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Esser
06-20-2013, 09:51 AM
After reading Peteohms little trip in the trip report section I am curious to see how many people actively camp out of their plane and what gear you have. Or not even camping. Maybe just for a long trip?

What does your gear comprise of and how do you go about packing the plane? What items would you never sacrifice to take even if they are a little bulkier or heavier?

I'm interested to see your replies and pictures of your setups.

SkySteve
06-20-2013, 10:27 AM
My wife, her dog and I camp in the backcountry out of our Kitfox, but since its a model I we have plenty of room for "stuff". More later...

So my wife says to me, "Where do I sit?":
http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff12/KitfoxSteve/478E7278-701E-4936-8B52-123A2E886956-2402-000003B4A4B1BDBF.jpg


And I reply, "Why dear, just relax in your lawn chair and enjoy the journey.":
http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff12/KitfoxSteve/75662480-D56A-478C-AD06-40C8272EA8C4-2402-000003B4E82BFFBA.jpg

Esser
06-20-2013, 12:00 PM
I accidentally posted this in the wrong thread. I guess if a mod could move it to General it would be appreciated.

Peteohms
06-20-2013, 05:00 PM
I camp out of my Kitfox III several times a year. I have camped at Oshkosh 3 times having flown from the Austin, TX. I've camped at Sun N Fun twice including the Tornado Adventure in 2011. I probably make about 3 Texas camping fly-ins per year.

before I moved to the Austin aream, I camped at Copperstate fly-in in Casa Grande, AZ twice and once at the Cactus fly-in also in Casa Grande.

When I started camping in Arizona in 2008 I took an air mattress, a sleeping bag, a small ice chest, 12 pack of beer and bit of food.

After I moved to Central Texas I got a tent and a folding chair, then eventually I got a cot to stay off lumpy ground. I also carry a small cloth overnight bag for clothes and toiletries and on long trips another bag for more clothes.

My cloth ice chest hangs on a rope behind the passenger seat so that it can bang against the aileron linkage ;-). My cloth overnight bag hangs on a rope behind the pilot seat. The tent, cot, air mattress are in a duffle bag in the passenger seat with a folding chair between the the duffle bag and the door.

I take out the stick on the passenger side and made a special basket that fits on the floor on that side and holds bottled water and small items.

See photo under "Waldo's Big Adventure" thread.

Dorsal
06-21-2013, 03:27 AM
Great fun camping with the plane, have since purchased a slightly smaller tent and more compact sleeping pads.

Peteohms
06-21-2013, 06:34 AM
Ok Steve, we know your wife drives HER car and stays at a nearby motel. Ask me how I know.

SkySteve
06-21-2013, 07:05 AM
Pete,
So that was you I heard going out the back door when I went to the motel to get her for breakfast!;)

Dave S
06-21-2013, 01:09 PM
Here is what we use....if we resupply on food/water we could probably hold out any amount of time. Some airports have water some don't....plan for both.

Probably spend a couple hours planning the stuff that needs to go with...mostly food planning.

Probably 15 minutes packing the plane.

Never worry about the time it takes to do it right....Don't need to:D (retired)

Never need to sacrafice anything for loading....Don't need to:D (it all fits)

Lodging:

Lightweight tent, ground cloth, air mattress, lightweight sleeping bags, stakes, ropes.

Cooking:

Single burner coleman stove (runs just fine on the unleaded auto fuel from the tanks), aluminum cookset & utinsels, small cooler with a water filled gallon milk bottle frozen a couple days before leaving - drink the water as it melts, minimum amount of food requiring refrigeration, maximum amount of food not requiring refrigeration including a lot of instant stuff (which is really light) that can be reconstituted by adding water, a couple more gallon milk bottles filled with water. Previously learned how to make a small amount of water last a long time by camping in the Utah outback.

Airplane care:

Nice Cabin cover purchased from John McBean, set of homebuilt "enhanced EAA design" tiedowns, normal spare parts expendables and tools, one "tire patch/inflator" in a can, customized windshield bug-B-gone kit. 100 MPH tape, 500 MPH tape, wheel chocks.

MIscellaneous:

Single bit hatchet or geologists pick, extra ropes, Gerber multi tool, camera (NEVER FORGET THE CAMERA), Bug repellant, Sunscreen, first aid kit (not necessarily related to the hatchet or Gerber!), backpack, 1 qt water container.

