Excellent plan!

I PM'd coho with all sorts of good info about "jeep trails" in the Northwest, as well as groups of people who go out and do the "overlanding" stuff up here.

Was just thinking back about 2015, and dang, I've been active with the Jeep this year... Lots of camping/overlanding from the Jeep and a bunch of one-day trips as well. It's been a lot of fun, and my goodness I've seen some nice countryside, and spent time with a lot of nice people!

CW

 

I am not sure which one I am either. One thing to think about with an RTT is where that weight is. I'm not a fan of RTTs for jeeps mainly because it increases center of gravity, reduces clearance height and mpg getting to places. RTTs are cool in the fact they set up and fold up super quick and easy.. I do think RTTs are great for pickups and trailers where there don't increase the vehicle height. A ground tent will take a little longer to set up, but you don't have to get your vehicle on flat ground or in a place that has enough open space to set it up. A tent is more flexible on where it can be set up, weighs next to nothing for luggage, is easier to get dogs into (if you bring dogs w/you) and usually a lot cheaper $$. I am a backpacker, so I am used to carrying everything I need for a week of living on my back. if you have a good sleeping pad, bag and pillow you will sleep well. Before my wife and I got our new bed last year I slept better in my backpacking set up (tent, sleeping bag, exped airmatress, Cocoon pillow) than I did in our house bed.

As far as trails, Cascade Wanderer is very active on NWOL forum and does a lot of trips through that site. I am part of a couple groups that are west based (seattle greater area) PNWjeep.net and local offroad/rockcrawler group on facebook (both are more rockcrawling orientated then overlanding focused). I moved to the seattle area a couple years ago and it isn't easy to find trails. Most of the trails I have found out about are from being part of a club and doing group events. there is one website that has some trails (day trips), but is missing a lot too, NWJeepn.com, The Trail Starts Here!. I have not done it yet, but I have heard good things about Fortune Creek for an easier wheeling with good views.

 

Here is some of my observations running a RTT and sometimes ground tent. (sorry not very organized, basically a brain dump)

• (Installation) A RTT is a pain in the a$$ to install and uninstall.. It’s heavy 120lbs. So if you plan on using a RTT, I highly recommend that you keep it on the Jeep full time. Unfortunately my garage door not have the height clearance, so I have to remove the Tent after each trip (or park outside). Now this means that I only use my RTT when I go on my 2-week trips to either Utah or Colorado. For shorter weekend trips, I use a ground tent for convenience of not having to install the RTT. Also whatever roof rack you chose for your RTT, it needs to tie into the jeep body (roll-bars, tub etc.) and not just the rain gutters of the hardtop.

• (Access) Getting in and out of a ground tent is MUCH easier than going up/down a narrow aluminum ladder. So the misconception that a RTT is easier on an older person is not correct (IMO).

• (Comfort) I love the 3” foam mattress in the RTT for comfort, but it’s does not have super high R-value.. So unless you are camping +45F, you will still need a sleeping bag. I have a comforter in the RTT for summer months, but use a sleeping bag for fall/winter/early spring time. I think one of the reasons for the cold getting thru the RTT mattress, is because cold air can circulate under the RTT. A good foam/air mattress on the ground will actually be warmer. One thing I like about the RTT is that during high wind in the desert you do not get any sand inside the tent, where the 2-3 season ground tents with netting on the inner tent will allow fine sand to blow into the tent (even with the rainfly on).

• (Visibility) In a RTT you have a much better vantage point to see the landscape and canyons below the horizon, but hard to see the stars at night. Some ground tent allows you to leave the rainfly off and you can lay in the tent looking at the stars (weather permitting).

• (Setup) The hard shell RTT I have has gas shocks and will literally setup in 2 minutes and that is including setting the ladder op. It’s pretty easy to get the Jeep level by driving up on a strategically placed rock or two. A soft RTT might take a little more time to setup, but still faster than a ground tent. With a RTT you do not need a flat piece of ground without too many rocks as you would with a ground tent. But one advantage for a ground tent is that you have a lot more flexibility of where you can place it. A RTT location is limited by where the Jeep is parked. A hard shell RTT is much quieter inside than a regular ground tent, especially in the rain. A hard shell RTT can be folded down wet and will dry out while driving as air can circulate a little in under the hard shell.

• (Takedown) The hard shell can be taken down in 5 minutes with 2 people and maybe 10mins with 1 person. Even after raining all night, the tent material is not wet due to the hard shell shedding most of the water off before it even hits the tent side fabric. One thing to keep in mind is that with our Jeeps, the tent it up fairly high in the air and I have to stand on the rock rails or rear bumper in order to tug in the tent fabric when taking down the tent. (I am 6’ tall).

• (Investment) A RTT can run anywhere between $1200 - $3600+. That is a lot of dough and that is not including the roof rack.. Even a very nice 2-3 person ground tent is “Only” a ~$400+ investment.

