BOONDOCKING

My wife and I have traveled across the USA twice and hope to travel more. Most of all we found we really like to camp in the deserts and forests. I set the bus up so we can use appliances without using the generator everytime. I only run the generator for one hour a day to recharge the batteries.

To save on propane we heat the water while the generator is running then wash dishes and both take a shower. We have a 10 gallon tank and don't run out of hot water.

I purchased a wind generator and mounted it on the roof of the bus. It folds down while traveling and when not in use. In the desert the generator works real good, when the wind blows, and cuts down the length of time the bus generator needs to run.

Handyman

I've always liked working with my hands and tinkering in my shop. So instead of buying a slideout shelf for the bay storage compartment, I made it myself. I also took a BBQ and mounted it to a pole that swivels for easy access and storage.
I even took a VW convertable, cut the backend off and made it into a flat bed truck. I called it my convertable sports truck.

MCGUYVER

Hi, I'm Bill's wife Laura.

We own a dune buggy and use to go camping in our motorhome in the California sand dunes. We ran with a pretty large group and buggies breaking down while on a ride was very common.

Bill didn't mind working on other peoples buggies so when someone broke down. Bill was there ready to try to make repairs. He wouid dig through our tool box and come up with something, a bolt or a wire and the repair was made. Most of the time the repair would last through the rest of the day. Bill ended up with the nickname Mcguyver.

If anything was broke they would say "get Mcguyver, he can fix it!". I remember on one ride he ended up using tiedown straps to hold an engine up off the ground because of a broken frame. The owner of the buggie was able to drive his buggy back to camp on its own power.



We carried his welder in one of the bus bays and it was used often. Bill welded the undercarriage of the buggy on one trip. It was at the beginning of the week and we planned to stay out there for at least nine days. Bill put ramps between two trailers with the buggy on top of the ramps so he could have head room to weld.






Bill and I were having a few drinks in the garage one evening. I suggested we should have side panels on the buggy, like other buggies had. The next day when I came home from work, we had side panels on our buggy, but instead of metal they were made of wood. I was just kidding about the panels but Bill took me seriously. The wood looked great and matched the wood dash he made with the gauges installed.

We don't go to the desert any more so the buggy is FOR SALE if anyone is interested. Its a Fibertech Frame (1995) with a 2330cc VW engine and a Trick Tranny. We are asking $6700.00 for it. If interested my email is. williamsnear@yahoo.com

CAR HAULER

I found out early in my travels in the bus conversion that a car hauler was a must.
One night (I forget where we were) I was pulling out of a driveway onto a narrow road with ditches on both sides. The bus has a long turning span. By the time the bus was on the road, the car I was towing was starting to go into the ditch.

My wife hopped out of the bus, got behind the wheel of the car and we proceeded to backup the bus while trying to keep the front wheels straight so we wouldn't mess up the front end alignment. All the while causing a traffic jam. Did I forget to mention this was at night in the pouring rain?

It wasn't long after that I bought a trailer I load the car on the trailer and now if I need to backup it's a piece of cake without the hassel or the embarrassment