Dilema-Wall tent or holiday trailer

[pseelk]

Originally Posted by diamonddave

With us the trailer goes away at the end of september. I hate how damp everything is in the trailer, even with the furnace. Nothing beats the heat from the wood stove for drying and being comfortable. We always put down a grass matt for a floor and keep the slippers at the door. 4 inch foamy on the cot and a good bag, its all you need to sleep like a baby!!

x2,I use the 5th wheel till it starts getting cold out then switch to the wall tent,have norseman with inside frame,had this tent for over 15yrs,never been tarped ,never leaked.Use army cots with foamys on top to sleep on.Stayed out last nov 25th temp went down to -36 we had good bags and were very comfortable.Oh ya , I always have an ecofan on the stove this makes all the difference as far as the whole tent bieng warm.

[BlueNorther]

I thought I would miss my trailer when I got rid of it, but I don't. I've got two wall tents with internal frames, a 10 x 12 and a 12 x 14. The big tent serves as our sleeping quarters and the smaller tent is used for socializing and storage. For me sleeping off the ground is essential, arthritic knees. I bought two very good cots for me and my wife, they do not sag. We throw down a heavy canvas for the floor and I have a heavy stove that a friend welded up for me. I've banked that stove and damped it down before leaving camp and came back over 7 hours later and still had smoke coming out the chimney, just had to throw a few sticks of kindling on it and it roars back to life.

The real test happened this year because my wife hunted with me on every trip and I was concerned about her comfort. There was no need to worry. We did 8 trips, a 10 day hunt and 7 three and four day hunts. Not one single complaint of being cold or uncomfortable.

[Redfrog]

I've done both as well as other combos with truck campers and horse trailers.

I prefer wall tent for cooking, socializing drying gear etc. and the trailer for sleeping and cleaning up.
The only concern I have is early season visits from bears, and late season freezing water problems in the trailer.

Nothing is perfect and we always trade off something. The main thing is it is always worth the trade off just to be out in the bush.

[turbo mulcher]

Originally Posted by Griztrax

I've been staying in holiday trailers@hunting camp for years.I sold my hunting trailer& now using newer family trailer. Not good,If only the wife knew about all the mud & snow tracked in.I've been looking @ wall tents,Im thinking 12x14by Deluxe wall tents with a 4 truss frame & wood stove.I don't know enough about them.All feed back would be great,such as are tents warm enough in minus 20* in S.W Alberta/do people leave them alone/comfort/heavy snow.Look foward to hearing coments. THANKS.

I like the wall tents ,have 7 of them, Have a hunting trailer also but found it too small! so I had a wall tent addition made for it. Allows use of a wood stove, can have extra beds outside and works as a tack room or drying room.

[colt45]

Wall tent the way to go , Have been using them for years, Now have new 16-20 will use it next year, Have been using and 14x 16 for sleeping-discussion tent, 10x 12 for cook tent, Nice to be able to dry out clothes and boots, gloves, tried camper's once , could not get all clothes dryed out, Went back to tents way better. Inside frame works good, put tarp down under cots, leave floor open by heater and walk in door, ground drys out fast, Usually put up tents facing each other with tarp in between, so you can walk back and forth with out getting wet when it is raining. Always go bigger with tent size does not take long to fill up tent with 5 cots, in a 14x16 take up quite a bit of room. Who ever has to get up for nature calls in middle of night Usually fills up wood stove.

[Griztrax]

Thanks for all the feed back,please keep them comming.Im warming up to the idea of a wall tent. I also like the idea that Im not taking a spot where a trailer could pull into.(sorry Rocky7) Im one of the S.O.B.s that like to have camp up there for most of the hunting seasion.But Im also there most of the time,and I only live 45 min. away and love being there. So pulling camp out every time would be tough. I also see your point,camps set up for the seasion and no one around for ever,thats not right.Summer camping in the back country is another issue. Im on your side there, way more people camping /using the back country-.Sorry to get way off topic:

[Rocky7]

Originally Posted by Griztrax

I also like the idea that Im not taking a spot where a trailer could pull into.(sorry Rocky7) Im one of the S.O.B.s that like to have camp up there for most of the hunting seasion.But Im also there most of the time,and I only live 45 min. away and love being there. So pulling camp out every time would be tough. I also see your point,camps set up for the seasion and no one around for ever,thats not right.Summer camping in the back country is another issue. Im on your side there, way more people camping /using the back country-.Sorry to get way off topic:

No problem. I don't have an issue with guys who use 'em regularly or even come out every weekend. Not at all. The guys that bug me have tents out that are almost always empty, like they own the place. If you're using it for two months straight - hair on you and I wish it was me.

Here's (another) tip my wife invented, god bless 'er:

Bring along some of those cheap black foam garage floor cushions from C.T. or WalMart. The kind that lock together? Put one by your cot and then where ever. They're cheap and if you ruin one you can toss it when you get home. Maybe $2 apiece. Those are sooooo nice to put your feet on when you get up in the dark and it's chilly. Shake off easy, too.

edit: You're quite right about the summer crowd, too. Some people are just purely selfish.

[Griztrax]

Thanks Rocky7 for info on floor mats,I was going to try carpet because you can move it around.I think a full floor would defentley kill all the grass in the area, not good,plus make it dusty.(PS-JOHN WAYNE-the best.)

