‘Permanent’ travel trailer question

Looking at buying some hunting land relatively soon. No power or septic at the moment. Property is 4 hours from my primary residence. Original plan was to have a slab poured and build a garage at my leisure, heat it, and use it also as a cabin when up hunting. Long term plan would be to use it as an actual dedicated garage if I ever build a house up there. Then I got to thinking that doesn’t address the no power/no water issue. So why not park a used travel trailer out there until I decide for sure what to do with it? The issue is, I know next to nothing about travel trailers. I assume I’d have to completely drain and winterize the thing every time I leave? This area sees sub zero temps and heavy snow load in the winter. And then then I’m assuming I’d have to lug in a huge thing of fresh water every time I go up there. Seems like a lot of issues that wouldn’t really make it make sense. Is there a way to make one of those things somewhat ‘ready’ year round without being up there? Is there another, much better option I haven’t considered?

 

Why not a used mobile home? You can pick them up for pennies on the dollar and they work fine for a hunting cabin.

Plus, you can have the fun of saying you own a single wide.

After you build a cabin, sell it to some other hunter to haul away.

 

Can you get power to the land or is it always going to be off grid?

basically for what you want power comes first. It provides water from a well, heat, communication so you know the pipes broke D), etc.

If no power from the lines then your looking at solar/wind and batteries...and a bigger pucker factor.

Some family used to have a mountain cabin. There was a way to turn water main off, drain everything, etc to keep from breaking pipes. and yet they still broke pipes.

For the snow load on a travel trailer you can build a cover that will help.

So start with Power, add well and septic and then park whatever meth mobile you want to sleep inn.

 

Unless you are going to tote your poop, or ignore environmental regs, a trailer is going to be problematic with no septic.

Draining the water is one thing, but the water in the traps or low points on pressure lines can still freeze.

 

Put the trailer under a metal quonset hut.

 

Can’t you find no subsidized housing or bridges to live under where you at?

 

Good luck! Sounds like a dream come true. Don't let it become a nightmare. Let your path grow organically...and I don't mean tree-hugger organic. You'll figure it out as you go.

First things first, tho'. Read the Deed and any local related ordinances. You don't want to find out you can't build, live in/park an RV/mobile, dig wells/septic systems, use alternative power sources, ride unregistered vehicles, etc., etc. I know, sounds inconceivable. Have you checked reality lately? There's some real BS associated with remote properties these days.

How much "roughing it" are you willing to endure?

An unprotected travel trailer is sure to be a box of shit if left unattended for even the best of seasons. You should start by putting up an RV shed...basically a carport for long/tall vehicles. At the least, have a gravel bed to park it on. What about security? Will you come back to a trailer full of bullet holes, ripped out appliances/fixtures, a burned to the ground hulk? If it were me, I'd get the smallest, full-feature travel trailer I could find and drag it back/forth until more permanent accommodations were built.

Rain water can be collected off the roof of the shed but it's not a feasible idea for occasional use...too may considerations for filtration, pumping, etc. Bird/squirrel/bat shit will be washed into your container, not to mention any chemicals leached from the roofing material. If you're thinking about going this route, you might as well start thinking about future home plans, dig a well and install a septic system.

I think your best immediate water supply option is to buy some potable water tanks from Tractor Supply, et al. No bigger than 20-30gals each...you want to be able to manhandle the containers when full. Pump, gravity feed, whatever...

Travel trailers can be run off a battery. A bank of two deep cycle batteries and a good solar charger should be more than adequate to keep you in lights, fans, heat (propane) and refrigeration (also propane?). Being able to plug in to your tow vehicle for quick charges/emergencies kinda makes a generator overkill and who wants the noise?

 

Is it north of Hwy 8? If it is then you can do anything you want. Blue tarps are an approved roofing materiel up there and you can dump your septic anywhere you want.

 

That explains Leinenkugel.

 

Where ya lookin? I need a place to stash my snowmobiles during winter. I like the Ironwood / Hurley area for sledding

good luck, I’ve been pondering the exact same move. I’m leaning towards garage simply for the secure storage aspect then build a small cabin.

 

I've seen YouTube videos of people using the large sheds as cabins. Insulate it, finish the interior how you want and put it on a concrete pad. They're made to withstand the elements, and a lot of them look pretty good. Easy to add heat, a/c, water.

 

Chippewa Falls is south of Hwy 8. Leinies is good beer!!!

 

The cabin idea, whether pre-built shed or site built, with a composting toilet (sophisticated outhouse) is probably a better option than the travel trailer.

 

Does it have polyester curtains and a redwood deck?

 

Dude, I didn't care if the one we had had a yosemite sam mud flaps and a "no fat chicks" bumper sticker on it.

 

The Red River flows north. All the rest of ‘em flow south

 

We've done something similar to what you're thinking. Our "camp" is a 30 ft. camper I parked there 17 years ago and haven't moved it. No power or water, there was an outhouse on the property when we bought it that we still use. I haul water in 5 gal. pails and we use coolers. We basically keep the camper dry, don't fill or use water thru the camper but do use the sinks, drains, just leave the dump valve open and let it drizzle on the ground. Wife does pee in the toilet in the night, I just dump some water thru the toilet to rinse everything out when we leave. Only issue you might have is the amount of water you'd need if you plan on staying more than a few days. We're usually just over night or 2 if it's a 3 day weekend.

I put a metal peaked roof on the camper a few years ago because the roof was starting to get iffy. A couple big deep cycle batteries , an inverter and a Honda 2000 for power.

 

if you do a trailer, make sure you get an aluminum roof, or understand you WILL HAVE leaks, from the membrane roof at some point. usually by the time you find the leak... it is too late. bandit, has the right idea with a carport type of enclosure over the roof to protect from tree, rain, and or uv damage. that is THE BIGGEST DOWNFALL OF AN RV, the membrane roofs. (imho) Ski

 

My dad and uncles went this route. They bought some hunting land like 4 hours away, and started off with nothing on it. They started with tents, eventually got a old RV and used that for a few years, and now finishing up a cabin on it that they did most of the work on themselves.

They were able to get electric ran to the property though, and I believe they use well water

 

Shipping container.

I've seen more hunters setting up shop in a shipping container and it doubles for somewhat secure storage when you're not there.