Always wanted a teardrop, finally got one, a used Camp-Inn 550, it's very small. It was well used and had to be partly rebuilt ,especially the frame and axles.The vehicle that tows it is part of the equation. A small car can tow one, but a larger vehicle can carry extra necessities. A van as a tow vehicle could have extra capacity, maybe custom shelving, pet or kid beds. We are mature, kids grown, have a mid sized Tacoma, full double cab, long bed pickup with a lumber rack. The rack can carry ladders or lumber for working, boats or bamboo for camping. The back seats are multi purpose, usually there is a dog bed cover to protect the real seats from my dog or tools and bags that get set on the ground, wetness and dirt. Sometimes I work in remote places and the teardrop makes long trips so much easier. Your videos are very interesting because it helps to anticipate details that may arise, and be prepared in advance. I am curios about your experience with off grid refrigeration, and these new lithium iron phosphate based solar inverter off grid electricity units, such as Bluetti or Eco Flow Delta. Any insights?
The things you mentioned are reasons why we also appreciate the teardrop. It's nice to have our truck to carry extra supplies, and we like to drop the teardrop off as a home base and then go exploring in our truck. Regarding the refrigerator, we have not purchased one of those yet. We are interested in getting one, but so far, we opted for the RTIC cooler. We need to keep restocking ice on our trips so it's not a perfect solution. Regarding batteries, we have two deep cycle AGM batteries and a 90-watt solar panel. This setup has worked well for our weekend camping trips so far. We rarely hook up to shore power and really haven't needed electricity most of the time. We are also interested in lithium batteries and other upgrades. We just haven't gotten around to getting more tools and accessories and have mostly kept our camping experiences with the teardrop trailer simple so far. Perhaps we'll upgrade some items this winter. If we do, we'll be sure to share those experiences in a video. Happy camping!
Esplendido estilo de vida lo compartimos, nosotros vamos teniendo distintos trailers, carpas y rodantes, compartimos contigo que esto ayuda a nuestra pareja, permitiendo disfrutar de la naturaleza muy directamente. Nuevos suscriptores los seguimos.
We recently downsized from a a 25’ Class C to a teardrop (and tent for the kids) and love the switch. We feel we are more connected with nature with the teardrop. ❤ 🌲
Thanks for the 1-year review! I finally got notification a few days ago that they've started building my TD! Hopefully I'll be going to Utah to pick it up in a couple of weeks. I now you've covered it before, but how are you keeping warm while winter camping?
Hi, that has been a long wait! It will be so nice when you finally get your teardrop. Can't wait to hear how you like it. Here are things we'll be bringing along to keep warm when winter camping: heavy-duty sleeping bag, wool blanket, Mr. Heater Buddy, electric heater and electric blanket if there's shore power available, lots of firewood, warm clothes, scarves, gloves, knit hats, heavy duty coats, packages of feet and hand heating aids, and throw blankets for placing in our laps on our camping chairs. 🙂
Nice video! My fiancé are about to leave on a year long road trip around North America in our teardrop. One of our main concerns is trailer security. When you’re boondocking do you typically leave your trailer at a site or do you take it with you? We’re concerned about not being able to go certain places due to parking with the trailer and not wanting to leave it at our boondocking site 😭
Hi Ivy, how exciting! What an amazing adventure you're going to have! We can understand your worries about leaving the trailer. Do you have security measures to make it more difficult/annoying for someone to take it? We use a ball hitch lock, a hitch lock that's hard to cut, and a tire boot. Additionally, we have insurance on our trailer if something unfortunate were to happen. Have an amazing time on your trip! We'd love to do that someday as well. 🤗
@@HighwaytoHoeftland thank you so much! So we do have full insurance and a GPS tracker and a lock but we just didn’t know how common it was to leave your trailer for the day and it gets stolen. I suppose it’s something we’ll just have to get used to :)
the more locks you put on your TD the less likely someone will try to steal it.. if it looks like too much trouble they'll maybe move on to something that looks easier to grab.. lots of people lock them up to go on hikes during the day etc... however it's been said if it's something really valuable (computer) lock that in your tow vehicle....also some people use ring type cameras
We've been to Big Obsidian Flow and yeah, definitely don't want to bring the dogs on those trails since it's basically walking on broken glass! :-) We're renting a teardrop soon to see if it works for us and our dogs. Fingers-crossed! Enjoying your channel and I wish you guys much success!
