As we complete eight months of full time RVing, we think it's timely to offer up a report of observations and impressions which we'd like to record for others who may be contemplating spending a year or more "on the road". Our own odyssey, "RVing the Open Agenda", will of course be different from other RVers who take to the road. We all have our own sense of where we'd like to go, what we'd like to do, and how long we'll stay at each place we visit.
A report from us now is "timely", in that we've just closed an important loop in our travels. For most of our time on the road we've ventured beyond the more familiar RV destinations we know in the Western States. We've traveled extensively to areas we'd previously only visited in the context of business meetings and conferences -- a very different and more limited exposure to various regions of the country. We've visited the South, Southeast, Atlantic Coast, and the Heartland States -- with only a brief foray into the Northeast. Now we've crossed back into the Western States again, and we're once again in a more familiar environment. The Intermountain West is our choice for this summer's exploration. But before we lose the vivid impressions of our RVing adventures into new areas, we'd like to comment on a number of matters which are now fresh in our memories. These items are not necessarily logically related or sequenced. So we'll present them as a series of observations.
"Camping" versus "RVing": Are they the same? Does it make a difference?
While both terms are used somewhat interchangeably throughout the country, there's a clear empahsis on "RVing" in Western States, and "Camping" in Eastern States. "Camping" seems to carry connotations of purposefully "roughing it somewhat, for the purpose of getting away from the work-a-day world and enjoying a more natural setting. "RVing" seems to have some measure of these same properties, but often includes as well an emphasis on a physical setting which will provide the supporting amenities which can maximize the "comforts of home". Thus it may be no coincidence that in Eastern and Southeastern States the place you park an RV is invariably called a "campground"; while in the Western States the place you stay overninght in an RV is more typically called an "RV Park". As we began our trek west, we found the transition in Missouri, where on the east side of the state we saw many signs identifying "Campground and RV Park"; and on the west side more frequently saw these same facilities called "RV Park and Campground". There were a variety of mutations of what they were called, but clearly the emphasis was changing on the trip West -- from "camping" to "RVing".
Our experience suggests this may be more than just labels. It may represent the fact that in the eastern half of the country there is a decided priority on "camping"; while in the western half the emphasis is more on "RVing". While there are many exceptions on both sides of the Mississippi, we sensed that eastern "campgrounds" were more focused on a family "camping" experience. It was responsive to a primary demand for tent camping and smaller RVs. It tended to be more family oriented, and the facilities placed more of a premium on a quality outdoor experience than responding to the needs of today's larger RVs. As a consequence, there were fewer parks which focused on RV support amenities, or which were designed or refurbished to deal with todays big rigs. In the West we've noted a tendency for "RV Parks" to place a premium on accommodating to the needs of larger RVs, and a corresponding lower priority on accommodating "campers". Indeed, in many RV parks in the West you need to verify whether tents will even be allowed. To the true "camper", western RV Parks may all too frequently look more like large paved parking lots. We comment on this not because there aren't a number of "big rig friendly" campgrounds in the East, or "tent friendly" RV parks in the West. It is simply a difference in emphasis, and involves neither a "right/wrong" nor a "good/bad" evaluation. However, if our assessment is accurate, "campers" and "RVers" may need to adjust their expectations somewhat when traveling at an opposite end of the country.
Another important consequence of this disparity is for RV park owners. In marketing their parks, it will be important to recognize that many RVers identify with either "camping", in a more pure form; or with "RVing", with a quite different expectation. Some who are seeking the outdoors "camping" experience, as in tent or tent camper, may well have a mildly negative reaction to booking a reso at an "RV Park"; and "RVers" may have an equally subliminal negative reaction to something that carries only the label "campground". Unless you've just traveled the length of the US from West to East and back, staying perhaps in 75 different "campgrounds" and "RV parks" en route, the distinction in terms we're making here may seem trivial. But in terms of identifying the preferences of those who drive RVs or pack a tent, we think it's quite important. We think park owners should take particular note of this issue. When they create advertising copy, they need to recognize that how they characterize their facilities will have a significant impact on just which types of RVers will be attracted -- or not attracted -- to the described property. And use of the words "campground" and "RV park" need to be carefully considered in the context of each park's (or campground's!) intended audience.
