We Did It!

The search is over and the wandering has begun.  I'd like to introduce you to the Jayco Jay Feather Sport 165...

What makes is perfect for us:

*It's small!  The box is 16' which means it fits on our driveway and saves us $100+ per month on storage fees.  Also, its small size means we can continue to camp almost anywhere.

*Outside Shower

*Lot's of storage

*Light enough that we can tow it with our current truck

*Sleeps 3-4 (hard to find in such a small trailer)

*Dedicated bed that does not double as the dinette (almost impossible to find in a small trailer)

*The shower has a tub.  Not that we would ever attempt to sit in it, but it means that less water goes flying when you shower.

Seriously, it's almost perfect! It's not very attractive in its current state... but it's just a matter of time before we fix that :)

I'll follow up later with detailed interior shots... but here are just a few:

Here's to upcoming adventures!

Impressive

Oh how I wish I had the time, know-how, skills, tools, and chutzpah to do this: http://imgur.com/a/5n3xI

A few teaser photos of the finished product...

Someday maybe?

Wisdom

So, a few weeks ago Brian and I stumbled on a 18' 1996 trailer that had been meticulously maintained by one owner and had only been used twice.  Ever.  Needless to say, we were very interested.  We were even working on finding a professional to take a look at it for us (we've read in several places that it's a good idea to have a professional evaluate a used trailer before you buy... especially if you're a novice).  But as we talked it over we finally concluded that it just wasn't the right time for us. 

Parking it on our current driveway would be tight.
We don't have the cash saved up yet and we'd rather not dip into savings.
This trailer would require Brian to upgrade his truck, something we're not totally sure we're prepared to do imediately.
etc etc etc

But, in the end, I'm glad we let this one go.  This near miss gave us a chance to have some serious conversations about doing this the right way.  Here are a few of our conclusions:

*We should wait until we find something we have the cash for.
*If we buy something now, while we live at this house, it should fit on our driveway (technically the 1996 trailer would have fit, but it would have hung over into the sidewalk.  In our neighborhood people actually park on the sidewalks, so a trailer hanging out wouldn't be a huge deal, but still, not ideal)
*We should probably rent a trailer for a few weekends before we buy.  What if, in the end, we don't even like camping with a trailer?!
*We may need to upgrade the truck, so we should wait to buy the trailer until we're prepared to do so.  Unless of course, we stumble on something light enough for the Tacoma to handle.  As many people have now told us... it's not pulling the trailer with the Tacoma that's the problem, it's stopping it.

Then... there is the size issue.  This is really more my issue than Brian's.  I just have this nagging worry in the pit of my stomach that if we get a 18'+ trailer then we're RVing, not camping.  I really want to be campers who have a trailer.  This concern peaked for me last night as I was trolling Craigslist... so I finally asked Brian, "would you be willing to give the small trailer a shot knowing that we can always upgrade later if we decide we need something larger".  To my surprise he seemed on board with the idea!  I'm starting to feel excited again, rather than weighed down by worry that we'll make a purchase we will regret.

So here's what I'm on the hunt for now:
*14'-16' including the tongue (for the right trailer I'd consider 18' including the tongue, but it would have to be something special)
*Something with a bathroom
*Water tanks large enough to allow us to dry camp for at least 5 days.
*Temperature control (mostly so we can leave Hank in it when we take the bikes out)
*I've accepted the fact that the dinette and the bed will be one in the same, but it would be a bonus to find something with at least one extra bed... perhaps a bunk?
*At least a medium sized refrigerator.  I know we won't get a full size fridge with a separate freezer, but I'd rather avoid the trailers that have the teeny-tiny dorm fridges.
*A reasonable amount of storage.  I'm not asking for a miracle, but a few cupboards would be nice.

Some nice to haves:
*Something light enough that we could keep the Tacoma, at least for now.
*As always, the ability to climb up and hang out on top of the trailer would be awesome.

I can't wait to find our gem and get out there!




And now... some eye candy (just for fun!)

Check out this 1977 13' Scamp listed on Ebay!  So cute!  I would give credit to the person who remodeled it, but I don't know who he/she is.  Props to whoever you are!!!  This one won't work for us for several reasons, but I couldn't resist posting pics because it's so inspirational.  Enjoy!

Eureka!

Brian aka "master of internet research" Bureson found a gem tonight...

But first, I should tell you how we got there.  First he found this: The Scotty Sportsman

 I LOVE this one.  My heart does the whole pitter patter thing.  But there are a few major drawbacks.  The major one being that there are no walls around the toilet.  Of course we could hang a curtain or something.  But sanitarily speaking, having a toilet out in the open 4 feed from where our food is prepared... Let's just say it's not ideal. 

Then he found this: The Paradise Coast Silver Beach!

So cute!  Small & has most of what we need (with the added bonus of being stylish)... but the toilet has no walls around it and maybe it's too small.  Update: I was obviously too tired to write this last night.  This trailer does have an enclosed bathroom.  The drawbacks to this one are that they are hard to find and the website has very little info so we just don't know enough about it. 

Then he found the Lance 1274

It's small and has most of what we need (including a decent bathroom)... but there is ZERO storage.  Seriously, I don't know who this trailer would work for.  You couldn't bring anything with you!

