Setting Up Camp

After a long day of travel, it was important to get the dogs fed and watered. One of the things I have noticed the most, is they do not like to have their schedule changed. I try to keep them on the same schedule as being at home. However, after a day of being in the van, they tend to not want their evening feeding on the first night away from home.

I like to take them for a short walk and establish a “potty spot” for them to use. I encourage them to use the same spot each time I take them out. It makes clean up much easier, if they are all using the same area.

Being in a van, also makes it quicker to set up camp. I can contain the dogs in the van, while I get out the necessary equipment: tables, chairs, and cooking equipment. In addition, since the van has a bed in it, there is no struggling with putting up a tent. I can usually set up my campsite in about 20 minutes.

On the first afternoon of making camp, I usually just make a light meal. What I like to do in the early evenings is to make a thermos of hot water. I use it for my evening coffee or tea, but it will also stay hot enough to have at least 1 cup of coffee to get my day started the next morning. It saves on fuel for the stove, since I don’t have to heat up water each time, I want a hot drink.

When bedtime comes around, I will take the dogs out for another “potty break”, offer them a small drink of water, and then get them settled in for the night. I’m lucky that the dogs are small enough, so they all can sleep on the bed with me. Sometimes, 1 or 2 of them will sleep upfront in the dog bed that I keep in the passenger seat of the van.

For safety purposes, I make sure that I have at least 2 light sources charged up- flashlight and a lantern. If one of them fails for some reason, I will always have a backup available. It is not fun trying to locate or change batteries, in the dark.

The next morning, I get a routine established. The dogs are taken out for a “potty break”, offered water and food. By feeding them first, they will quickly go back to bed for a nap, while I get my breakfast made. It also gives me some quiet time to enjoy the camp site. Once I have had a chance to clean up, I decide what the morning activities are going to be. On this camping trip, I had a large 3-acre campsite that the dogs could explore. I always keep the dogs on a leash, when they are outside of the van. This allows me to make sure that they can not run off, if they find something interesting to chase. The dogs really enjoyed all the different smells they found. They also were able to see some animals they were not familiar with chipmunks, mountain quail, and a garter snake.

After exploring our camp site, the dogs were tired and settled down for their afternoon nap. I like to give them the opportunity to be outside and not always stuck inside the van. I have purchased an RV rug that I put out for them to use. The rug easily cleans up and only takes up a small space in the van. While the dogs are napping, I get to enjoy reading a book, listening to music, or work on a craft project.

Normally, I would explore the towns or places of interest near our campsite. However, due to our trip being close to 4th of July, I didn’t want to deal with traffic or crowds. Instead our 5-day trip really focused on staying at the campsite and relaxing. On the final day of our trip, I did go to a natural hot spring that was just a 5-minute drive away. It was fun meeting other people, both locals and visitors, to the area. It made a nice ending to the trip.

I like to pack up the camping equipment and have it ready to put away the night before we leave. It saves time and allows me to get an early start. In the morning, it only takes a few minutes to pack up the van, have a quick cup of coffee and be ready to go.

Since it was the day before a major holiday, I originally had planned to travel back to Winnemucca, NV and spend the night. I figured that the free camping site, I had previously used, would be full by the time, I arrived there. So, instead I planned on finding a place to “boondock” for the evening. However, I left Idaho early on, and was in Winnemucca by noon, I knew that I was only a few hours away from Reno, so I changed my plans and continued to drive towards Reno. About 2 hours later, I started to get tired and made a stop in Fernley, NV. I gave the dogs chance to run around. Afterwards, I took a nap. By the time I woke up from my nap, I was feeling refreshed and did some quick calculations. I figured I could make it home that evening, if I continued to drive for just another 2.5 hours. So, again armed with another change of plans, I continued our drive home.

I made it home that evening and our wonderful trip came to an end.