Walk with us through spontaneous and unapologetic adventures. Join us in budget minded Sprinter DIY successes and failures: Sleeping 4 in a Sprinter 144.
Rambling Footsteps are participants in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
CD decided its time to put insulation in our Sprinter. I gladly drove from the Willamette Valley to Hood River, Oregon to pick up Thinsulate at DIY Van.
Here is a short picture documentary of the insulation project.
Removing the head liner. Putting in the insulation and getting into every crack. More insulation stuffing.
For our 144 passenger van, we purchased 39 linear feet of insulation. CD is not quite done yet but agrees that we have about the right amount. Our only other expense was a new pair of scissors.
While CD was busy wrestling Thinsulate, the kids and their friends practiced their camping skills. As you can see, they are ready!
CD decided its time for insulation. I was so happy that I drove to Hood River to pick up Thinsulate. If you are anywhere near Hood River we recommend heading over to DIY Van. They are the best!
Here is a short picture documentary of the insulation project.
Removing the head liner. Putting in the insulation and getting into every crack. More insulation stuffing.
For our 144 passenger van, we purchased 39 linear feet of insulation. CD is not quite done yet but agrees that we have about the right amount. Our only other expense was a new pair of scissors.
While CD was busy wrestling Thinsulate, the kids and their friends practiced their camping skills. As you can see, they are ready!
Here we are. The first weekend in February. The sun is shining. It is nearly fifty degrees. We are waist deep in home projects and paperwork.
Despite all of that, we squeezed in small scale van adventures.
Saturday afternoon and evening was spent celebrating a 50th birthday at our friend’s farm. It is 10 miles from town and we have threatened to sleep there in our van more than once.
We didn’t sleep there this time either but we enjoyed the ride. Our after dinner hike ended up with wet pants and socks so we took advantage of the van changing room option.
Sunday morning started off lazily but the sun was too tempting. We dashed out to the forest before the Superbowl.
McDonald – Dunn Forest Lewisburg Saddle is a fifteen minute drive from our house. I packed a light lunch and spare socks.
Sitting in the van is like a breath of fresh air. There is something comfortable and simple and wonderful about it. I think we all feel it.
We took the Vineyard loop and enjoyed the view from the old cement foundation at the top. The kids pretended to be planning a Superbowl party for cats and dogs. They walked and talked the whole way.
We spent ninety minutes walking and thirty minutes sitting the van.
They took theirs shoes off and hopped up on the bed. With the door open, the sun was shining right in. I got the snacks out but they didn’t eat. CD and I finished the cheese and crackers and eventually let them know that it was time to go. I think they would have stayed up there looking out the window all day.
The Sprinter requires a different life pace. It is good to be reminded that a slower pace is just fine too.
I imagined our biggest debate would be which color wood to install or where to put the overhead lighting.
We planned to begin the next phase of our camping conversation in January. It is January. Our progress has stalled.
CD was halfway to Eugene to pick up the roof rails when he changed course. He dropped by to chat with the fellow Sprinter owner that we met a few weeks ago. They shared thier visions and ideas.
CD turned around and drove home. His hesitated to spend money on factory roof rails. Our friend endorsed a much less expensive option.
So here we are, along with many other Sprinter owners. Part of our dream is financial sustainability.
When should we get the factory products? When should we improvise? How much extra work and time are we willing to put in to each step in order to save a few dollars?
It wasn’t hard for us to answer these questions. We are on board to save money if the alternate plan provides the same result in the end.
What is holding us up now?
Our Sprinter works well for us. We are happy. In just a few weeks last spring, CD pounded together a camping conversion far superior to any other way we have traveled.
In order to move forward, the current conversion needs to be dismantled. Not only will we not be able to camp in our Sprinter, we will not be able to use our Sprinter.
Our garage will be full of dismantled food boxes and beds.
Nothing in an Oregon winter is free of rain and mud. I can’t guarentee the wood will be safe.
So, here we are. I anticipate that one day we will just get up and start tearing the Sprinter apart. It will be both sad and exciting. I will be impatient and restless. It will be worth it.
Until then, here is a bit about Sprinter life in Oregon in the winter.
