Inside Our Yucca-Pac Safari Camper on Our Ford F-350 Family Overland Build
- Dan
- Jul 3
- 7 min read
Inside Our Yucca-Pac Camper | F-350 Family Overland Build
The Yucca-Pac camper has already had a pretty wild introduction to The Baker Adventures.
The install came together at the last minute, we drove through the night to get it picked up, then headed straight into Alberta Outdoor Adventure Expo.
Expo gave us a real-world test right away, with rain, wind, wet kids, and a camper full of gear. What it did not give us was a quiet, dry opportunity to properly show the camper and explain why we chose it.
Then Alberta’s wet weather continued. With flooded campsites and more rain in the forecast, we held off on a Canada Day camping weekend rather than force a trip that would not make for a good family adventure or useful content.
That finally gave us a sunny window and, more importantly, an almost-empty camper.
This is not our long-term Yucca-Pac review. We need more miles, more nights, rougher roads, better weather, and a finished sleep and storage system before we can honestly call it that. This is the proper introduction to the Yucca-Pac Safari on Jolene, our 2024 Ford F-350, and the starting point for building a family camping and overland setup that works for all six of us.
Why We Chose the Yucca-Pac Safari
Our Ford F-350 overland build has always been about building a truck that can do more than one job. Jolene needs to work for hunting trips, long Alberta road trips, backcountry travel, family camping, and whatever ideas we come up with next.
A camper made sense because it gives us a faster, more comfortable way to get outside with the kids without completely giving up the ability to travel down gravel roads and explore
farther from a campground.
The Yucca-Pac Safari stood out because of its lightweight aluminum construction, simple pop-up design, large doors, customization potential, and interior height. Our Safari weighs roughly 463 pounds before we start filling it with bikes, bedding, power gear, food, clothes, and all the other things a family of six brings along.
Yucca-Pac also makes a wedge-style camper, but we chose the Safari because vertical space matters for our family. With the roof popped up, there is more than eight feet of headroom inside. At six foot two, I can stand and walk around comfortably, which makes a major difference when six people are stuck inside during rain or cold weather.
A Simple Pop-Up Setup
The basic setup is quick: We unclip the front, unclip the rear, open the back, then push the side and front roof panels up into place.
The F-350’s bumper and steps make getting up to the camper easy, which is something I honestly did not think much about before owning the truck. The side steps may get raised in the future, but right now they are perfect for the kids.
Once the roof is up and the panels are locked out, the camper is ready to use.
That simplicity matters. We are not trying to build a campsite that takes an hour to set up every time we stop. The goal is to pull in, pop the camper, get the kids settled, make supper, and spend more time outside.
Exterior Features We Like So Far
The Safari has a lot of exterior space that can grow with the build.
There are large side doors with positive latches, key locks, bug screens, and insulation panels. Opening both sides gives the camper a surprising amount of airflow, especially when the weather is warm. The doors are also big enough to make loading gear and reaching into the camper easy.
The camper has roof-rack rails that give us another area for storage and future upgrades. Roof-mounted solar is high on the list, but we are still working out the cleanest way to route wiring without drilling unnecessary holes through the roof or leaving exposed wires where branches can grab them.
That is one of the realities of building around a full-size truck. We still want to get down smaller trails, so anything mounted outside needs to be secure, low profile, and able to handle branches.
The exterior also has the optioned awning brackets. A 270-degree awning is likely one of the next major additions. Expo made it very clear how useful a dry covered space would be, especially with kids, wet boots, food, chairs, and rain coming sideways. Our tarp worked, but it was not the finished solution.
Power Connections and Future Solar Plans
Our Yucca-Pac came with a 120V connection and a pre-installed solar port. We chose not to have a complete electrical package installed because we are still figuring out what our long-term needs actually are.
Right now, we do not have a fridge, microwave, or a big list of 120V appliances. Our immediate needs are much simpler: heat, lights, USB charging, and enough battery capacity for family camping weekends.
