The Good, the Bad and The Ugly of Truck Camping

(2023 Alaska Revisited Ep 9)

(Keep reading for the new names of our truck and truck camper)

We’ve been ‘trailer’ campers for a long time.

We purchased our first trailer, an Apache pop-up camper, in 1988.

Twenty-three years later we upgraded to Pancake, a 19-foot travel trailer with a small side slide. We took Pancake on our 23000-mile trip to Alaska.

In 2019, our rig grew to a 24-foot travel trailer with rear slide that we took on trips out west, Michigan, the Blue Ridge Parkway and Newfoundland. Oscar was great, with lots of room to spread out in, ample space to store everything, a front bedroom with walk around bed and a real bathroom with decent-sized shower.

But now we are ‘truck camper’ campers. We’ve downsized and simplified our mode of camping.

One of our neighbors at home has predicted we won’t be happy with the new, smaller footprint and will sell the camper within six months. Time will tell…

Clearly, every camping rig has tradeoffs. After eight weeks and more than 5000 miles, here is the good, the bad and the ugly of truck camping with our Chevrolet 3500HD truck and Wolf Creek 890 TC.

The Good

Setup and take down is MUCH simpler than our previous trailers. No hitching, no tires to wear out or go flat, no axles to bend, no bearings to go bad and no slides to rebuild. It is easier to ‘dry’ camp without water/electric connections, and when we do use hookups, we can quickly disconnect and be on our way.

Moving about. Getting into gas stations and parking lots, backing up and finding a right length campsite is pretty much a no-brainer. Our TC is slightly longer and just a little wider than a full length pickup. Our TC is 11.5 feet high, so we have to watch overhead clearances and tree limbs, however.

Big dinette with great view. We really like the four person dinette in our TC. It has windows on three sides.

Nimble and flexible. Our TC setup gives us greater flexibility. We can take our ‘home’ with us and more easily prepare meals and even shower during stops while on the road. Boondocking and moochdocking are much easier and we can take the TC off the back of the truck to use it as a base camp when we explore an area.

Better power options. We have a lithium battery and built-in generator that add to the flexibility. We can camp without connections in remote locations.

Great use of space. Our TC is smaller than Oscar and about the same size as Pancake. Space is used very efficiently. There are lots of drawers, cabinets and storage nooks, inside and out. There are even four closets in the sleeping area! All three RVs had a queen-size bed. The kitchen area is really useable in our TC, with much more counter space than our previous trailers.

The Bad

Small bathroom. Our TC bathroom is small. It has a ‘wet bath’ with a shower, toilet and small sink combined in one small compartment, whereas Pancake had a small bathroom with tight corner shower and Oscar had a nice-sized bathroom and large (for an RV) shower.

Leveling can be challenging. RV refrigerators require the camper to be reasonably level to work correctly. It is harder to level our TC than it was to level any of our past trailers. We’re getting better at leveling, however.

‘Fluid’ capacity is less. Every two to three days we have to fill fresh water and dump wastewater tanks. Pancake was about the same. Oscar had larger tanks that gave us an additional day.

And the Ugly

Wind. Wind affects both TCs and travel trailers. I think our steering wheel cover has permanent grooves from gripping the steering wheel so tightly while driving in high winds.

Costly suspension upgrades. Our TC rests entirely on the truck frame and suspension, and we have experienced rear end ‘squat.’ We added air bags to reduce the squat, but sway (rocking back and forth) increased. It will take a few more adjustments to get things right. Unfortunately, such adjustments are pricey.

Fuel Costs. It takes a very large (one-ton) truck and a LOT of gas to carry our rig up mountains, across plains, etc. We average a little over 10 miles per gallon. Do the math: 23000 miles driving / 10 MPG * $x.xx gallon = total cost of gas. We expect gas will be our biggest expense during this trip. Fortunately our MPG is actually slightly better than it was with Max and Oscar.

Things break. Our rig has been excellent overall. Two items have been repaired under warranty and we have made a few other minor repairs.

