“I’m really excited to set a standard for what it looks like to camp with electrified RVs,” Edmonds resident Will Curry said of his new company, Kamperage, which rents trailers fully powered by electricity for camping trips.  

His mission is two-fold: to help the hesitant fall in love with camping and to introduce seasoned campers to a novel way of traveling in the outdoors. 

“You might not be super comfortable with being outside. You may have never camped before, but we’re going to make a camper out of you,” he said. “That’s my mission. And so it’s really introducing camping to a group set that maybe isn’t too familiar or comfortable with camping. And this is their first toe in.”

Kamperage rents out the Nomadic System One (NS-1) by Colorado-based Campworks. These compact, fully electric adventure trailers eliminate the need for gas, diesel or propane. Instead, they are powered by a massive battery (up to 12kWh). They output 9,000 watts and feature 300 watts of integrated solar.

The NS-1 is chock full of amenities like a memory foam queen mattress, cozy bed linens, a climate control system, Wi-Fi, interior storage, and a kitchen outfitted with a fridge, freezer, stove, cookware, plates and silverware. These elements streamline what can be the overwhelming planning and packing process usually required for a camping trip – and help “dispel how scary and unfamiliar camping can be,” Curry said.

Curry grew up camping in the Northwest with his family and he prioritizes outdoor activity because “I feel that’s when my spirit sings and when I feel at my best. It’s a huge part of my own mental wellness.” He wants more people, especially camping and outdoors novices, to experience similar benefits.

Learn more about Kamperage below.

Tell me about the path to the name Kamperage.

It was a very simple one – it’s “camping” and “amperage” mixed together. I love the name and it’s stuck. 

How do you help first-time campers overcome their fears?

So it first comes with just education and conversation. When you come to pick up or when I deliver, we’re going to spend 45 minutes to an hour just talking about the camper, going through all the systems. I’m going to hook it up to your car, I’m going to watch you unhook it, and then we’re going to do that again just to make sure that you have that down. In addition to that, we have the procedures all written down on a clipboard. I’m really trying to educate and make sure that everyone feels confident when they’re going 

How long can you be in the middle of nowhere with the NS-1?

You have 12 kilowatts of onboard battery, which is going to give you about three to four days of power if you’re stationary. So that’ll heat and cool your cabin, you can cook from the cooktop, use all the systems. You could be parked at Snoqualmie Pass, going out on a ski trip and be boondocking that day, not attached to any shore power. If you have strong solar exposure, you can eke out maybe another day because you’re trickle charging off of the 300 watts of onboard solar.

Or let’s say you’re going to Moab or Joshua Tree for a couple weeks – you can plug into a standard 110 outlet and charge up within a couple hours and extend your trip for as long as you want. In addition to that, if you are super techie, you can deploy additional solar and charge the unit that way. So there’s 1600 watts of deployable solar that you can literally have out in the woods or on your lawn and charge this thing up without plugging it into an outlet at all.

How’s business going so far?

While I’m rolling with the anticipated seasonal slowdown, it’s actually been a great time to ensure Kamperage gets all the details right ahead of the busier spring and summer season. So far, we’ve had several adventurous weekend warriors take the camper out and we’re now seeing a strong uptick in demand for nights starting in March and going forward. 

We’ve actually got a promo going on through 2025 for our Edmonds’ fam. If anyone uses the code EdmondsFamily15 at check-out, they’ll get 15% off their booking for any trip in 2025. I know growth will come from folks across the Puget Sound region, but at the end of the day, this is a local business and I’d love to serve this community first. 

How would you like Kamperage to grow in the next few years?

I see creating a stable of electrified campers – campers that aren’t using propane or any energy source to fuel the adventure. I’d like to have EV vans down the line. Volkswagen has a really cool electric van coming out, and that potentially could be a part of the stable. 

Since we’re in the Seattle area, I’ve got to ask: Are dogs allowed in the campers?

We’re going to keep one pet-friendly and one hypoallergenic in order to accommodate everyone. Pet owners are an important segment of the market that I need to accommodate, which I’m happy to do – we have a dog, and we’re certainly going to have our pup in the pet-friendly unit.

— Story by Clare McLean

— Photos by Anne Cleary and Lauren Martin