How quickly can you make camp with your teardrop?

W

willoL

Newbie
My experience is mostly with car camping, so, I'm wondering, how quickly can you get your campsite set up with a tiny trailer? What do you have to do to the tear itself to "set it up"--just unhitch and level it?

I've never timed camp set up myself, but putting up the tent and then making the beds bent over in a dome tent is the part that sticks in my mind as the slowest--or most irritating!--part.

Flip side of that same coin, does your tear remain packed and ready so you can take advantage of a beautiful spring weekend on the spur of the moment? What do you have to do to get her ready and get on the road?

We (DH & I) lean toward packing light and keeping it simple. As an example, we bring a kelty kettle to boil water and otherwise cook over the fire or eat cold foods.

--willo
 
Welcome Willo! I'm a new owner of a 560 Ultra Raindrop as yet to be delivered - (Tuesday!)

I've already bought some of the "needed" things for the Raindrop, just waiting to load'er up. I'm a lover of gadgets and camping - anything from electric appliances to Dutch Oven cooking. I like the convenience of plugging into electricity and having unlimited water, so bookdocking will be kept to a minimum for us. I like to cook over an open fire like you do, however in our part of the country there's been a burn ban for at least 3 wks., so building a fire is out. You might want to keep that in mind when you travel.

Cooking while camping is part of the experience for us. Me, I should say - Bill doesn't cook! But we enjoy the experience as much as the sightseeing, so I guess how long it takes to set up depends on what you like to do. "Keeping house in the woods" takes longer than grabbing a sandwich and hitting the road. We'll do some of each, depending on what's going on, but for the most part we'll be cooking at least 1 meal a day, maybe two (breakfast and dinner), running around in between.

We plan on having everything ready to go except for grabbing some clothes out of the closet and hanging them on the clothes bar in the minivan. We'll have basics loaded, including some food - the ice chest will be a quick load, then we're off.

Unloading: Not having done it yet, but I forsee us taking about an hr. - we're older, short and move slower - plus we're not mechanically inclined and being new it's going to take a bit to get the hang of everything. But I think others get set up quicker.

Are you shopping or have you ordered yours yet? Have fun on this forum - it's a blast!
 
Willo,
We keep our stuff in an out building. With the TD empty it is easier to change the sheets. When we leave I take the TD from the shed it is in to the outbuilding and load the appropriate stuff for that trip. Chairs, no chairs, Northern Breeze, or not, pop-up canopy, or not and so on. I then drive it over to the house and load the food and clothes.
As far as the time necessary to set camp....This depends on the camp. We have left the TD hooked up to the car, made something to eat and went to bed. Other times it seems I set something up, usually new stuff, almost until the day we leave.
Unless it is a hunt trip the is no pressure to do anything on any time line.
Almost every camp is different. A serviceable camp is quick and easy compared to any tent camp.
Hope this helps,
Steve
 
Willo,

A lot like Steve & Ellen we take most things out of Towed and stow them in storage tubs in the garage. To leave pull the TD out of the backyard, move it close to the house, make the bed (hardest part but it checks on your flexibility), load the kitchen and clothes and go. We carry chairs in the car and haven't done much with canopies as we are more travelers than campers.
At the campsite... park, unhitch or not, level or not, if we unhitch we put the wheel chock/lock on and we are set. Ready to leave hook up and go.
We were not campers before we bought Towed so can't compare time to tent camping but from observation of other trailer campers we are fast setting up and leaving.
Enjoy.....
 
We keep our tear in the garage with the windows open so it stays fully packed with the bed made. No utensils needed from the kitchen as all duplicates have been purchased. Just fill the cooler, add water and pack the car to go. Nothing on the bed. The car gets the canopy, misc. & containers of clothes, pantry food and dry goods.

Set up is 5 to 10 minutes for chocks, leveling, shore power, tables & chairs and getting a beer; + 15/20 minutes to set up the 12' x 12' custom semi-storm proof canopy which can handle 35 mph winds and 1" of rain per hour. Walls are extra if needed for the wind.

Hilditch
 
We are still getting our act together. Ideally we want to have everything ready to go except food - then we just hook up and go.

So far, it hasn't worked that way yet - but we've only been doing it for a year. We do have a complete set of toiletries that stays in the trailer. We leave the bed made all the time, but the large gear that goes on the bed (depending on what kind of camping we will be doing) is stored nearby in the garage.

I would like to see us be ready to go in an hour at any time, but so far Lena spends most of the day getting ready. Hopefully we will get MUCH better.

Setting up camp depends on how long we will stay there (Parkinson's Law: Gear expands to the camping allotted.)
This winter it has taken me just 5 minutes to unhitch and set the stabilizers before we are ready to climb in to bed, because we haven't brought any other gear.
 
