First Trip

Herd

Bought my 2020 T@G Boondock Edge 3 weeks ago and figured out how to work everything in the driveway. Planning on heading to Asheville NC but rain looks steady so might head to my beloved Cannan Valley, Dolly Sods, Black Water in WV as the forecast looks better.

First time tips, anything regarding setting up, or the trip there (packing inside?).

Also do campgrounds let you use tent camping only or are you pigeonholed into rv spots. Peace

LuckyJ

Welcome to the familly!
'We will need pics of your set-up, TV and TD!

As for setting up, all depend how you want to do it. But 8 would say, 4 whell chuck, install them befor un hooking from the TV, or release the ball hitch, and then the chains. So if you mis judge the ground, trailer will not get away completely.

If you got or get the little yellow plastic ones, the store nicely in the corner of the tub, behind the propane tank.

Then, shore power and water if you like and have it on site. Water bucket for umder the sink drain for good practice.

As for tent or RV site, all depends of the campground you are visiting. It is realy a case by case. Some also have trailer area. Not as tight as RV, witch are usally park like shool buses waiting for kids at the end of the day.

Mosquitoes and little noseeum, can get inside the trailer by the screens. But a few mods exist for that.

Have fun outhere.

Michigan_Mike

Depending on the amount of gear you are packing inside the trailer, pack it in front of the wheels to give you more tongue weight as too much gear to the rear will create the dreaded trailer sway. Practice backing and do it slowly as smaller trailers turn and react quickly when turning the steering wheel. Practice and experience will allow you master this and you will be comfortable in time. Look the area over good prior to backing and get help to avoid damage to your trailer or power pedestals, etc.

If you place things in the galley area be sure to protect the countertop with s towel, store things in plastic tubs and wrap and secure items in dish towels, etc. to minimize and eliminate breaking things. The trailer will bounce when you hit bumps, etc. Lock the trailer doors and lock the galley while traveling. Check your connections, chains, hitch, tail lights, lock the trailer hitch and check your tire inflation. Too much air in tires will cause extra bounce so have a tire gauge handy at all times and carry a portable 12v DC compressor as they come in handy. Flashlight, matches, water storage container and long funnel, plastic tarps are useful, garbage bags and even some small nylon shoe storage bags come in handy for inside storage within the trailer.

And if you are camping overnight and leave the trailer hooked to your vehicle, make sure you unplug the trailer wiring harness from the vehicle or it can run the vehicle battery down and require help jumping the battery the next day.

Keep food stored properly, never store food in a screen room or tent, keep it locked in food lockers on site or in hard sided vehicles. When in bear country practice extra precautionary measures as bears in the Blue Ridge or other mountain areas have been known to bend door frames, etc. when seeking food. Garbage and grease, scented items should be taken and placed in bear proof garbage containers and you should minimize scent around the campsite. Never leave coolers outside at night as animals are smart and will seek them out as that’s where the food is stored.

Camping and creating new adventures takes practice, time and patience. You will find that over time, you will figure out what works best and what items you can leave back home in the garage.

Jumper

Just spent 4 days at Red Creek CG, site 8 was very nice. I only go to the Sods during the week to avoid crowds. I had the whole campground to myself for all 4 days, it was awesome.

I would suggest using some Blue Loctite on the rear galley latches and screws, especially if your driving up to the Sods.

Herd

Thanks everyone for the advice, you guys are the best. Unfortunately, due to the rain all weekend and the fact my sons would be tent camping, we decided to reschedule. Dying to get out in the woods.

All was not lost though, I did driveway camp Friday night. 😁 I had to finally sleep in it.

WilliamA

Interesting....My SO and I just had this conversation this morning. "Love to go, but there's the bday party, cat bath, compost dumping, yard cleanup, booger sorting, National Geographic special...." And on....and on.....
I don't allow my family units to restrict my outings. It's entirely up to them whether they want to go (usually they don't) so my camping is a simple matter of asking, then packing based upon their response. I'm going......With or without....

Or you could always just wait until you're younger.......

WilliamA

Herd

Context is everything.

TomD

Herd...YES

Shelly

@William A... realize I'm a few years late to the party on this post, but am a new teardropper and new to this forum. Going through the Newbie 101 thread, and saw your old post about camping and family units and it spoke to me. I'm a mama with a hubbie and two young kids and when I look at our new T@G I see a potential escape pod!! I could camp every weekend, the rest of the family not so much....

drsukie

Michigan Mike - any anyone, actually - how often do you check your trailer lug nuts? I have not/probably won't go off road for awhile, so highway driving, mostly for me. Also a newbie (since May).

Tag75605

Nothing at all wrong with driveway camping, Herd. My salesman actually advised me to do that a couple of nights before I went anywhere. I sure am glad he did, because I couldn’t figure out how to close the platform that the Yeti cooler sits on! LOL 😆 When I called him to explain I couldn’t get it to close, he laughed, explained it to me, and said “Aren’t you glad you camped in your driveway”? 😆

Another excellent piece of advice he gave me was camp in a state park or an rv park that’s close to home, for a few nights, before you venture off the beaten path. Other RV owners can answer questions that pop up and give you pointers. That also gave me the opportunity to meet some other teardrop owners and learn some more, from them. RV owners are nice people. You will meet folks from all over the country.

When you meet people always ask them where their favorite places to camp, in their home state, are located. Keep a notebook and write down those locations. They will point you to sone real jewels.

Enjoy your t@g!!!