Future Camping

[Y-Guy]

Well for the first time Sandi and I really kicked around the idea of selling the hybrid.  We're not decided, but two things we've found we don't like are the main bunkend give both of us a closterphobic feeling, unlike our Niagara the Kiwi seems lower and the bathroom almost to tight to be comfortable. We like the space but almost regret upgrading a bit.  We'll see come spring, but here its cold and unlike in CA we won't be winter camping. We keep looking at the three rivers and all the boats and wondering if our future will be on the water rather than camping next to it.  We had such wonderful memories camping in CA and with the NNC at least I'm not sure if part of the reason we're thinking about it is due to the lack of such a fun group, and well the lack of campgrounds in our area without a 3 hour drive.  

Anyone else come and gone on things like this?  Any thoughts?

[brainpause]

Boats can be nice, but they say the two best days of owning a boat are the day you buy it and the day you sell it.
 
I love owning my camper, and I bet a boat wouldn't give me that feeling!
 
However, I live much closer than 3 hours to many cg's!
 
Larry

[Gone-Camping]

I don't think I'll ever give up camping, until I just can do it anymore! However, I understand your concerns on the short comings of the Hybrid. I'm not real happy with the small bath room in mine, and I'll state matter of factly this is the last unit I'm going to buy that has canvas. Not that I've had any problems at all with the Hybrid, but I'm not getting any younger either! So the next unit will be fully hard sided, and longer. I'd like for it to be a 5th wheel, but without a truck capable of pulling it that may not be in the cards for a few more years yet.

As for a boat, I've been there and done that! I loved that boat, a 16' Glastron with an 85hp Merc, it was fun, fast, and popular with my family & friends. But, it was very expensive to keep up & maintain cost a lot to operate, and that didn't count taxes, boat registration, trailer registration, and all the legal gunk. I came to the decision to sell it one day after the throttle cable broke. We were at the city boat launch area, we're just coming in, when the throttle cable not only broke, but went wide open! Boats as you're aware, have no brakes! We wound up nearly on top of another boat. It was fiasco, and decided it came too close to being dangerous. So after 2 years of fun, I sold the thing and never looked back!!!

[kathybrj]

We've looked into hybrids several times over the last three years. Same issues here- the bathrooms in many seem a bit too small to really be all that beneficial to us. Also, with the Utah, we have two very large bunks. With Blaise over 6' and DS at 5'9" (at 13 years old), I doubt we could find something more comfortable for sleeping at this point without replacing the tv as well. I like the openess of the pop up and I'm not at a point where I'm willing to give it up.

So we're going to keep the Utah, do a few more mods that we would like to do and help my sister look for a hybrid for herself. One season with her 2003.5 Cheyanne and she's ready for the hybrid. With her back problems she feels this is the way to go.

Blaise's brother has a nice boat, but he also has a really nice camp on a large lake. I'm not a water person, per se, so we won't have the boat/rv conflict.  

[Y-Guy]

Two things we learned in moving to the Hybrid were to really examine the bed size.  Those beds on our previous Niagara were great,  big enough for my wife and I as well as the additional child that hopes in come morning. And the height of the canvas over the beds was high enough that I could sleep near the far end without feeling ilke it was right over my face.  And having a sink in the bathroom isn't worth the extra space that one needs when using the stool.  

Time will tell, we may get into spring now that our house is done and work and all the change we've gone through is settled and find we want to keep camping with the hybrid.

[6Quigs]

Those beds on our previous Niagara were great,  big enough for my wife and I as well as the additional child that hopes in come morning. And the height of the canvas over the beds was high enough that I could sleep near the far end without feeling like it was right over my face.  .

Hey Steve, :W
I got a slightly used Niagara for sale right now,
that I could let you have for a good price

It's got the nice 2001 green interior,
much nicer than the 2002 burgundy one

[dee106]

i like my starcraft sso we don't seem to have the problems you speak of, the only thing i miss is that we had a king size bed in the sc-pu, and it was nice to sleep the other way, so we didn't have to climb over each other as we do now, thats the only thing i miss

[wiininkwe]

This past week we camped with friends at deer camp.   We had our 96 Coleman Yukon popup, and they had a 35 ft TT.   Theirs had all the bells and whistles, and when the cold north winds blew, they were much more snug and warm than we were.   Also, it was much quieter in there.   But, I really missed the windows and all the light and openness of our popup when we went over to spend time in their TT.   And then, when we had to get something out of a storage area, and had to get down on the floor to reach things, I wished we had all the over head cupboards they had.   They had two bedrooms one with a queen bed, one with bunks and a bathroom. (with doors!)   We had two bunks and a Sportsmans guide changing tent with a porta potty.   (are you getting the drift of the comparison type thing I'm doing here?)    I think that if we were going to plan on doing lots more traveling with our camper, I would prefer to go toward a hybrid.   But, it looks like maybe we'll be spending more time with our family on our own property in the future.   That prospect makes a larger TT look awfully inviting.   Just have to find one with more windows.
T

[B-flat]

Y-guy, I can't see your giving up camping and going to a boat.  I have owned 3 boats in the past: 14' jon boat for bass fishing, 19' runabout for the lake, and a 23' cuddy cabin used mostly for deep sea fishing.  Mostly, these became yard boats and were eventually sold.  The water is great and relaxing but keeping up a boat is a whole lot more expensive than keeping up a popup.  If you're not happy with your hybrid, then look at some others and find one that suits you better.  I can understand the thing about the 3 hour drive, but maybe this will change in the spring once  you really need to get away for a while.  Are you sure there are no campgrounds closer?

[Y-Guy]

We stil have the hybrid, and unsure about the boat idea for the many reasons you have all pointed out.  I think part of our reason is the shorter camping season here in Washington.  While in California it was so fun to go camping all year, but with the freezing temps its not possible.  We'll see this spring how things go for us since life has settled down into the new house and jobs.

[topcat7736]

We thought about getting a hybrid, but, after being in them at a couple of rv shows, we decided against them. Peggy said if we were getting something with hard sides then she wanted something with hard ends too. We made a list of the things we needed and wanted & then began searching for one which filled the most items on the list. We decided on a Sunline and, luckily, found a used one in mint condition at a lower than new cost, which permitted keeping the popup for remote trips where no TT could ever go.
 
The first day we were in it, we marveled at how quiet it was with all the windows shut. I openend the door & was knocked backward by the pouring rain  and driving winds that we didn't know had started. In the popup, I'd have been going crazy with the zillions of raindrop cricket noises on the roof.
 
You can still camp in the winter with the trailer once you winterize it, but need to be careful about water. Try this link for some ideas. Winter Camping and click on my website thing to see our Sunline 2753.
 
As for boats, my sister & bil own a big yacht. It was winterized and dry docked before we did our trailer.
 
Woods or water, it's your choice. But, you won't be using the boat in the winter at all in the Washington area!