Days out in the camper van. Winter 2024/2025

There hasn't been as many days out in the van and even less camping than I'd hoped for over the winter due to family circumstances.

We've also had a few problems with the van and needed a new leisure battery and now have a water pump to fix. 

The van decided to tow an imaginary trailer. it even showed up in the reversing camera. it was a real hazard when driving as it kept flashing on the screen interfering with the control panel and constant pinging as vehicles came near it. unfortunately there repair costs weren't imaginary.

I did manage one night away in the Forest of Dean. it gave me chance to sort a few things out inside the van.

I use the peg bag to put my watch and phone in at night to stop it falling down the side and I keep a torch in there if I need to get up during the night.

I have a couple of S hooks that allow me to store the bedding in the roof space. They create a little bit more space without reducing the head height.

These 'over the door' hangers are great for use in the shower room as it gives me extra hooks to hang all my clothes, coat and bags on to stop things getting wet.

I didn't check my supply levels before I went away, more tea needed.

A lot of vehicles park on ramps to level their vehicles, I just use more hooks to hold doors open.

The plugs only work when we're hooked up to the mains so I have a battery operated whisk so I can make coffee on a day out.

I'll be upgrading the fold up basket to a fold up trolley for washing up.

I had a day out with our granddaughter, her highlight was a picnic in the van.

Peter and I took a walk up the Malvern Hills last weekend and we decided to air the van by popping the roof and brewing up and reading our books rather than just driving home and watching the TV.

We're away this weekend camping in the Forest of Dean and hopefully back into the swing of things with weekends away and making the most of having the van.

October 2024 - Days out in the Campervan

We'd booked the half term holidays before our daughter died and I'm glad now we had. At first I just wanted to cancel everything. Our friends tentatively skirted around their upcoming visit, but we said, please come.

We ended up spending a lot of time in the van back and forth to Gloucester to sort out our daughter's affairs. It's a 50 mile round trip and we had 4 airport runs in a week with Gatwick and Birmingham. We shared the driving and it was great to be able to stretch out on the back seats.

During half term I had intended to spend 2 nights in the van in the Forest of Dean visiting family and friends, dropping off Halloween gifts and catching up with everyone. I still did the visits, but over 2 days instead of 3 and I slept at my friends house rather than 2 nights on a camp site. In needed the company rather than the solitude as I'd been off work for some time.

Our Friends visited from Germany for a couple of days and we had a few days out.

Then we headed off to Northern Ireland on the ferry, crossing from Liverpool to Belfast for 4 days to visit our Grandson.

We brought one of sons dogs back with us as our son is away and with a 3 year old and an older dog, it was getting a bit much with the dark, wet and cold mornings and to be honest it is going to big a big help to us to have have something to look after till the middle of December when our son gets home, especially as Peter is away for 3 weeks. I'm looking forward to long early morning walks. I do miss having Bob around and our son and his wife helped us out with our dog many times during covid having him for several months so I could return to Dubai before we returned to the UK full time.

I'm pleased to report the cat and dog are getting on even if it is on the cat's terms and we're both wary of the cat, as there is still a lot of hissing from her. Bailey has been told it's her own fault as she will insist on following her.

September 2024 - Days out in the Campervan

 We plan to keep camping in the van over winter.

Although we had a rather chilly night in the middle of September, but that was more to do with the fact we weren't proper;y prepared for it.

We've decided we won't be using the awning any more this year, as we'll only be camping for a night at a time and we'll just pop the roof for sleeping in.

Setting up the awning only took 20 mins this time, but we were a bit limited with space on the pitch, we need to invest in some pegs that we can plant in harder ground.

Driving away and back up is so easy and quick, takes only a few minutes.

I realised that the last time I used this camping table I was in Kruger National Park. It's good to still be getting some use out of it. 

We need to buy a splatter guard as the built in one with the table doesn't fit with our new stove.

The views at the camp site are lovely. No Baboons to worry about on this trip though.

I spent a night away on my own at a friends, she was dog sitting and there wasn't a spare room so I slept in the van. I had to reverse into the drive off a very narrow country lane. it meant I couldn't sleep in the pop up as I would have slid off the top.

It doesn't look like it on the photo but the drive was on a slope.

After a few beers and in the middle of a storm, with the roof down, there wasn't a lot of space to fold the bench seat flat into a bed. I had to push the seat up hill.

