Van-tastic way to see the country
She escaped overseas whenever she could until she renovated an old cargo van. Lorna Thornber reports.
As much as she’s enjoyed her overseas travels, Ashley Konig won’t be too disappointed if Kiwis aren’t able to leave Aotearoa for a while.
Inspired by images of the #vanlife movement on Instagram, Ashley bought a cargo van just before she turned 30 in 2018, planning to convert it into a camper herself.
While she admits the move may have had something to do with a desire, unconscious or otherwise, to ‘‘push against the grain of being tied down’’ as she approached the milestone birthday, she was keen to embark on a project that combined her twin loves of adventure travel and making furniture.
She had a few ‘‘non-negotiables’’ for the conversion: The camper had to be solar-powered and self-contained so she could camp off-grid and there had to be a full-size mattress because ‘‘no-one likes their butt falling down between squabs in the middle of the night’’.
It took her about five months to complete the project in her spare time and cost between $9000 and $10,000.
‘‘Converting a van is nothing like renovating a house. You can’t screw into the walls and nothing is square or level so it’s all about being creative on how to fix wall panelling and hang cupboards.
‘‘I used to spend hours sitting on the floor of the van trying to figure out how to do the next step. There was a lot of trawling on TradeMe, and I made everything from scratch, including the kitchen cupboards.’’
Adamant the camper wouldn’t include any ‘‘standard pine’’, she used primarily native wood, including rimu for the benchtop.
Ashley has no doubt the project was worth the time, money and effort. The camper has enabled her to travel all around New Zealand, from Cape Reinga to Bluff, over the past two years, sometimes on her own and sometimes with her partner.
She was living in Auckland when she finished the conversion, and she used the van to move down to Christchurch ‘‘via Cape Reinga and some other beautiful spots in the North Island’’.
Working fulltime as a business consultant, she now takes trips in the van at every opportunity, even if it’s just to Banks Peninsula for the weekend or to Hanmer Springs for mountainbiking.
‘‘The ability to pick million-dollar views to wake up to for next to nothing is priceless,’’ she says. ‘‘There’s nothing quite like opening the back doors and looking out across a beautiful sunrise from bed. We really are quite lucky here. The varying scenery throughout the country is just spectacular.’’
Either freedom camping or staying at Department of Conservation grounds for around $8 a night and cooking for herself, Ashley has enjoyed many a memorable holiday on the cheap.
‘‘There is a decent fridge, running water, USB ports, a solar shower. I even installed an inverter, so I could run my 240V blender to make smoothies!’’ Believing a few luxuries are key to a good camping experiences, she also put in a SodaStream ‘‘to make the 4 o’clock cucumber, gin and soda’’.
A New Year trip around the East Cape has been among her standout trips so far.
‘‘The roads were so quiet compared to the rest of the country and there’s enough beach space for everyone, even at the busiest time of year.
‘‘The locals set up their caravans weeks in advance to secure a prime location in the designated freedom camping areas. In our first spot, we’d only been there an hour when a fellow camper offered us a couple of crayfish to cook for dinner. The locals are so kind and friendly.’’
At their next spot – another prime beachfront location – entertainment came in the form of ‘‘local kids galloping their ponies bareback along the beach’’ and ‘‘a spluttering hatchback car with no doors and a boot load of seaweed trailing out the back – off to supply a local business endeavour of some sort!’’
The Ma¯ tai Bay Campsite in Northland has been
another of her favourite spots, in large part because she and her partner opened the back doors ‘‘straight out onto the most beautiful sunrise over the ocean’’.
Leaving those doors open late into the evening meant they eventually became victim to a ‘‘mosquito massacre’’ but, having learnt from this mistake, she wouldn’t hesitate to return.
Her other favourite camping spots include the Lake Pu¯ kaki with its close-up views of Aoraki/Mt Cook and the Pu¯ ra¯ kaunui DOC campground in the Catlins.
Ashley feels road trips will – and should – become more popular with Kiwis as travel restrictions ease, particularly if borders remain closed. ‘‘Kiwis tend to escape overseas as soon as they get the chance – I’ve done it myself multiple times – but really we have so much to see and explore here in New Zealand.
‘‘It’s worth taking the time to see real New Zealand,’’ she argues, as ‘‘the real jewels’’ are off the beaten track.
The best things about travelling by campervan in her view include being able to pack up and leave at a moment’s notice, waking up to a different view each morning and ‘‘having everywhere yet nowhere to go’’.
‘‘Travelling in this style allows you to see a lot of things in a short space of time; to spend each night in a different location without having to pack, unpack, check out and wait to check in. It’s amazing the ground you can cover, even if you only have a week of holiday.’’
The ability to pick million-dollar views to wake up to for next to nothing is priceless.
Ashley Konig