Thursday, April 9, 2009

Last Frontier Bound


Well blogger buds, I'm headed to Alaska in the morning. Thought I'd share with you the rig I'll be traveling in. I purchased a used truck camper on Craigslist a few months ago and fixed it up. It has a queen bed, stove, fridge, air/heat, shower and toilet. I chose this particular design because it is lighter weight than most campers and the top folds down for more aerodynamic traveling. When you arrive at your location you crank the top up. Big change for me, since I've been a backpacker most of my life, but wanted something better for cross country traveling and cold weather. Before purchasing the truck camper, I built a platform to slide my camper shell onto, which you can see on the left side of the image. This makes it easier to take on and off the truck bed.

As you can see in the above photo, you line and the truck up and drive underneath the camper.

Next, you crank the supports down (I use a drill with a chuck which makes this a fast process) and turnbuckle it down to the frame. It only takes about 10-15 minutes to complete the process. Below you see the rig ready to roll with the top down.

My plans are to blog along the way whenever I find a wifi or have access to the internet. The first planned stop is Nebraska. The target species to photograph are prairie chickens doing their mating dance on the leks. My work buddy Tom is traveling with me for this leg of the trip.

Blue Skies.
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15 comments:

Twisted Fencepost said...

Nice camper!
I hope you have a great time on your trip.
And I can't wait to see your pics!

The Birdlady said...

Godspeed. Be safe, make lots of wonderful photos, and have a wonderful time.

SAPhotographs (Joan) said...

You make me long for my Coleman camper I had on an F250. :( We took it back to the States with us and when we came back here, did not want to ship it too so we sold it. I really miss it. The top also folded down like that.

Now I go backpacking too or put a small matress on the ground under my mosquito net and sleep there but it does get chilly at times.

Have a fantastic time Ken and I look forward to seeing your pics as always.

Anonymous said...

It looks like you are going to Alaska in Style Ken! I hope you have great weather for the summer and that the state bird doesn't take too many bites out of ya.

Tim Rucci said...

Looks like you have a really nice setup with all those amenities right there on the back of your truck.
I hope you are still able to get at least the 17mpg we got when we drove that rig around Florida last spring with the topper only. At least this time it won't be burning $4.00+ per gallon diesel (smile). Seriously though, I hope you have a great trip and get lots of great images. And above all, be careful on the road and stay safe!

Unknown said...

happy trails! Looking forward to your travel posts. You now have me excited for the trip I will be taking to yellowstone the later part of this summer. ah! I can't wait. Keep it safe!

Brad Myers said...

Have a safe trip, I am looking forward to your photos from the trip and Alaska.

Ivar Østtun said...

Cool camper. I wish you a safe trip. Take care.
I am looking forward to see your photos from Alaska.
I am in envy. A LOT! :-)

Qiper said...

Bon Voyage !

Having your dream become a reality is just great

Stay Safe, Enjoy, Eat Well, Stay Warm and take a few Pics

Qiper

Unknown said...

just passing through visiting photo blogs thought I would say hello. But I have to say I love the pictures of the small birds the colors are great.

This Is My Blog - fishing guy said...

Ken: Have a great trip and I'm sure the ride and views will be outstanding.

Juan C. Aguero said...

Good option for the trip (good, nice and cheap) very practical. A very good serious option to install some solar panel as alternative source of energy.
Greetings

Willard said...

I hope the trip goes well and am looking forward to a lot of good photos.

Unknown said...

Take care Ken. Have a safe journey and have a whale of a time. Have fun.

Philip said...

Please Dives safetly Ken have lots of fun and Take some great pictures :)