Small trailer and what to pull it with?

Maybe will retire in a few years and maybe will want to drive to lots of national parks (and ski zones?).

Does a trailer work in cold weather (for overnight sleeping)?

I am thinking a small trailer- maybe towable with a V-6 AWD Toyota Sienna. ANyone had experience with this?
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I have read about being able to stop at some Walmarts with trailers when traveling- is this real? Are there other good places to spend a night?

Thanks to all!

Check out cheaprvliving.com. There is some good reading in their forums.

Yes, Wall Mart makes for a quick and easy spot to sleep in a pinch but I wouldn't want to do it very much.

Out west here there is a shit ton of National Forests that you can camp on for free generally for up to two weeks at a time in any one NF. That law is to make sure people aren't living full time on public lands. It's pretty easy to pick up camp and move somewhere else on the less popular NF's and not get hassled. NF lands are one of the best resources we have in this country imo, some are just as beautiful as our National Parks but don't suffer from the designation effect the way a park does. Take a look at the states of Nevada, Colorado, Montana etc. on a road atlas, those places are covered in desolate and rarely visited NF lands.

I'm a big fan of the 4WD Sports mobile type vans. They can be stealth enough that you can post up in an urban area and not be that noticeable.

I've thought about a similar strategy for traveling resort to resort out west. I think it would be a blast. I have done a fair bit of towing a Coleman pop-up with a compact pickup but pop-ups are no good for winter time. Hard sided travel trailers would work. I would like to get a small fiberglass camper like a 13 foot scamp.  It's doable with a minivan as long as you stick to the absolutely smallest trailers out there and don't load up the trailer or van with too much stuff but you'd be much better off with a small truck; 4-5k lb towing capacity vs 3-3.5k for a mini van. Here's another place where GM dropped the ball dicontinuing the Astro/Safari vans. They were available in AWD and could tow 5k.

The propane heat works whenever, but the hard part is the water system. Arctic Fox makes trailers with insulated undercarriages. I've done 28 degrees in the ADK with no issues with the water system full on our old hybrid travel trailer. Just reached 28 overnight then warmed up the next day. I'm not sure how good the fridge works in low temps though.

So cool - two of my bucket list items are Ski 100 days in a season, and live in a tiny home for a year.  Your type of plan would allow for both.  Please share what you find here!

I think you can go from area to area pretty easily... most of the "cooler" areas have very user friendly RV policies... we have done the Powder highway without any hotel rooms needed.

A buddy of mine converted his Toyota Sienna minivan into a pretty sweet overnighter.  He and his son have done some Epic road trips the past few years... very cost effective.  The van is so posh that he actually sleeps in the car in my driveway when he comes to Mission (as opposed to sleeping in a bedroom at my house)... just comes in to the house to use the can.

Another thought.....I'm a big fan of a simpler set up. One without running water or a fridge. It's pretty easy to go for 4 or 5 day trips without these things. Most towns have a rec center or gym with public showers. Not having these things in your truck/van/camper makes it easier to maintain and opens things up to create a more comfortable living space. A quality cooler can keep your food/beverages cold for around 2 weeks. A propane camping stove can fit into a really small space. Throw in a large water cooler and you are set for 4 to 5 days at a time. Maybe more.

The cool thing about traveling is that you start to meet people form everywhere. Once you develop a network of connections you can jump around and stay with friends for a few days at a time. Just make sure to be unseen as best as possible and cook and clean for your hosts. This though may be more of a thing for younger folks, maybe for those of us >40 might come off as weirdo gypsy creepers. You know we aren't supposed to be living like this once we are over the hill! :)

I guess what kind of set up you would choose would depend on your desired use for the rig.

Once I'm done with school my main goal is to have a van, base out of here in Flagstaff and then go on extended trips all around the 4 Corners region when ever I can. It's the dream imho. I hope you do it!

Brownski wrote

I've thought about a similar strategy for traveling resort to resort out west. I think it would be a blast. I have done a fair bit of towing a Coleman pop-up with a compact pickup but pop-ups are no good for winter time. Hard sided travel trailers would work.

There is a company, I think it's Travel Manor that makes a hard sided pop-up. Heaver than a real pop-up, but I think lighter than a regular trailer and it has some insulation.

tom

These tear drop campers always looked interesting to me and they are light.
http://tinycamper.com/index.htm

x10003q wrote

These tear drop campers always looked interesting to me and they are light.
http://tinycamper.com/index.htm

Warren Miller spent a whole winter living in teardrop in the 40s. That's pretty  badass in my book. The subie people can even get in the game with those things.

The darn thing is around 12k +
that's a lot of nights in a motel with running water and heat...

Just get this

JasonWx wrote

The darn thing is around 12k +
that's a lot of nights in a motel with running water and heat...

Yep.

When you sit down and do the math, a lot of the RV arguments start to dry up. People end up not using them nearly as much as they think they will and hotels (even at $100 a night) would have been the better option.

