During a recent trip down the coast from Virginia Beach, VA to St. Augustine, FL most of the spots we stayed in were close to the beach and had a lot of sand that was hard to keep off our shoes and out of the van. We already owned a great 6 x 9 camping mat but we were missing something.
Our camping style takes us to numerous spots where using the larger mat is not allowed or desirable. Even in settings where using the larger mat made sense we found that it was often a real chore to put the mat away when the ground beneath it was wet. What we needed was a small mat that could be easily deployed and stored.
Upon our return I went on a mission to find a good solution to the problem. My searches found several mats, rugs and scrapers but none of them were an ideal solution. They either held water, were impermeable, had no grommets to secure them or were too bulky.
A few weeks ago I ran by Camping World to top off our propane tank and pick up a few supplies. While walking out I looked over at the bargain bin and saw the perfect solution.
The item is a 18” x 23” permeable astroturf mat with grommets that is designed to cover a retracting step. It quickly sheds water and is easy to secure with a few pegs. It does an excellent job of removing debris from our shoes and our interior is staying much cleaner. When it’s time to break camp the debris and water fall off it with a quick shake. We store the mat on the back of our kitchen pod by hanging it on a couple of 3M Command Strip hooks. If the mat is a still a little too wet or dirty when it’s time to leave we place it in a standard 8 gallon trash bag before hanging it.
During our latest trip to visit the area around Middleburg, VA the mat was out at several Harvest Hosts and other stops along the way. It’s definitely a keeper!
https://www.campingworld.com/rv-step-mat-each-629949.html
https://smile.amazon.com/Command-Toggle-Hanging-Adhesive-Organizers/dp/B076ZTFGGC/
Here are a few images and comments from the trip. It’s a beautiful region that’s full of fun places to stay and visit.
On our first night we settled in at the local Walmart after picking up a terrific takeout dinner from It’s About Thyme in Culpepper.
One response to “The Perfect Door Mat”
[…] The second new outlet was placed on the rear of the kitchen pod. We had previously mounted a Nespresso coffee machine in the space behind the sink and the outlet made the power connection permanent. I selected the location for the new outlet to ensure that its protective box would not interfere with any plumbing and to keep it accessible but as far to the rear of the pod as possible. I then hand cut the hole using a coping saw blade to avoid any inadvertent damage. The location of the outlet left an open space on the rear of the pod that later came in very handy to store our perfect door mat. […]