Those of you who know me, know that I often travel in my bright turquoise blue 2007 T@B teardrop travel trailer. My wife and I bought our trailer used in 2012, and it’s truly been one of our best purchases, and one of the most fun. Since then, we’ve towed it all over the western United States: Washington, Idaho, Oregon, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, Arizona…plus several Canadian provinces. In my experience, towing a trailer gives me much more flexibility, more options, and more comfort than other cost-efficient travel methods. As a lifelong tent camper (and don’t get me wrong, I still enjoy tent camping too!), a trailer provides shelter from inclement weather, warmth, and the ability to cook and make coffee indoors, which is a wonderful luxury. In areas highly populated by grizzly bears, such as the Banff/Lake Louise area of Alberta, a hard-sided trailer provides much-needed security and peace of mind. As a frugal traveler, I’ve stayed in my share of cheaper hotels and motels with terribly uncomfortable beds. A great thing about having a trailer is you can tailor the bed to exactly what is most comfortable for you. For me, this means firm, with a plush mattress topper. It’s worlds away from a cheap motel mattress. I know many people love camper vans and RVs, but for my family and me, we love the ease of unhitching the trailer, setting up camp, and then having the freedom to go explore in our tow vehicle. Our campsite can really feel like a home base. And after a long day of playing, hiking, and/or shooting, there’s nowhere on earth that’s more cozy. And it’s so nice to be able to just drive up, climb in, and go to sleep.

Over the years, I’ve done quite a few upgrades and modifications to our trailer. As we tend to camp a lot off-grid (without hookups), I wanted to make the trailer as power-efficient as possible. When I purchased the trailer, it had an air conditioner, which required the trailer to be plugged into a power source to run; plus it was heavy, took up a lot of space, and didn’t seem necessary to us. It also came with a 12-volt refrigerator that ran off the battery and was a huge power draw. I replaced that fridge with one that runs off propane, allowing us to camp without a power source for potentially up to a month. I installed a solar panel on the roof to charge the battery. I also installed a propane heater (originally manufactured for Volkswagen camper vans) that safely and efficiently keeps me warm and toasty. Lastly, I removed some extra storage cabinets to cut down on wasted space and go from a queen bed to a king. When our little son was about a year old, we figured it would be nice for him to have his own place to sleep, so I made a kid-size bunk bed that can fold up or be used as storage when not in use.

T@B trailers have gone through several different iterations and changed manufacturers a couple times since ours was built in 2007. I understand the newer ones are quite an improvement in quality of craftsmanship, but the tradeoff is expense and tow weight. While our trailer was certainly not made with our sort of extreme roughing it in mind (as is evidenced by the appliances that need to be plugged in at a campground with hookups to work), the modifications I’ve done have really made it the perfect camper for my family and me. I’ve towed it deep into the Wyoming wilderness on ridiculously rough dirt roads, I’ve camped in it in southern Utah in the winter, I’ve made priceless family memories, and I’ve taken some of my best images while camping in our trailer. Comfort and quality rest are so important to the sleep-deprived landscape photographer. When I’m in my trailer, sipping my coffee as the sun begins to rise, I’m in my happy place. The world is full of potential.

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