First time snow camping in our Vanagon!

[goldtooth]

Here is the YouTube video and below is the trip report if you don't want to watch the vid

With snow in the forecast near Mt. Hood for the weekend, we decided to go and find a campsite that would get us up high enough to take advantage of this wintery forecast. We had purchased some snow chains from Craigslist for our spring break trip to the Redwoods and did not end up using them and actually never even tried to put them on. Knowing that we planned on driving in snow, I test fit the chains in the garage the day before we left. Good news, they fit as expected.

We headed east on the familiar I84 towards Hood River and of course had to make a stop at our favorite pizza joint in the area, Solstice Pizza and get a large Vegan Boy pizza which would serve for lunch and dinner for us. After eating about half the pizza, we made some coffee and headed south on Highway 35 towards Mt. Hood looking for some snow.

We turned on to NF44 where we have found many campsites hoping we would climb high enough to find some snow and a nice view for the night. About a mile up the road, we started seeing signs of recent snowfall.

We kept driving up, looking for side roads we could take and explore for potential sites but the road changed quickly into a single lane, ice packed trail.

We decided to stop in the middle of the road and put on our chains as it was getting pretty slick. We had not seen a vehicle on the road the entire time so we figured we would be safe just doing it there.

After the chains went on, we decided to back down the hill as we did not see an option for our 2wd Westy to take any side roads off of this ice covered main road. We took off the chains when we got back to bare pavement and headed back to Highway 35 in search of the next spot.

We spied a campground off the side of the road and wanted to see if we could drive though it and find a dispersed camp just outside of the boundaries. This road had even more ice than the last one and we quickly found ourselves putting our chains back on just to get out. Even worse, the road just looped back to the highway so there were no options for dispersed sites.

Once more we were back on Highway 35 searching for our home for the night but quickly we found a snow covered side road that we followed down to the Hood River. There were several dispersed sites along the river and even better, no one around. We quickly picked our spot and made camp.

What you can't see is the Westy drifting on the ice as we drive to camp

We settled in and took in our beautiful surroundings. The forecast was for a few inches of snow in the evening at our elevation so we were excited for nightfall.

We woke to a winter wonderland with several inches falling overnight. After coffee and breakfast, we headed out for a hike to explore the area.

Continued below:

 

[goldtooth]

We packed up around lunchtime and decided to head out and explore a new area, this time heading east towards the small town of Maupin.

We followed the Deschutes river east looking for our next spot to sleep. This area is a bit tougher as there is a lot of private and reservation land that surrounds the river. There are several campgrounds along the river that offer places to sleep and even though we usually avoid campgrounds, there were very few people out on this cold December night.

The end of the 18 mile gravel road lead us to Mack's Canyon Campground along the river and the place was totally empty. Score! We picked a site away from the main campground just incase someone else came in that night.

A light rain started while we sat under awning, enjoying our propane firepit and a cold brew.

Around 11:30pm, we were awoke by a loud screech and rumble from across the river. A freight train was barreling down the tracks, waking anyone who dared to camp nearby. After struggling to fall asleep, we were woke again at 12:30am, 4:30am, and 5:30am. Man what a tough night of sleep! A lazy morning of coffee and reading finally came to and end and we needed to start heading back home. A light snow had fallen on the hills around camp and combined with the low clouds, it made for a serene setting.
Before leaving we decided to drive to the other side of camp and explore the boat ramp and campsites. Still no one around.

Back on the long gravel road to the highway.

From there we headed back to Highway 197 with a stop to make lunch in The Dalles before heading home.

We really enjoy winter camping as there are a lot less people around and the snow added a new twist to our adventures. We plan on seeking out some snow for our January trip, just need to find the place to go!

 

[Christian P.]

I used to winter camp in my Westfalia Syncro in Quebec at -20C. It was a blast! Main problem was condensation though, with so many windows.

 

[Hourless Life]

What a cool trip. Thanks for sharing the photos too. Too bad the train interrupted your reverie. ~ E

 

[OverlandNA]

We decided to stop in the middle of the road and put on our chains as it was getting pretty slick. We had not seen a vehicle on the road the entire time so we figured we would be safe just doing it there.

