Roof-Top Tents vs. Tent Trailers?

FAOL Community Fly Anglers Online
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I’ve been looking around recently for ways to make my fishing/camping trips more convenient and time efficient as time off has become rare, and when it does happen it is rarely longer than a weekend. Most of the places I fish are about 5 hours away and require camping, which at the moment takes about an hour for set up and takedown in addition to a bit of pre-trip preparation. I was recently offered a tent trailer (pop-up tent) at a decent price, and it got me thinking that this may be a way to decrease the pre-preparation time since the trailer can have all the camping gear stored in it already and may also decrease set-up/take-down time. The problem is that one of the places I like to fish is 4x4 accessible only, and I doubt I could tow a trailer in there. This got me looking at roof-top tents since it would eliminate the towing thing and provide mobility. Does anyone here have experience with roof-top tents and what do think are the pro’s and con’s. Would they be warm enough in the middle of winter with 0-15 degree weather at night? I go on these trips with my wife who isn’t too fond of the cold, especially at night. Do you think they would cut down on pre-trip preparation very much or would they only increase the amount of time I set up and takedown camp since I would likely need to do this each day in order to drive from the campsite to the river? Any insight would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Greg

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I don’t know about roof top tents but look at Cabela’s web site they have SUV (something new to me) and pick-up tents.
They allow you use space pretty wisely. Been thinking of the SUV for myself.

Doug

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Greg,

I have to say that I would probably go with the pop-up camper. It’s like a little home away from home. Mine was very comfortable, set up and take down were an absolute breeze. I could have it done in about 15 minutes. The convenience of having everything stowed in the camper was fantastic, back-up, hook-up, and drive away (of course you still have to pack food and clothing, unless you have a place to store clothes in the camper and you don’t have to worry about it. As for accessability, who cares if you have to drive 15 or 20 minutes to get to your fishing spot from where you camp when you can essentially be camping in a small hotel room.
As for heating…unless you have some way to insulate the walls, the heater just takes the bite off the cold, but I wouldn’t say that it was warm in mine when I used it in the winter time. I always thought that I would someday cut out some of the foam board insulation to fit, and wedge it along the walls inside the camper if I was going to use it in cold weather on a regular basis.
Mine didn’t have a comode, but it did have a sink, table and benches, and a 3 burner gas stove. The beds were as comfortable as you could ask for, and it’s super nice to be able to get up and walk around. Not to mention the comfort when the weather was too bad to fish, sit around the table and play cards or tie flies.
If you were alone mostly, you might not have a need for one if you could rough it a bit, but if your wife goes with on most of your trips…I’d take the pop-up camper in a heartbeat.

TT.

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Greg,

My gut feeling is that this is not what you are looking for. You would have to take it down each time you move your rig, you would have to climb up into it and back down, if your wife is with you, I really can’t see her wanting to use a roof topper, I know I wouldn’t. I remember when they used to use sheet metal that you could actually stand on and not dent, they don’t do that any more. Most of the racks on the top of SUV’s and pickup canopies have a weight restriction and it isn’t very high.

Like I said, my gut feeling is look for another way. They have tents that almost pop into place and take down as fast. However, if you are fishing in minus 15 dgree weather then you would need a lot more than that kind of tent.

Can you buy yourself a small travel trailer and set it up in a campground near where you fish. You would want power and a place that has shower and toilet facilities. Then leave the RV there and travel during the day to your fishing locations. That is the way to go.

Larry —sagefisher—

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I have a full sized pickup with a cap and a tent that goes over the door and tailgate. Works great and goes up (and down) in minutes. I used velcro and shower curtains to make curtains for the cap. The header is lined.

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If you’re just looking for shelter for sleeping check out a Teardrop trailer, most are 4X8 size and have kitchen area in rear. Small but would work. There is a web site, Teardrops and tiny trailers, that might help, take care, John.

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I have been thinking about making something like this as well since it would be a reasonable alternative to a rooftop tent for a much better price. I like your set up :slight_smile:

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I’ve been thinking about making something like this too as an altenative to a rooftop tent. It would definitely be a lot cheaper. I like your set up :slight_smile:

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I’ve been thinking about doing something like that as well. It is a definitely a cheaper alternative to a rooftop tent and likely just as functional/comfortable. I like your set-up.

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I’ll have to check it out and see what they offer. Thanks for tip.

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Hey Sagefisher and TT, thanks for the advice. My wife is the best fishing partner I’ve ever had and has toughed it out through things anyone I’ve ever fished with would have long given up on. This past April I happed to have a week vacation and we took a trip up the eastern Sierras where we fished 10 hours strait each day. The second day of our trip the weather turned foul and temps dropped to the low 30’s in the daytime with snow throughout most days. She stuck with me the whole time and we soon had the river to ourselves. Everyone else called it quits and missed out on some great BWO hatches and some nice browns too. We happened to be staying in a hotel though because of the weather reports and lack of time to prepare for the trip. It definitely was nice to come back to a warm room and a shower. We usually take a tent and camp on these trips but now that we are out of school and don’t have summers off anymore we find our intermittent vacations scattered throughout the year. The convenience of having a pre-loaded tent trailer with a stove and sink is pretty appealing and I’m sure she would like it better than a rooftop tent. Most of the places we fish I could take a tent trailer to and the few places that we couldn’t tow it into we could bring our tent or make up cover like billhouk posted and sleep in the car. Thanks for posts.

