Looking for an affordable overland camper that’s actually built for real off-road adventures? In this full walkaround, I show you the custom DIY off-road trailer I helped build from scratch — rugged, simple, and budget-friendly.
Whether you’re into off-grid camping, overlanding, or just want a cheaper alternative to expensive expedition trailers or teardrops, this camper proves you don’t need to spend a fortune to explore the backcountry. Built to handle rough terrain in Utah and beyond, it’s the perfect setup for anyone who wants to camp anywhere without breaking the bank.
Project Trailhopper Build Thread
https://expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/project-trail-hopper.161769/
00:00 A Home-Built, Purpose-Built Overland Camper
00:49 Specs & How it was built in stages
02:24 Interior Walkthrough and Ideas
05:02 Underbed Storage + DIY Power Setup
07:29 Tough Exterior Walkaround (Built for Trails)
09:46 compact Kitchen tour
11:35 Camper Remodel Possibilities
12:01 3 Favorite Features of This Build
13:17 3 Things I’d Change or Improve
15:08 How to Get to This Campsite
More Info:
This camper started as a DIY project with friends and has gone by names like Project Trailhopper and Project Mallhopper. It’s not fancy, but it works — and I absolutely love it. I also include chapters so you can skip around to different parts of the build.
More DIY & Trail Content:
We’re Colorado Mallcrawlers — a channel focused on real off-road trails, vehicle walkarounds, and gear you can actually use. We drive everything from stock Jeep Libertys to built Wranglers, and we love showing what’s possible even without $100K rigs.
If that sounds like your kind of off-road content, we’d love to have you as a subscriber.
Build Thread:
Project Trailhopper Build: https://expeditionport…
Thanks:
Big thanks to Drew from Playing With Sticks for letting me use some of his camper footage in this video. Go check out his channel!
Channel Members have access to our filming schedule and I want you to be in the videos! The Black Bear crew gets additional easy to edit videos but offer more up to date info on trails (since guides take a while to put together). The Holy Cross crew gets more say in what videos get edited for the channel (video credits and early looks at Trail Guide edits). https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZNhgEStKFcR_H63ivHKVUg/join