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2017AWNINGGUIDE
IN THIS SECTION 112 Kit & Caboodle: May’s new gear 115 My Caravanning Essentials 116 TEST Elddis Avanté 840 121 Awnings 2017 Guide 124 TEST Bradcot MODUL-AiR 126 TEST Caravelair Antarès 455 130 USED VANS Campbell’s Caravans 136 OUR VANS Val’s pup-tent review 138 OUR VANS Kim’s caravan cover 142 Prolong your caravan lifestyle 152 Q&A: Your questions answered 154 Caravans For Sale
KIT&CABOODLE
This month's
KIT&CABOODLE
Thelatest andgreatestoutdoorleisure gearrevealed andreviewed
All prices are suggested RRPs.
You may find significantly lower
prices online or
elsewhere.
SNOOPERVENTURAPORTABLEPOWERPB60Keeping your gadgets charged is a modern day challenge, especially when you are out and about. Finding the nearest power socket to charge up your smartphone can be a daily problem if you don't have portable power. Even then, most portable power packs are only good for one charge, and then they're useless.
That's why the Ventura Portable Power PB60 is so good. It has a monster amount of power in the pack (10,400 Ah), which means you can charge your phone 3 or 4 times, or a tablet PC once.
Having that amount of power is perfect if you are in your caravan and off grid. Or, if you go out for the day and use your phone a lot for navigating or taking photos. We've had one for the last two months and it's the best power pack we've used so far. PRICE £39.99 W snooper.co.uk
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SNUGPAKTORRENTLaugh in the face of a storm with this insulated waterproof jacket. The Torrent will keep you warm and dry, whatever the elements throw at you. The taped seams and zips are both waterproof to keep out any downpour, while the Softie® insulation will keep you snug when the mercury tumbles. There’s a detachable hood, deep hand pockets and a useful hidden chest pocket on the inside of the jacket. Zips under the arms let air flow through the jacket, which can help to stop the inside from getting too hot and sticky when you’re walking uphill.
PRICE £149.95 W snugpak.com
MOUNTAINWAREHOUSEMERLIN23LWhether you’re out for the day sightseeing or going for a country walk, a decent backpack is vital to carry your clobber. The Merlin 23L has ample space for everything you’d need for a day in town or on the hills. Two side pockets swallow waterbottles, the zipped back pocket is useful for keys, wallet and phone, and the large internal compartment will take a picnic and spare clothing in case the weather changes. The Airmesh padded back is comfortable to carry and will help to avoid your back getting sweaty. PRICE: £19.99 W mountainwarehouse.com
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LITTLELIFESNUGGLEPODAs cute as cherry pie and practical, too, this cosy portable bed is ideal for your little ones whether they’re on a caravan bunk or at a friend's house for a sleepover. Underneath is an inflatable airbed to create a stable, supportive mattress, while the brushed cotton,
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OUTWELL COLOSSEUM DOUBLESnuggle up for a toasty night’s sleep in this double sleeping bag. It's designed for use from late spring through to early autumn (temperatures of nine to 13 degrees). At 200 x 150cm it's more than big enough to cover any caravan beds. It’s easy to roll out and a lot more convenient than packing sheets, duvet and duvet cover. PRICE £99.99 W outwell.com
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COLEMANKICKBACKCHAIRChill out on site with a book, your iPod or a glass of your favourite tipple, cosseted in comfort by this sturdy fold-up chair. The Kickback has a powder- coated steel frame, a tough polyester fabric and a meshed back for ventilation – a very handy feature when the sun shines. It comes with a convenient carry bag so you can whisk it to neighbouring caravans, along to a festival or down to the beach. It’s available in blue, lime
and orange. PRICE £32.99 W coleman.eu/uk
WIN IN 2017 Caravan Lottery Enter once to be in with a chance of winning all the prizes in Kit & Caboodle each month.
To enter, go online to caravan.ma/caracomps pop in your details, and, if you like, sign up for our useful and informative Caravan e-newsletter. Each month we publish the winner in Caravan and online. If it's you, call us on 01778 392450 or email johns@warnersgroup.co.uk to claim your prizes.
detachable sleeping bag will keep even the
lightest sleepers warm and comfortable through the night. It’s available in penguin, owl and crocodile designs. PRICE £49.99 W littlelife.com
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LAST MONTH’S CARAVAN LOTTERY WINNER IS Mr Peter Thrumble, Wimborne, Dorset. (Claim your prize by 30 May 2017)
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VAXBLADECORDLESS32V CLEANERKeep your caravan and awning groundsheet clean with this cordless vacuum cleaner. It’s as powerful as a plug-in vaccum cleaner, but its slimline design means it occupies less space so you can tuck it away in the van, and the absence of a power cable makes it easier to use. A single charge of the 32V lithium battery should be good for 45 minutes of cleaning, which should be enough to last most touring trips away. You don’t want to overdo it, now! PRICE £299.99 W vax.co.uk
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LONG-TERMTEST
HEODDCLong-term test
THE ODDCOUPLECancaravansandcanvas reallycampside-by-sidein harmony?Andcouldatent replaceyourawning?