We're glad you're enjoying the channel, thank you! What kind of RV do you currently have? We hope the teardrop route work for you guys! It works fine with our dog, Teddy. He sleeps great in the trailer and seems to like it.👍🙂
Very nice video. You touched on a few key points. One that got my attention was the time it took you to load up the trailer… when we get back from camping (today) we wash everything and store it away for the next trip. We have a list of everything in the trailer so we just check over the list and add food and clothes, it usually takes about 1-1/2 hours . October on the California coast is great! Get keep getting outside ! :-) You guys are an inspiration!👍🏼
Hi David, thank you for your very nice comment! We appreciate it. 🤗 That's a good idea to get some of the tasks completed early. We tend to procrastinate, haha. Sometimes we even wait to get our groceries the morning we leave. The time all adds up. We're going to try and get more organized with packing. We're glad to hear you're getting out there, too! Camping is the best, isn't it? Thanks again. 🙂🙏
Hi Peter, that is a good question. We don't know for sure the exact number of nights. We will attempt to add them up and share the stats. We sometimes take it out camping about every other weekend. We took a short break when our dog Teddy underwent TPLO surgery. Our goal is to get out with our teardrop at least one weekend per month throughout the year.
I have a big dog too. I have thought about getting an a/c with this particular tear drop too. I have been wondering how much battery power you need to have to run it all day during hot days? I will be camping in the desert a lot. Is the solar power you had enough to keep the batteries charged even with use of the a/c? Thanks!
Hi Flynn, unfortunately with the type of batteries and A/C we have, we are not able to run the A/C on anything but shore power/electric hookup. We think the newer lithium batteries might be suitable for what you're looking for? We would love to have the A/C run on batteries as well. It's a big concern with pets. The teardrop does get hot during the summer, so we tried to find places where we could plug into electricity on those very hot days. We would suggest talking to Dave with Bend Teardrop about the current options. It seems like there's been additional upgrades since we purchased our camper. Thanks and happy camping. 🙂🐶
@@HighwaytoHoeftland thank you-- I will give him a call and see what he thinks. I'll avoid the hottest times in the desert, but weather is unpredictable enough that I want to have the option to use a/c in a boondocking situation. I enjoyed your videos.
@Highway to Hoeftland--one other question-- I like to keep to myself when camping and I have heard some say it is difficult to do that with a teardrop because they are such a conversation piece. Have you found that to be true?
Flynn, that's what we were told when we first purchased our teardrop too. Occasionally, people will come up and ask about the teardrop, but it's not excessive. This last weekend someone came up to tell us he also has a teardrop. He was a couple of sites down with one he built himself. Another time, a fellow Bend Teardrop was at our campground and we gave each other tours and discussed the rigs. I woke up one morning to a lady in our campsite taking photos of the trailer. So thinking back, I guess it does happen. We are introverts and it hasn't felt excessive yet. 🙂👍
That might be the perfect campsite!! Teardrop life is fun, I can see upgrading one day as we get older, there are definitely a few challenges. Thanks for sharing, subbed
nice video. i am waiting for my Hiker Camper to be built. i take delivery in October sometime. i cant wait! i have been tent camping for 40 years and need to get off the ground. it's hard to get up off the ground these days! lol. i enjoy watching your videos.
@@HighwaytoHoeftland yeah. that's a lot of up and down! lol. I'm slow these days because of motorcycle accident and age! legs and knees are not like they used to be.
@@travelinwithTODD It sounds like the teardrop camper will be a good choice for you comfort wise. We started getting pretty uncomfortable in our tent as well. It's a pretty cozy and relaxing space in the teardrop. Definite upgrade.
