theboondork's RV blog

Hard work

9/2/2022

Clicking the pics isn't hard work, but at times, can be somewhat disappointing.

Roses in the rain.

I don't know what happened! My ten-day weather forecast went from the mid-80s every day for a high to mid to low 90s for a high every day. That goes on into September; and September is Fall around here.... I wonder what happened.

Not having a reliable refrigerator while full-timing in an RV is annoying and can be dangerous if your perishables are getting too warm. So I put having a reliable refrigerator up near the top of the list of things to help keep me happy, comfortable, and safe while boondocking.

And like I've talked about several times in my blog, there's no way I could boondock and live without hookups for long periods of time the way I do if I couldn't stay comfortable!

So considering that I worked on my project of putting fans in Lance's refrigerator again today and managed to get most of the caulking off the surfaces that need to be sealed. And going above and beyond the call of duty, I made a couple of brackets to hold the 140 mm computer fans in position in the refrigerator vent.

The amount of work I accomplished is nothing short of astounding for a lazy guy. Unfortunately, finishing this project will probably require numerous days of relaxing with a cup of coffee before I can work anywhere near this level again.

Theboondork

I've never been a big fan of pop-up trailer campers, they appear to have all the bad attributes of a tent, which would be...

the difficulty of setting up and taking down, leaky canvas, very little insulation, etc. etc.

and all the bad points of a trailer, difficulty backing up, more running gear to fail, tire problems, etc.

And yet it has none of the good points of the tent...

Inexpensive, lightweight, and easy to move around your campsite if you want a new location.

And at the same time having none of the good points of a trailer...

such as being able to lock up your stuff so it's hard to steal. And bears can't just walk in whenever they feel like it.

I guess they work for some folks that need a lightweight, easier to pull with a small vehicle, camper. But my guess would be just like a tent, folks new to camping often quickly outgrow them, and move on to something more comfortable.

In the two different campgrounds I stayed at while visiting Rocky Mountain National Park I saw very few large RVs since there didn't appear to be many spaces that were big enough for them to get into, and by far most campers were in tents. So most of the RVs I saw were more like this size, smaller and more maneuverable.

The tent looks like a good idea if you're going to stay someplace for a while, especially with all the rain I encountered while there.

Sunrise at Rocky Mountain National Park

6 Comments

Larry Worsham

9/2/2022 06:17:39 am

Over the years we have most types of camping equipment....from a open air on cot, old mining cabins, tent, teardrop, pop up, campers, various bumper pulls. We haven't tried a Fifth wheel or a motor home. Each has its advantages and disadvantages. Most of them were purchased used as fixer uppers. I pulled my first travel trailer 50 yrs ago and have made every mistake known to man but I survived them. I have stories about each one.

We were pulling a little Coleman Tent trailer and our daughter was about 4 yrs old. We pulled into a family reunion and my Mom exclaimed " My grand baby isn't sleeping in that!" Mom didn't realize that he rig expanded into a tent. It was a pain to set up and take down....but it kept us off the ground while attempting to avoid west Texas snakes.

As i have gotten older I want less hassle with some measure of comfort w/o breaking the bank.

I share the space with a wife and two moderate sized dogs so compromises are in order.

If I were in your shoes I would probably go back to the cab over camper if I still felt like climbing in and out of bed! LOL!

You have mastered the art of pacing yourself....as have I!

Tom

9/2/2022 09:33:40 am

Yeah, discussing the attributes of various RVs is as endless as there are different kinds of people in the world. I've owned more than my share of RVs, but I've never owned a pop-up travel trailer, although I've slept in one for a few days, and I've never owned a class "A" figuring it would be too limiting as to the places I could go. And to make it more complicated, as our lives and situations change, so do our needs for various RVs. I guess that's why they make so many different kinds.

Yes, I would put climbing up and down the steps to get into a truck camper and get in and out of bed as its biggest faults. Still, the sofa is long enough for me to sleep on if need be, so I wouldn't have to climb up into the bed, but so far, I don't have any trouble getting in and out of the camper; there are more steps to get in and out of the Arctic Fox than there is the Lance.

Fortunately, I've yet to have any leg or balance problems, so getting up and down stairs is not a problem for me, but I have noticed a decrease in stamina needed to walk up hills when I'm in the high country, and so far my solution for that has been to not walk up many hills when I'm in the high country.

So far, I'm happy with my choice of a highly mobile, relatively lightweight, "non-folding" truck camper, and I can't wait to live in it this winter. I believe that not having to deal with the weight, size, and stress of the Arctic Fox has changed my life for the better, and I'm again looking forward to going places.

Yes, pacing yourself is important, and being lazy, I have always found it easy to pace myself. But as I slide inexorably into geezer-hood, my 76th birthday is coming up this month; I find that pacing myself is even more important to my happiness and a stress-free life.

Tom

Linda

9/2/2022 03:23:35 pm

Our pop-up camper had two advantages over our previous tent camping: real beds and a furnace. We truly appreciated that second one when traveling through the mountains in June.

9/2/2022 04:43:53 pm

Yes I believe that pop up trailers have a useful place in the world of RVs. But to me they were too time consuming to set up and take apart, and also for me, any trailer that has its wheels too close to the tow vehicle further taxes my extremely limited ability to back the thing up.... Motorcycle trailers being the worst.

Yes they do have some amenities in them that set them a step above a tent, and they do get you off the ground, which can be very important in some places. But being a mechanic I always had my doubts about those tiny little tires, the ones I remember were like 10 or 12 inches, and the tiny little bearings they rolled on. I've noticed now they put some tires on them that are car size, which is definitely a step in the right direction.

Tom

9/3/2022 02:55:12 pm

Ours went up so easily our ten-year old daughter and I could do it alone in just a few minutes. It was also light weight enough I could unhitch it and roll it into the garage if I didn't feel like backing it up using the car.

9/3/2022 04:34:45 pm

The only pop-up trailer I've ever used was when I lived in Miami and was working as a civilian for Homestead Air Force Base, and I was able to rent a pop-up trailer from the base MWR for the princely sum of five dollars a day. And that particular one was a bit on the heavy side, and had some of the tiniest tires I had ever seen on a trailer. But that was a long time ago and MWR was not known for renting out high-class equipment. I rented a canoe from them, and it almost sank before I could paddle it back to shore. So maybe my opinion of pop-up trailers was more due to MWR than the trailer itself.

Tom

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Hard work

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