RTT Back to Ground Tent

[dziner]

I currently have a roof top tent mounted to the cap on my Tacoma. It's been great sleeping up off the ground with a nice view. But I'm strongly thinking about selling it and going back to a ground tent. I'm curious if anyone else has made this transition as well.

One of my biggest gripes about having a roof top tent is that I can't use my truck when the tent is deployed. And to be honest, setting up and tearing down the RTT is a bit of a chore for me. I'm short, and the truck has a 3" suspension lift.

I've put together some pros/cons to the situation.

I could build an adventure trailer. But this has a lot of additional cons:

1. I live in the city and have no place to park a trailer
2. The added expense of building a trailer
3. I really don't want to tow something around when I go camping

Pros for the RTT:

1. Up off the ground
2. Doesn't take up ground space

Cons to the RTT

1. Can't use truck when deployed
2. High center of gravity
3. Heavy
4. Reduced overhead clearance
5. Difficult to setup/tear down
6. Lost roof rack space
7. Expensive
8. Can't stand up in it

Pros for ground tent

1. Can setup camp and still use truck
   
2. Standing room
   
3. Lightweight
4. No need for ladder
   
5. Inexpensive

Cons for ground tent

1. Need flat open space for setup
2. Takes up room inside truck for storage

Of course the price of a ground tent is much more variable than a RTT. Depending on quality, brand, size, and features. And in reality I'm trading space from the roof to inside the truck. So some of these can kinda be a draw.

 

[bajatacoguy]

You missed comfort!

If you own the tent why is the cost listed on the pros & cons list?


Lol


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[Eric Haltom]

I'm reading and hearing more and more people on YouTube and these forums moving from RTT to ground tents. I don't have an RTT and was thinking that I wanted one, but the more research I do, the less I want one. I think you have a point with being able to stand in a tent. For the longest time, I had a small 4 person ground tent that I had to sit to change... what a pain. Plus with some ground tents these days, set up can be competitively quick with RTTs.

 

[Jeepney]

It really depends on how you camp. Any base camping, you will not like the RTT. If you tend to move around more then that's where the RTT shines.

I only setup my RTT right before we go to sleep. That gives me enough time to leave the truck free to do any kind of runs (firewood, beer, etc). In practice though, we don't move around once we find a dispersed campsite since we pretty much everything we need at that point. When dispersed camping, it's pretty hard to find a nice spot for a ground tent, let alone a family tent (2 kids+wife).

If I am setting a base camp then i am taking my ground tent. Also it will most likely be in an established site so there really isn't any advantage to a RTT. I guess one advantage is the last campsite we went, the site wasn't graded well and we had a storm overnight. Everyone around us got flooded and had to deal with all the crap the next day. BTDT, I was happy i didn't have to deal with it that day.

It does add up weight at top, and impacts gas mileage. For any moderate trail, it is not heavy enough to really impact your tippiness (i.e. your butt meter will probably freak out first), but you can definitely feel more swaying left and right when going thru potholes which a) makes you less agile, and b) adds more strain to your roof/rack. I guess that is generally true for most overlanders where there will be some weight at top whether it's an RTT or 5 jerry cans and a tire -- just slowdown :).

 

[dziner]

It really depends on how you camp. Any base camping, you will not like the RTT. If you tend to move around more then that's where the RTT shines.

I only setup my RTT right before we go to sleep. That gives me enough time to leave the truck free to do any kind of runs (firewood, beer, etc). In practice though, we don't move around once we find a dispersed campsite since we pretty much everything we need at that point. When dispersed camping, it's pretty hard to find a nice spot for a ground tent, let alone a family tent (2 kids+wife).

If I am setting a base camp then i am taking my ground tent. Also it will most likely be in an established site so there really isn't any advantage to a RTT. I guess one advantage is the last campsite we went, the site wasn't graded well and we had a storm overnight. Everyone around us got flooded and had to deal with all the crap the next day. BTDT, I was happy i didn't have to deal with it that day.

