Mini camper, sleeping in your vehicle

[angel eyes]

Hi all, we all been there, u can stalk a few days , u dont want a b/b cos of travelling to stalk, u want to be on the job first thing, camping and brewing kit n basic grub, anyone slept in tent? Slept Car? Van?in winter, At the stalk site, example only, van/ mini diy camper , mattress in back , camping brewing kit , Tips n cheats Hope this makes sense , if it don’t scroll on Thanks

 

[J.kerslake]

Hi all, we all been there, u can stalk a few days , u dont want a b/b cos of travelling to stalk, u want to be on the job first thing, camping and brewing kit n basic grub, anyone slept in tent? Slept Car? Van?in winter, At the stalk site, example only, van/ mini diy camper , mattress in back , camping brewing kit , Tips n cheats Hope this makes sense , if it don’t scroll on Thanks

I slept in the car on a stalking weekend beginning of November…worst decision I ever made!!!

 

[User00032]

Hey there,here's what i used to do. Same as you i didn't want the cost and also wanted to save the time...and do something different. I used to camp in a forestry block about a mile from the stalkers house,he would pick me up on the way up the path and off we go. I took a camping stove and a jet boil for cooking up and making a brew. Jet boil is very quick for heating water. Took a coupla scoffs that just needed a heat up for a few minutes. I was up there in the snow in the forestry block and all i had was a poncho and a decent sleeping bag and a mat for insulation. I pushed my way quite well in and even though it was a blizzard outside by the time i was in the trees i was out of the wind and snow and it was quite comfortable. Poncho rigged up as a tent,hole dug for the stove,bergan at one end in case of any wind coming in,rarely,small lantern and head torch for light. was pretty comfortable all said. Im into my camping if i get the chance. Another benefit to doing this is you see a different world up there. On a cold winter night out in the snow i came out of the trees and headed up the hill a bit and sat there in the still of the night watching the clear night and the outline of the hills against the sky and moonlight...bit better than being at work or getting shoehorned to the tat shops with the missus! This works for me. I have also slept in the land rover but that was like trying to sleep in a cold store made of aluminium and lying across the seats and having to leave the door open cos of me being too long,never again. If you were going to use a vehicle then i would think a decent little camper wagon would be pretty good,bit posher that the old army poncho too. Hope you get what works for you...enjoy it.

 

[VSS]

Until recently I either slept under the stars in a bivvy bag on a camp bed, or (less comfortably) in my vehicle. However, I've recently invested in a roof tent. What luxury! Two minutes to set it up, and I've got a full sized double bed with a comfy mattress!

(At least, it was all good until my wife drove under a low barrier a few days ago. Now I have a few repairs to attend to!)

 

[mudman]

Sleeping in a car in winter. It’s cold. Real cold. And cramped, and damp.

 

[Dunwaters]

Sleeping in a car isn’t the best option, you need to stretch out fully a couple of times a night to stay comfortable.
I’ve done the bivvy out and snow hole thing too, but now I save up and get the room.
Going to bed at 1730 and staying there til 0800 doesn’t have the attraction it once had. I also like a decent meal a pint and a chance to shower and warm up at the end of the day.

 

[Tazz]

I slept in the car on a stalking weekend beginning of November…worst decision I ever made!!!

They go on the list of “Seems like a good idea” till you actually try them

 

[Bavarianbrit]

I had a Moskovitch van in 1974 in Coventry and a workmate had a Swedish wife, he was moving to live in Gothenberg and asked me to fill my van and do the Harwich ferry with his van. They put me up in a Stuga in his inlaws garden for two nights then I was alone in mid Sweden in January parking up in forests just a sleeping bag and a foam mat in the back. Waking up to a fully frozen interior but hey 24 years old and top fit then, it was a fabulous week.

 

[Kjf]

Back seat of the freelander folded flat , just enough room to lie flat ,

I Love it,

I am thinking of a transit van next though , more room

 

[finnbear270]

Sometimes snooze with the seat tipped back for an hour or so, wouldn't try it for much longer.

 

[Andy seatrout]

I’ve a ford tourneo LWB with only four seats in it ( front two and two in the first row, behind that is a wooden box / headboard with a folding iron bed with sprung beech slats, on top of this is a trifold 15cm deep memory foam mattress…. Couple of pillows, carp fishing sleeping bag, I have fridge, stove etc ……leisure battery under front passenger seat with mini heater….

I tend to use it for seatrout fishing in the summer - climbing into a wa men sleeping bag at 3am rather than driving home is safer and more convenient- all the rods and wafers go under the bed…. Windows have suction tabed insulation ….

Originally I was looking for a van, but some advice I received was the insulation and sound proofing in the ‘people carrier’ version was better for van camping….

 

[Stevie/P]

Back seat of the freelander folded flat , just enough room to lie flat ,

I Love it,

I am thinking of a transit van next though , more room

This guy does it on a regular basis I know I’ve been out with him hard as nails and a good crack

 

[Tim.243]

Sleeping in a car in winter. It’s cold. Real cold. And cramped, and damp.

