Why I think RVing Sucks.

[REWahoo]

I listened to loud air conditioning generators and snoring all night.

Need more beer.

 

[Martha]

This is something that should be tried before you commit.

I have spent the last month in an expensive and tightly packed rv park in Long Beach California. I love it! There is a heated pool. There is a major bike trail running along side the park. I walk around downtown Long beach. I can walk or bike to the beach. So much to do!

My general preference is more isolated areas in state and federal parks. But this urban experience has been fun.

 

[MasterBlaster]

I have spent the last month in an expensive and tightly packed rv park in Long Beach California.

Are you there for the Long Beach Grand Prix ? I'll bet your RV could take out more than a few of those Grand Prix cars in the hairpin turn.

I suspect though that you like(d) the SoCal winter weather better than in Minnesota

 

[audreyh1]

As far as deciding on the campgrounds themselves, you need something like Woodalls or Trailer Life Directory (Printed version or on-line) which have fairly decent (accurate) scoring systems.

IMO, RV Park Reviews site is much more reliable in terms of providing a reasonably accurate description of a campground than Woodalls or Trailer Life directories. Especially for the more popular ones or for choosing between parks in a popular destination.

Audrey

 

[Rich_by_the_Bay]

Isn't that kind of like saying Europe sucks because the hotel rooms are small?

...especially from someone who has never been there .

 

[audreyh1]

Just one of the many spectacular campsites we have enjoyed over the last many years:

Of course, it IS out in the middle of nowhere - campgrounds are 500ft below this "lookout".

Palo Duro Canyon State Park - 30? miles south of Amarillo, TX

Audrey

P.S. For folks mentioning CruiseAmerica - that's the rental I see out on the road most often. Plus they are class C's which is probably the easiest way to get started. Very popular with overseas tourists exploring National Parks too. There must be a reason they dominate the RV rental business.

 

[MasterBlaster]

Who is that scary person

Or is that the Lone Ranger in the picture ?

 

[REWahoo]

P.S. For folks mentioning CruiseAmerica - that's the rental I see out on the road most often. Plus they are class C's which is probably the easiest way to get started. Very popular with overseas tourists exploring National Parks too. There must be a reason they dominate the RV rental business.

Yep, CruiseAmerica seems to be the Uhaul of the RV rental world. However, a couple of weeks ago a German couple and (and his MIL ) camped near us in a 32' Class A motor home rented from Camping World. First time I've noticed a Camping World rental unit.

 

[ziggy29]

Yes. In general, the nicer RV parks are not visible from the road! They try to provide some seclusion/buffer/privacy/space from road noise and views.

And I'll bet the regular customers of those parks don't want to share the dirty little secret with any more people than they have to in order to keep them in business...

 

[RonBoyd]

IMO, RV Park Reviews site is much more reliable in terms of providing a reasonably accurate description of a campground than Woodalls or Trailer Life directories. Especially for the more popular ones or for choosing between parks in a popular destination.

I really don't have any argument with that. We do, however, check them all before deciding. If one has complete faith in a particular source of information, that's the way to go, no question.

Our "one night stands" put us at greater risk of catching a "bad" one, however. I can think of two that were so bad, I still have nightmares -- the absolute worst was in mid-town Laredo. (I should quickly add that personal safety has never, ever been an issue.)

 

[audreyh1]

Who is that scary person

Or is that the Lone Ranger in the picture ?

That is my personal lone ranger. And, yes, he is wearing snake chaps LOL!

Audrey

 

[Westernskies]

I think this entire post is wasted on an ER board. You'll get much better feedback from an RV board like iRV2 - The Friendly RV Forum Community...

With all due respect, this topic has more to do with the ER lifestyle than female commanders on submarines- and no one tried to redirect that thread to: Submarine Forces - Forum Powered by Social Strata

Lots of diverse interests here on FIRE; arguably many of them have little or nothing to do with ER, depending on individual interests and perspectives. 39 responses in a few hours indicates to me that more than a few FIR Emembers find this topic worthy of discussion.

 

[audreyh1]

Our "one night stands" put us at greater risk of catching a "bad" one, however. I can think of two that were so bad, I still have nightmares -- the absolute worst was in mid-town Laredo. (I should quickly add that personal safety has never, ever been an issue.)

For "one night stands" we tend to use the (print) Big Rig Directory - most of these are close to major travel roads.

Lately we've been using Walmart when we can't be bothered with locating a decent park. Sure beats any nightmare RV park.

Audrey

 

[REWahoo]

That is my personal lone ranger. And, yes, he is wearing snake chaps LOL!

I was thinking maybe it was Indiana Jones.

Snake chaps?

 

[REWahoo]

I believe your questioned comment was a J-O-K-E...

 

[NW-Bound]

Now, that is really, truly sad!

