fpmtngal

RV salesmen often have no clue and will tell you whatever it takes to make a sale. I found your trailer on KZ’s website - nice floor plan. Your truck’s payload is probably the biggest concern I would have for that trailer. 1400 lbs goes very quickly. The trailer has a similar cargo capacity to my little trailer (like your truck, the manufacturer’s cargo capacity is based on a base trailer without batteries, etc. and your trailer is unlikely to have that much) and I’ve been close to its GVWR since my second trip. So I think that using the trailer’s GVWR as a loaded trailer weight for planning purposes is legit. So that means that you should have a tongue weight of between 730 and 1095. I would aim for between 850-900 tongue weight for safe towing (12-13%). 1397-875=522 available payload after hitching up the trailer That’s the figure you’ll have for a tonneau cover, you, any other passengers (a spouse?), pets and anything else that you might put in the truck. That’s not a lot of weight - maybe 350 lbs for 2 passengers, add a tonneau cover of 100-200 lbs, more if you get a shell, and you are at the truck’s payload capacity before you add a cooler or anything else to the truck. Your truck is going to be overweight. Then there’s the issue of such a big sail (30’ of trailer) behind you. It’s a huge consideration also, especially if you tow around New Mexico (or Arizona in the spring) where it’s often windy. Can it be done? Yes, I know people who tow big trailers with marginal TVs a hundred miles to their favorite lake campground for the weekend and don’t have a problem except for extra wear and tear on their TV. However, I towed with a marginal TV for 2 years and had one memorable trip from Tucumcari to Albuquerque in strong cross-winds - it was white knuckle time and scary. I bought a bigger TV before my next big trip. If you decide to buy such a big trailer, get a good WDH and set it up correctly. That will help but you’ll still get blown around in the wind. If you aren’t willing to compromise on the trailer, then be prepared to buy a bigger truck sooner than later. If you are willing to compromise, buy a smaller trailer.

How much payload does your Silverado have? Look at the sticker on the driver’s door and see what it says - often half ton trucks are more limited by their payload capacity than their towing capacity. It’s important to see what your particular truck’s sticker says because options and extras add weight (sunroofs especially, but upgraded tires, etc. also can have an effect). I’ve seen half ton trucks with payload capacity as low as 1,000 lbs and as high as over 2,000, depending on trim levels and options. The manufacturer’s published dry weight is pretty worthless in the real world - it doesn’t include any options, batteries, etc. Is the 6040 lbs what the sticker says is the weight for your trailer as it came out of the factory? I suspect that your trailer might weigh more if that’s the manufacturer’s published dry weight. In my own personal experience, my trailer has always been pretty close to GVWR when loaded for a trip (I tend to take longer trips). So for figuring purposes, I assume my trailer is at GVWR. From everything I’ve read, your trailer’s tongue weight should be between 10-15% of the loaded weight of the trailer. So in your case, the tongue weight would be somewhere around 875-900 lbs. Less than 10% and you are much more likely to have sway. The tongue weight is carried by the pickup truck. So it is part of the payload for the truck. If your particular truck has a payload of 1600 lbs, then you would have 1600-900 = 700 lbs left over for all passengers and cargo. Do you have a tonneau cover or a shell on the bed? That can add a lot of weight. How many people will be in the car? Dogs? Bikes? Are you going to carry a cooler, firewood, BBQ/grill, extra propane tank for the grill, portable solar panel, generator, toys for kids, books and maps, case of water, tool box, etc.? There are people who would have no trouble towing a trailer that size with a Silverado, especially couples that are doing weekend/week long trips. Months long trips might be an issue, depending on the person packs. Full-time? Probably not. I ran out of payload with a half ton truck with over 1700 lbs. of cargo and a trailer that weighed 5,500 lbs., and I’m single. But I have a lot of stuff.

T-Mobile works fine in Quartzsite. There are times when T-Mobile is the better choice if Verizon is overloaded (I’ve had that happen once in a while) and it allowed use in Canada when some people I was traveling with had to pay extra for Verizon. As long as you are on the main roads, T-Mobile works well and they are constantly expanding service. There could be (but not always ) issues when you get in the boonies. T-Mobile is often cheaper than Verizon. I have often been in places where Verizon was strong and T-Mobile was non-existent, too. When I stayed in Rainbows End in Livingston, I had little T-Mobile at my site, but if I were standing on the road I had service. So it all depends. I ended up solving the issue by having a phone with T-Mobile and a cellular tablet with Verizon. An expensive solution but it works for me.

