Relaxing riverside solo camp in my 5th gen 4Runner - Eads Wash, Salt River, Arizona

[@magn630]

Oh good, have missed seeing Gunther "roughing it" with his electric blanket and doing his short-leg shuffle around the campground. He is so cute. I guess an old-school paper book could help us pass the time when our technology lets us down. Short and sweet trip, thank you.

[@ShoestringMartha]

It’s good to be back! I used to carry a couple books in the door pocket, for just such a scenario. I need to bring that back 😀

[@weecho27]

Gunther has it all figured out!

[@ChipChoc00]

So happy to see you two out camping again! Thanks for sharing!

[@Treetopflyer777]

Great video. I’m always so envious of overlanders that have such beautiful geography relatively close to home. Beautiful.

[@ShoestringMartha]

Thank you! It’s a big part of what keeps me here 😊

[@lovedogsontheloose]

Magnetic = "sold!" That's a pretty cool-looking light! I do like the Stoke Voltaics light, and especially the hand-warmer feature! I don't know why I continue to be surprised by the amount of trash in campsites, but thank you again for picking it up. Very nice painting of Gunther! I am envious of your space! And your ability to sit up and not hit the ceiling! What a beautiful place! Thanks for sharing!

[@ShoestringMartha]

Yes I saw your review when you posted it! Yet I still totally forgot to mention the mosquito repellent feature 😅 Google reviews said this place was trashed, but I found it to be not so bad - a few cans and bottle caps. Might be worse on the more popular beach area.

[@lovedogsontheloose]

@@ShoestringMartha Well it’s such a subtle feature! Easy to forget! I contacted them to confirm that the “repellent” is the orange light, because there wasn’t anything in my instruction booklet about it. I thought I’d heard before that mosquitoes don’t like orange light but wasn’t sure 🤷🏼‍♀️. Haven’t had the opportunity to test that yet, but boy oh boy do I love that hand warmer feature! I just pulled the trigger on a KickAss Black Friday package deal that includes a dual zone frig/freezer so we’ll see how that goes. (KickAss the company, although it was indeed a pretty kickass deal. 😂)

[@ShoestringMartha]

Lol! Kick ass!! 😂😂😂

[@lovedogsontheloose]

@@ShoestringMarthaI know, right?? 😂Their product videos are as hilarious as you might imagine, too.

[@detectingrebel]

You are such a Rockstar with all the best gadgets! 😊

[@weecho27]

Enjoy your videos and I can't get enough of Gunther. I would like to make a safety suggestion. You may want to think about strapping your solar generator (aux battery) and fridge to an anchor point in the car. If you're in a crash those just become projectiles that are going to hit you in the back of the head at 60 mph. Keep up the great content

[@ShoestringMartha]

Good idea! There is a cargo loop directly beneath where I typically carry it that I can make use of.

[@MyChannel-vm6dw]

You can always tell the good people when the first they do setting up camp is place down the doggo bed and immediately give them water.❤ Subbed on the spot .

[@ShoestringMartha]

They always come first, and welcome! ❤

[@tracker5849]

Beautiful peaceful place. Welcome back. You will never be in the dark again. Never to much light. The puppy is adorable!! Maybe not Gunther but still cute

[@jessys9868]

Your DIY car camping set up looks great. Enjoy the video.

[@ShoestringMartha]

Thank you! What kind of little camper do you have there? It's cute!

[@jessys9868]

That camper is a rustic trail Koala… 5 x 8 they are really well built little campers, but I have a home built now@@ShoestringMartha

[@charlottewilson4680]

It does look like Gunther. Sweet.

[@syanaz9936]

Hi...love all your video...tq for sharing.love from Malaysia.

[@keithbrookshire]

It's great to see you out and about on another adventure. BTW: one can never have too many lights or too many ways to start a fire.

[@ShoestringMartha]

True true. Two is one, one is none - and seven is six. 😂

[@barbarajeanne8351]

Gorgeous spot!

[@lynnef3297]

Well, that looked like a very enjoyable little adventure...ah, yes, minus some of the drive in and the cold. And your camping site was sweet. I'm glad you found an easier way out. 👍

[@ShoestringMartha]

It was! The way in was definitely not intended for full-size vehicles 😅 Now I know! No matter how much research I do beforehand, it’s always different “on the ground”.

[@scottmccafferysr.9902]

Great Vid thanks for taking us on your adventure.

[@judyshorrock7368]

You might try putting butane canisters inside of tall koozies . Ive been doing this to prevent them from rattling inside the door pocket. They could also keep them insulated from the cold.

[@skwatson2617]

Love the way you share your knowledge with us. Being a visual learni g it means more than readi g a book. Lol

[@michaelbruchas6663]

Thanks!

[@triflegrl]

Oh, that really made me miss Arizona! I wonder if you buttered the outside of the empanadas it would be more successful in the pie iron…

[@ShoestringMartha]

Maybe? I mean, butter improves everything 😄

[@ChristineD8093]

What happened to your Cupid heater? I can’t wait till I am done with my pet sitting job so I can go camp for a few days. Getting chilly here is Nor Cal. Your videos keep me invested in getting outdoors

[@ShoestringMartha]

Still have it and still love it! But when I saw that you can cook on the Sunflower, I just had to try it 😀Hope you can get back out there soon 👏🏼

[@rofireskyte6931]

Glad you 2 were able to get back out again! Thank you for practicing leave no trace principles and for cleaning up after the last pigs. Pro tip- I run some dusty trails and the 4runner has so much dust on the rear hatch use a power blower ( I have a ryobi 18v that can also inflate mattresses) quite noisy for a few minutes but I also keep a 4inch paint brush from the $ store in my door cubby to paint the dust away.

