|
Well it started out with just the two of us, false floor
with storage underneath and a mattress on top, in the back
of a 75 series Cruiser Ute. I'll never forget the night we
literally stopped on the side of the road (were driving from
Canberra to Perth) and the car shook each time a truck
passed! When talk of kids came along we moved onto a Troopie,
and it was about then that we purchased our first camper
trailer, it was either pretty old or a home made job (or
both) but we were told that the canvas didn't leak despite
the pin holes, and well it was cheap (about $1600!).
Then after kid number one came along we decided that we
didn't want to have 8 skid lids after all, so promptly
purchased an 80 Series Cruiser before moving to Darwin. It
was a while before we started camping again, and there we
figured out that with a baby on board we could do with a
better camper (preferably one that didn't let the mozzies in
left right & centre - yeah this one didn't really have a
tent floor!).
Anyway after that we purchased an Adventure Camper (yep all
the way from Adelaide!), but as we were about to move to
Townsville we had it shipped there (after all I think we
waited 6 months for it to be built. Being our first camper a
couple of quick hose downs and we thought it was watered in.
Well the maiden camping trip to Cairns led to some leaks,
but overall the bedding stayed dry & we were glad it had
such a big bed. It was certainly watered in after all that
tropical rain though!
So finally to the point of the story, after a while we found
the Adventure wasn't quite ideal, and yep we moved states
again now (the furniture went in the truck, but we towed the
Adventure all the way to Canberra & then our new home).
Apart from not watering it in properly the most memorable
moment with the Adventure was a heap of foraging ants
deciding to forage in our bed when we were camping somewhere
out Broken Hill way, so yeah another camper that wasn't bug
proof! Just thank god they weren't hungry - or not
interested in biting us anyway, because they were big - like
bull ant size big!
So for the first time we got around to the camping show in
Sydney and it's where we found the All Terrain. This one was
set up in the rain, and watered in, and watered in, and
watered in till I was sure it wasn't going to leak! And no
dramas in that regard, a few adjustments needed after a big
trip (NSW to WA) to allow for stretched / shrunk canvas and
stop water pooling on the roof. We were apprehensive of
changing any settings, but a phone call to All Terrain, and
giving it a go, and it's was all set!
For us this turned out to be the ideal camper, heaps of
room, quick to set up, good quality sturdy build and most
importantly no holes / gaps or anything in the tent /
trailer construction, so no bugs! Event though I stayed
awake on a few occasions wondering when we were going to get
blown to smithereens and struck by lightening (yes hubby &
the kids slept through of course) I was also very pleased
how sturdy it is in the nasty weather. I guess camping in
the rain, feeling warm and safe adds a new dimension to it
too.
We opted for the basic kitchen, as I already knew from the
Adventure that I didn't think that much of having a kitchen
sink and a power tap and all that. But in the end I didn't
really like the All Terrain kitchen either, for a start it
was attached to the tailgate and thus took up valuable
storage space in the trailer itself, particularly where you
generally would want to keep easy access items. So we took
the kitchen off, and found it just as easy if not more so to
set up a table for cooking and washing dishes, at lest this
way we can put it wherever we want too. We also decided to
line the storage areas with marine carpet for longevity.
Otherwise we found no other modifications necessary, only
adding a few 12v and cigarette lighter sockets hooked up to
a battery in the tool box (charged via Anderson plug) for
night time lighting inside and out. Like I said this is it,
perfect!
The Complete Campsite is probably the only other that's very
similar and was a close 2nd in our choice, only a few
personal preferences and the price saw the All Terrain win
us over. I love all the big windows and the clear storm
cover on one of them to allow light into the tent regardless
of what the weather is like, it's also nice to look outside
at night time. I also found thanks to being able to set up
external flaps as awnings it's nice an cool if you have a
small child and need to take them back to base for a midday
nap.
Anyhow sadly we are selling it now, we have downgraded the
80 Series to a Forrester and in the process of building a
house in lovely South West WA. Living amongst the trees, in
a shed, using a camp shower, camping stove & pit toilet is a
lot like camping actually (thankfully I have a wood heater
though!). We have finally settled down now and don't really
want to see the camper sitting out there in the weather not
being used very often.
Hmm I don't really know what we'll do next, once the house
is built and we start thinking about going camping again we
will have to figure something out. I don't see another
trailer on the horizon, well maybe a 6x4 just for the gear
because I sure don't think it will all fit in the Forrester!
Hah, I can't picture us all in swags either! I guess tent of
some sort it would be, and I do look forward to introducing
the kids to the rougher style of camping - tinned spaghetti
and all! Ahh I don't know, but for now if we do go anywhere
I'll probably really enjoy a nice hot and fast flowing
shower in something warmer than a big tin shed! Well there
you go, I knew this would turn out to be a ramble! My
primary aim was actually to get some pictures up of our
camper on the website, and a few thoughts on pluses /
minuses.
I
know when I was looking at buying one this website was
really good and I always liked looking and reading about
other peoples set ups. So just hoping to give a little
something back considering I haven't got involved in the
Australian CamperTrailers Group forum much, and I did
say I would report back!
March
2008 |
