"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
08/06/2014 at 12:14 • Filed to: tow all the things
5
27|
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
08/06/2014 at 12:14 • Filed to: tow all the things | 5
| 27 |
I do not come from a camping family. My grandfather always said, "I spent five years sleeping in a goddamn tent and sleeping bag (WWII), why the hell would I want to do it again?" My mom and dad shared similar feelings. I tried tent camping a couple of times in my 20's, and did not care for the experience. The big thing for me was sleeping on the ground. I'm a side sleeper, so I pretty much couldn't sleep at all.
So, I took a bit of a flyer this spring when my wife and I decided to buy a camper. After much Craigslist searching, we picked up a 2000 Palomino 21' hybrid camper for $4600 from a family who took meticulous care of it.
We've now taken four trips in the camper, stayed at five different campgrounds, and towed nearly 2000 miles in total. Overall, I've enjoyed camping, although it can be a fair amount of work. Campgrounds? Well …. lets just say they've been hit or miss. Some are incredibly well thought out, and meticulously maintained. Some appear to have been laid out by someone who must have been staggeringly drunk at the time.
Here are some things I've learned about both camping and towing.
People tow some weird and crazy things.
Yep, that's a double right there. A pickup, towing a pop-up camper, towing a boat. I actually saw two people with basically the same set up, although at least the other one took the time to get the hitch heights set up properly so everything was level. Crazy as this was, at least its light. The Toyota Sienna towing a 5000 lb, 24' long camper, was flat out dangerous.
Towing mirrors are the shit.
The first few times I towed the camper, I just used my truck's already quite wide mirrors. For this last trip, I finally popped the $40 for a set of clip-on towing mirrors. What a difference! Without them, if I had to change lanes into the outside of a curve, I had to do it basically blind. Now I can see around and behind the camper. Money well spent.
Turns out, you can make a 4900 lb crew cab pickup truck feel like a sports coupe.
(Read that in Richard Hammond's voice)
After you've been dragging around 4500 pounds of camper and gear for 400 miles, a 4900 pound pickup suddenly feels like Doug's Ferrari when you unhook it..
Not everybody at the campground shares in your desire to commune (somewhat) with nature.
This dude spent the better part of two hours setting up his satellite dish. He turned out to be really cool. "My wife really likes the whiskey, so if we get too loud, just tell us to shut up." We didn't have to do that, fortunately.
Screw lighters. Bring a blowtorch.
Need I say more?
Nothing burns like kiln dried hardwood scraps
Make friends with your local shop teacher.
Eat the food.
One of the best meals I've had all year, was when the party next to us insisted that we partake in their buffet. I gorged on venison, fried perch and bluegill, sauteed walleye, and home fries. I'm getting hungry again just thinking about it.
thebigbossyboss
> shop-teacher
08/06/2014 at 12:20 |
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Also nothing burns like birch bark.
Don't take birch bark off the trees...that's bad, but nothing burns like birch bark.
Nibbles
> shop-teacher
08/06/2014 at 12:23 |
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We used to tow a 33' Terry fifth-wheel with an 18' Skeeter bass boat behind it, with our old '92 F-250. I think we were mere millimeters under CDL requirement
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shop-teacher
> thebigbossyboss
08/06/2014 at 12:24 |
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True story
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shop-teacher
> Nibbles
08/06/2014 at 12:24 |
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WOW! That's all I can say about that.
HammerheadFistpunch
> shop-teacher
08/06/2014 at 12:25 |
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I love camping and screw what people saw about "glamping", if I want to have a comfortable base camp for me and my family to set out on adventures from, why shouldn't I? Why would I deliberately choose discomfort over comfort? I tent camp, I backpack, and so on, but damn I love my pop up. The truth is, you have more fun when you aren't exhausted from "roughing it" all day. True story.
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HammerheadFistpunch
> shop-teacher
08/06/2014 at 12:31 |
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Also, If i could make a few itemized responses:
1. Towing a double is legal in my state and (mostly) safe if you do it right, though I still shake my head in disbelieve every time I see it.
2. I got some towing mirrors with my trailer, but haven't used them owing to my lifted ride height and the collapsible nature of a popup, i can TOTALLY see them being valuable with a hard side.
3. Holy hell yes, my truck feels like a superlegera after I unhook the trailer.
4. campsites are tricky, I try and do a campsite thats smaller, or more primative and avoid ones with hookups, that was you get more diversity of people and less stereotypical Clarkson-type caravaners
5. blowtorch...hmmm interesting idea. I hate carting around those propane cylinders though, one always seems to leak out the valve
6. YES! I burnt some hardwood floor scraps once (untreated) and man that was a good (but fast) fire.
7. Camping food is the best. Dutch oven for the win!
T5Killer
> shop-teacher
08/06/2014 at 12:41 |
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I have never went camping in a trailer. Its all been tents crammed into cars/trucks I will have to try it someday.
MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner
> shop-teacher
08/06/2014 at 12:49 |
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I towed a 23 foot 5000 pounder with a year 2000 Ford Ranger V6 2 weeks ago.
Surprisingly capable, we borrow the camper aka mobile hotel room from my inlaws once a year (their truck too).
It desperately needs trailer tow mirrors.
