Thread: Defender Minimalism

Stretchers, instant up tent, fridge, good hot LPG powered cooker, led lights aplenty, wolf pack storage boxes and at times and space permitting if for more than a couple of days the Coleman Hot Water on Demand, and ensure tent, spare battery, fishing gear. Take as much as makes your trip personally enjoyable. If roughing it on the ground takes your fancy all good, but if you want all the gear go for it because unlike a Jeep a Land Rover can take all the gear safely and legally and travel well on and off road... Cheers

I can do minimalist. I've slept in a cargo net reconfigured as hammock.... but I'm not doing it voluntarily.
I love the bush and so does Mrs Strangy, we are not 20yr old lithe creatures anymore, so swag is a bedding minimum.
Our "in progress" camper back is minimalist for extended touring.
A 2 burner portable stove,engel, battery and solar panel, water, bed is up top under a tilt roof.
Some think that's too much, but really it's just the basics in a big ally box to protect and keep from the weather.
I like Mrs to be comfy and she really isn't a high maintenance girl.
We still have swags for those glorious desert desert nights.

Originally Posted by ozscott

Stretchers, instant up tent, fridge, good hot LPG powered cooker, led lights aplenty, wolf pack storage boxes and at times and space permitting if for more than a couple of days the Coleman Hot Water on Demand, and ensure tent, spare battery, fishing gear. Take as much as makes your trip personally enjoyable. If roughing it on the ground takes your fancy all good, but if you want all the gear go for it because unlike a Jeep a Land Rover can take all the gear safely and legally and travel well on and off road... Cheers

...well that's part of the question, between taking the minimum, or loading your vehicle to the gunnels, because you can. For me keeping gear to a minimum isn't about doing it rough, it's about quality over quantity. Quality of experience to me is keeping things very simple. I must admit that taking a hot water on demand unit with me would not be minimalism.

The other big factor in terms of vehicle loading is that the 'taking it because you can fit it in' approach is usually bad for the vehicle too. More weight = more wear and tear on tyres, bushes, brakes, etc and = higher fuel consumption.

No I only take the hot water system when going for long camps especially with my wife and kids. Quality gear makes a difference. For example alloy stretchers over steel. But time of set up is important to me so I use a Coleman Instant up Gold Edition when my wife and daughter are not with us and it's just me and my 2 boys...very quick set up,for a tent that can hold 3 Stretchers in a 6v style. Cheers

The older we get the less minimalist we get (in our case anyway).

We went away a month or so ago with just:

• A 2 man tent
• thermal mattresses + sleeping bags
• Folding table and 2 chairs
• Food & wine
• The dog

just like we used to when we were 30 years younger.

Gawd it was a shock - I forgot how 'swishy' sleeping bags on mattresses are, every time you move. And how thin they are. And how small a 2 man tent is. Cooking over an open fire is always the best though.

Still had a great trip, but this is our minimum minimalist specification these days!:

Originally Posted by spudboy

The older we get the less minimalist we get (in our case anyway).

We went away a month or so ago with just:

• A 2 man tent
• thermal mattresses + sleeping bags
• Folding table and 2 chairs
• Food & wine
• The dog

just like we used to when we were 30 years younger.

Gawd it was a shock - I forgot how 'swishy' sleeping bags on mattresses are, every time you move. And how thin they are. And how small a 2 man tent is. Cooking over an open fire is always the best though.

Still had a great trip, but this is our minimum minimalist specification these days!:

😊 Ha ha! Nice. We do indeed get softer as we get older 😳. I'm enjoying the diversity of what minimalism means for different people!

I used to be able to fit all I needed on the back of a Honda NX-650 and go touring for weeks on end. Since wife and kids came along it is now more and more difficult to fit everything into the 3.6 cubic m available on the back of the 130. I'm a minimalist but try convincing the wife and kids.

Though I am currently doing a redesign of the internals and hope to make a place for everything so I plan to only make a place for the necessities. Though in saying that it's always nice having the convenience of a fridge and gas cooker and cooking gear easily accessible.

I also do camp chairs and table etc. This isn't fully laden and the big tent and chairs are on the roof..