I was glad to see that it won 3 Oscars - best picture, best director and best actress. I thought they were well deserved awards. I did the free month to Hulu and watched it. It’s a movie that kind of sticks to my mind, and I had to watch it twice in order to take it all in (a lot of my personal emotions got in the way the first time, I don’t do grief well at all). I liked it because I could relate to it and I thought Bob Wells’ comments were interesting. Also it’s not sad in some ways - she was offered different possibilities and made her choices.

Have the military campgrounds changed their policy? Back when I was in the Army (a long time ago - like the 1980s), the campgrounds on the post had time restrictions. I remember a friend stayed at one for several months while renovating a house and he had to move out occasionally before returning. Or is the length of stay something that’s post/base specific? The OP is talking about a long-term lease situation, where he can leave the RV and stay there when he’s down there. So even if he were able to use the military campgrounds, I don’t think it would work well for him, having to move the RV out once or twice a month (I vaguely remember a 14 day limit but am probably wrong about that - is was back in the 1980s).

I've considered campgrounds around the San Diego area (thinking about going to my 50th high school reunion in La Jolla). My impression is that there aren't all that many and the ones I was considering were very expensive (some on Mission Bay that sounded really nice). While there are parks elsewhere that would have enough room for a travel trailer/RV plus your work truck and trailer, they aren't all that common. Many parks (most that I have stayed in) only have room for a travel trailer and a tow vehicle, your work trailer would have to be parked elsewhere. Yes, your trailer can be hooked up to sewer (if hookups are available at your site) but as was pointed out, you'd need to keep your black tank closed and dump when you leave. There's a lot more to RV living than just moving into a house.

Congratulations on the Wrangler! Jeep Wranglers have traditionally held their value better than most cars. They’ve always had a somewhat passionate following (me included, though my last Wrangler was a 2004, sold in 2015 - can’t tow much of a travel trailer with one). The old TJs could be a bit quirky but the new ones seem to be more, ummm, civilized(?). I have two friends who recently bought new ones and love them (and I’m envious), so it seems the tradition continues.

Another thing to think about is your wardrobe. I don’t know what limitations you’ll have physically but I couldn’t lift my arms over my head at first and I only have tee shirts and jeans - I now own shirts/blouses that button in the front.

Is the 22’ the overall length or the box length of the trailer? It’s possible the Tahoe could handle a 22’ overall trailer, but there’s more to towing than length and trailer weight. I found with SUVs especially that either the tongue weight rating or the payload was more limiting than the overall towing weight rating. What does the sticker on the driver’s side door say for payload for that particular vehicle (it depends on vehicle options)? I towed a 21’ overall length trailer (16-1/2’ box) for 2 years with a V6 Jeep Grand Cherokee (wheelbase 114”). My biggest limitation was the 620 lb. tongue weight rating - I had to work to keep my 5500 lb. GVWR trailer’s tongue at 600 lbs. I, personally, didn’t have that much trouble keeping the Jeep under it’s 1050 lb. payload because I’m solo, tiny and didn’t carry much in it, so I didn’t take up all of the 400 lbs left after I hitched up the trailer. The Tahoe is bigger (116” wheelbase), could potentially have a greater payload capacity (look at the sticker) so could possibly tow a trailer a foot longer than mine and probably one weighing 500 lbs more. Read about tongue weight and how much you should have. Most SUV manufacturers say their tongue weight ratings are 10% of their tow rating. Since 10% is the MINIMUM you should have for safe towing, that’s a more limiting number than the tow weight rating. The comments about having problems in strong cross-winds are true - slowing down helps in winds but one particularly white-knuckled trip from Tucumcari to Albuquerque convinced me that I would sit out really windy days in future. I ended up getting asked about going to Alaska with friends on a type of trip that would require a generator, a second battery and solar. The second battery put my trailer over the tongue weight rating for the JGC and I couldn’t figure out how to carry a gas can in a space that wasn’t an occupied space, so I bought an F150. Good luck with your search for a trailer.

