Sleeping Arrangements

[jscusmcvet]

Here is the old squarebody setup!

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Matt - glad you chimed in. Hoping to show this to Ann later.

 

[Martinjmpr]

I think one thing to consider when you are working on your sleeping arrangements is how do you usually camp on your trips? IOW, do you typically go somewhere, set up a "base camp" for a few days and then take day trips from there, coming back to your base at night? Or do you constantly stay on the move, pack up each morning and head to a new destination for that night?
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The reason I mention that is that for the first type - "base camp" - it's a lot easier to set up a tent or even pull a small trailer for your base, and then set up your camp from there. Sleeping in your vehicle in that kind of trip means that every morning you have to pack everything up and put it back in your vehicle, which could get old in a hurry.
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On the flip side, if you are constantly moving from place to place, it's setting up that camp that's going to get old so you might instead prefer to have a simpler, lighter camp set up where you can pull into a remote site and be set up for the night in 15 - 20 minutes, with breakdown time being similar.
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When I travel with the wife we do the first type of camping ("Base camp") with our teardrop trailer, and when I go by myself it's the second type. My "camp setup" when I'm solo is to pull in to the site, take a few plastic totes with my cooking gear and move them around so there's enough room to roll out the sleeping bag, set up a simple folding table for cooking, and that's pretty much it. No tent, awning, trailer, etc. I can typically get set up in about 20 minutes and tear down and put everything away, ready to travel, in roughly the same amount of time.
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By contrast, when camping with our trailer it can take over an hour to set up our camp and that's with two of us working. I usually get the trailer leveled and chocked, then disconnect and from that point on I'm lowering the stabilizer jacks, getting the pop up shelter out, putting the side awning on the trailer, setting up several tables and chairs, etc. It's actually something that is a complete PITA if we have to pack up and move the next day which is why we only set up like that when we know we'll be at a place for at least 2 nights.
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So I would say, figure out what kind of camping your family will be doing first and then work from there.

 

[2025 deleted member]

My wife and I love our old 1970 Suburban with a sleep inside setup,
We have 4 fold flat seats out of mini-vans (2 in front & 2 in rear)
center console between the front for storage and fridge between the rear seats.
the sleep platform is the height of the flat seats/fridge so a ton of room.
Storage under the platform and canvas window covers with magnets (got those from Nick here on Expo)
Easy to stealth camp

I love that old burb!

 

[jscusmcvet]

I think one thing to consider when you are working on your sleeping arrangements is how do you usually camp on your trips? IOW, do you typically go somewhere, set up a "base camp" for a few days and then take day trips from there, coming back to your base at night? Or do you constantly stay on the move, pack up each morning and head to a new destination for that night?
.
The reason I mention that is that for the first type - "base camp" - it's a lot easier to set up a tent or even pull a small trailer for your base, and then set up your camp from there. Sleeping in your vehicle in that kind of trip means that every morning you have to pack everything up and put it back in your vehicle, which could get old in a hurry.
.
On the flip side, if you are constantly moving from place to place, it's setting up that camp that's going to get old so you might instead prefer to have a simpler, lighter camp set up where you can pull into a remote site and be set up for the night in 15 - 20 minutes, with breakdown time being similar.
.
When I travel with the wife we do the first type of camping ("Base camp") with our teardrop trailer, and when I go by myself it's the second type. My "camp setup" when I'm solo is to pull in to the site, take a few plastic totes with my cooking gear and move them around so there's enough room to roll out the sleeping bag, set up a simple folding table for cooking, and that's pretty much it. No tent, awning, trailer, etc. I can typically get set up in about 20 minutes and tear down and put everything away, ready to travel, in roughly the same amount of time.
.
By contrast, when camping with our trailer it can take over an hour to set up our camp and that's with two of us working. I usually get the trailer leveled and chocked, then disconnect and from that point on I'm lowering the stabilizer jacks, getting the pop up shelter out, putting the side awning on the trailer, setting up several tables and chairs, etc. It's actually something that is a complete PITA if we have to pack up and move the next day which is why we only set up like that when we know we'll be at a place for at least 2 nights.
.
So I would say, figure out what kind of camping your family will be doing first and then work from there.

Martin you are righ ton in your post. We have a Rockwood Pop Up that we use regularly. Last Summer we found that it was indeed too much of a PIA to consistently put up and take down. I also have a bantam trailer that I throw a Napier truck tent in when out on my own. This past weekend opened my eyes a bit to just sleeping in the Burb. You are 100% correct that it would be for those times when we were moving regularly. It would also be good, I think for out on the NC beach, etc... shen I migh tnot want to pull the camper and the truck tent might not hold up to the wind, etc...

I love the development and build of a vehicle/camp system so this will give me just one more option. I think we are going to hold onto the pop up regardless and the bantam will likely be with us forever, as it does double duty as a wood hauler around the farm also.

