Do people really take their off-road teardrops through gnarly trails?

[Wendell-R]

With the bed set up how much room is there at the end of it? Trying to figure out if a porta potty would fit

With the bed configured the long way (North-South?), there definitely isn't room for a porta potty:


However, if you have the bed configured sideways, I think there is plenty of room - I believe the bed will end where the arrow is pointing in that case:


Because we left the "hamper" mostly open for bike stowage, you could also fit the Cleanwaste GO anywhere in that notch if you added a spacer box under the front leg to level it (this one was just sitting around the garage so I used it for the picture):


The cold air return for the furnace runs in that space under the rear legs to keep the water tank from freezing when it's cold - probably some wiring in there also.

For night time, we've settled on:


And:


With the top up, they're very easy to use - even with the top lowered, there's room to stand up and use them but you have to duck your head.

BTW, my wife highly recommends the pStyle for all kinds of situations - night time, roadside, hiking, biking - apparently, it's a game changer!

 

[Hilldweller]

PeeBottles are game-changers when beer was involved.

 

[snowgroomer]

Thanks for the photos do you know how wide the space you have toilet in is?
We are a bit vertically challenged 5'7" I wonder if we could do a shorter bed north south

 

[Wendell-R]

Thanks for the photos do you know how wide the space you have toilet in is?
We are a bit vertically challenged 5'7" I wonder if we could do a shorter bed north south

The space is just a hair over 18" wide after accounting for the furnace exhaust vents which stick out about a quarter of an inch or so from the lower front wall, but they're not in the hamper space directly.

I'm 6' and my wife is 5'9" so we worried about kicking into the window screen while sleeping but to be honest, the biggest reason we went with the be the long way is so that we don't have to crawl over each other when we get up in the middle of the night.

The interior width is 77' (6'5") and the width between the window frames (the screen and the shade roll up into the frame upper and lower part) is 73" (6'1")

 

[snowgroomer]

I am looking for the same thing not wanting to crawl over each other. That is why I was wondering if I did a shorter bed running length wise I could make it fit with a porta potty

 

[Wendell-R]

I am looking for the same thing not wanting to crawl over each other. That is why I was wondering if I did a shorter bed running length wise I could make it fit with a porta potty

I suspect it could be done somehow - the bed extension we have is basically a table that sets up next to the lowered table and provides a platform for the foot of the bed. The legs that they used would be too wide, so they'd have to support the extension differently somehow.

Talk to Lindsay about it - I suspect that Kyle would be able to do something. They'd need to know how short the lengthwise bed would need to be to figure it out. And the exact dimensions of the porta potty.

(This is getting off topic if you have more questions, shoot me a PM)

 

[snowgroomer]

I suspect it could be done somehow - the bed extension we have is basically a table that sets up next to the lowered table and provides a platform for the foot of the bed. The legs that they used would be too wide, so they'd have to support the extension differently somehow.

Talk to Lindsay about it - I suspect that Kyle would be able to do something. They'd need to know how short the lengthwise bed would need to be to figure it out. And the exact dimensions of the porta potty.

(This is getting off topic if you have more questions, shoot me a PM)

Thanks

 

[80t0ylc]

I've been window shopping off-road teardrops ( and squaredrops) for some time but I keep wondering whether or not people really take their off-road campers down gnarly trails. Almost all camping videos I see with these things seem to be to places that larger campers could get to. The rest of the time it seems like tight trails are the only thing preventing larger trailers from reaching some of these camping spots. This all brings me back to.... do you/have you take your teardrop down some really rough trails? FWIW, not necessarily rock climbing

I originally started overlanding with just a RTT on my rig. There's pluses & minuses to either way, however with a family, a trailer is almost a necessity. My 1st trailer was built to do trails like the Rubicon, with an adequately built tow rig & skilled driver. But, it was a utility style and I was bitten by the "hardside" trailer bug and yearned for a "squaredrop" to fulfill (for me) a better setup. So the off-road trailer I now have is less capable, but more comfortable - and that becomes more of a priority, the older you get (wisdom & experience). But it is still quite capable to access remote and difficult to get to camping areas.

Anyway, to cut to the chase, here in the U.S., most "gnarly trails" are short by overlanding standards. That's in miles, not in time required to navigate. Some, like the Rubicon and Dusy, have camping spots along the way. But they're more of what you referred to as "rock climbing" type of trail. Short of these type of trails, I tow my trailer, wherever I go, limited by caution and common sense (I hope ). My type of overlanding is usually with a group (ROF - retired old farts) and with certain destinations and activities in mind. On a recent trip we took into the Maze District in Utah, trailers were frowned upon by the rangers and the leader decided to not allow any trailers. So I left mine behind and re-mounted my RTT on my roof rack. The section of the trail from The Flint Trail out to The Doll House was about 30 miles and took about 6 hrs to do. Several spots in this section would have required some serious and careful manuvering and the Park Service claimed that trailers were causing unnecessary wear on the trail, so I didn't object but missed the convenience of the trailer. It was a trip of a lifetime and I just was blessed to be part of it.

