Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

OK, there's nothing like a plan?
After two summers of tent camping the USA we bought a teardrop trailer.
Yep, saw that same RV show everyone else saw? Must be a lotta bad winter's out there?
Having zero carpenter skills, almost zero garage space left, and a doubting wife, we took the "direct route" to teardrop ownership?
Check book ownership. Write check, hook to brand new trailer, go see country?
Never had any camper prior?
Never towed anything further then 47 miles?
Honestly, disliked the entire towing experience?
This ought to be good?

Wife's a schoolmarm and summers are our only option. We bought our Little Guy, last October(06), one week prior to the close of our states camp ground season.
Timing?

But which model to buy?
Hey, buy the biggest, read that widest?
Ok, now try to shoe horn the thing into the garage?
Nope, don't fit?

Make instant friends with the not so local "U-Stor-It" company?
Talk about sticker shock?
Find place somewhat reasonable far,far, far from home?

Spend 06/07winter lurking here and/or at various TD web boards. Lotsa ideas, many purchases, ever decreasing checkbook balance and deminishing garage space.

SPRING arrives?
Make the trip to a few local TD "Gathering's". Meet new great people, share some Pot'Luck's, gain experience, lighten the trailer. Have fun!

Summer, the Great Escape?
Hook up and go?
Depart East coast of USA, destination?
Ala "Star Trek" of course?
"To Boldy go . . . .".

Left almost NYC,NY August 2and. Got to Chicago w/o looking at a map nor having any destination, Aug 3rd?
Route 80 West, whatta concept?

Open road atlas, turn on satelite XM radio?
Almost have a "Big One" ???
Floods, fires, bridge collapses, heavy weather and the like?

Only once did she say, "See ya shudda planned better"?
Whatsa Guy gonna do?

"GO NORTH" ?
Works for me!

The next thirty daze are a blur? The LG/ Doublewide easily tows and is super comfy along the Northwestern rim of the US highway system.
We do the Northern National Park's.
OUTSTANDING and they were mild!
Both Teddy Roosevelts, Glacier, North Cascades, Olympic, Crater Lake, Lassen Volcanic, Yosemite, Death Valley, Petrified Forrest/Painted desert!

Avoiding most major cities we did stop in Kingman, AZ and Memphis,TN on our jaunt home. Gotta see the Elvis House and eat some real Memphis B-B-Q, ya 'all?
Yea, even stopped at the "BIG TEXAN".
No, didn't try to eat "The Big Steak".

About 10,500 total miles, 7400 of which towing the LG, all uneventful.
It was super!
The countryside, the scenery, the small towns, the villages, the National Parks, the wildlife, the weather, the trip.
The entire TD Experience!

Not bad for two urban grown ups?
Wait till next year!

Your buying experience sounded eerily familiar (Oct '06 v Oct '07, the widest, storage unit...) and I was scared there was going to be an awful punchline. How nice to hear you had a great x-country journey. Congrats!

I'm planning on just such a trip in '08, hitting a lot of those national parks and ending up in Oregon.

Now all we need to see are your pics!

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In case you haven't seen the big Little Guy discussion in the "General Discussion" section, I just took possession of an '08 6-wide platform Little Guy on October 1 and recently had it painted to match my Honda Element.

Will be sharing mine with my pup. Or rather, my pup will be sharing it with me.



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I'm afraid its all true and factual, we really did have a great time. And yes we didn't have a clue where we would end up?
Pictures, I'm afraid my computing skills are el stinko? I read the instructions under the Newbee's section, its all Greek to me?

Your located in DC, we're North of ya by about three/four hours? Have you hooked up with a local chapter of the "Tearjerkers"?
I know there's a chapter in MD. We went down to Elk Neck Sate Park with them and had a ball and meet some very interesting, liked minded, TD people.
The "Tearjerkers" can be found in the Yahoo.com groups, @ the yahoo.com site by searching Teardrop trailers.

In those same yahoo groups there's a new "group" just for LG owners, and wannabe LG owners.
Search: Little_Guy_Teardrop_Trailers

Good luck with the new camper! I just know your going to love it!

Sounds like a great trip.

The only minor problem we encountered kinda, were "Bear scares".

This may sound goofey but apparently its a very big deal? We did not see Yogi nor Boo-boo in our camp grounds.
But we did see their "cousins" left dead, or nearly so, along the National Park access roads or area highways.
Not kidding here, if there was one, there had to be atleast 7 in a 200 mile radius?
Prior to this the only real bears I ever saw were in the Bronz Zoo and they looked bored and nasty.

In Yosemite, they post signs where a bear's been hit. Tourist speeding thru the park, apparently is a major problem? I saw, honestly three of four of them, signs, just driving the "El Capitan" loop?

While climbing up the access road to Glacier National Park a rather large male (to me atleast)? Maybe 200+ pounder, bolted out of the woods, across the two lane, directly in front, maybe 50 feet from my bumper, of my 50 mph Toyata truck.
We did not hit the bear, but we didn't hit the brakes nor speed up either. It wasn't his, nor perhaps, our time I guess? I have never seen an animal cross a road with such speed?
I live in NJ, a lifer, we have a nasty "Deer/car" history here. They are quick but the bear I saw was faster?
Honestly I didn't know they were sprinters? This guy was running like he was on fire or something?

Otherwise the wildlife we encountered were very approachable? I mean like ten feet away approachable? So who's the Bozo wil the Nikon tele?
I got some of the best non-posed, non baited, wildlife photo's I have ever taken in the past forty years on this last trip.

i just cannot figure out how to post them? Not so kumputter savy?