Hungry for Adventurez

Devil's Lake in Wisconsin has great winter hiking  Do you miss camping and getting outside during the winter? This may be the year you need to try winter camping! There are a few extra things you will have to prepare for, like how to stay warm and deal with early darkness. However, winter camping can come with many rewards, such as reducing cabin fever and cheaper camping sites. Plus, you wouldn't want to miss out on great winter vistas like the one above, taken at Devils Lake in Wisconsin.  Finding Campgrounds for Winter Camping If you don't want to camp at a dispersed camping site, you will need to research which campgrounds you can stay at in the winter. In my state of Iowa, state-run campgrounds are ideal for winter camping, because they stay open all year and have a reduced winter cost. (Some Iowa state parks have winter prices as low as $6!)  Also, research what amenities are available in the winter. If you live in an area that freezes in the winter, your campgroun...

One of the first things I recommend getting if you want to camp out of your SUV, hatchback, or Minivan is some window covers, and I thought I would share how easy it is to make your own Reflectix window covers.  I have been using "window socks" for my last few years of car camping, even back when I was camping in my Prius . They work great when you want some air flow, and they can be used on different makes of vehicles. However, they are not insulative and are transparent; sometimes you want a little extra privacy. Furthermore, you have to get out of the car to put window socks up, which isn't ideal when you are stealth camping. After a few failed experiments with fabric curtains, I decided it was time to upgrade.  Benefits of Reflectix  -Materials for homemade Reflectix are easy to get. I got mine in the home insulation department of Menards.  -Reflectix helps insulate your car in the winter, keeping your body heat inside the vehicle and extending the range of temp...

This spring I built a foldable sleeping platform for my Hybrid 2018 Rav4. I had outgrown my Prius set up , plus my boyfriend wasn't a fan of the tight quarters. I used just some basic pieces of hardware (which cost less than $20) and some wood that my dad had leftover from his own campaign project. (about a sheet of 1 inch Baltic birch that costs less than $80, and 100 inches of 2x4s which cost about $5.) In addition to raw materials, you will also need tools for cutting wood, measuring, and some sand paper. Here is a breakdown of how it works and the measurements, so you can recreate it.  Why I Designed a Foldable Sleeping Platform for my RAV4 I am a weekend only camper. As much as I would love to do the full time van life thing, It won't be in the cards for a while. I wanted something that would allow me to make use of all space, without requiring the back seats to be taken out. Seats in 2028 hybrid RAV4s do not fold flat, so not using a platform was never an option. I’m also...

IOverlander is a free, crowd-sourced app designed for roadtrippers, RVers and Car campers. I have recently started to use it to plan out my weekend adventures in Iowa, and find free places to stay overnight. Lately I have been camping solo almost every weekend. While campgrounds are much cheaper than hotels, I have been starting to wonder if I can illuminate the cost and hassle of staying at the more popular campgrounds. (If you want to learn more about ultra low budget travel, read this !) Plus, in the busy summer season, sometimes the popular campgrounds, like Makokita cave and Backbone State Parks are completely booked. iOverlander helps provide some great options to explore a little differently.  How the iOverlander app works  iOverlander is a crowd-sourced app. That means that anybody can log a pin in the app and leave notes on the quality and type of location. People who visit a place later can also add check-ins with pictures and notes to help future travelers. If you a...

Aldi is my absolute favorite grocery store, especially for cheap and lazy camping food. It’s easy to put together shelf stable meals that are actually pretty healthy and require almost no prep work. As an added bonus, Aldi also has decent outdoors equipment in the “Aldi Finds” aisle, but we will save that for a different post. For this post I will be assuming you have a camp stove , such as a jet boil, available.  Lazy Camping Food #1: Favorite Cheese, Fruit, and Crackers No cooking necessary, yet somehow super luxurious. I like to get a wheel of Cammebert or Brie, which I slice up and eat cold with strawberries, peaches or apples, and a sleeve of crackers. It's perfect for a mid hike meal or snack. It's the ultimate lazy food, but also kind of feels luxurious. Plus, rich cheeses are a great food for when you are are on longer, active trips. This is because cheese contains calorie-dense fats.  Camembert cheese, 7 oz: $4.19 Strawberries, 1 lb: $2.19 Crackers, 7 oz: $2.55 (...

  I have been camping in my 2008 Prius for about a year as a weekend activity. Sometimes I even convince my partner to come with me. A few weeks ago I went over the details about how I use my space for solo camping, but I realized there were so many differences between my solo setup and my couples setup that I needed to make it into it's own blog.  My layout Bedding When camping with my partner, we use a special air mattress designed for use in a prius and similar types of small cars. It has special wings on the side to bend around the wheel area, and it comes with a 12 volt pump. The mattress is deflated and packed away whenever we change locations. We bring whatever blankets and sheets are seasonally appropriate. We need to upgrade our rig with a solar or battery fan, because we have found that very hot nights are almost unbearable so close together in such a small space.  Food Due to the issue of space, our dry food storage and cooler moves around depending on what ...

  Cooking is one of the most important systems that a camper needs to choose when starting out. In this blog, I go over the pros and cons of cooking via camp stove, electric kettle, campfire, and bringing food that needs no cooking at all. These are all from my own experience. Keep in mind that your experiences might be different from mine. Also keep in mind that you might need more than one solution in your rig. If you want to look at how cooking fits into the larger picture of your car camping rig, read this blog post .  Gas Camp Stove These come in several forms. You can get cute little ones that fit in a pocket when disconnected from the fuel canister, which are also perfect for backpacking. You can also get two burner stoves that fold up like a suitcase.  Pros: They heat up very quickly, and don’t require much futzing to get going. They will continue to work in the rain and elements. They come in a variety of sizes to meet your needs. You can take them off the grid ...

My Prius at the local woods   I have been camping in my 2008 Prius for about a year as a weekend activity. Sometimes I even convince my partner to come with me. It occurred to me that I haven’t shared my non-damaging “build” before. Let's walk through how I handle camping with such little space with one person. I don’t have any fancy pictures of my setup, because car camping is not as aesthetic as the van life photos would make you think. Luckily, I do have some graphic design skills, and have made up some fun illustrations instead.  Basic Prius Layout A Prius looks like this with the seats up. It has seating for five people including the driver. The bench seats fold down perfectly flat - something that is not universal across hybrid vehicles, making the Prius one of the best small cars for camping. There is a small bit of space between the folded bench seats and the front seats, which can be slid forward at night to make more headroom if needed. Note that the trunk area is no...

  Ever watched influencers like Nikki Delventha l and started imagining yourself traveling the country in your car, no hotel or RV necessary? Turns out, for those of us more interested in weekend outings than long term travel, it's quite easy. I have enjoyed using my Prius as a sort of minimalist RV for about a year. That being said, I can say from experience that there are some supplies you should not leave home without, for your comfort and sanity. Here are the 7 main areas you need to plan for.  One of the many shade socks you can find on Amazon Privacy While Car Camping in a Prius Window covers should be the first thing you buy. Window shades are essential for a few reasons. First, you need a private place to change your cloths, and sleep without feeling like anyone could see you. Second, shades help insulate the windows and regulate the temperature of the vehicle while you sleep. Thirdly, they help darken the vehicle if you sleep past sunrise, which is especially importan...