 

[Fredricksen]

Here are some video of the Air OPUS being pulled around some remote spots.. and down some gullys in Australia..

 

[Ottehouse]

After nearly 50 years of tent camping, last year I purchased a squaredrop trailer. My intent is to be able to take it wherever my Jeep goes. I have taken traveling with the trailer slow and easing it into precarious situations. Last spring we spent a week taking the trailer into Roosevelt National Park on our first "real" off-road adventure. There was plenty of rock, narrow trails, and water crossings. The trailer handled as well as expected.

This past fall we spent two weeks in southern Colorado and Utah. The first night we pulled the square drop up the Medona Pass in Colorado. The next morning we crested the trail and departed on the other side of the mountain. Many steep switchbacks and water crossings, again the trailer handled as expected. Once in southeast Utah, we spent a few days in the Snow Flats. This trail contained lots of sand, switchbacks sandstone, and small ledges. We planned on taking the trailer to a campsite on Hurrah Pass in Utah but by the time we arrived it was dusk and I did not want to take the switchbacks in the dark. We ended up at Behind the Rocks for the remainder of our time in Moab.

On our return home, I found a dispersed campsite in White River National Forest north of Glenwood Springs, CO. The trail leading to the site is called Transfer Trail. The 2.75-mile trail, rises 2000 feet vertically, to the campsite is very steep, single-track with many tight switchbacks with absolutely nowhere to turn around, which I would have after the first mile but was unable to due to the circumstances. Once arriving we were greeted by an emergency fire helicopter. First thought was to turn around, unfortunately, the sun was already setting. I called the forest department which was closed, so I called the non-emergency policed department. While the current fire was just beyond the ridge we were on, it was all but distinguished and no longer considered active. Needless to say, we did not get the best sleep that night.

The way down was completely nerve-racking. We were fortunate to meet a local returning from a week-long getaway on the top of the mountain behind us. He guided us down taking the steep slopes and switchbacks slow, extremely slow, and easy. We averaged 2 mph to finally arrive at the entrance to the trail.

It was quite a learning experience. Definitely take your time researching and discovering as much information about the trails you wish to travel. There are plenty of great apps to find campsites and trails but do not take them for granted. While I found the campsite in White River National Forest, which by the way was absolutely breathtaking once we were able to calm down, I did not research the trail itself. I used Google Maps to take me there, bad decision. Apps like GAIA, BackCounty nav, AllTrails, OnX Offroad do a tremendous job detailing many trails. There are plenty of great books as well as plenty of message boards to gather details.

We are planning on returning to Moab in the spring. I am currently researching the White Rim Trail in Canyonlands. 95% percent of the 100-mile trail is fairly easy, but the remaining 5% may be the difference whether or not we decide to take the trailer with us. I would greatly appreciate any and all opinions on whether taking our trailer through the White Rim Trail is viable.

 

[VelocityTaco]

I wish my buddy had taken more pictures, as you can see this trail was quite steep up and down with quite a few ledges to get over. 285 70 18s on Truck and Trailer, lockers on the Taco towing the trailer. I feel alot better with the new lockers on truck, knowing that i can get through most things and don't need to back up, unhook trailer etc to deal with trails. Great remote rocky mountain lake and spot you wouldn't get much more than that trailer into.

Db

 

[billiebob]

Do people really take their off-road teardrops through gnarly trails?...

More to the point, do people really take stock SUVs through gnarly trails ?

 

[billiebob]

Do people really take their off-road teardrops through gnarly trails?...

More to the point, do people really take stock SUVs through gnarly trails ?

No matter what you buy, you will likely want to modify it to suit your use. If you start with a Wrangler Rubicon you likely will find no stock manufactured teardrop to follow you everywhere. If you start with a stock Subaru CrossTrek, you can likely find a factory TearDrop to follow you. If you lifted your Bison, expect to spend similar $$$$ to get a TearDrop to follow it.

 

[KAPSTOY]

I wish my buddy had taken more pictures, as you can see this trail was quite steep up and down with quite a few ledges to get over. 285 70 18s on Truck and Trailer, lockers on the Taco towing the trailer. I feel alot better with the new lockers on truck, knowing that i can get through most things and don't need to back up, unhook trailer etc to deal with trails. Great remote rocky mountain lake and spot you wouldn't get much more than that trailer into.

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What model of trailer is this? Love the roll cage!

 

[ExpoMike]

Not so much a teardrop but this was a Kamparoo clam shell style trailer we used to pull with our Cherokee. These were out in Death Valley area. The one pic is going up Mengal Pass.