New to the RV life

“Some areas in the Smokey's where you can still dry camp. National Forest lands etc, but understand that they are somewhat limited”

What experience do you have in the Smokeys, wandering?

Look at floor plans and find something 25ft or so with a double slide and bunks, when towing long TT's the fun starts to fade.

A Cherokee 235B looks pretty nice, it wouldn't work for us because my wife wanted a big bathroom.


with 3 people possibly living in it I think you will want more than just the dinet for sitting space.

I would not recommend a 35 TT. It won't fit in a lot of state park or Forest Service Campgrounds.It's harder to get into gas stations and is more prone to sway than a shorter trailer. I would stay at 27 ft or less. We are on our 4th TT and it is 27ft. I won't go any bigger for those reasons.

The Pioneer is firmly in 3/4 ton territory, and long enough to restrict your choice of sites. It'll also be an extra challenge in gas stations and parking lots, etc. Especially if you've never towed before.

My recommend is to stay at 30 or under so you have access to State and National Park sites.. over 30 and you lose a lot of great campgrounds! With 2 boys, bunk room is a great idea so they have their "own" space and privacy. Get an Ultralight and you will be fine with an F150. I pull a 30 foot Bullet Ultralight with my Expedition and that has less towing capacity than a F150.Mine is a 285RLS and only weighs 6000 loaded, 5400 dry! Hitch is about 600 lbs. No problem with an E2 WD hitch. I highly recommend the Bullet. Have a 2014 and have not had a single problem or failure of any component. And have only seen positive reviews on this and Keystone sites. Check them out!

Vintage465 wrote:
I'm a huge fan of Diesel tow vehicles. Especially the ones from 1998 on up. The Duramax I have tows my trailer so easy, it really makes no difference whether the trailer is on the back or not. And I don't just mean that power wise. If I need to drive up Hwy 5 in California and go up over the mountains into Oregon. Or down Hwy 40 heading back east the ride is so good that there is zero white knuckles and being exhausted after a 10-12 drive. It just really make no difference to me whether it's on back or not. This is the first tow vehicle that I've ever experienced that kind of relaxed driving with.

While you may be a "huge fan" of Diesel tow vehicles, not everyone needs or wants one.

Yes, a Diesel engine can do a lot of heavy work at low RPMs, however that does come at a very high cost.

Purchase price is considerably more, new that is a $10K penalty up front not including the additional interest on you loan and not including the additional insurance premiums which are based on the value of said vehicle..

Some places like SC where the OP is from, get TAXED YEARLY BASED on the value of said vehicle.. Tax has to be paid in order to get registered every yr.

Diesels have traditionally restricted to 3/4 ton and up trucks which many on this forum have some weird hate for. Some states like mine also have progressively more expensive yearly registration based on weight class.. $86 for class 2 (1/2 ton), class 3 (3/4 ton) is $158), class 4 (1 ton) $200 and up..

Diesels add considerable weight to the vehicle, bad for payload, often forcing one to 1 ton platforms.

Diesels do have considerable upkeep costs, newer ones have more complicated emission systems which do regens to clean the exhaust filters. Short stop and start drives are not good for the newer systems and emission systems are in a nanny state which CAN leave you stranded on the road on limp mode or complete shut down requiring a tow truck and dealer reset..

Most gassers now days are very capable and can often do pretty much anything a Diesel can.. Granted a Gas engine does lose some HP at high elevations (5000 ft or higher) but where the OP lives that will not be an issue if they never wish to travel to say Colorado and if they did, they would simply be going a bit slower..

Sure, a gasser may not get as good as mileage, but even new emission Diesels do not get very good mileage.. The emission system regens use a lot of fuel.. So much fuel that there is often only a difference of 1 or 2 MPG..

Yeah, I get it, Diesels do their "work" at "low" RPMs and Gassers do it at "high" RPMs which SCARES a lot of folks to Diesels..

OP needs to understand that those supposed High RPM gasser engines ARE designed to run at 4K-5K RPM ALL DAY without any damage.. And newer truck manufacturers HAVE done a very good job in quieting the cabs.. Cab noise is not what it used to be so let the gasser rip and do it's job.

