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hooblie
climber
from out where the anecdotes roam
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Oct 25, 2018 - 11:36am PT
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campgrounds?
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JC Marin
Trad climber
CA
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Oct 25, 2018 - 11:37am PT
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Taxa Trailers look super cool and well designed
Hope to add one in the next year or so
https://taxaoutdoors.com/
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Roots
Mountain climber
Redmond, Oregon
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Oct 25, 2018 - 01:40pm PT
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^Nice!
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norm larson
climber
wilson, wyoming
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Oct 25, 2018 - 02:14pm PT
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Next thing you know Jim you are going to have one of those one piece overall type suits that the RV guys wear.
Off to the City of Rocks right now. With the van.
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the Fet
climber
Tu-Tok-A-Nu-La
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Oct 25, 2018 - 04:08pm PT
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A pickup camper would solve the above problems, if I could easily (under 15min) detach it from the car. But, the wife demands it must sleep four, have a shower, and be overall comfortable, which is rather impossible to have in this kind of a camper. I could negotiate with her, if I’m convinced that a pickup camper is the best solution.
I have a 9.5 ft pickup camper. It has a north south bed in the cabover that's plush. The dinette converts to a bed that supposedly sleeps 2, but it's tight. For kids two is fine. My kids are 9 and 17 and if we're in the same spot for more than 1 night we'll setup a tent for the 17 year old, so we're not feeling squeezed in. It's super comfortable, has a shower, but there's not much floor space in a truck camper. So if 1 person is cooking, 1 other person could get around them, maybe help cook, but that's it, everyone else needs to be sitting at the dinette, in the bed, or outside. It can get hectic. A trailer typically has more space to move around and get away from each other.
Last year I did a 3 week+ road trip to 10 national parks with my 2 boys. It was awesome. The truck camper was perfect for that. 3 people is a great fit. Able to drive faster on long stretches of straight highway. Able to go off road for free camping spots. Pull into a walmart parking lot when I got tired during long drives. Easy to find places to park.
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TWP
Trad climber
Mancos, CO & Bend, OR
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Oct 25, 2018 - 04:48pm PT
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Moose wrote:
"A pickup camper would solve the above problems, if I could easily (under 15min) detach it from the car. But, the wife demands it must sleep four, have a shower, and be overall comfortable, which is rather impossible to have in this kind of a camper. I could negotiate with her, if I’m convinced that a pickup camper is the best solution."
Hey Moosebreath! You just described by Wildebeest con Tortuga combo!
Point by point I will demonstrate:
1. easily detach in under 15 minutes.
Yes, my Lance has electric-powered jacks, operated with a TV-like remote device. I have solar panels so I always have enough power to take the camper on and off. Can do so about as easily as unhooking a trailer. And who is going to steal a marooned tortuga from a campsite?
2. sleeps 4
My camper has a deluxe queen size bed for mom and pop and two fold-down bunks for the kids, located in the kitchenette area.
3. hot shower
I have a 5-gallon hot water heater and not one, but two showers. One inside with the head and the other outside (which I prefer for its abundance of room to maneuver).
4. be overall comfortable
Moose, you've been in my Land Yacht. You know it's comfortable! Bigger inside than those Polish flats the Commies gave entire multi-generation families back in the day! Come on; man up you gone-so-soft nuevo Americano!
5. "I could negotiate with her, if I was convinced"
Comrade, who wears the pants in your family?
QED.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Oct 25, 2018 - 04:49pm PT
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If you want space in a pickup camper you need a Host. They make 9.5s, 10.5s, and then their Mammoth and Everest models. For the latter you can get by with an F350 but I would sleep, or at least drive, better knowing I have an F450.
https://www.hostcampers.com/
Hard to believe that’s a pickup camper, huh?
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ManMountain
Mountain climber
San Diego
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Oct 25, 2018 - 05:06pm PT
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2002 2-door TJ Wrangler moderate build (big tires, underbody armor, discos, tranny cooler, etc.) here. Packed to the gills with lightweight tent camping gear, a 12v Dometic cooler, 5 gals of water in bladders, mission critical spares).
