We moved bikes to the truck roof after nearly losing them off the trailer
Ah, vacations. Travel. Sight-seeing. The chance to “get away from it all”. Living minimalistically. Taking only what you need - just the clothes on your back and a spring in your step. Buying food on the way. Borrowing or renting what you don’t have.
Sounds…sentimental. Poetic. Environmentally responsible. Counter-culture. And, as it happens, hard to do. At least for us.
Set aside the fact that we traveled with a fully self-contained home on our backs. Heat, AC, fresh water, refrigerator, bathroom, shower, kitchen, beds and chairs - all following us around the country, just needing to be parked and setup in each new location. This is the appeal of RV-based travel, letting those of us who can’t be inconvenienced to the point of being able to travel long-term on foot or on bike still be mobile easily.
While we already weren’t “roughing it” - there was still more “stuff” we wanted to bring on our trip. The big thing for us was our bikes. We wanted to give the kids something to do once in a location, and had hoped to offset gas cost with biking more. While we had mixed success in that area we still had the puzzle of how to carry them. We left with the 4 bikes all on a bike rack installed on the rear of the trailer, taking advantage of a 2” receiver hitch that a previous owner had installed. This lasted only a few weeks until we realized that the constant teeter-tottering of the trailer going down the road meant the bikes were getting thrown around too much and if we didn’t move them, we’d break something and not only lose the bikes but possibly cause an accident in the process.
So we opted for a truck roof-rack which, once we got over the initial cost, performed well the rest of the year. We rarely even noticed the bikes up there going down the road.
Once we solved our own “taking it with you” puzzle we got interested in how others figured out how to take along the stuff they wanted to while traveling. Whether these solutions are ingenious or dangerous we’ll leave up to you to decide - but here is our collection of “taking it with you” photos:
Dean writes:
Brilliant! Love the pics. I wonder… what other photo goodies do you have that you haven’t shared!? Heck, you have all winter to upload. Love to see more of the oddities on the road.
Boyink writes:
Oh - I don’t have a *ton* up my sleeve. We kept things pretty tight.
DurtKlod writes:
Those are great! I most closely resemble the last one.
Holly writes:
Too Funny! We recently unloaded the two 12’ kayaks stuffed into our living room each time we moved. Didn’t realize what a pain they were until we got rid of them! However, now that we will be on the Fl coast for 3 months (in one place), I’m checking craigslist for a couple more ;)
salguod writes:
The triple stacked Subaru Justy was a hoot.
We bought a hitch mounted rack and weather proof bag for our SUV for use when we don’t have the trailer. Unfortunately, an SUV that will tow a pop up well doesn’t have much space inside for 5 plus a dog and gear. I certainly miss that about our minivan. We don’t usually put much weight back there, mostly sleeping bags, pillows and blankets.
Oh, and I stared at that white Jeep for a long time and couldn’t tell what was different, other thant he kayaks.
Boyink writes:
Before having the truck I loved having little utility trailers - always had them along for trips and camping.
On the Jeep - look through the door window…