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First Camping Trip With Adventurer 116DS

Mike3
Explorer
Explorer
I took my new TC on it's maiden voyage to Bristol, Tn for the NASCAR race this weekend. Spent three nights there and I'm happy to say that everything worked flawlessly. I had previously added a memory foam pad to the bed so it slept great. Although getting up/down from the bed in the middle of the night for a bathroom break requires more effort than I'd like, might have to make a step to use at night. It was hot so I needed the a/c and the Honda 2000 did the job without complaining. It used a tank of gas every 4 to 5 hours but I was prepared for that.

The wet bath worked fine for me. The shower curtain allowed me to cover the toilet and the entrance door and still have plenty of room so as not to hit the walls while showering. I did soak the toilet paper the first time, LOL. Afterwards it took about a minute to wipe the walls then I turned on the bathroom exhaust fan and closed the door, no issues.

With the big windows and two slides it felt very roomy. During one rain shower there were four big guys inside and no one was cramped. My brother was next to me in a 25' TT with one slide and it did not feel any more spacious than the TC. The rig attracted a lot of attention. You would not believe how many people stopped and looked at it while pointing and discussing it with each other. Many came up to ask questions or comment. A few asked to see inside and they were amazed that all that could fit in a TC. I'm sure a few had less desirable comments but were kind enough not to say them to me.

The only issue I had was leveling the truck. As you can see from the pics below the terrain is rolling hills and I was on a spot with a significant left to right AND rear to front slope. I had four 18" 2X12s with metal ramps, 4 12" 2X12 blocks and two HD yellow drive on multi tiered ramps... not enough. After about 30 minutes of trying to make that work I removed all the blocking, removed the fast guns and used the jacks to level the camper. That worked great except my rear door was really high. I'm curious how many of you level using the jacks rather than blocking?

So I am now an official member of the TC club. I can see now that my Fiver is going to be very jealous.

Campsite in a field next to the track


Bristol Motor Speedway
2017 Entegra Anthem
2013 Honda CRV Toad
2013 Road Glide Ultra with a HydraLift
18 REPLIES 18

Mattyd
Explorer
Explorer
Mike- What A/C unit did you get ?
2016 AF 990
2013 Ram 3500 Dually, Crew Cab, 4x4 CTD
Hellwig Rear Anti-Sway Bar
Torklift StableLoads & Fastguns
2014 Rubicon Unlimited

exhaustipated
Explorer
Explorer
Very good looking set up you have Mike. Leveling can be a pain at times and sometimes you find the rear end higher than what you'd like especially on a slope. Nice Event that you went to and camping was close by. Enjoy the rig and take a lot of camping trips.
2009 Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD 4WD LT1 Ext Cab Z71 Long Bed Vortec 6.0L V8 SFI gas.
2012 Travel Lite 960RX
Torklift frame mounted tie downs with FastGun turnbuckles and a Lock and Load maximum security cargo tray.
Timbren SES
Curt front mount hitch receiver

Victory402
Explorer
Explorer
Nice looking rig ya got there Mike. You picked a fine event to break her in. Happy Trails! Vic

67avion
Explorer II
Explorer II
Very handsome out fit. We use blocks for leveling and our airbags. So far - not so tough. but, we do get the back awfully high in the air at times.