Taking a camper to Wyoming

[elkantlers]

Ain't an adventure till you have a flat....

I had a blowout on I-15 in Idaho a few years ago. Semi's going by 70mph while you are putting on the spare is certainly an adventure.

 

[Addicting]

I would check Craigslist or even run a add to see if there are any for rent. You may be able to rent a old one for the week cheaper than what it would cost you in fuel to pull it there.

 

[MNElkNut]

Been bringing my enclosed trailer to WY for the last few years. Love it. Nothing fancy, but a place to set up a cot that is nice and dry.

 

[pre6422hornet]

Umm yes! Back in 2014 I pulled my 13,000 pound fiver from Kansas City to Medicine Bow. Took it 5 miles off the pavement onto the Ranch we had permission to hunt on and it was great! Granted we really only slept and ate breakfast and dinner, I would do it again in a heartbeat.

We did get a very stern warning from the ranch owner. He gave us a map and told us which two track to follow in and where to set up etc.. BUT he also told us " if it even hints at raining, get the hell out of there.... the mud gets slick as grease and your camper will get you stuck".

 

[jt4]

Do you own the camper?

guess that depends on your definition of “own”. I’m paying for it yes. I don’t own it outright.

 

[Nick87]

guess that depends on your definition of “own”. I’m paying for it yes. I don’t own it outright.

I was just wondering if it was yours or you were borrowing someone's. Our last Wyoming muley hunt we rented one in Cheyenne. I think it came out to around $300 per guy for like 8 days. Cheaper than owning one and we only had to tow it around 3 or 4 hours as opposed to the entire 16 hour trip. Just a thought.

 

[WyoDoug]

You should have no problem during antelope season. In the winter however, it gets seriously windy and your camper better be very study and strong then. I got a popup and have camped during the winter but found spots between a couple ridges where it was protected a bit. I had my popup raised when a bit wind storm come in a few weeks ago and it blow it into our fence and I had to move and relevel it. If your camping trailer is a double axle hardside, you should have no problem with it but may have trouble on the highways when they have high wind warnings out. We have numerous articles where semi-trailers were blown over probably because they had empty trailers I think and lightweight high profile vehicles and light trailers are not allowed on the highway then. Highway Patrol would sometimes stop you and advise you to go back to town until the wind stopped. We had gusts exceeding 70 MPH on the highway not too long ago.

 

[WyoDoug]

I was just wondering if it was yours or you were borrowing someone's. Our last Wyoming muley hunt we rented one in Cheyenne. I think it came out to around $300 per guy for like 8 days. Cheaper than owning one and we only had to tow it around 3 or 4 hours as opposed to the entire 16 hour trip. Just a thought.

I found that out too when I was going to rent one and this is true if you don't intend to use trailers for more than one season. By time you rented one for a two week hunts like I like to do, after just a few seasons, you could buy a used one sometimes cheaper. I paid $1500 for my Dutchmen popup cash it it has just cosmetic issues to fix. To rent one, it was $300 a week for just me. I have been seeing double axle hardsides going for around 3000 and all you needed to do is fix cosmetic issues. Brand new ones were a whole lot more expensive to buy though. Rentals in Cheyenne go up during hunting season but you can find them cheaper to rent for camping and fishing season except Cheyenne Frontier Days.

 

[memtb]

I would certainly recommend using the camper for your trip.

We had a pop-up (canvas ends) for many years. It will work, but can be pretty uncomfortable....even during Antelope season. We highly recommend a hard-sided camper. It will provide you with both comfort and storage space.

With the right camper, any season can be hunting season! We use ours during some pretty foul weather! We’ve been out at -22 F, with no freeze-ups! It’s pretty nice to have all the comforts of home......”on the range”! memtb

https://imgur.com/a/oNeey

 

[elkhnter]

Took my 42’ 5th wheel to Alpine twice last year, no issues. From Cheyenne to Rock Springs can be a interesting stretch of road. We did blow 5 tires on the trip out in the spring. Replaced the 6th one after the 5th blowout.
Mark sure your rig is ready before you head out.
It was nice to have our mini home there to hunt from.

 

[Deleted member 40728]

I had a wheel bearing go out one year on I-70 on way home from a elk hunt with a group of buddies. All the bearings were brand new when we left. Had less than 2000 miles on them. Had to go to auto parts store and buy a new bearing set and 4” grinder. The spindle was basically melted so I reshaped it to make it work and crossed my fingers. Luckily made it home and bought a new axle. I always carry spares of everything now and proper tooling. It was nice having the camper there but it’s one more thing that can slow you down or ruin your trip.