Oh....then Myself, my Wife, Full Fuel

Sincerely,

Dave S
KF7 Trigear
912ULS Warp Drive

Peteohms
06-21-2013, 04:31 PM
Pete,
So that was you I heard going out the back door when I went to the motel to get her for breakfast!;)

Probably wasn't me. At 68 I've slowed down a bit. My wife camps at the holiday inn if she goes and she drives too. We do take a flying trip but pack light and don't camp.

Esser
06-21-2013, 04:57 PM
Pretty interesting that everyone who replied flies a trike. So much for the hardcore tailwheel guys eh?;)

SkySteve
06-21-2013, 05:04 PM
Yea, I see them all the time flying high overhead with big tires hanging down. But they don't often stop by. I guess they're too busy at the airport measuring those tires and telling stories.

(Oh, boy.. Hope a fight doesn't break out now) :D

Peteohms
06-21-2013, 05:40 PM
SIZE counts!............. In tires.

Av8r3400
06-21-2013, 08:40 PM
I fly a taildragger and usually camp in a hotel... :o


I bring a 29' camper to Oshkosh every year.
(Actually my lovely bride brings the camper I bring the plane... :cool:)

HighWing
06-30-2013, 04:41 PM
I fly a taildragger and usually camp in a hotel...

Great comment. Late to this but I was in a group that flew the Idaho Back Country every Summer. All taildraggers but the guy in the Rans S6. Although we all had enough stuff to do some serious primitive camping, we generally camped in a hotel and for that matter ate in restaurants. Not hard to do as most of the mountain flying was done in the mornings - could get very bumpy and somewhat dangerous in the afternoons.

My camping gear was continuously evolving. I started with a sleeping bag from REI. I just checked their website and it is no longer available. But other alternatives are. It weighed 1.8 lbs. and with a compression sack would stuff to less than the size of a football - good to 30°. I also had a half length self inflating sleep pad that would also stuff to about that size. My tent was a two person tent that weighed 8 lbs. I also had a camp chair that was near full size and light weight. 5 lbs. My wife always kidded me because every time I ever saw a camp chair, I would heft it to see if I could beat that weight - and if I didn't lift it, she would. A couple of notes on chairs, those little tripod things just don't cut it when sitting under the wing in the evening picking on each other and laughing. The other, one of the guys in a Rans S7 strapped his chair to the lift struts at the Jury strut something like how some Alaska Pilots will transport a canoe on the floats. I decided 8 lbs for the tent was a bit much so started looking, but decided if I couldn't drop at least three lbs. I wouldn't spend the $$. I finally found one - again - at REI at five pounds. I beat my limit by leaving the stuff sack home. All this stuff went into the baggage sack - Model IV. Clothing and other personal items were in a back pack strapped into the right seat. I found it very handy if we had to hike to our lodging - much better than carrying a tote bag.

I also had a checklist I used that evolved over the years. I used that for packing. With the group flight we also had many items that someone might not usually have. Example, one of the group had a spare ignition module. Another carried brake pads, fluid and a large syringe to bleed the lines. I carried a propane soldering iron and a voltohm meter that we once used to fix a broken ignition ground wire. Tire inflator to duct tape and every tool imaginable was likely somewhere with the group.

Sure is fun to think about it. For those that might be interested, I posted video of some of the flights on the following link. Sorry about the aborted Oshkosh segments as it was the day after I posted the last sequence that Kay and I went down on our not so well executed emergency landing that destroyed our Model IV and sort of put a damper on the whole thing for a while. http://highwingllc.com/videoarchive.html

Peteohms
06-30-2013, 04:54 PM
Lowell,

Do you camp solo or bring a passenger?

Pete

HighWing
06-30-2013, 05:56 PM
I have always camped (flown) solo, except it has always been with a group.

Av8r3400
06-30-2013, 07:37 PM
I used to love tent-camping, but 20+ years of work-abuse has pretty well ruined my back for those type of activities. By the end of a long day of flying I'm looking for a bed or at least a couch to sleep on...

SkyPirate
06-30-2013, 07:42 PM
roger that on the "back" av8r3400,..went thru back surgery a little while ago,..a nice firm comfy mattress is the only thing I can stand now