It sucks. 15mpg highway, takes 2 hours to set up or break camp, no top so rain is a problem, etc. Spent the last three months travelling the western US. The "feature" is I can 4 wheel into the most godforsaken places you clowns with trailers/campers/vans will never see, unless you're walking.
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Fritz
Social climber
Choss Creek, ID
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Oct 25, 2018 - 07:30pm PT
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Donini (& Angela)! My congrats! It sounds like a well-thought out decision for you folks.
I can certainly agree on the 4-Runner part, since they have been my SUV of choice since the mid-1980's.
Heidi & I are still working on that transition from tent-camping to inside camping-luxury, but the decided lean is towards a trailer.
She insists on inside flush-toilet & shower. In my dotage, I am excited about avoiding biting insects, & having a warm spot to sit when it gets dark.
We have noted we can stay in motels for the next decade or so, for what any rig that meets our needs, sells for, but of course that does not work for many of my back-country adventure.
I'm still happy with sleeping in the back of the 4-Runner on solo trips, but it really does not sleep the two of us well.
The search continues.
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Batrock
Trad climber
Burbank
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Oct 25, 2018 - 07:38pm PT
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I recently bought a teardrop trailer. I like the option of leaving it at camp and taking the jeep and going exploring. It would be nice to have a Sprinter or larger trailer that you can cook in but this has been a good compromise.
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JLP
Social climber
The internet
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Oct 25, 2018 - 08:03pm PT
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The "feature" is I can 4 wheel into the most godforsaken places you clowns with trailers/campers/vans will never see, unless you're walking. I nipped that calling some number of years ago with a motorcycle - strapped to the back of my van. With a modicum of training and practice, I’m king of the OHV for access and speed. Years and years going deep into the west.
I’m so over it. What I found is that any overweight fool can buy a truck and a tank of gas - and they do - and those remote far off places thus turn out to be not so remote - and they’re often trashed and far from pristine.
If you want see the wild, you’re not going to be driving to it. The fitter and more capable you are as a trail runner or backpacker - the more you’ll really get to see.
So - to this thread - the 4x4 thing is the most over rated (and expensive!) feature you can buy into for campers, IMO.
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WBraun
climber
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Oct 25, 2018 - 08:10pm PT
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If you want see the wild, you’re not going to be driving to it. The fitter and more capable you are as a trail runner or backpacker - the more you’ll really get to see.
Such bullsh!t.
You can see it from anywhere just sitting in your own home if done right .....
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Batrock
Trad climber
Burbank
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Oct 25, 2018 - 08:15pm PT
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JLP,
A 4x4 is by no means needed but the places I climb in the desert are remote and nobody in their right mind would attempt to backpack in. They have their place and I have enjoyed being able to access places that are pristine and not overrun by the masses because you need a 4x4.
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JLP
Social climber
The internet
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Oct 25, 2018 - 08:37pm PT
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I don’t have 100 towers, maybe in the 60-75 spectrum, a true 4x4 truck for access is rare. A Honda Civic will get you to anything in Island in the Sky, for example, quite a concentration of the of the best. Might want one for Cleopatra’s and a few others in the Maze - rent a jeep for a couple days out of Moab.
What’s funny is I’ve talked to so many out there - they say it’s so wild and remote sitting there on some torn up washed out mining road - no idea.
Access to a 4x4 has a place, but not as a feature of your camper, IMO, cost goes through the roof and you’re usually losing a lot of space and comfort compared to more highway bound options.
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i'm gumby dammit
Sport climber
da ow
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Oct 25, 2018 - 11:35pm PT
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Access to a 4x4 has a place, but not as a feature of your camper, IMO, cost goes through the roof and you’re usually losing a lot of space and comfort compared to more highway bound options. If skiing is required as well as climbing that changes things dramatically.
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Oct 26, 2018 - 03:38am PT
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Terry, do you have your camper in chili?
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JLP
Social climber
The internet
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Oct 26, 2018 - 05:20am PT
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If skiing is required A truly winter worthy 4x4 RV - do you own one?
Most RV’s don’t handle freezing temps. The water lines freeze, for one, also the level of insulation, battery and heating fuel goes up exponentially - as does cost - now make that a 4x4. You see some around in the winter, but not many that work well.
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