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 Topic: Two nights I never want to repeat!
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16/4/2024 at 11:55am
Location: London
Outfit: Lunar Cosmos 524
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Even in NW London, the wind had been extreme, moving stuff around the gardens and stripping new growth off the trees in the park, AND no weather warnings given that I'm aware of!
I've been in the van a couple of times when hit by extreme winds. First was not too long after I first got the van so quite inexperienced of this things, I was on a lovely CL on edge of Peak District, the wind was blustery in general, and I decided not to put the awning up, but there was this almighty squall that blew along the valley and absolutely rocked the van for nearing an hour, really got me thinking how much can the van take before something gives! Really concerned about things like the sky lights, even though fastened tight they were creaking under the strain! The awning would for certain have been a gonna if I'd put it up! Even started pondering at what point does a caravan tip over!!!! When your tea is sitting on a table and slopping in the mug from the movement of the van, you know it's pretty rough outside! - On the edge of the site a line of tall mature Poplar trees were bending like I've never seen a tree bend before, quite convinced they were going to snap! - they didn't, but they looked pretty battered after the thrashing they got!
Second time was on a site near a river estuary in Essex 3 or 4 years back. This almighty wind came from nowhere without warning, sweeping in unhindered across the flatlands! It flattened small fibre poled tents, it snapped windbreak poles off at ground level, it moved everything that wasn't very heavy or fixed! My awning was up, but those extreme conditions were far too risky to attempt to take it down, serious risk of personal injury if the wind caught it in a partially dismantled state! - it had to take it's chances, I did move the car to provide some sort of shelter for it, but minimal benefit! It was an airbeam type, and perhaps that's what saved it from being wrecked, but it did flex, collapse and pop back up quite alarmingly! After this was all over, only 'damage' was one of the end air tube inners had twisted in the sleeve and needed realigning after spending probably a couple of hours being more concave rather than normal convex bend!
We had a lot of clearing up and 'fixing up' to do after it all blew over (it was a rally group so were were all friends and helping each other out).
My confidence levels on what the van can tolerate are now much higher, but it's not a comfortable time to be experiencing it, and I've certainly altered plans to avoid forecast extremes. But that's twice I've been hit by un-forecast extreme winds, and my real concern is being caught whilst towing! On the note of towing, I nearly got wiped off the M4 3 years back when a slow moving MH on the inside lane got hit by a crosswind whilst going over a high viaduct, it swerved violently across half a lane just feet in front of me in the middle lane! If I'd been a car length further forward it'd taken me out! Bizarrely, I never felt any crosswind in the middle lane with the caravan, but I do wonder what it would have been like on the inside lane like the MH!!
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17/4/2024 at 10:10am
Location: London
Outfit: Lunar Cosmos 524
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Quote: Originally posted by navver on 16/4/2024
I think in really high winds you need the front facing into the wind. Sideways on will tip much easier. Also take the awning down!!!!!!
In an ideal world, for sure, but which way you face is largely governed by the pitch, most sites dictate your orientation if only from the position of the hardstanding or pitch dimensions, with maybe nose in/nose out option if you're lucky, so beyond the control of van owner, and you just have to accept what you've got. At least CAMC sites allow you to pick your own pitch from the vacant ones available, so you can make some judgements on prevailing wind, other sites allocate pitches to you.
Certainly wise to remove the awning if expecting wind, but attempting to take down once the wind has started (and the bad winds I've suffered have been un-forecast, so no expectation!) is both a risk of harm to body and equipment! I witnessed a friend nearly have a really nasty injurious accident striking a tent in a gust of wind. It got caught by the wind and became a kite, he got bowled over, his 18 year old daughter got lifted 18" off the ground before she had the presence of mind to let go and leave the tent to it's fate. The tent took off, ripping remaining pegging out of the ground, flew over the roof of neighbouring caravan and landed a hundred yards away, thankfully in an empty field (could have been carnage if it'd blown INTO the camp site!) in a heap of broken and bent STEEL poles and shredded flysheet! His daughter could well have been seriously injured if she'd hung on and flown with the tent! I've required the assistance of 8 people to strike a tent in a wind because of exactly that risk, highly aware of how dangerous a large 'sail area' can be!
Both my porch awnings, a heavyweight Kampa airbeam, and a lightweight single poled Sunncamp have endured winds far in excess of what manufacturers recommend, but damned if I was risking injury to take them down once the winds started, they had to take their chances, and did survive largely unscathed. They are far more aerodynamic and wind resistant in an erected state than in a loose partially or completely collapsed state! There will come a point where they cannot cope, but you really don't want to be trying to hold onto it under those circumstances!
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29/4/2024 at 5:43pm
Location: London
Outfit: Lunar Cosmos 524
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Used to go away in May as month of choice years ago, generally some glorious weather, and really nice temperatures! Regular trip to the Lake District was my favourite.
Now! - every time I take the dog for her morning walk, I glance at my outdoor thermometer to alarmingly see it was only a few degrees overnight, then I get in the park and the icy winds nearly cut you in half, not to mention not being able to step off the tarmac path for fear of sinking into the now 'paddy fields' that used to be grass play fields, football pitches etc., about 6 months ago! And a totally dry walk is a very rare event too, doesn't matter what the forecasters say, it WILL rain!
Dog gets walked 2 or 3 times a day, I get cold and wet 2 or 3 times a day, not to mention a bit soggy letting her into the garden a few more times a day - not impressed, not inspired, I've been out in it a LOT, I don't much like it!
Not really being motivated to break the caravan out of winter hibernation TBH!
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via mobile 16/4/2024 at 9:28am
