What camping trailer? (1 Viewer)

[1Maverick]

Hi everyone with campers. I was previously concerned about my rear springs “2722” being a bit to stiff but now the missus has just popped the idea how nice it would be to have a travel trailer as we are planning a trip to Yellowstone and other camping adventures going forward. I don’t want anything that will strain the 200 and be able to handle chunky dirt/gravel roads to get off the grid a little but still highway friendly (65mph). Any personal experience recommendations would be welcomed. Needs to sleep 3 and have a little kitchen for cooking and plenty of storage. My price point is not to buy the cheapest but not the most expensive either. Just a good reliable well built trailer. Thanks

 

[sedonut]

Almost anything you tow will kill your MPG. It will go from poor to terrible. I'd look for a used trailer if I had to buy something. .
My friend tows a 4000 pound trailer, his MPG goes from 20 to 10.

The other thing about buying new is as fuel goes up, prices of RV's go down. A lot.

Expeditionportal.com has a off road trailer section. It has reviews and also a for sale section.

 

[Fisher23]

I think a small outdoor camp stove is way better than any camper kitchen for cooking. Most 19ft would meet the need you're looking for. I don't have one but I do admire the Olivers.

 

[Killacaviar]

We have had a Opus, a Jayco Baja and now a Moby 1/Vorsheer. The Moby1 tows the best and fits our needs perfectly. I towed all with 200 series and anything over that 2500lb mark will need some extra thought out into the overall tow setup. (Springs, airbags, brake controller, anti sway hitch etc)

There is no perfect camper, they all sacrifice something. The trick is finding the perfect one for your lifestyle right now. We beat the hell out of ours, need at least a 30g water capacity and hate setting up with little kids. So construction quality and a hard side was pretty important.

Take your time, don’t dive into anything. This is a addition that really needs time, research and in person walk through a to find something that works well enough.

I would like to reiterate… the perfect trailer/camper that sacrifices nothing does not exist.

 

[eatSleepWoof]

I think a small outdoor camp stove is way better than any camper kitchen for cooking. Most 19ft would meet the need you're looking for. I don't have one but I do admire the Olivers.

I’ve camped in -25C numerous times, both with heat-less tents and comfy trailers. I was very, very happy to have an interior stove!

And I’ve been in some beautiful spots that had insane amounts of mosquitoes. Another situation in which the interior cooking option was a life safer.

The best setup is an interior stove and an outdoor, slide out kitchen! One of each

 

[GordJ]

Hi everyone with campers. I was previously concerned about my rear springs “2722” being a bit to stiff but now the missus has just popped the idea how nice it would be to have a travel trailer as we are planning a trip to Yellowstone and other camping adventures going forward. I don’t want anything that will strain the 200 and be able to handle chunky dirt/gravel roads to get off the grid a little but still highway friendly (65mph). Any personal experience recommendations would be welcomed. Needs to sleep 3 and have a little kitchen for cooking and plenty of storage. My price point is not to buy the cheapest but not the most expensive either. Just a good reliable well built trailer. Thanks

I'm no expert but if I was looking to get into RVing I would go to the RV show and see as many trailers as possible and try and envision which floor plan is the one for you. You don't mention how old number 3 person is or what you intend to do while away. Are you going to be taking bikes? Is fishing or hunting in the plan? Will you be comfortable folding down the dining table to make up a bed? Does one of you get up in the night and will a walk around bed be important?
You probably get what I hinting at? The RV shows are better in my opinion because you can eliminate a lot of stuff and see a lot of brands without a guy trying to feed his family on your purchase.
As long as you keep it under 30' your truck will be adequate in all likelihood. In my opinion there is no better way to see the country than with a trailer, the comments about bugs and warmth are right on and there is a certain comfort at times with the extra quiet and security.

 

[Mooterman]

We pull a 14ft teardrop. Basically a queen size bed with a galley in the back. Just two of us but the RTT goes on top if any kids come along. They're off to college so that doesn't happen much anymore. It pulls great, fits on the trails, hard shell so no night time tent flapping, and much more comfortable than sleeping on the ground. The only cons are the hit in gas mileage and you still have to dig a hole.

 

[adashoe]

This is my setup - A Metalian Trailer from South Africa and my Diesel LC200. Taken a few months back in the Northern Emirates (UAE). It works really well and tows super easy. I've taken it on some seriously gnarly tracks

It's got plenty of water on the trailer, 2 gas bottles, lights, water heater for hot shower/dishes, and a hard shell RTT, Lithium battery and solar.

