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  1. #11
    Seasoned Camper
    Join Date
    Sep 2019
    Location
    Pilot (Zebulon), NC
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    Welcome!! The big advantage that I see over tent camping is you can extend your driving zone and then spend less time during set up and tear down, and it's not a big deal if it rains Saturday nite. Not only looking at the beaches or the mountains, but there are many wonderful state parks with close by attractions and interests but not on the Carowinds or Cherokee scale. During normal life, there are also numerous functions at the state fairgrounds that may not be as enjoyed having to get up and drive there and then the tired drive home, but they do have full hookups on the fairgrounds proper and a campground on the hill behind the equestrian center and it is across the street from PNC Arena and the stadium. Unfortunately they are restricted during the state fair, but Jordan Lake SRA and some of the private campgrounds will get you closer. Then in the other direction you have campgrounds near the parkway and other points of interest west of you. Once you get the hang of it, you will like hauling out on Fridays because setting up and then chilling out is much easier in the dark with a TT.
    Jerry & Kelly Powell
    Zebulon, NC
    2020 Solitude 390RK-R :target:

  2. #12
    New Member
    Join Date
    Dec 2018
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    Most of our camping is just weekends, with a couple 3 day trips and 1 week long trip thrown in. My wife and I are still working so we really don't have much of a choice. We keep the camper stocked with most things so we only have to pack our food before we go. We do at least 1 trip a month April thru October and try to add a couple extras as we find time. I normally try to leave work early on the fridays we are leaving and we try to be at our destination by around 5 pm. We like camping the way we do,it would be nice to have more time but for now it is what it is.
    Buy the camper and get out there you will have a great time.

  3. #13
    Seasoned Camper
    Join Date
    Sep 2019
    Location
    Minnesota
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    I grew up being a weekend camper at least few times per year. My wife and I have been camping since early dating, although back then it was with a tent. We go camping on weekends at least 8 times a year. Most of our trips are 2-4 hours away. The kids love it and it is most definitely good to get away from TV, cell phones, video games, etc. Now that they are older we let them bring friends.
    Timmer
    2020 Grand Design Reflection 312BHTS
    2015 Ford F350, 6.2L Gas, Crew Cab

  4. #14
    Rolling Along
    Join Date
    Jan 2020
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    My goal is to camp once a month. At least a Friday, Saturday weekend. I do have 18 days of vacation left at work so I should be able to expand that a bit. With Memorial Day weekend being a paid holiday, I took off Friday and Tuesday. That gives me 5 days of camping for only burning 2 days of vacation.
    Charles and Susan
    2021 Ram 3500 Laramie, 6.4 Hemi, 4x4 CCSB
    2021 337rls w/ Andersen hitch.

  5. #15
    Site Sponsor Malco1's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2017
    Location
    Monroe, NC
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    565
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    Quote Originally Posted by Burdturger View Post
    Hello, I'm a new prospective camper just doing some homework. With this isolation/lockdown going on it got me thinking how my family could enrich our lives when things get back to mostly normal. Naturally and the reason I'm here is because camping could be the thing that just might the answer we are looking for. I will say I've never really gone camping before and I realize to jump into a camper trailer is a big commitment. One of my biggest hurdles in justifying the purchase is this: Due to job restraints (self-employment) our trips would be constrained to weekends only. Now I realize that location is probably a huge factor in considering if this could work. I live in central NC, about 4 hours from beaches and about 2 hours from mountains. I feel like we could make this work but feelings alone cant justify such a large purchase. I suppose what I'd like to know is if you were constrained to weekends only, would it be worth it? Am I even approaching this the right way? Any advice would be appreciated.
    I started off tent camping on holiday weekends, but loading and unloading became a real hassle. I then bought a small TT and kept it at a seasonal camping resort about 2 12 hours from my house. We extended our time by leaving right after work on Friday and waking up early on Monday morning leaving early enough to get the kids to school and me to work. We had many great times at that campground. Of course on holiday weekends and vacation time we spent more time. We did this for probably 5 seasons until the kids got older didn't want to anymore.

