Ski RV's, who's sleeping in parking lots?

[simple]

Been a great winter so far. Just spilled 2 gallons of water on my gear bag and floor. It already smelled like feet and weed in here. Get a mop!

[Harry]

Spotted today in Big Sky



Fat bike = check
Solar panel on roof = check
Lifted 4x4 van = check

30-ish GF wearing beanie with fur Pom = checkmate



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[bodywhomper]

How do they get the skis off the roof?

[pyromaniacman129]

How do they get the skis off the roof?

Probably stand on the slider

[jackattack]

Probably stand on the slider

or use the damn ladder

[mooseknuckle]

Not entirely sure why a rig of that size would not be able to accommodate skis with grime on road in the belly of the beast. Seems like a lot less work.

[simple]

Not entirely sure why a rig of that size would not be able to accommodate skis with grime on road in the belly of the beast. Seems like a lot less work.

The inside layout may not have a pass through. Mine does but I don't use it. Having the rocket box is the best and yes, access with the ladder.

[bodywhomper]

or use the damn ladder

I was looking at the reach to get to the front part of the ski rack. That bikes gonna look sweet in a few months of riding back there.

[simple]

I was looking at the reach to get to the front part of the ski rack. That bikes gonna look sweet in a few months of riding back there.

Good point. Button appears to be on inside of the rack so they have to climb on the roof to get to the skis. Dumb.

[babybear]

fun looking van but going on top of that just to get skis seems silly for daily skiing. maybe if they were just rolling into town from a road trip.....

Simple- how's that pop top fare in the winter?
we thought about that route but thought it would be too chilly but maybe with a heater it's ok?
we just got out espar installed and working so really haven't played around with it too much yet

[simple]

I don't pop the top until it is warm out. If wifey is around it doesnt go up all winter. She likes the two heaters we have. One suburban forced air and one lil buddy gets it to be a sauna in there.

[BC13]

If you are loading gear onto a van or pickup with a rack, a simple folding step stool is a must.

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[BC13]

Good point. Button appears to be on inside of the rack so they have to climb on the roof to get to the skis. Dumb.

If you are loading gear onto a van or pickup with a rack, a simple folding step stool is a must.

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[Shaaarrrp]

Not entirely sure why a rig of that size would not be able to accommodate skis with grime on road in the belly of the beast. Seems like a lot less work.

Did a van trip recently and my skis were juuuust too long to fit in the back cargo area without going into the main hallway blocking the closet/bathroom door. For day trips it makes sense to throw the skis inside but for extended trips, it's not optimal. Still looking for a solution but the ladder mounts we saw did look attractive, even with road grime.

[adrenalated]

fun looking van but going on top of that just to get skis seems silly for daily skiing. maybe if they were just rolling into town from a road trip.....

Simple- how's that pop top fare in the winter?
we thought about that route but thought it would be too chilly but maybe with a heater it's ok?
we just got out espar installed and working so really haven't played around with it too much yet

Single data point: slept in my pop-up truck camper on Saturday night, nearby weather station says it was in the high teens all night. I had the forced air heater as low as I could set it and stayed plenty comfortable under a comforter and fleece blanket in the cabover. I know everyone says go hardside for winter, but in my limited experience so far the pop up is fine.

[AKPogue]

Colorado camper vans poptop is insulated.

[doebedoe]

Anyone in the Denver metro got a 4x4 shop they could recommend? Work I have in mind shouldn't be difficult but I want someone to advise and install for me that knows what their doing and can make recommendations.

Leaning towards a strut spacer kit (2" front / 1" rear: https://traxda.com/toyota/sienna/2013/906025.html) plus custom rear springs (+1" in height and +20-30% in load: http://coilsprings.com/) for the new rig.

Number of folks with 40k mi on this https://www.journeysoffroad.com/siennaliftkits.html -- but 3.5" strikes me as higher than I need to go and may make more compromises in handling than I'd prefer.

