It’s unfortunate that you have to book a beach side campsite at Half Moon Bay 6 months in advance. But that is exactly what three other Revel owners did. All parked with glorious views out the back of the Van. I don’t think I’ve seen that many in one place since we drove it off the lot and yet these sites had to be booked 6 months ago. One of the Revelers was a surfer and the other was a young couple just enjoying the beach.and had a Porsche Cayan parked next to it in the site.
This trip was one night trip was an experiment to see if it would be enjoyable for two people with a camper 1/3 the size of our Lance Trailer. I wanted it to be a good experience for her and deployed the Lungo front seat bed to try for the first time giving her lots of room to sleep in the back. I used the stock block out shade inserts which really are better than the curtain I installed when it comes to the usability of the the front seats. The weak magnets made them a bit difficult to position so I riveted some heavy duty ones in key areas. In a small Van, the front seats need to be used optimally if you are camping with two people. Spinning the passenger seat around makes for a very nice comfortable lounge chair in a different “room” than the bench seat GLSS system in the back. The REVEL’s answer to privacy. Its better to use the bathroom with only one person in the van since the privacy curtain in the front makes the entire mid cab a spacious bathroom. Otherwise you need to lock yourself in a small box if you have to go unless you want to share.
The Luno was comfortable but it would have been even better if I had pumped it up harder. If you dont pump it firm, the edges give way and drop you into the edges which seems claustrophobic. Note to self- pump it firm and you can spread out more. There was enough room to sleep my 5 ft 8 inch body without curling into the fetal position. It felt like more room than a First Class Pod on United Airlines.
I cooked two full meals in the Revel –a three course dinner of two Ribeyes, Grilled Vegetables and Salad (premade). I used our Weber GoAnywhere Grill that happens to fit perfectly under the large seat in the GLSS. I also found a cast iron Griddle that fits perfectly inside the grill but I didn’t use it to cook the steaks and Veggies. I think this it is the best fitting BBQ and Grill for the Revel with regard to transport, storage and versatility. We enjoyed a great meal with a nice bottle of wine while watching the sunset on the ocean-just perfect. The only thing I would improve is to put some wall mounted cup holders. The GLSS table is not that stable when you start cutting food and a full wine glass is easily split. But without liquids, the table is stable enough to work on and eat on together.
Cooking in the Revel is definitely a one man operation. You can not pass in the hallway. I made Gina stay in bed while I cooked easy over eggs, Sausage, Hash Browns and Yogurt with Blueberries. I served it to her on a lap table in bed. and ate mine at the front table behind the driver seat. It worked out great. I use Butane Countrertop Range that fits perfectly in the top shelf of the Pantry for all our Revel Cooking. The shelf under the counter I use for silverware and cooking utensils. I’m getting rid of the Jet Boil and opting to only use the easy to access Butane Stove and collapsible cookware, bowls and pans. and as much disposable dishes and silverware as possible. Space is king.
We went with smaller camp chairs that were very comfortable for our campfire. We roasted Somemores before lent (giving up chocolate after today) and I realized I really enjoy a fire poker to manage the fire. Also, I replaced the long lighters with butane torches which are much better at starting campfires than matches or lighters.
I fished the surf for a couple hours with not much success during the High Tide around noon on Saturday. Not much holding water for the perch but it was fun.
We left around noon the next day and decided to have lunch at Sams Chowder House down the road for some lobster roles. A regular size parking spot was open and it was easy peasy parking the van in the same size parking spot that would have fit my F150. I remembered why I bought the Revel in the first place. I like an every day 4WD vehicle that I survive in for the next Zombie Apocalypse or Red Dawn.