  6. #16
    Site Team Ynot4me2's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2020
    Location
    ON & QC Canada
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    As mentioned above, rent first. That will give you an idea of what you like, what you dont, what you want and what you could do without. Some like 15ft, easier to tow and move around and some like the space and fireplace and a 4 person spa and double decker decks (lol, just kidding on the last 2). That's how we got started, tent camp for years and then 2 summers ago, we rented a 18ft hybrid to tour around the maritimes for a little over month. Got hooked right away. By renting we also discovered what we liked about that little TT and what we didn't. DW is retired but I'm still working and we live on a lake. So our plan is a road trip in spring, then the lake in late June to August, then road trip in late August/Sept with also weekends here and there. We just got a 22MLE. Small enough to pull around easily (we like to be in different places all the time) yet has everything that we need. A big factor to keep in mind is your tow vehicle.
    Steph & Lise
    2019 F150 Lariat 2.7 EB
    2020 Imagine XLS 22MLE

  7. #17
    Seasoned Camper
    Join Date
    Jul 2019
    Location
    St George Utah
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    Here’s an honest piece of information, there is a very large number of RVs that don’t get used enough and the owners don’t sell them. The reason they don’t sell them is they financed the RV and the depreciation is such that they’re underwater (owe more than they can get by selling). So they’d rather bleed a little each month (the payment) than take a loss all at once.

    I also saw up above someone mention concerns about what you have for a tow vehicle. This is another area where beginners often get hurt. I was one of those, needing to buy a larger SUV within a week of deciding on our first trailer.

    Final issue/question before answering your question about weekends - Do you have a place to store the trailer on your property? It makes a big difference if all your packing/unpacking can be done on your own schedule (ideally with electricity run to the trailer so at minimum you have the refrigerator running). If you have to pay to park it elsewhere and it doesn’t have electricity, the work is more intense and takes away some of the fun.

    Yes, weekends are awesome. We started with 2-night stays for our first season, then progressed to Thurs-Sun trips as our primary way to enjoy camping. Our used $20K first trailer got almost 60-nights a year of camping for over 5 years, with typically only one longer vacation a year.

    We’ve progressed to a much larger, more luxurious fifth wheel now, but still mostly work off the assumption we’ll continue the pattern we’ve been on (now in our 7th season of camping).

    Best regards,
    Chris
    2020 Solitude 310GK FBP
    2019 Ford F350 SRW CCSB AUH
    Former Rig - 2013 North Trail FBS22
    2013 Expedition EL

  8. #18
    Site Team Ynot4me2's Avatar
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    Mar 2020
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    ON & QC Canada
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    Good point about parking/storing. When stored at home you forget that piece of advise.
    Steph & Lise
    2019 F150 Lariat 2.7 EB
    2020 Imagine XLS 22MLE

  9. #19
    Seasoned Camper zadiemay's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2019
    Location
    Saint Charles County, Missouri
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    Welcome to the forum. This is a great place to get decent advice! DH & I both tent camped as kids. When I met my husband a 10 years back, neither of us had camped in a while, we both had tents. I am of the age, that I want a potty and a nice bed to sleep on, instead of woods and an air mattress. I suggested a trailer (DH had a popup before). He was hesitant because he wasn't sure we would actually get our money's worth out if it. WE had a dodge Dakota & found a used Jayco trailer that should have been able to tow it....It towed, it but he didn't feel comfy towing it so after a month or so we got a Ram 1500... Thought it would be great for anything we wanted....We used that Jayco 22' for a year, it was great for weekends unless it was cold & rainy. If we had to sit inside it was tight - no slides. We did use our trailer enough, that we decided to get a bigger one...Now we have a Imagine 2970. Plenty big... (however we again had to upgrade our vehicle to a Ram 2500) We are fortunate that we can keep our trailer next to our house, which makes coming and going very easy - not stored at a lot, can keep stuff in it year round and right now even using it almost full time, and letting the other 2 generations live in our sticks & bricks next door. We are mainly weekend warriors - we went out 17 times last year for about 56 days. We are in MO & camped every month even in snow. If you all like the outdoors and are outside at home, then camping may be for you and your family. I would definitely follow others advice and try to rent a camper to try before you buy! If all goes well, you will learn what you like & don't like in the camper you rent. Our first nite in any trailer was a friends trailer that they were looking to sell - we thought we could have fun camping after that, but the weekend in their trailer taught us that I kept hitting my leg on the sofa trying to get out of the bed so needed a softer sofa or different layout. We made a list of what we thought we would need and did a lot of asking other that had trailers what was most important - STORAGE inside & out - WEIGHT for Towing - FLOORPlan - enough room for sleeping & what if bad weather.... Good luck and choose wisely to fit your lifestyle and budget - don't spend too much especially for your first trailer, which probably won't be your last. Lots of great people out there that are weekend warrior campers. Having our TT has been a Godsend in this shutdown. So glad we have done it!

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