I have spent a lot of time in the recent months thinking about RV'ing, researching things to do, where to go, what adventures we will have on the road, all the National Parks we could visit. Now, I am told I may just end up sitting by my RV in an RV park somewhere looking sad! Why don't I just go bang my head against the fiberglass wall of the RV?

Someone mentioned an analogy to Europe travel. Yes, that too. Why do I never learn?

Having been to Europe several times, that mention really brings back nightmares. Yes, the hotel rooms were small, so we couldn't just stay in to watch TV, which we did not understand either. So we had to go out to explore the cities on foot. They ate different food, and since we did not want to look for McDonald's, we had to eat their local food. Yes, even the Italian pizza did not taste like the ones at our American Pizza Hut. Totally horrible! Belgian beers tasted nothing like Budweiser. And don't let me get started on their cheeses! Or the Spanish jamon that I had to eat as a substitute for our ham. Oh, it was such a waste of money, but being foolhardy as we were, we kept going back, hoping we would find something more like at home.

Now, this RV thing is going to be another waste of money. We skimped and did not go for a loaded class A with the nice interior. My, oh my! I had big plans to traverse the Alaskan highway, then going down the St Lawrence River on the other side of Canada. What was I thinking? How are we going to enjoy the trip without the granite countertop? The faux marble full-size bathtub? I read Steinbeck's "Travels with Charley", and thought that our class C is quite comfortable compared to his truck camper. Now people tell me it's a dump.

That's it! I am going to push this meager class C I just bought off a cliff!

 

[HsiaoChu]

When the kids were little, we trveled all over the east coat of the USA and Canada with a small pop-up and an Isuzu Trooper. it was great. We would leave and not come back until our money ran out. My parents traveled up the Alcan highway when they were 70, camping on the side of the road in a tent and having TT's throw stones on their tent(I guess they didn't understand about bear dangers.) I expect to do the same when i retire.

My wife and I have never been much west of the Mississippi except for eastern Texas. My daughter refused to go where there might be tornados. But now we have to visit her in SanFrancisco!

I think many people would enjoy a small popup if they are not in bar country.
Z

 

[NW-Bound]

Zarathu, I think you will find the account of this fellow interesting. About our age, when in his early 20s, he went by moped from Toronto to Fairbanks and even detoured to see the Yukon.

Moped Trip - Alaska Hwy - Introduction

 

[brewer12345]

Yeah, RVing sucks. You might have to stay places like this:

 

[brewer12345]

Then again...

 

[W2R]

Now, that is really, truly sad!

I have spent a lot of time in the recent months thinking about RV'ing, researching things to do, where to go, what adventures we will have on the road, all the National Parks we could visit. Now, I am told I may just end up sitting by my RV in an RV park somewhere looking sad! Why don't I just go bang my head against the fiberglass wall of the RV?

That's OK. Just think - - for every one person on the board who decides to shell out big bucks for an RV, there are probably a hundred who don't. The same is true for my new Venza. So, you get people saying that having an RV sux, and I get people saying they would never own one of those terrible death machines made by Toyota. All in all, what matters to both of us is that we are so happy with our purchases and our lives are enriched by them. That far overshadows negative comments we might read on the board.

I would never in a million years want an RV myself, but even I think that you made a great decision and have much fun and enjoyment ahead.

 

[NW-Bound]

... I get people saying they would never own one of those terrible death machines made by Toyota...

Were you under the impression that I said that ?

If so, I was misunderstood. I was saying that I wanted to know more about their design, and to read Toyota's FMEA report if I got a chance In fact, I even said in a post that I wanted to own a Prius but would wait until the smoke clears. There!

Anyway, my wife won't let me push this RV off a cliff now. She already bought into my vision of the adventurous trips that we will take (actually fairly tamed compared to the hardy souls out there, but on the other hand we appear to be more daring than many that we know).

And I will not try to retrofit a granite countertop into this RV, nor "remodel" its bathroom. It already feels like, well, home.

 

[brewer12345]

Anyway, my wife won't let me push this RV off a cliff now. She already bought into my vision of the adventurous trips that we will take (actually fairly tamed compared to the hardy souls out there, but on the other hand we appear to be more daring than many that we know).

And I will not try to retrofit a granite countertop into this RV, nor "remodel" its bathroom. It already feels like, well, home.

WalMart parking lots, here you come!

 

[NW-Bound]

Hey, save me a sunny spot will ya!

 

[W2R]

Were you under the impression that I said that ?

No? I don't really remember who said what on that thread. Did you? GRR! (just kidding!) I read most of the comments, didn't notice who said what, and went back to enjoying my gorgeous, luxurious, fabulously appointed new death machine from h*ll.

Anyway, my wife won't let me push this RV off a cliff now. She already bought into my vision of the adventurous trips that we will take (actually fairly tamed compared to the hardy souls out there, but on the other hand we appear to be more daring than many that we know).

And I will not try to retrofit a granite countertop into this RV, nor "remodel" its bathroom. It already feels like, well, home.

You and your wife are going to have such a great time!