my wife is 3 months pregnant. I have a 2 1/2 year old son. Tent camping is a nightmare with these two, lol.
I knew we needed a pup, we can let him play in the pop up, take naps, etc and still be able to see him, wife is more comfortable with her every changing body temperature, and I can see us camping up to 8 or 9 months preg with her.
Tents are a PITA, this is the only way to go...
2008 Fleetwood Niagara, A/C, Power Lift, Deluxe add a room, etc
2006 Trailblazer SS AWD, every option & Tekonsha P3 Brake Controller
None of my tents has a toilet. Some campgrounds do not have showers, but my folding trailer does. The foam mattress is a lot more comfortable than an air mattress.
I have a nice oven that we use for biscuits and chocolate chip cookies. I'm sure someone makes an oven for tent campers, but that is just one more bulky item to pack and unpack.
We keep our trailer pretty much ready to go, parked in the garage. I still have to load stuff, but not as much stuff. Just clothes and food.
We camp once a month from February through October.
I still use a tent, when I go backpacking. But that is a completely different trip.
Wayne in San Jose
TV1:2002 Chevy 1500HD 4wd Crew Cab,Valley Odyssey brake ctlr,McKesh mirrors
TV2:2008 GMC 2500HD long bed 4wd Crew Cab,GMC brake ctlr,GMC mirrors
TT:Trailmanor 2720
Honda 2000
Yamaha WR250R,Polaris Sportsman 700 X2,Polaris Scrambler 500
Tent camped 3 times and bought our PUP in October. 7 trips later and we love, love, love our PUP!
We have had adventures and memories that bring plenty of laughter now and I'm sure we will continue to have more to share in the future.
I know it has opend a new world to us and we enjoy exploring it together....in comfort! We bring our cocker spaniel and the kids enjoy having her with us too. I couldn't imagine bringing her with a tent!
Yes, the a/c is great. In fact, my kids have to still wear their long john pjs because it gets so cold. We use ceramic heaters & electric blankets as we don't have a furnace.
The wind can create quite a bit of noise, but that rain sounds like heaven hitting the canvas.
To paraphrase my kids, "People in RVs never come outside like we do, Mom. That's not camping!"
We all look forward to our trips with great anticipation.
It is good to realize that if love and peace can prevail on earth, and if we can teach our children to honor nature's gifts, the joys and beauties of the outdoors will be here forever.
-Jimmy Carter --39th president of the United States (1977-81), b.1924
I have tent camped all my life, when I got married and had a couple of kids we still tent camped. We then had a third child, at this point tent camping was starting to be more inconvenient than fun. At the fourth child we decided to get a PUP. We now have a 5 children and camping is now more enjoyable than it ever was! Once you take your spouse to see one, it should be a no brainer.
No comparison. Popup camping is virtually EVERYTHING that is good about tent camping (except the ability to carry it on your back) without MOST of what is awful about tent camping. Improvements include:
1. Entry via a real door. No stooping or zippers to get in/out.
2. Sitting facilities. Easy to spend a rainy day inside. Not so in a tent.
3. Toilet and wash-up facilities. Even if you put a portipot in a tent, try washing your hands there!
4. Furnace. Extends camping season in the BEST part of the year: spring/fall.
5. Storage. No fun to cram all the gear you want in the car trunk. Pup stores and hauls almost all of it.
6. Beds. With a $50 memory foam upgrade, our pup beds are comfier than at home.
7. Kitchen. Its cramped and crummy, but when it rains you still CAN cook dinner. Don't try that in a tent.
8. Room. Few tents are as big as my 7x24 foot camper.
9. Organized. The cabinets provide enough space that I know where everything is.
10. Dry. No leaks, no worries about setting up where rainwater collects.
In summary, it's like I said: everything that is GOOD about a tent is also present with a pup. Most of what is awful about tent camping is eliminated with a pup.
Thanks for all the replys. My wife and I have talked and we will be buying a pop up later this year or the first of the year. Everybody as made some really good points. Thanks again.
With a PUP you have a comfortable place to go to cook, eat, play table games, if it's COLD, DARK, or RAINING. A refrigerator is SO MUCH better than digging around in an ice chest. We never had AC in our PUP, two small fans helped. However, we had refrig with freezer, toilet, hot water, heater.
I can't believe no one mentioned the view. On those rainy days and you're trapped inside, you can still look around from the pup. Not so in the tent. We bought ours shortly after a rainy trip to Yosemite. There was an actual current through our campsite. We fled to one of the hotels, but at $200 a night, we had to cut our trip short. It never did stop raining.
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