2+2 in Colorado (continued from other thread)

[Wolfgang92025]

Rohan

Glad to see that you can camp in your trailer.
Funny thing is a few weeks ago at "Walk the Winds" gathering I was wondering if you ever got done on your trailer or just gave up.
So, did you get a chance to weight "Charlie" yet ?

At any rate, congratulations on getting "Charlie" out on the road.

[bdosborn]

Great job on the trailer! You might consider showing it off at the Last Gasp in Canyon City....


Bruce

[rxsamar]

Wolfgang, the trailer weighs 1700lbs empty. It's probably a little heavier now with mattresses, curtains a spare tire and a new stove. Maybe another 200-300 lbs. Fuel economy ain't great 14-18mpg with my Mitsubishi outlander. I got about 12mpg in the Wyoming headwind on the interstate on the first day. I thought it was going to be an excessively expensive trip - speaking to some of my fellow campers I found out I was not alone in having dismal fuel economy that day. The next day I dropped my speed to 60-65 mph and my fuel economy shot up a bit to 16-19 mpg. Great incentive to get off the 75mph interstates.

The comfort factor is high though and the fuel economy equates to what I get towing a standard poptop or casita.

[rxsamar]

I've uploaded a few photos from my iPad. According to the Tapatalk app I'm using the maximum number of attachments is three. When I get to a computer I'll upload a few more and link them into this forum.

Cheers

Rohan

[rxsamar]

Aha! Here are a few more photos

[rxsamar]

And some more

[rxsamar]

Bruce, Canyon city could be a goer. I've spent a few weekends at FairPlay and Eleven Mile state park which I think is down that way.

[angib]

That's nice work - and, to use the technical term, I see you carry 'some stuff' in your galley!

The 12 volt heater is 40 amps, so I think that's intended for use with an engine running. Your typical 80 amp-hour leisure battery can run that heater for 30 minutes before it's half empty - which is about as far as you should empty a lead-acid battery that you want to use again. And the 480 watt output isn't much when most household electrical heaters are four to six times as much.

[Forrest747]

Looks great for sure. SO is it nicer to camp in than a tent? Good to have another Charley. My wife calls it the mistress.

[KCStudly]

Love the pic of the snow capped ridge. Nice.

[Wolfgang92025]

Wolfgang, the trailer weighs 1700lbs empty. It's probably a little heavier now with mattresses, curtains a spare tire and a new stove. Maybe another 200-300 lbs. Fuel economy ain't great 14-18mpg with my Mitsubishi outlander. I got about 12mpg in the Wyoming headwind on the interstate on the first day. I thought it was going to be an excessively expensive trip - speaking to some of my fellow campers I found out I was not alone in having dismal fuel economy that day. The next day I dropped my speed to 60-65 mph and my fuel economy shot up a bit to 16-19 mpg. Great incentive to get off the 75mph interstates.

The comfort factor is high though and the fuel economy equates to what I get towing a standard poptop or casita.

Rohan,

Sounds like we are about in the same ballpark all the way around. Mine came in at 1900 lbs last time is was checked. Gas mileage with a Ford Edge is about 16.5 mpg if I keep it at 65 to 70. Not always easy. Cruise control really helps.

[rxsamar]

Andrew,

Thanks for the designs and the tip on the heater. Half of that stuff is baby related paraphernalia. I'm looking forward to getting some space back when he is big enough to use the single bunk/couch and is no longer on formula. That said we do tend to over pack a little and a bigger trailer means it's easier to get carried away.

Cheers

Rohan

[rxsamar]

It is definitely nicer to camp in a teardrop. No more packing and unpacking. I particularly like not having to stuff sleeping bags back into their stuff sacks. We could have had a dinette in the bed area but put a restful nights sleep ahead of a diner booth and table. After seeing photos of a cabin car Layout this bed setup I decided to go this way, although I drew the line act the separate bathroom in the front and opted for a simple couch/bunk. In rest areas with no shade if we had space in the carpark I'd just point the car and trailer into the sun and lift the back hatch. This generally afforded us some decent shade while we had lunch (see photo of this attached below - the other is a bigger copy my favorite teardrop photo from our Canada trip). We barely used our flashlights or head lamps and there was no need. Porchlights and the galley light filled this need.

The other thing I loved about the teardrop on the trip was the insulated cabin. We had a couple of cold wet nights in Jasper and while we weren't warm and cosy without our blankets, we weren't freezing cold. Some of the folks in tent campers had there furnaces going. My only issue was the considerable condensation buildup around some of our windows and the skylight.

So where to from here:

Make the most of what is left of summer/fall (until it gets cold).
Then,
Hook up water, pump and 3 way faucet (I've been thinking about a sliding bowl and faucet rather than cut a hole in my bench - although I do have then space and could install a town water option as well.
Install 12volt outlets
Install shore power
Make a decision on heating/to heat or not to heat
Find a better place for my spare tire (currently under the bed) I thought the below link from SoCal teardrops was pretty cool albeit a bit expensive http://www.socalteardrops.com/options.php?cid=6&oid=69

[Cutthroat Tracker]

Rohan, great build Journal. It is nice to see another Colorado builder. I am building a 10' Comit from the Kuffle Crreek plans and have the side walls up and am into the electrical which is not my strong suite. Luckly my Brother-in-law is an electrical wiz and will check my work. Hopefully I will have the roughy electrical done this week and will build the sandwich walls this week.

Thanks again for the great motivation

i would add a link to my build, but the technology escapes me.

Cutthroat Tracker

[S. Heisley]

Very, very nice build! Beautiful pictures, too!
Thanks for sharing!