Kuga Campervan Experience

If you are considering renting a Kuga Campervan, go for it!  I highly recommend renting through Traveller's Autobarn.  I can't speak for all the locations, but the guys running the rental place in San Francisco are fantastic!  Since we were flying in, we got the camping package which included sleeping bags, camp chairs, kitchen equipment, etc.  

We had never camped in a campervan before.  I'm going to include a lot of photos of the camper below so that you can see the amount of space you're going to have.  It is small but well-organized.  We had a small solar-powered refrigerator that worked very well and a little gas stove.  We never actually hooked up the sink because we didn't really need it.  We just kept jugs of water readily accessible.

With no bathroom or shower, you just have to make do with showers and bathrooms in public places, going in the wild, or making use of a chamber pot of sorts (we used a plastic coffee can with lid).  I hate to be TMI on that, but that's the sort of thing you need to know before you take a trip like this.  For the few times when we had no shower available, we used Dude Wipes, which I bought on Amazon.  They are like enormous unscented baby wipes, and they worked great.  All this bathroom stuff would not have worked as well if we had our kids with us.  We are empty nesters now, so that wasn't an issue.

I wish we had brought duffle bags instead of suitcases as they would have fit better under the seats.  We were stuck just storing our bags in the cab at night.

We found that we did not need AC or heat at night, but that was a function of being in the Pacific Northwest during the summer.  The cab has heat and AC, but there is no way to keep the camper warm or cool with the engine off (though there is an overhead fan, and we always had enough solar power to run it all night if we needed to).  I imagine it would be pretty hot in one of these vans if we camped back home (Tennessee) in the summer.  I would suggest bringing an inverter to charge things off the van's battery.  There is a USB for charging phones in the camper part of the van, but there is no way to charge tablets or computers unless you are camping at a spot with electricity.  

We loved being able to just pick up and go with all our stuff with us!  It's some of the easiest camping we have ever done.  We did have to work on getting it level at a few of the sites.  Fortunately, Terry has good experience with that.

We loved being able to stop at a scenic viewpoint and make lunch or nap with the back doors open.  I realize you can do that with big campers, too.  But this vehicle was easy to drive and park parallel on city streets as well!

 

The table folds down to make a double bed

A nap with a view

The van was to tall for this experience

Our first boondocking site in a National Forest near Union City, OR

We thought this was a great site, but a ranger stopped by and told us it wasn't allowed at this spot

a flat tire on the interstate south of Seattle

Dismal Nitch rest stop has free camping

Dismal Nitch was actually quite nice

Our parking spot at Canon Beach.  We hoped to spend the night here, but a policeman told us we couldn't.  He also told us that as soon as we got out of city limits, the side of the road was fair game.

All in all, we spent seven nights out of 21 camping for free.  We spent three nights on National Forest backroads, one night at a rest stop, one night at a trailhead, and two nights at casino parking lots. It was a little stressful looking for spots.  We had the best luck using the app Campendium.   I've been a little distressed to read of people taking advantage of boondocking and leaving a mess behind or building a fire.  We tried to be very responsible and respectful.  

Oregon Coast

They say that the west coast is the best coast, and we certainly can't dispute that.  Of course, if you actually plan on swimming in the water, you'd better wear a wetsuit!  But you can't beat the scenery and the sunsets.  

We followed the Pacific Coast Highway for three days and just pulled over whenever we wanted to - which was to see an awesome view, a lighthouse, a bridge or some cool rocks!  We spent most of a day at Canon Beach.  We picked wild blueberries and blackberries and took lots of walks on the beach.  We especially enjoyed seeing the Umpqua and Rogue Rivers spilling into the ocean as we had seen them when they were much smaller.  

Astoria Bridge

Canon Beach

For our last night, we stopped in Crescent City.  Terry had promised to build me a fire on the beach, and he delivered!  We toasted marshmallows and watched the sunset.  

Give me a campfire and a marshmallow on a stick, and I am happy!

Just Dune It!

This whole experience was totally spontaneous and a total blast!  For $60 each we got ATVs and an hour to explore the dunes.  I accidentally went airborne on the first dune and nearly gave Terry a heart attack.  

This was an awesome memory for the last day of our trip!  

Camp 18

This neat place we visited on the Oregon Coast deserves its own post.  I had read about this place on another blog.  It boasted "cinnamon rolls as big as your head" - which was pretty much all it took to get it on our list.  

We arrived on a Sunday morning and shared an enormous cinnamon roll with a side of BACON!  It was delicious!  This was the only time we dined indoors on our entire three-week trip. 

Camp 18 is not just a restaurant, but an outdoor logging museum with all sorts of VERY LARGE equipment to look at.  It was an interesting way to work off some of our calories from breakfast.