Pop-up camper as base camp

[Weldor]

This, alittle quiter and easier to heat. Easy tow.

 

[wytx]

Did it for a few years, had a canvas room made to slide on the side for extra room and a wood stove.
Worked well until the year it snowed about 12 inches . Spouse went out before daylight to hunt and I stayed at camp . Woke up to 12 inched on the roof and a chance of collapse. I shoveled snow off until he got back an it was sketchy to say the least.
The giant tarp over all allowed snow to fall off.

 

[parshal]

I use a Chalet a-frame popup which is a hardside camper. It's a two person deal, maximum. I can set it up or take it down (including attaching to the truck) in less than five minutes. I added a propane QD and use a Buddy heater for heat so I don't have to worry about batteries running low with the furnace. The fridge runs on propane so I have a small 'cooler' in the camper. I've used it on many below zero hunts and in high winds (50+) without issue. It will go wherever my truck goes and I've had it in rough off-trail areas I really shouldn't be in with my truck let alone a camper.

I've used it in multiple ways. One, as a mobile base camp on antelope or aoudad hunts when I'm covering a lot ground. Two, as a base camp for elk. And, three, as a sleep area for elk camp where we use an outfitter tent with stove for hanging out.

 

[fuzzymarindave]

My pop up camper goes with me anywhere i can take my 4x4 truck. Beyond that it is hiking.

 

[S-3 ranch]

I ran pronghorn, muledeer, Aoudad hunts in west Texas for 25 years and used a popup as base camp, easy to change ranches or areas, sleeps 2 excellent 3-4 in a pinch, mine didn’t have a shower, but I could go to the state park nearby to shower when I needed groceries and a shower
Buy a piece of carpet for a ground cover,
A fire pit and folding chairs because most of the time I was cooking outside during good weather

 

[LostArra]

Aliner: pop-up but hard sides. Two minute setup. Easy towing.

Aliner: The Original A-Frame Camper

Towable camping trailers to help you rediscover the open road.

aliner.com

 

[Joe7296]

I can't believe all the cool setups! gives me lots of dangerous ideas!

 

[taskswap]

I've owned two popups and more or less enjoyed both. They have their pros and cons as noted above.

I'm not shilling for this company in any way - I don't get anything for saying this. But IMNSHO a Jumping Jack is a really good option for anybody open to "tent on trailer" approaches for hunt setups. They are not fully equipped with kitchens and bathrooms like popups, but the tent they come with is much higher quality than most - it's canvas, and wall-tent category material, so it stands up to a lot of wind and rain. I got stuck in a 14" snowfall in Rifle 3 in 2018 or so here in CO and the roof had no issues holding that up.

The trailer itself has torsion axles so if your truck can get there, the trailer can too, and you can get optional electric brakes so if you ever want to carry an ATV or two, this will do that. And when you aren't camping with it, you can remove the entire tent "package" and use it as a utility trailer (although I will say it's really heavy - this is definitely not a convenient thing to do more than a few times a year).

They have different sizes. We got a lot of usage out of their 5x10 and sold it about 4 years after buying it for about 20% less than what we paid, which is much higher retention than a typical popup... Just food for thought...

 

[cbat]

My pop up camper goes with me anywhere i can take my 4x4 truck. Beyond that it is hiking. View attachment 841505

You beat me too it.

 

[timekiller13]

A popup camper is just a glorified tent.

Go wall tent route. No licensing, no tires, easy storage.

I set up my wall tent by myself in 30 min or less.

This is a fact. I had a pop up for several years that’s what I always told people was “it’s just a tent with wheels.”

Either get a wall tent or step up to hard sided travel trailer.

 

[Fatcamp]

This is a fact. I had a pop up for several years that’s what I always told people was “it’s just a tent with wheels.”

Either get a wall tent or step up to hard sided travel trailer.

We have a huge Kodiak tent, a fifth wheel, small tents, and a popup. The popup fills a niche that nothing else does. It pulls so well behind our truck, honestly like it's not there. A hard side in wind and ice sucks and we can set up our Kodiak in 30 minutes as well, but thats if we have an area with a smooth and level area to start.

The popup can be parked anywhere and honestly be set up with heat and cooking stuff in 15-20 minutes. And be taken down and on the road in the same amount of time.

I hated the idea and resisted it for a long time. Ours is modified to be as simple as possible with a lift and torsion axle. I've come to really appreciate it for what it is.

 

[ScreamingPotato]

We have a huge Kodiak tent, a fifth wheel, small tents, and a popup. The popup fills a niche that nothing else does. It pulls so well behind our truck, honestly like it's not there. A hard side in wind and ice sucks and we can set up our Kodiak in 30 minutes as well, but thats if we have an area with a smooth and level area to start.

The popup can be parked anywhere and honestly be set up with heat and cooking stuff in 15-20 minutes. And be taken down and on the road in the same amount of time.

I hated the idea and resisted it for a long time. Ours is modified to be as simple as possible with a lift and torsion axle. I've come to really appreciate it for what it is.

That's a good point with level ground. We've camped in some seriously wonky places with our popup, one spot the tongue was almost touching the ground because the slope was so steep. Great camping spot that otherwise wouldn't have been with any kind of tent. Also wouldn't have been able to get a hard size back that far nor be able to back it down into the hole we put it in.