Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Well even with the cost increase of oceanside campsites to $50, I cannot ever deny how much I love camping in Carlsbad. I was there for a week and had a great time as usual. Beautiful temps. Lots of bike riding, working out, and watching magnificent ocean sunsets from the best seat in the house. I even ran into a fellow teardropper.

Hope you enjoy the pics.












Notice how the same angle shots of my campsite have different backgrounds? That's because in 7 days I had to set up in 3 different campsites.

But no worries. With my attached canopy, changing campsites is never easier. I just push in the adjustable hitchbars that the canopy is attached to and then extend them out again. You should have seen how many people were standing in the road watching me drive from one end of the campground to the other. I took a pic of me making the final switch which was incredibly RIGHT NEXT TO EACH OTHER. Here I am moving from campsite 157 to 156.





I don't have or need power and there is no electric at Carlsbad anyway. But what to do for a good smoothie? GSI Vortex manual blender is the answer. It's been serving me up delicious smoothies for quite a few years now.

Before:


After:


Gotta have a shower as well, I sweat too much with my workouts not to have one on my trips. The Zodi Extreme has become my absolute favorite. I like using the Extreme much better than their Hot Camp Instant Shower.





The last campsite I was in was actually at the very end of the campground. The wind coming up the bluff was unblocked and pretty strong. Funny, the campsite next door that I had just moved from had no wind at all. No problem, I just used my tow vehicle in a configuration to make a protected U shape and set the campsite back about 15 ft from the fence.





It got a little cold at night but the Mr. Big Buddy Heater worked great. The key is to have a canopy above it to trap the heat. I place it under my aluminum table and the table acts as a radiator and spreads the heat.



I met a fellow teardropper with a nice vintage tear:







Yup, "life is good" and there are "no bad days" when you're teardrop campin'.





See ya down the road.

Scott G.

Scott, What a perfect campsite and camping trip! I like your smoothie maker, too! Thanks for sharing your trip with us.

Fantastic photos, to say the least! Thanks.

How incredible to have that view from a campsite. $50 is a bargain for that.

What a lovely spot! Thanks for the tour. I sure miss getting out there........

I met this teardropper as well at San Onofre campsite not to long ago. He seems to be almost a permanent resident through out the coastal campgrounds. He seems to know the campground system well. I picked up a few tips like, scouting the empty campgrounds early morning after campers check out for left over firewood! I think his name is Ray. ha ha.

S. Heisley wrote:Scott, What a perfect campsite and camping trip! I like your smoothie maker, too! Thanks for sharing your trip with us.

Hi Sharon, yeah, that blender gets a lot of use. Great concept by GSI. I think the thing that makes it work so well is that it has two gears. The clamp could be a little beefier IMO, but it's enough to keep the thing steady while you spin.

I had it pretty loaded down too with raspberries, bananas, hemp protein powder, 1 egg, lecithin granules, rice milk and ice. It blended all that creamy smooth.

Scott G.

hiker chick wrote:Fantastic photos, to say the least! Thanks.

How incredible to have that view from a campsite. $50 is a bargain for that.

Thanks Hiker Chick, glad you enjoyed the pics. And yes, I conceded to your $50 bargain statement as soon as I pulled up to my campsite. I griped about the increase a little before I left on a post, but as soon as I saw that ocean... "It had me at hello".

Scott G.

Miriam C. wrote:

What a lovely spot! Thanks for the tour. I sure miss getting out there........

Hey Miriam... and just when did you grace these here parts of the country with your presence? We recruit sweet souls such as yourself to stay ya know?

Scott G.

Never camped by the ocean. Didn't know what I was missing!! Now I am envious!! Thanks for the photos!

cuyeda wrote:I met this teardropper as well at San Onofre campsite not to long ago. He seems to be almost a permanent resident through out the coastal campgrounds. He seems to know the campground system well. I picked up a few tips like, scouting the empty campgrounds early morning after campers check out for left over firewood! I think his name is Ray. ha ha.

Now THAT'S too funny Cliff. Yeah, Ray is quite a character. He really gets off on getting the most out of the camping experience in its entirety.

He was just flat out ecstatic after making a run to the 99¢ store. As he itemized his score with me, I saw that he paid 99¢ for a 7 lb bag of ice and I had just bought 2 of the same bags for about $2.50 each at Ralphs.

So yeah, from campground info to ice - Ray's good to take notes on.

Scott G.

prohandyman wrote:Never camped by the ocean. Didn't know what I was missing!! Now I am envious!! Thanks for the photos!

Well you know what that means Dan.... ROAD TRIP!


I do love the incredible diversity this country has - it's amazing. One of the fun things about Pamplin Grove IRG is that many people that attend from other parts of the country have never seen the giant Redwood trees before. They are so magnificent I would imagine even the locals never tire of seeing them.

Scott G.

I've spent a week in that campground three different times. So, which was worse, the ants or the squirrels?

Thanks for the pics Scott! Looks like a great time.

you've also put together an impressive outfit. All the comforts in a small, versatile package. That side awning is da bomb

KBS wrote:I've spent a week in that campground three different times. So, which was worse, the ants or the squirrels?

I've been there at least a dozen times and never saw any ants I'm happy to say. On the ocean side there are certainly little squirrels nesting in the high grass of the bluff. Ants I would mind, but those little guys are okay with me.

High Desert wrote:Thanks for the pics Scott! Looks like a great time.

you've also put together an impressive outfit. All the comforts in a small, versatile package. That side awning is da bomb

Thanks Shaun. The post ended up being as much an equipment review as travel pics. When it comes to any product teardrop lifestyle related, I always check this forum's opinions much like I do with Amazon's reviews and I know others do too.

Scott G.