Good luck with this and I wish you a speedy recovery. I can’t really add anything to this discussion since I’ve never had anything done to my neck, though I’ve talked to someone in the park where I’ve spent the winter who had neck surgery recently and is doing fine. I think they live in a destination 5er. It’s possible to recover from surgery when you live in a travel trailer. I had cancer surgery 4 months ago and I’m single, living in a small travel trailer half the size of yours. I needed more help than I had expected after the surgery and was lucky enough to have friends who came down from where they live with their own travel trailer and help me. But it also meant that I had to re-organize things so that my friend could sleep on my dinette after surgery, until I was capable of managing the nights on my own. I used the time prior to surgery to do some spring cleaning, getting rid of some things and repacking others. Each surgery is different - hopefully you will get some good answers from your medical team as far as what to expect with your recovery. Think of it all as a puzzle or a challenge to be solved - bathroom access, galley access, if you will need adjustments to your bed, etc. It may take some imagination to come up with solutions that will work for you. It all depends on what you’ll be able to do after surgery, you’ll have different challenges than I had. Wishing you all the best.

That’s interesting. I have a friend who has C2C and used it when they are traveling, but they have to reserve 3 days out and don’t always know where they will be that early. Their membership is a higher level than the basic one, not sure of the details, but I don’t think there are any zones, just different levels. They liked it the first year and used it often, but I know that they are not all that happy now because it doesn’t really fit their travel habits and they don’t use it nearly as much as they did the first year they had it. Are they going to change existing member accounts to that? I know that they can stay for a certain amount of days or something for “free” (nothing extra beyond their annual fees). If it’s going to go to something like 50% off then I’m sure they will not renew - not much value to it. While I’ve thought about a campground membership now that I’m full-time, I don’t think it would fit into my lifestyle. Anything like that only has value if you are going to use it. I looked at Thousand Trails briefly but couldn’t figure out their system at all, even though I had figured out timeshare systems before I found RVing. It seemed talking to my friend that C2C is not as complicated at Thousand Trails, but it has its own “gotchas” and limitations.

I used to have a house in a subdivision in the mountains. One year a sow and her two cubs hung around and knew which days were trash pickup days - they would spend the night knocking over everyone’s trash cans when they were on the curb. They didn’t seem to bother any of the RVs that were parked in people’s front or back yards (mine was in the front), but then we weren’t cooking in the RVs. I left canned goods (don’t smell) in the trailer but no other food. And yes, there were days and nights I slept in the trailer for various reasons. Since my trailer was there for storage, I was more concerned about mice and squirrels getting in than the bears. Several years ago, on my first big RV trip, I camped at Lake Louise. They have a section for renters that is behind an electric fence, but the rest of the campground (for hard sided RVs) was open. When I arrived, a ranger came around and said there was a grizzly that lived nearby and to make sure we didn’t leave anything out around the trailer. I continue to camp the same way, rarely leaving much out overnight and I’ve had very little problem with critters.

What you want to do with an RV can make a big decision on what you should get. I started considering an RV for occasional weekends and week-long vacations, I owned a house and was working. I had absolutely no interest in selling the house and going full-time, or even necessarily taking trips that would last months. I’m also single so my needs are different than a couple or a growing family. I decided to get a trailer because I couldn’t see having to maintain a second engine that would only be used occasionally. A trailer has no engine and a truck can be used for all sorts of things. This line of reasoning wouldn’t apply to someone who is planning on going full-time and traveling a lot. I have no regrets about that decision I made 6 years ago. My needs have changed significantly since then - instead of short trips I found myself taking long trips and finally selling the house and going full-time. If I had bought the smaller Class C I would have started out with, I would have had to upgrade it as my needs changed. Instead, I’m living in the same trailer I bought 6 years ago but have upgraded my TV twice. That’s expensive but not as expensive as upgrading a Class C or Class A. If I were starting out to full-time then perhaps I would have bought a big Class A. Or a big 5er and then hated towing it (I know someone who did that - posted lots of photos on Facebook about the trailer, setting. It up and leaving on their first trip. Then crickets. I asked her later about it and she said she hated camping and her husband hated towing the trailer - they sold it after the first trip).