It does add up weight at top, and impacts gas mileage. For any moderate trail, it is not heavy enough to really impact your tippiness (i.e. your butt meter will probably freak out first), but you can definitely feel more swaying left and right when going thru potholes which a) makes you less agile, and b) adds more strain to your roof/rack. I guess that is generally true for most overlanders where there will be some weight at top whether it's an RTT or 5 jerry cans and a tire -- just slowdown :).

I haven't really noticed any top-heaviness with my RTT on the cap. But I do wonder if I clear certain branches and trees as I approach them. Parking garages too.

As for base camping, I think the RTT is pretty nice. For instance, when I'm at Overland Expo I can setup the RTT and awning and be pretty comfortable. But if I need to run into town for laundry, or everyone is heading to a happy hour one night, it's a pain in the butt. This is where I feel going back to a ground tent solves all of those problems.

 

[vegasjeepguy]

All of the cons for the RTT listed was enough for me to stay with a ground tent until I got a trailer. My motivation to get the trailer was the very limited cargo capacity of my Jeep and the addition of the RTT was almost an afterthought. Without my trailer I would've stuck with my original setup which was a ground tent and cots, which actually still gets some use when friends new to camping want to go but they don't have much gear.

 

[dziner]

Well, the awning and roof top tent sold in one day. Now I'm shopping for a new tent and pondering sleeping setups. I have a nice sleeping bag and a sleeping pad. Pretty basic and left over from my motorcycle traveling days. Wondering what the pro and cons are with maybe better sleeping pads, air mattress, or cot. Gonna check out the "Great sleep setup" thread to see what people are weighing in with there.

 

[blackntan]

Well, the awning and roof top tent sold in one day. Now I'm shopping for a new tent and pondering sleeping setups. I have a nice sleeping bag and a sleeping pad. Pretty basic and left over from my motorcycle traveling days. Wondering what the pro and cons are with maybe better sleeping pads, air mattress, or cot. Gonna check out the "Great sleep setup" thread to see what people are weighing in with there.

OZTENT

 

[vegasjeepguy]

Im a big fan of these cots with a ground tent. Used them for years until I got my RTT.



https://www.byerofmaine.com/products/camp-furniture/maine-military-cot.html

 

[OffroadTreks]

It really depends on how you camp. Any base camping, you will not like the RTT. If you tend to move around more then that's where the RTT shines.

I only setup my RTT right before we go to sleep. That gives me enough time to leave the truck free to do any kind of runs (firewood, beer, etc). In practice though, we don't move around once we find a dispersed campsite since we pretty much everything we need at that point. When dispersed camping, it's pretty hard to find a nice spot for a ground tent, let alone a family tent (2 kids+wife).

If I am setting a base camp then i am taking my ground tent. Also it will most likely be in an established site so there really isn't any advantage to a RTT. I guess one advantage is the last campsite we went, the site wasn't graded well and we had a storm overnight. Everyone around us got flooded and had to deal with all the crap the next day. BTDT, I was happy i didn't have to deal with it that day.

It does add up weight at top, and impacts gas mileage. For any moderate trail, it is not heavy enough to really impact your tippiness (i.e. your butt meter will probably freak out first), but you can definitely feel more swaying left and right when going thru potholes which a) makes you less agile, and b) adds more strain to your roof/rack. I guess that is generally true for most overlanders where there will be some weight at top whether it's an RTT or 5 jerry cans and a tire -- just slowdown :).

Yeah, I completely agree here.

It's funny, because I'm over a ground tent. I thought long and hard about the OzTent. Something about the simplicity of a RTT that I like. I have kids, when we setup came, we want it done fast. And it's usually the last thing we do. We're usually ready to settle. And our campsites usually aren't a basecamp for the days activities.

We have a travel trailer that works as our basecamp. So we're looking to over night on a trail with the RTT.