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I’m thinking about getting a pop up camper trailer as I’ve finally hit an age where I no longer want to sleep in a tent. I know the specific brands that interest me and do intend to buy a used one of these brands, so I had my Mazda Tribute set up for towing. I already had the hitch, so just needed the wiring and an electric brake controller. With the car ready to go, I decided to see how my dog and I did in a camper before I actually made the buy. I found a place in Denver that rents pop up campers and used one as our lodging for a three day Homes For Our Troops Build Brigade. The one I rented was a Viking 1906.

My dog adjusted after the first night. It got down to 27 degrees at night, but the furnace made it comfortable in the camper. Having a stove for cooking was nice. The beds were far better than sleeping in a tent! I was at a campground with an electric hook up, so I could use lights at night as I sat at the table and read or watched DVDs on my netbook. The overall experience convinced me to get a camper trailer.

But, set up and take down took me at least an hour and involved more getting to my knees and back up than I like as I get older. I doubt I could get the set up or take down time much under an hour with experience and practice and I know that kneeling and standing are not going to get easier as I add more years.

But I know from testing them at the dealer that the two brands that interest me are easy to set up and take down in way under 5 minutes and involve no kneeling.

I’m really glad that I was able to rent a camper before buying and learned a lot with that rental. I strongly encourage you to find a rental place near you before you commit. If you can’t do that, at least test your ability to set up and take down the brands that interest you at a dealer before you commit to buy.

And please don’t take this as any kind of negative review on Viking 1906 campers. They have a good reputation and the one I rented, while an older unit, had some really nice features that I liked. It might have been the perfect camper for me in terms of value when I was younger. I enjoyed living in it, but the set up and take down don’t work for me at this age.

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A friend of mine has one of those fabric and metal joints deals that turn his truck bed into a tent.

Works, but there are some major drawbacks. Takes time to set them up. You really can’t drive the rig with the tent in place (he managed to do it for a few hundred yards, but not at any speed over 5 mph). You have to put everything away and take it out again if you move it. No real conveniences, just a covering that protects you from the wind/rain. You’d have to buy everything ,from a potapotty to a stove to use one.

The pop up tent trailers have way more ‘features’, from pretty basic to well appointed. Takes a bit of time to set up, way less than an hour once you’ve done it a few times. But once you are done, you don’t have to take it down until you are ready to head home. Such a rig with full appointments is very comfortable, and used ones are availble in decent shape if you shop around.

If you upgrade the wheels and drive carefully, you can get them into lots of places, but not all. Really depends on your skills/confidence levels.

A nice cabin tent can be had for small dollars, but again you’ll need to buy the stuff to make it comfortable. That means more set up time when you get to the site, but again, once done, you are set until you leave. After getting familair with such a rig, set up on site won’t be much more than an hour.

Then there are small travel trailers. These can often be had used for a song since most folks want to upgrad to more room soon after spending any time in one. Know one couple that spent the entire summer in a Scamp…they bought a 40 footer this winter…

And, just to be clear, modern propane heaters are very efficient. They will heat a small space, even without insulation, to a comfortable temperature and beyond. But not in sub zero weather. You’ll need more extreme gear for that kind of cold. Such things exist, but they are not cheap.

Good Luck!

Buddy

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Not advertising here but search “truck cap tent” on the Internet. The one I have costs less than $125 delivered. There are several alternatives. I built a deck in the back to raise the floor over the wheel wells and gave us a flat floor. That put about 10 inches of storage throughout the bed (short bed 6.5 feet) under the deck. It also raises the bed so you can sit on it at the tailgate. We put a porta potie (available at some mart store) on the tailgate so all the comforts of home. One caution, check you cap for leaks…

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For comfort you’ll be hard pressed to beat the popup camper. Here’s a pic of my little Starcraft that I’ve had for 10 years, set-up along side one of my favorite NFS camp sites right next to a stream that empties into a lake about a mile and a half downriver.

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Another unit to look at is the Jumping Jack Trailer. It can be very versital and are very sturdy. They can be seen at jumpingjacktrailers.com and are sold at Sportsmans Warehouse. I don’t have one, yet, but have seen a couple around the area, both summer and hunting. They are a tent trailer that doesn’t have the sink, heater potty, etc., but the versatility looks great.

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I’d say check out Aliner and Chalet campers, the set-up time is super fast. Should you go for a roof top tent, the Magiolina, IMHO, is the cream of the crop. Good luck choosing!

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I’d second the Aliner camper.Mine sets up in 30 seconds.Really. Very light ,A frame hard shell.Pulls easily by my mid-size SUV .
Best,
Steve

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The magiolina’s do look pretty nice when it comes to roof top tents. They cost a pretty penny though. I’ve started thinking that a rooftop tent would be great for cross country travel and any other sort of time when you just need a place to crash for the night. When it comes to having to cook and clean up and carry a lot of other gear, it seems like a tent trailer would be better. There is something fun about the idea of a roof top tent and having a place to crash in no time no matter where you end up on an off-road adventure. I’m still tossing around the pro’s and con’s and the different possibilities. Thanks for the tips.

Greg

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I’ve wanted a tent-trailer for a lot of years now. But the other half wants a hard side camp trailer. The only problem is; the hard side is too expensive for our budget. That makes me think even more that a tent-trailer is the way to go. Easy to tow, easy to set up, easy to maintain, easier to own and easier to store. If we wait till we can afford the best there is, then we will never own anything. If we take advantage of our options now, we will be camping in comfort. Without saying “duh” I’d like to say “DUH.” They even come with air conditioning and heated beds.