TRS Event 2026 Fall Colors Campout

[JoshT]

IMO the big secret for a camper is keeping them inside. Water is what kills them. Try to find one that was kept inside and try to find somewhere to keep it inside.

Or rather than pay storage, tags and tires... just rent one.

If you can't keep it inside, at least keep it covered, get the roof inspected on the regular, and get it resealed as needed.

 

[Li'l Work Truck]

Renting is the current best option, for sure! Some of the Facebook finds have been scary. I'd heard it said once before, "do you want a project, or do you want to go camping".

 

[JoshT]

Renting is the current best option, for sure! Some of the Facebook finds have been scary. I'd heard it said once before, "do you want a project, or do you want to go camping".

He ain't wrong. Unfortunately there are some things that just aren't available to rent. Not too many options in the small toy-hauler realm. At least not that I could find around here.

If you go look at a used one, take an objective third party or find someone that inspects them to give you a second opinion. Someone that without a dog in the fight, someone that won't be wearing the rose colored glasses, someone that is looking for every flaw to convince you not to buy it. Then if they say it's good, or you can live with what they find, buy away.

I should have passed on mine. Missed so much when looking at it and I had an idea of what to look for since we'd just gone through a partial rebuild on my parents camper last year. It's almost usable as is and fixable, so both a project and ready to camp. If I'd known about the issues I found after, I'd have passed or given a LOT less for it. Honestly I can't fault the seller. He was mostly a fair weather camper using it to transport his bikes to a couple of rallies, and parked it under cover when not in use. Most of what I found, I only noticed due to pulling it through some particularly hard rain.

 

[Curious Hound]

Renting is the current best option, for sure! Some of the Facebook finds have been scary. I'd heard it said once before, "do you want a project, or do you want to go camping".

I'm pretty sure that's a quote from @85_Ranger4x4

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

"do you want a project, or do you want to go camping".

I'm pretty sure that's a quote from @85_Ranger4x4

 

[Jim Oaks]

I'm waiting for Eric to replace his flatbed with a pop up.

 

[Curious Hound]

I'm waiting for Eric to replace his flatbed with a pop up.

Nope

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

I'm waiting for Eric to replace his flatbed with a pop up.

I still think it would be really slick to do... maybe someday.

 

[sgtsandman]

I'd like a small hard-sided trailer but besides the initial cost (I know used ones are cheap) I don't have anywhere to park it where I live so I'd have to rent space in a storage lot. For the foreseeable future we will just rent one when we need.
My daughter and son-in-law have a pop-up I could borrow but I regard those as glorified tents.

Some certainly are. I have also seen some that are as well equipped as a hard sided trailer. The only difference is the type of wall they have.

Storage is certainly a other issue. Storage is a big reason I don't have a lot of things. I refuse to pay for storage and I don't have space to park a motorcycle, let alone a camping trailer. Thus why the 2019 is setup like it is and I had a lot of tent camping stuff. I can find places to store that since I can break it down into smaller pieces.

 

[sgtsandman]

IMO the big secret for a camper is keeping them inside. Water is what kills them. Try to find one that was kept inside and try to find somewhere to keep it inside.

Or rather than pay storage, tags and tires... just rent one.

Even a carport will make a huge difference and atleast gravel for it to sit on.

 

[SenorNoob]

Any news on this front?

Anybody else gonna make it?

@Robert Mangrum @Tbow2025

We gotta have more than 7 people there.

 

[JoshT]

I'm still solidly in the camp of being there, but haven't made my reservation yet. Between weather, work, and medication changes, progress has been slow on getting my camper up to par. Electrical seems fixed now and a HF canopy going up tomorrow so I can reseal the roof leak. Really should have stuck to my original plan of building my own from a cargo trailer, but that's topic for another thread.

Will hopefully be taking it for a shake down run over labor day weekend. If all goes well, I'll be making a reservation at the campground, if not, I might be joining the hotel in town group.

EDIT: Or I might be staying in a hotel anyway. All RV sites now appear to be showing as booked for that period.

EDIT 2: Or if it comes to that I might be canceling. At this point, it looks like booking a room for the entire stay is potentially going to be $1k+. Add in the gas for the trip, the night or two stops I was going to make on the way up to see other stuff. Sorry, but I can't justify spending $1500-2000 on this trip. If I can't work out bring the camper, I might have to bail. I'll have to see if the campground will let me book a tent site for my small camper, it's only about 7x14 actual footprint with the tongue removed, so not much bigger than a cabin tent.