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 Topic: First winter trip in the van
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03/1/2024 at 1:50am
Location: Devizes Wiltshire
Outfit: MWB VW Crafter PVC
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I had only camped between Easter and October since I got my van in 2021.
Just returned from a 4-night trip over the New Year weekend at a site next to a pub, namely Yew Tree Inn - Ross-on-Wye over the New Year weekend, and thoroughly enjoyed it.
The site only had 8 pitches, all hard-standing and it is adult-only, and it was fully booked with one or two pitches not occupied due to late cancellations (Covid or other reasons).
Unbeknown to me when I booked my stay back in October 2023 while I was camping there, the pub had planned events on 30 and 31 December: monthly cider club including guest ciders and perry from Little Pomona (paid event) on 30th; free tasting, cheese pairing (paid and very reasonable), free buffet (very good) and free perry cocktail to welcome the New Year.
The dog dragged me back to the van when the punters started to sing Auld Lang Syne after midnight as it was too rowdy and noisy for him, bless his little white socks/paws!
Weather was not nice with the back end of Storm Gerrit swiftly followed by Storm Henk. However, it was as expected and the pub was only a short walk away.
I used my own facilities most of the time except for the morning routine.
The drive back was a bite hairy with floods on B roads and gusty cross winds on the more opened main roads.
I was very pleased to be home even though it took quite a bit longer due to reduced speed and a pit stop for a KFC (the pets love KFC) after missing the exit at a junction and ended up going towards London instead of home, DOH! 
I have already booked the site for their famous cider festival in August 2024 back in October 2023 when I was there; and decided to extend that trip by another night so that I could stay till the bitter end of the festival! 
I have now booked for their Rosstoberfest (their Octoberfest which I attended by chance in 2023) with an extended stay so that I could explore the area.
Can't book the New Year weekend for 2024 yet, however, I shall do that as soon as they accept bookings in about month's time.
It's a shame that it is 2h's drive from home as I really like the campsite, the pub and the team at Ross on Wye Cider and Perry Company.
No photos from the trip, sorry, as it was rather too wet and windy to stand outside for long!
DK 
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04/1/2024 at 1:33pm
Location: London
Outfit: Lunar Cosmos 524
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Glad you had a great time DK.
I always try and use the site free/bundled electricity in preference to my onboard and comparatively expensive gas, even take a 'spare' fan heater just in case the onboard electric heating fails.
I've done a few trips in the caravan in November, when overnight temps have been well sub-zero, and daytime in low single figures, also the weather has been atrociously wet (more than one of the named storms), so now pretty confident life in the 'van through the winter months is totally viable and comfortable.
What is of more concern to me, and my more limiting factor, is road conditions, towing a caravan may be a more difficult outfit than a camper van in poor weather/road conditions! Year before last I set off into known flooding in my destination region without certainty I could get through on only available route (flood levels/warnings for the day weren't being published until hours after I needed to start the near 300 mile journey!), I gambled that the trend to lowering levels would continue and floods cleared - they did! I'd take the car through reasonably deep water with some confidence as all the cabin floor is well sealed, but the caravan floor is just a mass of vent holes and unsealed cable/pipe entry points, nothing like water resistant from even a bow wave let alone immersion, every possibility of absolutely soaking the interior floor and all the equipment affixed to it!
Last year's trip in Nov, challenged the car's traction on wet fallen leaves, for a front wheel drive car it's normally remarkable good, and never had an issue getting 'van off grass pitches on any trip, but on slimy wet leaves starting uphill was a small challenge, traction control tech was put to the test! Don't have too many qualms about driving car on icy roads, but an articulated outfit of car-caravan would be a new experience, even more concerning, the normally welcomed ATC on the 'van may be a bad thing on icy roads when it slams the 'vans breaks on when it senses sideways movement, that's not always a 'snake', it's been triggered by potholes, dips, and alternating cambers - visions of caravan side slipping with locked wheels on bends/corners! As many, if not most, campsites are well off major roads, then driving in challenging conditions like untreated surfaces has to be a consideration.
I think winter caravaning would require selective destinations judged far more on the access roads, and far more restricted than places I'd happily go in summer conditions. I usually have a contingency plan in mind with 'emergency' overnight site stop if timing delays my longer journeys to such an extent that I can't get to destination or storage site before cut off arrival time, that's probably not an option with so few sites open during winter period, despite perhaps greater risk of unforeseen delays in winter months.
Certainly don't regard winter caravaning as out of the question, but do think it needs viewing with a few, perhaps not directly obvious, winter conditions taken into account.
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05/1/2024 at 1:56pm
Location: London
Outfit: Lunar Cosmos 524
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Quote: Originally posted by dk168 on 05/1/2024
I wish I was in my van this evening driving home after a day trip up in the Big Smoke, as she is higher than my car!
