Hitting the road with Gaston Belanger
A Boondocking gearhead on an endless search for excitement... and a cold beer
The Northern Lite community is made up of a number of vibrant individuals that love to get off of the beaten path and go a little bit further down the dusty backroad than the average RVer. One such person is Gaston Belanger. Gaston is a regular contributor to the Northern Lite Truck Camper Enthusiasts Group on Facebook where he posts amazing pictures and trip updates covering his never ending boondocking and off-road motorcycling adventure.
What is your name?
Gaston Belanger AKA “Gasser”
Where are you from?
I Lived on the Big Island of Hawaii for 40 years.
Can you tell us a little bit about your career?
I am a race car exhaust system engineer, designer, builder and manufacturer, belangerheaders.com, heavy equipment welder, extreme off-road motorcycle racer and trail cutting Boss, race promoter organizer, Moto Cross racer, now retired at 78 from all.
What year and model is your Northern Lite Camper?
2017 Northern Lite 9-6 Q SE. I specifically got the best, a Northern Lite camper to live in style with all the bells & whistles searching for the Holy Grail of gnarly off-road trails and places where no wheel has ever rolled in the USA until I live my life span out, passing away!
What type of truck is your camper mounted on?
2017 Heavy Duty Dodge Ram Diesel 4WD Crew Cab long bed
How many days per year do you spend in your Northern Lite?
For the last 18-months I’ve been Boondocking Full time 24/7/365 touring around the USA
We’ve seen some amazing photos of your adventures. Can you tell us what you are up to these days. Where have you been and what have you been doing?
At present I’m boondocking in Utah 20 miles from Modena, tucked into a Cedar tree forest in the Mountain foothills, waiting for the weather to break so as to ride the KTM, exploring any and all dirt roads, sand washes, gullies, ravines and whatever else I find that is challenging.
Can you tell us a little bit about the style of camping that you do with your Northern Lite truck camper?
I strictly boondock and stay until ether water, food, fuel run out, or waste tanks need dumping or extreme cold/heat takes over, but it can be anywhere from one, two or three weeks. I will not pay to hook up at any National, State, or RV Parks, they are campfire smoky, noisy and plastered with NO! this and NO! that signs with RV motor homes packed in like a Walmart parking lot.
What’s your favorite location that you have visited in your camper?
So far, I like Moab Utah I’ve ridden 500+ off road miles there on pretty much all their challenging trails which are mild compared to Hawaii’s Volcano’s and rugged lava rock coastlines where I put on 100, 200 & 400 mi endurance events that took riders through 12 climate changes start to finish.
Can you describe your perfect day camping?
To me any day is a perfect day, it’s a perpetual on going camping trip in my 9-6 Q because I’m home all the time with everything at my finger tips and always having an outstanding view out the big dinette window.
What locations are on your bucket list to travel to in your camper?
I really don’t have a bucket list because I’m unplanned freelancing taking it as it comes every day. I’m in no rush, though Moab is on my return list with a new well setup KTM 300 motorcycle to ride “5 Miles of Hell” trail, Google that to see what it’s all about.
When not hitting the trails on your KTM motorbike, or hiking, what do you like to do?
When I’m not riding or hiking I’m editing helmet cam Videos including them in stories of my Grand Life Time Adventure posting them on line on various Motorcycle web sites. I’m a 100% motorcycle Junky both off road and Superbike’s, that’s a whole other chapter in my life.
How did you end up where you are now from Hawaii?
I sold my Hawaii property because Hawaii had become over-populated Paradise paved over. All of my prime riding areas had become gated and fenced off to the point I could no longer put on extreme long mileage endurance race events, I told my trail cutting crew the Mauna Kea 200 has been squeezed into a sand box let’s shut it down.
Do you have any tricks or tips to pass on to other that are looking to get into boondocking?
One must creatively reinvent themselves to make everything user friendly to their wants, needs and desires to live in a small compact space.
Do you have any other thoughts that you would like to share with others interested in living the truck camper lifestyle?
For those that want to qualify their dream of getting away from it all even for short times in a Truck Camper unit they must overcome their procrastination and fears that keep them from qualifying their dreams. The truth is, people have to realize the power of their choices because “Reality goes at the speed and quality of educated freewill choices” and Fear, is the Master intellectual fraud they place on themselves voiding the true fun experiences needed to live a full fun exciting life!
Thank you Gaston for taking the time to share your amazing adventure with the Northern Lite community!
After 40+ mi of mainly high speeds on tight 4WD roads on the way back I turned off into the Junipers and Desert Sage brush to take it as it comes the rest of the way up to the Northern Lite Resort camper somewhere up there with cold Beer's in the fridge...make my day~~~~~~yes!
-Gaston Belanger
Taken your Northern Lite Truck Camper on an epic adventure… or just to your favorite secret lake for a weekend of fishing? We would love to hear about it!