For many caravanners, tenting is the foot of the camping learning curve that eventually leads to touring on wheels. Once we discover the convenience of caravans, the idea of spending an hour creating a holiday home from poles and fabric begins to lose its attraction, given that siting a caravan is pretty much instant. But the great air revolution changed all that, first for tenting – and then for awnings. We’re committed fans of air awnings for their swift and easy build. But air tents? We’d never ventured down that holiday track – until Vango, maker of air awnings, persuaded us to take a step back into the roots of air technology. Vango
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was the originator of modern air frames, in tents. The first air beam tent was produced in 2011, followed by Vango’s first air awning in 2014. As test editor of a magazine fervently devoted to caravans, I was just a shade reluctant to switch holiday mode and shun caravans in favour of canvas. But there is an obvious correlation between the two. That’s when there are two generations involved. Caravan editor John Sootheran and his family sped off through France with an Adria Adora Thames – and a tent for their teenage son last summer. So why don’t the three Chapmans follow a similar tent-caravan route? You catch up with us on a beach in Cornwall,
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given the gusty day and our proximity to the sea. Had we done it all wrong, it could easily have become a kite and then a brine-filled boat, floating out to sea in a sorry tangle of poles and polyester. But we did it correctly.
Chapman The Tenter is installed in minutes. It’s cosy, just like an awning. And its two-metre open canopy proves a great place for sizzling bacon on our mains-powered hotplate; holidays are made for outdoor breakfast indulgences. We bought the hotplate, a Kampa, on impulse last year, but until now 'live' barbecues have overtaken it as our outdoor mode of cooking. But this time, too much of the car’s luggage area was occupied by the tent to enable us to pack the barbecue. The much smaller hotplate was the obvious option.
MAIN PIC Barcelona and tent by the sea; perfect two-genera- tion camping-caravanning BELOW LEFT Our view of the sea from the tent's
ample canopy
ABOVE Camping on the sand, a stone's throw from the ocean, and with the warmth of an Alde-heated caravan alongside
As the week goes on we find ourselves gradually becoming convinced about a tent as an adjunct to a caravan. Yes, we could go for an awning with an annexe, but a tent is separate, a distinct bedroom on its own, which suits our family needs better. It takes up about the same footprint as a medium-sized porch, which means we don’t come anywhere near overspilling our pitch.
Another morning and another round of bacon sandwiches cooked under the tent’s canopy later and someone mentions the possibility of buying the tent rather than returning it to Vango. Then during the following night the temperature drops, and the tousle-haired tent occupant makes an unscheduled 2.30am entry into the Barcelona, a heap of sleeping bag and pillows under one arm.
“There’s no Alde heating in the tent,” he quips as he wakes everyone inside in the act of sprawling out the sleeping bag and converting a settee into a bed.
with our long-term-test Bailey Unicorn Barcelona – and a Vango AirBeam Solaris 400, pitched close to the caravan, in place, one might say, of an awning. We quickly dub it 'the annexe'. My son, Richard, is the resident, kipping on an inflatable mattress that loses air each day; not a great success. The Air Beam Solaris, on the other hand, is utterly brilliant. It took two of us 15 minutes to construct, and that included pegging it down. We’d had a little advice from Andy Riley of Vango: “Remember, it’s not like a caravan awning. It’s not attached to anything (the caravan side) until you peg it down. So peg all four corners before you inflate it.” His words were good advice, especially
Words Val Chapman Photos John Chapman
Outfit: ile nicorn rcelon SS ng ong e ton V ngo Sol ris tent
In the morning, over more bacon sandwiches, we analyse the occurrence and decide on balance that the tent still suits our holiday style. Conversation turns to approximate plans for next year’s holidays and we decide to make a call to Vango to ask if we can purchase the Solaris. While most people graduate from tenting into caravanning (as we did; Alde and other sorts of caravan heating being a big, big reason), our tent experiment proved there’s major merit in marrying together tenting and caravanning. ‹‹
LIGHTWEIGHT PRACTICALITY Miriad Products loaned us a piece of awning furniture that proved ideal for our tenting venture. It’s an Arezzo Director’s chair (pictured right), light in weight, folding quite flat – and with a fold-out table complete with a recess for a mug or goblet. It’s the only furniture we need in the tent. It folds down to 54x80x12cm, so slips under the Barcelona’s bed easily for transit. Its frame is aluminium and its cover is polyester, nicely padded for comfort – and we discover that the armrests are removable for washing. Its rrp is £67.56. At 3.2kg, it's one of the lightest weight chairs we’ve encountered. We love it.
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May 2017 | 137
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DELIGHTFUL DEVONYOU’LL ADORE ITS EPIC COAST & COUNTRYSIDE
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10 BARGAIN USED TOURERS THE PERFECT OXFORD WEEKEND BUDGET CITROËN CACTUS TOWCAR PROLONG YOUR CARAVAN LIFESTYLE
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