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I bought my rig new and it now has 148,000 miles. I love the diesel engine and its gobs of torque. It can tow up to 7,400 lbs. It pulls almost effortlessly.
I keep it mostly stock. It has the stock air suspension and for my needs it is perfect. This is my daily driver and 99% of my miles are on pavement, and 1% are out on the trail. It has the most trail capable features that Jeep provides. And when my wife and I are out on the trail we do some fairly gnarly obstacles. This is no mall queen. She is shod with slightly oversized A/T tires.
The JGC is extremely comfortable on the highway. She’ll cruise comfortably at 100 MPH all day long when it’s 105 °F out, and the engine and transmission never get hot. I live near San Francisco and with the wide open western states’ highways that we have, in many places 100 MPH is very safe to do (think of I-10, I-40, and I-80, and US-40 and US-50 east of Arizona, Nevada, Idaho, and Montana).
/backstory
Here is the main question: should we get an RV trailer? Or how about an RTT, roof top tent? When my wife and I road trip and explore the US, and North America and Central America, how should we do it? We don’t own any of them right now.
Each has its pros and cons. So, I’m looking for suggestions and your experiences.
^^^You lost me with the idea of towing a travel trailer in Central America. I've driven throughout Mexico and down the Panam Highway as far as Nicaragua. However, the vehicle I drove was an an older base model Nissan compact pickup truck that did not attract much attention as they are plain and common. Your high end JGC is going to attract a lot more attention, and not necessarily in a good way - I am talking about risky situations with personal security or robbery.
Adding a travel trailer is really going to attract attention. It will also limit your ability to get around obstacles or detours. Also, once further south from Mexico, road conditions are a mixed bag, especially in Costa Rica.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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keep it light, removeable, and stealth (for South of the USA border)
If you camp off-road, you need a high ground clearance and tall wheel trailer.
I (truckdriver) consider trailers a PITA that I would rather do without will on personal travel. But for long extended stays they offer S-P-A-C-E.
If you are still young and agile, I'd stick with a tent, and save the dough for an occasional cabin. I would think the 'adventure / expedition group' would have a list and resource of great places to stay while on adventures. We have got such private lists from various organizations while traveling worldwide. Lots of memories meeting and staying with new friends in very nice quaint locations. (not 5 star resorts with organized tours)
If you love your rig... look into have a 'pop-top' installed (My friends have had the conversions done in Canada - don't think the USA is friendly to that modification). That might not fit your needs and also jeopardize safety in a roll-over, so... plan wisely. Rooftop tent is not simple or cheap, but can work too (and can be removed). That was very popular in NZ.
^^^You lost me with the idea of towing a travel trailer in Central America. I've driven throughout Mexico and down the Panam Highway as far as Nicaragua. However, the vehicle I drove was an an older base model Nissan compact pickup truck that did not attract much attention as they are plain and common. Your high end JGC is going to attract a lot more attention, and not necessarily in a good way - I am talking about risky situations with personal security or robbery.
Adding a travel trailer is really going to attract attention. It will also limit your ability to get around obstacles or detours. Also, once further south from Mexico, road conditions are a mixed bag, especially in Costa Rica.
The travel trailer would not be for deep into Mexico or Central America. And yes I’m sensitive to and aware of the JGC attracting attention.
keep it light, removeable, and stealth (for South of the USA border)
If you camp off-road, you need a high ground clearance and tall wheel trailer.
I (truckdriver) consider trailers a PITA that I would rather do without will on personal travel. But for long extended stays they offer S-P-A-C-E.
If you are still young and agile, I'd stick with a tent, and save the dough for an occasional cabin. I would think the 'adventure / expedition group' would have a list and resource of great places to stay while on adventures. We have got such private lists from various organizations while traveling worldwide. Lots of memories meeting and staying with new friends in very nice quaint locations. (not 5 star resorts with organized tours)
If you love your rig... look into have a 'pop-top' installed (My friends have had the conversions done in Canada - don't think the USA is friendly to that modification). That might not fit your needs and also jeopardize safety in a roll-over, so... plan wisely. Rooftop tent is not simple or cheap, but can work too (and can be removed). That was very popular in NZ.
Light, stealth, and quick to move are features that appeal to me. This will definitely factor into my solution(s).
I rented a travel trailer, one of the biggest I could tow, to try out the concept. It was a 29’, 5,300 lbs dry trailer. I have some pictures of it. I’ll try to find them.
Regarding young and agile and a tent, I was in the Marines for 13 years and I am DONE with sleeping on the ground. I’ve spent plenty of time in the field, in heavy rains, cold winter snow and ice, and the lovely summers in the beautiful Mojave desert. Been there, done that. I am 62 and retired, so I prefer no more tents.
Regarding installing a pop-up, that is a very interesting idea. I will be looking into that. Thanks for the suggestion.
I found my pictures and posted them to imgur. This was a test of the concept, for if we might enjoy the trailering experience. A 29’ and 5,300# dry weight camper trailer, I would never want to buy anything this big but we wanted to try it out. We camped at an RV park along the Malibu coast and it was a pretty location.
Just because the Jeep could pull it, the rig was a handful and is probably too much to tow safely on a regular basis. On the drive back home it was nice to pull over and take a comfortable nap when I got tired. That’s a big plus for this setup, the impromptu nap.
I looked at a few of them at a recent outdoor expo, and noticed something missing:
the ladders end at the edge of the tent, so there's nothing to hold onto as you
climb from ladder into tent, or from tent down to ladder. Have any of the RTT
makers addressed this problem? I think the ladders ought to be wider,
and the vertical parts of the ladder ought to extend higher than the floor
of the tent. That would give something secure to grip while entering / exiting
the RTT.
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about roof-top tents