 

[molanginaeda]

Since OP are in CO, why not support your local state manufacturer. Boreas camper is one of the manufacture located in Pueblo CO. There are a few more offroad trailer manufacture location in CO if you googled it.

 

[linuxgod]

Do you want to be able to cook and eat inside, or just sleep? Shower? Bathroom?

Budget?

Think about how much water and gear you want to carry.

If you’re planning to go off grid plan to add solar right away and eventually lithium batteries

I do recommend used if you can find what you want. Trailers depreciate like mad over the first few years.

 

[Artie]

There are likely hundreds of viable camper options given your criteria, you can whittle that down relatively easy with a few more checked boxes. Mainly, bathroom and shower options, and what tanks do you want: black, grey, fresh?

Our camper is a South African made Conqueror UEV490, the new ones in the states are Chinese made and should be avoided from everything I’ve seen and read.

We started out in ours 3 years ago when our kids were 2 and 3. Here is what we were after for camping with our kids.

We like that it is mostly hard sided. There are lots of great options that are tented and you save on weight and hight while towing. Set up and the ‘bumps in the night’ factor change drastically with a tent camper.

Our kitchen is a slide out, so outdoor only. Lots of pros and cons here. We have a big awning we deploy almost always and tent with walls if we need it, inclement weather can play a factor. Having an indoor kitchen will add length and depending on what you cook indoors you may be stuck with those scents for a while. We liked the outdoor kitchen so we can cook and watch the kids. It does keep us outside, we are camping and that’s part of the goal.

Bathroom. If you get a toilet you get a black tank or a cassette toilet that you have to empty. We opted for a wrappon toilet. No tanks to empty, only need a trash can, fits in the cargo area of vehicle and can be deployed rather quickly. I carry this in my daily driver… kids can be unpredictable.

Gray water tanks. We don’t have grey or black tanks. This means we have to dispose of grey water when at established sites (a 5 gallon bucket can handle several days worth of dish washing water and established sites have showers), for boondocking we haven’t had a problem with showering outdoors (our shower is on the side of camper and outdoors, we have a tent if we need privacy but usually we are isolated and showering under the stars is very liberating) and to minimize water usage we use paper plates and burn those or trash them depending on fire restrictions. Grey and black tanks add some comfort and convenience but add weight and need to be emptied.

You mentioned getting off grid. We do this often and this will limit your choices as well. The build quality and material choices, tire size, suspension and ground clearance will all be things to consider and dependent upon how far off grid are you talking. A friend of mine and fellow Conqueror owner dragged his the entirety of Alpine Loop, are you looking for that type of capability or are maintained forest service roads your limit?

We really only sleep inside ours. We have the ability to convert a bed area to table easily if need be but we haven’t eaten inside ours, yet. It has a tv but we’ve only used it to watch videos or pictures we’ve taken during that days adventures. Our goal is camping and enjoying the outdoors. Ours is a base camp setup where we may stay in one area for a couple nights and explore, then move on. We are likely on one extreme of the camper scale, where a house on wheels type coach on the other.

We can carry bikes on the roof of the LC.

Camper is 17 feet, 4500lbs, 350 tongue weight, 35 gallons of fresh water tanks. MPG 9-10.

 

[FrazzledHunter]

Since OP are in CO, why not support your local state manufacturer. Boreas camper is one of the manufacture located in Pueblo CO. There are a few more offroad trailer manufacture location in CO if you googled it.

WOW! Was surprised to see they advertise Victron electronics. That's a rarity in my experience.

After having a travel trailer for approx. 18 years and having shopped for them for even longer my typical reaction on sales floors to virtually all of them is:
"OK nice trailer. Can you do a custom order to rip out the <some never heard-of manufacturer> electronics, battery, solar panels & noisy roof air conditioner for maybe Victron & for the A/C perhaps Dometic? Oh, and the <never heard of brand> tires have to go too."

 

[molanginaeda]

WOW! Was surprised to see they advertise Victron electronics. That's a rarity in my experience.

After having a travel trailer for approx. 18 years and having shopped for them for even longer my typical reaction on sales floors to virtually all of them is:
"OK nice trailer. Can you do a custom order to rip out the <some never heard-of manufacturer> electronics, battery, solar panels & noisy roof air conditioner for maybe Victron & for the A/C perhaps Dometic? Oh, and the <never heard of brand> tires have to go too."

