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Should you’ve ever wished to take your motorhome snowboarding or park up within the mountains over winter, this put up is for you!
Discover ways to winterise your motorhome & put together for snow and dwelling in excessive chilly. We additionally discuss discover in a single day parking locations for vans, aires or campsites throughout winter, handle energy throughout winter vanlife, issues to organise earlier than you permit and getting essentially the most out of ski tenting.
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Motorhome skiing- what’s it?
One of many issues we love most about travelling in our motorhome is the liberty. The flexibility to go the place we wish, after we wish to (world pandemics apart!)
We spend numerous time touring Europe in a motorhome and we wish to assume we’re pretty good at adapting to the environment. We’re fairly self-sufficient, know keep off-grid for a number of days with out challenge and may handle energy, water, waste and all that different stuff which comes with expertise.
However…
There’s something about staying in a motorhome up excessive within the mountains, whereas temperatures drop effectively beneath freezing, snow falls (rather a lot!) and issues get much more inaccessible which is a very completely different kind of vanlife.
Your choices are fewer and it’s important to be rather more ‘on the ball’ with issues like campervan heating and taking good care of your car.
That is motorhome snowboarding (or ski tenting, because the Europeans name it).
So, what’s the massive cope with motorhome snowboarding?
We’ve executed numerous winter highway journeys within the UK. We’ve been within the mountains in Europe as late as December, and once more in March. Each occasions there was snow, however we didn’t keep longer than a day and it wasn’t proper within the coronary heart of the chilly season.
A few years in the past, we had an epic winter highway journey in Europe and spent per week at Mont Dore in central (ish) France, and had a VERY steep studying curve each earlier than we went and while we had been there.
On this put up, I wish to share with you the largest suggestions and tips we learnt for dwelling in a motorhome over winter.
Our fears earlier than we headed to the snow…
Our largest concern is whether or not our motorhome (a UK-built Swift 685) will likely be as much as the rigours of winter motorhome dwelling in such a chilly, hostile atmosphere.
Would we be heat sufficient? Will our methods cope? What preparation do we have to do prematurely to make life simpler? What occurs if all of it goes mistaken?
To assist educate ourselves, we spoke to somebody who has spent months in mountains over winter. In actual fact, 95% of all her time in a motorhome EVER has been throughout winter.
Please word that winterising your motorhome to be used in mountains just like the Alps is NOT the identical as getting ready your van to be used within the UK all through winter- that’s a lot simpler and also you don’t have to do many of the steps talked about beneath.
Should you’re not going to be utilizing your van for just a few weeks, we extremely suggest shutting it down safely to keep away from burst pipework or injury. Learn our step-by-step information to winter shutdown right here.
Motorhome snowboarding and winterising your motorhome video
Watch our video chat with Hannah from winterised.com and snomadsites.com. Should you choose to learn or need extra data on factors mentioned within the video, you’ll discover them beneath.
We hope you discovered the video helpful. Should you did, we’d like it if you adopted us on Youtube. New movies with suggestions for motorhoming and campervanning within the UK and Europe are launched weekly.
Motorhome & Campervan skiing- important suggestions
As mentioned within the video above, listed below are some tricks to put together your motorhome or camper for winter spent within the mountains. A few of them genuinely are life-saving; getting caught in temperatures and situations like these with out being ready is not any joke.
Winterise & Put together your car
It’s extremely probably that your motorhome or campervan won’t be ample in its present state (until to procure one particularly for winter use!)
Subsequently, you’re going to wish to do some work to it to get it snow-ready!
Jobs to do to arrange for winter within the mountains embrace:
Insulating your motorhome
Apparently, the traditional ‘gray’ lagging insulation shouldn’t be sufficient. The black model (referred to as Armaflex) is the one to get- out there from most European {hardware} shops or Amazon. Locations to focus on embrace:
- Exterior water tanks and pipework (It’s price including some to inside water tanks too in case you can)
- Any pipework which runs alongside the ground (that’s most of it!)
- Wheel arches
- The ground– attempt to create a ‘double ground’ impact utilizing insulated matting the place you may, or use carpet items
Important GEAR to take
There are some stuff you NEED to carry- and a few stuff you SHOULD carry to make life simpler for you!
This isn’t an exhaustive listing, however start line consists of:
Utilizing your motorhome throughout winter
It’s necessary to keep in mind that how you employ your motorhome between spring-autumn won’t be the identical as utilizing it in the midst of winter up a mountain in -17c!
Your methods won’t operate in the way in which you is perhaps used to, and there will likely be different jobs you must do to maintain all the pieces operating.
Even in case you’re used to wild tenting together with your motorhome, make sure you take note of the following tips:
Waste tanks
While you park up, place an exterior bucket or container beneath the gray waste drain, and depart it open. This helps stop freezing. Make sure to empty the bucket often!
Most Aires could have locations to get rid of waste, though not all amenities can be found on a regular basis (we’ll get to that!)
