It's not quite a basic cargo trailer, not quite a rolling A-frame. The AntiShanty trailer is more than meets the eye, part-time cargo box and part-time tiny aluminum cabin in the woods. It's a mobile mountain hut for surf bums and dirtbag climbers, carrying everything from an ATV, to dirt bikes, to boards, to a mess of camping gear before converting over to a mini-lodge with 9-foot (2.7-m) peaked ceiling and modular bunk beds. It's the latest in a camper market that's quickly shifting to meet the needs of a younger, faster, more active breed of adventure traveler.
In case it's not already apparent, AntiShanty's social media footprint makes clear that its trailer was closely inspired by the Thoreau-like wilderness cabin, the lonely-but-picturesque, steep-roofed cabin standing alone amidst snow-capped peaks or autumn-tinged forest, the type of cabin brushed on artwork filling galleries across the American Mountain West.
AntiShanty's design was also heavily guided by the masses of young adventurers escaping to mountains, forests and coasts every weekend, many of whom don't have interest in a fancy Airstream or huge triple-axle toy hauler but still want something more comfortable than a tent. Those types also often need to reconcile loads of volume-filling gear with compact vehicles.
So the Northern Utah crew behind the AntiShanty combined those themes into one, creating a simple but cozy wilderness cabin that tows behind the bumper. To do so, they left the usual trailer shapes and styles in the rear-view and created something different.
The 17.4-foot (5.3-m) AntiShanty isn't the first steeply pitched, A-frame-like camping trailer out there, following others like Rockwood Hard Side Pop-Up Campers and Aliners. However, it is very different from those, a cargo box that converts over into a basic but spacious living/sleeping module to be slept in overnight and left behind during the day for the enticing adventure and scenery waiting beyond campsite boundaries.
The AntiShanty starts life at the hitch as a basic aluminum-clad cargo box, ready to swallow up bikes, boards, camping supplies and other gear. It has a full-size lift-gate that swings up for easy loading and tie-downs inside to secure everything in place. The company shows the trailer independently loaded up with motorbikes, bicycles, an ATV and other gear. A roof rack doesn't appear practical or possible because of the moving roof, but gear racks and carriers can secure to the vertical beams along the sides, and a hitch receiver is there to hold hitch racks in back.
At camp, the toys and gear roll out and the AntiShanty becomes a spacious shelter. The roof pops and slides into place manually, offering loads of headroom. Triangular end panels fill out the spaces left at the front and rear of the roof. The trailer can also be occupied with the roof down.
AntiShanty leaves inbuilt furniture to other trailer-makers and instead relies on a modular system of aluminum beams that secure to sidewall mounting tracks. These beams configure into a picnic-style table and bench and also into a queen-size sleeping platform. An optional second sleeping platform up under the high roof gives the trailer the capability to sleep four adults.
Beyond that, the AntiShanty is pretty much a blank canvas. It saves space for gear-hauling by not creating a full-on mini-apartment inside, packing only a front countertop, where campers can prepare food and store things. No built-in stove, no water tank, no cabinetry ... it's really an empty shell for people and gear, and owners can pack coolers, water jugs and other camping equipment to use in the wild.
Outside, the no-step fenders double as added workspace, and the long steps can hold other gear, including a RoadShower 4 water tank/sprayer system for washing dishes and dirty flesh.
AntiShanty describes the trailer as something of an all-terrainer meant to get to trailheads and distant waters over bumpy, dusty tracks, but not meant for all-out 4x4ing behind a lifted Wrangler SEMA project. The hard-sided design is meant to give it a leg up on keeping out wind, bears, critters and other dangers and discomforts of the wild, compared to a tent or soft-sided pop-up. AntiShanty's wood-free, all-aluminum construction aims to fully eliminate headaches like water damage and decay.
AntiShanty is still out testing and touring with its prototype and working on the finalized production model. It has not released pricing just yet, but it tells us that it will be releasing more information in the coming days and weeks. It has several different packages planned, with the most basic weighing in around 1,500 lb (680 kg).
We hope to check the AntiShanty out in person, as the devil of this design is in the details. We're interested to look at how AntiShanty seals the moving roof to ensure it doesn't leak, how the triangular panels secure and seal, and how much of the cargo space gets eaten up by components like the aluminum beams and mattresses.
AntiShanty's been previewing the trailer through a series of videos, and the latest gives a better look at the beds.
Source: AntiShanty