You do have a more complicated issue than many since your trailer is limited. A Grand Cherokee could tow the trailer but it wouldn’t be my first choice - too limited for extra cargo. The Suburban and Tahoe could be OK. I suspect that the Sequoia would be similar as far as payload limits, but I might be wrong now - haven’t looked at them in a couple of years. The Ford Expedition would probably work as well as the Suburban and Tahoe (maybe). It’s too bad Chevy discontinued their 3/4 ton Suburban - that would have given you all sorts of extra payload and room. Chevy makes a good passenger van that has good weight ratings, and much better tow ratings than Ford’s big passenger van (as I recall). That might be a very good way to go, though not an SUV. One of the issues you’ll have is payload. A vehicle’s payload goes down as the trim level goes up - things like sunroofs, etc. add weight to a vehicle and that takes away from how much you can put in it. You’d have to look at the sticker on each vehicle you consider to make sure you have enough payload to hold what you can’t put in the trailer.

Your map shows you staying on Hwy 58 and then cutting through Bakersfield to get to I-5. While going through Tehachapi is probably a prettier and shorter route than the one I suggested, you would have a fair amount of city traffic cutting through Bakersfield. As I recall, there’s a weird jog taking Hwy 58 from Bakersfield to I-5 - I’ve only done it once though. Plus the interchange of the 58 and 99 has been under construction for years and a friend of mine went through in January and said it’s still a mess. So I would recommend going the route I outlined above: in Mojave go south on Hwy 14 to 138 (Ave. D exit) and go west to I-5 just south of Gorman and well before the I-5/Hwy 99 split. You avoid Bakersfield’s city traffic completely and the two lane road section across Hwy 138 is well traveled, if rather boring until you get close to Gorman. I’m not good with Google Maps - but you can see the route if you set up directions from Barstow through Gorman to Buttonwillow (it’s where Hwy 58 comes into I-5 from Bakersfield). The route is further, but it’s not a bad route and a lot less urban traffic.

You won’t have any trouble with gas on that route, and you’ll be far from alone. Maybe fill up in Barstow if you need to (though I have no recommendations, I never used to gas up there). Any place after that will be more expensive until you get to I-5. I can’t quite tell if you are planning on driving Hwy 58 to Mojave, then the 14 south a bit to the 138 which connects to I-5 just south of Gorman. If so, then the 58 is now 4 lanes all the way through. You can get off of the 58 before Mojave and it will meet up with Hwy 14 just south of town. It’s not far south on the 14 to the 138. Hwy 138 is a 2 lane road, there’s not much on it (a couple of gas stations were open the last time I was through that way) but it’s also something like only 60 miles. It’s a well-traveled road - one section was a little rough the end of 2019, I think that’s the last time I’ve driven it. Hopefully it’s been replaced by now. The 138 is pretty boring across the north Antelope Valley but nice enough as it gets into the mountains south of Gorman. Don’t know if it’s changed or not, but traditionally gas was very expensive in Gorman - less than 2 miles further north there’s a Flying J with reasonable gas (at the Frazier Mountain Park Road exit).

The easy way to figure out how to tow a travel trailer is to get a small trailer and a big truck. I towed my trailer for 2 years with a marginal TV. I was always at max for the SUV’s tongue weight rating (620 lbs), while my trailer, at 5,500 lbs (and usually about 5300 lbs actual) was well under the V6 Grand Cherokee’s rating of 6200 lbs. But at 114” wheelbase (compared to the Tahoe’s current 120” wheelbase), a 21’ trailer (overall length) could be a handful in strong cross-winds (one day driving from Tucumcari to Albuquerque comes to mind). I don’t regret upgrading my TV to a half ton pickup, it was much more relaxing to drive. So while your Tahoe can manage the weight of a good-sized trailer, I would also consider the length also. It would “laugh” at my little one, but a 30’ trailer is a really big sail behind it.

I’m active on a manufacturer’s specific forum and recently there’s been quite the discussion about tongue weight and where it gets counted. It can get confusing. The tongue weight is part of the GVWR of the trailer. So it is part of that 7,000 lbs for the trailer. Where it gets confusing is that the weight is CARRIED by the TV, so it counts against the TV’s payload and GVWR when the trailer is hitched up to the TV and going down the road. Let’s assume your Tahoe and your 7,000 lb. trailer are hitched up and sitting on the scales. The weight on the Tahoe’s two axles add up to 7300 lbs (it’s GVWR). The weight on the trailer’s axles should be 6200 lbs. (7,000 - 800), because that 800 lbs. tongue weight is being carried by the Tahoe. The tongue weight is not in addition to the two GVWR. You would not be over the GCVWR because the entire rig weighs 13,500. If, on the other hand, the weight on the trailer’s axles were 7,000 lbs, and your Tahoe was 7,300 lbs, then you would be overweight by 300 lbs. And if the trailer’s GVWR were to be 7,000 lbs, it would be well over it’s GVWR... Ah, the joys of figuring out how to tow travel trailers!

