Truck Campers really are an "elite" group

We've found the same thing as other Okie TCr. Now the big thing with the horse folks are living quarters horse trailers. Had one and loved it when I still got to go horse camping regularly but sucked for any kind of off the highway camping. They're mostly made pretty low to accomadate loading horses so that drain lines got regularly drug off when folks took them to remote or rough places. Ours sat much higher so we avoided that issue. We had a TC or two back in the 70s and 80s, Dreamer that was built in Kansas. Then 5 kids and tent or 5th wheel took over. Now that kids grown and grands don't travel with us much it was back to a TC to be able to pull my one horse trailer on occasions I get to horse camp or a little John boat for fishing small lakes. We did see a Lance for sale fairly close to us but couldn't make connections with seller before we found our old Shadow Cruiser that our son in law sold us VERY cheaply in Grand Junction Colorado and with some mods and add ons it's worked great for us. With inside storage and regular maintenence on waterproofing it will probably outlast us. Love seeing them around and as we travel. Even saw one like ours, Shadow Cruiser hard side, on the way to Michigan recently and some folks have an 8' model next town east of us. Last winter we drove 7,000 miles round trip thru Georgia, to Key West and along the Gulf and only counted 17 in the weeks on the road. Yup, around here we're and elite group!

We've made two trips to Montana in the last month, both a week long. I saw maybe 6 TCs on the road during those trips and absolutely none in the two RV parks (Livingston and Hope, ID) we chose to stay in. There was one other TC in a USFS campground we used one night.

It's rather interesting....and kind of intimidating....to be sandwiched between two Class A rigs with our pop-up TC. Kind of like camping in NYC or something. The Class A types seem to look down on us "po folk". But...the bicycle campers look at us in envy from their tents so the karma field is balanced. :W

Old Days, You can do it, just start now, do it one area at a time. It took me 22 years to finally get North Dakota. Good luck.

Bob in Calif.

Truck campers were very popular in my state starting in the late '50s and up into the late '70 untill 5th wheel trailers started showing up on RV dealers lots. In fact I would say trucks campers were king. Not very many folks used a pickup back then but just about all who owned one had a truck camper on it. RV dealers lots were all TT and TC.

Now around here anyway, its the rodeo/horse show folks who dominate the TC field. The norm is a truck with a TC and pulling a enclosed horse trailer with a gen set sitting on top.
As we travel I have noticed more TCs in the mountain states.

up my way the hardside tc'ers are common, not as common as big @ss fifthwheels or toy haulers, and the one thing you don't see much of are popup tc's.

That's interesting, I saw a bunch in Yellowstone two weeks ago. in fact I saw more there this trip then I ever have in the past.

Kayteg1...where is that lovely place?

I believe if you include both North and South Dakota, there is ONE truck camper dealer, and they're out in the Black Hills by Rapid City, South Dakota.

Been told by more than one dealer in the Dakota's that they will not take a truck camper in on trade.

Yep, the upper Great Plains surely appears to be the black hole area for TC's.

Mind you, as soon as I travel up into Minnesota, or west/SW in Montana or Colorado, then TC's and dealers selling them are all over the place.

Around here, the RV dealers don't seem to carry TCs - I suspect they're not considered true "RVs"?? And my limited exposure to them makes me think the more "open space" a state has, the more TCs will be found? We were sort of startled to see a few TCs in Florida last winter; they seemed like rare creatures down there. Here in Michigan, they're pretty common; but we have a lot of rustic campsites that larger RVs won't fit into.

But "elite"?? I'd prefer to be considered "down to earth"..... of course MY TC is hardly more than a hardsided tent....LOL!

Naio wrote:
Maybe most people buying truck campers don't use RVTrader.

Interesting stats, anyway. Does # of units refer to listings or sales? Curious how # of searches for Class A and TT are almost the same, but unit numbers so different. People ogle Class A's but do not buy them?

In Australia they tend to be one offs although you have many small builders A TC on a Diesel VW Transporter. A custom build