Caravans and caravanning!

[hatler]

I know that one of my fellow sailing club members got pulled up on his way back from an open meeting in his Ford Sierra estate with Merlin Rocket in tow doing over 100. Probably still not flat out though .....

[Jurek]

A several of years ago, whilst working for an Association with yellow liveried everything, I was driving a Dodge flat-bed car transporter with a car trailer in-tow.
The incident in question took place along the M25 on the descent from Reigate Hill.
The trailer decided that it was going to try and overtake the lorry towing it.
I cannot remember many incidents in the course of my life that left me thusly terrified as I tried to bring the entire shebang back under control.
I seem to remember using all three lanes of the motorway in addition to the hard shoulder (it was, thankfully, in the wee small hours of the night) to get it back on an even keel.
The take-home from this incident?
Never run the towing vehicle flat-out.
Always leave some power in reserve to pull yourself out of such situations.

Comedy gold.   

I was going for it......

[Woofage]

Can anyone recommend a campsite around Rutland Water, preferably with electric hook up?

The Paddock (C&CC Cert. site). Stayed there BH w/e. Very pleasant .

Unfortunately, not taking people without their own sanitation at present.  It did look good.

Ah, yes. Porta-Potti FTW . Our van is relatively small (Mercedes Vito) so no shower or anything fancy like that but the PP is essential kit as it opens up many more possibilities for places to stay.

[Quisling]

We joined the ranks of caravanners this year after years of camping following the purchase of a mate's well looked after van.  We've used it a fair bit and it's made it easier to get away with the rest of the family (all caravan owners too) since a lot of sites don't allow pitching of tents and vans on the same field.

Took the van to the Peak District over Oct half-term.  When the C&CC say about their Bakewell  "Access road is narrow and care is needed" they really aren't joking.  We only have a single axle van but also only a 2WD car and ye gods the lane through the village is narrow, double parked and steep.  Getting back up the hill on the way out required precise timing and extensive prayers to negotiate a wet road and avoid a wheel-spinny clutch-destroying set of hill starts.

Other than that, a nice and well maintained site with negligible facilities and great walking straight out of the door.
https://www.campingandcaravanningclub.co.uk/campsites/uk/derbyshire/bakewell/bakewell-camping-and-caravanning-club-site/

[Luke]

A recent addition to the family has required a slightly larger Eriba.

It is a bit of a project, but more than usable as it is. I’ve made a start at pealing the flowers off. 


Eriba Triton 410 by Luke Hayes, on Flickr

[Russell]

Nice, what year is it?

[Luke]

It is a 1993. 410 model with the huge dinette/bed at the rear and single to the front.

The plan is to replace the front seats with fixed bunks.

[Luke]

A couple of rubbish interior pictures;


Eriba triton 410 by Luke Hayes, on Flickr


Eriba triton 410 by Luke Hayes, on Flickr

[Marco Stefano]

Nice, Luke. Just come back from 4 weeks in France (first trip!) with our 2009 Puck L 230 & 1L Civic. Liked it, once stabiliser was adjusted to actually move rather than being utterly solid. Impressed by coolness of the van in near 40C heat, and the amazing amount of storage available. Also bought a Wild Country driveaway annexe last minute as our daughter was able to come for 10 days & slept in it, also very good but quite bulky & weighty. Still cooking on old Trangia outside though due to ludicrous UK gas bottle shortage, though not a problem (heater not required...).

Will we get commentary and pictures of your mods?

[Luke]

A little update on the progress with the project Eriba.

Significant amounts of welding were required to the frame underneath, which has now been done. A window seal has been replaced and slight damage to the frame where water had been getting under the seal repaired. Some loose bits of trim have been secured, and the wheels painted. The vinyl flowers took days to remove. 

Still to do externally is repaint the discoloured trim around the wheel arches and also the gas locker.

Internally the main dinette seats have been recovered. I’ve started planning the bunks for the front, but haven’t started any actual construction. The blinds really need replacing.


Eriba Triton by Luke Hayes, on Flickr


Eriba Triton interior. by Luke Hayes, on Flickr

We have had a few trips out so far. Scarborough last year. Sherwood pines over Christmas. Clumber park in February and York last month. We’re going back to Scarborough in a couple of weeks.