Preparing to Leave
What are we doing to get ready for the first leg of our travels? Lots of little things. Two weekends ago, I built something I’ve come to call “The Jake Platform.” It’s a wooden, elevated platform that fits in the extended-cab area behind the seats of my S10 truck. Our dog, Jake, does best in the truck when he has a good view outside the truck, when he can stand/sit/lie on something that’s very stable, and when he can feel air from a vent or window on his face. His favorite place to sit is on the passenger’s lap (or the driver’s!). Needless to say, while Jake feels nice and comfortable and secure in this position, it’s not so comfortable having a twenty-pound dog lying, sitting or standing on your lap — especially when you’re wearing shorts, he sees another dog or, heaven forbid, a squirrel and snaps to attention, with his ears at full mast, keenly attuned to the situation at hand, his tail (or worse, his butt!) in your face, and claws digging into your legs to keep his balance! We’ve had mixed results placing plastic totes with blankets/towels atop behind the seats for him to lie on. So, I came up with a plan to build the above-mentioned platform, which uses 1″x2″ wood for the frame and legs, and 1/2″ plywood for the top. The top is in two sections, and is attached to the frame with hinges, allowing the top to be lifted and any items stored below the platform to be easily accessed. The other feature designed into the platform is a partial supporting frame under the section of the platform that is behind the passenger seat, allowing that section to be swung into the open position and the passenger seat to be reclined back for sleeping. So, I built the platform and tried it for fit two weekends ago and, this past weekend, I took it out to again to spray it with a wood sealer. Next, we’ll have to test it with Jake; that will be the real test!
Also, two weekends ago, I bought a two-burner stove, a bulk propane cylinder and a cylinder adapter from REI. I have a couple of single-burner stoves that we’ve used for shorter camping trips and backpacking, but I decided that if we truly wanted to keep our costs down by doing most of our own cooking, it would be much more convenient to have a two-burner. Never having researched two-burners, I only knew that there were two main styles available: 1) the old, liquid gas, pump-up type, and 2) the newer styles that run on the disposable, 16.4-ounce, propane cylinders. The newer styles would be much more convenient — with some models even being matchless, using an automatic igniter — but I wasn’t fond of having to contribute lots of little empty propane cylinders to our never-ending landfills. When Dan and I visited my brother, Joel, and his family in Grand Forks a few weekends ago, he thought I might be able to somehow connect one of the propane stoves to a bulk cylinder. And, sure enough, REI had everything I needed to do just that. The stove I got is the 4960 “Matchless” 2-Burner Propane Camping Stove made by Century Tool & Manufacturing Company, Inc. Coleman has a similar model, but it wasn’t available at either of my local REI stores. I also purchased an 11-pound bulk propane cylinder and an adapter that allows me to use the bulk cylinder instead of the disposables. So, this past weekend I found a place that would fill my new cylinder, had it filled, and then tested the stove. It looks like it’s going to work great!
I also talked to my brother about charging all things electronic while on the road. While I had picked up a charger for our cell phone that could be plugged into the cigarette lighter, I didn’t have a way of using our AA-battery charger (for our digital camera) or charging our laptop while on the road. A quick Google search and, then, trip to Target yielded the answer I needed: a DC-to-AC power inverter. This also needs to be tested, yet.
In addition to preparing for a long camping trip, we’re also getting ready to move out of our apartment and store our stuff. Actually, this started quite awhile ago, most significantly, when we had a big garage sale at my parent’s place to get rid of a lot of stuff we had accumulated over the years. But, we continue to go through closets, storage area, etc. to see what can be thrown out, given away or boxed up for storage. So, this weekend I went through our storage area, which doubled as a small workshop. I tossed a lot of little junk, swept up a lot of sawdust and organized some wood (leftover from projects I’ve worked on) to give to my dad.
Tags: Jake, jake platform, Pre-Trip, preparations
timdan2
Tim and Dan,
Bless your hearts for following your dream and doing something for yourselves and the environment! I’d love to be following you guys…but as you know, a new husband who is still in the stages of “camping” broken and a 5 year old son will not allow it! 🙂
I wish you all the best and all the awe aspiring adventures you can find! Keep us all updated!!
Lots of love,
Kim (and Chris, too!) Gehrts