 

[WyoDoug]

As says @Slm864, if you are going to take a camper, carrying proper tools to do repairs and extra parts on certain items is highly recommended. I myself had a tire blow out, lights burn out, and one year, condensation on the inside of my gas line and had to blow it out. I also carry way more fuses than I need and a sizable first aid kit because I nearly always cut myself or get a pesky sliver or twist an ankle or two.

 

[Rhino Hunter]

Me and a friend will be towing two enclosed trailers to WY for antelope hunting this fall. We'll be using them to cook/sleep in. How many of you that towed campers to hunt antelope in WY also took ATV's/UTV's so as to avoid the WY pinstripping on your trucks?

 

[WyoDoug]

Me and a friend will be towing two enclosed trailers to WY for antelope hunting this fall. We'll be using them to cook/sleep in. How many of you that towed campers to hunt antelope in WY also took ATV's/UTV's so as to avoid the WY pinstripping on your trucks?

I used to hunt a bit with ATVs. Never successful enough with them to warrant the expense when I hunted antelope. I usually park in a spot close to where I think they are and walk in from there. My experience is antelope spooked rather quickly when approached with ATVs but seemed to stay put when approached in a vehicle.

 

[madtom]

Pinstriping isn’t usually a concern in antelope country. Don’t be afraid to use the quads God gave you.

 

[memtb]

Me and a friend will be towing two enclosed trailers to WY for antelope hunting this fall. We'll be using them to cook/sleep in. How many of you that towed campers to hunt antelope in WY also took ATV's/UTV's so as to avoid the WY pinstripping on your trucks?

When I first met my wife, she told me, “You always take a new truck out and get it scratched real good.....then you never have to think about it again”! I still struggle a little with that thought process. Antelope hunting may be her favorite big game hunting! memtb

 

[pre6422hornet]

Yeah it gets a little windy out there.. We woke up at 3am the first night and the camper was rocking back and forth like there was 100 people shoving it back and forth. It was howling!!

Ok... ok... I realize I just set myself up with the " camper was a rockin...".

 

[WyoDoug]

Yeah it gets a little windy out there.. We woke up at 3am the first night and the camper was rocking back and forth like there was 100 people shoving it back and forth. It was howling!!

Ok... ok... I realize I just set myself up with the " camper was a rockin...".

You should try one of those cabin tents in Wyoming winter LOL. Once you experience that you never want to hunt in a tent again.

 

[Rhino Hunter]

You should try one of those cabin tents in Wyoming winter LOL. Once you experience that you never want to hunt in a tent again.

10 years ago we got to experience something like that. We were in NW CO hunting mule deer in the 3rd season while camped in a big tent. A severe winter storm front came in fast and vicious at about 5:00 AM. It hit us like a solid wall of wind and snow. We were inside literally standing up holding the tent poles trying to stop the tent from collapsing. After about 15 minutes we gave up and took all the poles out and layed the tent down. Right after the storm front moved through we went hunting way up high and my buddy took this buck:


When we returned from out hunt we had about a foot of snow on top of our collapsed tent. LOL. But we had a great buck to show for it.

He will be with us hunting Antelope in WY. Neither of us want to hunt out of a tent after that, LOL, so that’s why we’ll be towing two cargo trailers with us to camp out of.

We were very lucky that we were in our tent when the storm came through. Laying the tent down prevented it from being damaged. Had we been out hunting I’m sure it would have broken poles at a minimum and probably shredded the tent also.

 

[WyoDoug]

10 years ago we got to experience something like that. We were in NW CO hunting mule deer in the 3rd season while camped in a big tent. A severe winter storm front came in fast and vicious at about 5:00 AM. It hit us like a solid wall of wind and snow. We were inside literally standing up holding the tent poles trying to stop the tent from collapsing. After about 15 minutes we gave up and took all the poles out and layed the tent down. Right after the storm front moved through we went hunting way up high and my buddy took this buck:

When we returned from out hunt we had about a foot of snow on top of our collapsed tent. LOL. But we had a great buck to show for it.

He will be with us hunting Antelope in WY. Neither of us want to hunt out of a tent after that, LOL, so that’s why we’ll be towing two cargo trailers with us to camp out of.

We were very lucky that we were in our tent when the storm came through. Laying the tent down prevented it from being damaged. Had we been out hunting I’m sure it would have broken poles at a minimum and probably shredded the tent also.

Nice. Least you got something out of that torture. I got a nice cow elk the same way but not right away. It was almost dark and past shooting light when I stumbled onto a herd. Had maybe 10 minutes or less of legal shooting time that day.