Well it didnt take long.

[crash]

The 2 decks sold us on our Raptor,Really it was the side deck that sold it on the wifeso I am happy too

[TandE]

Well we ended up trading our hideout for a slightly bigger TT and with slide outs. We ended up with a 2013 cougar 27rbs. I love that it has more room inside than the last and the DW fell in love with the floorplan as soon as she walked in the bedroom door.

I was hesitant at first because I wanted an outside kitchen but I have a grill and coolers that will do just fine.

And to top it off we picked it up the 18th of this month and the morning of the 19th we headed off to New Mexico for a family reunion and are now in so cal. What a way to test everything to make sure it works on a shakedown right?

[Janniert]

Went tent camping June 2012' something brushed the tent and when my husband pushed on the tent it growled...probably a raccoon, but enough for us. In Late July, we bought a 26' Catalina Santara bunkhouse. No frills, very basic. We thought our grown children would go with us. MISERABLE sleeping conditions. It was hard to be excited about our big purchase. Feeling like two spoiled adults, we traded in in March for a Cougar High Country, absolute opposite of the original TT.
We laughed, who needs a fireplace? We do! We have used it almost every trip. Thanks for your post, we wouldn't have admitted it otherwise.

[dankent]

My wife and I are googling images and planning where things should go based on those images ..... only a few more weeks and it will be here. cant wait.


Good read thread this has turned out to be.

[PilotIndy]

My story is similar to everyone else's here as well.. Tent camped as a kid for awhile with my family back in the mid 70's.. Then dad bought a used Apache Pop Up Tent Camper in 81'. (It finally rotted and rusted into nothing around 88' or so.)

Then a few years ago, Dad got back into camping with the purchase of a Jayco Pop Up. My son and I joined him and my nephew and went on some pretty good epic camping adventures with this camper all around the Midwest and Southern States.

Throughout these trips, I learned that if I were to ever purchase my own camper. It would NOT be a pop up. While they are great campers for weekend adventures.. They are not so good for week or two long adventures where you have multiple stops, etc.

I just did not like having to empty the camper out every time we arrived at a camp ground and set up camp. By the time we would get done setting up the camper and campsite, both myself and my father would be dripping in sweat. I'm not a young man, but I am not old either. It would be the same situation when it came time to break camp and move on.. We would spend a few hours just taking down the camper and loading things back into it.

It was also cramped with the four of us.. And this camper was designed to sleep up to 6. In either case, the experiences camping with the Jayco, were not like the ones that I had with the Apache as a kid, camping with my parents and siblings. However, we did not travel around to multiple places back then. We just went one place and camped.

In the middle of June this year, my brother asked if myself and my wife and kids would be interested in joining his wife and daughter on a camping trip down to Patoka Lake, in Patoka, Indiana. He was taking his boat down and they were going to tent camp. (He has quite the setup too!)

I have a tent as well, but my wife has never been camping.. Not even as a kid in her back yard with her brothers. She was not interesting in going unless I would rent a travel trailer. (Even though it was available, Dad's Jayco was out of the question for her.)

Therefore, I rented an well worn and well used Keystone Outback 28' Trailer from a RV rental company in Indianapolis. I do not know the year of manufacture or the model, but would guess it was 10 years old or so. For the age, despite the fact that it was obvious it had some usage upon it. It was in good condition and everything worked. I later found out that the trailer had actually been in a windstorm at one point and was gently laid over on it's side.

That was how the rental company got it, out of an insurance settlement. They fixed the damage on the unit and put it into service as a rental. (I looked the unit over VERY well before I rented it and had I not been told the story behind it. I would never have known. There was no visible damage anywhere.) The good news was that we did get to see some things in this travel trailer that we did not like in the design layout. It gave us insight in things we know we would not want in a trailer.

Overall, this trailer was comfortable and due to how the entire 7 day vacation unfolded, with everyone having a good time. I was able to convince my wife that we should consider our own travel trailer. My son and I really like to camp and now that my wife and daughter have had an opportunity to camp. They have decided that they like it and want to go again.

Thus, we are now looking at the Keystone Hideout 26B as a possible contender for our camping needs. Perhaps, in a week or two, I will be posting on here that I am a proud new owner of a Keystone product. Based on how the Outback has aged, I am hoping that the current trailers being manufactured by Keystone will also age just as graceful and give just as good of service as the trailer we rented.