tires to run their treads on my F 150 and I have been amazed by how they’ve held up. In all the travels with this truck, 130,000 plus miles, many over rocky and rut filled roads, I have never had a flat (yes, I know, I am setting myself up for disaster!) I ran over a bolt on a Missoula city street one time and had to get that pulled and patched, but even then I was able to limp into a tire store and didn’t have to pull the wheel myself.
I guess what I’m getting at is this—I’m no vehicle enthusiast, nor a tire expert, but I don’t think I’ll ever run any brand of tires other than Toyo. I have a peace of mind with them. I trust them. I’ve run Toyo Open Country M/Ts (Off Road Mud Terrain), Toyo Open Country R/Ts (On/Off Road Rugged Terrain), Toyo A/T Xtremes (winter worthy!), and even their Open Country ATs (Off/On All-Terrain). No problems with any.
The M/Ts make more noise on the highway, but are just aggressive on mud and dirt. The R/Ts are quieter on the highway and function just fine for me on challenging dirt and rocky roads, and the A/Ts did fine, too. I just like a little more aggressive tread design than the ATs offer. However, the A/T Xtremes are a great all around tire for highway driving, especially on snow and ice, and they perform perfectly off-road, too. They may be the best choice for an outdoorsman/woman if you don’t want to swap out tires once or twice a year and you live in a climate where snow and ice are encountered.
I don’t know how useful this information is to all of you, and I want you to know that there are no affiliate links here, so I am not getting a kickback from Toyo for penning this. I just think that peace of mind makes any outdoor adventure, especially when you’re along way from the paved track, that much more enjoyable. So, roll with Toyo tires and I think you’ll be happy.
If you want to check out all the specs, go to https://www.toyotires.com/product/open-country You can follow the moon Instagram at @toyotires