The front seats have to be pushed as far forward as possible to allow the bench seat to go flat. It's the only fault with the Ford Nugget I can find. it means you can't drive with the bed out and it's a bit of a flaff to fold it in and out.

With being parked on a slope and the effort I'd gone to and the fact I'd had a beer (or two) I also didn't bother to fit the bed sheet, so during the night my nylon sleeping bag and I slid through the hole in the bottom and half of me was in the kitchen in the morning.

I however do sleep well when I'm in the van.

A driveway awning for the camper van

We purchased a camper van in November 2023, it was something we'd wanted to buy for years, but with a family of 5 children it was never practical, or affordable, so on our return to the UK in June 2021 it was top of our list, but with Covid restrictions in place it still was practical. Then we had our aging dog to consider and the arrival of grandchildren meant we didn't have the flexibility to adventure further afield and our son settling out in Australia saw us visiting him for 2 consecutive summers once covid restrictions on travel were lifted as it had been 4 years since we'd been able to see him.

Once the dog had passed, the grandchildren were now a few years old, and the cost of camper vans stabilised, the time was right and we purchased the Bobster, named in honour after our beloved dog Bob.

Bob was a well travelled dog, having started life with us in South Africa in 2013 moving with us to Dubai in 2015 then in 2020 he relocated with us to the UK spending his last 3 years doing what he loved the most, walking the Malvern Hills.

Our first few trips away were one or two nights down to Brighton, the Forest of Dean and mostly days trips, where we could pop the roof and brew up a cup of tea, have a picnic and mostly, due to the British weather, shelter from the rain, turn the heater on and dry off after a walk on the beach or along the cliff tops.

Our granddaughter decided she wants to join us for the odd trip now and we decided to purchase a drive away awning to give us a bit more space.

We were getting fed up of playing Tetris, rearranging the van every time we wanted to pop out somewhere once we'd parked up. Having to pack everything away properly for a trip to the shops or visit somewhere. Even at night time we were having to bring in the table and chairs due to the rain and we had no where to sit other than inside the van when it was raining. The odd night was ok, but two nights was getting a bit cramped.

We also didn't want to be cooking anything more than soups, pastas, beans on toast in the van. You don't want to be cooking bacon, then sleeping in the same vehicle. So we thought a drive away awning would give us somewhere to sit, store things when we went out and we could cook more foods in for longer periods away.

We've noticed that during the school holidays and over bank holidays are now asking for minimum two night stays, especially over weekends and the prices have shot up dramatically. Campsites near beaches with access to nearby shops, restaurants are now at prices similar to hotels, with one place we found in the Forest of Dean at over £100 a night for pitch and a charge of an additional £20 per person per night. This would have given us access to electricity, water and a communal toilet and shower block. But they had a restaurant and shop on site. It also meant we wouldn't have to leave the site during our stay. But at those prices it made more sense to purchase an inflatable drive away awning at £600 and stay at another site that costs £29 a night with the same facilities, minus the restaurant and shop.

The town is only a 45 minute walk away from this site, it also where my mother lives and only a few miles from our granddaughter and set in lovely grounds with a fishing lake and lots of open space in which to play and also benefits from being quieter with less pitches so more relaxing without the additional night life that we are trying to escape from when we go away.

Pitching the awning was supposed to take 8 minutes with two people according to the instructions, but it took us 53 minutes. I guess we'll get quicker the more we do it.

The drive away part was simple. I just held the kaddor strip that slides into the side of the van before inflating the tent and Peter drove out slowly.

On arrival, he drew up level with the grass and I inserted kaddor strip and he drove into position slowly. 

It took around 2-3 minutes to complete each way. I'm not sure if it's something that could be done on our own, we're going to give it try next time we use it which we will be mid September, but if we do go away on our we won't be needing the additional space and it would only be for a night anyway and when I have gone on my own, I usually camp on a friends drive.

April 2024 - Days out in the camper van

We've slept in the camper van for the first time. In fact we've had two weekends away now. We've reached the stage where the weather is warm enough now and the hotel prices are more expensive than the camps sites. The first night was on my cousins drive in Seaford in Sussex after dropping my mum off to stay with her brother and sister in law for the week, as it's a 4+ hour drive from where we live and driving down on a Friday night after work, meant a late arrival, but we were able to plug in and use their facilities. My aunt and uncle always had camper vans when I was a child and I've always dreamed of owning one, so it felt right to spend our first night on their drive.

