Viva Las Vegas

[djohnsonnv]

Hello from Las Vegas,

i am a 31 yo geotechnical engineer living in Las Vegas. Have always loved camping and have a few spots not far from town that are backcountry and accessable only by 4WD and/or high clearance vehicles (all stock friendly). Might start spending a little more time in campgrounds since I have 2 young boys (1 and 2 y.o.). I have some woodworking experience. Mostly rough projects that I did with my brother and grandpa (work benches, farm trailer beds, etc., nothing pretty) as well as some refinishing project (those were pretty). My young brother is a professionally trained mechanic but now works as a maintenance tech for the city's sewer system. We often said that between an engineer and a mechanic there isn't much we can't figure out.

I have been thinking about a teardrop for several years and have a few ideas in mind. Looking forward to refining those ideas from what is available on that forum. Few obstacle I have to clear before I get serious.
1. Fix up the house. Just bought a house that needs some work. No way the wife will sign off on a luxury camping item before the house is up to her standards.
2. Buy a tow vehicle. Sold my Ram 1500 4x4 to buy the house. Thinking about replacing it with a Subaru Forester or a small pickup.
3. Let the boys grow a bit. They are too young to sleep in a rooftop tent and my favorite spots will prohibit using a trailer large enough for the four of us inside.

[bc toys]

welcome to the group I to am from Las Vegas we have a small group of DO cookers that camp together there is everything teardrops cargo conversions travel trailers and 5th wheels in our group but the 1 thing we have in common is we love to camp and cook Valley of fire is a great place to camp with kids this time of year Well hope to see you down the trail stop in and say hello

[djohnsonnv]

Nice to know there is a fellow Vegas resident here. Just went tent camping at 6 Mile Cove this weekend. Planning on taking my oldest son on his first camping trip to Valley of Fire next spring. Haven't camped there for about 5 years. I have mostly stayed out of campgrounds but always liked VoF.

[drgrumpus]

Welcome to the forum. The Forrester will work great. Our 2014 pulls our 1200lb 5X10 with no sweat. I even tow it behind my Honda Fit, though it struggles a bit.

Have fun planning and ask lots of questions.

Mike French
Nelson, NH (the boondocks)

[Esteban]

There are local teardrop enthusiasts you might get to know. I've met Joanne, Kathleen and Dave. They're good people to get to know and learn from.

Joanne from Las Vegas built her Desert Dawg teardrop trailer for back country and off road use. She documented all the steps, trials and tribulation of building the Desert Dawg very well.

I've been doing a lot of camping in the Dawg and I just love it! The more I camp in it the more I know I made the right decision to build it. For the last couple of years I've been camping all over the southwest, sometimes solo and other times with friends. It is perfect for my style of camping. I've attended a number of teardrop gatherings and had an absolute blast. If you haven't attended a teardrop gathering, you should find one in your area. This is especially important if you are thinking about building your own. It's a great way to gather ideas for your own build. The teardroppers always welcome folks who are thinking about building or buying their own trailer. Check one out. You'll be glad you did!

A nearby teardrop gathering will be happening soon Grape Turkey2.0 Pahrump, NV Nov 12-15, 2015 that you and your family might enjoy attending.

Grape Turkey3.0 Pahrump NV Nov 10-14, 2016

postby Kathleen & Dave » Sun May 01, 2016 4:55 pm
Come join the Las Vegas Dutch Oven Enthusiasts and NV Tear Jerkers for our annual Grape Turkey 3.0 . Nov. 10-14, 2016. This year's will event will be held at the Wine Ridge RV Park, in Pahrump, NV. Near by is Death Valley, and 55 minutes from Las Vegas.

There is a waffle breakfast in the gathering room Friday morning. Swimming in the heated pool, hot tub for weary muscles and aching bones, fire pit for relaxing by a fire, wine tours and tasting, pickle ball and a putting green for the more active.

We will be doing a Dutch Oven pot luck Saturday. Eating will commence at 3PM at the gathering room.

Please call Wine Ridge at 775.751.7805 for reservations. Tell them you are with the Tiny Trailers/Dutch Oven group when you make your reservations and they will put you in row 900 with our group. They accept AAA, Good Sam and Passport America for discounts, just let them know. They would appreciate if you would make your reservations at least 3 weeks in advance of the event in order to keep us together.

Hope to see you all there!!!

http://www.wineridgervresort.com

Let me know if you are attending so that I can have a running count of trailers. We have a max space of 60 sites.
Hope to see you there.
Kathleen
Director Nevada Chapter

[djohnsonnv]

Joanne from Las Vegas built her Desert Dawg teardrop trailer for back country and off road use. She documented all the steps, trials and tribulation of building the Desert Dawg very well.

I appreciate the link. Looks like she had a lot of great ideas that I will try to use. Also a great website documenting the build.

elcome to the forum. The Forrester will work great. Our 2014 pulls our 1200lb 5X10 with no sweat.

Thanks for the kind welcome. Definitely liked the Forester when we test drove it and I am sure it would handle what I need if i build and travel smart. Fortunately for me, my wife has really started to miss the old beast. Might be able to talk her into a Chevy Colorado next year once we get more income coming in. That will give me a little more confidence in getting out to the types of places I like to go. Also won't require me to pack as thoughtfully. My last weekend trip I had the Ram fully loaded with a canoe, grill, gear for 5 (beer for 10). I brought more than I needed but kind of happens.