Traveling in a Wide Body RV
From the volume of email coming into our "Mailbox", we're aware that many RVers and soon-to-be RVers are concerned about the ability to drive the new, larger "big rigs" -- particular those 102" wide body types -- in various parts of the country without legal or safety restraints. We wondered about that a bit when we started our journey, now more than 14,000 RV miles ago. While we have not been to every nook and cranny RVers may visit, we've continued to follow our travel preference to use non-Interstate roads where possible. As a consequence, we've found ourselves on some fairly narrow back country roads -- some with steep grades and narrow, twisting corners. However, we've never found ourselves in a situation where we concluded our coach was "too big", or "too wide" to travel safely. Granted, in some cases these secondary roads required us to slow down considerably, and occasionally use a turnout to let traffic pass. The fact is the most difficult situations we've encountered have actually been on Interstates. Here we've seen examples of road construction (on the Interstates) which indicated a "safe speed" was 55 miles per hour; yet in one instance the road narrowed to 10" (in one case less) quite suddenly. The deep scrapes and marks on the concrete barricades which were placed too close together provided vivid details of rigs which had not sufficiently slowed to navigate the obstacles safely. There have been a number of times we've felt our confidence -- and safe driving competence -- were improved by having taken the professional RV driving course at the beginning of our journey. We certainly recommend it to others. And our experience over some 15,000 miles in a wide body coach, over virtually all types of roads, has yet to uncover any concerns with the 102" unit. We fear far too many RVers with big rigs may unreasonably believe they are consigned to only the largest freeways, and to visit only RV parks (campgrounds) which are located immediately adjacent to them. There are some wonderful parks, that are especially so just because they are not located on a main highway. An found an excellent example of this driving through Central Montana on I-90, and deciding to stay at a reader-recommended park (Spring Creek Campground and Trout Ranch) which is located some 2.5 miles south of the Interstate, on a comparatively narrow (by Interstate standards) country lane. It was completely safe and easy to navigate, even through a bit of construction that was then being completed. And the reward was staying at one of the most attractive RV parks we've yet found. RVers with wide body units who won't venture from the Interstates are truly doing themselves a disservice.
Packing an RV for Full Timing
We had an interesting an constructive experience the first time we passed within reach of our "real" home in Friday Harbor, Washington. Since we were momentarily close to home and friends, we decided to take a ferry ride out to the Islands to say "hi" to our friends and neighbors, and take care of a few minor items we could best accomplish by being there. It occured to us as we planned our day's trip over and back that there might be an item or two that we had been packing along with us which we really didn't need. Stephanie noted there were some clothes she hadn't yet worn, and with hindsight probably wouldn't miss. This got me thinking too, and soon I discovered there were a lot of items I hadn't worn either. This further stirred my curiousity, and I began to go through the storage boxes in the outside compartments. I tossed on or two items out on the lawn -- then some more -- then more still. Pretty soon we had a fair pile of "stuff" on the lawn -- enough to require we go find a few boxes to store them in. Some of the items were both big and bulky. There was, for instance, an "extra" bike rack we'd never used. It fits the Jeep, and we'd contemplated maybe we'd be taking trips in the dinghy and might like to have the bikes along. Well, we hadn't used it at all. And it's large, heavy, and an extremely awkward shape. It had almost demanded its own storage compartment. And then there was the used computer equipment I'd refused to discard when we updated our laptops and printer. They'd been enjoying a nice ride, taking up storage boxes, and had absolutely no intended use. The bottom line here is that by the time we loaded up for our day's trip to the Island, our Grand Cherokee was so loaded with boxes and "things" that we could hardly find a place for Missy to ride along with us! We'd just learned an important lesson: Something approaching 50% of what we'd taken along with us had proved unnecessary. I think we'll be a bit wiser on this score in the future!
Are we Bona Fide "Full Timers"?
One question that we simply couldn't begin to answer at the time we began our journey was whether we were making a mistake by not selling our home and disposing of our belongings from the outset. After all, we've heard so many times that RVers who became confirmed full timers did so incrementally. They took off for an indefinite trip in their RV, and became thoroughly enamored with the RVing lifestyle. Later they expressed the opinion that they should have simply "sold the house", ridded themselves of their accumulated possessions, and saved the costs related to the storage and later disposition of home and goods. Would our experience prove likewise?
