Last camping trip of the year

"Mark Tucker" (markbt73)
11/02/2020 at 13:00 • Filed to: None

We managed to squeeze in one last camping trip this weekend, out to Fort Stevens State Park, right on the Oregon coast. The weather couldn’t have been better, and we had a great time, though we completely forgot to bring candy for the handful of kids trick-or-treating in the campground. Oops.

I made a batch of my mom’s recipe brown sugar cookies, but by then the kids had all gone to bed, so we ate ‘em ourselves.

The most recognizable landmark on this beach is the remains of the Peter Iredale, a sailing ship that ran aground 114 years ago and has been slowly rotting away ever since. Not much left of her these days. In fact, I think there’s less than the last time we saw her a few years ago.

More info !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! for the curious.

Doggo on the beach (I had to carry the other one)...

Sleepy doggos in the car...

We’re already making plans for some trips next year, hopefully without the added hassle of COVID crap. I have a to-do list of stuff to fix between now and then to get the trailer in tip-top shape. But for now, she’s parked for the winter...

DISCUSSION (12)

rctothefuture > Mark Tucker
11/02/2020 at 13:42

Love that old school camper. Been looking for one by me that’s not rotted out and that’s a tall order. The wife and I have been deciding between a boat and a camper next year.

ZHP Sparky, the 5th > Mark Tucker
11/02/2020 at 14:43

Awesome! We were thinking of a camping trip this past weekend too, but decided not to...was so bummed about that decision with the amazing fall weather (we’re in OR too).

We’ve only managed one trip with our camper so far since we got it about a month ago - hoping to be able to sneak a few in over the rainy months, weather dependent.

I’ve heard Fort Stevens is a great spot. Do they have power hookups or were you just on battery power there? Curious what kind of battery system you have...we just have a 12V and it just about lasted for our 3 nighter just running some lights. Personally would prefer to have a bit more buffer there, especially to run our 12v heating blanket every now and then on colder nights.

Mark Tucker > ZHP Sparky, the 5th
11/02/2020 at 14:52

They have full power/water/sewer hookups, unless you get one of the spots on the beach, then you need to be self-contained . Ours is just a little 15 amp syetem for AC power, but it’s enough to run a little electric space heater at night. About half the interior lights are AC, and the rest are on the 12V system. And of course the stove is propane.

The state campground is pretty nice. Nicer than the KOA across the street. The spots are on the small side, but there are e nough trees and bushes and things so you don’t feel like you’re staring a t your neighbor the whole time.

Mark Tucker > rctothefuture
11/02/2020 at 14:52

It was tough finding one here that hadn’t been turned into a food cart...

rctothefuture > Mark Tucker
11/02/2020 at 15:03

Hadn’t thought about that! We don’t deal with too many food trucks/carts here in Wisconsin. I appreciate thats how folks use them out there though.

Manwich - now Keto-Friendly > Mark Tucker
11/02/2020 at 15:16

“The most recognizable landmark on this beach is the remains of the Peter Iredale, a sailing ship that ran aground 114 years ago and has been slowly rotting away ever since.”

Sailed when parked. Needs work. Good for parts. Best offer.

Manwich - now Keto-Friendly > rctothefuture
11/02/2020 at 15:17

Go with the camper. Boats are more of a pain than campers.

rctothefuture > Manwich - now Keto-Friendly
11/02/2020 at 16:54

Eh, all depends on what you buy!

We’ve been canoeing for over a year now and we love it! We have several friends with boats that we tag along with, but something about being on the water attracts me more than a camper.

Manwich - now Keto-Friendly > rctothefuture
11/02/2020 at 17:47

I think your solution is to mount a camper onto a pontoon boat!

ZHP Sparky, the 5th > Mark Tucker
11/02/2020 at 18:53

Very cool - will have to venture out that way someday.

I honestly have no clue how power set ups on these campers work. Our camper is very basic and the power hookup is just a regular “Extension cord” type connection...and I’m pretty sure that from there it just turns in to a power strip to power the various outlets within the camper. I should probably test that out one of these days...and from there, also figure out what exactly I will need if I ever want to connect to shore power at a campsite. I’m 99% sure there is no connection between the AC power and our 12V battery (e.g. for charging)...I have seen some units our model come with an inverter box but ours definitely doesn’t have that.

Urambo Tauro > Mark Tucker
11/02/2020 at 19:18

Those cookies look VERY familiar. Is your mom related to my mom?

Mark Tucker > Urambo Tauro
11/02/2020 at 19:55

Heh... I’m sure it’s not her recipe originally, but she made them so often that they’ll always be hers to me. They’re dead simple to make, only 4 ingredients (which is why I can manage them). They won’t impress Paul Hollywood, but they sure are yummy.