Quote:
Originally posted by SteveDallas
What kind of camper do you have? And where do you take it?
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We've got a Coleman Sea Pine popup camper, vintage 1998. You can see a good part of it behind the Explorer in that first pic.
I've been camping since I was a lad. I love it. If I don't get to go camping enough, I become very difficult to live with. If I don't get to go to the mountains a couple of times per decade, I get weird in ways I can't even quite explain.
The camper went to Colorado the first year we had it, but mostly we camp at Missouri State Parks, Corps of Engineers campgrounds, and out at the area Pagan camp which we work to support.
We bought it brand-spanking new for $6,500.00. It is still in very, very good condtion, and let me tell you, it really beats tent camping. No air mattresses deflating beneath you as you sleep, no stinking sleeping bags, and NO GETTING WET in the rain. You can stand up to change clothes, you can store and use a porta potty, and some of these things even come with *showers*.
We've been through some simply incredible storms in this baby, and nary a damp spot to be seen afterward. In fact, at the large Memorial Day Weekend Pagan Festival we attend each year (an event widely known for the stupendous deluges which traditionally occur), we once had 13 people in our camper riding out a major storm. We've had refugees from the weather beg to be allowed to sleep in one of the unused berths on more than once occasion on dark and stormy nights.
Good used popups are around all the time, at least in the Midwest, and at reasonable prices. The things tend not to get used all that much in the grand scheme of things, and so they can be very old and still look and work very good. In fact, I saw a 1973 Starcraft at Fest this year that I would have classified as a B+ condition, which the owner had purchased for $500. This thing was nearly show quality, if they actually *had* camper shows.
Keep in mind you'll need a suitable vehicle to tow with. Although popups tend to be very lightweight (ours weighs just under 1800 lbs. before we load all our crap into it), I recommend nothing under a big six-cylinder for towing. My recently deceased van had a 3.8 liter and the Explorer has a 4.0. The great thing about the Explorer is that the step bumper hitch is adequate for towing my loaded camper (3500 lb capacity with the camper coming in at no more than 2800 lbs), so I don't have to have an expensive hitch installed...although I do have to get a light connector put on tomorrow.
Can't go too far wrong with a decent popup...