Exceptions:

• If you make it a lifestyle. You need to be able to either live in it for a couple of years, or take off 3 months a year, every year.
• You have a specific trip in mind, you buy a used RV at a great price at the beginning, you sell it for the about the same price when you're done with the trip. I might do this with an RV and a snowmobile in Alaska some future Spring.
• You are able to convert your normal, everyday vehicle into a camper-lite option. This is my preferred method. Tents are good enough for me (but others do the Adventure Van, rooftop tent, or Truck Bed Sleeping Platform options), I can carry water, cooking supplies, table, chairs, a good cooler, and bikes. Car camping is a lot cheaper than buying an RV and you're not losing a ton of functionality. Yeah, I guess maybe sometimes I'd like to stand up inside somewhere, or use my own shower, but you gotta go pretty expensive to get that kind of camp-life.

A skier van/RV also needs a lot of insulation and running water hacks that standard vans/RVs don't include. It's all been done, and it's all on the Internet. I'm hoping they make great strides in Solar Panels and Electric motors in the next few years, so that when I'm finally ready to buy such a rig, energy will be cheap and plentiful and heating/cooling/etc. will make its way to a new generation of tricked out, 4WD stealthy camper vans.

MC - admittedly I have done almost no research, but re your last paragraph just the heat loss issues are what I think would be the biggest issue on some kind of tiny home/van set up for skiing.  Really, the significant issue I see is if folks want running water or the ability to take a shower in their setup.  I guess I wouldn't care about the shower, but in my hypothetical world of ski van/tiny home dreaming, running water in the winter sounds nice.  Good to hear that it may be a possibility with the materials out there.

I don't think its the worst idea, even if you only used it 30 days a year. Given you said you will be retiring I dont think thats outside the realm of reason possibility.

Lets scrap winter usage. Lets just say an affordable camper trailer is just not going to be able to make winter stays comfortable.

Take a look at the Cricket trailer from TAXA. Its a great lightweight trailer, that could easily be towed by a Sienna.
https://taxaoutdoors.com

The Cricket model has been out for a number of years now and Im starting to see very lightly used ones pop up.

Some benefits of a small camper trailer:

1) Proximity, generally your going to be able to stay a lot closer, if not inside many of the national parks, forest preserves, etc where you will visiting
2) Being outdoors. There truly is a certain feeling of connection being almost completely outside 24/7. The sounds, the smell, sleeping with a cool chill, or on a warm night. Its like hitting a reset.
3) Cooking. You will have a much easier time cooking for yourself, which means you can eat healthier, and save a good deal of money than having to worry about eating out 3x times a day. It gives you that added flexibility.
4) Hard asset. Now Im not going to argue that purchasing a trailer is a sound investment. But if you use it 30 days a year for say 5 years, at the end of it your still going to have a hard asset that can be sold if you so choose. Certainly it will have lost some value, and their are other yearly costs, but a hotel room over the same period is investment that cannot recovered.

JasonWx wrote

The darn thing is around 12k +
that's a lot of nights in a motel with running water and heat...

In a money comparison, yes. But the object is to spend time in a beautiful natural setting, far away from the Holiday Inn Express off some random interstate exit next to the Comfort Inn, Super 8, and Best Western with a Bob Evans across the street.

campgottagopee wrote

Just get this

Diesel Brothers special. If you listen carefully you can here the fuel tank draining as you drive.

x10003q wrote

JasonWx wrote

The darn thing is around 12k +
that's a lot of nights in a motel with running water and heat...

In a money comparison, yes. But the object is to spend time in a beautiful natural setting, far away from the Holiday Inn Express off some random interstate exit next to the Comfort Inn, Super 8, and Best Western with a Bob Evans across the street.

I agree but also disagree...
there is something to be said for pissing in a toilet at 2am..
I guess at 54 I have different needs..If I was in my 20's the trailer sounds like a hoot..

evantful wrote

Lets scrap winter usage.

Well, if you're not going skiing with it, what's the point? Now you just want a more comfortable tent (something you can achieve with a nicer sleeping pad).

Some benefits of a small camper trailer:

1) Proximity, generally your going to be able to stay a lot closer, if not inside many of the national parks, forest preserves, etc where you will visiting
2) Being outdoors. There truly is a certain feeling of connection being almost completely outside 24/7. The sounds, the smell, sleeping with a cool chill, or on a warm night. Its like hitting a reset.
3) Cooking. You will have a much easier time cooking for yourself, which means you can eat healthier, and save a good deal of money than having to worry about eating out 3x times a day. It gives you that added flexibility.

These 3 can be obtained with a tent and some cheap cooking equipment. And the tent opens up backcountry camping, too, which is a big help in national parks out west where the Campgrounds are more expensive, but the "remote sites" (some that are less than a mile walk) are free.

4) Hard asset. Now Im not going to argue that purchasing a trailer is a sound investment. But if you use it 30 days a year for say 5 years, at the end of it your still going to have a hard asset that can be sold if you so choose. Certainly it will have lost some value, and their are other yearly costs, but a hotel room over the same period is investment that cannot recovered.

Not sure what the resale value of a 5-year old, 150-day used camper is. But it's probably a lot less than you paid for it, unless you bought it used.

JasonWx wrote

The darn thing is around 12k +
that's a lot of nights in a motel with running water and heat...

I agree the prices on modern teardrops are ridiculous, especially when compared to normal pop-ups or travel trailers. If I wanted a teardrop (which I don't since I have kids) I would buy a used ATV trailer and build it out myself. There are lots of DIY options for them