We decided to be stealthy, use a minivan and avoid towing and all that goes with it. Ideas on paper don’t always go the way you hope. Our first foray into minivan-stealth was during an October trip to Stowe for second-cousin Caroline’s wonderful wedding. Without any real prep other than a camping box and air mats we slept in the Adirondacks. Little things like cup holders and handles at the ceiling were noted to be needed and kept for sure. Later I added a thin wooden riser to level the whole back to be above the heavy metal clamps that usually hold the seats in place. We bought 3″ upholstery foam, deciding that two 24″ wide pieces would be easier to manage than a single 48″ mattress. Jane sewed some delightful covers with inexpensive “Nearly-New” fabric.
Cooking:
While I still have and use an ancient Coleman white gas stove for camping, it stinks when you turn it off and I didn’t feel like carrying a can of white gas all across the country in a minivan. (Though in a pinch that could’ve been a spare gallon to burn in the car). Many of the propane stoves are pretty big but we found this wonderful one at “Nearly New” it’s a Zebco, so full of adolescent appeal, think fishing supplies.
Then back to fuel. I didn’t want to leave a trail of green propane cans which are usually not recycled. Solution, IGNIK is a company who makes small propane tanks to be refilled. Holding approximately 5 of the green cans, it cost only $4.00 to fill. Update coming on how long it lasts
Coffee:
Jane’s not drinking coffee so I didn’t want to brew for one. Solution, Starbucks Via. The only instant I’ve ever had that tasted strong and consistent.
Power:
Charging Jane’s ebike was my first consideration and I went through numerous ideas and iterations including wrongly buying two inverters while searching for pure sine wave. Then after suggestions from Phil, a technical friend, I looked into it and realized it was going to burn up the minivan alternator trying to pull 150 amps from 130 amp system. (This highlights the joy of friends and people who add to your life, their knowledge comes in handy)
Again, thanks to Phil I researched Bluetti and Jackery as camp power solutions. As whole systems they would include solar but I saved some money by just getting the 1000 Watt model and charging it at electric sites as needed. Looks like it will go at least 4 days worth of travel and Mt biking and refrigerating before needing a recharge. Maybe someday I’ll add a solar panel too, but not this trip.
Cooler:
Everyone who has ever camped knows the pain of getting, keeping and sloshing through ice to have fresh food available and not soggy. With that in mind I started looking at electric coolers/tiny fridges. We are SO glad I did. May not have selected the best cooler, but the Megiu 26L is doing the job perfectly well. It runs on the 12V “lighter” outlet while we drive, stays cold for hours if left off between drives and the Jackery too will run it (could probably go 4 days straight without a plug in)
And, in typical fashion, two days before launch I made a quick, simple cover for the cooler with an insulated liner to “keep it out of the sun” and give us a table between the seats in Helen, the faithful Honda minivan.
David
The Voyage of the Tramper 