I have no affiliation with boreas. I was trying to promote support local business since OP located in CO.

 

[molanginaeda]

There are likely hundreds of viable camper options given your criteria, you can whittle that down relatively easy with a few more checked boxes. Mainly, bathroom and shower options, and what tanks do you want: black, grey, fresh?

Our camper is a South African made Conqueror UEV490, the new ones in the states are Chinese made and should be avoided from everything I’ve seen and read.

We started out in ours 3 years ago when our kids were 2 and 3. Here is what we were after for camping with our kids.

We like that it is mostly hard sided. There are lots of great options that are tented and you save on weight and hight while towing. Set up and the ‘bumps in the night’ factor change drastically with a tent camper.

Our kitchen is a slide out, so outdoor only. Lots of pros and cons here. We have a big awning we deploy almost always and tent with walls if we need it, inclement weather can play a factor. Having an indoor kitchen will add length and depending on what you cook indoors you may be stuck with those scents for a while. We liked the outdoor kitchen so we can cook and watch the kids. It does keep us outside, we are camping and that’s part of the goal.

Bathroom. If you get a toilet you get a black tank or a cassette toilet that you have to empty. We opted for a wrappon toilet. No tanks to empty, only need a trash can, fits in the cargo area of vehicle and can be deployed rather quickly. I carry this in my daily driver… kids can be unpredictable.

Gray water tanks. We don’t have grey or black tanks. This means we have to dispose of grey water when at established sites (a 5 gallon bucket can handle several days worth of dish washing water and established sites have showers), for boondocking we haven’t had a problem with showering outdoors (our shower is on the side of camper and outdoors, we have a tent if we need privacy but usually we are isolated and showering under the stars is very liberating) and to minimize water usage we use paper plates and burn those or trash them depending on fire restrictions. Grey and black tanks add some comfort and convenience but add weight and need to be emptied.

You mentioned getting off grid. We do this often and this will limit your choices as well. The build quality and material choices, tire size, suspension and ground clearance will all be things to consider and dependent upon how far off grid are you talking. A friend of mine and fellow Conqueror owner dragged his the entirety of Alpine Loop, are you looking for that type of capability or are maintained forest service roads your limit?

We really only sleep inside ours. We have the ability to convert a bed area to table easily if need be but we haven’t eaten inside ours, yet. It has a tv but we’ve only used it to watch videos or pictures we’ve taken during that days adventures. Our goal is camping and enjoying the outdoors. Ours is a base camp setup where we may stay in one area for a couple nights and explore, then move on. We are likely on one extreme of the camper scale, where a house on wheels type coach on the other.

We can carry bikes on the roof of the LC.

Camper is 17 feet, 4500lbs, 350 tongue weight, 35 gallons of fresh water tanks. MPG 9-10.

View attachment 3045738

Awesome setup. I always like Conqueror trailer setup. Known a few conqueror owner. All have rave review on the trailer.

 

[1Maverick]

There are likely hundreds of viable camper options given your criteria, you can whittle that down relatively easy with a few more checked boxes. Mainly, bathroom and shower options, and what tanks do you want: black, grey, fresh?

Our camper is a South African made Conqueror UEV490, the new ones in the states are Chinese made and should be avoided from everything I’ve seen and read.

We started out in ours 3 years ago when our kids were 2 and 3. Here is what we were after for camping with our kids.

We like that it is mostly hard sided. There are lots of great options that are tented and you save on weight and hight while towing. Set up and the ‘bumps in the night’ factor change drastically with a tent camper.

Our kitchen is a slide out, so outdoor only. Lots of pros and cons here. We have a big awning we deploy almost always and tent with walls if we need it, inclement weather can play a factor. Having an indoor kitchen will add length and depending on what you cook indoors you may be stuck with those scents for a while. We liked the outdoor kitchen so we can cook and watch the kids. It does keep us outside, we are camping and that’s part of the goal.

Bathroom. If you get a toilet you get a black tank or a cassette toilet that you have to empty. We opted for a wrappon toilet. No tanks to empty, only need a trash can, fits in the cargo area of vehicle and can be deployed rather quickly. I carry this in my daily driver… kids can be unpredictable.

Gray water tanks. We don’t have grey or black tanks. This means we have to dispose of grey water when at established sites (a 5 gallon bucket can handle several days worth of dish washing water and established sites have showers), for boondocking we haven’t had a problem with showering outdoors (our shower is on the side of camper and outdoors, we have a tent if we need privacy but usually we are isolated and showering under the stars is very liberating) and to minimize water usage we use paper plates and burn those or trash them depending on fire restrictions. Grey and black tanks add some comfort and convenience but add weight and need to be emptied.