Also -- I know basically jack about this shit. So school me. Want just a few in more clearance for van esp during summer. Already upsized tire by 1" which worked well on 700mi round trip to Silverton.

[doebedoe]

Single data point: slept in my pop-up truck camper on Saturday night, nearby weather station says it was in the high teens all night. I had the forced air heater as low as I could set it and stayed plenty comfortable under a comforter and fleece blanket in the cabover. I know everyone says go hardside for winter, but in my limited experience so far the pop up is fine.

YMMV -- but Jackson and Ogden valley when I stayed there was cold AF in my buddies pop top. High teens is mellow compared to some of those valley inversion temps which are often more like -10.

[toast2266]

Single data point: slept in my pop-up truck camper on Saturday night, nearby weather station says it was in the high teens all night. I had the forced air heater as low as I could set it and stayed plenty comfortable under a comforter and fleece blanket in the cabover. I know everyone says go hardside for winter, but in my limited experience so far the pop up is fine.

Sleeping isn't really the issue. A small heater combined with a good sleeping bag / comforter will be fine in most enclosed spaces unless it's brutally cold out.

But when it's well below freezing outside and it gets dark at 4, sitting around drinking beers for 5 hours before I crawl into bed requires ambient temp to be at least somewhat pleasant. Any poorly insulated, drafty setup is going to suck. That suckage may come in the form of cold temps and having to sit around in a sleeping bag, or it might just mean burning a shitload of fuel.

[adrenalated]

Sleeping isn't really the issue. A small heater combined with a good sleeping bag / comforter will be fine in most enclosed spaces unless it's brutally cold out.

But when it's well below freezing outside and it gets dark at 4, sitting around drinking beers for 5 hours before I crawl into bed requires ambient temp to be at least somewhat pleasant. Any poorly insulated, drafty setup is going to suck. That suckage may come in the form of cold temps and having to sit around in a sleeping bag, or it might just mean burning a shitload of fuel.

For sure, I mostly meant I was really surprised at how non-drafty the soft walls were and how well the soft walls retained heat. Perhaps my camper is using a better quality wall than others, I dunno.

[Name Redacted]

For sure, I mostly meant I was really surprised at how non-drafty the soft walls were and how well the soft walls retained heat. Perhaps my camper is using a better quality wall than others, I dunno.

Don't they make a winter insulation kit for those (FWC?) too? Were you using it?

[Micol]

Anyone in the Denver metro got a 4x4 shop they could recommend? Work I have in mind shouldn't be difficult but I want someone to advise and install for me that knows what their doing and can make recommendations.

Leaning towards a strut spacer kit (2" front / 1" rear: https://traxda.com/toyota/sienna/2013/906025.html) plus custom rear springs (+1" in height and +20-30% in load: http://coilsprings.com/) for the new rig.

Number of folks with 40k mi on this https://www.journeysoffroad.com/siennaliftkits.html -- but 3.5" strikes me as higher than I need to go and may make more compromises in handling than I'd prefer.

Also -- I know basically jack about this shit. So school me. Want just a few in more clearance for van esp during summer. Already upsized tire by 1" which worked well on 700mi round trip to Silverton.

what kind of mpg did you get on that Silverton trip ?

[adrenalated]

Don't they make a winter insulation kit for those (FWC?) too? Were you using it?

Mine's an Outfitter, and no winter kit

[El Chupacabra]

Don't they make a winter insulation kit for those (FWC?) too? Were you using it?

I've got a Northstar pop-up, without any insulating kit for the soft walls. It's cold in winter. I've read you can make your own insulating kit for the soft walls using reflectix, and stick it up in place with velcro. Haven't done any additional insulation on my camper though - maybe this summer...

[Name Redacted]

Mine's an Outfitter, and no winter kit

Yeah, I bet some insulating panels along those soft sides could help if you plan on doing a lot of cold camping. I've seen custom ones for some brands but they can't be too tough to make either.