Why we have changed our set up 3 times
In a perfect world, I wouldn't be writing this blog and we would be happy with every purchase we've ever made. I'm sure you can all relate to a time you have been so sure of a purchase only to question why on earth you bought it after the first use.
Setup #1
This photo brings back some unwanted memories. We bought this early on in our planning for ' The Big Lap'. The purchase being fuelled by excitement of seeing others travelling and watching caravans sell like they were going out of fashion...
apparently everyone had to have one.
We didn't have a lot of time to prepare for our trip, giving ourselves 4 months to get everything together. We picked up our camper trailer 2 months before heading off, went on one test trip to Oberon Dam and quickly decided it wasn't the setup we were looking for. Sold it one week before leaving for our lap. Thinking back Denya's exact word to describe it was 'shithouse'.
Don't get me wrong, camper trailers are great but it just wasn't great for us, at all. Here are the reasons why we decided to move on from the forward fold camper trailer and what we looked out for in the future:
SETUP TIME
I know the more we did it the quicker we would get, however just the thought of having to set the whole thing up for a one night annoyed me and if I was annoyed then I was sure I annoyed Denya in the process. This made for an easy decision to flick it.
CANVAS. A WHOLE LOT OF IT.
We didn't even think about how so much canvas would affect our trip. Dewy mornings meant packing the camper trailer up wet, same with rainy days which increases the chance of getting mould on the canvas.
STORAGE
When we first got it, it seemed that it had a massive amount of storage. This was only because we never actually knew what good storage was. Once you added the absolute necessities (Fridge, cooking supplies etc) there seemed to be no room left at all left for clothes etc... this is even with an extra storage box which was put on the back.
CONDITION
This is a topic that will be different for everyone. When we inspected the camper trailer we thought we looked over everything. It's funny what you miss when you're in a rush and excited. We found rust, leaks into the storage areas and main sleeping area and BLOODY MOULD. Enough to diminish our spirits. Definitely have a good look over whatever you are about to buy. Then look again.
I see a lot of people travelling around in camper trailers that are doing just fine, we just found it wasn't for us.
Setup #2
In comes the Jayco Eagle camper trailer. We got this 1 week before we left so not a lot of time to give it a trial run. We had to figure out any kinks along the way. Luckily for us we didn't come across many. The main reason we bought the Jayco was because of the two beds (queen & a double) and the room inside. We had so many friends and family keen on visiting us when we hit certain parts of the country. This was something we were so excited about but unfortunately covid took off and never let this happen. Interstate travel never opened enough to allow for our family and friends to visit. With the main reason for buying the Jayco not being fulfilled we decided to move on to something more practical.
We tried and tried to sell the Jayco in Cairns but unfortunately we couldn't sell it there.
Came to the point where we had it transported back to Sydney to try to sell it at home. Bad news for us, we still have the Jayco for sale. So if anyone is interested in a 2017 Jayco Eagle. Let us know.
Setup #3 (Our current Setup)
WHY DIDN'T WE BUY THIS IN THE FIRST PLACE???
Welcome the Kedron.
It's a little bit older than the Jayco, and by a little bit I mean 16 years.... BUT I had heard so much about Kedron caravans and how good their quality is so when we saw this we just couldn't say no.
We bought the Kedron mainly for practicality:
Having the ability to leave the caravan connected to the car for a quick one night stay
Storage is a lot more organised. Everything has it's own place
Quick set up especially with my favourite addition. The roll out awning. NO POLES
Denya wanted to add this in. She gets to hang her clothes up in the wardrobe
We can't wait to get back to the Kedron and keep trucking along in style.
It took us three goes to get things right for us but it also gave us a bunch of experiences along the way.
Hopefully you reading about our changes and indecisiveness helps you think about your future purchases a little more than we have. I know it probably wont change me but here's to hoping.
What have you bought that you regretted or thought you needed and never used?