Bought a pop-up trailer and took it out for the first time. (Roosevelt Lake)

I apologize in advance for all of the dog pics. I can't help myself.

I tent camp a lot and have been kicking around the idea of how to best upgrade my setup.

I originally thought roof top tent but that doesn't really do some of the things I was looking for. One being climate control during the colder months where it's still beautiful during the day, but too cold for me once away from the campfire. Another being stuck wherever I set up camp. Sure it wouldn't be that hard to fold back up, but once I set up camp I usually unload a lot of my stuff into the tent. Another problem was I always have my dog with me and I don't think he'd be too fond of the stairs. No offense to those that have them and love them, it just seemed too similar to the camping I was already doing for the cost.

So next I set my sights on a nice pop up cabover camper. I quickly found the Four Wheel Campers (FWC) and those are slick but out of my price range, for now. The other down side is my truck won't fit in my garage with one installed. So it would have to be taken off somehow and stored in my garage in between every trip. Lastly, there just aren't many available in my area. Those that are seem to be well used and pretty heavy. Those are all problems which I could no doubt find a solution for. But in the meantime, while I save and figure out what it is exactly I want and need in a camping system I am going to hold off.

That put me on the search for a tow behind pop-up camper. It can be climate controlled, easily towed, popular with a large market, a way to escape the unpredictable monsoon storms that can pop up on a day with supposedly 0% change of rain, and it fits in my garage. It's a true "hook up and take off" system.

After watching Craigslist for a few weeks I made an offer on a camper I had my eye on. I knew the seller wanted it gone and I feel I got a deal.

2004 Fleetwood Yuma. I opted to go with one without AC (I don't want to run a generator, and most of my camping is done in the pines and higher elevation.) This does have a 3 way refrigerator and furnace.













Here it is tucked away in the garage.





I picked it up Tuesday night with plans of heading to Roosevelt Lake early Thursday morning. Well I couldn't wait so the pup and I hit the road at about 10:30PM Wednesday night.



Arrived at my destination about 3 hours later. Which meant setting up the camper for the first time in the dark. It went surprisingly smooth. The jacks are a bit of a pain but I also was not on level ground. May look into a better system later on. Here we are all ready for our first night.



Fell asleep to a nice cool breeze and the sound of the waves on the lake just a few feet away. I was very comfortable.

Sun coming up and look who decided to come snuggle lol





It stayed cooler longer than I expected so I slept a few more hours







After a quick breakfast it's time to pick up the jet skis and get into the water





Marco spends most of his time napping under my friends' RV



Looking out from the awning in front of the rv you can see m set up. As well as our kitchen/cooler/beer area.



Glad I went up early. There were 4 jet skis and a pontoon boat between the 3 of us.



Loved the overcast. Here you can see the group set up.




Heading out for a cruise on the pontoon.







We all retired pretty early. Being on the water and drinking made for a full day. Some seemed a little more tired however.



Started off the next day right. These things are growing on me.



By this time a few others had joined out group so we headed out to a cove, dropped anchor and swam/jet skid.





This thing is a beast. 255hp supercharged.



I had the most fun on the Sparks. Doing figure 8's and fast turns



Staying cool






Someone sprayed is with the jet ski lol



Back for dinner



I should really teach him not to beg.




Finished the night with a boat ride to the marina bar and a midnight swim.
Marco was exhausted again and just slept the whole time. Too much excitement for one day




Woke up to another beautiful day on the lake.




It got overcast and choppy again but the clouds eventually burned off and we went out on the boats again. This time I was in more of a sport boat on the way out. Make sure to make it back to the pontoon for Marcos sake lol.



That marked the end of my trip. Had to get back on the road. Got into Globe Az as the sun was setting. Had to get back to work early Sunday morning.








Overall I am extremely happen with my purchase and decision. I think I will enjoy it for many trips to come. I plan to pick up some leveling blocks, a solar panel and charging system, maybe an awning and a nice outdoor shower. So any advice on those will be greatly appreciated. I was also pleased to see that I averaged 15.5 mpg towing. That was better than I had hoped for. I hardly knew it was there. Also my dad is an avid camper/backpacker. He is trying to get my mom to camp with him since he just retired. We are (or were) firefighters on the same schedule so I was his camping buddy. This is something he can take out in his FJ and see if it's something they like. So that was another added bonus. Long term I still have my sights on a modest EMU lift and a nice FWC. I think that would suit me just fine.

 

Good stuff, despite the horrendous taste in beer

 

Sounds like my kind of relaxing. Enjoyed the pictures and your story.

