I just returned from my first camping trip in my converted cargo trailer. It went well, and I'm very pleased with my decision to go with this type of base trailer for my project.
It was just over 200 miles from my home to the Furnace Creek Campground in Death Valley. I had never been to Death Valley before. Besides checking out the trailer I also wanted to explore the park for future trips there.
I arrived at the Hell's Gate entrance to the park after dark, so I decided rather than continue to the campground I'd just pull over at the information kiosk to sleep. The bed in the trailer was very comfortable with its combination of 3 inches of high density foam covered by 3 more inches of memory foam. It was a little cool out, but I didn't start up the heater. With just my little dog sleeping in his bed and me in my sleeping bag the trailer was quite a bit warmer than the cool air outside.
I enjoyed a nice hot breakfast cooked on my little backpack stove in the morning. I stepped outside to take a picture of the Jeep, trailer, and the nice scenery around my stopping place.
Other than the folding step stool, I didn't pull anything out of the trailer at this stop, since I didn't want to give the rangers the impression I was planning on camping out at the kiosk. I took a pic of the interior of the trailer with it fully loaded.
The 3kw generator set is the heaviest single piece of gear I am hauling, so I tried moving it anywhere from the front of the cabin to as far back as the front edge of the bed to see how much the change in tongue weight affected the handling of the trailer behind the Jeep. Underway, it was very little difference, but felt slightly better balanced with the generator back against the front of the bed.
Just a few miles down the road I came to the entrance of the 20 Mule Team Canyon loop road. It was a graded dirt road that appeared to be in excellent shape, so I decided to go ahead and pull my trailer through the loop. The road had several switchbacks and a fairly steep up hill followed by a corresponding downhill. The Jeep and trailer handled beautifully, so I was happy.
I moved on to Furnace Creek. After stopping at the general store, a guy pulled in and asked about my Jeep and trailer. He was driving a Farabee's rental jeep, and had one of their hats on. We visited for a while, and I learned he was Richard Farabee, the owner of Farabees Jeeps. They have rental locations in Moab, Sedona, and now in Death Valley. Richard had several tips on places to explore in the valley. A couple of them were places I planned on visiting.
I found a short back-in campsite by a mesquite mound in the middle of all the pull though sites in Furnace Creek Campground. Most of the big RV's in the pull throughs were pulling Jeeps behind them, so they were intrigued by the only Jeep pulling an RV in their midst.
When I started pulling out all my kit and kaboodle, they were even more intrigued. One of my neighbors asked if I slept in a tent, and I said, "No, I sleep inside on the bed." Soon, I had 4 campers on a "guided tour" of my little trailer.
With the exception of the dog bed, a rug, generator set, and cooler, all the gear fit under the bed. I was very happy that it all fit where I planned, and that I had more than enough gear for a 5 day trip. After the base camp is set up, all the gear that needs to be secured fits under the bed even while it is in the sofa position. Very tidy!
For those of you that may be like me, and want the details of how the trailer is packed, here is my packing list:
Trailer Tote (Large Rubbermaid Roughneck)
= 25 foot 30 amp cable
= 30 amp-15 amp converter pigtail
= 4 wheel chocks
= blocking for stabilizer jacks and hitch jack
= 2 gallons of gas for generator w/fill spout
= 4 pak of propane 1 pound tanks for stove, bbq, and Buddy heater
= Locking cable and padlock for generator
Fire Tote (Large Rubbermaid Roughneck)
= 2 bundles of firewood
= 1 bundle of split kindling
= axe
= swedish saw
Cooking Utensils (small Rubbermaid Roughneck)
= griddle for camp stove
= chopping board
= backpacking stove with 2 cans of fuel
= stainless mess kit
= stainless soup plates
= bbq tools (meat fork, spatula, and tongs)
= coffee pot
= coffee mug
= dish towel
= bio soap
= marshmallow/hot dog sticks
= flame thrower (lighter)
= plastic forks, knifes, spoons
= chopping knife
= can opener
= emergency matches
Food Tote (small Rubbermaid Roughneck)
= 1 loaf of bread
= 5 instant lunches
= 2 cans of mushrooms
= 2 cans of diced tomatoes w/green chiles
= 2 cans of corn
= 2 cans of green beans
= 1 can of pinto beans
= 1 bag of marshmallows
= 1 bag of tortilla chips
= 1 pack of tortillas
= 5 milk chocolate packets
= 5 coffee packets
= 12 individual packed dog meals
= 4 individual packed breakfast hot cereal
= salt and pepper
Cooler (Igloo 54 quart Marine Cooler)
= block ice
= 2 litre bottles of milk
= 2 2 litre bottles of juice
= 2 frozen chicken breasts
= 2 frozen pork tenderloin chops
= 1 bottle dijonaise
= 1 bottle mustard
= 1 bottle picante sauce
= 1 package frozen broccoli
Clothing duffel
= 3 changes of clothes
= hiking boots
= shaving kit
= first aid kit
misc. unmentionables (you really didn't expect a full disclosure, eh?)
BBQ duffel
= Weber BBQ
= BBQ cleaning brush
= bottle of propane
Luggable Loo
= 12 pack of WAG bags
Brief Case
= laptop w/power cord
= chargers for camera batteries
Coleman 2 burner propane stove
Pelonis ceramic 120 vac cube heater
Heater Buddy
Kipor 3000 inverter generator
2 camp chairs
small camp table
small bbq/stove table
sleeping bag
dog bed
2 dog bowls
3 extra blankets for dog bed
3 rubber backed bathroom rugs
2 Reliant 4 gallon water jugs w/spigot
I really enjoyed Death Valley, and the new trailer made it a very comfortable trip. The days were in the 60's and the nights dropped down in the high 40's. I fired up the Heater buddy once for about 20 minutes before going to bed, and the trailer was cozy all night.
The trailer still pulls easily at 65 mph, and on the steepest climbs I was able to stay above 50 mph. I didn't get the opportunity to weigh the trailer loaded, but I think I'm pretty close to 1,100 pounds empty and I figure the load to be around 400 pounds. So I think 1,500 is a close guess.
Fuel mileage pulling the loaded trailer is 13.5 mpg, compared to 14.9 empty. (The Jeep is lifted 3.5 inches plus 35" tires, plus a cargo rack on top. It also is running 5.13 gears in the differentials.)
Places I visited were Stove Pipe Wells, Scottie's Castle, Furnace Creek Ranch, Ryolite ghost town, Leadfield ghost town, Titus Canyon, 20 Mule Team Canyon, Zabrisky Point, RaceTrack and South Pass. That is just a good start exploring all there is to see in the "largest national park in the lower 49 states." I'll be back!
Gil
I was mostly razzing ya. (You could enter it in Monster Truck rallies.) 
here's the party of the year for trailer folks. It's the International Redwood Gathering (IRG), third time (only happens every other year). You coming to it? Join us, but hurry. This thing will fill up fast:
