Tent trailers?

   / Tent trailers? #12  
I've heard Yellowstone has some campgrounds that ban softside campers. Not all the local cg's have active bear populations so you can still camp there in a PUP but maybe not the "prime" locations.

I don't have any proof other than hearing this second hand, FWIW.

Was at Banff and Kootenay in Alberta, then Yellowstone a few years ago. All had soft side restrictions in various, but not all area's of the parks.
 
   / Tent trailers? #13  
I've done a lot of camping in tents and in a couple of Jayco style pop-up trailers. I had each trailer for about 6 or 7 years. The pop-ups are a breeze to tow and are very comfortable and have huge space once you set them up, which is good if you have kids. The last pop-up had way too much seating and way too little storage for clothes so I ripped out a sofa and put in bench space over 4 large pull out storage baskets. Even the new jaycos I have seen have poor clothes storage. (I dont like scrambling around on the floor to pull clothes out from under the seats)

If you are planning to pull up stakes every day for a week or two then setting up and pulling down a camper gets a bit tedious. The thing to remember is that even though the camper may go up in 60 seconds you may still have to spend the best part of an hour getting all the other bits and pieces unstowed and arranged to your satisfaction. I imagine the campers that are basically just a fold out tent on a trailer would be even worse in this respect.

Now that its just me and my wife planning to travel again i think we'll be going for just about the smallest possible hard sided caravan with pop-up roof and a retractable awning - and I'd tow it with a mid size 4WD such as a Prado. I recently towed my mum's small caravan half way across Australia with my 3 litre V6 Mitsubishi station wagon. I was pretty amazed how easy it was to tow and it was certainly a pleasure to be able stop and have the kettle on in about a minute. The killer when you are towing is frontal wind resistance. Mums tiny van had no more wind resistance than a jayco. It was strictly a 2 person van but all we did was sleep and cook in it. In our climate the awning provides the protection to sit and eat outside most of the time.
 
   / Tent trailers? #15  
The only place in Yellowstone where canvas is not allowed is the rv park at Fishing Bridge.
I had fun in my old canvas pop-ups but switched to a hard sided Chalet A-frame. This should have been my FIRST camper.
14009557_xYwkY-S.jpg
 
   / Tent trailers? #16  
The only place in Yellowstone where canvas is not allowed is the rv park at Fishing Bridge.
I had fun in my old canvas pop-ups but switched to a hard sided Chalet A-frame. This should have been my FIRST camper.
14009557_xYwkY-S.jpg

I love the looks of the Chalet-A-Frame, but boy they seem quite 'tight' on the inside.. How many ppl are you sleeping and any other comments?

Brian
 
   / Tent trailers? #17  
That was my old Arrowhead and Dad would come along on trips since it had two beds. I now have the smaller LTW with one bed so it's just me. They make a bigger XL unit.
A forum I started years ago if anyone is interested in Chalet's.
Chalet A-Frame Enthusiasts
 
   / Tent trailers? #18  
That was my old Arrowhead and Dad would come along on trips since it had two beds. I now have the smaller LTW with one bed so it's just me. They make a bigger XL unit.
A forum I started years ago if anyone is interested in Chalet's.
Chalet A-Frame Enthusiasts

Thanks.. I went to the website and see that they now have expanded their offerings, and now have more inside room.. the ones I looked at a few years ago would have been great for 1 person, but pretty tight for 2.. I like the ones that now have a bed/couch AND a table..

If I was traveling alone I think these would be perfect.. Especially since they seem to use small room AC that would probably run off my EU2000 pretty well..

Brian
 
   / Tent trailers? #19  
We used to have a true Apache Eagle tent camper. It really had a canvas top held up by support poles over an aluminum body. There was a certain sequence we had to follow to put it up, but if the sequence were followed, it went up quickly. I was afraid the mice would eat the canvas while in storage and sold it because replacement canvas is so expensive. I have always thought that its designer must have been a genius. Very lightweight, easy to tow.

We had a a couple of different brands of hard sided campers. (Hard side in the center/fabric over the sleeping areas) We had one that I liked except for the fact that the bed was a little short for me and the support pole was right at my head. Sold that one, too. My advice from that experience is to check the beds before you buy.

I remember looking at the A frame campers--thought they were nice, but pricey. Also had a concern that since the bed is in the center area, there might not be as much usable space as the campers with pull out beds on each end. There was a guy selling detailed plans and pictures to build an A frame camper on Ebait for a while.
 

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