Do campers shit in the woods?

Is it worth getting a portable camping toilet? I am not fond of handling solid waist or looking for a spot to shit in the woods and stumbling over my husbands last "thinking" spot. So I am looking for a portable toilet option that requires little to no cleaning. I found  this web page that outlined different portable toilet types and there pros and cons. I found out that there are three different types; bucket toilets, folding toilets, and portable flush toilets. I immediately omitted the flush toilet from the list because as the mother, guess who would be cleaning it. The bucket toilet seams big and unstable for our toddler son. So I am left with folding toilets. My genius idea is to use biodegradable bags with the toilet. After each use we will place them in a hole we dig in the earth. When we leave camp we will fill the hole back in and presto I don't have to do any toilet cleaning.

I am thinking something like this TravelJohn.

Gathering Goodies, Eezi Awn, National Luna from Equipt1.

I am putting together an order of a few of the major component necessary for a successful expedition. the Canadian dollar is doing good, and i found a freight company 2 hours away in Washington willing to hold my 300lb freight order for me. In the end I will save on shipping and customs charges, on small orders not a big deal but when you are talking something this big and expensive it just makes fiscal sense. Paul May from Equipt has been wonderful to deal with, answering my questions very fast and providing great representation for the quality products he distributes.

National Luna is a South African based company that has been building 12v off-road solutions for almost 30 years, National Luna refrigerators are designed for extreme environments where ambient temperatures can be above 43 degrees Celsius and battery power is scarce. Originally designed to meet World Health Organization specifications for transporting medicines in harsh African conditions, National Luna fridges are now the preferred choice for safari operators, caterers, mining companies, camper manufacturers and serious 4x4 enthusiasts. It is this mixture of performance and power use that has led us to choose the 95l stainless steel double door refrigerator.

Eezi Awn is another South African based company that has been involved in expeditions for close to 30 years. They supply what is arguably the highest quality roof top tents on the market. Their tents are made of 380g wax impregnated rip-stop cotton canvas, this is the most durable canvas used in RTT construction today, only Eezi Awn uses it. Canvas, the tent material used for many decades is the obvious choice when you want highly durable material that is waterproof, yet breathable. One thing that is very important to our family is a comfortable living space, the Eezi Awn 2200 Family sized tent seemed the best solution to fit this need. The 2200 has a internal divider and two ladders, this will let us put the kids down in one side and not disturb them later in the night when we come to bed. Measuring at 2440mm by 2200mm by 1300mm fully opened this is the best option for our family, at this time.

Jonathan

Pictures of our Truck and Trailer Expedition Setup So Far.

 The trailer is a M11CDN2 surplussed Canadian DND trailer. We were lucky enough to find it in mint condition. We will do a future post on the plans we have for it.

 Looking good!

Looking real good!

We love our hitch!! The Pintle Hitch allows for a lot of articulation.

What to pack on an exedition?

I am looking to make a "Must Have" list of thing to bring on an expedition. What do you suggest for a family with a toddler, infant, and dog? So far my list consists of;

First Aid Kit (any thoughts here?)
Fridge (National Luna)
Propane Stove
Water bladder and pump
Eezi Awn tent 2200
Plates and cuttlery
Cast iron pan
Kettle
Sheets, pillows, and blankets
MSR Flex 4 cookware, plates and cups
Camping chairs
Drifta Pullout Kitchen
Flashlight

Any suggestion you could make that made your life easier while on your expeditions would be great. Thanx for your help.

Andrea

Fitting Our Family In The Nissan Frontier 2008 Nismo

It was important for us to have an expedition vehicle that comfortably fit our entire family. This meant we needed room to fit two car seats, one dog and two adults. Our two year old son fit nicely into the back with his Britax car seat and gave lots of room for the front passenger to stretch there legs. Our five month old daughter's seat was a little bit more difficult to fit in. The only way we could get her seat in was to put her seat in the middle of the bench, as it did not fit behind a front seat. Once we put her in the middle we adjusted the front seats forward a tad and presto she fit. We are attaching her seat into the truck by using the seat belt from the truck opposed to the base which we left in our everyday driver. As you can see in our picture Max (dog) is happily fitting in his luxurious seat and he can even find room to lay down and catch a nap. I am only worried now about longer road trips with the children as we don't have much more room for the essential can't live without items; a cooler with snacks, a bag full of entertainment and of course the diaper bag. We have been gladly using this set up for a few months and can't wait to take it out on an expedition.

Andrea

Expedition Trailer

We choose to start with a solid base to build our trailer. Background: In 1992 Canada DND built 1972, 1/4 ton trailers to serve along side the VW Itus. In the relative peace in the late 20th century the trailers where not fully utilized and thus in 2006, retired from active service.Auctioned off as surplus, this provided the enthusiast with the perfect platform to build a overland expedition trailer. Weighing in at just under 800lbs and fully equipped to handle 1500 lbs of load, we plan to add a full kitchen, sleeping arrangements and a self sustainable electrical system capable of providing the energy to support a fridge, lights, heating and a pressurized water source.

Jonathan

Expedition Truck: Nissan Frontier 2008 Nismo

We chose our expedition vehicle because of several key traits. it is reliable,  a good size for a family of four and economical to operate. The Nissan Frontier Nismo Edition is basically a 1/2 ton pickup in a smaller package. The transmission and rear differential come directly from its big brother the Titan, adding to the reliability where it counts, getting you home!. While the 4.0l engine lacks some down low torque in 4Hi, if you need you can engage the E-locker in 4Lo to engage some real down low power.

Some modifications I chose to make the truck more expedition worthy and family reliable include a 2" suspension lift, manufactured by Old Man Emu suspensions from Australia. Heavy duty skid plates courtesy of  Hefty Fab.Tire size: 255/85r16 BF Goodrich KM2 tires on Nismo 16" forged wheels, which added a lot more ground clearance and protection for the more vulnerable bits when forging into area less traveled. Some of the future plan's include Shrockworks front bumper with Warn 9500lb winch and Hefty Fab rock sliders and rear bumper with tire carrier. We tow our expedition trailer with a 5ton pintle style receiver which allows us full articulation in tough terrain.

Jonathan