Gassers can be had with turbo, which pretty much wipes out any supposed advantage of Diesel.. They run at Low RPM, get as good and often better mileage than Diesel, cost is less than a Diesel but more than a non turbo gas.

Turbo gas versions do add complexity which could compromise some reliability but tend to be far more reliable than the newer emission Diesels..

OP is a newbee, and I would hate to see a new person get shoved into a potential expensive corner so giving them a bit more rounded look at reality is in order..

I still think the OP NEEDS to RENT a RV FIRST, doesn't have to be a trailer, small motor home would be a good place to start.

OP may find that they do not like camping or the kids do not like camping or they may not have to time to use a RV like they thought they might..

Pretty darn expensive mistakes can be avoided by either renting once or at least buying a cheaper older used small trailer..

Used trailers and trucks are plentiful, just have to look around AND NOT BE PICKY ABOUT LAYOUTS WHEN BUYING USED.

One adult and two children even up into teens can easily make a 18- 20ft TT work for a short amount of time and should be able to find 20yr TTs for $2K-$3K..

Myself, bought a 25yr old 20ft TT for $1800 nearly 18 yrs ago and now have a 33yr old 26 Ft TT..

Camping does not have to be expensive..

With two boys, longer will be better. My family loves our bunkhouse. Yes, there are features we wish we had but that’s ok. There are lots of features out there you probably don’t need or wouldn’t use. It’s one of those things you won’t know until you do it. Don’t get sucked into the hype about this, that, or the other.

I’m not convinced that renting is all that’s it’s cracked up to be. Here’s why: there’s a big learning curve to camping. As you move up the curve, you get more comfortable. As you get more comfortable, you have more fun. If you judge camping by one trip to one park in a camper you aren’t familiar with, you probably aren’t going to have a realistic view of things.

The biggest risk you face here is financial. Mitigate that risk by buying used, ideally with cash. Look at a lot of units and when you see a possible winner, spend an hour with your boys in it. Lay down in the beds, pretend to use the John and shower, pretend to watch tv...all that stuff. Inspect closely and negotiate diligently.

As for truck, look for postings from people with trucks like yours and from people with trucks you are considering. You minimize your financial risks by keeping the truck you have, but your Tahoe limits your choices. I don’t think you can go wrong buying a used F150 from a financial standpoint. You’re still limited on trailer size with a 150. The tough spot here is that if buy small to keep your Tahoe, you may wish you had gone bigger. If you buy a bigger trailer and a 150, you may find the 150 isn’t big enough. If you bite off on a 250 or 350 so you can get a bigger trailer, you may not want to keep that big of a truck if you decide camping isn’t for you. There’s a lot of stuff posted about truck size on the site and I encourage you to avoid most of those threads as most generally conclude you need a 350 duelly to tow a pop up camper. I’m being facetious but only slightly. ??. Focus on posts presented by people with the combination you are looking at. You have lots of options in the half ton class.

wanderingaimlessly wrote:
There are some areas in the Smokey's where you can still dry camp. National Forest lands etc, but understand that they are somewhat limited.
Also as they get older, kids tend to have their own interest, from school activities, to sports, time to "go nomad" can become a rare commodity.
It can be great family time, but you will find that the older they get, the harder it is to arrange, if you can get that time now, grab it and relish it, but dont be surprised if it is only for a limited time.

Best way to keep the kids interested in camping is to let them bring a friend.

buying a 35 ft'er and towing with a F 150 is like asking a boy to do a man's job. a F 150 may not have the tow rating you need to tow a large TT

I'm a huge fan of Diesel tow vehicles. Especially the ones from 1998 on up. The Duramax I have tows my trailer so easy, it really makes no difference whether the trailer is on the back or not. And I don't just mean that power wise. If I need to drive up Hwy 5 in California and go up over the mountains into Oregon. Or down Hwy 40 heading back east the ride is so good that there is zero white knuckles and being exhausted after a 10-12 drive. It just really make no difference to me whether it's on back or not. This is the first tow vehicle that I've ever experienced that kind of relaxed driving with.