We just brought home a little 18-foot travel trailer bunkhouse.
As a 2014 model, it was very lightly used before the original owners decided to trade it in for something bigger... so it lost a lot of its original value and dropped into our price range even though the first owners added lots of upgrades. Hooray for buying practically new used stuff from rich people!
We've been planning on getting one or renting one for a few weeks' trip later in summer... but renting is ridiculously expensive, enough that 10 weeks of renting would pay for the trailer (this equation does not work out for the larger types that are far more expensive). We'd definitely be getting more than 10 weeks' worth of use out of it in the next few years.
It is super small yet somehow retains a roomy-enough feel, and has bunk beds (or storage space) tucked away in the back that Torin and his future sibling will enjoy. Visions of family vacations have been dancing through our heads for a while, and it was so lucky that we found THE perfect one for us on a whim on a way back from a day trip.
"Glamping" is for wimps?
There's a big part of me... the nature-loving, girl scout part... that is ashamed of camping without a tent. I mean, isn't that the whole point of camping, to get fully submersed in nature?
There is also a big part of camping that I hate: sleeping. I shiver on nights that others consider "nice," even in a sleeping bag meant to withstand freezing temperatures. I always wake up after 2-3 hours of sleep over the whole night, having covered myself and my pile of blankets with all the coats, sweaters, and towels I can find in my bags. I am a big whiny baby when it comes to chilly nights, and they impact my energy and ability to fully enjoy the next day.
And then there's the freezing treks from the camping site to the bathrooms in the middle of the night. And the lack of showers. And my hips and back are tortured by sleeping on the ground, even on air mattresses... apparently my "old" started at 28. And having to leave the tent before getting a toasty beverage to warm my bones is less than convenient. And using an ice chest instead of a fridge and inevitably getting water in your cheese is really annoying. And I can never leave camp without obsessing that someone's going to take the tent and sleeping bags and such.
You know, it doesn't sound too bad. Less of the suffering. More of the fun. It might make camping much easier with a baby and a dog. I'm just gonna embrace my wimpiness and enjoy the perks of air conditioning and heaters and a locking door!
We're a bunch o' noobs at this.
Do you have any travel-trailer-camping tips for us? I lived in a larger trailer for a year as a child while our house was being built, and also visited my grandparents in their trailer on the coast every summer... but I've never traveled in one, and I've never lived in one while it was my responsibility to maintain it.
So far the tips I have collected are along the lines of:
What has made trailer/RV camping fun for you? Where do you like to go? What do you bring along?
As a 2014 model, it was very lightly used before the original owners decided to trade it in for something bigger... so it lost a lot of its original value and dropped into our price range even though the first owners added lots of upgrades. Hooray for buying practically new used stuff from rich people!
Can you feel the fun?
We've been planning on getting one or renting one for a few weeks' trip later in summer... but renting is ridiculously expensive, enough that 10 weeks of renting would pay for the trailer (this equation does not work out for the larger types that are far more expensive). We'd definitely be getting more than 10 weeks' worth of use out of it in the next few years.
It is super small yet somehow retains a roomy-enough feel, and has bunk beds (or storage space) tucked away in the back that Torin and his future sibling will enjoy. Visions of family vacations have been dancing through our heads for a while, and it was so lucky that we found THE perfect one for us on a whim on a way back from a day trip.
The bunk beds
"Glamping" is for wimps?
There's a big part of me... the nature-loving, girl scout part... that is ashamed of camping without a tent. I mean, isn't that the whole point of camping, to get fully submersed in nature?
There is also a big part of camping that I hate: sleeping. I shiver on nights that others consider "nice," even in a sleeping bag meant to withstand freezing temperatures. I always wake up after 2-3 hours of sleep over the whole night, having covered myself and my pile of blankets with all the coats, sweaters, and towels I can find in my bags. I am a big whiny baby when it comes to chilly nights, and they impact my energy and ability to fully enjoy the next day.
And then there's the freezing treks from the camping site to the bathrooms in the middle of the night. And the lack of showers. And my hips and back are tortured by sleeping on the ground, even on air mattresses... apparently my "old" started at 28. And having to leave the tent before getting a toasty beverage to warm my bones is less than convenient. And using an ice chest instead of a fridge and inevitably getting water in your cheese is really annoying. And I can never leave camp without obsessing that someone's going to take the tent and sleeping bags and such.
You know, it doesn't sound too bad. Less of the suffering. More of the fun. It might make camping much easier with a baby and a dog. I'm just gonna embrace my wimpiness and enjoy the perks of air conditioning and heaters and a locking door!
We're a bunch o' noobs at this.
Do you have any travel-trailer-camping tips for us? I lived in a larger trailer for a year as a child while our house was being built, and also visited my grandparents in their trailer on the coast every summer... but I've never traveled in one, and I've never lived in one while it was my responsibility to maintain it.
So far the tips I have collected are along the lines of:
- Get a very large outdoor rug to keep most dirt out of the trailer
- Fill the poop tank most of the way before you flush it
- Get some wheel chocks and leveling boards
- Cover the wheels from sunlight during storage
- Practice hooking it up and backing it up
- Bring folding chairs and a folding table for outside
- Start chilling the fridge the night before the trip (we got the power adaptor already)
- Get melamine dishes, and try to keep everything light weight
- Check for leaks in the seals on top of the trailer every spring and fall
- Say hi to your neighbors because everyone forms an informal "neighborhood watch"
What has made trailer/RV camping fun for you? Where do you like to go? What do you bring along?
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