That thing was a blast when I unhooked so I can agree 100% with the sports coupe!
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shop-teacher
> HammerheadFistpunch
08/06/2014 at 13:24 |
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1. I had never seen the double thing, except on semis, so it must not be legal in my state. It didn't look unsafe (not much weight in that rig), but it sure looked unwieldy.
2. I've towed a friends popup a few times. Even at my truck's stock ride, I had no trouble with just my stock mirrors.
4. I have sleep apnea, do I need power for my c-pap.
5. Never had that problem, but I do keep it in the bed of the truck, just in case.
7. I picked up a harbor freight dutch oven. Haven't tried it yet.
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shop-teacher
> HammerheadFistpunch
08/06/2014 at 13:27 |
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If I can't sleep, zero fun is had.
Bird
> shop-teacher
08/06/2014 at 13:27 |
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You forgot to mention the cooler! Smart campers choose an old Coleman made of metal and filled with the most toxic insulation available in the seventies. Pair that with a real lantern and real stove that requires a thumb of steel to pump the pressure up, and then you're really camping!
We still use the tent, Ferrero1911's Abarth isn't rated to tow anything...but man can you load a ton of crap into it...
!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!
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HammerheadFistpunch
> shop-teacher
08/06/2014 at 13:29 |
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I hear you on the sleep apnea, my dad had a cpap, but we found ways around it with batteries. As for the dutch oven, prepare to have your life changed. I recommend corn bread (krusteaz mix is best) and for breakfast buy Rhodes bake and serve cinnamon rolls and just use the dutch oven as a regular oven and bake them in there in the tin. Easy cleanup. Also, be sure to follow the seasoning and cleaning advice to reduce headaches.
Rule of thumb size of oven in inches = number of coals top and bottom for a 350 degree oven. Easy peasy. For cleanup, just do an oven "self clean"; get all the stuff out, and leave the coals on an empty oven for an hour...then wipe clean!
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HammerheadFistpunch
> shop-teacher
08/06/2014 at 13:30 |
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EXACTLY! I don't mind the occasional tent spree, but I sleep SO much better off the ground and with a blanket.
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MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner
> HammerheadFistpunch
08/06/2014 at 13:31 |
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This, we started camping with AC and heat 3 years ago, I don't see us going back anytime soon lol.
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shop-teacher
> MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner
08/06/2014 at 13:34 |
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I love having AC and a shitter, and a fridge full of food.
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HammerheadFistpunch
> MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner
08/06/2014 at 13:35 |
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We don't have AC, but we could. We typically don't go to sites with hookups though so it would be of little value, besides, its so dry where we camp that even its its super hot its never too hot in the trailer, tent trailers breath great and a couple of 12v fans do the job.
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shop-teacher
> HammerheadFistpunch
08/06/2014 at 13:36 |
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Sounds tasty!
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MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner
> shop-teacher
08/06/2014 at 13:37 |
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the fridge is the next best thing after the AC. Where we camp we also are volunteers for the event going on and help clean the bathrooms on site, so we use the campsite bathrooms, also means I don't need to visit the dump station/clean out the camper and it's a 2 minute walk to the bathroom.
Basically I'm too lazy to be that lazy.
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shop-teacher
> Bird
08/06/2014 at 13:38 |
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I've got the steel belted cooler. Its a Coleman reject, branded as a Cabella. Great cooler. I've been on the lookout for an old one on Craigslist too.
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MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner
> HammerheadFistpunch
08/06/2014 at 13:39 |
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yeah the 23 ft trailer we borrow has hard sides, but flip outs that look similar to popup beds on each end so we can get that "breathing" factor too. We just tend to camp at 1 county fairgrounds once a year and there's little shade and no wind. Plus...AC is nice lol
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shop-teacher
> MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner
08/06/2014 at 13:41 |
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I'll use the campsite bathroom too, but I don't mind stopping at the dump station, so I can have a cool, private place to sit a bit.
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MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner
> shop-teacher
08/06/2014 at 13:44 |
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Haha, if it were my own Camper I probably would. Especially if we were there longer than 4 nights.
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Bird
> shop-teacher
08/06/2014 at 14:28 |
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We got ours at Goodwill. Everyone on craigslist wanted at least $100. Goodwill wanted $30. It was mint. Looks like someone used it once then packed it away for 30 years. Still had the shelf and water jug with it. Best $30 I've ever spent. This cooler keeps ice frozen longer than any cooler I've ever had.
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shop-teacher
> Bird
08/06/2014 at 14:41 |
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Nice! I haven't had much luck at Goodwill.
Stephen the Canuck
> shop-teacher
08/06/2014 at 20:53 |
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For years my parents towed up to a 29' Fifth Wheel style Camper with a 14' aluminum boat behind it. This was behind a variety of GM half ton pickups. My grandparents with the same with Dodge half tons. Never had any issues.
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shop-teacher
> Stephen the Canuck
08/06/2014 at 22:16 |
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I didn't think it was dangerous. Just unwieldy. Its not legal in my state, so I'd never seen it.
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Stephen the Canuck
> shop-teacher
08/06/2014 at 22:27 |
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It's legal her in Ontario. I think there's an over length limit and a weight limit. You don't see it very often up here either.