A lot of bad endings begin with decisions like that.

 

[goldtooth]

I used to winter camp in my Westfalia Syncro in Quebec at -20C. It was a blast! Main problem was condensation though, with so many windows.

Man that is cold! Yeah we get condensation a bit but hasn't been that bad yet. Maybe at -20C we will have to worry!

What a cool trip. Thanks for sharing the photos too. Too bad the train interrupted your reverie. ~ E

Man that train was obnoxious. Didn't ruin the beautiful setting or great time we had.

A lot of bad endings begin with decisions like that.

Haha! It only took us less than 5 minutes to put on the chains. If is a national forest road so the winter use is minimal.

nate

 

[David_h]

Thanks for sharing. I hope you had views of Mt Hood and Mt Adams maybe. I had a 1987 Syncro westfalia for a few years but sold it around 2001 or so just before they became collectors items.

 

[buenavides]

It seems like you guys have so much fun during this winter trip. The photos look lovely and the view is amazing.

 

[goldtooth]

Thanks for sharing. I hope you had views of Mt Hood and Mt Adams maybe. I had a 1987 Syncro westfalia for a few years but sold it around 2001 or so just before they became collectors items.

We had no views on the mountain that day due to the snow but have had plenty of great views up there over the summer. Man too bad you sold that syncro! They go for insane amounts sometimes now.

It seems like you guys have so much fun during this winter trip. The photos look lovely and the view is amazing.

I appreciate the feedback. We unfortunately didn't have our Sony Alpha camera with us on this trip so we were stuck using the iPhone and screen grabs from the video for the trip report pics. We have a new Canon coming next week we are excited about for filming and photos.


I am glad people are finding this report entertaining a bit. I was a bit hesitant because we don't have a big 4wd vehicle and can't do a lot of the more hardcore offroad stuff that I see on here (which I love reading about). We try and push our little Westy as much as we can in our backcountry travels but we do have limitations! We enjoy our version of overlanding but love seeing/meeting others on the road with different set ups.
nate

 

[rfoubi]

Awesome photos. Really jonesing snow-free camping right now. Funny how you guys set out looking for snow. Here i am sitting in a ski town in canada, staring at 2 feet of snow in my yard, wishing for desert camping. You always want what you dont have. Anyway I was just making a note of the name of that campsite for future reference, and then got to the part about the trains. No thanks! It's like a bunch of our campgrounds up here where the only route through the mountains is the same for the road, the river, and the railroad, and your only hope is to be close enough to some raging whitewater to drown out the train noise.

Oh and keep posting. Dont worry about your lack of limb-raisers, pelican cases, titanium sporks, jerrycans, and patches on your headliner, and spare tires so big you need a crane to lower it off your 10 ton truck motorhome. A 2wd van with a motivated explorer will still do great and access a lifetime of amazing terrain! As a fellow vanagon owner I'm obviously biased haha. Cheers.

 

[goldtooth]

Awesome photos. Really jonesing snow-free camping right now. Funny how you guys set out looking for snow. Here i am sitting in a ski town in canada, staring at 2 feet of snow in my yard, wishing for desert camping. You always want what you dont have. Anyway I was just making a note of the name of that campsite for future reference, and then got to the part about the trains. No thanks! It's like a bunch of our campgrounds up here where the only route through the mountains is the same for the road, the river, and the railroad, and your only hope is to be close enough to some raging whitewater to drown out the train noise.

Oh and keep posting. Dont worry about your lack of limb-raisers, pelican cases, titanium sporks, jerrycans, and patches on your headliner, and spare tires so big you need a crane to lower it off your 10 ton truck motorhome. A 2wd van with a motivated explorer will still do great and access a lifetime of amazing terrain! As a fellow vanagon owner I'm obviously biased haha. Cheers.

Thanks! If you ever make it down this way, give us a shout and we can go find some adventures!
nate

 

[Knickter]

Seems like you had a wonderful trip, and the view is breathtaking. I hope to go camping soon

 

[goldtooth]

Thanks! What is stopping you from camping?
nate