qataban and sheba: great read

[im02crazy]

A few weeks back I ran into a story on a 1950 expedition to Yemen supported by Chrysler providing 13 powerwagons. I found the book published by the director Wendell Phillips on Amazon for $12 so I ordered it. This out of print documentary of their extraordinary journey is worth reading, especially with the great Dodge photos and ongoing testimony of how impossible the cross desert trek would have been without the Dodges. If you have the time and patience, it really shows how important these trucks were to this dig.

The ending reads like an indiana jones, laura croft script with the team escaping the local tribal warlord and leaving 8 or so of the Dodges in the sand!

Ok, where are they now?? I feel a road trip coming on. How far could they have gone on 18 gals? Anybody know more about these missing powerwagons?

[Clint Dixon]

A few weeks back I ran into a story on a 1950 expedition to Yemen supported by Chrysler providing 13 powerwagons. I found the book published by the director Wendell Phillips on Amazon for $12 so I ordered it. This out of print documentary of their extraordinary journey is worth reading, especially with the great Dodge photos and ongoing testimony of how impossible the cross desert trek would have been without the Dodges. If you have the time and patience, it really shows how important these trucks were to this dig.

The ending reads like an indiana jones, laura croft script with the team escaping the local tribal warlord and leaving 8 or so of the Dodges in the sand!

Ok, where are they now?? I feel a road trip coming on. How far could they have gone on 18 gals? Anybody know more about these missing powerwagons?

There is definately more information out there on the expedition along with a followup expedition that took place a few years ago. One of the original expedition members is one of our own - a Power-Wagon enthusiast (well why wouldn't he be) named George Farrier. He has written two books about the expeditions and he may frequent this Forum. He is one of the regulars over at Joe's Power Wagon page. He had some packages of information for sale at one time - photos, etc. I think the proceeds of these sales were to go towards the Foundation for the Study of Man (hope I got that right). I believe they were the ones that sponsored the return trip to the Queen of Sheba's temple a few years ago. Also, there have been writeups about the expeditions in the bi-yearly parts lists that Vintage Power Wagons publish.

FYI, there are two different versions of that original book. I have both. I have not looked at either for a while, but I believe one was published in the U.S. and one in England.

From all accounts, the Power-Wagons were pretty beat and shot up and did not survive.