It’s not really “Camping in a Car,” but we had the amazing
privilege of “Camping on a Ferry” last summer, and I’d like to share a bit of
what we learned in case it might help somebody have a good camping experience.
My mom (she’s awesome) wanted to take all of us to Alaska. Dad was certainly involved, but this was mom's dream and mission. And on this epic journey she
wanted us to take the Alaska Marine Highway (a ferry) for at least part of the
trip:
https://www.dot.state.ak.us/amhs/ This would involve getting several rooms for all of us as we made our way
back from Juneau to Bellingham, Washington, a trip of 3-½ days. When we started
doing the research, we discovered that some people actually camp in tents on
the deck of the ship. This possibility just took the trip to potential extra-awesome
status. My sister loves the outdoors, and she wanted to give it a try as well. She
is a therapist and a search and rescue volunteer in the Pacific Northwest, so
my fears of getting swept off the deck in my sleep by a rogue wave were
somewhat alleviated, knowing that my sister would be nearby to help either, 1.) find me, or at least 2.) counsel me through it. So, we started making plans to camp on the
ferry. Several blogs gave some very helpful information, but I will make a few
additional suggestions based on personal experience.
Since we were flying, I wouldn’t be able to take any tent
poles in my carry-on luggage, so I needed a decent bag that would function as
checked baggage. I chose a good waterproof duffel bag that was large enough for
all of my gear. This held my clothing, sleeping bag, tent, sleeping pad, and
toiletries.
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| Waterproof Duffle |
I also needed a tent that was smaller than my normal Alps
Mountaineering Vertex 2 and 4. I love Alps gear, so I went with a 1-person Alps
Mountaineering Lynx. It’s 2’8” x 7’6” with a 32” center height, basically just
barely big enough for a sleeping bag. This is why I went with the waterproof
duffel, so I could keep my gear in the foyer without it getting wet. In
hindsight, I might go with a 2-person tent that would be slightly wider, but also
low to the ground. The Lynx worked, but space and weight weren’t quite as
critical as I expected, and it would have been nice to keep my gear inside. One
of my neighbors on the deck had an enormous REI tent, and it really flopped
around quite dramatically in the wind. The man and his children had to fill the
tent with water jugs and plastic totes to keep it from getting blown off the
deck. I was thankful for my low-profile tent. By the way, my sister and I did our tent research independently and showed up with the exact same tent.
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| Alps Mountaineering Lynx 1 Tent |
Since I usually camp in the car, my huge comfortable and
heavy bag wasn’t going to work for this trip, so I shopped around and decided
on a Marmot Trestles 30s extra long and extra wide from Moosejaw for about $90.
It was a great mummy bag (my first) and not too cramped at all due to the extra
length and width. It also compressed pretty well. I am 6’1”, and I was concerned about feeling claustrophobic
in a mummy bag, but it wasn’t an issue at all.
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| Marmot Trestles 30 Sleeping Bag |
The biggest challenge for this trip was deciding how to
securely fasten the tent to the deck of the ship in a way that would withstand
potentially severe wind and rain. Some other blogs gave the great suggestion to
tie a sacrificial para-cord loop onto each tie-down point, so that your tent
doesn’t end up permanently gummy from tape residue. Several also highly recommended using Gorilla
tape, since duct tape will not handle the wet and windy conditions. This proved
to be outstanding advice, and the wide Gorilla Tape was especially effective. I
also had a good experience with clear Gorilla tape, and I was especially
impressed that this particular tape said that it could be applied to a damp
surface.