You mentioned getting off grid. We do this often and this will limit your choices as well. The build quality and material choices, tire size, suspension and ground clearance will all be things to consider and dependent upon how far off grid are you talking. A friend of mine and fellow Conqueror owner dragged his the entirety of Alpine Loop, are you looking for that type of capability or are maintained forest service roads your limit?

We really only sleep inside ours. We have the ability to convert a bed area to table easily if need be but we haven’t eaten inside ours, yet. It has a tv but we’ve only used it to watch videos or pictures we’ve taken during that days adventures. Our goal is camping and enjoying the outdoors. Ours is a base camp setup where we may stay in one area for a couple nights and explore, then move on. We are likely on one extreme of the camper scale, where a house on wheels type coach on the other.

We can carry bikes on the roof of the LC.

Camper is 17 feet, 4500lbs, 350 tongue weight, 35 gallons of fresh water tanks. MPG 9-10.

View attachment 3045738

Dang! Can I go camping with you! Lol! That camper looks solid, makes the LC look really small in the picture. Great information and gives me more to think about. We are making a list of “must haves” for our camper and definitely not buying any Chinese ones. A pull out kitchen/pull out awning would be ideal, indoor shower and toilet will be must for my 15yr. old daughter and wife during the fall/winter. I do know you can pop up a makeshift outhouse for bathroom privacy which wouldn’t be a bad idea to save weight like you mentioned.

 

[1Maverick]

I have no affiliation with boreas. I was trying to promote support local business since OP located in CO.

Thanks, I will check them out

 

[1Maverick]

This is my setup - A Metalian Trailer from South Africa and my Diesel LC200. Taken a few months back in the Northern Emirates (UAE). It works really well and tows super easy. I've taken it on some seriously gnarly tracks

It's got plenty of water on the trailer, 2 gas bottles, lights, water heater for hot shower/dishes, and a hard shell RTT, Lithium battery and solar.

View attachment 3045679
View attachment 3045680

I would definitely do this setup for myself but my wife and daughter would complain with lack of interior space. I wish my LC was a Diesel.

 

[molanginaeda]

Thanks, I will check them out

If timing for buying a trailer is not immediate, I would suggest attending overland expo mountain west. This expo will have many varieties of overland trailer on display. You can approach manufacturer and ask your question or advice. Also give yourself an opportunity to see the varies trailer business available for offroad/offgrid camping. I will say, wallet beware. There is a premium on overland badge product.

Overland Expo Mountain West

Loveland, CO

August 26-28

The Colorado location of Overland Expo, this event packs all of the great exhibitors, instructors and gear at an event on the Front Range.

 

[1Maverick]

If timing for buying a trailer is not immediate, I would suggest attending overland expo mountain west. This expo will have many varieties of overland trailer on display. You can approach manufacturer and ask your question or advice. Also give yourself an opportunity to see the varies trailer business available for offroad/offgrid camping. I will say, wallet beware. There is a premium on overland badge product.

Overland Expo Mountain West

Loveland, CO

August 26-28

The Colorado location of Overland Expo, this event packs all of the great exhibitors, instructors and gear at an event on the Front Range.

I like that EOS-12. $75k is my max budget which is the cost of that trailer not including tax and additional accessories I would get sucked into. However, that is the ideal size.

 

[CharlieS]

So much depends on how you plan to use it and what level of creature comfort you want. Then factor in budget and availability.

We prefer small indoor space primary for sleeping, with good awning coverage, outdoor cooking, and electric fridge. Aluminum, not wood frame. Offroad clearance ideally with an offroad suspension.

A lot of people wouldn't even consider something that spartan.

We currently have a small camper (Forest River NoBo 10.6) that works pretty well, but like a lot of the us made, mass manufactured campers has pretty shoddy build quality overall.

For us the TetonX hybrid is what we think will hit the sweet spot. We have a deposit, but they're a 24 month lead time. They're made to order, so we have some flexibility in the build options, but that's a long wait.

One thing I'd suggest is to rent a few campers to see what you like and don't like before spending a pile of money on something that might miss the mark. Kind of like living in apartments before you build your dream house.

Edit: you are in a different space than I am, with your $75k budget. My thoughts are probably not that useful.