Always wanted a teardrop, finally got one, a used Camp-Inn 550, it's very small. It was well used and had to be partly rebuilt ,especially the frame and axles.The vehicle that tows it is part of the equation. A small car can tow one, but a larger vehicle can carry extra necessities. A van as a tow vehicle could have extra capacity, maybe custom shelving, pet or kid beds. We are mature, kids grown, have a mid sized Tacoma, full double cab, long bed pickup with a lumber rack. The rack can carry ladders or lumber for working, boats or bamboo for camping. The back seats are multi purpose, usually there is a dog bed cover to protect the real seats from my dog or tools and bags that get set on the ground, wetness and dirt. Sometimes I work in remote places and the teardrop makes long trips so much easier. Your videos are very interesting because it helps to anticipate details that may arise, and be prepared in advance. I am curios about your experience with off grid refrigeration, and these new lithium iron phosphate based solar inverter off grid electricity units, such as Bluetti or Eco Flow Delta. Any insights?
The things you mentioned are reasons why we also appreciate the teardrop. It's nice to have our truck to carry extra supplies, and we like to drop the teardrop off as a home base and then go exploring in our truck.
Regarding the refrigerator, we have not purchased one of those yet. We are interested in getting one, but so far, we opted for the RTIC cooler. We need to keep restocking ice on our trips so it's not a perfect solution.
Regarding batteries, we have two deep cycle AGM batteries and a 90-watt solar panel. This setup has worked well for our weekend camping trips so far. We rarely hook up to shore power and really haven't needed electricity most of the time.
We are also interested in lithium batteries and other upgrades. We just haven't gotten around to getting more tools and accessories and have mostly kept our camping experiences with the teardrop trailer simple so far.
Perhaps we'll upgrade some items this winter. If we do, we'll be sure to share those experiences in a video. Happy camping!
Esplendido estilo de vida lo compartimos, nosotros vamos teniendo distintos trailers, carpas y rodantes, compartimos contigo que esto ayuda a nuestra pareja, permitiendo disfrutar de la naturaleza muy directamente. Nuevos suscriptores los seguimos.
We recently downsized from a a 25’ Class C to a teardrop (and tent for the kids) and love the switch. We feel we are more connected with nature with the teardrop. ❤ 🌲
Thanks for the 1-year review! I finally got notification a few days ago that they've started building my TD! Hopefully I'll be going to Utah to pick it up in a couple of weeks. I now you've covered it before, but how are you keeping warm while winter camping?
Hi, that has been a long wait! It will be so nice when you finally get your teardrop. Can't wait to hear how you like it.
Here are things we'll be bringing along to keep warm when winter camping: heavy-duty sleeping bag, wool blanket, Mr. Heater Buddy, electric heater and electric blanket if there's shore power available, lots of firewood, warm clothes, scarves, gloves, knit hats, heavy duty coats, packages of feet and hand heating aids, and throw blankets for placing in our laps on our camping chairs. 🙂
Nice video! My fiancé are about to leave on a year long road trip around North America in our teardrop. One of our main concerns is trailer security. When you’re boondocking do you typically leave your trailer at a site or do you take it with you? We’re concerned about not being able to go certain places due to parking with the trailer and not wanting to leave it at our boondocking site 😭
Hi Ivy, how exciting! What an amazing adventure you're going to have! We can understand your worries about leaving the trailer. Do you have security measures to make it more difficult/annoying for someone to take it? We use a ball hitch lock, a hitch lock that's hard to cut, and a tire boot. Additionally, we have insurance on our trailer if something unfortunate were to happen. Have an amazing time on your trip! We'd love to do that someday as well. 🤗
@@HighwaytoHoeftland thank you so much! So we do have full insurance and a GPS tracker and a lock but we just didn’t know how common it was to leave your trailer for the day and it gets stolen. I suppose it’s something we’ll just have to get used to :)
the more locks you put on your TD the less likely someone will try to steal it.. if it looks like too much trouble they'll maybe move on to something that looks easier to grab.. lots of people lock them up to go on hikes during the day etc... however it's been said if it's something really valuable (computer) lock that in your tow vehicle....also some people use ring type cameras
We've been to Big Obsidian Flow and yeah, definitely don't want to bring the dogs on those trails since it's basically walking on broken glass! :-) We're renting a teardrop soon to see if it works for us and our dogs. Fingers-crossed! Enjoying your channel and I wish you guys much success!
We're glad you're enjoying the channel, thank you! What kind of RV do you currently have? We hope the teardrop route work for you guys! It works fine with our dog, Teddy. He sleeps great in the trailer and seems to like it.👍🙂
Very nice video. You touched on a few key points. One that got my attention was the time it took you to load up the trailer… when we get back from camping (today) we wash everything and store it away for the next trip. We have a list of everything in the trailer so we just check over the list and add food and clothes, it usually takes about 1-1/2 hours . October on the California coast is great! Get keep getting outside !
