Koala's Maiden Voyage

Well we made a spontaneous decision to get away to Townsend for a night to see how things would shake out on our first trip. We reserved a spot at the KOA there and hit the road. I'm absolutely tickled with how well the dual cam setup kept everything straight and stable.

Setting up was such a breeze compared to the the pup or HTT we had in the past. I knew we made the right choice when the DW said, "We're done already?" After a quick dip in the pool and a good grilled meal we decided that one night wasnt' going to be enough. Luckily we could keep the same spot for Saturday night and had already packed extra clothes and food.

Saturday morning we awoke to a lingering skunk smell. After popping into the office for something we learned there had been a bear in the campground that had been skunked near the dumpsters. Apparently he had eaten a buffet of goodies that people had left out on his way up from the river to the dumpster. I'm pretty sure nobody left food out Saturday night.

Sunday we got up early and made some muffins that we somehow didn't burn like every other batch we tried to bake in an RV oven. We were able to get hitched up pretty quietly and hit the road by eight. We were even able to get home, unpacked and chill for an hour or so before making it to church.

I knew we had made the right choice when DW leaned over to me before we had even gotten out of Townsend and said, "When is our next trip?".

As far as the 'shakedown' process goes, I only found a leaking low point drain and a slide seal that had popped loose. Both were easy fixes.

I sure happy everything went great never know what will happen on the first trip.

That trailer looks like a monster when hooked to that truck. Glad everything went well and hope to see you camping somewhere soon.

again... very nice camper!!!! very nice!!!!

Are towing with a Tacoma?

how did you fix the low point drain? did it just need tightening?

Glad you are camping again Afob, or with that nice unit maybe I should say glad you are Glamping. Either way is good.

It is a bit of an unusual sight to see a Tacoma pulling something this big. It did an awesome job and actually felt more stable than the 17 foot single axle HTT we traded in. Keep in mind that gvwr on the TT is only 5700 or so lbs. It weighed 4160 at delivery. The tow rating on the Taco is 6500 lbs so even if I max out the TT I'm still under my tow rating. We spoke to several people in the campground about it and I think we are going to have to make a sign that says what it weighs. The length was my only concern prior to purchase so we opted for the full reese dual cam setup. Now I know why everybody sings it's praises. We had no problems keeping speed on 321 through the curves and hills between Maryville and Townsend.

The specs is really drew me to this line of TT. For a similar floorplan in any other brand it would be at least 1000 lbs more. The trick is it is both narrower and shorter than a standard size TT. My tall brother in law had to stoop while inside but it works for us. I'm 5'8" and can just touch the ceiling with my pinky while touching my thumb to the top of my head. The walls are also all composite azdel which saves 50 pct weight over traditional luan plywood.

This pic kinda puts the size difference in perspective.



The drain thing was just a quick 1/2 turn with of cap with my pliers.

Check out www.koalarv.com for details and specs. [img]

glad to hear you are happy with the "tow".. I drive a Nissan Frontier Crew Cab 4X4.. similar to the towing capability of the Tacoma. My Nissan is rated at 6100 lbs. its a 265hp V6, automatic.

I had looked at the 21CS.. UVW is about 3500 lbs. The KOALAs are a great light weight camper for some 6 cylinders and 1/2 ton pick ups. I had to keep in mind that my trucks tow rating includes any people and/or dogs in the truck.. plus what ever I put in the bed (firewood, etc).

I figure this way for me:
TT 3500 lbs
Junk in trailer 1000 lbs (probably actually less)
Me, wife, dog, firewood, etc: 600-800 lbs (or less)
total: 5300 lbs

that gives me at least 800 lbs for error.

Were really close on tounge weight which is the limiting factor of the Tacoma along with it's meager cargo capacity. We knew that going into the purchase. We're due to replace the Tacoma in the next few months anyhow but I'm still incredibly impressed with how it tows near it's max ratings.

What is the wheelbase on that model Frontier? We are at 127 inches for the sake of comparison.

my Nissan is 125.9 inch wheelbase