 

[Gary Stevens]

I recommend getting a good folding cot, with your pad you will set. That's what I used for a good nights sleep for years. As far as tents go, a standing height tent is a must and there are lots of good ones. Here is the test. Set it up and push on it sideways and see how much movement you get, see how stable it is. You will be surprised the differences in tent design with this. REI sells this great looking, seems perfect tent called the Kingman. Shaped like a quonset hut building. Terrible in medium to high winds when they hit it from the side.

 

[Gary Stevens]

Im a big fan of these cots with a ground tent. Used them for years until I got my RTT.

View attachment 29523

https://www.byerofmaine.com/products/camp-furniture/maine-military-cot.html

That's the one I have, a bit heavy but really stable.

 

[dziner]

The tents I'm looking at are either the Coleman Octagon 98, or the Cabela's Hybrid 8-person tent. Both offer standing room and seem to have good reviews. I have an SUV tent that I tried setting up once and found it extremely difficult to get it attached to my truck. Trying to strap it to the tailgate and such was a pain. But the thought of having the back of my truck accessible from my tent is kinda cool (the SnoMaster fridge is mounted there).

That military cot looks affordable compared to the Helinox cots.

 

[Mike W]

I'll post my setup again because its just sublime sleeping. I vote ground tents.

• Kodiak Canvas Flexbow deluxe 10'x10' (with built in awning thing and add-on vestibule. A bit heavy and packs a bit large, but super simple to setup and very strong in weather, good in rain, can stand up anywhere in it because of nearly vertical walls, 6'6" tall. Thick floor, wont rip. I love being able to put a chair in it, or my camp table and just live in it if the weather goes to crap.
• Alps Mountaineering Comfort Series Self inflating air pads (xxl size is 4" thick and amazing, but the xl is 2" and I can still side sleep on them. They are way nicer than the back packing smaller pads)
• Sleeping bag, I have a pretty standard coleman deal, but its flannel lined and I just love that for comfort. again, doesn't pack that small, but its comfy.

 

[dziner]

I'll post my setup again because its just sublime sleeping. I vote ground tents.

• Kodiak Canvas Flexbow deluxe 10'x10' (with built in awning thing and add-on vestibule. A bit heavy and packs a bit large, but super simple to setup and very strong in weather, good in rain, can stand up anywhere in it because of nearly vertical walls, 6'6" tall. Thick floor, wont rip. I love being able to put a chair in it, or my camp table and just live in it if the weather goes to crap.
• Alps Mountaineering Comfort Series Self inflating air pads (xxl size is 4" thick and amazing, but the xl is 2" and I can still side sleep on them. They are way nicer than the back packing smaller pads)
• Sleeping bag, I have a pretty standard coleman deal, but its flannel lined and I just love that for comfort. again, doesn't pack that small, but its comfy.

Thanks! I'm looking at the Kodiak tent as well. Definitely at the top of the price scale. But, it's a true 4-season tent so it's going to be more expensive. In fact, for longevity, I may really consider this tent. It has steel poles, it's canvas, it's a 4-season tent, and actually seems easier to setup than the others.

 

[AlOrMi]

That's why we built a roof rack platform that can serve a ground tent platform, an elevated hang out deck, or a place to throw a couple of pads and sleeping bags on a clear night. It folds out when needed.

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[dziner]

That's why we built a roof rack platform that can serve a ground tent platform, an elevated hang out deck, or a place to throw a couple of pads and sleeping bags on a clear night. It folds out when needed.

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Do you have photos of your setup?

 

[AlOrMi]

Do you have photos of your setup?

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[AlOrMi]

I thought of using a 4 season tent but found this single wall tent with vertical walls that is perfect for our use. We will also park the Jeep on occasion and backpack to a different overnight destination. For example, we will be camping at the North Rim Campground at the Grand Canyon but hiking down to the river for one night.

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[blackntan]

I thought of using a 4 season tent but found this single wall tent with vertical walls that is perfect for our use. We will also park the Jeep on occasion and backpack to a different overnight destination. For example, we will be camping at the North Rim Campground at the Grand Canyon but hiking down to the river for one night.

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Cracking set up how much does it weigh