Scout Campers, the latest RV brand from Adventure Manufacturing, has hit the scene with an absolute vengeance this year, starting with the mid-line Olympic camper this (Northern Hemisphere) spring before moving forward with the lightest pickup camper around, the Tacoma-sized Yoho. Now it completes its lineup with the HD pickup-sized Kenai. The Kenai might be the company's largest unit, but it still hits the scales at well below average and maintains the modular, flexible nature that invites campers to spend more time in the great outdoors, less time cramped up inside the back of a truck.
The big addition inside the walls of the Kenai is a wet bathroom complete with available fixed cassette toilet or portable toilet. Working within the compressed dimensions of its lightweight pickup camper, Scout develops a flexible bathroom space that's a little different from other RV wet bath compartments. Instead of a shower head hanging on the wall or pulling up from a sink, it offers an optional RinseKit shower, essentially a self-contained shower-in-a-bucket.
The RinseKit stores neatly on a shelf up above the toilet and packs 7.6 liters of pressurized water, a heating option and a sprayer, providing a light, portable hot shower for use indoors or outdoors.
When used inside, the RinseKit shower works in conjunction with the stainless steel shower pan integrated into the entryway floor. Similar to the design EarthCruiser has used for years, this floor doubles as a mud room that encourages dirty adventurers to rinse their shoes, clothes and limbs before entering the greater living space. A shower curtain hangs from the ceiling and wraps around the shower pan to provide privacy.
The RinseKit shower perfectly complements the array of off-the-shelf indoor/outdoor equipment Scout carries over from its smaller models. Such features include the available Dometic gas cooktop that fires up atop the kitchen counter or a picnic table outside, the available cooler-style Dometic CFX3 75-L fridge/freezer that keeps food exactly where you want it, the 5-L portable LifeSaver Jerrycan that hangs over the kitchen sink basin as a tap and purifies water collected in the field, and a larger Goal Zero Yeti 1500 portable lithium power station that's both the onboard electrical system and portable power pack.
The kitchen equipment is all located along the driver-side wall, across from the L-shaped dinette that converts into a bed. The master bed is located in the over-cab alcove, expanding into a proper 60 x 80-in (152 x 203-cm) queen.
The Kenai also comes standard with a 160-W solar panel stuck to the roof, interior LED strip lighting, a solar-charged porch light, marine flooring and Pendleton fabrics. The camper body is made from hybrid-composite construction reinforced with an aluminum exoskeleton frame. A six-sleeper configuration is completed by the optional Roost hardshell roof-top tent, and winter camping is made much more pleasant with the available Dickinson Marine Newport propane fireplace.
The Kenai has a base dry weight of 1,370 lb (621 kg), so some half-ton pickups might work, but the camper will likely appeal more to those with 3/4- or 1-tons. Personally, we like the smaller truck footprints of the lighter Yoho and Olympic models, but we can certainly see the allure of the indoor wet bath.
The Kenai starts at US$23,625, but if you really want to take advantage of the design, you'll have to put down extra to build up the wet bath. The cassette toilet plus RinseKit shower will add $1,366 to the base price, while those looking to build a proper kitchen will spend an extra $1,495 on the Dometic cooktop and fridge. Reservations are available now with a $500 deposit, and Scout estimates lead times at three to four months.
Source: Scout Campers