Eight months later, we'd have to conclude that despite a much greater appreciation for those who have a tentative start and then dive into the full timing waters without reservation, our own conclusion is different. We've thoroughly enjoyed our life on the road. We look forward to our summer travels in the Northeast, and to future trips of extended RVing. But we also have found that we're either not ready or capable of settling into a permanent life of full time RVing.
Why is this so? When we first contemplated our current adventure, we speculated we'd move from one geographical "home base" to the next in deliberate "hops". We envisioned finding a pleasant place to park the coach, and then use the tow car to check out all the local points of interests. The coach would go in a relatively straight line, and the tow car would do a series of loops into the surrounding areas. This worked out, in part, as we'd envisioned. Because the mileage on the tow car is approximately 110% of the mileage on the coach since we started. And keep in mind, the tow car does NOT accummulate mileage while it is being towed. So our dinghy has actually been driven more that the RV.
Our trip log shows we've rarely spent more than two nights in one location -- not the week or so that we'd first envisioned. Our travels over the ground have simply not matched our expectations of finding a few locations and exploring them for a week or more. Instead, we've simply kept "movin' on" with the coach, always anxious to explore the next place down the road. This is not consistent with the more "settling in" approach we'd expect the true "Full Timer" would experience. Instead, it's more closely associated with all our RVing travels in the past -- which are characterized by being perhaps at least as attracted to what may lie ahead to that which is already in our headlights. We anticipated that attitude on our part might change when we took off with no schedule, no agenda, and no time limits. As it turns out, we were wrong on that score. We don't miss our "real" house, but we know when the time comes we'll enjoy being back in it again. And we know, too, that we'll be there just long enough to plan the next trip -- on the road again.
And so we must conclude that for now at least we are not true Full Timers. We do, however, now understand why so many other RVers -- folks just like us -- have found that full timing is the perfect answer for them. And indeed we may conclude at some future time it is just right for us too. For the moment, however, we will be content to retain our home in the San Juan Islands, close to our children and grandchildren, and continue our RV travels for extended periods while retaining our current home base. If there is a bottom line here, it may well be that there is another option to "full timing" for people who enjoy the RV lifestyle: It is a serious commitment to "Extended Time" RV travel.
Motorhome versus Fiver
Our first full size RV, which we acquired in the mid '80s, was a Class A gas powered motorhome. High mileage travel habits put over 100,000 miles on this unit in only a few short years -- and it depreciated in value to only a tiny fraction of its purchase price. That brought us to look more carefully at trailers and fifth wheels, neither of which to my knowledge has an odometer. We went through two fivers, first a 26' unit and then a 30' slider, and a couple of Dodge diesels. We put lots of miles on each, but maintained them with care. When it came time to sell or trade in, the units were still attractive, and of course had no signs of "high mileage". Depreciation was much less.
In 1999, when we launched this series, we did so by documenting our search for a new Class A motorhome -- this time a diesel pusher. Our expectation was that we would be spending a fair amount of time doing short trips not suitable for an RV. And we knew from experience that a big truck -- in our case a Dodge dually -- is not very versatile if you want to visit downtown areas on occasion, or do some fairly serious off-roading. It was primarily for this purpose that we chose to spend our full timing adventure in a Class A: We wanted the greater flexibility afforded by a smaller towed vehicle. Other than that factor, which was dispositive for us, we've found the tradeoff between a fiver and a motorhome very close. Each has its own set of advantages and disadvantages. In the motorhome, you're always "in" your RV. You don't have to park, get out of the truck, walk back, pull the steps down, and get inside. On the other hand, the "car" you'll drive once you have the fiver parked will be, in the case of a larger fifth wheel, a pretty big truck. It doesn't turn sharply, requires lots of side and overhead clearance, and just plain won't go into a garage that's limited to cars over a certain size. On the other hand, the fifth wheel doesn't accumulate mileage, it more easily supports bigger sliders, and the required investment is much lower. Once you've parked a fiver, it's easily as comfortable inside as any motorhome. Yet, after having experienced both sets of good and bad points to each, we concluded primarily on the basis of a smaller, more versatile towed vehicle, the diesel pusher would be the way to go. With hindsight, we think we made the right decision. An added plus was the extraordinarily wonderful "driveability" of the particular diesel pusher we chose. It would be a disservice to our new coach not to elaborate on that just a bit.
