This year our themes were tiki and at the potluck Dave crowned the trailer court tiki king. This event is the only time anyone is allowed to camp on the island. It's dry camping and absolutely no fires of any kind, but with view like these nobody minds a bit.
The view of Fisherman's Wharf and San Francisco.
After our last camp of course I began thinking of what could make camping better. We had purchased two small cabanas last year for each door, but the doors hit them and they didn't fit around the wheel well. On to come creative thinking. I had purchased awhile back a vintage trailer awning still new in the box and it was time to see how it worked. After putting it together it seemed with a few modifications it would work but I only had one.
Back to the creative board, I examined the materials and set out for Lowes to see if I could match them. I found most of the parts but after thinking it through I decided that I wanted something that could handle wind. I opted to use 1/2 inch conduit and found 90* corners that screw on...awesome! With material in hand we went to Harbor Freight to pick up a cheap pipe cutter and a rubber coated canvas tarp (I'll explain below).
Using the vintage awning as a template I measured out a 36 inch square and cut my pipes. A trip to the fabric for fringe and thread and back home to begin. Next I took out the bolt of fabric I used for the skirt and began my sewing pattern. I used the waterproof canvas as a backing for the awnings so when it rains we have a dry awning.
It was a square so it was a very easy pattern to sew. We purchased telescoping tent poles for support and put grommets in the corners to hold them. I took some scraps and made flags I sewed onto the ropes so they were more visible.
The awning fits perfect and the door and fenders are no longer a problem.
The flags kept people from running into the tie lines.
Folks loved the Guppy and the vintage details I put into it.
The vintage trailers surrounded the teardrops, the food trucks and Swapmeet were next to use and provided constant foot traffic both days.
The potluck provided an evening of great food and getting to know each other.
When the lights went out the city lit up giving us an outstanding view.
Overall this is one of our favorite events to attend annually. It's a great place to get ideas, chat with fellow teardroppers and enjoy the unique surroundings.
In my last blog I ran through the campgrounds but forgot to include some of my reviews on new cool gadgets we got to improve camp. The first is a 12 volt bug zapper. Heading back East I knew the bugs would be out in force and hungry for fresh blood. The zapper was light and came with a chain to hang and worked well for mosquitoes but not so much for flies.
This handy zapper worked great and plugged into the 12 volt outlet.
Our other upgrade helped with a little backwoods camping comfort. We purchased a 500 watt inverter. It's large enough to handle power tools but small enough to fit in the battery compartment. It keep out little crockpot humming and powered the box fan we hung from the canopy to keep us cool in the Midwestern summer.
The inverter has two outlets and two usb outlets.
The last gadget we acquired was screen sleeves for the FJ's windows. They slide on with elastic and fit well. They lower the heat inside the car and when Alex wanted to sleep in the FJ these came in handy to keep her cool and bug free.
I'm forever looking for handy gadgets to make life easier. I found for the Treasure Island trip glow in the dark tent stakes and light reflective paracord for tent tie downs.
The cord is reflective when light hits it.
Stay safe and enjoy the camp!
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