On a very cold morning near Flagstaff, we pressed the button to start the generator. When nothing happened, I feared the worst. I looked things over and discovered a cable had slipped out of its battery connector. We installed a new connector, and the generator was working again.

Then the fridge quit working. The control panel flashed a repeating pattern of five red blinks. We reset the power to restart the fridge. Unfortunately, the problem continued to occur. A gas valve was replaced in Tucson and the fridge is now working fine.

A couple weeks ago we found a significant crack in the back doorstep landing. Northwood, our TC manufacturer, quickly replaced the defective landing.

Oscar and Pancake had to have repairs as well. Time-consuming maintenance and costly repairs are an ugly reality of owning an RV.

Do you have any RV good-bad-ugly questions for us? Post them in the comments and we’ll do our best to provide an answer.

The Big Name Announcement

We asked for your suggestions of names for our truck and TC. Thanks to all who sent such great (and interesting) ideas.

Max, Pancake and Oscar will now have named siblings.

With no further ado, here are the names we have chosen:

(drumroll please)

We’ve named our Chevy 3500HD PERCY, in part to honor Pat’s dad, Charles PERCY Hattenstein, and because we just liked the name!

Jan Farmer, a friend from Camp Cedarbrook Texas, suggested naming our Wolf Creek 890 TC PAPOOSE. We loved the suggestion and shortened it a bit to PAP.

So, blog followers, meet PERCY and PAP!

Next week:

Redwoods: big, beautiful and hard to photograph!

Capitol Reef NP: Ripe Fruit Trees and Views that Please

(2019 Grand Teton Ep 18)

After visiting J.C. Penney, we continued south to Utah where we bypassed Salt Lake City and Provo, bound for Capitol Reef National Park. In some areas autumn was evident on the distant hills, with red and yellow tinged trees. Not the beauty of colors in the eastern U.S., but eye candy none-the-less.

We dry camped at Torrey, Utah, about seven miles from the park (map point 13). Our campsite had a nice view of sagebrush flats leading up to clay-colored, eroded mesas.

Capitol Reef National Park extends about 60 miles north to south and is less than five miles wide at most points. Although much of the park is remote, an eight-mile scenic drive provides amazing views.

The park is situated along a wrinkle in the earth known as the Waterman Fold. The dramatic lifts and folds of the fold are seen all along the drive. Two short side roads pass through narrow canyons to interesting hiking trails (time-lapse video).

Scenic Drive — Waterman Fold view along scenic drive

Canyon Drive — Driving the canyon along the Capitol Gorge spur road

We ate lunch at a picnic area in the Fruita Historic District. The Fremont River flows through the district where Mormon pioneers built irrigation systems and planted apple, cherry, peach, pear and apricot trees. The apples were ripe so we picked several pounds for a small fee. Pat sliced the apples and baked them with cinnamon sugar and butter for a delicious dessert.

Freemont River — Fremont River along the Hickman Bridge Trail

Not far away we ventured up a 1.2 mile rocky trail to Hickman Bridge, a 130-foot natural arch near the Fremont River. It was our first significant trail since hiking in the Tetons a week earlier where I fell and dislocated a finger. Thankfully there were no incidents this time – only great views of the arch and adjacent canyons.

Hickman Bridge Selfie — Hickman Bridge selfie

Tip: We learned an important lesson while in the area. Spring and fall months are high season – the parks are crowded and campgrounds are full. We were told summer (hot) and winter (cold) months are less busy. We’ll make reservations should we return one day.

Bonus Tip: locally made fruit pies, various preserves and other items are sold in the park at the Gifford House. The fruit pies are VERY popular – 28 dozen were sold by 2 pm on the day we visited. All were gone when we went to the store :>(. Stop at the store EARLY if you want to enjoy a delicious local treat!

After a couple days in the area, we headed northeast to Moab and Canyonlands/Arches National Parks. Along the way we would have an interesting encounter with goblins.

