A question for the lazywebs...

I am thinking about getting a new car sometime very soon. My Golf, like it though I do, is old enough that I'm going to have to spend a bit more on it quite soon than I'd really like to (brakes, dampers and exhaust need doing, as well as a couple of new tyres), so I'm thinking of swapping it out. I also find it a bit small for my photography trips -- taking both cameras means the boot is completely full with the three camera cases, so my clothes bag and the tripods end up needing to go on the back seat, which is not something I'd prefer ideally. Also, I want something capable of long trips, potentially including ice and snow at high altitudes in winter.

I like the Subarus, but the Impreza is too small (the boot looks actually smaller than the one in my Golf -- I was parked next to one this morning coincidentally). Not sure about the bigger ones. Their SUVs are a bit expensive I think.

I'd consider an SUV, but I'm not really keen on something that eats petrol like it's gone out of fashion. The smaller-engined versions of the Ford Escape (not to mention the hybrid version) look OK -- fuel economy isn't as good as my Golf, but actually not that far off (29 as opposed to 35mpg), and my day-to-day mileage is virtually negligible.

So, any suggestions? I'm prepared to pay something like $15k-ish second hand.