Doug Herr
Well-known member
Which builder are you using? I'll be looking at this option in the not-too-distant future.
Using a Van for Photo Expeditions
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What I went with and what you want may differ greatly. I found that there was a van style for every use and every person, some more on the homey side and a lot of them on the more sparse and utilitarian side. I went with the traditional homey RV look. There are many builders in California and a slew of them across the U.S. Prices can vary from around $60,000 to way upwards of over $150,000 to build. Something to fit every need and most budgets, given that vans and the rebuild are expensive. Some people do DYI and some people just put a few things in and that brings the cost down a lot. Some builders cater to the mountain bike, extreme hike, and rock climber crowds and these look more like office building cubbies and garages but I think are very popular with some groups. I can provide you with more information via a PM but later today as I have something I need to do right now. My van will be like a little traveling home with most of the conveniences except the shower.
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We are looking at getting a small trailer for the exact same reasons you've articulated. We think it will open up more seasons for us.
Right now, we use a 4wd toyota tacoma TRD off road pick up and either tent camp or sleep on a platform I built for the back. I guess you can say we get around because the truck has 410k miles and is the 2nd toyota we've used this way. The 1st went over 400k as well before the odometer broke.
We explore sometimes really "out there" kinds of roads and use the 4wd a lot, especially in the desert or long out of the way FS roads. We're exploring a lot of the mtns east of the Owen's Valley and need to get back into Utah and S. Arizona. We camp legally off road and in all kinds of campgrounds.
However, we're getting older. My wife is getting tired of crawling out the tailgate in the middle of the night in bad weather. ( Me too). A trailer set up for independence (solar, batteries, shower, etc) could be left at a campground and we go explore from there.
We will probably still do our traditional trips as well. Our trips are multi purpose, birding, botany and photography.
We have friends with a van (not Sprinter) and they love it because they don't have to tow anything. But they don't drive the kinds of roads we do.
I do nearly all of my multi day photography trips other than flying trips in our Ford Transit van converted for camping with a bed, fridge, kitchen and solar power system. It’s a fantastic setup for photography trips. In addition to sleeping, eating, having power for recharging and photo editing, the van itself can make a great photo blind from the front seats or even with some camo netting hung in front of the open sliding door.
After decades of tent camping on extended photo trips the van feels like luxurious cheating
. I’ve used the van for trips all over the inter mountain West and for trips up to Alaska and the Yukon as well as the Pacific states and Bosque/White Sands.A good power system and a cell booster to extend cell service when farther cities and freeways are both good investments as is a top rack with ladder and decking that allow you to shoot from up top (still don’t have that on mine but a friend is set up that way and it’s awesome for landscapes and some wildlife work).
Now, now, don't trash my state...that's for me to do.... Actually I live in a wonderful town in a very nice place, the foothill country of the Sierra Nevada range, an hour and a-half, door to gate, from Yosemite NP. Not at all like southern Cal. or a larger town in the middle of the state. There are many things to like about living in California, although they do seem to be disappearing at an alarming rate, one of the best things is the diversity of choices for camping and wildlife. Every state, city, town, whatever, has problems and, yes, California has many but I've been here since I was born and I'm now 71 and each time I think about moving I can't figure out, for several reasons, a better place to go. I don't like the 55mph speed limit and most don't pay attention to it but it's probably not wise to tow a trailer too fast.
Sorry to offend. California is a beautiful state with ocean shores and some beautiful parks. I pay thousands in taxes to California every year but I cannot limit myself to pull a tiny trailer at 55 mph.
Karl
Active member
Karl
Active member
I did a DIY conversion with a Sprinter van using 80-20 aluminum extrusions for cabinets, bed framing, and a roof rack. The bed is elevated and behind the 2nd seat. I also added solar panels on the roof and Lithium batteries with an inverter. There is also a sink and refrigerator. However, we had to leave our van behind when we evacuated Hurricane Helene in NE Tennessee on the Nolichucky River. If the washed out road is rebuilt, then hopefully we'll recover it. Using the van as a photo blind works well because of the height of the front seats that allow you to photograph over roadside barriers.