 

[MT6bt]

My wife and I love our old 1970 Suburban with a sleep inside setup,
We have 4 fold flat seats out of mini-vans (2 in front & 2 in rear)
center console between the front for storage and fridge between the rear seats.
the sleep platform is the height of the flat seats/fridge so a ton of room.
Storage under the platform and canvas window covers with magnets (got those from Nick here on Expo)
Easy to stealth camp

Mmm....exped max 10lxw I spot there! No better camping pad, imho. I've been sleeping exclusively on one for 2 years now!

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[1leglance]

Here is another pic that shows the side awning with walls, this gives a changing/potty room
Since this pic I added a swing out rear tire carrier with 2 jerry cans and propane tank, got more stuff out of the inside which freed up space.
Next thing I have thought about is a rear SUV tent for warm weather....not sure, but for now we use a pop up awning for rear shade.

 

[legendaryandrew]

I like sleeping in the back of my burb, but I live in the pnw, where if it's not raining, it's at least wet most of the year. Sleeping in the truck as opposed to RTT means my sleeping quarters never get water logged.

 

[justcuz]

I think it is most important to build to your needs, based on your normal trip durations, resupply availability during most trips and what you use the vehicle for after you come home. It is easy to overbuild, especially if the vehicle is your dedicated recreational vehicle and not dual purposed.
My trips are generally 4-7 days and usually include restocking opportunities for food, ice and fuel. I rarely carry extra fuel. When I return home I reinstall the 3rd seat and use it as a daily driver.
Because of this I can get by with a couple of 50 cal ammo cans, Coleman stove, 1 cooler, 1 water container, a clothing duffel, sleeping bag and pad, collapsible chairs, a tool bag and some recovery tools. I throw a cargo net over this while driving off road. At night, the ammo cans, stove, cooler and water container can be stored outside, leaving me plenty of room to sleep inside the back of the Suburban.

 

[Septu]

This past weekend I went on my first camping trip with my 1991 Suburban in the NC mountains. I slept the first night in my bantam trailer/truck tent mash up and that went well, but dang it was cold. On night 2 I slept in the second seat of the Burb. Thank goodness I am only 5'6". . When I got home I pulled the 3rd seat out and Ann and I confirmed that we can both fit nicely in the cargo space...

I am thinking we can create some screens for the windows and the back doors... or perhaps pick up one of those SUV tents that have an envelope around the back of the rig...

So... Show me your sleeping arrangements! Does not have to be in a Suburban, or even SUV. I am looking for ideas and am open to all comers. Any info and pics you can share would be awesome.

If I'm not pulling my trailer, I'll just camp out in the back of my JKU. I stuff the crack from where I fold the seats down so it's fairly flat, then camp out on a nice mattress. Nothing permanent as I have two trailers so it's pretty rare I'll sleep back there, but with a good mattress (which I have) it's very comfy. I have a pair of mesh nets that I can put over the doors to roll the windows down and still keep the bugs out (required up here).

As for head room if you're building a shelf... ideally you can sit upright.

 

[Septu]

You guys are right on it. We have an air mattress already that I think will fit. The screens held on with Magnets over the windows is a great idea... I wonder if Ann can rig us a giant one to cover the rear opening of the Burb.

Keep those pics coming. It is really helping a lot.

I just bought some find mesh, folded it over and took a glue gun to it. Then open the door, slide that on overtop and close the door. Cheap (spent less than $30 on it) and took maybe 20 minutes to make.

 

[mr_ed]

We have a folding platform in the back of the Montero. Makes camping up and down the rainy Oregon coast in the winter downright pleasant. Next up will be insulation/privacy panels for the windows. Only downside is condensation, but there's not much to be done for that except air circulation...oh well, down the road.

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[jonesw3]

I use two cheap military style cots in the back of my first gen tundra. It's a perfect fit.

Alabama Overland

 

[AFBronco235]

All these great ideas give me a good one for my 91 bronco. I think I can build a sleeping platform that have a portion that slides out onto the tailgate. With the tailgate tent setup I already have, it should provide plenty of storage plus be nice and comfy for taking the gf out on trips with me. I even figured out a way to secure my tire rack in the open position by running a bar from the safety pin rod that sticks out of the bumper to the hole on the swing arm. Add a couple of lynch pins to hold it in place and it should hold the tire rack out in position without it swinging all over the place, letting me make a quick, relatively speaking, move if I needed to.
(I'm mostly just writing this down here now while its fresh in my head to I can come back to it after the rest of the V-day weekend is over.)

 

[justcuz]

mr ed, looking at the picture of your adorable traveling companion, I can see the reason for your condensation issues! Seriously though, this is where those upper window vent things come in handy. They allow you to crack the window and allow for a little air circulation without the rain or snow getting in the opening.

 

[mr_ed]

Haha yep! Yeah they help some, but when it's 30-40 and dumping rain, it really doesn't seem to have much affect on the condensation issue. We'll see how it does on our weeklong road trip to San Francisco and back next month.


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