kerrlakeroo wrote:
...Many military bases MWR operations have tent campers for rent, go try one and enjoy.
This is also good advise, and probably the best yet.
I was in the Army, stationed at Fort Belvoir, VA from 1985-1988. I purchased a new Chevy S-10 pick-up truck and got a shell for it. We used it for tent camping and slept in the bed of the truck on a foam rubber mattress. We were just newly married and had our first baby, but we thought we were in paradise!
Then I discovered the MWR on post, they rented out a couple pop-up campers and our world changed! Renting it was incredibly cheap, without the responsibility of loan payments, insurance, tags, and such, it was a remarkable experience! We took the smaller pop-up because of my truck size. We traveled from Washington DC to Norfolk, VA where we stayed at (then Fort Story, which had a military campground). So we got out really cheap there too. We had a blast.
Towing this pop-up was the first real experience I had towing anything significant, although I grew up around tractors and hay wagons all my life. This was totally MY responsibility. And those couple times we rented that pop-up taught us soooo much.
Fast forward to 1999. I was out of the Army (got out in 1988), and the job I had, had certain pressures that made me want to just get away from things for a short while. Two kids now, and we started tent camping again, until the day we realized we wanted off the ground. We purchased our first pop-up and towed it with a Chevy Lumina Mini Van for the next 6 years. Having the experience with the pop-up from Fort Belvoir helped us make decisions about the first one we purchased for ourselves.
So you know, renting one form MWR while you have opportunity is really a very, very good way to get your feet wet. It will also give you first hand experience what you can expect out of your current vehicle. After you pull a pop-up 1 mile, you'll know if your tow vehicle is up to the job or not.
Any, this is excellent advise, and really the most practical in my opinion.
