Community Forums

Ken-55 · 08-11-2009, 10:01 PM

I found out recently that a family member has a fairly serious medical issue that will require treatment and/or surgery at Dana-Farber in downtown Boston. It may be helpful to be able to take my 32' class A (approx. 11' tall) into Boston to bring a group of relatives to visit and later bring the patient back home. I haven't driven in Boston in several years. I'm not overly worried about driving, but wonder if parking (just for the day or overnight) is doable??

Thanks!

Lynnvt · 08-12-2009, 06:46 AM

Why don't you call Dana-Farber and ask them if they have a place to park the motorhome. Maybe this is something hospitals should be thinking about.

Minisprint · 08-12-2009, 06:30 PM

Ken

You should be all right driving with your MH because most of Dana Farber institutes are near Route 9.
You don't really go in downtown Boston that would not be fun with a MH with the Big Dig way to many tunnels to bypass.

I hope this helps

Minisprint · 08-12-2009, 06:45 PM

Ken
I just had a thought maybe this web site can help you find a place to park http://www.ronaldmcdonaldhouseboston.org/ They work with Dana-Farber to help families find a place to stay while love ones are in treatment.

Wayne M · 08-12-2009, 10:01 PM

You do need to call ahead. Some parking lots have height restriction bars to keep big truck tractors out. There has to be someone from Boston on this forum that can scout it for you.

Ken-55 · 09-28-2009, 10:26 PM

UPDATE! (just sharing in case others have similar needs)

Surgery was moved up to this past week. Some family drove up in cars or took the train . . . I drove our RV up on Friday morning and stayed at Wompatuck State Park in Hingham, MA. Family picked us up and we used one of their cars to get back and forth daily. Parking in Boston is EXPENSIVE!

I chose Wompatuck because it's relatively close (20 - 25 miles, depending on route), has access to mass transit (the commuter rail and commuter boats) and it was inexpensive to stay there ($15/night with 20 amp electric).

How did it work?? . . . awesome!!!

Not crowded this time of year, Wompatuck State Park was very nice! Staff was friendly and visible. Was nice to know they were monitoring people entering the campground and driving around keeping an eye on things. 20 amp power was more than enough for our needs and nice to have . . . we frequently stay at places w/o electric hook-ups. Bathroom facilities were clean and worked fine . . . plenty of hot water in the shower. What a deal at $15/night.

Boston traffic was heavier than we're accustomed to . . . our daily commute to the hospital got better once we changed out GPS routing preferences from "optimal" to "fastest". The 19 mile optimal route was taking over an hour . . . the 24 mile route took about 35 to 40 minutes.

We used the "T" mass transit system several times over the weekend because it's expensive to keep using and re-parking the car. Once we got the hang of it, it was pretty cool. $2.00 gets you across town. Some members of our group used taxis for short trips with no problems.

The highlight of out commuting experience was today, our last day this trip. We left the campground this morning, hit the dumping station and had about a 15 minute trip to Hewitt's Cove, Hingham, MA. We parked the RV for $6 (our 32' Itasca took up two $3 spaces) and the 35 minute trip in the commuter boat into Boston was very enjoyable AND cheap @ $6/person. Sure beats fighting traffic! We walked through Quincy Market ( amazing variety of food and shops), hopped the "T" to the hospital and had a nice visit. Reversed our route on the way back . . . another pleasant cruise . . . fought a little traffic and weather on the way back to CT, but all in all a nice weekend!

Ken-55 · 10-19-2009, 10:57 AM

One more (RV related) update.

After several weekends of commuting to Boston without the RV (we stayed at a large condo the family rented) . . . it was time to get the patient home.

Our 32' Itasca was pressed into service for comfort and convenience. The condo was close to Fenway Park and our GPS suggested I-90 . . . worked fine UNTIL we exited the highway. It was an extremely good thing that I decided to hit Boston at 4 am in case I ran into problems. After turning off River Street onto Memorial Drive (and not noticing the tiny "No Trucks" sign just after the intersection) I saw the large height restriction barriers blocking access to the rest of Memorial Drive. My only option (left turn) headed me into a residential area with narrow streets packed on both sides with parked cars . . . again, so glad it was 4 am. It was tight and I held my breath on one turn, but we made it back to major streets. Pulled up "turn-by-turn" directions on the GPS and blocked "Memorial Drive" . . . it re-routed us towards another height restricted area!

Again, so happy it was 4 am!!! Would have been nice if there was a cop around to ask for directions??

I decided to wing it, heading in the direction we were going before the suggested turn until I came to a major crossroad that would go where I thought I needed to be. After about 8 - 10 blocks we ran into Massachusetts Ave. which took us to the Harvard Bridge over the Charles River . . . by that time, I could trust the GPS to get us the rest of the way.

Circled the block that the high rise condo was on and found 2 parking places together, right next to a "no parking" zone to make pulling out easy.

Crawled in back and tried to get a little rest for the way home. Our wake up call was traffic . . . they blow by so fast it felt like we were sleeping in the middle of the highway! Fed both meters for a few hours, packed everything (and everyone) up and made our getaway!

We did have to stop by the hospital on the way out to pick up some medication. Heavy midday traffic, but doable . . . parked in a shuttle bus drop off for a few minutes and a cop showed up. He was nice, understood that we were trying not to tie up the already crazy traffic . . . but we had to move . . . he directed me around the corner to a place where I could stay for a few minutes. Got the meds and headed out! Rest of the trip was pleasant and uneventful!

Would I do Boston again?? Sure . . . I just would do my homework better!

dajudge · 10-19-2009, 02:52 PM

Glad to hear about boston. I have plans to return in the near future. I would guess it has changed a bit since the middle sixties, when i spent 37 months there on a carrier, courtesy of uncle sam.

Maybe the cops were waiting for the donut shops to open at 4am!!!!
Just kidding, am a retired trooper.