What I thought would be two posts to share my thoughts about purchasing an RV has turned into five. So far. To recap: I started with the decision to go with a fiberglass trailer, then narrowed it down to five manufactures. Then in this three part series, I’ve shared my final four trailer choices starting with the Casita in part one and moving to the Oliver and the Escape in part two. Today is the third and final part with a review of the Bigfoot Trailer.

I remind readers the reason I wrote reviews of my final four is because I continue to struggle with which one is right for me. Any day I hope the decision will become obvious. But today it is not that day. I will be going to the Tampa RV Supershow in January and my greatest hope is once my research leaves the realm of the internet and steps into reality, things will be more clear.

However, there is an equally good chance it won’t help at all since three of my final four trailer choices are purchased directly from the manufacture. RV show vendors are primarily dealers and companies that sell items for the RV.

Today’s review is the sole final four trailer purchased from a dealer and not the manufacturer. Bigfoot RV is located in British Columbia, Canada. Yes, this manufacture is the second (of my final four) located in Canada.

 

Like the Oliver, the Bigfoot is on the higher end of the price range. And, like the Oliver, you get what you pay for.  Bigfoot has the insulation and thermal windows necessary to be a multi-season trailer. Multi-season is the word used on their website. I interpret it as three seasons, meaning you might be a little cold in the depths of a cold winter.

Many people know Bigfoot as a truck camper brand. The camper has two series and each series has several layouts. A truck camper was never among the options I considered. They also make the Bigfoot Travel Trailer 2500 series which comes in three lengths: 17.5 foot, 21 foot and 25 foot.

I focused in on the 21 foot model. Not too big and not too small. The Bigfoot 21 foot trailer with front bedroom has a lot going for it. And, more than any of the other trailers on my final four list, it has the most items on my priority list. In fact, it has every priority item except that it isn’t purchased from the manufacturer. It’s the only one on the list with a dry bath. A dry bath means showering in an enclosed  dedicated shower space rather than showering in the entire bathroom. Showering in a wet bath gets the sink, toilet and all four walls of the bathroom wet. People don’t have very good things to say about wet baths.

With a dry bath, the conversion from a marine toilet to a composting one would be pretty easy. And its flat roof could easily accommodate solar panels. Both important aspects of the kind of RV living experience I want.

Bigfoot’s  bed, not a dining area that converts to a bed, is another big plus. In other words, it comes with a real mattress not 4″ cushions that fit together to make up an uncomfortable “mattress.” An added bonus to this set up is that two sides are accessible which makes changing the sheets so much easier than on the dining room conversions where three sides butt up against the walls of the trailer.

The Bigfoot isn’t purchased from the manufacturer so the price isn’t a flat fee, making this one harder to price. The best estimate is to take 25% off the MSRV advertised by a dealer.  Particularly good negotiators might get up to 30% off. My calculation, once I add the necessary upgrades and add ons to meet my needs, the Bigfoot  cost is $45,000. This makes it less than the “Cadillac” choice of the Oliver but still double the cost of the Casita.

I mentioned Bigfoot before and heard from a man in Fairbanks, Alaska, who owns a Bigfoot truck camper. He has had it 10 years and loves it. That says a lot.

As a bit of a post script, the Bigfoot website shows a list of “factory outlets.” Anchorage, to my surprise, has one listed. Of course, I’d be a fool not to go for a look-see. I considered titling this post First RV Lot Visit a Bust. Does that give you an idea of how it went?

This Bigfoot RV lot (and “lot” is a VERY generous word) had one (that is not a typo) truck camper for sale. Yep, one single solitary very lonely little unit. The woman explained they were a “mom and pop” shop so couldn’t afford a large inventory. I did take the full tour of the truck camper. They also had insulation samples which I liked being able to see and found interesting. On the bright side, it made me even more excited for the RV show with 450 vendors, more than 1,400 RVs, all covering 26 acres.

Bigfoot Pros:

• Dedicated bed
• Dry bath
• Insulation good to zero degrees

Bigfoot Cons:

• Price
• Can’t customize at build since not purchased from the manufacturer

So there you are. The final four fiberglass trailers. During the RV show and the side trip to Tennessee for the factory tour at Oliver, I’ll post regular updates on social media. So exciting. Everyday, this journey to Supersize my LIFE becomes a little more real. Deciding on which trailer is right for me will be a big step in that journey.

Have you wondered how I will pull the trailer, whichever one I end up going with? In an upcoming post, I will share my thoughts. This one, I think I have figured out!

Have a happy and safe Thanksgiving holiday. Here’s to good food, good friends/family and to four days off work. I give thanks for the unique opportunity at the chance to live a dream. To Supersize my LIFE.

 

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