For better or worse, I’ve gotten soft. I turned 50 last year and though I still ride my mountain bike like a 20 year old, albeit one with a gut and less hair, I’ve come to appreciate that enjoying the great outdoors doesn’t have to involve some level of suffering. As a young backpacker I tossed an emergency blanket on the ground, on top of which went my sleeping bag with nothing else between me and nature. I eventually graduated to a sleeping pad, inside a tent. Ten years later, at 30, I bought a Tacoma, installed a shell on the bed and built a plywood platform with gear storage below and an egg crate mattress topper on top. Oh, the luxury! A few years, one wife, and a kid later, we had a rooftop tent on top of an FJ Cruiser with a thick mattress and enough room to sit up and read at night. The we accidentally bought a motorhome in 2017 and traveled as tourists for a couple of years, until the realization hit that motorhomes are for…other people. It did however, have a heater and a kitchen, a place to sit and eat in bad weather and a comfortable bed. Even electricity to power all the gadgets. If only something existed that offered these amenities and the ability to drive off-road?

I had been familiar with Four Wheel Campers for a number of years and felt like one of their pop-up campers might offer the right combination of luxury and capability, when paired with the right truck. My wife, Melissa, wasn’t so sure. Luckily, I’m stubborn! We visited a dealer where we were able to step inside a camper to get a better feel for the size, layout and features. Eventually Melissa agreed we could…

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