This 2020 Sprinter-based, off-road van concept from German manufacturer Hymer looks capable outside and like a stylish apartment inside. It features an indoor kitchen and fridge, a folding desk/workspace, stairs to leading to an insulated, pop-up sleeping loft, a very cool convertible bathroom/shower area, and a rear tailgate deck with a slide-out grill/outdoor kitchen. It’s amazing how far RVs have come. I could go for something like this.
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Archives for posts with tag: overland
If you’re looking for a winter project in order to get ready for camping season, these two excellent drawer projects might be the ticket. The Blake Weber video details “the ultimate overland truck bed kitchen drawers for camping” and to me that seems like a pretty good description. The project incorporates a grill, propane stove, sink, and pressurized water tank, among many other clever features.
The GVM Corner video, below, offers a clever take on a fold-out bed and basic kitchen set up. Hat tip to Nathan Donnelly from Northwest Resilience for passing this video along.
My only suggestion, if you build one these is to make sure the silverware and kitchen tools are stored in a way that will keep them from banging into each other. Otherwise the rattling on rough trails may drive you nuts.
I’m a fan of The New York Times’ Wirecutter reviews. In this one they offer their take on the best camping stove. If you don’t want to click over there, the Coleman Classic Propane Stove came in as their pick. At about $44 it seems like quite a deal.
Another stove, not included in the Wirecutter review that you might be interested in none the less, is the ultra-slim GSI Pinnacle Pro Stove. It boasts two 11,000 btu burners (compared to the Coleman’s 10,000 btu burners) and packed height of only 1.4″. This stove just came out and I think they’re still hard to find. Expect pricing in the $175 range.
This wonderful, narrated video details a trip made by a group of friends from England, throughout Africa, and back in 1959/60.
This two-part video from YouTube channel LROR (Let’s Roll Off Road) shows two Pinzgauer 712 6x6s, two Land Rover Defenders, and a modified Suzuki Jimny tackling rough terrain on Mt Airy, northwest of Sydney in New South Wales, Australia.
It’s interesting to see how four-wheel drive compares to six-wheel drive over the same obstacles. Having six driven wheels doesn’t automatically make the Pinzgauers invincible but they can clear some ledges that the 4x4s just can’t muster. Lots of great footage here shot in beautiful, scenic country.
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In an effort to have an emergency shelter for anytime of year, I recently bought a “hot tent” (a tent that can be heated) and a camp wood stove to go along with it. I’d like to try it as well for 4-season overland camping.
I found two companies that both make tipi-style hot tents and camp stoves that seem to offer good value. The first is a Norwegian company called Gstove. The second is a Chinese company called Pomoly.
It’s not every day that you see a Porsche 924 built for overlanding but this is just that. Mods include a 40 mm lift, 500 watts of lights, roof rack, custom MaxTrax holders, and, the piece de resistance, a custom sleeping setup for two complete with a Webasto cabin heater. Amazing! What a build! And it looks the business to boot.
Last year my wife gave me these Caterpillar-branded, LED work lights and I want to recommend them because I think they’re great. These 500-lumen work lights run on four AA batteries and have an 8-hour life on low power. The best thing about them though is that they’re magnetic. When I check the oil on the truck at night I take one out of the back and pop it under the hood. It’s such a joy to have the engine bay so well lit. They’re also great for sticking to the side of the roof rack as area lights for when we arrive at a remote camp at night. They’ve made a good addition to the truck.
They’re available for about $34 on Amazon. There are other versions (not CAT-branded) that are plug-in rechargeable. Reviews on those are mostly good.