The Teardrop Travel Trailer Adventures in Oklahoma

The Perfect RV for Couples Who Kayak

Like boats, RV's can be costly & difficult to maintain. Teardrop RV's offer savings through simplicity much like kayaks do.
As both families and automobile engines get smaller, the easy-to-tow, teardrop micro-RV grows in popularity.
A large number of Teardrop manufacturers are now in business, but the boom in DIY teardrop trailer projects is bigger than ever.
I go camping to enjoy the outdoors, not a TV. I need little more than a simple bedroom on wheels. Why break the bank on a 30 foot 5th wheel?
Teardrop travel trailers are light enough to be pulled by almost any vehicle. Sometimes less...is more.

Our family does not build trailers for sale. This webpage is here to help folks learn about teardrop trailers.

My Teardrop Travel Trailer Haiku

My Silver Grotto
follows my Silverado
on to adventure!

List of the Best Oklahoma Kayaking Spots for Teardrop Trailer Camping

1. Lower Mountain Fork River near Broken Bow, OK
2. Illinois River near Tahlequah, OK
3. Kiamichi River near Antlers, OK
4. Spring River near Quapaw, OK
5. Lake Eufaula, OK
6. Okmulgee State Park South of Okmulgee, OK

Many Teardrop trailers have doors on each side, but ours only has one door.

My wife and I recently bought ourselves a teardrop travel trailer for more comfortable camping. Since we rarely camp for more than two days in a row so large RV's are a bit of overkill for us. Our teardrop was made by a structural engineer from Arkansas. It is an aluminum exterior teardrop with air conditioning and a rear galley. It looks pretty retro, but the trailer frame was from a 1990's model popup trailer and the rest of the teardrop trailer is brand new. We call it the 'Silver Grotto for our Silverado'.

Personally, I prefer to launch my kayak close to dawn or sunset in the summer. It is much easier for me to achieve that goal, if I can spend the night by the riverside. However, I am too old for sleeping on the ground and Oklahoma is too hot for summertime camping outside. We tried a larger RV once, but found it was just too much trouble to move the thing for our quick overnight kayaking road trips around Oklahoma. I am hopeful that the teardrop travel trailer will help us see more morning light on a wider variety of water! It worked well enough on its maiden voyage to Okmulgee State Park to really get me excited about its potential.

Your Teardrop RV...Buy it vs. Build It

Teardrop trailers can be hard to find and even harder to finance. Considering that a new custom built teardrop RV can cost over $10,000, many people prefer to build their own teardrop camping trailer from their own plans or from a kit of pre-cut parts. For links to some great resources on building your own tiny teardrop trailer visit: http://www.tinytears.cc and join some of the teardrop camper groups and forums like: http://www.tearjerkers.net and Teardrops & Tiny Travel Trailers. Spend some time in these Teardrop camper forums and you will see some amazing works of art. I like the amazing pop-up camper / teardrop trailer hybrids like the Weekend Warrior, Doug's Rocketeer and the Bowlus style designs. If you want to see the creativity of teardrop trailer owner check out the Hall of Fame on the T & TTT site. It is a huge listing of amazing teardrop trailer photos. Lots of innovation is going on among the home builders of these tiny 'caravans' today.

However, if you have the coin and don't have the time, you can purchase brand new manufactured models. Currently popular manufactured Teardrop travel trailer brands include: Little Guy, Camp-Inn, T@B by Thor, Wee Kender, Wazat, Cozy Cruiser, and So-Cal Teardrops.

I think Troy, the builder of our teardrop, did a good job constructing it, but we did have to work on the AC. When Troy sold it to me, he warned me that it might need a new AC unit. I was not worried because these units are very cheap. However, after taking my first camping trip in it, I noticed the unit does cool, it just does not cool very well. After doing a little research this week, I learned some surprisingly counter-intuitive things about air conditioning in teardrop travel trailers. My wife and I installed a replacement unit this weekend. It cools very nicely now. We took a trip to Onapa RV Park near Checotah, Oklahoma recently. We learned that sometimes you need a conversion plug to connect to campsite power.

Teardrop Trailer Window Unit Air Conditioner Install

Air Conditioning Tips for the Teardrop Trailer

Teardrop trailers are too small for the smallest wall units. It’s important and required to have some fresh air coming in to keep the air unit from icing up.

Opening a window or two can improve your AC performance.

There also must be enough warm air coming in to the evaporator coils otherwise they will freeze up.

Install a drain hose for the condensate pan on the bottom of the A/C unit.

Never sleep in a completely enclosed teardrop, you need fresh air.

Be sure to properly vent the exhaust both from the AC Unit & from any electrical generators.

Buy the smallest BTU air conditioning unit you can find for your teardrop trailer, usually this is around 2500 BTU.

Teardrop Trailer Packing List

You have to pack light for teardrop trailer RV adventures. Here is the packing list that I am using to plan for road trips in my teardrop RV.

Teardrop Trailer Campground Destinations Around Oklahoma

This list is not all-inclusive. It is merely a list of RV camping locations that I hope to visit soon.
I organized the list by the water resources they are located near. Naturally, Broken Bow, Oklahoma is at the top of the list. I just love the cold, clear-water river runs and the beautiful Pine trees and Bald Cypress. Visit our Mountain Fork River page to learn more about my favorite area for camping in Oklahoma...Southeastern, Oklahoma!

Customize Your Teardrop Travel Trailer

Customizing your teardrop RV to fit your particular camping needs is one of the fun parts of teardrop ownership.
I am keeping a wish list of customization ideas for my teardrop trailer. My wife and I were not confident enough to build a teardrop camper from scratch nor were we ready to buy a high end manufactured model. We bought a homemade teardrop from a builder. We hope to 'make-it-ours' through customizations and upgrades. Your mileage may vary!

DIY Teardrop Trailer Parts Suppliers

Float Trips In The Ozarks

A wealth of great float trip ideas for great Ozark rivers and lakes can be found here on our website. Goodness knows you have to get out of that tiny Teardrop camper, once you wake up! Kayak down the thrilling & scenic Lower Mt. Fork River in Broken Bow, OK. Oklahoma's neighbor states offer great paddling too: like the fast and easy fun of The Elk River and the scenic beauty of The Kings River both in Missouri. The White River and The Buffalo River in Arkansas are both popular destinations with Oklahoma kayakers. The Spring River offers easy Class I paddling from Kansas to Oklahoma.

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Paddlers Supply Store Links:

The Teardrop Travel Trailer Adventures in Oklahoma

Your Teardrop RV...Buy it vs. Build It

Air Conditioning Tips for the Teardrop Trailer

Teardrop Trailer Packing List

Teardrop Trailer Campground Destinations Around Oklahoma

RV Campgrounds Near Oklahoma's Exciting Mountain Fork River

The Elk River in Missouri!

RV Campgrounds Near Missouri's Beautiful Elk River

RV Campgrounds Near Oklahoma's Scenic Illinois River

RV Campgrounds Near Oklahoma's Remote Kiamichi River

RV Campgrounds Near Lake Eufaula

Customize Your Teardrop Travel Trailer

DIY Teardrop Trailer Parts Suppliers

Float Trips In The Ozarks