Tent camping with a Fiesta..

[scotman]

Anyone doing that? Or, thinking about what the ideal setup might be ? This thread will cover tent types, equipment stowage and things having to do with creating a comfortable situation without spending a huge amount of money.

 

[Wunmanband]

I actually got my fiesta stuck in some pretty shady spots many times on camping outings

 

[LionsTooth]

I have been looking at getting a hitch & basket & weatherbag combo for camping & traveling. About $300 for the whole set.

The hitch takes like 30 minutes to install. I am going to use the 1.25" to 2" riser to get some height outback & use the aluminum rack since it's lighter and higher capacity than the steel ones with a smaller 1.25" receiver.

 

[scotman]

That's where i'm at. Picked up an aluminum carrier tray for just over $100 out the door at a local farm & home store.
I have a Curt hitch on the FiST.
I am weighing the advantage of using a good quality storage tote as the protection for the tent and some other things.
The 27 gallon one shown is a bit undersized. But if i can fit most of the gear into it i might just make a filler of Styrofoam sheet to set it into and stabilize the box. Then i can just strap it down.

 

[LionsTooth]

That's where i'm at. Picked up an aluminum carrier tray for just over $100 out the door at a local farm & home store.
I have a Curt hitch on the FiST.
I am weighing the advantage of using a good quality storage tote as the protection for the tent and some other things.
The 27 gallon one shown is a bit undersized. But if i can fit most of the gear into it i might just make a filler of Styrofoam sheet to set it into and stabilize the box. Then i can just strap it down. View attachment 4973 View attachment 4974

I looked at a bin to put inside the bag. Seems like it might be a touch too wide (45.43 in. L x 21.13 in. W x 19.52 in. H), but I will buy one and try it, anyway. I just want everything dry when I get to where I am going...wherever that may be.

 

[LionsTooth]

I also thought about something like this....not likely though....too much money.

 

[scotman]

That's a bit posh LT! Anyone who visits your campsite with that setup would expect a hot breakfast! Not a granola bar and some lukewarm coffee.
I have a budget target of not more than $500. I already have a tent. The curt hitch and the storage box.
I still need a deep cycle battery. Probably need to change the wiring harness to that rear battery tray to include an isolator switch. I don't want to drain the primary battery at night or when i am making coffee or running a small fan.
There's no reason i shouldn't be able to have excellent LED lighting and stream TV from the wifi hotspot either.
UPDATE.
I went to the website for Timeout trailer. That product is very impressive. The top tier models offer provisions for a small room air conditioner and a genset. These are incredibly well thought out products. And priced below what I expected by a sizeable margin. I doubt that i could build a camping setup as complete for what they are asking.

 

[donaldjl]

Just came across this thread. This has been our impromptu solution. I have the towers, crossbars, and front spoiler, and borrowed the basket from a friend from time to time. It's oversized, with an extension piece in it, and on our first trip it made it hang forward a bit longer rather than intrude on the antenna. Our next trip, we loaded up a USB thumb drive and mixed that with satellite and had no lack of entertainment. The antenna came off and the rack moved backwards a bit.

All our gear for just over a week up in the UP for the three of us. In the car we kept a larger cooler in the back, and a smaller cooler of travel grub and snacks. Tent, sleeping bags, chairs, general camping jetsam and flotsam up top. What we did find was that the car was then aerodynamically limited on flat ground to about 85-90 mph with the basket loaded up. I'm reluctant to lower the car because of some of the places we've bashed around.

 

[LionsTooth]

Just came across this thread. This has been our impromptu solution. I have the towers, crossbars, and front spoiler, and borrowed the basket from a friend from time to time. It's oversized, with an extension piece in it, and on our first trip it made it hang forward a bit longer rather than intrude on the antenna. Our next trip, we loaded up a USB thumb drive and mixed that with satellite and had no lack of entertainment. The antenna came off and the rack moved backwards a bit. All our gear for just over a week up in the UP for the three of us. In the car we kept a larger cooler in the back, and a smaller cooler of travel grub and snacks. Tent, sleeping bags, chairs, general camping jetsam and flotsam up top. What we did find was that the car was then aerodynamically limited on flat ground to about 85-90 mph with the basket loaded up. I'm reluctant to lower the car because of some of the places we've bashed around.