[@ShoestringMartha]

Great tips! I should see if my little 12v air mattress inflator would do the job. 🤔

[@tracker5849]

Your little painting is adorable!! Ears not floppy enough for the G Man...lol..not being nasty.

[@William2N]

Just love your videos!

[@54bonkers]

Another great trip! One can never have to many lights 😂

[@ShoestringMartha]

Lights, fire starters, knives, bottle openers 😄

[@cillaloves2fish688]

Good to see you n Gunther roaming around AZ again! I definitely would have done some fishing there!! Maybe could've caught something n cooked it in the pie iron with butter n garlic salt!

[@ShoestringMartha]

I think it’s the preparing what I catch that inhibits me from fishing. 😄 I could catch and release, but that seems less rewarding. This is the infinite loop that goes on in my head when I think about fishing 😅

[@cillaloves2fish688]

@@ShoestringMartha Ha! My infinite loop is hoping a nice big juicy fish comes along so I can cook n eat it! I don't mind gutting it, chopping off the head n fins to prepare it... I love fresh fish! (I do prefer trout) But still, I wudda at least tried to catch something there, even if I left a line in the water overnight, cuz you just never know!

[@ShoestringMartha]

Same, as far as fresh water fish goes!

[@paulas_lens]

If you don't have AZ pinstriping on an adventure vehicle, then I say you don't *love* your trusty buddy enough. I call those kinds of sad vehicles city slickers.😂

[@ShoestringMartha]

lol mall crawlers! 😂

[@douglashoward5738]

Early to bed early to rise and no Wi-Fi😂 great vlog😊

[@ShoestringMartha]

😀😀😀

[@jeniferokeywsu]

Great trip! The Titanic reference 😂. Also when you said your “just a dog” speech, that made me think of Notting Hill. Where did Santa go?!

[@ShoestringMartha]

The North Pole? I don't know 😂 Periodically, I heard distant SxS motors. There was a whole network of trails, so he must have been posted up somewhere nearby. He and the truck that was parked about 1/4 mile up the river from me were the only signs of neighbors that I saw. It was fantastic!

[@jeniferokeywsu]

@@ShoestringMartha nice you could find solitude even though it was a popular area!

[@greywolfoutdoors]

Missed you and G-Money!

[@ShoestringMartha]

LOL G-Money!

[@itsaboutfam]

Your setup in the 4runner is really cool. I'm digging the magnetic light and your lanterns....I am in the market for both. Thanks for the ideas...and great video!

[@ShoestringMartha]

Awesome! Thank you!

[@Jina_G]

I love your videos Martha, keep up the good work x

[@michaelbruchas6663]

Now ya know - some families - really the guys - get addicted to flashlights and lanterns. They can never have enough - no matter how old they get… Ditto pocket knives. Swiss and Opinel lead the collections. Gunther needs a flashlight harness, too! Gave my OK friends the smallest UCO stove/fire pit and about 5 lbs of fat wood. They seem to not understand the small cooking space fire pits…they were old giant gas grill types.

[@ShoestringMartha]

Small and mighty is highly underrated! 😄 Knives only trail lights by one. I usually have 6 on board. Don’t ask me how many bottle openers - even though I’m typically a cans person. 😅

[@mastandstars]

Was the magnetic light stuck on the side a motion detector light?

[@ShoestringMartha]

Nope - that one is button-operated 🙂

[@OldePete]

No hammock? Where did the "short handle" pie iron come from?

[@ShoestringMartha]

I didn't think I'd have a place to hang it, so I left it home. Really regretted it when I saw that perfect little tent area. The little pieiron is this dude. I was planning on keeping it soot-free and only using it on stovetop, but it was a perfect fit for the tiny grill, so... it got sooty. It was easy to wipe off at least. amzn.to/46lBazJ

[@judyshorrock7368]

Are you finding the Allpowers power station (approx 600wh) sufficient to power your Set Power 32 qt. fridge for 24 hr without using your solar panel? Thx

[@ShoestringMartha]

In cool weather, while also charging my watch and phone, it usually gets knocked down by about 15% in that time.

[@judyshorrock7368]

Thank you so much! I just received my Set Power AJ30 today and can't wait to use it. @@ShoestringMartha

[@tjfm59]

what dough do you use in making espanadas??

[@ShoestringMartha]

Goya brand, from the freezer section.

[@tjfm59]

@@ShoestringMartha i will have to look to see if i can find it up this way. thanks.

[@judyshorrock7368]

Love your videos. I'm also an Arizona gal with a 4R. What is the new toilet? Thx

[@ShoestringMartha]

Thank you and hey neighbor and 4R fam! I got it from Temu. I still haven't uh.... used it yet. That spot was so secluded, I just went backpacker style. But I set it up just in case it was needed. temu.to/m/uwdfqia2naj

[@judyshorrock7368]

@@ShoestringMarthathank you for the link. My lug-loo takes up way too much space. Would like to find a smaller option. Look forward to your comments about this one from Temu. Thanks again. Hope to see you on the trails 😉

[@Jina_G]

Why aren't you fishing?

[@ShoestringMartha]

I prefer to catch and cook, and I just did not have the energy to prepare anything I might have caught. I probably wouldn't have caught anything anyway, but still... 😂

[@A-K_Rambler]

Adult beverage fund!!!

[@ShoestringMartha]

Now I can get actual cider! 😂