Lessons of the Unexpected

(2019 Grand Teton Ep 13)

Despite our attempts to plan for and control everything, unexpected things happen. Familiar surroundings, familiar repair facilities and familiar hospitals and doctors at home help us deal with most unexpected events.

But when you are thousands of miles from home and the unexpected happens, it’s a different matter entirely.

We were enjoying Grand Teton National Park after 11 days on the road. We hiked three miles above Jenny Lake to Hidden Falls and our plans were to take a boat back to where we started. But the last boat of the day was at 4 pm and we knew we could not make it time to catch the boat.

We viewed the falls for a few minutes and then started back up the trail, not looking forward to the 90-minute hike to the parking lot. The trail led up a steep slope for about a half mile, followed by a long descent to the parking lot.

Then it happened. I caught my right foot on a rock and fell. Stumbling forward, I saw there was a drop off to the left side of the trail. With nothing to grab onto and not wanting to fall down the side, I tumbled to the ground trying to stop myself with my hands. My left hand jammed into a rock and my right cheek scraped along the ground.

Sprawled on the ground, I slowly tested various body parts to see if anything was hurt. Pat helped me up and I noticed the middle finger on my left hand was bulging at a peculiar angle. I touched my cheek and my fingers were covered with blood.

A hiker stopped and offered first aid tape to tape my throbbing fingers together. Pat dabbed the blood from my cheek with a wet handkerchief.

As we hiked the trail to the parking lot, Pat and I discussed my injuries. We decided I would have to visit a medical facility to have my finger and cheek looked at.

Back at our truck, we learned the clinic in the park closed at 5 pm. So Pat began the 15 mile drive to Jackson, the nearest town. We called our insurance provider and found out there was an urgent care facility in town, but it also closed at 5 pm. So we headed to the emergency room at St Johns Medical Center.

We arrived a bit past 6:30 pm and anticipating high ER charges, I asked the receptionist if there were any other urgent care clinics in town. There was one across town affiliated with the hospital, but it closed at 7 pm.

We made it to the clinic a little past 6:45 pm. An x-ray of my finger revealed it was dislocated. I was glad I did not need stitches for my cheek injury.

After trying twice to reset my finger, they splinted it, told me to keep it iced and made an appointment at Teton Orthopedic the next day for further treatment.

The next morning I was told the hand specialist at Teton Orthopedic had the day off. However, when she saw the x-ray, she made a special trip to the office. She was able to pop it in place to my immediate relief! I was then sent to get a more permanent splint. Shortly after noon we were finished!

Since retiring, this was our first significant unexpected medical issue. We had several unexpected issues with our camper however during our 2018 Alaska trip – major repairs of the slide in Texas, a medicine cabinet falling off the wall along the Alaska Highway and bad wheel bearings just outside Haines, Alaska.

We realized things could have been MUCH worse in each situation – I could have been seriously injured in Grand Teton, the slide could have fallen out along the road in a remote area, or the camper could have required a long and expensive tow.

We have learned and re-learned several important lessons from the situations above:

We are under the watchful eye of loving God. To us, unexpected things happen. To Him, nothing is unexpected. Any situation can be used to glorify Him. We don’t always know why such things happen, but we know He is in control over everything.
(Psalm 121:8 – The Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore)
There are many, many people who help in unexpected situations: a man with first aid tape along a trail, a worker at an auto parts store in Haines, Alaska who gave us the name of a repairman who fixed our camper bearings at the campsite for a reasonable price, a manager at Camping World near San Antonio who gave our camper repairs high priority. The list of helpful people goes on and on.
Being anxious about a situation (or anticipated situation) doesn’t help. Pat and I pray, discuss. seek advice from others and then trust as God guides us. (Philippians 4:6-7: Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God).

Unexpected things will continue to happen when we are at home and on the road. We are called to remember and often re-learn the lessons above. And, more often than not, we are taught new lessons as well.

Next week: so easy, even Ansel Adams could photograph it!

