On our travels we’ve discovered a few little tips and tricks that have served us well.
Make sure that you take breaks from sitting in the car. An hour or so is long enough to be sitting there before you get out and stretch your legs and straighten you back. Sitting in the car for hours on end without breaks can lead to DVT (Deep Vein Thrombosis) as Jenny discovered.
Make sure that you drink enough water. Being a little dehydrated is not good and coupled with long periods in the car may cause the dreaded DVT to raise its ugly head. Drink enough so that you need to get out of the car regularly.
We tend to be a bit guilty of not taking enough photos and sometimes wish that we’d taken the time to take a few. Be sure to have more than one camera and be sure to use it. Some things are almost impossible to describe.
Car snacks. Chips (crisps) can be a mixed blessing. They’re a good snack but they tend to leave crumbs and greasy fingers. They also make you thirsty which makes you drink more water which can be a good thing. I’m diabetic so lollies and chocolate are a bit off the menu but if you’re not concerned by sugar then go for it.
Fuel. If you get to a “servo” with less than half a tank then fill up no matter what the price. It’s insurance. What happens if the next servo is closed and you’re down to the last dregs ? Try and keep a full Jerry Can for emergencies. It’s better to get home with the Jerry untouched than to be caught in the middle of nowhere with no fuel. If you use it make sure to fill it up at the next fuel stop.
Gas bottles. If you have two make sure that as soon as one is empty get a refill. Try and ensure that you’ve got a full one and a “working” one.
Water. That’s a bit like fuel. Never pass up a chance to top up your water tank(s). I’d much rather have too much than not enough.
Storage. We use stackable Sistema plastic boxes. The 27 and 14 litre ones stack on each other nicely. We use them for non refrigerated food, condiments, sauces, etc. as well as other bits and pieces including chargers, batteries, tablets (windows, ipad), keyboards, etc. They fit perfectly in the slides in the cupboards in the camper. We also use the larger, flatter 30 litre boxes for spare bedding, pots and pans and utensils, etc.
Just about everything, except clothing, goes in a box. They stack nicely in both the camper and the back of the car and don’t slide around because they fit perfectly in the available space.
The other big advantage of using the plastic boxes is that we can pack everything properly and check that we have what’s on our list before we trot them out to the car and camper. When we get home it takes but minutes to get the boxes and fridge/freezer baskets into the house where we can unpack at our leisure.