• (Drivability) A RTT has some wind noise over 60MPH and does not like to go over 75-80MPH. One time I drove home on the I-15 thru the Mojave Desert and there was high winds, I had to slow down to >60MPH together with all the RVs etc., any higher speed the hard shell would separate on the sides and the tent material would get pulled outside!. If you are already running 35” tires and roof rack, this might not matter to you as you are used to the noise and maybe driving a little slower. Even with the newer more powerful 3.6L motor the Jeep (Auto) is downshifting a lot more than when I have the RTT off the Jeep. I think my MPG went down ~1MPG with the RTT/Roof Rack on the Jeep. On dirt roads I don’t really feel the RTT at all.. But once you get into really rocky terrain, you get a little more oscillating (side-to-side). You can also feel the RTT a tiny bit in off-camber situations, but not as bad as you would think. I have done Hells Revenge, Fins’n’Things and Lockhart Canyon trails without any issue at all. One thing you do have to keep an eye on is tree branches as they will hit and drag on the RTT. I drive mostly in the desert so this is not a big problem, but I would imagine Pacific North West you would be scratching up the hard shell or ripping the vinyl cover on the soft shell RTTs?

BTW. I have a 270 degree awning also (see pictures) and I LOVE it.. Awesome for shade during lunch breaks in the hot desert and for those times it rains (low wind). On one occasion we were camped by the Green River in Canyonlands NP (Millard Canyon CS) and it was raining lightly with very minimal wind. The awning allowed us to cook dinner and even sit up into the evening watching the scenery, instead of going early to bed in the tent.

 

If we are running long distance we take our modified pop up camper. If we are going overnight, or what not, we take the tent. I think the biggest thing that should be left at home is the rear organization systems. They weigh a ton, and using a few hard cases instead saves a lot of weight and increases range as well.

 

Great Danish, that has to be about the most complete rundown of RTT versus ground tent I've seen. One small comment: Setup difference time for a properly selected ground tent is almost the same as for a RTT. For fun, we had a drone hover overhead filming three folks with Adventure Trailers, one with Mobi, and me with an MSR Hubba Hubba in Dixie NF outside Capitol Reef. Mobi wad first (duh, no setup), one AT was second, I was third, and other two ATs last. And everyone except me had two people working set-up. Total times (ignoring Mobi) were 5-6 minutes. Not worth arguing over.

 

I agree to a certain extent. Homemade (wood) tend to be heavy. Some commercial systems are overkill. My drawer is made of Fiberthane. It doesn't even weigh five pounds. The fridge slide and Adventure Trailer interior rack add another 50-60. Worth every ounce for the increased storage capacity and improved access. Stuff that used to have to go on the roof is now down below. I use Alu-boxes. Very pricey, but many sizes to custom fit your space, and very little wasted space. Also very light, strong, water/dust-proof.

 

Hi Mark,
I agree the time differences between setup and take down of tents are fairly small and not really worth arguing over. I would love to see the Drone footage of the setting up camp race ;-) Are you planning on publishing it in one of your videos on your YouTube channel?

Since we are talking about setup/takedown of tent (Camp), being organized in the back of the Jeep with well-thought-out storage is paramount for reducing camp setup/take down time. It's well worth the extra weight for drawers/shelf (even if it's plywood). I spend a lot of time pulling out boxes/items that are under/behind other stuff in the Jeep. If we are worried about weight, then we should not be running heavy steel bumpers, 35" tires, Roof Rack or RTT

My next project is fridge slide, drawer and shelf in the back of the Jeep. I also plan on taking out the 40% backseat out of the Jeep for more storage there (That way I can still have 1-2 people in the back seat for short distances).

 

Yes a well thought out organization is important. The more you take the harder it is to keep organized. I carry one bin for cookware and food; it has extra snacks and meals in it. I take a grocery bag for snacks on the trail, and for that day's lunch. I bring 2 coolers, a yeti to keep food cold for days which I access once to twice a day and then a small cheap cooler for many open/closes that is filled w ice and drinks. When I get gas I change the ice if needed. While water (melted ice) is good for keeping drinks cold, too much of it sloshes around and makes things wet around the cooler. I carry 2 folding chairs and a small table, wing gear in a bag and then a big alu-box for all things camping (sleeping bags, pads, pillows etc). Sometimes clothing goes into the Alu-box and sometimes it goes into a backpack and my camp chef stove. I can aces anything with only having to take 1 item out at max. This all goes in the back seats and I can see out the back window like normal (not very well), dogs go in the back and wife shotgun.

Our key is not bringing a lot of extra stuff you don't end up using. There is always extra food and clothes, but that is planned. If we need a sauté and boiling pan then we bring 2 pans, not 3+. There is room that we could take a 3rd person and pack stuff up to the roof, but items would be more Tetris packed than normal.

 

"Tetris packed"

I liked that...

 

That was a professional film crew doing that particular job for a friend's business, so not mine to publish.