:-)
You guys are an inspiration!👍🏼
Hi David, thank you for your very nice comment! We appreciate it. 🤗
That's a good idea to get some of the tasks completed early. We tend to procrastinate, haha. Sometimes we even wait to get our groceries the morning we leave. The time all adds up. We're going to try and get more organized with packing.
We're glad to hear you're getting out there, too! Camping is the best, isn't it? Thanks again. 🙂🙏
I recently found ur channel and i really enjoy ur videos! 💓
Thanks so much! Thanks for watching and for giving us the feedback. We appreciate it. 😊
Nice video. Thanks for sharing.
We're glad you enjoyed it. Thank you!
What was the total numbers of nights that you slept in your camper during the first year?
Hi Peter, that is a good question. We don't know for sure the exact number of nights. We will attempt to add them up and share the stats. We sometimes take it out camping about every other weekend. We took a short break when our dog Teddy underwent TPLO surgery. Our goal is to get out with our teardrop at least one weekend per month throughout the year.
Teddy is just the cutest!
Thank you! We sure love him. 🐶
I have a big dog too. I have thought about getting an a/c with this particular tear drop too. I have been wondering how much battery power you need to have to run it all day during hot days? I will be camping in the desert a lot. Is the solar power you had enough to keep the batteries charged even with use of the a/c? Thanks!
Hi Flynn, unfortunately with the type of batteries and A/C we have, we are not able to run the A/C on anything but shore power/electric hookup. We think the newer lithium batteries might be suitable for what you're looking for? We would love to have the A/C run on batteries as well. It's a big concern with pets. The teardrop does get hot during the summer, so we tried to find places where we could plug into electricity on those very hot days. We would suggest talking to Dave with Bend Teardrop about the current options. It seems like there's been additional upgrades since we purchased our camper. Thanks and happy camping. 🙂🐶
@@HighwaytoHoeftland thank you-- I will give him a call and see what he thinks. I'll avoid the hottest times in the desert, but weather is unpredictable enough that I want to have the option to use a/c in a boondocking situation. I enjoyed your videos.
@Highway to Hoeftland--one other question-- I like to keep to myself when camping and I have heard some say it is difficult to do that with a teardrop because they are such a conversation piece. Have you found that to be true?
Flynn, that's what we were told when we first purchased our teardrop too. Occasionally, people will come up and ask about the teardrop, but it's not excessive. This last weekend someone came up to tell us he also has a teardrop. He was a couple of sites down with one he built himself. Another time, a fellow Bend Teardrop was at our campground and we gave each other tours and discussed the rigs. I woke up one morning to a lady in our campsite taking photos of the trailer. So thinking back, I guess it does happen. We are introverts and it hasn't felt excessive yet. 🙂👍
Cool!
Thanks!
That might be the perfect campsite!! Teardrop life is fun, I can see upgrading one day as we get older, there are definitely a few challenges. Thanks for sharing, subbed
Thank you very much! We appreciate it. Isn't that campsite so beautiful? :)
@@HighwaytoHoeftland yes looked perfect!
nice video. i am waiting for my Hiker Camper to be built. i take delivery in October sometime. i cant wait! i have been tent camping for 40 years and need to get off the ground. it's hard to get up off the ground these days! lol. i enjoy watching your videos.
Oh, wow! 40 years tent camping is impressive. Congrats on your Hiker Camper! You will love it. 🤗
@@HighwaytoHoeftland yeah. that's a lot of up and down! lol. I'm slow these days because of motorcycle accident and age! legs and knees are not like they used to be.
@@travelinwithTODD It sounds like the teardrop camper will be a good choice for you comfort wise. We started getting pretty uncomfortable in our tent as well. It's a pretty cozy and relaxing space in the teardrop. Definite upgrade.
I can totally relate to finding connection when I’m outdoors and away from our normal routines ❤ love that
Thanks, Kimberly! ❤️
Will be getting ours soon, all your info is very helpful, thanks
Thanks, you'll have so much fun! 🤗👍