I love setting up with the TD compared to tent camping! We quite often pull into a campsite around suppertime. We can have camp setup and be done with a hot meal for supper within a half hour. We have pulled into a site and had somebody already on the next site setting up with tents and they would still be setting up an hour after we were done with supper. The camper is usually stocked except for water, perishables and clothes. Not much goes on the bed while traveling. We can usually break down camp and be on the road in 20-30 minutes. There is not a better way to travel as far as we are concerned. A hearty thanks to Craig and Cary for Camp-Inn!
Charlie
 
Much easier as you have heard. Setting up the basics for camping, 2 min, add the extras, maybe 5 min. pecking order:

park it at site.
- Unhitch, move to desired position
- Unlock, 2 doors, back hatch
- Open back hatch, put up tables
- pull out stove
- put tea pot on with water and voila.
2 min, well, maybe 3.
Past the 3 minute mark
- put up canopy 12x12 and "Hilditch" would love to see a pic of your canopy
- put up Christmas tree lites, 3-4 strands
- get chairs, table, cooler, water jug
- get beer, site down and relax apx 10 min if concentrated.
Done...

Inside is already set, just have small carry on for clothes, have kitchen bin for current food stuff for the trip. All cooking things are duplicates (actually better than home kitchen)
Could spend more time with more gagits, but each trip is a little different.
Got a new "Toy" a Moose Ring Fire Pit..
so it's always something to make life a little easier..
But??? beats Tent camping set all to heck...

Moose Ring Fire Pit
 
With the exception of any fresh food & water, our teardrop stays packed to go. During winter storage, I remove any food & toiletries that might freeze.

Once the tear comes home from storage for the camping season, it stays in our yard. The bed is always made up. On the last day we camp, I will remove the sheets & pillow cases & put on the spare set. When I get home, I wash the sheets, towels, & clothes & put them back in storage in the teardrop. The cooler gets emptied, washed & put back in the galley. I always clean the kitchen & the inside of the teardrop before we leave to come home.

Everything we need is kept in the teardrop, including clothes & toiletries. I may add "extra" stuff, like a heavier jacket, hiking shoes, prescript. meds, fresh & cooler food before we leave but not very much. If we will be using the Dutch ovens, I pack those & the Dutch oven supply bag in the car (I use my DOs at home a lot, year round, so they don't stay in the teardrop). Stuff like the canopy & chairs moves from the tear to the back of the car.

Depending on what type of camping/traveling we are doing, we either have no set up (just stopping & sleeping in the tear) or up to 30 minutes if it's just me setting up everything. The average time is about 15 minutes with 2 of us.

:cool:
 
Frank,

It is a Shelter Logic canopy and looks like one except for ridges half way between the posts made by plastic kitchen whisks held by slide in poly carbonate brackets. The canopy is held taught over them by 5# bags of lead shot slipped into pockets sewn into the inside of the canopy skirt. Each leg is held with 3 stakes.

When you are ready to commit to 30 or 40 hours and a few hundred bucks, let me know after you have the canopy and I'll help you with detailed photos.

Hilditch
 
Hilditch,

I assume you keep the windows open (inside the garage) to keep the trailer from getting musty? Do you mean cracked or wide open? No trouble with dampness?
 
Wide open Theresa. We have a dry drive under basement garage and the relative humidity seldom gets above 60%. No mold issues in the tear or the basement.

Hilditch
 
Ok, so what do I do if I have to store my Raindrop with the cover over it outside - I can't keep it opened up...just deal with any musty smells I suppose...I can always air it out before leaving - Bounce dryer sheets on top of the bedding ought to do it too...keeps it smelling nice and absorbs any moisture.
 
Ladymc,
I used to keep mine outside with the cover.. after a few minutes and the fan running it clears out, you could always leave a crack in the windows and top if you have one.

In the garage where I'm now able to keep it, windows and top wide open.
 
We tent camped for many years - the Camp-Inn makes set-up a breeze. We use sleeping bags which stay in the tear in stuff sacks and we have an upholstery cover on the bed. So no bed making. We add food and fill the water tank last minute. Most everything else is stored in tear or back of van. We do review our check list so as not to miss anything. Add our clothes and electronics. For our clothes we each use the zippered plastic bags that sheets and pillow cases are sold in. I had been (for some unknown reason) saving them and they work perfectly in the cupboard at the foot of the bed and on the shelf. Each of us has one for under clothes and soxs, one for sleeping clothes and one for t-shirts. Jeans or whatever on the shelf. They are clear so easy to find what you want. They pack quick (are free) and easily store in a drawer in the house. Packing ourselves and our dog in tear and van takes about an hour. Stopping overnight set-up - about 10 min. Setting up for week - about 1/2 hour. About the same to get up and go. We have a dog crate that colaspes so the first thing we do is set that up and install the dog with some water and a treat and we are free to set up.
 
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