Did you trade up from a tent?

[David and Nancy]

Like Byron, we don't consider staying in our trailer as having any connection to our tenting. The trailer is a fine alternative to a motel room while on road trips to various places around the country. Due to noise and congestion, RV parks and campgrounds are often poor places to pitch a tent anyway. Having a kitchen, bed and bathroom following along behind while on the road is pretty luxurious.

We still use our collection of tents often. We go on multi-day whitewater float trips and camp on the beaches in the canyons. I like to hike up into the high country with a backpack tent to fish for wild trout. We have a wall tent with a wood stove, for late fall hunting camps. When we say we are going camping, we mean tenting. Using our trailer is RV-ing.

Just to muddy the distinction, we sometimes park the trailer in remote areas off Forest Service roads. This is almost camping, except for the furnace, fridge, flush toilet, comfortable bed and lights.

Anyway, there are a lot of incredible places to camp where you can't take a travel trailer. So we are keeping our tents!

[RogerDat]

Originally Posted by David and Nancy

Like Byron, we don't consider staying in our trailer as having any connection to our tenting.....

When we say we are going camping, we mean tenting. Using our trailer is RV-ing......

Just to muddy the distinction, we sometimes park the trailer in remote areas off Forest Service roads. This is almost camping, except for the furnace, fridge, flush toilet, comfortable bed and lights.....

Anyway, there are a lot of incredible places to camp where you can't take a travel trailer. So we are keeping our tents!

In the past have tent camped from a car, canoe or backpack. Totally agree that a campground crowded with campers and motorhomes does not "feel right" for a tent. Having satellite dishes outnumber Coleman stoves is weird.

But essentially we have the same ammenities no matter how we camp, just not always implemented the same. Hot rocks from fire pit in a towel for a furnace, ice chest for a fridge, shovel to "flush" the toilet. And have slept pretty good on foam pad, and lantern for lights.

We generally treat our camper as a FG tent so we look at the big rigs and motor homes as RV-ing while we are camping in our trailer.

There is clearly a split that exists among folks on this forum, some purge the tenting gear and use the trailer for cooking, lights etc. Others who essentially pack the camping gear in the trailer and use it to have a bed and no tent to set up or take down. Biggest clue after coleman stove is the bed, sleeping bags or sheets with blankets.

If you get into Mich. the area south of Au Sable river is national forest with those access roads, if I can get my ground clearence up with new axle I'll be going back there in a minute. It's one of our favorite places to camp but... despite having camped there with just a tent in the past not sure DW would pick that over rustic campground nearby and the trailer.

I say while you can use em, keep the tents, later you can let the grandkids sleep in them if nothing else.

[Camilla]

After spending 100 years in the Army the tent idea was just not even possible for me to think of. I have spent too much time already cold and miserable or hot and miserable to even think of it.

I first bought a big camper (32') and used it to snowbird in the winters in Florida mostly. If you are staying in one place that isn't bad at all but moving around and setting up, etc. can be a chore and I almost quit camping totally because of all the work involved. I also hate driving the truck.

After that I bought a vintage small motorhome that was very cool but I never could get anyone to do any work on it so I sold it.

Then I bought a 62 Avion and spent a jillion dollars in fixing and repairing, etc. it's 24 foot and not too big and a great built camper but I still had to drive the truck...

Now I have a Playpac that I can pull around here with the four wheeler. It's not ready to go but is coming along. I've replaced the 15 amp to 30, AC is in, have a water pump but no tank yet, fantastic fan put in, old floor repaired/replaced and new vinyl down.

I still have a lot do to to get it the way I want it but to be able to just zip out of the house, hitch up without even having to back up 100 times (I can move this), and just go will be great!