My first thought was to get the Ford Transit but my builder liked the Sprinter a lot better, he did not have anything good to say about the Ford, although they do the interior on all vans. My van will have a ladder so that I can sit on top, it won't be a big space (the solar and air conditioner and fan will take up most of the space) but I really wanted to have that view from above. I've been thinking about cell service, although I usually just say to people I can't be reached and that solves it. Glad to hear you use the open side door, I was thinking that might be a good way to shoot at wildlife refuges at times: I'll have to see how to hang a curtain there. I'm glad it's working for you, that makes me think it will work for me, too. Thanks.I do nearly all of my multi day photography trips other than flying trips in our Ford Transit van converted for camping with a bed, fridge, kitchen and solar power system. It’s a fantastic setup for photography trips. In addition to sleeping, eating, having power for recharging and photo editing, the van itself can make a great photo blind from the front seats or even with some camo netting hung in front of the open sliding door.
After decades of tent camping on extended photo trips the van feels like luxurious cheating
A good power system and a cell booster to extend cell service when farther cities and freeways are both good investments as is a top rack with ladder and decking that allow you to shoot from up top (still don’t have that on mine but a friend is set up that way and it’s awesome for landscapes and some wildlife work).
I am so sorry you are in that terrible mess. I feel for everyone, I read the news and it sounds so bad for everyone. I do hope you get your van back and thanks for sharing.
With my luck I'd be booking along at 80 pulling a trailer and then see it pass me!!
Leanne who is )I think) a member here and went to Serengeti on Steve’s trip in April with me has one…and travels a lot in the US using it. Bride and I lived full time in a 40 foot 5th wheel from 12 to 19 and went a lot of excellent photo places..but we had the car amd truck to go away from the campground. I think a mid 20 foot RV of some sort…van conversion, class B, class C, whatever…is perfectly reasonable for trips up to a month or maybe two for a single and maybe for a couple…and is small enough that you don’t necessarily need a second vehicle for trips to photo ops (I met Luanne in hers in Venice and she was on a weeks to a month trip IIRC). However…disassembling your site at the campground every morning before heading off to photos would get to be a pain IMO…and I would either tow a car 9r get a small travel trailer that could stay at the campground while I was out doing photography. It’s also a lot…I mean a lot…easier to find parking for a car than even the big RAM 5500HD we pulled the 5th wheel with. OTOH…if budget is an issue…the van or small RV works just fine, just a bit more hassle.
Romance with a van, sounds intriguing! No disassembling with a boondock set up, just jump in the seat and go. Fully self-contained. I went with a 19' van (Class B) since I thought it would be easier to get around in general. Bigger would offer more inside comfort, but harder to drive around in general.
The trouble with a completely boondock setup…from a long time raver standpoint…is that most of the time you’re going to be in an area for days to a week…and in that case you’re going to likely have water, power, and sewer hooked up in the campground and the grill and chair outside. True…one could rough it and not do any of that…but it is more comfortable if you do do it…and unhooking everything to return in the evening to hook up again is a bit of a pain if you do it much. Of we were just parking overnight in the campground in a multi day drive…we rarely hooked up more than power…using water in the tank and onboard waste tanks…and usually didn’t even unhitch the truck…just leveled as best we could given the site and keeping the 5ver hitched because it was just an overnight stop. It all depends on ones to,erance for inconv and how much you’re doing it. We normally stayed a week at a time and with say 25ish moves between Easter and Nov 1 when we were on the move…we would normally only have 2-3 moves that were more than one days drive and I don’t think we exceeded 3 da6sntravel in a row but once in 8 years of full timing…it all depends on how much of a hurry one is in and whether it’s full time or vacation or extended trip but not full time. There’s no wrong way to RV though…every one of us figured out what worked for our situation.
Maljo
Well-known member
Camper van, all over the country, consider it ideal. Wherever you go, you have everything you need. If you leave a trailer back at camp you will inevitably at times wish you had warmer jacket, or more bug spray or those antacid tablets. I put my camera backpacks (two) in a compartment in the van. Safe and accessible. Also, with the van, if you get there too early you can take a nap. After the sun is up, you can take a nap. If it starts rain, take a nap. Hungry? You have everything you need to make breakfast with you. Visiting a museum? A camper van fits in parking places. Visiting friends? A camper van fits in their driveway. Setting up and taking down takes under five minutes: unplug the power cord and roll in the awning.
luckmurph
Well-known member
Yes for the last 7 years i have a transit custom converted into a camper, use it all over the UK & Scotland, with a 2 week trip coming up in the new year in the Scottish highlands, i love it for those spontaneous trips away!