Water
Many aires and campsites will depart a contemporary water faucet operating, in order that it doesn’t freeze. We additionally counsel utilizing a water filter for ANY campsite water- simply in case (or get one in every of these AMAZING lifesaver jerrycans)
TOP TIP: Don’t drink yellow snow… 😉
Energy & Heating
Many campsites within the mountains don’t have 16 amp electrical energy provide and so your campervan or motorhome heating may not work in addition to you’re used to! It additionally means you must be selective about how a lot electrical energy you’re utilizing directly (you don’t wish to be THAT van which is continually tripping everybody’s electrical…)
Fuel heating is a good alternative- however it makes use of numerous gasoline. We get by means of a 6kg bottle in about 3 days. We extremely suggest becoming refillable gasoline bottles in your motorhome in case you’re going to be travelling in Europe a lot- ensure you know the place the closest provide is (and if it stays open throughout winter!)
Diesel heating can also be an important various, however many vans don’t include it as customary. Should you do match it, pay attention to the burden and the way it impacts your motorhome payload.
Don’t neglect, you will have someplace to dry moist gear. It helps you probably have a toilet with heating- string a line throughout the highest and dangle all the pieces as much as dry in a single day.
READ MORE: Every part you must find out about motorhome/ camper heating
Photo voltaic
You possibly can’t depend on solar energy throughout winter in the identical method you may at different occasions of the 12 months. The solar isn’t as sturdy, there are extra nighttimes and extra areas of shade. Additionally, you’ll be utilizing extra energy than you would possibly usually.
If you have already got a photo voltaic panel fitted, then by all means use what you may, however don’t depend on it as your solely energy supply.
Battery
Batteries don’t like chilly. They don’t run as successfully so you must be extra vigilant about taking care of them, ensuring they don’t run too low, giving them cost often and usually babying them.
READ MORE: Every part you must find out about motorhome leisure batteries
Generator
Should you’re going to take your motorhome snowboarding, you’ll in all probability wish to carry a motorhome generator. Everybody does- simply make sure you use it through the day, not late at evening!
LED lights
We all the time suggest LED lights to avoid wasting power- particularly in case you’re doing numerous motorhome wild tenting, however in winter it turns into important.
In fact, don’t neglect your clothes. Right here’s a necessary information of what to put on when snowboarding
Hiring a motorhome or campervan for snowboarding
There are firms which hire out motorhomes or campervans for snowboarding. Should you select to do this, please make sure that the van is correctly insulated and geared up with all the pieces you want.
Motorhome skiing- aires or campsites?
Certainly one of our largest questions was HOW do you discover someplace to remain within the mountains? Motorhome touring in France is straightforward sufficient in ‘regular’ seasons, however we all know many mountain roads shut throughout winter- so how do we all know the place we are able to go or the place is open?
It’s true that many websites shut throughout winter, however there are locations, together with free motorhome parking and in a single day stopover spots which stay open all 12 months. Sadly, it seems to be like some aires are being closed, however there are nonetheless campsites open and out there.
There are execs and cons as to whether you keep in an aire or on a campsite on your ski tenting journey!
TIP: Should you’re searching for ski tenting websites, search for the phrases ‘caravaneige’ or ‘snowmobiling’- each phrases utilized by the French
Execs of campsites
- Can usually be booked in advance- simpler in case you’re reserving ski colleges or gear rent
- Extra dependable electrical hookup
- Simpler in case you’re motorhoming with youngsters
- Bus or service to take you to the lifts if it’s not close by
- Drying rooms- this looks like an important answer to the moist clothes issue- there’s nothing worse than damp ski jackets and pants the day after! (Keep in mind to take your individual padlock for safety within the drying room)
- Assist getting towed out in case you get caught
- Different amenities, similar to a small store or restaurant, which might be helpful
Right here’s an instance of a campsite we’ve heard good critiques about which caters to motorhomes, campervans and even caravans throughout winter! (I like the actual fact it has an indoor pool!)
Execs of Aires
- Cheaper
- Extra flexibility to comply with the snow
- Feels extra like an journey!
The right way to discover locations to stick with your motorhome throughout winter
It may be tough to discover Aires in Europe within the common method for motorhome snowboarding. It’s not simply discovering the places- it’s understanding if they’re open throughout winter, what amenities they’ve open throughout winter and what number of areas will likely be out there (aires can go from 140+ areas to lower than 50!)
A greater possibility is to make use of snomadsites.com, which caters for winter websites and has extra data than you can even assume to ask!
Is motorhome snowboarding cheaper than happening a ski vacation?
This can be a powerful one. Most individuals who go on a snowboarding vacation solely go for per week or two most.
Most individuals who take their motorhomes to the mountains both reside close by or are going for a few months.
Nevertheless, as Hannah says, the hassle and expense wanted to ensure your car is correctly capable of hand a winter within the mountains usually makes it not price it until you intend to spend months on the market.
It’s additionally much more tough when it comes to sensible life- you could have moist clothes and damp to cope with, water, gasoline and electrical points and the fixed concern about getting snowed in. Should you’re simply doing it to lower your expenses in your highway journeys, you would possibly wish to assume once more or a minimum of do the sums very rigorously earlier than you commit.
Phew! That was numerous data to absorb however, as we found, ski tenting is a very completely different kind of motorhoming or vanlife.
Nothing beats ‘doing it your self’, however I hope you’re feeling rather more knowledgeable earlier than your first motorhome ski journey.
Should you’ve been snowboarding and brought your motorhome or camper and have some other suggestions, please do depart a remark and share your knowledge.
Secure travels!
Final replace on 2023-10-12 / Affiliate hyperlinks / Photos from Amazon Product Promoting API
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