What camping setup do you have?

Nah, they’re every bit as warm as a ground tent. At some point neither is a good option, but I’d rather be high and dry in the cold than on the ground wet and muddy. They make insulated interior wall panels you can zip on for true 4 season camping. Plus they have a built in mattress which is way better than a sleeping bag on a pad.

As far as advantages over ground tents. Most RTTs can be deployed in about 30 seconds. If you need to move the truck while at camp you just grab the ladder and fold it over or remove the ladder and fold it down (for the clamshell type) and re-open it once you’re settled in. All that takes about a minute.
If you want to go exploring in the truck during the day you just fold it up and go. Some you can even leave your bedding and stuff inside when you close it up.
Set up/tear down is vastly superior to a ground tent, especially when setting up late/in the dark.
The ladder is an obstacle, but nothing major. Hell, I’ve broken several zippers just trying to crawl in and out of ground tents. The older I get the less appealing crawling into a tent on the ground becomes.
Sure, they weigh more, and are way more expensive, but to some the ease of setup/tear down and the overall comfort is worth it.

 

Thanks for the reply. I was not aware that they had a mattress and were that easy to deploy / stow. It all makes sense now. Thanks again.

 

It is really getting out of control in Seattle. Another homeless camp is going up by my work, had one burn down before.

 

Been slowly building my own trailer. Originally wanted to make it completely enclosed but since we bought a RTT again at a great deal, I've been lazy with that idea.

 

Love your setup. Building as you has sooo many advantages...

 

Mine is insulated and I have an Exped megamat mattress in it which is also insulated. Also have a 12 V trucker blanket for really cold nights. Use a 12 V fan in the summer. Sets up in 10 seconds. Stows away in about 15 to 20 seconds. Makes camping so easy it's ridiculous. All camping gear, wood, supplies, mountain bike, fishing pole, etc,. in the bed of the truck. Yes it's expensive but literally paid for itself in one year with hotel savings. After that first year it's saving me money. My son plays college baseball. An because I bought a world traveler tent from a well known company, it will last a very long time. Probably longer than I would be able to still camp.
Yes climbing a ladder isn't always fun but I have a nalgene bottle so once I climb up there I don't climb down until the morning. I also use a cpap and it can stay up in the tent along with all the bedding and some other things while I'm driving to and from destinations. I'm real happy with the setup but as mentioned elsewhere I may ditch it in favor of a more stealth solution (high topper), which will save me even more money and be even more convenient. We shall see.
RTT's are not for everyone but my experience with the style I have has been positive. The style I have is not for everyone as I am most of the time by my self. I can accommodate one other person so if you have more you will need a different style tent. My gas mileage has not suffered that much with this style either since it is below the cab of the truck and fairly aerodynamic in nature. Literally the only thing I would say I don't find attractive about it is it's kind of gaudy, so it attracts attention, and as I said, when it's deployed, you know someone is sleeping in it.

 

Is that Mead?

 

Yup!

 

Yeah very similar, my TT is an ‘06 so they are a little lighter now... and I know what you mean about access! I have a small street and have to make sure no neighbors are parked on the street or I can’t get it in or out

 

Had to text my neighbor to move his truck tomorrow or I'm not able to go camping. Dude is nice enough but damn does he take up every square inch he can.

 

Sorry if this has been covered in here already but, does anyone camp full time?
My wife and I are thinking about doing it for about 6 months- a year after we sell the house. I think it would be a good opportunity to travel the country before buying our next house.

 

My in-laws did it for about that long. It's hard on your trailer. Most campgrounds only allow so long of a stay and finding another campground can be difficult when the internet is shoddy.

 

The DC just looks more... ... TRUCK!

 

A lot of people are full -time in an RV and many never go back!

I would find some good RV groups and settle in and see what others do and decide how big and how much and where you want/need it to take you and go from there.
Almost every type of RV has dedicated groups on the Internet and most groups also have dedicated sections for Full-Timers too.

There are a lot of different ways to attack this and knowing ahead of time what to expect can be really helpful obviously but the idea that you should shy away from this lifestyle because it is hard on the RV is silly too.
Kind of like the idea that driving your truck is harder on them than not!

There are even people who full time in cars somehow? Not for me for sure but I can not say that I have tried it either.

 

How does this tow? Looking at a few transcends but don’t want to max my towing or payload. It’s frustrating because most of the manufacturers severely underestimate the hitch weight.

 

Not sure they underestimate at all?

They build the damn things and know exactly how much they weigh.

They grossly misrepresent this though and that is the part that sucks!

 

Well I believe they show hitch weight without anything loaded in the trailer, propane, batteries etc. so when you load up that stuff you are probably 10-15% of the GVWR

 

I think it is pretty well accepted that they lie blatantly about the dry weights routinely.

I have been screwing with trailers for a long time and it is always misrepresented so they can sell you too much trailer for some idiotic reason?

ALWAYS!

 

So how can you tell what the actual hitch weight is?

 

Well one way is

 

Here’s my set up


most of the gear fits in the slide outs . Anything bigger goes on the platform, fold the mattress in half and 2 Plano utility boxes , water jug , propane tank and cooler , magnetic battery operated LED lights .

 

I did it for 13 years in a '84 Toyota truck, and I'm fixing to do it again. What do you want to know? I can tell you that it's much better in the west...

 

We like being able to setup base camp then go explore. Current setup

Gazelle T4 tent (90second setup)
Aimtom Power
Queen size air mattress
Jetboil coffee
Jetboil genesis stove
5lb propane bottle, water etc.
Front runner storage cases for dishes,cleaning, etc

 

I never wanted a roof top on my truck. And like an idiot, I was thinking ground or truck. Thank you. Trailer is perfect.

 

Bounce between these two setups depending on the situation. It's the same tent on both.

 

For the long haul family trips pops brings turtle back. The Turtle back is an awesome setup.

 

What rear bumper is that?

 

It’s the expedition one bumper