Doug Herr
Well-known member
Also: change of plans? No need to go back to camp to retrieve the trailer.
Calson
Well-known member
For many years I used a cabover camper on a 4WD 1-ton pickup. I rented such a setup in Canada and found that it worked very well. I could put gear and outer clothing in the rear of the crew cab for easy assess. When stopped at a location the dining table was great for working on our laptops. I was very glad that we had not rented a van as there would have been a fraction of the space inside.
Now I use a half-ton 4WD crew cab pickup with a fiberglass camper shell and a "tool box" that has drawers that slide out and when locked it would take a cutting torch to get inside and steal anything. I had it built to a size of 6 x 4 feet by 14 inches high. The drawers have removable panels so I can partition the metal chest for a trip. Easy to remove the metal chest and have full use of the bed of the truck.
Now I use a half-ton 4WD crew cab pickup with a fiberglass camper shell and a "tool box" that has drawers that slide out and when locked it would take a cutting torch to get inside and steal anything. I had it built to a size of 6 x 4 feet by 14 inches high. The drawers have removable panels so I can partition the metal chest for a trip. Easy to remove the metal chest and have full use of the bed of the truck.
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Great cargo drawers, unfortunately not my skill set! Thanks for sharing them.
We tow a 28 foot fifth wheel. It is capable of dry camping for about seven days. We have an inverter and solar panels which allow us to use most of our appliances, except the A/C. We can go anywhere on public lands that allow dispersed camping, no campground required. It is more like a base camp. As of a couple of months ago we have Starlink internet service which is a bit expensive but only needs to be turned on when it is being used. Literally anywhere we go the internet follows us.
Our tow vehicle is a Ram 3500 diesel long bed which is a similar chassis length to a Sprinter. It has lots of storage and tool boxes can be added to the truck bed. The Ram will go literally anywhere but it is easy to become over confident.
I have looked at vans but keep coming back to a smallish fifth wheel. It just gives us more flexibility.
Our tow vehicle is a Ram 3500 diesel long bed which is a similar chassis length to a Sprinter. It has lots of storage and tool boxes can be added to the truck bed. The Ram will go literally anywhere but it is easy to become over confident.
I have looked at vans but keep coming back to a smallish fifth wheel. It just gives us more flexibility.
Agree. We love our 40' 5th wheel because we can disconnect and then go off roading in our F350 diesel truck! We have traveled from Tn to Ak and Tn to the northern coast of Newfoundland for 2-3 months and had phenomenal trips. Solar panels allow dry camping if we choose to do that. Even the dog gets to go. But quick and nimble it is NOT! LOL!
OTOH - a friend of mine out-fitted his Prius for camping and it worked out great for years. He is a professional photographer and could roll out of bed and photograph spectacular locations at sunrise. Then fix breakfast!
It's crazy what people outfit as an RV of sorts. I read about that all the time on the Facebook van pages I belong to. If I had a man-friend to do everything, drive, take care of the rig, etc. that 5th wheel thing might work out but that's not the case, it's just me and the little dog so trying to stay in the realm of what I can do and what I can take care of. I won't even take the van to Yellowstone because it will be too cumbersome and slow for me, I'll take my car and stay in motels as I always do. So many ways to get the job done! Thanks.
Well, it's just me and no one to drive the 5th wheel so that won't be happening for me. The short and cute little van will be my home base for photo trips in the winter to the CA wildlife refuges and a summer RV for the dog and me to camp. There's something out there for everyone, it's crazy the multitude of choices today. Thanks.
BTW - I do almost all the driving!
At 5'3", I can barely see over the steering wheel! But he does take care of all the systems: water, electrical, sewer, tires, etc.BTW - I do almost all the driving!
My wife is 4'-11". It's hard to find a car she feels comfortable with visibility so I'm the "designated Uber driver". I'm hoping the next truck will be easier for her to drive in case of emergency. We'll see...
Doug Herr
Well-known member
I’m in Been There Done That mode. I’d rather KISS so I can be on vacation instead of tending Stuff.