Colorado 2008

Well just got back from two weeks of traveling around Colorado and paddling a bunch of whitewater.

Highest water levels in 10 years, so I was told.

Anyway, wanted to share some pictures of the Sprinter.

It did great on Trail Ridge Rd. No worries at all. Thanks for all the tips!

Plus it is sporting the new Shade Boy Awning!

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Looks great AVL, and welcome back!

If you have that much stuff on the top, are you packed in inside? How was getting the stuff down/up? What was your average mileage through the entire trip.

I also wondered "How was getting the stuff down/up?"

I saw no ladder. How tall are you, anyway?

If it were my dad - and I were eight years old again - I'd have been tossed up there faster than you can say, "are you done yet?!?!"

I see a ladder in this pic...

...or maybe it's just a pole.

Still a pain in the butt. The only time I ever use a ladder with the Sprinter is when I'm washing the van, and luckily that only happens every 6 months or up to a year.

No worries... there is a ladder on the back left door.

Getting the boats and gear on and off is just part of it. I put the gear up there due to the smells that can come from wet paddling gear and it doubled as a drying system.

It is really not that hard and after loading boats on vehicles for as long as we have, it is just part of the lifestyle. Out of 14 days in Colorado, we paddled 10 days. So that is loading and unloading about 20 times. Piece of cake!

Keeping speeds down on the trip, going no faster than about 68 mph, we got around 19-20 mpg.

Plus, the further we drove west the cheaper it got. I believe the cheapest was $4.47... and that is not really that cheap, they have just made us think that it is.

The inside has a raised bed and a row of seats. This area held my 3 dogs, my 11 month old and my wife. We were not at all close to full capacity.

Oh and I am only 5ft 9 inches tall.

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sikwan said:

Still a pain in the butt.

Click to expand...

Depends on how bad you want it.

All I could see were the boats on top; the ladder was invisible to my startled eye.

Awesome pics Avl_sprinter. I'm from NC and called you one time about your Thule towers....I finally bit the bullet and got some sent over from Europe. They are bomber. I've finally (after many different rack configurations) figured out the ideal setup for me using those towers you have, extentsions (the 421 adaptors), thule outriggers and a 4 foot ladder. I've been meaning to post pictures, but haven't got around to it. every trip out, I'm dialing the system in more and more. I haul canoes, sea kayaks, white water canoes and whitewater kayaks up there and it is great. I was a Yakima guy and resisted going to the Thule stuff, but I've been pleasently surprised. I will say the Thule bars are really weak with the 78" span so after talking to a friend who is in the WW industry, he said the 'trade secret' is to insert 5/8" cold (or hot) rolled steel bars inside the thule bars. Man, those things are bomber now. I've had 5 sea kayaks up there and could have probably put one more. It is insane how solid that system is. The other thing I've tried is the new Yakima big stack kayak stacker and it is a terrible design. I've pulled out my old horseshoe shaped yakima stacker and that works well, it just takes up a good deal of realestate. I noticed your thule stacker (830). how has that worked out for you?

I hope to post pictures in a few days of my set up.

Oh, I forgot. How much was that awning? I can't find a price anywhere online. Is the fabric nylon impregnated? (good water resistance?)

thanks.

The new Thule stackers are not as good as the old ones. But what are ya going to do....

I have heard of doing that with the steel, but have not ever thought I needed it.

The awning was purchased from here Shade Boy Awning

With shipping and whatnot, it was just over $300 USD.

Can't remember the exact amount, but it was less than others, plus it is so compact.

I just drilled holes into the towers and attached it to them.

Yes the material is waterproof and works well.

Make sure to get the poles when you buy it.

You will need them, so go ahead and get them. It keeps the awning from being pushed down in the wind.

There are strings that come from the corners and keep it from being blown upwards.

Here it is open. It covers from the front of the sliding door to the rear corner. Perfect size.

Where did you get the roof rack; I need one of those for my kayak! Can't find a fit with either Thule or Yakima using the suppliers that come up on my Google searches.
There is a ss rack advertised on a Sprinter accessory web-site, but it will not do the trick since I already have Thule and Yakima rack parts.

Great pictures BTW! We were on the same road last Fall on our way to a Grand Canyon raft trip. Want to go back to Rocky Mountain NP for a month some time (our picture is at Sand Dunes NP).
Jerry

KL2BE said:

Where did you get the roof rack; I need one of those for my kayak!

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I got mine sent to me from the UK from here: Roof Rack Shop

You will need the Thule 420 and 421.

If you do a search on the forum for "thule racks", my initial post will come up and you can see pictures.

It is the second one...

All other Thule accessories, including locks are from the US.

Good luck!
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Actually they are under car products...

420's

KL2BE,
I can attest to the racks. I got some after talking to AVL_Sprinter. They are bombproof. In fact I have 2 extensions that I don't need if you want to purchase them. I've got the 420 (towers) and 421 (extensions), but only needed two. So let me know if you would like 2 extensions, otherwise, good luck with the rack setup.