We Upgraded to the Semi Dark Side
As times change more and more families are opting for outdoor recreation over traditional hotels and tourist destinations. We have been like this for years starting with tent camping trips and then moving into a pop up camper. This was a great step up for us and provided more comfort but it soon showed more challenges. Because of the issues we found we decided to upgrade to the semi dark side!
The Pop Up Camper
We were blessed to acquire our pop up camper (1986 Jayco 1006 SG Deluxe) the way we did and it served us well providing many memories along the way. The kids and I worked together as a family to remodel the unit completely including a new canvas making it truly our home on the road. It provided a more secure shelter than a tent with electricity, heat and air conditioning while still allowing us to have some tent feel. This alone is what draws many to pop up campers. Pair that with the smaller footprint and lighter weight and most anyone can tow one. These were all positive points for us but the negatives quickly outweighed these points.
Most of our followers know our traveling style consists more of long road trips instead of single destinations. Pop up campers are great for the later but pose more of an issue when you just need to spend the night along the road somewhere. Fortunately on some of our longer trips we travel with family and could pile into their travel trailer for a quick nights rest. Other times we would have to reserve a spot at a KOA or the like. These stays meant we had additional expense plus set up and break down time. The other issue for us was the lack of a bathroom on board. This isn’t so much of an issue in many campgrounds but other times on the road it would pose a larger issue.
I wouldn’t trade the experience of owning a pop up camper for anything but it just didn’t fit our overall travel style as a family. As we grew and our dreams got bigger for travel we knew it was time to move up to the next step.
The (Semi Dark Side) Hybrid Travel Trailer
Our initial choice for our upgrade was to move into a small travel trailer with a bunk house but life had other plans. Signs are big to me and the path lined up for a hybrid travel trailer located in North, Central Ohio. We negotiated with the owner and after a couple week took the trip to pick up our new road home.
Our new adventure toy is a 2003 Keystone Cabana 1701 weighing more than double the pop up camper weight but providing us many options we didn’t previously have. This unit still has pop out bunks on the ends but the remainder of the camper is a hard sided travel trailer. The best parts for us are the fact that we now have a full bathroom/shower and we have a place to boondock for quick overnights on the road. Even without opening the bunks we still have the ability to convert our sofa area into a bed that will fit all three of us. This means we save money on campgrounds and we can travel further on each leg of our trips. Additionally we now have the ability to be fully self contained for days without the need for actual campground amenities!
As with anything there are tweaks we plan to make to the unit so it better accommodates our needs but overall it is a HUGE step up. We have taken it on a couple trips so far and have absolutely loved it.
The BONUS!!!!
Stepping from a pop up camper into a travel trailer held an additional bonus for us that we had not thought of until after we brought it home. Not only was it a bonus but a blessing that we quickly put to use! What is this bonus? HARVEST HOSTS!!!!
I will have a more detailed blog and vlog coming out in the near future but here’s the brief overview. Harvest Hosts is a program where you pay a yearly membership and you have access to stay at various farms, breweries, wineries, restaurants, museums and much more for FREE!!!! The catch is they don’t allow tent campers or pop up campers. You must be fully self contained to qualify for the program but it opens opportunities like never before. Click the link HERE or above to get 15% off your own membership and lock that price in for LIFE!!!! Also be sure you’re subscribed here and on our YouTube channel so you don’t miss all the expanded details on this program. Until next time…….