Wild camping tent and wild camping

[mousey]

I wouldn't have thought it'd be cheap to run either. IMO any old car you can lie down in the back of would do short term.

edit
/////

not sure what happens about "no fixed abode" where do you receive mail / important documents?

 

[Janne]

You can buy a 25 year Defender quite cheaply. 2 years later you can sell it for basically the same.
They are simple vehicles, sturdy. Not much can go wrong. Cheap parts yes, many repairs can be done with very basic tools, DIY. They became more complex with the excellent 300 TDI. Still excellent though. Went more complex with the TD5 and the last one.
Also easy to convert to a "sleeper".
In UK I had an ex MOD Defender, 2.5 Diesel NA. 110. Converted to a sleeper by bolting two thick plywood bases over the wheel arches. Blow up matresses, sleeping bags.

Cooked outside. Toured Scandinavia with my family 12 years ago.
I have owned several Defenders. Love them. Am Defenderless now.

Would your workplace be happy to have post directed there? Or a local post office?
When I lived "rough" during the study summers I had the post directed to a local office.

 

[Tengu]

Our educational system is just fine, ask all those students who come from all over the world to study here.

 

[lou1661]

You can buy a 25 year Defender quite cheaply. 2 years later you can sell it for basically the same.
They are simple vehicles, sturdy. Not much can go wrong. Cheap parts yes, many repairs can be done with very basic tools, DIY. They became more complex with the excellent 300 TDI. Still excellent though. Went more complex with the TD5 and the last one.
Also easy to convert to a "sleeper".
In UK I had an ex MOD Defender, 2.5 Diesel NA. 110. Converted to a sleeper by bolting two thick plywood bases over the wheel arches. Blow up matresses, sleeping bags.

Cooked outside. Toured Scandinavia with my family 12 years ago.
I have owned several Defenders. Love them. Am Defenderless now.

Would your workplace be happy to have post directed there? Or a local post office?
When I lived "rough" during the study summers I had the post directed to a local office.

i do apologise, I have driven land rovers for many years some much older than 1990 when the Defender name came into being. I currently run a pair of 110's a 2.5 na ex mod and a 300 tdi, so think I am sufficiently qualified to comment on the price and living space afforded by such a vehicle. But as in every thread you comment in you are right and everyone else is wrong...

louis

 

[Janne]

i do apologise, I have driven land rovers for many years some much older than 1990 when the Defender name came into being. I currently run a pair of 110's a 2.5 na ex mod and a 300 tdi, so think I am sufficiently qualified to comment on the price and living space afforded by such a vehicle. But as in every thread you comment in you are right and everyone else is wrong...

louis

I speak from own experience. Just like you. Have you ever owned a Volvo, SAAB, Alfa or MB? Compared to those a Landie is cheap.

 

[Leshy]

Nomad, your post is so wrong and full of misconceptions and s#it it is plain ridiculous. Shows what kind of person you truly are.
Instead of spending your time shouting slogans outside the next G8 meeting you should enroll in evening classes and educate yourself.

Geezus Janne , who got the jam out of your donut?
Get off that high horse and take it easy !

That's a horrible reply to a pretty eloquent and valid argument.

Not everyone here can afford Defenders either....Just because you think they're cheap , doesn't mean that they are...

 

[Nomad64]

Nomad, your post is so wrong and full of misconceptions and s#it it is plain ridiculous. Shows what kind of person you truly are.
Instead of spending your time shouting slogans outside the next G8 meeting you should enroll in evening classes and educate yourself.

Janne, for someone so sensitive about criticism of your new home, some of your posts on this thread could be construed as surprisingly provocative towards your old one and the people living there.

Below are a random selection of articles suggesting others share my "misconceptions" regarding whether the Cayman Islands play by the same laws as other countries - you didn't really think that all those companies had their registered offices at Ugland House just for the nice view!

https://www.oxfam.org/en/pressroom/pressreleases/2016-12-12/worlds-worst-corporate-tax-havens-exposed-oxfam-report-reveals

https://cnsbusiness.com/2015/03/cayman-on-us-money-laundering-list/

https://www.globalpolicy.org/nations-a-states/state-sovereignty-and-corruption/tax-havens/49833-tax-avoidance-the-cayman-question.html

http://www.spiegel.de/international/business/the-cayman-connection-international-tax-evasion-scandal-spreads-a-539068.html

 

[Leshy]

A friend of mine has an old Volvo estate . Model is a 740 or something like that... It's built like a tank!

He lived in it, on and off , due to a nasty divorce, for well over a year with a mattress in the back ... Loads of room ! Comfortable , dry and safe.
Cooked outside, he showered at leisure centres and friends houses , used launderettes for his laundry and had a P.O.box for his mail at a local post office.
This was nearly 10 years ago.
He lives in a house now but...

The car is still going strong today and simply refuses to die!

It's like the Fidel Castro of the car world 😁

Oooops , sorry no politics. 😏



Oh , and Janne, I bet you'll never guess how much it cost 😉



Disclaimer: No affiliation to Volvo or any other car manufacturers.
I hate them all just as much ,
...money pits.😤

 

[Squidders]

Does anyone have any good links/ advice on suitable vehicles and how to adapt them?

