Special Edition: RoadTrekkin'...a look inside the RoadTrek

July 9, 2012

Today we are heading out on the road again...this time to visit friends in some really beautiful places and see some of the beauty that exists right here in the Northwest. While we're on this road trip, we'll be living in our RoadTrek camping van, so we thought we'd take you on a little tour of our home away from home.

First, some history...we purchased our RoadTrek in 2010 on Ebay from a dealer in North Chicago. After trying unsuccessfully to find a company to load the van onto a flat bed and haul it out to us, Michael flew to Chicago on a Friday, was met at the airport by the dealer in the RoadTrek, did a walkthrough at the airport Kiss-n-Ride lot, then drove the van across the country arriving on Sunday evening.

This little RV is a 2000 RoadTrek which is a modified van produced in Ontario, Canada. Our model is a 190 Popular...which means that it is 19 feet long and has the Popular version of floor plan. As you can see, it has a fiberglass top added to increase the interior height (but it is an inch or two too short for Michael) and to provide for the overhead windows and air-conditioner.

This model of RoadTrek is built on a Dodge van chassis which is a real workhorse. It weighs about 6,500 pounds when it is empty, and can hold up to seven passengers...three up front and four in the back...but it can sleep only 3 people...Let's take a look around inside..

Let's start by entering the side doors on the passenger side. Two doors swing out to open up the middle of the van. The short pedestal on the left is the base for the third passenger seat, but we have removed the seat to provide easier access to the cabinet below and to create a flat storage and work table.

Inside the RoadTrek, we have a full kitchen on the driver's side complete with a pantry, two burner stove top with hood fan, sink (there is a 25 gallon fresh water tank and 15 gallon gray water tank), a microwave (which only works when we're plugged into shore power or running the generator), and a refrigerator (which runs on LP gas, electric or DC when the engine is running).

On the passenger side we have a bathroom which contains a toilet (behind the door with the mirror) and a handheld shower nozzle. When we want to take a shower we pull put the shower curtain along the track you see in the ceiling, and the water drains to the gray tank through a drain in the fiberglas floor. Next to the bathroom is a cabinet for clothes. In this picture you can also see the roof vent with a fan in it, the track on the ceiling for the shower curtain, the overhead cabinets in the back over the couch, and the air conditioner in the very back.

Another feature in our RoadTrek are the privacy panels...one is an extension of the bathroom door, and the other is an extension of the clothes cabinet...both are designed to provide privacy within the RV while people are showering or changing clothes. A small curtain attaches to the bottom of the cabinet door to provide complete privacy...

Looking toward the cockpit, you can see the arrangement when we're driving down the road...and then the arrangement when we're parked at our campsite. Both the driver's and passenger's seat swivel around to face backwards to provide more seating.

The RoadTrek came with a TV built in to a cabinet on a sliding platform, but we never watch TV when we're camping or traveling in the RV so we took the TV out and converted the cabinet into very useful (and much needed) storage. The styrofoam tubes are our homemade solution for storing wine while on the road...very important...!

The rear of the RoadTrek has two couches facing each other with cabinets overhead and underneath...great storage. Additional storage is also available in the two-drawer nightstand that is located between the two couches at the rear window. At night, the two couches get rearranged into a queen-sized sleeper...our preferred arrangement leaves a cutout at the foot of the bead to make getting in and out a little easier...The night stand tucks under the bed and out of the way.

Because this is not a large RV, storage space is at a premium. Our largest storage space is our "basement" which is the area under the couches in the rear of the RV. This space is accessed through the rear door of the van. You can also see the air-conditioner vent above the rear door...and the little round red cap inside the right door frame is where we fill up our fresh water tank!

There is additional storage that is accessed from outside the RV, and this runs along the driver's side of the van between the front and rear wheels. It's perfect for water hoses, electrical cords, leveling blocks, etc. This is also where our outside shower is located...you can see the faucet in the lower right...

Last, but certainly not least, is the access panel that allows us to empty the gray and black holding tanks...the driver's side step flips up to reveal the sewer pipe outlet and the two valves that empty the tanks...ah, the joys of camping...You can also see in this photo the furnace vent (the small silver plate with two holes)...the furnace is quite nice for taking the chill off on cold mornings...

So this is our home away from home, and our headquarters for the next chapter of our wanderings. Or little RoadTrek will take us to Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, back to Oregon, Washington and home...so as you read future blog posts you can envision us in our swiveled front seats tapping on out iPads...Patty sorting and uploading photos, Michael putting our experiences into words.

Stay tuned for our Northwest wandering over the next few weeks!

 

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