Common sense says that if something is cheap and convenient and overall too good to be true, you should beware of signs of dubious quality. But if you remove all the unnecessary "fluff" and strip a product to its bare-bones functionality, you can achieve durability and quality – and, apparently, affordability, too.
A low-maintenance, ultra-durable, comfortable, and highly convenient camper with overlanding potential and an affordable price tag? Well, color us surprised.
The HitchHiker wants to be all these things: a sleeper camper shaped like a teardrop trailer that's durable, very lightweight, very versatile, comfortable, and basically ideal for overnight (or longer) stays outdoors with the entire family, regardless of location. The only condition Tusca imposes is that no more than three members make up the family, or two adults and a small child.
The HitchHiker is a new arrival on the scene – so new that it hasn't even started deliveries yet. Pre-orders are now underway, with an April 2024 start date set for deliveries in North America.
Photo: Tusca Outdoors
The HitchHiker is the first product of its kind from Pennsylvania-based Tusca Outdoors, which specializes in high-density EPE foam hunting blinds. Their products are lightweight, fully insulated, and with no material that could rot, allowing Tusca to boast that they make the only "hunting blind you can heat with a candle."
The HitchHiker is all these things as well but in a sleeper camper form. The idea for it came when Adam and Josh went on a hunting trip and were thinking of sleeping arrangements for the entire party, including kids and spouses. A Tusca hunting blind adapted for that purpose would make so much sense, they decided.
Months later, they had the first prototype of the HitchHiker, essentially a movable pod made from the same EPE foam material, with one access point, windows, and interior shelves. It's essentially a teardrop-shaped box that you can plop onto any 5x8 (1.5x2.4-meter) utility trailer or in the bed of your truck, fully insulated and spacious enough to fit a queen-size mattress.
Photo: Tusca Outdoors
Unlike sleeping in an actual box, sleeping in the HitchHiker would bear some degree of comfort. You have the two screened windows and the lockable door for ventilation, and integrated vents for optimized airflow. You also get a carpet, though you won't be seeing much of it because of the mattress you spread out on top.
Measuring 90 inches by 58 inches (228 cm by 147 cm), the pod weighs just 190 lbs (86 kg), so it's lightweight enough to be lifted off the ground by two people and placed onto the trailer. Its light weight also helps with the choice of towable: Tusca says that you can place it in the bed of your truck or on a utility trailer, either on its own or with a pair of ATVs, e-bikes, or whatever other small vehicle you prefer on your outdoor adventures.
Because it's fully insulated and hard-walled, the HitchHiker is comfortable in both cold and hot weather. In fact, the maker boasts that you can heat it with a candle even in freezing temperatures, just like its hunting blinds. Even better, you can keep temperatures at a comfortable level inside using only body heat.
Photo: Tusca Outdoors
Should you require a bit more warmth, though, Tusca added an electric port on the side so you can connect an electric or a propane heater.
The HitchHiker is just what its name implies: a halfway solution for a short stay in the great outdoors, but without having to ditch a certain level of comfort. It's a hard-walled, fully enclosed, bare-bones pod that provides shelter from the elements and a comfortable night's rest, with a lockable door and opening doors. It doesn’t offer more features and doesn’t pretend to be more than it is
That said, perhaps the highest selling point of this sleeper camper is its versatility, stemming from the way it "fits" almost any vehicle and easily slides off it when it's no longer needed.
It's not just compact in size but can be secured in two different ways – and is as easily removed. You can either use the 6 plates and bolts to attach it to the trailer or tie it down by means of the 2-inch ratchet straps in the roof slots. When you return home, you can remove the pod and still have the full use of your pickup truck or utility trailer.
Photo: Tusca Outdoors
The HitchHiker retails for $2,750, which doesn't include the mattress inside but still distinguishes it as an affordable variant even to conventional camping. The first finished product will be on display at the 2024 edition of the Great American Outdoor Show, taking place in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, in February, and deliveries will kick off in April. Just in time for a new season of adventures in the wild.
Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends. Full profile
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