Hello, (I have searched and read the few posts on this issue I could find)

I have a (read signature below) edit: I have and plan to use a lighter weight, load leveling hitch. It has anti sway feature too. (probably overkill)

My wife and I are considering getting a small travel trailer to tow behind my truck. So far, I have loaded it with 1300 pounds of sand and driven it with no problems, but I don't have a trailer to test. It's not a race car to begin with so I don't expect to go fast and we would take back roads and avoid highways where possible.

We plan on taking a two to three week trip that would take us into mountains and long flat areas.

We are considering a 13 to 16 foot trailer that weighs 1,000 to 2,000 MAX trailer weight. We want to get something old like a shasta, or scotty. The very lightweight trailers like scamps are Ok but very expensive for our budget. We really have about $1200 to spend and don't want to rebuild. We would keep the contents to a minimum and put a few things in the back of the truck to kep the weight down

I see the huge 22re camper trucks and think the wind resistance must be similar and the weight can't be that much off.

What do you guys think, what kind of experience have you had? Am I out of my mind to think I can do this?

Scamps skitter all over the road; they don't track well. The local base out here offers them for recreational rental.

Campers tend to be top-heavy and hard to handle, esp if Ma Nature is whippin' things up.

A pop-up trailer or in-bed pop-up tent might be your options to explore. Do a Google.

Also put a WTB ad in your local Craigslist; keep an eye on F/S.

Last, check with your local RV dealerships and see what's out there.

Thanks for the info about the scamps. I thought they looked a bit too light and not very well grounded.
The wife doesn't really want a hi-lo, or a pop up. I am hoping to find something 30+ yrs old, mainly because they are cheap and we like the looks better. Craigs list seems to be all WTB small trailer im my area or Selling 23' and up. Not surprising really considering the price of fuel. I have a friend that is restoring one, I am going to try to test with his.

Welllll....ya might have to stack your nickels, or see if you can find something on the other end of your trip...

So ya like retro--scope these <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

http://www.tab-rv.com/specs/index.php

They are really fun to look at but with an inside height of 5'9", I am going to have a hard time standing up being 6'3". They also cost $8,000 or more!

Have you considered buying an older rv and pulling your truck?

No, I hadnt thought of Buying an RV. If we had an Rv, we wouldnt need a truck behind it, or anything really. Part of this for us is doing it on the cheap, without camping in the bed. I did that in my tweenties, and really enjoyed it. However, we are a bit caught up in the romantic trailering thing and a little older an want to be able to stand, and sit in the trailer, (maybe take the cats!). The only reason we want to take my 4x4 truck is there are some abandoned roads to ghost towns we want to go see. My wife tried to get to them in a Uhaul truck on a trip through Wyoming and Montana, but couldnt get far enough down the roads. Camping and taking a road trip doesnt have to amke sense, but should be fun.

Honestly I don't think it would be fun pulling a 1000+ lb trailer, plus 2 adults, plus all your water, food, coolers, supplies with the 22re. I drove my truck (granted it's an '83 22r) thru Utah, Colorado, and yes thru Kansas with 2 adults, no trailer and boy it really struggled on some of those hills. I'm talking I had to drop to 2nd gear to keep moving up the hill, people were hating me as they passed. Your 22re is a little stronger, but I just don't see it happily pulling this trailer on any kind of an incline. I'm not saying it won't do it, I just don't think you will enjoy it. On flat ground it would probably do ok. I didn't see too many long inclines in Kansas, so I don't know where you could test it out, but I'd do a test before I bought one. And it does sound like fun to camp and 4wheel...they also make some nice tents that attach to your truck bed...

There are some decent hills in KS, but they are nothing compared to Mountains. I am going to test out what I can before diving into it. Since I will be picking it up, I will make sure it tows well before I pay.