Greetings from the Northeast

[campnfish]

Hi everyone, have been reading this terrific forum for several years now, picking up pointers and looking forward to the day I'd have my own trailer. Finally found just the right teardrop for me on Craigslist, a 2008 Gander Outback. It's pretty basic but only weighs 600 lbs. and tows easily behind my Honda Civic and without a galley I can make the bed without crawling on my knees. Had the bearings packed, bought new tires, a battery, and a memory foam mattress topper, took her camping last week and I can honestly say I had the best night's sleep I've had in ages. Been a tent camper for many years and felt like I was living in the lap of luxury, no more tossing and turning on a squeaky cot. I am the queen of superfluous camping gear, have a garage full of every camping gadget known to man. Am looking forward to simplifying things, putting what I need in one small plastic tub and hitting the road. Planning on taking lots of overnighters and exploring local state parks with my fly rod and dutch ovens, after family obligations have kept me close to home the past few years, I feel like I am finally living the dream. Thanks for including me in the forum!

[George Taylor]

Where are you from?

[John W]

Welcome CampnFish,su
I feel your pain about all the superfluous camping gear. Every time I take my camper out, I find out what I can leave behind the next time. It sure is fun, though, and no more leaky tent, no more unyielding ground, etc. Have fun and enjoy the forum. I found a wealth of information and there is never a lack of excellent free help.

Happy Trails!
John

[Wicked Piggy]

Welcome from another newbie. I have been the same way with camping gear in the past. When the kids were little we tent camped and brought everything you could imagine We drove a van with a roof top carrier both stuffed with things. I still have to build my camper, but I am looking forward to what you mentioned. A few necessities and hit the road

[bobhenry]

tows easily behind my Honda Civic and without a galley I can make the bed without crawling on my knees.

A removable side table can be easily added to either ( or both) sides for a kitchen under a pop up tent.



http://www.tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?t=43504&highlight=side+tables+again

[AZ_Desert_Rat]

Welcome aboard campnfish,
Where are you from ....
I can relate to the camp-trailer, tents, vans, and even the back of an SUV After driving for hours and then another couple of hours in 4-wheel drive, my brother and I looked forward to setting up the tent and getting some sleep, well_that changed due to a late summer down pour that lasted most of the night
We shuffled enough stuff under the Blazer and rolled out our bags in the back_what a miserable night
gallery/image_page.php?album_id=3168&image_id=112261

I decided to build/buy something with hard sides that did not need to be set up and went with a cargo trailer conversion as it fit my needs the best
gallery/image_page.php?album_id=3168&image_id=117954

I still get way back in the rough stuff, but also tow it where ever I want to go_for now, it is seeing some of Minnesota

Enjoy your trailer and camp safe, and above all ... have fun

[campnfish]

Thank you for your greetings and suggestions. Have been on three overnighters in the past couple of weeks, it may sound corny but I have to pinch myself every time I hit the highway with my trailer, has been a dream of mine for so long, sometimes I just giggle when I look in the rearview mirror. When tenting, many times the thought of loading up the car has discouraged me from taking quick, overnight camping trips and for longer trips I usually can't see out of the car windows. So I have made it a goal, when I camp alone, to only make one trip to the car before I hitch up the trailer. I have one canvas tote bag and a small plastic tub which has all the essentials. I found a perfect little pot at Ikea for $8.00, it heats my soup on a back packing stove then serves as my cereal bowl in the morning. I have a folding camp chair that stays in the trunk of the car, that's it. Leaving the campsite is a breeze too, just fluff the pillows in my teardrop, make the bed, lock the doors and go and the best part is when I get home I actually feel well rested and refreshed.

[bc toys]

welcome glad you are living your dream stay safe and enjoy it

[AZ_Desert_Rat]

Ahh Campfish,
Yes, it is a beautiful thing ... trailering, to me, is like the old days when I fished a lot (the most was over 275 days out of 365) in upstate NY ... I should add that anything over 4 hours was counted as a day

What made that possible and fun was that the boat was parked in the garage, packed and ready to go; it only took a few minutes to go The same goes with the trailer ... however,

I occasionally borrow something from the trailer and stop to pick it up ... maybe it coffee and you borrowed from the trailer when you ran out in the house

These occasions are becoming less frequent and I now run a quick checklist to make sure I did not borrow something; and packing in categories ... food, etc. and remembering to replenish helps a lot

[campnfish]

Wow, 275 days of fishing is a very good year! If my trailer had shelves and a galley, I'd probably use it as a storage unit, maybe it's better in a way that I don't have a galley, can't overload and squirrel anything away in it!

