Last month I spent 14 days in the Casa on a 2,000+ mile road trip through Glacier, Yellowstone, the Tetons and finally trips to Rock Creek and the Thompson River on the way home. It was the longest trip yet in the Casa but one of the best. During the trip I paid particular attention to all of the other rigs people were camping in and saw everything from bivouac bags to Greyhound size motor homes. Every National Park campground was filled to capacity with reservations only, some of over 300 sites and one almost 600 sites. I think I saw almost everything that people are camping in and there is an infinite variety including some very clever solutions. Two vehicles stood out on the trip, the first being the number of Mercedes Sprinters, they were everywhere and seem to be the new statement that people make when they want you to know they have money. Some of the full ticket models are in the $240k price range but even the cheapos are around $150k. So if you want to flash cash get one and let everyone know. You just won't impress anyone with your $100k European sedan anymore. I like the concept of the Sprinter although I think they are all AWD now instead of 4WD. I would like to see them on a wider and lower platform, right now you can't mistake them on the road as they look like a phone booth on wheels.
The other vehicle that astounded me was the sheer number of Chrysler Pacifica's in the park. There were so many that at one point I wondered out loud if they were being issued at the park entrance. But they were from all over the country and Canada and outnumbered all other makes of vans combined by about 3-1. I seldom see one around here so it was surprising to see so many in one area.
So how was the Casa? In a word, superb! For the solo traveler I can't wish for anything better except for a short wheelbase AWD van that gets over 20mpg. On some legs of the trip I got over 22 mpg with a 4WD truck and tall canopy. We camped at a different site every night and none of them had electricity but with a 1000w and a 1500w Jackery on board I never even got out a solar panel on the entire trip. I used an induction plate for some cooking, an electric tea kettle for coffee water, and electric grill for reheating or making quesadillas and used a new and tiny 500w space heater for quick warm ups. Sue and I would sit in the Casa in the evening and play gin rummy and this little heater was more than enough to keep the small space comfortable in 40 degree outside temps. For instant warm ups in the mornings the Kovea Cupid butane heater quickly rose the temperature to about 70 making getting dressed a comfort instead of a chore. There are 3 USB fans on board that evenly distribute the heat or help keep cool when hot outside. Late in the evening I would turn the bed into a chaise lounge and read until I fell asleep. There are 11 different LED light sources inside including a reading lamp so illumination of some kind is always handy. I was able to do a big rib eye on the Blackstone griddle along with some other meat entrees. I had plenty of onboard water and only refilled once. The new Iceco refrigerator was just perfect often showing the exact temp inside with a good thermometer as the outside readout, what an improvement! With the old Setpower model there was a 14 degree range which the company regarded as normal and it went both up or down resulting in the loss of food. It was a real comfort to look inside and see that the temperature was what it said it was.
The bed was very comfortable and I slept warm. Only 2 nights did I use anything other than a 40 degree bag although I had 3 bags with me. There was room for everything and nothing ever seemed cluttered, the Casa has an amazing amount of storage, more than some small travel trailers. Two nights were spent in some unusually hard rain but were dry and comfortable inside, I like the sound of rain on the roof. For one person the Casa is much more than adequate and a joy to spend time in. There are virtually no rigs on the market built for single person usage, you pretty much have to build what you need yourself. And it almost requires a dedicated vehicle. I can empty my entire system out in about 10 minutes but I don't like to do it and particularly dislike putting it all back together again. On fishing trips I take a 5x8 trailer that will hold my pram or other combinations of tubes, 'toons and a mountain of related gear. I wish more guys would build something like the Casa, I would like to see their ideas. Sadly, about 99% of the builds are on short bed trucks and just don't allow any wiggle room for people or gear. Or innovation since most are cab high canopies.
