Trial run to Kochel: As you make your bed, so you must lie on it
Spring this year has been exceptionally cold and rainy, actually there hasn't been any spring at all. We read somewhere that the best way to try out a camper is in bad weather and if it passes the test, things can only get better. So far we have taken four short outings in Bavaria. Temperatures have gone down to around 5°C every night and we have hardly ever seen the sun, but we have survived. The weather wasn't really the problem. And of course we weren't testing the camper. We had already bought it.
At Lake Kochel/Kochelsee on our first overnight trip
The Ford Nugget has a very cleverly designed camping interior, made by Westfalia. Every milimeter has been exploited. The backseat unfolds as a bed - but first you want to eat at your little table. The front seats swivel around and face the little table that pops up if you press the right spot, the table even has an extension that can be found under the backseat, once you find the lever to lift the seat, not to forget that you must slide the backseat as far back as possible before you pop up the table. Getting the front seats to swivel wasn't quite as straight forward as we expected. You have armrests to fiddle with and the backs must be at the correct angle or the steering wheel will be in the way. But we got it figured out.
Going to bed is a more serious undertaking. Find the right button to fold up the table, replace the table extension to its cute little holder under the seat, clip it in, and now slide the seat forward as far as it will go. This camper is too clever for us. The seat didn't want to slide, it wouldn't budge an inch. We pushed and pulled and cursed. We tugged on the release lever, to the left and to the right, with no results. Janos is an engineer. That didn't help either. I knew then and there that crawling into a tent that you have carried on your bicycle and sitting on the ground was easier...
Some higher power must have taken pity for eventually the bed did open. Our Ford also has an upper story and there's a bed up there, too. We both need our space and have eratic sleeping patterns so two beds isn't a bad idea. Getting the upper bunk set up wasn't quite as dramatic, but I saw I would need some practice before I could say it's as easy as pie.
That was the main event of our first overnight trip. We stayed at a campground in Kochel, it was the end of April and it wasn't warm. Since we hadn't brought our bicycles along for entertainment, we were perectly happy to drive home the next morning.
Going to bed is a more serious undertaking. Find the right button to fold up the table, replace the table extension to its cute little holder under the seat, clip it in, and now slide the seat forward as far as it will go. This camper is too clever for us. The seat didn't want to slide, it wouldn't budge an inch. We pushed and pulled and cursed. We tugged on the release lever, to the left and to the right, with no results. Janos is an engineer. That didn't help either. I knew then and there that crawling into a tent that you have carried on your bicycle and sitting on the ground was easier...
Some higher power must have taken pity for eventually the bed did open. Our Ford also has an upper story and there's a bed up there, too. We both need our space and have eratic sleeping patterns so two beds isn't a bad idea. Getting the upper bunk set up wasn't quite as dramatic, but I saw I would need some practice before I could say it's as easy as pie.
That was the main event of our first overnight trip. We stayed at a campground in Kochel, it was the end of April and it wasn't warm. Since we hadn't brought our bicycles along for entertainment, we were perectly happy to drive home the next morning.
Camping in Kochel
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