roadtrip 2019     
grafton, wi

wisconsin: home

Packing gear and supplies for seven weeks on the road has evolved over the past years of roadtrips that include camping and overnights at bed & breakfasts when we can find them. We carry the usual duffle bags with clothing and bathroom kits. Clothing needs to be functional and most of ours comes from Duluth Trading Co. (especially their "action shirts). Beyond that the list includes:

  • extensive first aid kit
  • maps information for each national park area
         National Geographic topo map for each national park
         three-clip pocket folder with maps of hiking trails
  • Rand-McNally easy-read road maps for each state
  • a pocket folder with reservation confirmations for each stop
  • insulated lunch bag
  • supply of healthy road snacks
         individual-packet Sahale nut/fruit
         individual-packet Biena roasted chickpeas
         Trader Joe's individual trail mix packets
         Garibaldi currant biscuits
         Clementine oranges
         Tanka bars
  • 6-person Eureka Timberline tent
  • Wenzel Sun Valley screen/kitchen tent
  • camp chairs
  • queen-size cot and two Thermarest mattresses
  • queen sleeping bag & liner sheet sack
  • pillows
  • 60-quart Yeti cooler
  • camp kitchen (made from two wine boxes hinged to open like a book)
  • portable office
  • crates - six of them, wood, in which are carried
         pre-packed camp suppers (dry/canned ingredients, herbs, etc needed for each meal)
         miscellaneous consumables (this crate empties as we go to make room for doodads picked up along the way)
         staple food items (olive oil, oatmeal packets, pancake mix, cornbread mix, etc)
         housekeeping items(dishwashing, clothes line & clips, picnic table cloth)
         hardware (hatchet, bow saw, 4 1-liter bottles of camp stove fuel. two 1-liter bottles of citronella lamp oil, laundry pods,
              leather gloves, etc)
  • XXL Thule box that goes on top the jeep
  • hiking boots. hiking staves
  • Feuerhand hurricane lamp (for citronella oil for when mosquitoes are present
  • nylon ropes of various sizes and lengths
  • 12 x 12 coated nylon rain fly
  • rain parkas, fleece vests
  • side storage bags (one hangs on each side from the jeep roll bar) containing:
         batteries
         small tool kit
         spare bungee toggles, clips, velcro straps
         sewing/tent repair kit
         insect repellents, sunscreen, aloe gel
  • 10.5" Lodge cast iron skillet with cast iron lid (new this trip, for making pizza panzerotti and cornbread)

    • This photo is looking down into two of the wood crates.


         + TD




    Garage staging area, Thule box on its side.




    View from the passenger side door of the jeep. Wood boxes stacked two high and three across behind the front seats. The back seats fold down, and a web-strap "hammock" attached to the roll bars carries the ropes, tarps, rain gear and vests.




    View from the rear door. Ready for the cooler, kitchen box, etc. The cooler can be pulled out easily enough when it comes time to empty the meltwater and re-stock with ice. Cooler contains the fresh ingredients for a few days camp suppers at a time. Sleeping bag goes over the top of everything (flat, unrolled) and a black nylon mesh tarp clipped over the top holds everything down so it is actually possible to see out the back window!

    Reservations for campgrounds, especially in national parks, open up six months in advance of the date(s) needed. And although there might be sites avaiable after that window opens, they are likely to be the less desireable sites. We learned from experience that the chances of showing up without reservations at places like Grand Canyon, Redwood, or Yellowstone and getting a site are zero to none: "Campground Full" will greet you at the entrance.

    All this advance prep might seem a little overkill but it actually is not. The organization and access help with mitigating the frustrations of being on the road for an extended period of time (mitigating because there will always be situations over which there is no control, like long lines getting into the parks and too many people with selfie sticks on the trails). Packing clothes to last eight days helps with managing laundry. Ice in the cooler usually lasts 5-7 days (it's a Yeti) unless the weather is really hot. Shopping for food when it's just for fresh iems like fruits and vegetables and occasionally butter is easier and faster. And packing a lot of good snacks (Biena roasted chickpeas, Tanka bars, Sahale snacks, Trader Joe's trail mixes, Garibaldi currant biscuits) makes buying junk snacks at gas stations unnecessary).




      


    Text and images copyright 2018 Thomas D'Alessio and Jocelyn Boor