RTT ups and downs

C'mon man it's sooooooo hard to find a flat spot to set up a ground tent on. Much easier to find an even larger flat spot to park on.

It's worth every penny of the $3000 you spent on that RTT and rack setup so you can tell everyone you don't have to sleep on the ground anymore.

 

LOL, spot on brother! The excuses given to justify those things are hilarious.

 

The shit a guy gets moving from tent to RTT. What happens when you go from RTT to this?

And would Buck’s hot wife sleep in it?

 

Nothing, as you Sir have arrived! With that kind of coin, you can tell the rest of the world to suck your tail pipe and mean it.

PS: park both that gorgeous rig and a lowly Taco truck with a deployed RTT in a Wal-Mart parking lot and see who gets asked to leave first.

 

Lol it’s just money anyways. Can’t take it with you when you die. Slightly different tax brackets in this thread from what I can see.

 

anyone consider rtt or others to avoid wildlife? ive had multiple grizzly bears sniffing the side of my ground tent and full disclosure its been tough convincing myself to go camping again.

 

This was thought as well when camping with our 1 year old, we were in the RTT at sequoia and we found bear prints on the camper shell glass overnight. I did hear something walking around our campsite but nothing happened. Not much will stop a bear. They break into vehicles when they smell food. You can opt to sleep in the vehicle or a camper shell if you want safety outdoors. But like some have said, that doesn’t make you an outdoorsman. But neither does sleeping inside a $100 tent.

 

What excuses? Have you slept in an RTT? It’s night and day vs ground tent. I don’t understand why there is so much hate towards RTTs.

 

Love the banter in this thread. There seems to be a lot of deeply held beliefs as to what a true "outdoorsman" should be sleeping on, as if it matters lol

As someone who has extensively backpacked, mountaineered, car camped, dispersed camped, and ground camped for the last ten years, adding an RTT to my arsenal has been one of the best things I've ever done for myself. I did my time sleeping on the ground, it was well past time to suck up what little pride I had left and spring for a luxury outdoor sleeping solution. I have never slept better while camping than inside my RTT, especially on solo trips.

That being said, ground tents have their place and I did not get rid of mine when I got the RTT, rather I have it BOTH ways now, because it turns out you don't actually have to lean aggressively to either side.

Here are two photos from two equally fulfilling camping trips a few weeks apart

 

I couldn’t agree more. It really comes down to money and space. That’s why I got both. I have space to store both of them and I can take either option at any time. I’m just making the family comfortable as we’re introducing our 1 year old to the great outdoors. He’s becoming an “outdoorsman” by eating yucky weeds, vegetation, rocks, bugs, mud and cow poop.

 

I've been doing it this way for years.

Cave diving camping trips are already gear intensive, screwing with elaborate tent stuff adds too much work.

 

Outdoorsier than thou, so what say you?

 

If we’re honest here, an adult grizzly can just stand up and rip you out of your rooftop tent effortlessly. 6ft off the ground is a false sense of security when hungry bears that can stand 10ft tall are part of the equation, but if it’s a better sense of security for you psychologically and it gets you out into the wilderness where you want to be, might as well get one.

Black bear, mountain lion, and the occasional jaguar near the Mex border are the apex predators here in AZ, but to my knowledge the only ‘predators’ I’ve had scope out any of my campsites have been coyote, deer, elk, bobcat, free range cows. Maybe a bigfoot or two.

 

The mountain lions and bears are not the issue here in So Cal, it’s some of the people here that scare me the most.

 

You said it best, ground tent or RTT just do whatever works for you. Having both is really ideal as you can pick and chose your sleeping arrangements to match the trip.

The one thing that I do believe is a luxury is being able to stand up in your tent especially for camping trips that are over a couple of days long, a week or more its so nice to have a tall tent.

 

Well, the poor dude sitting in the contraption looks bored as hell. I'm also deducting points because I don't see any cave diving.

Overall, a "meh". But still 5 out of 5 instagram influencer stars.

So sayeth I.

edit - That's also a WHOLE LOTTA shit to clean up when you get back home......

 

I’m sure it’s comfortable as the dickens, room for everything and everyone.
But, you’ve built a condominium out of your truck, no taking said truck exploring and down to the river or beach without extensive break down. I’m sure it’s a great base camp to drive 4 wheelers and motorcycles from, then you’d have to trailer those in. I dunno. Looks comfortable.

 

There is pros and cons to every setup. I have a RTT on a 5x8 enclosed trailer. We have enjoyed it a lot, but it takes a good bit to setup. Especially if you are doing it by yourself. Which l have done. My next camp setup will be easy for one to do, and have the comforts I want.

 

Had a family of black bears going thru my stuff, mama bear hopped up on her hind legs to eat my dogs food from my tailgate which woke up my whole family sleeping in our rtt. I opened the window to look out and stared right into her face. We had a moment then I shouted and she bailed faster than I expected.

I’ve gone from ground tent to GFC mainly for the convenience of having a covered spot to chill at a moments notice, a place to securely lock my gear, and a bed that I can use when I need to wherever or whenever. it’s been a amazing tool to get out and explore while locking up my stuff when I leave my rig. I don’t open the tent till I’m ready to go to sleep, like others have mentioned if you want to explore more you have to break down your camp to roll out. However with a GFC it only takes 30 sec to put it away. Same with my awning, the kinsmen goes away in a flash. With a toddler and dog it makes life simple when you have to keep an eye on them too and make or break camp.

 

I personally got a RTT in 2012 because I have spent a majority of my adult life beating up my body, between Skating, Snowboarding, Skiing, delivering TV's (when they were heavy) and 18 years as a automotive tech it is difficult to sleep on the ground. Not to mention the time it takes to set up a tent and the required cot and sleeping pad to make it comfortable enough not to have my sciatica aggravated. My alucab gen 3 with the bedding I have in it make it as comfortable as my bed at home. Plus it sets up in about a min and just as fast to take down. Being a trail leader for a overland group means I need convenient camp that can be set up and taken down in a timely fashion. We rarely stay in the same spot for more than one night. The benefit is we get to live pretty comfortably and see alot of cool places over the course of a week.