I sure wouldn’t do that, especially not for a week. Through I’ve seen people in some places in the west who leave their trailers parked during the week in a national forest or BLM land and return to it for the weekend. I don’t think you could get away with that in a national park, where the camping is much more regulated.

I suspect you will run out of payload long before you run out of towing capacity. Look at the driver’s side door - there’s a sticker there that says what the payload is of your particular vehicle. Each vehicle is different, depends on each vehicle’s features. Or else, take your Tahoe empty to a scale and get it weighed, then subtract it’s weight from the GVWR. That will be the payload limit. Take the payload amount and subtract the weight of your 4 passengers, the weight of the dogs, the weight of a cooler and whatever else you think you might carry in the Tahoe. What is left will be how much tongue weight the trailer can have without going over your Tahoe’s GVWR. The tongue weight should be between 10-15% of the weight of the trailer, and it’s always weight carried by the tow vehicle. Let’s say the payload is 1200 lbs. and the passengers and dogs weigh 600 lbs. You want to carry a cooler, coats and some toys for the kids, so add another 100 lbs for a total of 700 lbs. That leaves you with 500 lbs. for the tongue weight of the trailer. That means your trailer can weigh between 3,300 (15%) and 5,000 (10%) lbs. Your payload may be higher than the mythical 1200 I used, and if the weight of the dogs and people are less, you’ll have that much more tongue weight capability. But you get the idea.

That 6100 lb. GVWR is going to be limiting as far as having a door for a little privacy. As was pointed out, an SUV can be more limiting than the Nissan Pro-4X (I looked it up, it’s a Titan model, it’s max ratings are good). Of course, manufacturers “up to...” figures often are for specific configurations and what you want might not fit that configuration. Quite often the limiting factor of an SUV is the payload - they tend to have less payload than a half-ton truck (not always). In addition to the Jayco line, you might also look at some of the Lance trailers Lance Trailers , they are known for light-weight trailers. The 2075 might work for you (6200 lb. GVWR and a separate bedroom), though my impression of it when I looked at one is that it’s designed more for couples than families.

CalTrans Chain Control Rules: https://dot.ca.gov/travel/winter-driving-tips/chain-controls It says that under R1 conditions (the lowest condition where chains would be required) any trailer with trailer brakes is required to have chains on at least one axle. Since the vast majority of travel trailers have trailer brakes then I would be required to have chains on one of my axles. I never quite got around to buying chains to fit my tires when I lived in the SoCal mountains - I’d rather wait for the roads to clear. So in answer to the OP question - in California a travel trailer, even one as small as a 16-1/2’ one like mine, would be required to have chains on. No idea what other states require.

Had to laugh at this thought. The casinos have you stop at the entrance security station, lower your mask so they can take a photo - I understand they use face recognition software to stop banned people from slipping in. It’ll be interesting to see how banks handle it all.

Glad to see someone else from 2019 still on the road. We’ve been a pretty quiet class for the most part, it seems. Unexpected things continue to happen to me. This winter has not gone the way I had expected it to at all, but then very little has since I sold the house. I have no regrets about selling the house and there’s no place that’s “calling my name” - no place where I want to call home. So I’ll continue to live in my trailer and travel when I can. One of the things I did think about when I thinking about going full-time is health issues and what I would do if I had a serious health issue. Like everything else, when I was suddenly faced with a cancer diagnosis, I found out the plan in my head wasn’t workable and something else entirely worked out far better than what I had thought about back before going full-time. It’s amazing how some things just work out that way.

Loved your story! And I can understand how someone would fall in love with Vegas - there’s a lot more to it than Las Vegas Blvd. and casinos. Out of curiosity, are you going to be able to store whatever RV you end up owning (whether you downsize or not) at your house or will you have to store it at a storage facility? My sister’s HOA wouldn’t allow an RV into the development at all, much less storing one on site. Others I know in Vegas can have an RV parked by the house for 48 hours only while they pack for a trip (that works well for them). Yes, RVing can lead to all sorts of unexpected places and experiences. Glad it led to that place that “called your name,” your place in the sun.