How do I load a Pontiac Montana Mini Van with a lot of stuff for camping?

Question

I'm going camping for 3 or 4 days, and we need to bring a lot of stuff. I want to have room for my bike, so I want to have the car with a lot of room. were bringing things like pots and pans, lanterns, flashlights, clothes, silver wear, food, towels, etc. So does anyone know an effective way to pack a Pontiac Montana Mini Van?

thanks!

Answer 1

Use the roof.  If you don't have a roof rack, think about getting one.

Answer 2

Try and cut down on stuff.  Silverware??  you can get little fold up things with a kinfe fork and spoon the size of a swiss army knife theres plenty of things you can down size on.  If thats not enought you need to just push really hard and close the door and itll all fall out when you get there.  YOu can also pull the seats. or should be able to I have a montana and its great for lots of stuff.

Answer 3

We use a small utility trailer for camping so we don't have to worry about stuffing everything in the car. We just pile it in the trailer and we're set to go. I like the idea of using the Uhaul trailer rental - the small ones are cheap. We have friends that just camp once or twice a year and that's what they do.

Otherwise. Pack everything into rubermaid style boxes. It is so much easier to stack boxes in the back of the rig than to just stuff things here and there. I also bought the huge duffel bags from a sporting goods store and one can hold 3-4 sleeping bags. Now you just have one bag instead of 4. Another large duffel bag can hold the tent and pillow (if you bring pillows) and clothes. A pillow alternative is to just bring a pillow case for each person then before bed stuff each one with clothes.

Packing like this also helps keep your campsite more organized since you'll have one box with all your cooking gear, one with your food, and so forth.

Now we can go camping with 2 rubbermaid style boxes, 2 big duffel bags, and the cooler. That's it. Makes it more organized in your garage too.

Answer 4

A good roof rack.  I like the Yakima system, I can carry my canoe, kayak and bike at the same time.  In the winter its great for ski's and/or snow boards.  They also have a storage box system for it too.

If your van has a trailer hitch, rent a small UHaul trailer.  That way you won't have the clutter in the van.  Or, rent a larger van for the 4 days, it wil take the wear and tear off you van, may save you from uphostery tears and scratches trying to jam all your "stuff" into your van!