Hunting Bus ( pic heavy)

[tellico4x4]

Didn't want to hijack the School Bus Camper thread but it got me to thinking about my old bus that is a treasure trove of great memories.

Still using a 1972 model that I bought in 1991 for $300 from the Alabama Head Injuries Foundation. They had a rehabilitation center in Muscle Shoals and used it to pick up participants. State cut funding for transportation so I watched it sit in parking lot for 3-4 years before stopping in one day & asking if they'd sell it.

Spent a summer converting it and have been using it as a hunting camper ever since. Has been thru many remodels and the evolution continues. Hasn't been cranked or moved from current location since 2006 but no doubt in my mind that I couldn't get the Chevy 327 running again if needed. Best setup for hunting there is imo. Indestructible & rubber floor makes cleanup easy. Has queen bed with twin bunk above, full bath, 1000W solar with lithium batteries, cell booster, WiFi, AC & propane heat. Used to have kitchen but built an enclosed porch and moved it outside. Am as comfortable in it as I am at home.

Never tried to get insurance but when I bought tag for it they sold me one for RV. In Alabama so age predates title requirements, just bill of sale.

 

[Big Pop]

Memories made! That's what it's all about. Love your setup.

 

[tellico4x4]

The old orange recliner was my dad's and he died in 1988. Never sit in it without thinking about him and knowing how much he would have loved it at camp. Also, the small gas stove in porch kitchen came from Muscle Shoals Sound Studios at 3614 Jackson Highway in Sheffield. Arguably one of the best recording studios in the world. Think Stones, Aretha, Duane Allman, Willie, Wilson Pickett, Rod Stewart, Elton John, Hank Jr & was founded by the "Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section" who put the Funk in music, and which were originally "The Swampers" at Fame Recording. After many years it shut down and a junk store moved in. When building the bus camper I stopped in looking for an apartment size propane stove. Guy said that there was one still hooked up in basement kitchen that he'd sell for $40.00. No telling what all was cooked on that thing . When they restored the old studio several years ago I thought about donating it to them but decided it was much cooler sitting on my porch at BHC!

 

[UCStandSitter]

Based off how you fellas eat, I want in!

 

[DoubleRidge]

That is so cool! Great looking camp!

 

[Hduke86]

What a great setup and place for making a lifetime of memories

 

[Tenntrapper]

Cool setup.
Any idea when the engine was swapped for a 327? (Last yr of production was 69).
Just curious.

 

[tellico4x4]

Had a 292 6cyl with blown head gasket when I bought it. Pulled the 327 out of old wrecked dump truck. Think I paid $200 for the whole thing. Got the big hump heads on it too!

 

[Chiflyguy]

The old orange recliner was my dad's and he died in 1988. Never sit in it without thinking about him and knowing how much he would have loved it at camp. Also, the small gas stove in porch kitchen came from Muscle Shoals Sound Studios at 3614 Jackson Highway in Sheffield. Arguably one of the best recording studios in the world. Think Stones, Aretha, Duane Allman, Willie, Wilson Pickett, Rod Stewart, Elton John, Hank Jr & was founded by the "Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section" who put the Funk in music, and which were originally "The Swampers" at Fame Recording. After many years it shut down and a junk store moved in. When building the bus camper I stopped in looking for an apartment size propane stove. Guy said that there was one still hooked up in basement kitchen that he'd sell for $40.00. No telling what all was cooked on that thing . When they restored the old studio several years ago I thought about donating it to them but decided it was much cooler sitting on my porch at BHC!

That's cool.
Listen to the song Sweet Home Alabama by Lynyrd Skynyrd
The Swampers have a mention.
And yes, there was magic made in that studio.

 

[Rackseeker]

Thanks for sharing , those pics bring back alot memories. We had a old school bus we painted orange and named "George". It was painted in yellow above the windshield. It had 4 bunks in the back , the snoring sometimes got unbearable. As a kid I always had to take one of the top bunks. Spent alot of nights on Carter mountain in that old bus.

 

[tellico4x4]

Based off how you fellas eat, I want in!

We do eat very well. At our age, we do a better job cooking & eating than we do hunting. All 3 old guys in the pics have been my best friends for 44 years. They are from the same town in north FL and two of them went to kindergarten together. We all went to work for GE Nuclear Energy in 1979 and become old friends immediately. We have hunted and fished together literally from FL to AK over the years. The youngsters are my grandkids and have grown up at BHC and they sure love their old "uncles". Guy in overalls is the head cook and we are his gofers & clean up crew . All his people are from LA and his cooking is heavily Cajun influenced. In one pic he's teaching my youngest grandson how to eat a crawfish. They introduced him to raw oysters a couple years ago and he'll eat them as fast they shuck em for him!
We put on an annual pot luck dinner the Friday night before gun opener. Families & friends all attend and it is one of highlights each year. Folks usually start cooking at noon that day in preparation. Out of 15 members we have 5-6 exceptional cooks, so we never go hungry. Camp is sooo much more than hunting anymore

 

[UCStandSitter]

We do eat very well. At our age, we do a better job cooking & eating than we do hunting. All 3 old guys in the pics have been my best friends for 44 years. They are from the same town in north FL and two of them went to kindergarten together. We all went to work for GE Nuclear Energy in 1979 and become old friends immediately. We have hunted and fished together literally from FL to AK over the years. The youngsters are my grandkids and have grown up at BHC and they sure love their old "uncles". Guy in overalls is the head cook and we are his gofers & clean up crew . All his people are from LA and his cooking is heavily Cajun influenced. In one pic he's teaching my youngest grandson how to eat a crawfish. They introduced him to raw oysters a couple years ago and he'll eat them as fast they shuck em for him!
We put on an annual pot luck dinner the Friday night before gun opener. Families & friends all attend and it is one of highlights each year. Folks usually start cooking at noon that day in preparation. Out of 15 members we have 5-6 exceptional cooks, so we never go hungry. Camp is sooo much more than hunting anymore

You don't have to keep selling me. I'm in. Just send me the address! Man I love me some cajun cooking...

 

[JCDEERMAN]

That is so cool!!!

 

[backyardtndeer]

Very cool. Thanks for sharing.

 

[timberjack86]

Very cool!! Reminds me of my family's old deer camp!

 

[Gravey]

Very cool camper and setup. That's what it's all about right there.