The main A road home was closed due to some incident, and I had to take a cross-country detour that added an hour to the journey!
Lots of rain during the day resulted in lots of floods.
I still don't really know how I managed to get through them to be honest!
Something up there was looking after me and my car for certain this evening!
DK 
LOL. Read the book, seen the film, re-enacted the roles! Driving is challenging and unpredictable these days, I've got a MPV, never really gave much thought to the high driving position when choosing car, but have learnt to appreciate it, wouldn't want to go back to a low car again!
I do a fair bit of cross country driving as a volunteer dog transporter for a rescue charity, now most of that is timed to a tight schedule as there are usually a relay of us spanning the width or length of the country (it never seems to be a simple 50 miles away! ) and the rendezvous spots are planned and timed in advance, so unpredictable delays and rerouting because of road closures throws a big spanner in the works. We ALWAYS get through by hook or by crook, but by God it can be stressful and take some devious knowledgeable route choices/changes often done in a ad-hoc fashion. .... and of course at this time of year the weather conspires to thwart us, driven through biblical rain and blizzards that the forecasters kind of forgot to mention!
You have to be robust to drive any distance these days, rarely is it pleasurable! My supposed straightforward 5 hour holiday trips to the Lake District that take 8-10 hours these days thanks to the 'unknown and unplanned' remind me of that at least once a year!
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12/1/2024 at 4:32pm
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Quote: Originally posted by Monty15 on 05/1/2024
LOL. Read the book, seen the film, re-enacted the roles! Driving is challenging and unpredictable these days, I've got a MPV, never really gave much thought to the high driving position when choosing car, but have learnt to appreciate it, wouldn't want to go back to a low car again!
Its amazing how you, as a driver, are 'treated' on the road depending on the vehicle you drive. I regularly hop between a large 4x4 truck, and my wifes corsa. Whenever we are in the corsa, it is rare that you do not have someone 6 foot off your bumper irrespective of the speed limit, or the speed you might be at (possible sometimes even a shade over). Flip to the truck, and while someone may initially come up to your bumper, they will always then drop well back knowing they cannot 'bully' you in any way. Depending on the make of offending tail-gater (overwhelmingly an Audi in this neck of the woods), i might even ease off a touch to compound their angst.
Its obviously far better for driving in a higher vehicle, but i find getting parked is the problem with mine. As its length - at 17ft +, is a hindrance due to bay sizes and width of lane twixt bays. Hence we use the 'roller-skate' for short runs and supermarket trips.
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12/1/2024 at 6:24pm
Location: London
Outfit: Lunar Cosmos 524
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Quote: Originally posted by Mick S. on 12/1/2024
Quote: Originally posted by Monty15 on 05/1/2024
LOL. Read the book, seen the film, re-enacted the roles! Driving is challenging and unpredictable these days, I've got a MPV, never really gave much thought to the high driving position when choosing car, but have learnt to appreciate it, wouldn't want to go back to a low car again!
Its amazing how you, as a driver, are 'treated' on the road depending on the vehicle you drive. I regularly hop between a large 4x4 truck, and my wifes corsa. Whenever we are in the corsa, it is rare that you do not have someone 6 foot off your bumper irrespective of the speed limit, or the speed you might be at (possible sometimes even a shade over). Flip to the truck, and while someone may initially come up to your bumper, they will always then drop well back knowing they cannot 'bully' you in any way. Depending on the make of offending tail-gater (overwhelmingly an Audi in this neck of the woods), i might even ease off a touch to compound their angst.
Its obviously far better for driving in a higher vehicle, but i find getting parked is the problem with mine. As its length - at 17ft +, is a hindrance due to bay sizes and width of lane twixt bays. Hence we use the 'roller-skate' for short runs and supermarket trips.
Good many years ago now, when driving in London wasn't regarded as a 'crime' by the authorities, I drove a Luton bodied Transit right across town from NW burbs to SE burbs (and back), and despite the size and limited view from cab (and being unfamiliar with it) it was probably the easiest drive I'd ever had through London! No stranger to driving in town, but the Tranny seemed to command a 'respect' (it may have been fear!) from other drivers, even the notorious London black cabs kept away (pre Uber era - Ubers are just on suicide missions and respect nothing!), that was unknown in an ordinary car, fight for your bit of road was the norm, guess a large sign written rental van sent the message 'tangle with me at your peril!'. So the vehicle you drive most definitely makes a difference to your ease of driving/journey.
As to my present car, it's no bigger overall than the saloon car floorpan it's based on, but the elevated 'superior' driving position whereby you look down on ordinary cars, does seem to have a psychological effect and gives you an edge over the lower level 'mortals'!
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via mobile 03/1/2024 at 7:56am
