**Chamyota's Official Travel Thread:The Trip to Canada And Back**

Sup y'all.

Don't know if many know but I'm planning a trip this summer to the land of the OZ and i figured i'd make a thread for brainstorming as well as gathering a need to get list so I'm not shocked(as much) as i would be if i didn't.

The trip will prob happen in between June-July for a max of 21 days round trip. I plan to stop several times along the way (from SC-Canada) to meet up with members in the area, camp, sightsee, take pics that sorta thing. Just to get away from South Cakalacky fro a while and see something else.

Im currently trying to cover all my bases necessity wise.

Shelter/Bed
My roof top tent will be my primary home. It's waterproof(for the most part) and after spending several weekends in it and waking up refreshed it's not a bad choice, i'll save a ton of money on hotel fees and i can pretty much setup shop wherever my truck will fit.

Food/Water
I honestly haven't sorted this out yet, i don't want to eat out(at all if any) and i don't want to eat my MRE's(for absolute emergencies) so this is still a tossup.. I got a coleman stove with a dual burner for pots/pans to cook on so i'll just have to keep propane on me and i'll be good there.

Suggestions are more than welcome

Fuel
This will consume the majority of my budget obviously.

* I overestimated my distance/average fuel cost to account for discrepancies*
2100 miles round trip
@14mpg(On a really bad day i'll get this)
150 gallons of fuel used
divided that by 18(when the light goes on generally i have 3 gallons left maybe more, again worst case scenario)
8.3 tanks of gas @ a cost of 65$/tank
= ~540$ in gas alone.

This could be variant on a variety of things but I'm hoping it's no more than 600$ tops in fuel costs.

Camping stuff i currently own
-Queen size sleeping bag rated at 0*(just in case it gets cold as ball sacks and it's a 2 person so if theres a lucky rendezvous i can get lucky )
-Lights for inside the RTT for light(it'll be quite the luxury i think)
-Coleman 2 burner stove that runs on the propane containers(my primary source for preparing my food, unless someone suggests a better way)

Thats really it i think... I know I'm missing some stuff that'd be helpful, hopefully someone can sort me out.

Entertainment
-Macbook pro
-Iphone(as a hotspot so i can stay connected with the world)
-Some movies

Im thinking being in remote areas i may not have service/internet but the option to have it will be nice

Storage
-2 24 Gallon action packers

1 of the containers is filled with recovery gear and my tools. figured it'd be a good idea.

the other is filled with whatever else i had useful(MRE's, spare clothes, ect.) that i normally kept in the truck.

Things Im missing(This list will be updated as ideas that are worth using come in)
-Spare Fluids
-Spare gas container
-Water container
-A Decent Camera
-More lights?
-Signaling for Help(emergency situation)
-Cooler/Fridge





I made this thread in hopes the Camping gurus will sort me out haha. Here's some current pics of my rig for reference.

 

Sub'ed. You can do it. If I was rich I'd go

 

Thanks Eddy, i've got some time before i get old and have to do grown up stuff so I'm trying to do it while i can. haha

 

Something that I have is a Jetboil. It is really an easy way to make coffee. I also used it to boil water for the dried Mountain House food I had out in Moab. They are pretty tasty and make for quick hot meals. Definitely don't want to eat them for all meals, but it's really easy.

I am not an expert, but I figured I would share.

Links
http://www.mountainhouse.com/

http://www.jetboil.com/

 

Hint hint.

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/south-west/296322-cross-nevada-all-dirt-expo-trip.html

And yeah +1 on the mountain house meals.
I have an MSR stove and its great for backpacking. But if I have room, I prefer a 2 burner coleman. Coffee on one side, eggs on the other.

 

How do you plan on showering? a weekend is one thing but i would hate to think what you would smell like after 20 days.

 

Sounds fun Cam. Best of luck on your journey. You better be back near the Carolina's by August 2nd though when Liverpool play AC Milan in Charlotte!

 

On the showering bit, a lot of RV parks have showers. Or truck stops.

 

I would think 1 sleeping bag wouldn't do the job. I have a 0 rated sleeping bag and froze my ass off in 30 degree weather.

 

yummmm gnarly trucker showers... the stuff you never forget about

 

Mountain house eh? I wouldn't mind eating them every day lol. At basic i pretty much had MRE's for like 3 months straight for the most part

I don't drink coffee but it'll be a good way of heating the water.

Ahhh shucks now, i'll do some reading in your thread as well.

Truck stops. Laundry will be in a laundry mat. Got that figured out easy

Ahhh i'll be back before July 8-9(when i have to report for drill at my unit) so i'll be back with plenty of time You going? Im going.

 

The bag I'm using has lots of good reviews and several members on here has it and has said nothing but good things, of course when it gets here i'll have to try it for a weekend to confirm the reviews.

 

Yes sir, my wife and I will be going. I bought tickets today. I'm not sure if we will ride up Friday or Saturday though. It's a 6 hour haul from here. I have some time to figure it out though.

I'm pretty interested in how your trip goes. My wife and I have discussed heading out to the Grand Canyon at some point in the future.

 

A thin layer of air under your sleeping bag is just as important as your bag when it comes to staying warm. Get a self inflating air pad, I have a thermarest and a stoic. They are well worth the money.

 

Dont stress it. This is a trip after all ha .

For showers just bring a rag, water and some soap for deep cleans. Baby wipes for the days in between. Who cares if you stink . I am sure a TW member will offer up a shower for ya too.

Try to plan your trip around BLM land and you'll camp for free.

For food I would just buy some frozen food and tin foil. Eat sandwiches for lunch. Remember, the best part is getting out. I enjoy building a small fire, cooking my food and putting back a few beers. I like to wake up and make some bacon and eggs over the fire. If you are in a hurry pack some bagels and a spread. One thing I didn't like about the wyo trip was that everyone got up, made eggs real quick on a burner, and packed up.

One thing I feel people forget about when camping is being able to get away from it all. Turn the phone off, take a camera, use the laptop to just clear your memory card. When in towns go out and talk to strangers. Learn their story and tell em yours. When you find a small burger joint/bar in a small town of 200 you better stop. Probably the best burger you will get.

Also, ditch the rtt some nights. If you know its gonna be clear then toss a tarp on the ground and crash by the fire .

 

Absolute truth.

 

I have the same bag as him. I burned up well below zero. However, I thrive in the cold. I wear a fleece at most out here through out the winter. Either way I broke a sweat in that bag in a nasty snow storm.

 

Are they expensive? I've never heard of either until now

 

One queen size might be kind of expensive. I got my stoic on sale for about $40, and the thermarest was a gift(from the TW santa 2012). For car camping get a heavy thick one. I use mine for backpacking so the lighter the better. And mine folds up to slightly larger than a nalgene bottle, and weighs less than a pound.

http://www.amazon.com/s?ie=UTF8&page=1&rh=n:3401811,p_4:Therm-A-Rest

 

sub'd. I'll enjoy reading and watching your progress. Go have fun and enjoy the adventure while you can.

Don't forget the cooler!