The Hackleman Old Growth forest is easy to drive past. It can be found on the South side of Highway 20 between Corvallis and Sisters. The parking lot is paved and easy to access. A sign marks the trail.
After driving past it dozens of times, stopping there this year was an obvious choice. When driving the Sprinter, it seems like trail heads and parks pop up everywhere!
Short trails or boardswalks are an excuse to make hot chocolate and play a game of cards or two.
It is about the journey; we stop often
Our afternoon base camp at the old growth. It is raining but we were warm and happy This is a slug. The slugs are one of a handful of things that I found amazing when I moved here. This isn’t the biggest we have seen.
Some places are so great that it doesn’t seem right to put them out there on the internet for everyone to see.
Most places are already fully accessible online. They are all likely more crowded than before the internet existed. The crowds are not because of my little blog. In the interest of sharing some great spots, I will start will a great one.
Mayflower Gulch is the sort of hike that you see in magazines or on television. It is picturesque.
It was a weekday afternoon type of hike for us when we lived in Summit County. According to the internet it is a 5.9 mile loop. It didn’t seem that far. The trail head is less than 10 miles towards Leadville from I-70. The road is well traveled.
As with many hikes in the high country, I recommend it in the winter. With snow it is quiet and light. There will likely be a few other people there but they will all be smiling.
Skis with climbing skins, Nordic skis, snow shoes, or boots will all typically work well for this trek. Old mining cabins mark the end of the trail and offer a good place for lunch with a side of inspiration.
I was flipping through my phone when I found a series of brief videos chronicling last years mad-dash for Colorado.
As per our usual, we hit the road at a moment’s notice. Our goal was Colorado by afternoon the next day in order to cross paths with a cousin that CD hadn’t seen in years.
Here are a few videos from Sprinter stops soon forgotten.
We conquered I-80 again. CD’s cousin was still there and this was the reward.
If you haven’t heard of the Manitou Incline, this is for you. Here is a picture from the top.
The incline: Manitou Springs, CO. Sprinter DIY
Back in the day the challenge was to hike to the top in the same number of minutes as your age. I was thirty something. My record time was 42 minutes and that was before they improved the steps. I like to think I would have easily broken 40 minutes if it was like it is today but who knows.
This year I forgot to start my watch. I have had the same watch for fifteen years and I have never forgotten to start it.
It turns out that in 2019 I still made it to the top. It was not as pretty and not as fast. I still felt successful and healthy and tired and thirsty.
In my younger days, it had been said that one of my main motivations for exercising and recreating was to “apres”. I still believe that “apres” is meant for more than just skiing.
We hiked down and headed to town. After a light lunch and a cold cocktail, I almost felt thirty again!
Manitou Incline Info and Stats:
The Incline is made from the remains of a narrow gauge railway that was built in 1907. It was destroyed in a rock slide in 1990. The rails were removed and the rail road ties remain.
Until 2013 locals and fitness enthusiasts would walk past “no trespassing” signs to hike up the disorganized and unmaintained remains. CD and I were among the people that had the privilege of doing so. I am happy to report that we did so without injury.
It has since been repaired and opened to the public. The obvious results of this have been fees for parking, greater crowds, and evenly spaced railway ties without raged metal edges. We still love it.
Altitude at the base: 6600 ft
Ascent: 2011 ft
Distance: 0.88 miles
Steps: 2744
Grade: up to 68%
What to bring:
Sunscreen
Hat
Hiking poles (Seriously – you will thank me later!)
Water (Enough water to dump some on your head if you need; Shade is sparse)
Snacks
A friendly smile (To encourage other hikers and let them know you are doing okay.)
We store the seats from our Sprinters in our garage.
Three months into owning the first one, we dismantled the bed, put the seats back in, and sold it in its original passenger van form. It was easy to sell.
It was nice to re-claim our garage. Sprinter seats aren’t small.
We chose the passenger van for the windows and we don’t regret it! The kids can see out. We can see out. We can lay on the bed and look at the view. We can also chose to put up the blinds and act as if we don’t have windows at all.
I sometimes wonder if I would be claustrophobic without the windows. When the blinds are up, I sometimes lift a corner just to look out at the world.
This was our van when we bought it.
