Travel Diary- Glacier National Park Van Prep

A big question we get asked is "How much room do you really have in that van?" For years, our road trip car of choice was a 2000 VW Beetle TDI. That thing has taken us through thick and thin. The only thing we couldn't do (comfortably) in that car was sleep. We had learned to pack that vehicle with precision. One of the points I made as we were buying the VW Vanagon was that just because we have the room for more stuff doesn't mean we need it. Our goal was to keep our personal effects as minimal as possible. We didn't want to pack anything more than what we could fit in the Beetle.

So, what did we pack for our 10-day trip out west?

Food

Food is obviously a big concern when we are on a trip. We do not like to stop and eat fast food. It's not what we normally eat, so why change up what we're used to eating. We are big meal prep people. This comes in quite handy when getting meals together for a trip. Now that we have a refrigerator in the van and not just a cooler, we are able to pack perishable food that we can easily cook on the road. Never did I think such a tiny looking fridge could carry so much food. We went back and forth about bringing our Yeti cooler because of the amount of food the fridge holds. In the end, we took it. It not only held the beer and extra dehydrated food we took, it doubled as seating at our camps.

The name of the game for our food was EASY. We made sure our protein was already cooked (chicken, in this case). Our veggies were cut and prepped, and everything was portioned out in individual serving sizes. This made our life much easier when putting meals together. We were able to make simple, easy and filling meals with what we had. A game changer for us is having a stove in our living space. Before, we'd either be cooking over a campfire or pulling out the camp stove to prepare meals. This little Dometic two-burner cooktop has really come in clutch (https://www.dometic.com/en-us/us). I cannot say enough good things about this unit. It's easy to use, & easy to clean. It's something I never knew we needed so badly.

So what did our pantry look like?

-Chips/Popcorn

-Crackers

-Cheese

-Fruit Snacks

-Chicken

-Lettuce

-Tomatoes

-Tortillas/Wraps

-Yogurt

-Cottage Cheese

-Hummus

-Chili

-Dehydrated meals for hiking

-Beer/Bourbon (necessary)

-Salsa

-Nuts

-Coffee

-Eggs

-Bacon

-Sausage

-Freeze-dried potatoes (hash browns)

-Fruit

Basically we wanted food that could be made in different ways, easily. We totally accomplished that.

Clothing

I have a confession. I spend way too much time thinking about clothing. I love putting outfits together. On trips like this, when space is at a premium, I have to really think about what I'm packing, why i'm packing it and if I really need it. Spending a lot of time in the van means sitting on our rear ends and being comfy. I normally aim for clothes that can be folded small, can be layered and can be easily cleaned.

For me, packing tightly means good organization. I like being able to see what things I've packed. I also like things in their place (Hello OCD!). For a few years we've packed with the help of packing cubes. Buying a variety of sizes has really helped us pack efficiently. We packed everything in our cubes before we left, and transferred them to the cabinet in the van. It’s just that easy. We had plenty of room even after we stopped to shop on the road.

Much to Andrew’s horror, I opt to do laundry on the road at times. He sees it as a time-waster. This year, we spent money on something called a Scrubba (https://thescrubba.com/). It's essentially a large stuff sack with little "washboard" built into the bag. You fill it with water and soap, then get to scrubbin! I has its pros and cons. I like that its just a stuff sack and it packs up pretty small. It did exactly what I wanted it to do.... it cleaned our small clothing (socks, underwear, light hiking clothes). Using it the first couple of times was a little wet and messy. You have to get the hang of how it works. But after you do, there are no complaints. That being said, don't think that washing a pair of jeans in there is going to be a fun time. I wouldn't recommend any heavy clothing (jeans, sweats, hoodies). The only other con... it's expensive for what it is. A regular sized bag is $55.00, which I feel is a bit expensive for what it is. As for drying our clothes, well..... hang ‘em up & roll the windows down.

What kind of clothes did we pack?

-Rain Coats

-Hiking Pants/Shorts

-Long Underwear

-Underwear

-Socks-Sport and Wool

-Sweatpants

-Leggings

-Sports Bras

-T-shirts

-Flannel Shirts

-1 "dress up" outfit for a night out after our hike (me: T-shirt dress; Andy: Jeans and nice shirt)

-Hoodies

-Swimsuits (you never know what you'll run into. So we always pack one)

-Shoes- Hiking Boots/Tennis Shoes/Slides

-Hats

My thought was if I ran out of clothes, I'll wash them. Worst case scenario, I'll buy something new.

Misc Van Packing/Tools:

If we have learned anything about this van, it's to expect the unexpected. We've learned that tools and extra fluids can be your best friend. Our trip to the west ended up being right around 5000 miles round trip. We went into this experience knowing that things would not go right the entire way. Being as prepared as possible was a MUST.

Extra Fluids

-Coolant

-Brake Fluid (this came in handy as our Clutch Master Cylinder sprung a leak in the middle of Wyoming)

-Power Steering Fluid

With a Volkswagen that is 35 years old, a breakdown on the road is definitely a big possibility. All specific vehicle makes/models have their common problems. Vanagons are no different. We packed some extra parts for backups in case the worst would happen. We’ll be adding more spare parts as time goes on.

Extra Parts

-Ignition Switch

-Fuel Pump

-Hose Clamps

-Electrical Connectors/Wiring

Tools

-Flashlight

-Portable Battery Jump Pack

-1/4” Drive Ratchet, Sockets, Extensions

-3/8” Drive Ratchet, Sockets, Extensions

-Various Pliers, Cutters

-Wrenches

-Lug Wrench, Jack

There was a ton of other behind the scenes prep that went into this to ensure we felt prepared and ready for the trip. I can’t wait to tell you our routes and hikes on the next travel blog

-Bink