RV Show Tips/Tampa RV Show Report

We attended the Florida RV Super Show in Tampa, FL on January 16-17. Said to be the greatest RV show in the country, it was the greatest RV show we’ve been to by a LONG shot. The promos said there were 450 vendor booths and more than 1550 RVs in a mere 26 acres. But we weren’t counting…

Show-Entry — An early morning start at the show – already overwhelmed!

Much has been said and written about the incredible diversity of RVs available today – many could be seen at the show. Included were Class As, Class Bs, Class Cs, fifth wheels, travel trailers, toy haulers, truck campers, popups, teardrops, hybrids, park models and probably others I am not remembering at the moment. Each fits one’s lifestyle, budget and style of camping. The show was a great way to see all things RV in a relatively small area and short period of time.

Check out a few of the show views below:

YouTube has lots of videos posted by seasoned reviewers that offer great comments on what is new and different. This was our first BIG show so it was all new and different to us!

There were even Youtube RV celebrities at the show. We had a chance to meet up with Nathan and Marissa from Less Junk, More Journey. They spoke with their online followers for more than an hour!

Diversion 2-LJMJ — Nathan from the **Less Junk, More Journey** Youtube Channel

Besides the mind-numbing array of camping rigs and vendor booths, the show included roving entertainment – a bagpipe band, cowboys on stilts, guitar and trumpet players, and much more.

Hungry or thirsty? There was a variety of fair-type food and drink – pizza, funnel cakes, barbecue, lemonade, burgers and hot dogs and so on.

Tired? Don’t want to walk? There were trams that continually circled the show.

Here are some suggestions to help you get the most out of RV shows you might attend in the future:

Save on tickets. We purchased show tickets in advance for a small savings. Then, as we entered the show, we got free tickets for a second day. Sometimes Groupon or websites have specials as well.

Save on parking. Cash was needed for parking – no credit cards! Carpool with friends to save even more.

Avoid crowds and arrive early to park near the gate. We attended Wednesday and Thursday to avoid the larger Friday and weekend crowds. The show opened at 9 am and we arrived around 9:15. This allowed us to park very close to the entrance. We bypassed the lines at the entrance ticket booths that got rather long by 10 am. We also bypassed kiosks where one could sign up for prizes (signup when leaving).

Decide what you want to see and stay focused. We determined the types of campers we wanted to see and decided on the RV manufacturers to visit. We found them on the show map and visited those at the back of the show first. We then worked forward.

On our second day we looked through campers that caught our eye in addition to those we were focusing on. We also used the second day to look over RV-related products and services in the exhibitor areas.

Show-Dreamy Rig — The $2 million RV of Pat’s dreams!

Dress wisely, take breaks. Wear comfortable shoes and clothing, with removable layers if it is chilly. Include a hat if sunny. We took regular breaks and stayed hydrated.

Take notes and photos. Details of the rigs visited run together after a very short while. We created a checklist of the key features of we were looking for in advance and took pictures to help us remember each rig.

Ask questions. There were lots of salesmen and manufacturer reps at the show. They were happy to answer detailed questions as we looked things over. We noticed they were much more attentive before lunch. As the crowds grew in the afternoon, everyone grew tired!

Enjoy the diversions. The fun and useful diversions were enjoyable – bagpipes, walking entertainers, seminars and the multitude of vendor displays.

Full Camper Line — Not all models of a camper series were at the show.

Wait – there’s more! Not all models of a particular camper could be seen at the show. Review manufacturer brochures and tell sales people/manufacturer reps what you are looking for. What you are looking for may be found at a dealer nearby. Also, carry a backpack to stow brochures, completed checklists and any purchases you make.

Additional ideas? If you have other RV show tips, please add to the comments below.

Pains in Haines and A Scary Ferry

(2018 Alaska Ep 46)

We have been abundantly blessed during 5+ months and almost 19,000 miles of traveling. The sights, experiences and people we’ve met have been amazing!

There have also been challenges along the way, but we count those as blessings as well. They are opportunities to trust God and see Him at work.

The road construction north of Haines and potholes on the campground road took their toll on our camper.