The truck was $25,300 as I remember factory ordered in 2014, the canopy was about $2500 and the power stations, solar panels and other stuff around $2500 more and I have used and improved it for over 10 years now. With some teardrop trailers exceeding $30k these days and not having as much room and not nearly as much storage I think it is a bargain. To move up to a new van and build it into a Casa would start at over $50k and realistically at 86 I don't have that much time left to camp. I'll just keep it and continue to make improvements as they become obvious. I must have seen at least 25 YouTube videos on pickup canopy campers that claim to be the "Ultimate Canopy Build-out" and none are as ultimate as mine. Some have nicer woodwork and lots of ball bearing slide furniture but often sacrifice utility and function for eye appeal. In baseball that is called: "Good field-no hit!"
The other vehicle that astounded me was the sheer number of Chrysler Pacifica's in the park. There were so many that at one point I wondered out loud if they were being issued at the park entrance. But they were from all over the country and Canada and outnumbered all other makes of vans combined by about 3-1. I seldom see one around here so it was surprising to see so many in one area.
So how was the Casa? In a word, superb! For the solo traveler I can't wish for anything better except for a short wheelbase AWD van that gets over 20mpg. On some legs of the trip I got over 22 mpg with a 4WD truck and tall canopy. We camped at a different site every night and none of them had electricity but with a 1000w and a 1500w Jackery on board I never even got out a solar panel on the entire trip. I used an induction plate for some cooking, an electric tea kettle for coffee water, and electric grill for reheating or making quesadillas and used a new and tiny 500w space heater for quick warm ups. Sue and I would sit in the Casa in the evening and play gin rummy and this little heater was more than enough to keep the small space comfortable in 40 degree outside temps. For instant warm ups in the mornings the Kovea Cupid butane heater quickly rose the temperature to about 70 making getting dressed a comfort instead of a chore. There are 3 USB fans on board that evenly distribute the heat or help keep cool when hot outside. Late in the evening I would turn the bed into a chaise lounge and read until I fell asleep. There are 11 different LED light sources inside including a reading lamp so illumination of some kind is always handy. I was able to do a big rib eye on the Blackstone griddle along with some other meat entrees. I had plenty of onboard water and only refilled once. The new Iceco refrigerator was just perfect often showing the exact temp inside with a good thermometer as the outside readout, what an improvement! With the old Setpower model there was a 14 degree range which the company regarded as normal and it went both up or down resulting in the loss of food. It was a real comfort to look inside and see that the temperature was what it said it was.
The bed was very comfortable and I slept warm. Only 2 nights did I use anything other than a 40 degree bag although I had 3 bags with me. There was room for everything and nothing ever seemed cluttered, the Casa has an amazing amount of storage, more than some small travel trailers. Two nights were spent in some unusually hard rain but were dry and comfortable inside, I like the sound of rain on the roof. For one person the Casa is much more than adequate and a joy to spend time in. There are virtually no rigs on the market built for single person usage, you pretty much have to build what you need yourself. And it almost requires a dedicated vehicle. I can empty my entire system out in about 10 minutes but I don't like to do it and particularly dislike putting it all back together again. On fishing trips I take a 5x8 trailer that will hold my pram or other combinations of tubes, 'toons and a mountain of related gear. I wish more guys would build something like the Casa, I would like to see their ideas. Sadly, about 99% of the builds are on short bed trucks and just don't allow any wiggle room for people or gear. Or innovation since most are cab high canopies.
The truck was $25,300 as I remember factory ordered in 2014, the canopy was about $2500 and the power stations, solar panels and other stuff around $2500 more and I have used and improved it for over 10 years now. With some teardrop trailers exceeding $30k these days and not having as much room and not nearly as much storage I think it is a bargain. To move up to a new van and build it into a Casa would start at over $50k and realistically at 86 I don't have that much time left to camp. I'll just keep it and continue to make improvements as they become obvious. I must have seen at least 25 YouTube videos on pickup canopy campers that claim to be the "Ultimate Canopy Build-out" and none are as ultimate as mine. Some have nicer woodwork and lots of ball bearing slide furniture but often sacrifice utility and function for eye appeal. In baseball that is called: "Good field-no hit!"