Our evaluation of all the available units with a manufacturing presence in the Northwest (a fact important to us) led us eventually to purchase a 2000 Model Country Coach Intrigue. We've done what we consider a fair and impartial "Report Card" on this unit as another part of this series. Dismayed as we are with the commercial publications which seem to us to "whitewash" any and all "problems" with RVs they review (almost certainly related to advertising dollars they receive from them), we did our best to provide a purely factual evaluation. That having been accomplished elsewhere, we can more subjectively report in the context of this "chapter" that we are enormously pleased with our selection of Country Coach as our manufacturer, and with the unit we purchased. As committed as we were to identifying any and all "needs improvement" items on our coach, the list of items we were able to come up with is, in all fairness, relatively insignificant. And the list of positives is overwhelming. It's a quality product, built by quality craftsmen, who work for a quality company. It's our personal view that this is the best unit we could have selected for our personal needs.
The tow car we chose was a new Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited. It is well within the 6,000 pound rated towing capacity of our coach, is extremely comfortable to drive, and is highly versatile -- being a "real" four wheel drive vehicle. And we've used it a fair amount for just that purpose. It's primary drawback is fuel economy which is marginal at best. It would also be a bit on the heavy side for motorhomes with a more limited gross combined weight rating. While we haven't kept records as extensively as we have on the coach (8.6 MPG average to date), we're getting approximately 16-17 MPG between most fuel stops, with an occasional bump to 18. We've also had difficulty resolving a couple of mechanical problems with the Jeep, one involving erratic braking and another involving rough transmission "bumps". Both seem to be cured at this point, but it required more than a couple of service calls to get the job done properly. We found some Jeep dealers less knowledgeable than we thought they should have been about their own technical service bulletins. Notwithstanding these inconveniences, we'd likley make the same choice again -- unless, of course, fuel prices keep going up!
The Map of the USA Comes Alive
We're reasonably old hands at using maps. I've personally had extensive exposure to them both in military training and in using topos and a compass in the wilds of Idaho. And of course all of us see maps everyday. We may glance at the weather map in the newspaper, or see it on the TV screen in the form of a national weather map. We're all generally familiar with the "shape" of the USA -- at least the lower 48 -- and of most or all of the individual states.
But something now is different. When we see a map of the US on the evening news, perhaps showing weather conditions across the country, we suddenly "see" as well so many of the places we've visited. To glance briefly at Alabama might instantly conjure up the image of beautiful downtown Mobile; to see the Florida panhandle might stir visions of endless white sandy beaches; Virginia can recall pictures of green pastoral settings, with stately homes on seemingly every hilltop; the western shore of Maryland recalls the exhilarating feel of strolling downtown Annapolis -- and so on it goes. Before you can even begin to savor that quick look-see at the weather map, it's gone. It just wasn't up there long enough!
We've taken many, many pictures in our travels, and they now occupy a fair amount of memory on one of our laptops. Each depicts a specific place or event, and we're sure we'll enjoy creating an interesting album which will visually document our extensive travels to date. But subconsciously we must have been making another type of album -- one comprised of mental snapshots of the many places we've visited. Because now we now only need to see the map of the USA to initiate their instant recall. The map, for us, has really come alive.
Managing Personal Affairs on the Road
We knew when we rented our home and became interim full timers that we'd have challenges managing our personal affairs without the conveniences of being home. Our mail wouldn't be delivered to us every day; we'd no longer have a "home phone number"; taxes would have to be computed and paid; banking and investment matters would require managing; routine medical and dental matters would need to be addressed; various insurance, licensing and property taxes would require timely payment; and the list goes on.
For starters, once one doesn't have a "home phone number", some taken-for-granted things can happen. For starters, it wasn't possible to have a regular phone "calling card" as we've always had in the past. For some, it can as well mean a lack of access to some of the more popular "one rate" cell phone services. Fortunately that was not the case with us, and our AT&T One Rate Plan has worked reasonably well for us. Very few locations failed to honor the service, asking instead for credit card information before placing a call. But there were a few. Still, the convenience of having "real" phone number that followed us wherever we traveled was extremely convenient. So too was the ability to call ahead in the afternoon once we'd settled on a park we'd like to reserve in that evening -- no long distance, and no roaming charges.