I'll spare you a few in the middle, but Brian finally stumbled on this beauty... The Jayco Jay Feather LGT X17Z:

This thing has pretty much EVERYTHING we want (even the little details that I want but haven't mentioned).

Pros:
18'6" in total length.  This allows us to continue camping in our favorite locations
The beds pop out giving you the feeling of camping at night
There is an outdoor shower on the back
The fact that the beds pop out gives us a lot of space in a small trailer
The refrigerator is not huge, but it's larger than a lot of the units we've seen
Water tanks are all a good size
Lot's of sleeping room in case we ever have friends travel with us.
Decent storage

Overall it's a really good option for us.  There are a few manufactures that make the same layout so I don't know if we'll end up with this specific brand... but I think we may have found a winner!

Now we just need to try to find one that's a few years old...

Trailer Philosophy

Trailer Philosophy... Brian and I both find ourselves oscillating wildly between many competing desires when it comes to trailers and the experience we're looking for..  We have to figure out what it is, exactly, that we want.

Originally we wanted something small that would allow us to leave Hank in a comfortable (temperature controlled) environment so that we could go out and explore without him on occasion.  He doesn't ride a bike well and wineries don't tend to be dog friendly, so we have to leave him from time to time.  Leaving him in the truck is not a good option because it can get too hot or cold; and frankly, he doesn't like it.  So... our first idea: the T@b!

Cute, right?!  Yeah.  Except, Brian cant stand up inside of it.  So, we started to look for alternatives.  We've been looking for over a year now so we've seen lot's of options.  We almost bought one a little over a year ago, but we realized (thankfully, at the last minute) that we were overreaching financially.  After the "near miss" our hunt reduced itself to a low boil.  However, now I've graduated, we got married, we LIVE IN THE SAME CITY and it's time to renew the search!  Today we hit a few lots and our philosophical questions came into sharp focus.  A summary:

Do we want something similar to the T@b (pictured above), but without the things we don't like about it (as in... Brian can stand in it AND it would have a shower and toilet).  If so, then we found the perfect little trailer.  Let me introduce you to the Riverside RV White Water 150:

Pros: Only 15' long & meets our original requirements.  It's small enough that we can keep camping in the places we like to camp without worrying about the size of the trailer.  Also, it's really freaking cute and I could decorate the hell out of it.  Then, of course, there's the fact that this little trailer makes my heart pitter patter.

Cons: We've done more research and thought more about what we really need and so a long list of cons has emerged.  It only holds 10gallons of fresh water; this means we can't easily "dry camp" with it (that's camping in places that don't have hook ups).  The bed is quite small, and, since neither Brian or I are petite people... that could get old.  The "refrigerator" is tiny and little more than a glorified ice chest.  There is ZERO counter space so food prep would have to be done outside on our camping table.  It's probably too small for Brian's beer shenanigans (to be explained more fully later).  Oh yeah, and there's the fact that the bathroom is TINY!

This brings us to the Travel Lite Idea i16:

This is the "Cadillac" of the small "ultralight" trailers... or we were told by two different sales people.

Pros: It's still small, we can still fit into all the campsites we like.  The water tanks are large so we can dry camp.  The bathroom is roomy and easily usable.   It's light-weight so we can keep Brian's current truck.  It has a decent amount of counter space.  The bed is the fold-out/tent type so we would have the vibe of sleeping outdoors.

Cons: Expensive.  Unless we can find it used... which I am not confident about.  The bed being the fold-out/tent type means that we would have to implement special security measures before leaving Hank in it alone.  Also, small refrigerator :(

Next The Keystone Bullet Premier 19FBPR:

Pros: Freaking LUXURY!  This is some serious relaxation potential!  Has everything we need... water tanks, big bathroom, counter space, storage, comfy bed with cute little bedside tables etc.

Cons: Expensive... again, unless we can find it used.  We would have to upgrade Brian's truck due to the weight.  This last con is a bigger deal for me more than for Brian... but it feels HUGE from the outside.  I have to climb three steps to get into it.  The thing feels like a freaking beast! 

Philosophically speaking... this is not the experience we originally set out to have.  This is a much more luxurious good time.  That doesn't mean it's bad... just not what we originally signed up for.  But, if we could find it used for an affordable price, would this be the experience we actually want?  I have to admit, design wise, I don't feel inspired by this trailer and that's a draw-back for me.  I want something that I'm going to want to decorate and make into a second home for us.  This trailer doesn't make my heart pitter patter and it doesn't make me want to decorate it.  On the other hand, Brian and I could have some really fun trips in a rig like this.  Hmmm....

So then, at the very end of the hot and exhausting day, we stumbled on this:  The Dutchman Four Winds 18 f:

At 18', is this the compromise we've been looking for?  You may not be able to tell from the photos, but the floor plan on this one is perfect.  You walk straight into the party lounge.  It would be a ton of fun to decorate.

Pros: It has all the amenities we've decided that we want... without feeling like a mammoth.  Brian's been toying with the idea of touring his beer at various festivals and this lounge feel layout would be perfect.  The price is right (or at least close to right).

Cons: It's a rare floor plan... we might need to jump on this used gem now even though we weren't planning to purchase anything quite yet.  It's also quite long and pushes the limits of what we'll be able to pull into our current favorite camp sites.  It's also older, which means it's heavy, which means we'd have to upgrade Brian's truck before we attempted any extreme trips (like Yosemite). 

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions...

Stay tuned!