The seats do not move easily. The back seat is especially hostile. It is bolted to the wall of the van and the other seats needs to be removed to get it out.
Just imagine the possibilities of easily changing a van from a camper to a passenger van. You could sleep in it one day and take all of our friends to the beach the next.
We haven’t invented the camper conversion that would make this dream a reality but will let you know if that changes!
In the meantime, I am voting for selling our seats and re-claiming our garage for the second time.
Would you like to buy two rows of 2015 Sprinter seats? We are offering a great deal to the first person that stops by to pick them up! Just think of all of the kids you can take to soccer if you had two more rows of seats!
Here we are in Utah. Deep in the heart of gridlock
For us, a bed in a van is so much better than seats! The soccer car pool will have to go on without us but if any one needs to lay down and rest, we have just the vehicle for that!
It rains in the Willamette Valley. It rains most days in the winter. It is not the same as rain in the mid-west. The weather is benign and devoid of sharp edges. The rain comes in slowly and continues. Eventually, it leaves slowly.
In four years, I have yet to see a storm roll in and out of the Willamette. Sometimes it rains harder and then lighter. I hear people talk about storm clouds but when I look at the sky, I don’t see them.
The number one piece of equipment that I love during winter in Western Oregon is not really a piece of equipment at all. It is more of an accessory.
It was packed away in our things for the first year we were here. When CD found it and brought it out, it was as if everything was going to be okay again. At least everything would be less wet again.
It is a luxury but I use it nearly every day between November and June.
The DryGuy Boot Dryer.
Seriously, this was a game changer! I received this as a gift when we lived in the Colorado high country. I never expected it to change my life! Try it. You won’t regret it!
I haven’t used it in the Sprinter but am putting this on our to-do list for sure!
The past three days have been a blur. The neighborhood kids descended on the street and yards. They played outside together through lunch and well past sunset. Some of us finally got in on the action with dinner and Euchre last night.
In a last ditch effort to have a productive Christmas break, I tore apart our master bathroom. The wall paper is mostly down and our tooth brushes are on my night stand.
Despite this, we hopped in the Sprinter for “Sunday Fun-Day”. We headed to the only hike we could think of that was on the way to Home Depot but far enough to justify driving the Sprinter and close enough that we usually don’t go there.
Jackson Frazier Wetlands. Sprinter DIY
I hadn’t been there in three years. It had changed. Much of it looked more like a farmer’s field than a wetland. There were signs explaining that a “emergency restoration” was in progress. Apparently this includes removing invasive species and modifying water drainage.
It was a nice day in Oregon for a hike on a boardwalk. We found two geo-caches, got plenty of mud on our boots, and had snacks in our van.
While I am on the topic of invasive species, I will pause to mention my current least favorite invasive species.
Have you heard of Phragmites? Have you seen the videos on our media page? Of all the invasive species that I have battled, these are by far the most impressive. Here is a quick video from Lake Huron. This was part of the lake but now it is a field of Phragmite.
The past three days have been a blur. The neighborhood kids descended on the street and yards. They played outside together through lunch and well past sunset. Some of us finally got in on the action with dinner and Euchre last night.
In a last ditch effort to have a productive Christmas break, I tore apart our master bathroom. The wall paper is mostly down and our tooth brushes are on my night stand.
Despite this, we hopped in the Sprinter for “Sunday Fun-Day”. We headed to the only hike we could think of that was on the way to Home Depot but far enough to justify driving the Sprinter and close enough that we usually don’t go there.
Jackson Frazier Wetlands. Sprinter DIY
I hadn’t been there in three years. It had changed. Much of it looked more like a farmer’s field than a wetland. There were signs explaining that a “emergency restoration” was in progress. Apparently this includes removing invasive species and modifying water drainage.
It was a nice day in Oregon for a hike on a boardwalk. We found two geo-caches, got plenty of mud on our boots, and had snacks in our van.
While I am on the topic of invasive species, I will pause to mention my current least favorite invasive species.
Have you heard of Phragmites? Have you seen the videos on our media page? Of all the invasive species that I have battled, these are by far the most impressive. Here is a quick video from Lake Huron. This was part of the lake but now it is a field of Phragmite.
Rambling Footsteps 