Announcement Campinn Owners As Of April 25, 2014!

Hello, All,
First post here, though we've learned lots from the Forum. Thank you!

Cary tells us our 550 will be ready a bit earlier than we thought, so we're heading to Necedah on April 25 and bringing Tiny Tin Tent home to the Mpls/St.Paul area to camp in the driveway that weekend. (Tiny Tin, for short) First multi-day trip will be mid-May.

We're veteran campers, but the TD is new to us. What do you wish you had known or packed on your early trips? We're minimalists by nature, but older than we used to be, so hoping that camping will be comfortable for many years to come!

Many thanks,
Judy

 

Welcome.

The biggest thing we learned on our first night was ….VENTILATE.

It went down to around 30 our first night and I had everything cranked shut. Not a crack in a window or the fan. We were warm and cozy until the time that our condensation had built up enough to start dripping from he windows onto our heads and necks.

Also, stay minimalist on the bedding stuff. Lots of pillows just get in the way.

 

Dick and Judy congratulations. I like the name - cute!
If you are minimalists keep at it the less you have to manage the more time for fun. I found the packing bags for clothes were the thing I knew nothing about when tent camping and they are so helpful.

 

I agree with Ken, but would suggest adding a pen and some paper. Then as you camp and start using it, you can write down the things you wish you had. Then you know what to add. We have had ours for almost 4 years, and I just went through everything and removed things and reorganized a few things. I have added a few things along the way to make it easier. I am an ex-backpacker, and had most of what I needed, so I get where you are coming from!

Welcome to the forum!

 

Thanks, everyone! I'm sure we'll be back for more advice soon.
Judy

 

Dick and Judy,

Welcome to the forum, and congrats! Soon you will be rolling down the road with Tiny Tin Tent in tow, not to mention lots of people going out of their way to chat with you about your tear.

I ordered my 550 Ultra with the side tent. Looking back, I would have gone ahead and made the pvc form for the flooring noted on the forum. I actually measured, cut and put the form together today; quick and simple to do.

I'm so glad I took the advice of seasoned tear owners, less is more. I agree with AsheWolf, the only thing I had to delete after the first campout were the extra fancy pillows.

 

Plan your menu for your trip...cold weather, hot meals. Hot weather, cold meals.
Clean and dry extra bath towels help pack the galley AND can be used as an extra blanket if needed.
Know how many times you plan on changing clothes each day.
ALWAYS have a "cold meal" packed...that is, if the weather collapses and you can not cook...you can have a bag of good food ready to grab and INNjoy inside the cabin (cutting board, knife, opener, food).
I can't think of anything else at the moment because the poodle puppies are calling their momma.