Try a stubby antenna. Mine doesn't lack any reception and should work with your setup.

 

[scotman]

That is definitely a workable setup that you have there. So, you just bagged up each item in the rack and then placed a fitted cover over the items and lashed them down?

 

[donaldjl]

Excellent news. I've been thinking something stubby, or maybe a shark fin style. Last year put a dent in our travels, but we're hoping to recoup a bit later this summer or early fall.

 

[donaldjl]

That is definitely a workable setup that you have there. So, you just bagged up each item in the rack and then placed a fitted cover over the items and lashed them down?

Basically. There's a rooftop cargo bag that happened to fit inside the basket that contains things that are harder to deal with when wet. Folding chairs and other stuff fill the gap at the back between the bag and rear of the basket, and there's usually a big bungee net over the whole thing. It takes two people, but at home, the cargo bag is loaded at ground level and lifted into the basket. At camp, the bag is lifted out of the basket and brought down to the ground or a picnic table to unload.

I came across these online a while back, by Tentbox. IMO, this would work for solo or maybe 2 people, with everything loaded in the back, since there's no room up top to carry anything but the tent. A rear hitch/rack would help, too, for example, if we went as a family, but the kiddo's getting big, so getting three in a rooftop tent is iffy. I'm not sure how much the roof would support, either, before the roof starts taking a dent under the towers.

Those rooftop tents are not cheap, though. Their options run from £995 to £2495. The top line tent is worth more than a beat up Fiesta.

 

[scotman]

Oh yeah. I was going to try to get one of the two or four person tents that are configured to fit over the open hatch of a B car. But the cost was ridiculous. Plus the china virus shutdown killed the availability. My ST has a cargo floor-rear seat delete, i was planning to sleep there and have the two person tent as an attached space for solo camping. I might just get some nylon tent fabric and a zippered screen to create the opening and strange flaps that engulf the open hatch. But i don't see how i will have the time to do that this year. My plate is full.

 

[LionsTooth]

All our gear for just over a week up in the UP for the three of us. In the car we kept a larger cooler in the back, and a smaller cooler of travel grub and snacks. Tent, sleeping bags, chairs, general camping jetsam and flotsam up top. What we did find was that the car was then aerodynamically limited on flat ground to about 85-90 mph with the basket loaded up. I'm reluctant to lower the car because of some of the places we've bashed around.

This is the main reason for me getting a basket off a trailer hitch...it won't slow the car down and packing is going to be easier since I am solo.

 

[scotman]

Something like this, but a bit smaller, is my ideal setup.

 

[LionsTooth]

Being able to stand is a plus!

 

[scotman]

My biggest two disappointments with tent camping are rough or uneven ground and the usual "wet tent" in the morning. If i could eliminate the first issue with some kind of lightweight subfloor it would be a big deal for me.

 

[donaldjl]

This is the main reason for me getting a basket off a trailer hitch...it won't slow the car down and packing is going to be easier since I am solo.

I'd like to try a hitch basket some time. I had the crossbars, towers, and some bike attachment equipment and spoiler from my previous Golf, so I just needed the mounts and the changeover wasn't very expensive. If I were starting over, definitely a hitch setup.

I'd love to go solo sometime, and get some much-needed quiet time, but I'd probably find the locks changed when I get home, LOL! I'd probably go different and consider a camping hammock or something. Regardless, I tended to travel light, so I could probably fit everything in the car. Probably. A solo Lake Superior circuit is kind of a bucket list thing for me.

 

[scotman]

One lap of lake Superior! Dude. One of my uncles drove the perimeter of that one in the late 1970's he said it was more miles than driving from Detroit to the Florida line! It would be at least a two week drive. I think that is about 1,400 miles and absolutely a bucket list adventure.

 

[Handy Andy]

And to think they Filmed Titanic in a pool...

They needed to stop up to Munising in April to see what we'd call Ice Cubes - bobbing in that tub of a lake.

Oh I'd 2nd the notion of Superior! And - if you time it right, start in August at Soo Locks - work west towards the Duluth Superior - then work the Canadian side as part of the return trip thru to the Soo - you can see the color change happen when you get to the Huron side - take your time - and bring some Gordon Lightfoot and Ted Nugent along...one for relaxation the other for motivation...

Thanks for sharing these ideas!