Camping out of your explorer

[Thelt]

Anyone ever camp out of their explorer? I learned again last night that tents suck. I am going to try sleeping int he Ex next time.

 

[Tbars4]

...I know several people who camp in their Explorer...

..Some even have mattress's that they throw in the back...I camp out of mine regular...

 

[wisekise]

this just happened to me also. its a good thing i went to the tent to grab something before the night was over(aka: me passing out from too much bourbon:bdrunk and noticed constant dripping on the air bed and blankets. i was in the expedition at the time and i can say that a queen size air bed fits perfectly in the back. who knows what size will fit in the back of an exploder??

 

[ld50]

Used to do it regular in my first gen with a big air mattress with my girl and I. I found in warmer weather it was kind of better to have a tent tho, I don't do it anymore because of that, and I could still leave my gear in the truck with a tent. Plus it's hard to crawl in and out for that late-night pee, and you gotta mess around with your shoes if ya need them, like tuck them behind the front seats. Kind of hard to get dressed when getting in and out too.
Pretty comfy though...

 

[Tbars4]

...As for the mattress size, I have a twin which allows you room to stuff your shoes and other stuff beside it, although, I rarely use it...
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showpost.php?p=1706033&postcount=177

...Others use a queen size and it fills the whole rear of the X...

 

[Maniak]

I camped in it the last couple times at truckhaven as the wind tore apart the the tent..

I use a military surplus litter.. You know, those things they used in the TV show MASH to carry people around. I just cut the handles off tomake it a little shorter and it works great.

It worked well and its nice that I can take it out, leave it at camp with the stove etc.. and toss it back in at night.

~Mark

 

[xplorerguru]

Hey Thelt, there is a tent on the market that connects to the back of your ex and it works with the truck....... you leave the liftgate open and put an air mattress in the back and the tent part connects to the back of your ex and you have a wide open room, i call it the ex-camper. lol.

im planning n getting one this summer for when my girlfirend and i go to michigan camping. they run 200-300 dollars

 

[Spazz]

Yupp ive done it before .. fits a twin size mattress no problem. and its quite comfy too. =)

Theres also tents that hook up to the rear hatch .. not sure how good they are .. saw it in a magazene .. like 250ish.. looked cool.

 

[patman]

psh you guys! i just use a tent! although i do do alot of backpacking and camping excursions....and own a two man backpacking tent that stands up to 60 mph winds

 

[wisekise]

Yupp ive done it before .. fits a twin size mattress no problem. and its quite comfy too. =)

Theres also tents that hook up to the rear hatch .. not sure how good they are .. saw it in a magazene .. like 250ish.. looked cool.

its been a long time since i've slept on a twin bed, can two adults sleep "comfortably" on one?
250 is kinda high, but it would be worth it if you could quickly disconnect the ex from the tent to go wheeling or get ice and the tent could stand alone. also does it adapt for lifted ex's??

 

[Four0Sport]

man, i can tell you right now 2 adults in a twin bed is not comfortable. at least not for me, i sleep sprawled out and move around alot in my sleep. whenever i would have 'camping trips' and i would 'sleep' in my explorer, it wasnt too bad. I didnt have an air mattress, just some blankets and pillows.

 

[Dannyboy]

The only bad thing about these concepts for guys who wheel is that you use the truck instead of leaving it stationary. Not sure how that works.

I totally agree, sleeping in the wind sucks, moving all the gear out of your truck to wheel is a pain as well. Although my explorer is now useless for any type of camping, we have put a queen mattress in the woman's Xterra in lieu of setting up a tent.

One concept I've seen in pickups with a shell is to build a nice subfloor raising the floor a good foot or so for storage of gear and then having a flat surface. By the time you fill up a thick air mattress in an SUV though you might be pressing your nose against the ceiling.

 

[BrianDye]

I just wanna sleep in mine tonight now...
even though its in the driveway

 

[wisekise]

man, i can tell you right now 2 adults in a twin bed is not comfortable. at least not for me, i sleep sprawled out and move around alot in my sleep. whenever i would have 'camping trips' and i would 'sleep' in my explorer, it wasnt too bad. I didnt have an air mattress, just some blankets and pillows.

i didn't think it would be too comfy, guess i'll just have to leave the old lady at home, hahahaha........:shifty_ey
i just looked at the sportz tents web page, i think would have to go to a full size application to fit a lifted explorer, i still dont know if that would work??

 

[Tbars4]

...Here are a couple of decks that were made to put in your vehicle for camping..

..For an Explorer..
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=236064&highlight=mattress

...For a Ranger...
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=187427

 

[97awdx]

My wife and I have slept in the back of our explorer's numerous times. Mostly at truck stops though.

 

[Four0Sport]

i'm 6'2" and have plenty of room in my 4dr with the back seats folded down. my sport on the other hand.. not so much, i bring a tent.

 

[Spazz]

man, i can tell you right now 2 adults in a twin bed is not comfortable. at least not for me, i sleep sprawled out and move around alot in my sleep. whenever i would have 'camping trips' and i would 'sleep' in my explorer, it wasnt too bad. I didnt have an air mattress, just some blankets and pillows.

Well im 5'9 and 150 .. my girlfriend is 5'7 and 130 .. so yeah .. its comfy for us .. but we arnt too big =P

 

[Thelt]

I measured the back of my Explorer with the seats folded down and I think I can fit a full size air mattress. I ordered one from Wal Mart. All they had in the store was twin and queen. I also ordered some Magna Screens to put over my windows so I can open them and still keep the bugs out.

I may try this all out next weekend if I get my stuff back in time. I will let yall know how it goes.

I know I could probably get a better tent and it would not leak but I like to camp in bear country and I would feel safer inside the Ex. It is only black bears in my area but you never know....

 

[X6StringerX]

I read in a study once that black bears are responsible for more human deaths than any other type of bear.

Anyway, back to camping. I believe a full-size mattress would be perfect for a 1st or 2nd gen 4-door. I've never taken measurements, but I've pondered this on several occassions when I was f......, I mean, sleeping in the back of the Ex.