 

I drink cheladas too. My buddys wife kicked me out of their rv tailgating this weekend as she didnt want me "spilling that shit" in it. no respect. get a michelada from a mexican restaurant and enjoy, their even better

but no miller light! good pics and nice setup. looks fantastic

 

Thanks a lot!

Haha. The 30 pack was my donation to the cause. And the michelada was one of the easier things to wake up and drink. That and pedialyte sangria lol! This is an actual conversation I had with my gf:

That guys drinking a beer!

Everyone is drinking a beer, look around!

But it's 8am!!?!!

 

Man your pic's are bringing me flashbacks. We used to have a 2006 Fleetwood Yuma. Towed like it wasn't there and stowed away easily in the garage. Wife wanted a potty and shower so I spend some $$$'s on a solid side hybrid, which doesn't store nice and drops my mileage down to the 10's. If you have the urge to upgrade DON'T!!! Even my kids were commenting on missing our popup on our recent summer roadtrip.

 

I'm ashamed to admit I was drinking them on a brewery tour in San Diego. It was our last day there and everyone was too hungover to drink IPA's and craft brew. Haha. That was poorly planned.

Thanks for the input! The guy I bought it from was already commenting on how his new nicer unit was much more of a pain to set up. I'm clueless on these thing and kind of learning as I go. Any advice for me? I don't even know how to use the furnace yet!

 

If you every decided you want a toilet for it I HIGHLY recommend a self-contained composting toilet. That is what I bought for my off grid cabin and it exceeded my expectations 10 fold. It weights 27 lbs and is extremely efficient and easy to maintain. I did a ton of research and bought the "natures head" composting toilet my self.

If you ever want electricity get a Honda EU2000i. One of the quietest, efficient, and most reliable generators. It only weights 45lb and it runs my mini fridge, wifi extender, lights, laptop, table saw, etc... If I'm just using lights, electronics, and fridge I get 10+ hours off a gallon of gas. Definitely not a cheap generator, but I have absolute no remorse dropping the coin on it.

Just a couple of things I've added to my camping life that I'm extremely pleased with.

 

Furnace is a no brainer. As long as the gas and battery are connected you just adjust the thermostat and it will fire up. Camping around SoCal we didn't use it much, but it worked well. Our three way fridge never worked. But it was too small anyways. There are SO many compartments in the Yuma to exploit. We could pack the heck outta it. Not much to this popup. Only advice I can give is to clean, clean, and clean when you come back from a trip. What you leave is what you receive on the next trip. Used 303 Aerospace protectant on the sunbrella tent surfaces. Kept things good as new. If you do decide to upgrade later this little camper will be easy to sell. I bought mine used for around $6k, sold it 4 years later for a little more than $4k. The guy that got it handed me a bundle of cash sight unseen, didn't even want me to set it up. Enjoy!!!

 

Thanks man! I think the only way I'd move to a generator is if I needed AC. But I will definitely keep that in mine. And I may have to pick up the toilet. I don't think I'd use it unless it was just too crowded where I am to go find a tree. But female company would appreciate it as well.

 

Awesome advice! I will pick up that Aerospace protectant. I got this bad boy for $2800. Guy was a pretty meticulous owner too. Had all the original paperwork and other than one tear in the clear plastic i can't find a thing wrong with it.

 

$2800. I should just pick another one up. I'll leave the camper for the wife/lab retriever and the boys and I can hit the road with the pop up

 

leveling blocks are fine, but kind of a pain to have to add/delete forward and back. I have a BAL Leveler, for ours, also have the BAL wheel chock.



I have a pair of 2x6s 24" long I keep, figure out which side is low, then roll the camper over those side by side, if it needs more the BAL will lift and chock all at the same time. or just works well as a chock iic needed. toss the chock under the other side and the camper isn't moving easily ( I've hit mine with tractor bucket on the tongue, it's about the only way its gonna move )

keep in mind, the "jacks" are stabilizers, you should not lift the frame with them, only support, the leveling is done with the wheels and tongue jack FIRST, the the stabs are lowered to keep it in place.

mount bubble levels in center front and then front of the left side ( mounted level, verified true ) a level camper is a happy camper, fridge will work better ( if equipped )

 

Thanks I will look into that. Good to know I shouldn't be cranking up on the stabilizers.

 

That is a solid plan

 

Bear Down

 

^^^And ease up on the ketchup. Joking of course. Looks like fun!

 

Bear Down! Had to add this sticker before I left!

Yeah I went a little ham on the ketchup.

 

Looks like a handgun on the counter by your spotlight.

Always good to be prepared.

 

Yeah I completely agree. Always have something with me.