Part of the hope of Leisurely Logan is to have a RV at some point. While we know we might not ever be able to afford a huge A-Class, there is always the possibility of starting out small. But, starting out small has its issues. We need a camper that would be able to sleep parents and children comfortably. Most campers, whether small pull behinds or fifth-wheel campers, usually only have sleeping in the form of a bed, a couch that turns into a bed and a table that turns into the bed. Sure, we could put the kids on the table or couch bed, but knowing the children, it would be better to have an actual bed. Then, when you find ones that have two bed areas, it is usually just two full-sized beds or maybe a queen. That might be good for when the kids are small, but thinking down the road, it would probably be better if they weren’t sleeping in the same bed. Luckily, manufacturers have started adding bunk house and bunk beds. Some of the larger pull behinds and fifth wheel campers have an entire room for just kids. A bunk bed or two and a table, all closed off with a sliding door and sometimes their own door to the outside. However, for our needs, we can’t get something that is too long.
The North Carolina Recreation Vehicles Dealer’s Association (NCRVDA) has a show each year in Raleigh and the NC State Fairgrounds. We had been before, but the kids were a year younger and it was a little more of a chore to take them, but dad took the risk and went out to the show, while mom was at a writer’s conference.
The show was split into two building and some on the outside. All ranges of RV’s were at the show, from small tent trailers to half a million dollar A-Class cruisers. Frankly, they had more tent trailers and tear drops last year and probably due to the response, they didn’t come back last year. That’s a shame, because I really like the idea of tent trailers. A combination of tent camping with everything packed in its own trailer. Apparently, Australia is huge on camping and has a large variety of tent and caravan trailers. Caravan trailers are a combination between a tent and a hard shell camper. I wouldn’t call it a pop-up, because they pop out side ways and up and all over the place.
Anyway, I had plan to see if they had a couple models that I was interested in.
2018 Winnebago Micro Minnie 1700BH
Winnebago is a very trusted name in RV’s. However, they are a premium brand and the price always is an issue when buying an RV. However, it is easy to see why the Winnebago costs more. The quality of the look and feel inside and out of the RV’s do make it stand out from the competition. Simple things like the layout of the bathroom and using a ceiling HVAC system make a huge difference in the comfort level of a camper. And then going the extra step of having everything look like it was thoughtfully put together and not assembled by a group of 3rd graders and a glue gun, helps as well.
They didn’t have a 1700BH at the show. They only had one Winnebago Minnie there and I think it was a larger one. I’m not sure why the lack of models, maybe they keep the rest of the inventory back at the lot and try to bring only the most popular models. Anyway, as you can guess, even walking into that model made me think twice about paying the extra price for the Winnie Micro Minnie.
2018 Forest River Cherokee Wolf Pup 16BHS
One of the bunk house options that I found in the internet is by Forest River. And, I will be honest, the fit and finish of Forest River has been hit and miss when we have viewed them in the past. But, I guess when you compare it to a Winnebago or an AirStream, you get what you pay for.
The did have a Wolf Pup 16BHS at the show and I was more impressed than I expected. It had a ceiling HVAC unit and the toilet wasn’t facing into the tub/shower area. Seriously, those two things drove my wife and I crazy. What drove me more crazy is the placement of the TV on the wall as if it was just put on the wall without even thinking about how anyone could watch it at that particular location. Anyway, the Wolf Pup 16BHS impressed me. I even was glad to see that the ground clearance wasn’t as bad as I expected and took a couple pictures of the underside to see if anything was hanging down too far. Another bonus that I didn’t notice when I was looking on-line, is that the rear bumper holder for the spare tire is also a flip down holder for more stuff. Anyway, they Wolf Pup is about $4k cheaper than the Winnie.
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But, there were other things out there that caught my eye. The first RV we went into had a Murphy Bed for the front bed and a bunk bed setup. I really hadn’t considered Murphy Beds as an option for a camper. What this does, is allows for hiding the main bed easily over the table or couch area. Instead of having one of those very uncomfortable couch beds, this is a queen bed mattress that just folds down over the couch.
The fit and finish of the Wildwood was also very good, the Wildwood must be a higher model brand that the Cherokee. Forest River tries split up the trim levels to make it so that you can buy one RV at a price level and get a similar one with higher quality at in a different trim at a higher price. Kind of like moving up from a Chevy to a Cadillac. At 23 feet, it is a little bit longer than the others I was looking at and the prices are between the Wolf Pup and higher than Minnie. The toilet does face the shower, but there is more room in the bathroom. I forgot to take a picture to see if there was a roof HVAC system, but the company media shows that it has one. I think I might have to seriously consider this, but I need to make sure it isn’t too long for the driveway.
They had a couple of custom models there with a retro look. Of course, with the great interiors and the fake wood trim on the outside, comes a bump of about $10k on the price. None of the retro look ones had a bunk option, but the wood interiors made it feel like a mountain cabin. Definitely a nice option, if price isn’t a concern.
And, when price isn’t a concern, you can get a BigFoot RV that is a two piece fiberglass creation that for some reason cost about 4 times any other similar trailer. I guess if you didn’t want to worry about wood rot or leaks, this would be the way to go.
We took a food break and got some hotdogs and a pretzels while enjoying the very nice day. It was in the high 70s with a nice cool breeze. I think that the last time we went to the RV show in the fall it was much hotter and going into the outside RVs that weren’t on was a bit of a uncomfortable experience.
Beyond the RV’s, they also had a bunch of camping groups and sites trying to get you to sign up for the telemarketing phone calls by giving away a free weekend at one of their campsites. Yes, everyone wins, you have to sit through a sales pitch. Lesson learned from before is not to sign up for anything, unless you want to get phone calls for the next six months. There were also a few areas selling additional camping equipment and other odds and ends. Each building had a clown for giving out balloons to the kids.
If I wasn’t with the kids, I probably would have spent more time, but after an hour, I kept hearing “Dad, are we going to be able to find the exit.” I reassured multiple times that I knew were the exit was. Now to ponder over what I saw and the possibilities.