We smelled hot brakes coming from the rear right wheel as we set up camp at Chilkoot Lake State Recreation Site. We discovered the wheel was too hot to touch. It was radiating heat!

I removed the wheel and found the inside wheel bearing had failed. Part of the bearing housing was shredded into small pieces and bearings were all over the inside of the wheel hub. That was not good!

Trailer bearings 101 – in case you ever have a trailer:

We drove into town and purchased new bearings and grease for all four wheels. The auto parts store had exactly four sets of bearings that fit our trailer.

Back at the campsite, I prepared to replace the bad bearing but could not remove the inner sleeve of the bearing from the spindle – see picture above.

The trailer could not be towed and we anticipated having to have the camper taken into town for repairs on some sort of flatbed trailer. This would not be easy considering the potholes and crowded road.

We made arrangements for a mechanic to came to our campsite and he was there in just over an hour (we were glad he was immediately available). He removed the stubborn inner bearing sleeve in less than two minutes using something called a slide hammer. We were ever so thankful!

Before boarding the ferry the next day, we had bearings on all four wheels completely redone. Shortly before noon we lined up at the ferry landing for the trip to Skagway.

The ferry arrived and campers, including us, were loaded first.

To our surprise we had to back our truck and camper down the ramp onto the ferry and then make a 90 degree turn. Some people seem to have an amazing talent backing a trailer – NOT ME!

Thank goodness the ferry workers told us exactly when and how much to turn our wheels. We didn’t hit any cars, people or parts of the boat.

God’s timing is perfect! Had we left the day before, we would have backed onto the ferry in rain. Instead, when we backed on to the ferry the rain had just ended and the sun came out. The boat ride to Skagway was beautiful.

The folks we met at Haines were very kind – at the auto parts store, the local hardware store, the mechanic who came to the campsite and the man who redid the wheel bearings. We were blessed…

Flexibility Part 2

(2018 Alaska Ep 6)

(Sorry for the delay is blog updates. We have had very limited Internet connectivity over the past week…)

We arrived in the San Antonio area on Tuesday, April 24. Although the issues with the camper slide were better, we had continued concerns and decided to take the camper to a dealer in New Braunfels, Texas, a community just north of San Antonio.

The news wasn’t good. The base of the slide was seriously rotted and needed to be repaired. The repair estimate was considerable!

Rot is typically caused by a water leak somewhere. The repairman couldn’t identify the source of the leak, but the evidence speaks for itself.

We prayed for wisdom – invest in the cost to repair the slide damage, return home to sell/trade the camper (thus cancelling our Alaska trip for this year) or something else?

The decision? We decided the damage would have to be repaired before we could sell/trade the camper. The repair would be costly whether completed in Florida or Texas. The RV dealer had immediate availability to make the repair – often such repairs take weeks.

So, we spent two nights in a hotel nearby while the slide was repaired. It was like RV open heart surgery – the slide had to be removed, damage repaired and reinstalled.

With the repair completed and all possible sources of water leaks sealed with caulk, we are continuing our journey to Alaska!

The Bible cautions not to store treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, or thieves can steal. Although not specifically mentioned, we think rot is part of this truth as well. Our camper is a means to make our journey possible, but we need to keep focused on things of eternal value.

This likely won’t be our last chance to be flexible and trust God during this trip. Regardless, we’ll praise Him through it all!

Flexibility Part 1

(2018 Alaska Ep 4)

It has been a rather interesting week since our last blog post.

Our plans to bike a portion of Missouri’s Katy Rail Trail and to visit the Gateway Arch in downtown St Louis while in the St Louis area didn’t materialize due to problems with our camper.

We spent much of one day troubleshooting the problems with a RV service business and then several hours the next day picking up some critical parts. By then, it was time to head to Kansas City for a visit with Pat’s aunt and uncle.

When RVing, when on long trip and with life overall, flexibility is VERY important.

Life doesn’t always happen as one expects. In the unexpected, we learn we are not in control and must trust that God IS in control and has a purpose for changed plans.