For the second night we headed off in the direction of home along the coast and booked onto a camp site in Selsey. It didn't take long to set up the electricity and fill the water tank and Peter had spent some time reading the manual so it was quick to locate all the switches to turn pumps on and set the timer for the heater.

We realised we had too much stuff 'just in case' in the van, so there was a lot of moving things around to use different parts of the van. We rotated both the front seats, set the table up and left the bedding under the bench seat until it was needed and once we'd popped the roof, left the bed hooked up to give us full height space so we could walk around freely.

This arm rest does get in the way, regardless of whether it's up or down, we'll just have to get used to it and the odd bruise or three.

We do have a portable toilet in the van, but have made the decision not to use it and book camp sites with toilet and shower facilities. Thankfully the camp site was quiet so there was plenty of hot water and it was all very clean. Just need to remember to shower before the evenings get too cold.

By removing the portable toilet and purchasing a cable tidy we've free'd up more storage space and Peter purchased a food grade hose pipe to fill the water tank on site, rather than driving with the extra weight. We just need to purchase a container to drain the waste water into, although some camp sites do have 'drive over pits' to empty into.

We can wash up in the van, but chose to use the washing up facilities. We have a foldable crate to use to carry the washing up in and it can also be used for the shower to keep items off the floor and use it to keep the floor dry from wet boots.

We had enough bedding with us, but it did get a little chilly during the night so we packed warmer clothing to sleep in for the second weekend. We can raise the bed and clip it in place with the bedding in if we stay for more than one night, but we can't fold the roof flat with it there. 

There's a safety net to fix when we're sleeping to stop us falling out the bed, but it meant we couldn't reach the shelf where we had put our phones and car keys etc. For our second weekend I packed some S hooks and a handbag tidy to hang to drop items in, for ease to reach and save smaller items falling down the sides.

I keep a mirror in the cupboard and with the side lights I've created a little corner to do my hair and make up. We've got power points so I could use a hair dryer and we do have a solar panel so we can run off grid. Non slip mats mean we don't have to keep packing things away. We won't necessarily camp in the van every weekend, but we do use it a lot for brewing up a cup of tea, we can make proper coffee and have lunch in and use we do set up the table a lot on days out.

We've used the boot liner from our old car and cut it to size to line the cupboards and shelves and bought a couple of door mats for the main doors.

Our second trip was back to Sussex to collect mum this weekend. We travelled down Friday after work and stayed at Bicester about 90 mins drive from home, arriving around 6pm. It took 15 mins to set up as we've got into a routine of who does what. I pop the roof, rotate the seat, set up the table, unpack the pjs and wash bags and put our bags under the sink, turn the water and gas on and put the water heater on once Peter has filled the water tank up and plugged the electricity in. Curtains are drawn and shades go up at front windows.

It does get a bit messy as we move from day to night and night to day, but everything falls back into place quickly as we each have our own jobs to do.

When we wake up in the morning we remove the bags from under the sink and put the bedding in their place, we raise the bed into the roof space and fix it in place.

When we travel the bedding lives under the bench seat.

Packing up in the morning, takes around 15 mins. After breakfast has been eaten, Peter does the washing up and has a shower. I put the table away and rotate the chairs, window shades are taken down and put away, bedding goes under the bench seat, pillows on top. I wash, brush my teeth, dress and do my hair and make up. We then put the washing up away. Peter unplugs the electricity. The gas and water get switched off, bags get packed away, bed lowered and pulled flat, straps connected, roof pulled down as sides pulled in. Peter checks the outside to ensure all the canvas is tucked away and roof locked into place. Electric cable and hose put away and we're off.

Second night in Brighton and repeat the above.

The more time we spend in the van, the more time we want to spend in it.

A few other tips we've learnt are:

Fire extinguisher is a must. It gets unpacked every time we stop and park up.

Felt pads on the pots to stop them rattling and cloth under the bowl to stop it moving around.

Plant pot holder as a bin

Getting into a sleeping bag in the roof space is tricky so it's best to stand on the top rung of the ladder, slide over feet, pull it up and swing into bed.

An S hook and small bag to hold glasses, book, phone and charger in over night.

We've joined the Caravan and Campers Club and also found a website called Pitchup. Quite a few sites want a minimum of two nights stay, there are more grass pitches than hardstanding available and of course electric hook up sites are in more demand, so in future if we're only doing a night or two we can use the solar battery.