[Roly Nelson]

Campnfish, you are the poster gal of getting a teardrop and finally giving up tenting. What a great post, I wish every tenter could read it, and change their camping style to something really comfortable. I assume you are a gal, since you said you were the queen of excess camping gear. However, we still don't know what your location is. Try to attend some of the local Tear Jerker outings, they are a great bunch and would enjoy your enthusiasm. Hang in there, keep it up, and when you decide to visit the West Coast, the coffee is always on here in the land of sunshine, surfing and Disney Land. Enjoy!
Roly, the li'l ol' woody guy in So Calif

[campnfish]

Thank you Roly, making a cross country trip with my teardrop is definitely on my bucket list, would love to meet some of you great people on the West Coast.

[AZ_Desert_Rat]

Wow, 275 days of fishing is a very good year! If my trailer had shelves and a galley, I'd probably use it as a storage unit, maybe it's better in a way that I don't have a galley, can't overload and squirrel anything away in it!

Hi Campnfish (By the way, handles seem so impersonal, do you have a first name we can address you with?),
I hope I did not leave you with the understanding that I fished all those days in succession

I was living and working near Saratoga Springs, NY and during the summer daylight savings months, I could work all day, run home, grab a sandwich, change clothes, hook up to the boat, and be on the water in about 20 minutes ... including a gas stop, if I failed to gas up on the way home from the last trip

BTW, I took a peek at your galley pics and your TD looks nice and my wife loves your quilt and I like the use of the "Cot side pockets" or as Cabela's calls them,"Cot-Side Nightstands" for storage ... GREAT USE of SPACE

About galley space, I do not carry a ton of food either ... I plan for a few days to about a week max for one or two and because I have the space, I usually carry two Ice chests ... one is a Coleman Extreme that slides in the bottom of the galley - it is used for food storage and gets opened only a few times a day. The other is an older ice chest that I had and use it for sodas and water. A few canned goods go in a basket under the bunk/s, fruit and anything fresh goes in a basket or fruit hammock in the galley area.

The trailer lights, small LED TV (Just installed), radios (AM/FM & 2m Ham), and small fan/s are all 12vdc and run off a single group 27 deep cycle battery --- good for 4 - 7 days depending on how much electricity gets used. If the battery starts to drop too much, I either plug in somewhere or start the little genny (1800 w) to charge things back up

A couple of trips in Arizona, my prospecting buddy and myself would sit around in the evening and play cards or BS until it was time to turn in ... those trips the lights were incandescent and because the temps were quite warm in the evening hours, we would run a fan or two two keep the air moving, and the lights on, the battery needed charging about every third or fourth day ... not too bad

Anyway, good luck with your TD and your fishing excursions ... Check out the Tear Jerkers site and maybe you'll be able to hook up with folks in your area (The Northeast, I presume) and make a gathering or two.

Take care and ... enjoy

[lrrowe]

I was living and working near Saratoga Springs, NY and during the summer daylight savings months, I could work all day, run home, grab a sandwich, change clothes, hook up to the boat, and be on the water in about 20 minutes ... including a gas stop, if I failed to gas up on the way home from the last trip

John,
It is a small world. I am from Saratoga Springs, NY, leaving there in 1963. Was it Saratoga Lake you headed out to?
Boy has it changed over the years. I could not afford to go back there to live today.

[AZ_Desert_Rat]

Hi Bob,
It is a small world ... Are you originally from there? What takes you to Virginia?

I was there (NY) from the early to the mid 80's and it was beautiful ... Great fishing !!! I fished an awful lot at Saratoga Lake and could always count on some great Largemouth Bass, Pike and Walleye (5+ lbs.) coming from there ... Great fishing

I was there working at the Naval Training Facility for GE for about 5 years ... I enjoyed the northern Upstate region and am hoping to see similar country in northern MN. I miss family and prospecting in AZ and will try to make it back there early next year to do a little prospecting ... too bad there is no gold here in MN, but SD is not too far for a week-long excursion next spring/summer