YES....We went diving on a wim down the south coast as Tony was down there in his camper but could not get a B&B as it was the weekend....3 things I remember S H I t nights sleep in the car we went don in also watching The Thing on his black and white TV and being offered his Netto cornflakes with semi skimmed milk for Breakfast.
Did a lot of diving that way but never like that again lol

 

[The Singing Stalker]

I actually do sleep in the back of my car. But I don’t do cold and I don’t do uncomfortable. I have a table cut down in the boot. I have my heck pack basket underneath. Take that out put it on the tow bar and the box that sits on top of the table. (For holding carcasses, goes in the heck basket. I push the front seat forward and the upright as far as possible. The back seat on the left hand side is folded down. And now it gets clever.
I have a piece of wood the same size as the table. Bolted down so it can’t move when driving, I slide that across the seat and it clips in place the length of the passenger side of the car. All very heath robinson but it allows me to put foam on top, wrap myself in a double quilt and go to sleep. Warm and comfortable. Able to stretch my 6,2” out.
the only down side is voiding the bladder and getting dressed in the morning, both jobs done as fast as possible. I of course have my heated jacket which helps get me warm quickly.

All works very well for one person. I tend to use it when out and I have to be some where at a specific time and there is no point going home as it will be time to go back out again. So might as well get a few hours sleep.

I am refining the whole thing slowly. I have seen am American thing where you leave the boot open and a tarp covers the sides and back so gives you more room. Ok in the summer, maybe not the winter and you want to have something on the ground to keep the flying things away.

But, interesting,I thought it was only me who needed to get a life. Sleeping in the back of my car. What an idiot.

 

[SikaHunter]

Slept in the back of my Discovery with the rear seats folded down. Had to sleep diagonally but otherwise it was fine. I did have to turn on the demister for some time on the return journey as there was lots of condensation in the vehicle.

 

[angel eyes]

Thanks all, I’m getting on , sleeping in car not for me anymore , I use to sleep on a ‘ Basha ‘ many years ago, like a stretcher raised off ground between a couple of tree trunks, so maybe I will be starting a project, finding a vehicle with good ground clearance and and kitting it out into a mini camper, stop anywhere in the wood, something dry n warm to Kip in

 

[Jelen]

Hey there,here's what i used to do. Same as you i didn't want the cost and also wanted to save the time...and do something different. I used to camp in a forestry block about a mile from the stalkers house,he would pick me up on the way up the path and off we go. I took a camping stove and a jet boil for cooking up and making a brew. Jet boil is very quick for heating water. Took a coupla scoffs that just needed a heat up for a few minutes. I was up there in the snow in the forestry block and all i had was a poncho and a decent sleeping bag and a mat for insulation. I pushed my way quite well in and even though it was a blizzard outside by the time i was in the trees i was out of the wind and snow and it was quite comfortable. Poncho rigged up as a tent,hole dug for the stove,bergan at one end in case of any wind coming in,rarely,small lantern and head torch for light. was pretty comfortable all said. Im into my camping if i get the chance. Another benefit to doing this is you see a different world up there. On a cold winter night out in the snow i came out of the trees and headed up the hill a bit and sat there in the still of the night watching the clear night and the outline of the hills against the sky and moonlight...bit better than being at work or getting shoehorned to the tat shops with the missus! This works for me. I have also slept in the land rover but that was like trying to sleep in a cold store made of aluminium and lying across the seats and having to leave the door open cos of me being too long,never again. If you were going to use a vehicle then i would think a decent little camper wagon would be pretty good,bit posher that the old army poncho too. Hope you get what works for you...enjoy it.

Aaah, brings back memories. But I was getting paid to do it LoL, Never again!

 

[Bo Diddley]

Unless you can insulate your vehicle on the inside a bit I wouldn't advise it unless you are as hard as nails. I once spent a night in the back of a Layland Sherpa on the banks of Lac Du Saint Cassien in late November, the temp dropped to -4 and it was incredibly cold despite being in a sleeping bag with thermals on. Better to buy a decent winter bivvy and pitch up outside, try to put it up away from any frost pockets, and get the morning sunshine on it. Great way to hunt & fish

 

[Heym SR20]

You will be much more comfortable in a good small tent - small so your own heat keeps it warm. Or better go for a small bell canvas type tent and install a wood burner.

Get a really good sleeping bag and also a good thick blow up sleeping pad. A cot is also good. You loose most of your heat to the ground.

Beauty of a tent is that on stalking trips you inevitably want to use the car, so not having to set up / dismantle your kit all the time is a blessing.

You can get a decent 3 to 4 season tent for a bit under £300.

Alpkit do good affordable kit. I have had one of their 4 Season bags for 15 years. Its wonderful. In summer I just use it opened up as a duvet. I have slept out in winter inside a bivvy bag and slept well.

Roof tents are wonderful - in Africa. Not sure I would want to sleep in one in a Scottish wet foul weather and no shelter.

Cars are metal boxes. Have pretty much zero insulation so are cold in winter - any heat just flows out. A tent with a fly sheet and inner is well insulated and can get pretty warm from just the occupents body heat.

 

[angel eyes]

Yes, I remember when I u used a Morris marina van ‘L’ reg , I claimed an old mattress out of a skip the condensation off the bare metal roof used to drip everywhere, but was in my 20s then,so just kept wiping it off, , the inside of roof went rusty after a few weeks