From friends the advice is to buy Ford as they're cheap to run, parts are common as dirt and it's easy to find cheap ones to buy that have already been boarded out inside.

As for adapting them, doing it yourself makes the whole thing completely bespoke. The only thing I would not mess around with is to make sure any gas bottle you have is mounted outside the van... it's cheap to get a decent mechanic to cut and weld a place for it for you... Other than that in time, I'd get a solar panel for the roof to run a small fridge and some fairy lights.

I like the idea of a full time bed personally, not one you would need to pack away every night - it'd annoy me after a while.

Something like this would be very simple to make over a week working in the evenings and a weekend and I think it looks nice. Whether you opt for a car or van, you'll be able to use it long after you're done saving up and have a house. Good luck passing your test.

I'd personally go for something like this: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/282308551333

Not too large that it's a pig to keep warm inside and dirt cheap. The low height will also give you access to more car parks than a high-top.

 

[Leshy]

That's smart ! 👍👍

 

[tom.moran]

Don't be put off by the rust on a transit body, because they run a separate chassis it's not an mot failure unless it's within 12 inches of a seatbelt mounting point iirc

Sent from my E6853 using Tapatalk

 

[hyperblue]

Wow, that is quite impressive haha. Look like either a transit or maybe land rover are the way to go.

Thanks for you help!

 

[tom.moran]

Land rovers are good go anywhere vehicles but maintenance will be more than a van for things like tyres brakes and suspension bits. It depends where you will be driving it aswell. Also you will get more space in a van and it will seal better than a land rover to keep the heat in

Sent from my E6853 using Tapatalk

 

[Nomad64]

Alas I have had enough of the UK's terrible education system. The course is a FAGASA course (Field Guides Association of Southern Africa). I have spent years studying in the UK trying to get into any part of the wildlife industry, unfortunately our country is not nature orientated, jobs in the sector are scarce, badly paid and almost non existent. Even volunteering is becoming difficult here. Fagasa guiding courses are quite world renowned (in the sector anyway) and if you are qualified open many doors all over the world. You're unlikely to be able to become a guide in South Africa, but there are plenty of other places thar would be thrilled to have a guide. Having said all that, I would go and do the course just to get to spend a year living on a wildlife reserve , regardless of post job pontential.

It may not be the African bush but there are plenty of volunteering opportunities with your local Wildlife Trust who may sometimes have paid apprenticeships and free training courses on forestry skills, hedge laying, first aid etc. I've done a fair bit of work with my local Trust and there is a wealth of knowledge and experience there to tap into. As you have already discovered, despite the lamentably low pay in the conservation sector, competition for opportunities is fierce and anything you can do to beef up your CV will help.

https://www.wiltshirewildlife.org/making-change-happen

I've had the privilege of spending a spend a fair bit of time working and travelling in the African bush and applaud your efforts to get there and get qualified but you need to be realistic about the opportunities that will be open to you. Getting work permits even outside ZA may not be straightforward (the salary and tips earned by a local guide may help support a large extended family whereas employing a foreigner means money is lost to the local economy) and you will be competing work work with people who grew up in and around the bush.

Before parting with your cash make sure that the course you are doing really is a gateway to professional work. There are an awful lot of courses and "voluntourism" placements in Africa and elsewhere geared towards giving rich kids on gap years (with no real interest in the sector something interesting to put on their all important university personal statement) or pensioners something to do in retirement, than a route into serious professional work. Does the course end with a certificate or opportunities - does the college make a credible effort to use its contacts to get you into paid work.

If you are serious about getting into guiding in Africa then do anything you can to broaden your skill sets. The ability to drive will be essential as will the ability to fix stuff; vehicles, plumbing, solar kit etc. etc. Whether or not guns are your "thing", it can do no harm to join a gun club and learn how to handle a rifle which may be a requirement for some jobs. Get a first aid qualification and don't turn your nose up at any kind of hospitality or catering experience which could help get you a foot in the door at a private lodge. The sad truth is that for many guests, particularly at some of the high end lodges, the game viewing is just one part of the overall luxury experience and you will be expected to play the charming host to people who just want to tick off the "big five" and get stuck into the bubbly.

If you haven't already got a copy, I can highly recommend Richard Estes excellent guide book on African mammals. Not cheap but different from other guides because it focus on behaviour rather than just ID. There is slightly less detailed Safari Guide by the same author.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Behavior-Guide-African-Mammals-Anniversary/dp/0520272978/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1484087571&sr=1-4&keywords=richard+estes

Good luck.

 

[Robbi]

Superb post Nomad64 !

 

[Leshy]

Wise words and sound advice. 👍

 

[Idleknight]

Someone earlier on mentioned a chap who lives in a hammock full time. I watch him on youtube
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNvSqCsVaDYmVpec3btEv6Q/about

However he does have a car (Subaru) which he keeps most of his kit in. Its good viewing and interesting to see how he makes it work.

 

[mousey]

Someone earlier on mentioned a chap who lives in a hammock full time. I watch him on youtube
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNvSqCsVaDYmVpec3btEv6Q/about

However he does have a car (Subaru) which he keeps most of his kit in. Its good viewing and interesting to see how he makes it work.

That is awesome.

If I didn't have all the stuff I do have I'd quite happily do that - not sure about the wife and kids and pets....