Most of our "essential" information was on our desktop computer at home. And it had been an easy task to transfer the data from desktop to laptop before we left. Virtually all of our financial records and information were with us on our travels. Banking and investment accounts were easily managed using online services. Email accomplished almost all of what postal mail used to do. And both of these required access to the Internet. Fortunately, we found that a very substantial majority of the RV parks we visited were genuinely "modem friendly". We used the Trailer Life Directory to identify parks which were described as "modem hookup office", or "modem hookup site". Unfortunately, we found this resource was not always dependable. Usually, it was a case of an RV park having just discovered the benefits of becoming modem friendly within the past year -- after the Directory was printed. But there were also a number of occasions -- for example in Kentucky -- where parks would be listed as having site phones and it turned out they offered no modem connections at all. We found our own listings of "modem friendly" parks, while less comprehensive, were more accurate. The bottom line was that we had ample access for laptop connectons virtually everywhere we travelled. On only two occasions did an RV park insist on charging a fee for the service. With frequent connections to the Internet, we were able to manage accounts, keep up with some ongoing business projects, stay in touch with family and friends -- and even manage this website.
Fax, too, was far easier than we'd anticipated. We initially subscribed to "eFax" (www.efax.com) , a free service which provides you with a personal fax number for incoming faxes. For a small monthly fee, which we willingly paid, it also provides a "fax send" capability. For all practical purposes we had our own "fax machine" with us wherever we went. The incoming and outbound faxes were simply received or initiated as email.
Our mail was collected at our post office box in Friday Harbor, and sent to us periodically by our local mail forwarding service. We'd simply call ahead with an RV park address, or local general delivery post office location (small town always), and have our regular postal mail forwarded to that location. Obvious junk mail, and bulk mailed items, were simply discarded before the "good" mail was forwarded to us.
All of this takes a bit more "working at it" than when you're at home. But we've found all these administrative challenges can be met with a little creativity and an increasingly friendly environment for laptop connections.
Some Notable Places and Events
Based solely on the places we were able to visit along the way, we thought it might be fun to put up a list of notable places and events we visited and/or experienced. We realize this are highly subjective opinions, and unquestionably reflect our own personal preferences and biases. Nevertheless it was a fun exercise as we were driving along recently, and we thought we'd include them here:
Best State RV Park: Topsail Hill RV Park, Santa Roas Beach, Florida
Best Federal RV Park: A tie among many Corps of Engineers Parks throughout the Southeast
Best City Owned RV Park: Greenville, Alabama
Best Large Private RV Resort: A tie: Palm Desert RV and Golf Resort, Palm Desert, CA; and Yellowstone Grizzly RV Resort, West Yellowstone, MT
Most Fun Small Private RV Park: Betty's RV Park, Abbeville, LA
Most Helpful RV Park Staff: KOA, Bowling Green, KY
Worst Interstate Highway: I-10 in Louisiana
Worst State to Navigate Highway Construction: Kentucky
Most Traffic Congestion: The Beltway, Washington, DC
Most Impressive New Sight: Copper Canyon, Sinaloa, Mexico
Best Birding: Gulf Coast of Texas
Most Welcome Familiar Sight: First view of snowcapped Rockies returning West
Worst Night's Sleep: Army Corps Park near Clinton, MO -- Missie decides to chase some Killdeer and ends up lost until the next morning.-- having slept this muggy night in exactly the same RV site position in the adjoining campground loop
Best Breakfast Potatos: Stanley, Idaho
Shortest Ferry Ride: Green River Crossing, Mammouth Cave area, KY (3 car max)
Most Historic Ferry Ride: Oxford - Bellevue ferry, Eastern shore of MD
Best Dinner Out: Peter Havens Restaurant, Brattleboro, VT
Most Popular Doggie Day Care: Cherry Lane Kennel, Laurel, MD
Strongest Wind Gust while Traveling: Kentucky back roads -- bye bye slider awning....
Best Entertainment: Branson, MO -- It's every bit as good as reported
Most Attactive City Waterfront: Corpus Christi, TX
Friendliest Small Town: Abbeville, LA
Most Fun Heartland Discovery: Chadron, NE
Best Investment We Made: Tuition paid for the RV Driving School course
Friendliest Workcampers: Impossible to say -- they're everywhere
Most Tourist Amusement Attractions Per Acre: Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge, TN
Best Presentation of Regional Culture: Ozark Folk Center State Park, Arkansas
Project Consuming Most Time on the Road: This website!