[mudbug]

If your able to and like the woodstove etc I'd use a wall tent. I have a 12'x14' older Norseman tent and it hasn't been used much but it is a nice one when you do use it

[Rocky7]

Originally Posted by Griztrax

Thanks Rocky7 for info on floor mats,I was going to try carpet because you can move it around.I think a full floor would defentley kill all the grass in the area, not good,plus make it dusty.(PS-JOHN WAYNE-the best.)

I've found carpet a hassle. Get it wet and it takes a long time to dry. And it'll wick up moisture from the ground, gets mouldy...blah.

Full floor is n/g for me. One more thing to clean and you can't even dump a glass of water. Unless you're there a very long time, the grass will grow back but I recommend you try it without and see how you like it. Once the grass is tramped down I think you'll be happy.

One more thing - bring a couple of mousetraps. If you're in a wall tent for very long, you'll know why.

For sure get a good stove. It's nice to come back to. And if it's warm on a cold morning, it's easier to get a fire going.




It's likely you'll see more stuff 'cause you'll be closer to where they are and can be hunting in 15 min. on foot.



(he's short, but looked so nice I went back and found him with my camera)

[Rocky7]

If you buy a fly (and you should), you'll need extra tent pegs. I built these from rebar. They're heavy but fit in a plastic tool box and I haul them in with my all terrain golf cart, anyway, so weight is not such a big issue.

Tent goes on the bottom rung and fly goes on the top rung. One peg.



Paint the tops white. You'll thank me one night when you're out there with a flashlight for one reason or another.

Dang, I'm slipping into hunting mode and it's only January. NOoooooooo.

[fordtruckin]

Originally Posted by honda450

Used this US Army tent this past fall at huntin camp. Dang heavy duty and you can add more sections to it if ya wanted. Huge for 4 guys and lots of gear. Had a diesel stove and could pound out the heat, it was not very cold though. No floor, just layed down a tarp. Takes at least 3 guys to set up and a course on how to do it too, hehehe

Made of some sort of rubberized material, and yes its heavy.

Ahhh the good times i spent in those tents.... and to think, they actually gave YOU a class to figure it out. We usually got dropped off somewhere in the blowing rain or sand and had to set them up on the go. lol.

to the OP have you ever considered a GP Small tent? I believe they are about 18'6" octagon tents. You can get them for about 600 online. Definately can vouch for them.

[The Fisherman Guy]

It's tough to beat the experience of a wall tent. We have used my Deluxe 14 x 16 for three years now, and it is still holding on strong. Coldest camp was this year at -29. We were all warm with just a 24' airtight woodstove, just need to wake up several times to stoke the fire.

Everyone loves the wall tent. The experience is tough to beat. But, yes there is a but....

If you plan on using your tent or trailer every weekend, or even every other weekend - the setup and take down gets old pretty quick, especially in -20! I would give my two cents as this. For a 5 times a year item, the wall tent is 10/10 and cannot be beat. Anything over that, and a trailer beats it out of convienience to setup, take down and a warm place to poop.

But a trailer can't go anywhere!

[kevcur]

i love the wall tent. dont cheap out on size though. four of us bought a 10x20 with an 8' section for cookhouse/gathering and the 12' section for sleep, 4 guys in a 10x12 is tight let me tell ya. 2 stoves and warm. also we went with 6' walls,way worth the extra $. built our own internal frame for alot less. looking back i would buy the angle pieces from the manufacturer and just use 1" conduit for the rest. nothing better than hunting out of a tent with wood heat

[lapg28]

Check out Modular Army Tents. I think the one Honda 450 was talking about is similar, and it can be made bigger by adding middle sections(each section is 8ft. wide and cost is about $150) Had mine for about 10 yrs. and I'm up to 32ft. long now,and each section has a stove pipe hole.

[Bundo1980]

Our 12x14 from Northwest Shelters in BC http://www.northwestshelters.com was awesome 2wknds ago ice-fishing our first trip with it. We had a small wood stove from Peavy Mart in there and kept us nice and warm. The guy at northwest was great to deal with i had him move the stove jack and he did free of charge. Its a 3 truss system and we put it together and had a fire going with 45mins in a snow storm so they are not hard at all to set-up.

We retired an old 16' trailer 2 years ago and with the purchase of our new family trailer my wife assured me that it was not going moose hunting with me so hence the wall tent.

Each unit has its plus and minus's the big thing with the trailer is weather. We drug our little trailer into some pretty sketchy places and then the weather got bad. Thank goodness for tire chains and multiple pick-ups...! A bigger trailer and it woulda stayed until winter. Just some food for thought....

[pseelk]

As was mentioned earlier You cannot beat a walltent when temps dip below zero,You can make it as warm as you want and you can always dry your clothes very quickly which is very hard to do in a trailer.Also you never run out of fuel!!!

[Moo Snukkle]

Wall tent wall tent wall tent Did I say wall tent? Make sure you get one that will allow a external pole frame. This is the best way to start. If you feel you need to upgrade to an internal frame, so be it but it will keep your initial investment down. If you ever do a fly in drop hunt, throw the tent in the plane with the wood stove and you're done. No poles to lug around. Get at least a 12 x 14 with at least 4ft walls and a stove no less than 30 gal. Oh ya, make sure the stove ring is close to the door. The pros of using a tent for me, far outweigh the cons vs a trailer, especially if hunting is your main activity with it. Good luck with your choice.

[boonerkiller]

We run the Deluxe 14'-16' with the porch and internal aluminium frame and it is awesome. Will definitely be brining in pallets to make a floor out of next year and the diesel heater over the wood stove would be nice....no smoke inside and no getting up to stoke the fire.