For Expo, we built a quick temporary system using a 105Ah AGM battery and a removable 100W solar panel. It was not meant to be the finished electrical system, but it kept our diesel heater running for approximately 26 hours through a cold, wet weekend.
You can read the full breakdown here: Simple 12V Diesel Heater Power Setup for Our Yucca-Pac Camper.
The long-term plan is to clean up the wiring, add a better solar charge controller, install proper fused 12V distribution, add lighting and charging points, and eventually move toward roof-mounted solar and a more permanent battery system.
Inside the Yucca-Pac Safari
The biggest reason we chose the Safari was interior room.
The roof design creates enough height that I can stand upright inside, and the open front section gives us more usable walking space than earlier designs. That may not sound important until you imagine six people trying to change clothes, dry off, find sleeping bags, or wait out a storm.
The front cubby is another feature we are still debating, but it is useful right now.
It has a fold-down table, enclosed storage, removable panels, and pre-cut areas that make it
a logical place for future electrical components. For a family with small kids, being able to keep batteries, wiring, switches, and electronics protected and out of reach is important.
Above the cubby is another storage area that currently works well for chairs and loose gear. It could also become a place for bedding once we start dialing in the final sleep system.
Can a Yucca-Pac Safari Sleep a Family of Six?
So far, yes. But we are still working out the best way to make it comfortable and organized.
During Expo, we made a basic setup work with three people sleeping below and three sleeping above, including the baby in a bassinet. It was not our final layout, but it proved the space can work for our family.
Right now, the lower area is mostly open. That gives us flexibility, but it also means we need to decide how much permanent storage we are willing to add.
Storage benches would be useful. They could give us a place for clothes, food, gear, slide out kitchen and kids’ items while creating seating during the day. The challenge is that every bench takes away some lower sleeping space.
We could build low benches, remove the cubby, create one larger convertible bed, or keep the floor open and use a simpler sleeping setup. We are not rushing that decision because once we build permanent storage, we need to live with it.
For now, we are going to keep using the camper, see what gear actually comes along every trip, and let real family use guide the final layout. Though you might see a few temporary trials over the next bit.
What Expo Already Taught Us
Expo was not the polished debut we originally planned, but it gave us useful information.
The camper handled high winds better than expected. Even though it is soft-sided, the locked-out panels felt solid, and we barely noticed movement inside. The insulation package
helped, the large windows gave us light and airflow when we wanted it, and the blackout curtains made a major difference when trying to get kids to sleep during Alberta’s long summer evenings.
The hanging roof rack also became a useful drying area. With wet clothes, wet kids, and the diesel heater running, it helped keep gear from piling up on the floor.
Our HCalory Toolbox diesel heater was another early win. Paired with the temporary 12V battery and solar setup, it gave us a warm, dry place to sleep through a very wet weekend.
That does not mean the camper has passed every test. It means it has already shown us that the basic platform works, and now it is time to improve the details.
What We Are Adding Next
This Yucca-Pac build is just getting started. The biggest upcoming projects are:
A better lower sleep and storage system for six people
A cleaner permanent 12V electrical setup
Roof-mounted solar
Interior lights and USB charging
A 270-degree awning and expanded covered living space
Better organization for food, clothes, recovery gear, and kid gear
More real-world camping, road, weather, and backroad testing
We are intentionally not trying to finish everything at once. The best way to build this camper is to use it first, find the pain points, and make upgrades based on how our family actually camps. This also makes it easier on the wallet.
The Beginning of Our Family Camper Build
The Yucca-Pac Safari is now the future home base for The Baker Adventures.
It is light enough to keep Jolene useful as a truck, tall enough to work for our family, simple enough to set up quickly, and open enough that we can build it around our own needs instead of trying to fit our family into someone else’s finished floor plan.
There is still a lot to figure out, but that is part of the fun.
Stay tuned as we build the sleep system, finish the power setup, add an awning, mount solar, and start putting this camper through real Alberta family adventures.
What would you want to see next: the six-person sleep setup, power system, storage layout, awning choice, or our first proper camping trip?
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