Handy Tips for Taking Your Ute Camping

The utility vehicle, or ute as we all know it, was first invented way back in 1932. It was actually the result of a letter to Henry Ford from an unnamed Australian farmer’s wife (bless her soul) that was asking for a “a vehicle to go to church in on a Sunday and which can carry our pigs to market on Mondays”.

Fast forward to 2015 and the ute still remains one of the most versatile vehicles on the market. Whether you’re planning on a trip to the good ol’ Deniliquin ute muster or simply trying to get out of Sydney for the weekend, we’ve put together some handy tips and ute accessories that will make your experience that much better.

If you’re going four wheel driving, the first thing you will want to look into is some 4wd ute accessories such as some bull bars or even a nudge bar. It’s a no brainer for safety out in Kangaroo territory and it also can’t hurt to make sure you have some good quality high beams for any night time driving you have planned.

By far one of the best accessories to have is a ute canopy. Ute canopies come in a whole heap of different styles and qualities, and can serve as the perfect place for you to roll out your sleeping bag and not have to worry about pitching a tent at night. Believe it or not, we’ve even heard of people using ladder racks and just running a tarp over the top as a make shift tent.

If you’re simply looking for a ute cover that will protect all your gear from the elements, but don’t want to lash out on a canopy – we would recommend tonneau covers. They’re sturdy and come in a whole range of styles such as trifold, roll-up, retractable and hinged to name a few.

Another great idea, that we cannot recommend highly enough is tool boxes for Utes. These come in a lot of different sizes and shapes, but you really can’t go past good quality aluminium tool boxes. Besides being handy during the working week to keep your tools they’re also great for storing camping equipment when you head away. You can even have them custom built to meet your specifications.

If you’re not after something that will take up a whole heap of space, look in to a trundle tray. This will slide under the base of your steel ute tray and is not only a great space saver/storage unit but can even serve as your own retractable camping table.