Best Truck Campers for Winter Camping

Spotted a nice set up here here digging out of the snow storm in Portland yesterday. Lance on Ram 5500 utility bed. In reality, not all that cold at 24 degrees this morning.

Is this a members rig here on the TC forum? Looks like the slide topper was sagging a bit from the snow load.

Arctic Fox is going to be an amazing cold weather camper. Very well insulated, especially the newer models. Northern Lite is also a great option but IMO pricey. Everyone wants a Northern Lite or Bigfoot. I see 10-15 year old models going for $20k which is pretty crazy.

There aren't many manufacturers left, and the products are somewhat different in any case.

I've spent enough time in Eastern Oregon and Eastern BC that I can't say one is that much colder than the other. They are both pretty brutally cold and hot. They are generally 20 degrees colder in Winter and 20 degrees colder than the West side of the Cascades, but not that much difference North to South.

I wouldn't avoid Lance because they are built where it is warm. Insulation is important for those as well if you want to keep them cold.

Good advice here from folks who have lived the Winter Dream.
A couple more things I see as valuable.
1. Any truck camper that has the word ARCTIC or NORTHERN in its name says something to me. This means find a mfgr. that is farthest from the equator and in the cold clime. I just don't trust a cold weather specific camper made where there are palm trees growing on the premisis. 8<) Unfortunately that's exactly what I have.
Digging out of a 40 inch snowfall. I'd already used the roof rake to remove snow from the top of the TC and used the snowblower to clear the sides. Getting the TC ready for a winter trip to the desert:

2. Buy the largest, most 4-seasoned camper that will fit on your truck. Oh, no; that means you need a BIG truck because the darned thing is so heavy.

Last night it was -4 degrees (F). Just another winter day in our '85 Bigfoot, as we woke up to 68 degrees inside. We've been full-timing in our "tiny home" for 3 years now, and have fully enjoyed the winters for many years before that.

Jefe 4x4 sums it all up ... prepare your unit for how you're going to live. The above pic is a warmer day last week, snow melting and icicles forming. We've added insulation, additional battery power, ensured air flow throughout the unit, wrapped every pipe and more. And we always pack backup systems.
We might note that 2 years ago, we had to spend a short time in a 5er while we were getting truck repairs, and a slide was a definite no-no for keeping warm! We like our Bigfoot for all season living and traveling. If you're interested in more, go to travelingtortuga.com

Photomike wrote:
As Jeffe stated above there is more than just the build of the camper. I loved my Northern Lite BUT it did not have thermal windows and that caused a lot of cold. If you can have one built for your needs and the temps that you want to camp in.

Bigfoots better with more insulation

I think a lot of people prefer Arctic Fox because it is a good camper for a good price especially in the Northwest.

It doesn't hurt that the dealers selling them aren't bashful about saying how low they will go. That's not true for some other brands. I'm not sure if this is encouraged by Arctic Fox or discouraged by other manufacturers. At least, that's what I see/hear.

I was told Arctic Fox was preferred by snow mobilers but mine is in the driveway with a small space heater running right now.

Is it summer yet?

Unless we buy a one of each and test them in the same conditions, there isn't any way to know which is better. The best we can do is say what worked for us.

When I was looking for a used camper for winter camping and winter skiing road trips in the western US and Canada, I looked at four season TCs made, at the time, in SE BC. This included:

Citation / Corsair
Bigfoot
Snow River

Only Bigfoot recovered from the financial crisis. The other two companies didn't make TC after 2008/2009.

Chose a Corsair Supreme 10.8 non slide with the polar package. A great TC that was comfortable without changes to -5F at 8,000 feet in the Sierra after winterizing the water system (although it went through a lot more propane and Ah of battery than it does now).

Further insulating and modifications to both the TC and the truck made it a dependable TC, with full utilities, to the -20s F here in MT (see Jefe's list and other winter camping threads).

Still lots of ski areas left above N 52 latitude in BC and AB that I want to explore. Temperature extremes can be colder yet, so I'm working on more modifications, including propane tank heating and a diesel parallel heating system to make it comfortable and robust with full utilities.

Spent too much time working in Winnipeg in the -30s F, to not under estimate extreme cold. A bucket of water thrown in the air at -36F did not all freeze in the air before it hit the ground, but it was close.

An iterative approach to modifying whatever TC you end up with and determining what your limits are to winter camp safely will get you a TC to fit your needs. Backup contingency plans always help if things don't quite go as you planned or what you consider as cold / uncomfortable is different than me. My favorite season of the year is winter.