I was convinced that there must be a better way than just
taping para-cord directly to the deck, so I experimented with putting various items through the loops
of my tent and taping them to our driveway for a while. I used pencils, rulers,
and nearly decided to go with butter knives (since they are flat, about the
right length, and very cheap at thrift stores). However, I happened to mention
this to a friend at church, and he said, “Oh, we can do better than that!” He
is a metal worker, and after listening to my concerns, he designed and created
some prototypes. After further testing in my driveway, he made a set not only
for me, but also for my sister. As we sometimes sing, “I love my Christian
family, deep down in my heart!” His creation gave us a very flat surface that
allowed us to tape it securely to the deck. It also gave us a tie-off point for
the four corners of the tent as well as for the rain fly and the guy lines (12
were needed). This allowed us to pitch a tent on a perfectly flat (and
sometimes wet) surface. And the Gorilla tape worked very well. I also happened
to pick up a roll of Flex Tape, “as seen on TV,” at Home Depot. Wow! I tried it
on one of the tie-downs, and I might have actually damaged the ferry surface a
bit as I tried to remove it on the fourth morning. I wasn’t exactly sure what
to expect for a surface on the ferry deck - concrete, steel, paint, etc. - but it
turned out to be ever so slightly rubberized (at least that’s the way it felt
to me). If you don’t have a friend who can make stuff from scratch out of steel
and aluminum, rulers will work really well for this - put the ruler through the
loop on your tent and tape it down. For the guy lines, put a loop of para-cord
around a ruler, and tape down both sides of the ruler. This gives a good anchor
for attaching the guy lines.
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| Testing the Tent |
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| Testing the Tent |
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| Potential Tie-Out Points |
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| Testing Tape (100 MPH Military Tape, Black & Clear Gorilla Tape, Flex Tape) |
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| Testing Tape and Tie-Out Points (butter knives and a paint stick) |
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| Testing Butter Knife with Hole, Para-Cord, and Clear Gorilla Tape |
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| Testing Butter Knife with Flex Tape |
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| Testing Custom Tie-Down Bracket with 100 MPH Military Tape and Gorilla Tape |
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| Testing Custom Tie-Down Bracket with Clear Gorilla Tape and Flex Tape |
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| Testing Butter Knife and Flex Tape |
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| Testing Customs Brackets and Tape in the Rain |
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| Testing Custom Tie-Down Bracket in the Rain |
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| Testing Tent With Custom Tie-Down Bracket and Tape |
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| Testing Tent With Custom Tie-Down Brackets and Tape |
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| Testing Tent With Custom Tie-Down Brackets and Tape |
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| Testing Tent With Custom Tie-Down Brackets and Tape |
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| Custom Tie-Down Brackets |
After all of the testing, I had a bit of a panic moment when we first got on the ferry
in Juneau at about 2 a.m. I went to put the first piece of tape down, and it
didn’t stick - at all - as if it didn’t even have any adhesive on it. The
surface didn’t feel wet, but apparently it was. I had a small towel with me for
this possibility, and when I used it to wipe down the deck under the tape, I
tried again, and it stuck. Whew! It wasn’t raining at all, but apparently there
was a bit of mist or condensation that had settled on the deck. I couldn’t even
feel it, but it kept the tape from sticking.
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| Trucker's Hitch |
The food on board, by the way, was really good and reasonably priced. Be aware that hot water is available, so you can bring ramen noodle cups, or something similar, if it might help save money.
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| Laundry Facilities |
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| Shower |
We were on the Columbia, and when we got on at 2 a.m., we
went directly to the deck directly to the rear of the solarium. This area has
the best views, but is nosier and smells like diesel fumes and hundreds of exhaust fans from every room in the ship. It is also windier and less protected than the
deck one level down. If I had it to do over, I would consider going down one
level.
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| Columbia Arriving in Juneau at 2 a.m. |
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| Looking Back Into the Solarium (lounge chairs and coin lockers) |
Bring some reading material! I thought I could handle sitting
on the deck of the ship and staring blankly at the horizon for 3+ days, but not
so. We got off at Ketchikan for a few hours, I found a thrift shop, and I
purchased a small New Testament. I spent the next few days reading all four
gospel accounts. It was a great experience. Also, be prepared for no internet. I had Sprint as a provider at the time, and I had virtually no service the entire voyage. My parents had Verizon and were fairly well-connected. We now have Verizon.
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| New Testament from a Thrift Store in Ketchikan, Alaska |
