Community Forums

Smythe38 · 05-20-2021, 04:13 PM

For us the journey could be the destination. For instance we have followed the Lewis & Clark trail accompanied by their log, Pony express trail, portions of the great river road as well as alot of the national parks and state parks. Just get in and go while you can.

HMCSW · 05-20-2021, 04:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bobby F

For me, it depends on which direction I'm heading from MN.

Going West, there are a ton of great and gorgeous places to see and visit, so I make short hops, stop where my fancy calls me, and just generally travel around in a big slow circle for weeks or months.

Going South (say, to AZ or TX or FL or AL), there's Iowa and Missouri and Kansas and Nebraska and Oklahoma on the way, and without being too insulting, I may drive 15 hours straight towards my destination. Once into the destination region, I'm back into travel-around-leisurely mode.

Going East - well, being mostly a boondocker, I've not yet found a reason to take an RV too far East.

Iowa- corn on the left: corn on the right: corn on both sides

jcholt7379 · 05-20-2021, 04:13 PM

We worked to have spots on the journey to enjoy along with the destinations.
We map out how long (weeks or months) what places are the long spots (a week or longer) and then sprinkle in areas along the way for a night or two
We used KOA journeys for the night or two cause they are drive-throughs spots. The longer is usually KOA or other recommended sites that have pools and heated & indoor if possible.
We tried to hit 300 + miles or five-ish hours but always tried to pull in before 3 pm but up & moving early. We broke this rule a few times, going longer or shorter but worked hard to avoid a “strict” schedule.
Hope this is helpful

BruceDeville · 05-20-2021, 04:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pesky1

First time motorhome owner hoping to de-winterize and travel if it ever warms up here. Recently retired and have only camped a few times as a child fifty years ago. Worked hard and never really went anywhere on vacation.

Welcome to RVing.

For my wife and I it is about 50-50.

My professional career required extensive car then later airline travel. Frequently I would to leave to make a flight or some other reservation when their was something interesting I wanted to do. But work called.

Today we plan a destination plus travel time. Reservations at destination only, we add in some extra days for side trips.

Being flexible and not tied to specific agenda is what we enjoy about RVing.

We live 100% in our RV and travel about 50% of the time. Our home base has full hookups (actually 4 sets) and a large workshop (2500 sq ft +/-) where I also spend considerable time.

EddieM · 05-20-2021, 04:34 PM

We bought our 2nd Class A motorhome several years ago. Our first Class A, a DP, was a real learning experience. It was old, needed lots and lots of repairs. It wasn't used nearly as much as we would have hoped. And it was sold for a loss...big loss.

However, that didn't dampen our thirst for the open road and seeing Americana, at its' best. So several years later, our Americana dream awoken.

We bought our 2nd Class A last April. We bought our 36' Fleetwood Bounder with 3 slides, so that we could accommodate our whole family....a dog and 2 cats.

We are not full-timers and probably never will be. But that being said, we take multiple 2-3 months excursions, which cover 4-5.000 miles. We also take several shorter week-long trips, throughout Florida.

While it's a hassle, at times, to tow our car, we wouldn't be without it. We learned that the hard way. Traveling down the road is great without a car, but staying any length of time requires a car for us. Besides, we love to eat at all of the Americana-style restaurants. And it's a real pain and chore to tear down and pack up, especially if it's just for an hour or two. While our Class A gas-guzzler is nothing that we can really change, we use our Hybrid car, which gets 50+ miles/gal. So we are able to really see a lot more of Americana than just highway driving.

Best of luck in all of your new adventures.

Ryancasey · 05-20-2021, 04:35 PM

I would encourage a toad. Much easier to get around sight seeing.

picker · 05-20-2021, 04:47 PM

You have the right idea.

If it's for destination........save your money and buy a plane ticket.

RV-ing is for looking around.

OldracerJim · 05-20-2021, 05:38 PM

When we were young the destination was the only thing. As we get older, the destination is the best part.

zzotte · 05-20-2021, 05:59 PM

I can’t have one without the other, so most of our stops it’s more then 2 days so we can learn and enjoy the local area.

Zzotte

MapmanKC · 05-20-2021, 06:13 PM

We prefer the 2 lanes and stopping to see all there is along the way. We do not have a TOAD. We use our 35ft Class A to your, and once at our destination, we rent a car. The rentals are much less than buying, maintaining, insuring and the hit on MPG towing.

Our trips have a destination in mind, like a national park or a few weeks at a beach.

jeskibuff · 05-20-2021, 06:45 PM

One of the best things for me is NOT HAVING TO BE ANYWHERE! Pick out a destination and point yourself in the general direction. If you see something interesting, take the tangent. If you get tired, pull into a rest stop or parking lot and take a rest. If the tanks are full (or empty) find a dump site or water source. You get there when you get there!

If you have an itinerary, there's always the nagging timeline that sometimes can't be followed. A slide won't go in? Got a tire problem or mechanical issue? Without "The Plan", you've got all the time in the world to remedy the situation and get rolling again.

It's real nice when you don't have to race against time.

GWBGE · 05-20-2021, 06:49 PM

Both the journey and destination are important for different reasons. I'm goal oriented, so the destination is important. But I've learned that the path to the destination can be varied and interesting in and of itself.

Safe travels.

Viasolis · 05-20-2021, 06:55 PM

Like Harry Chapin said: "Gotta be the goin', not the gettin' there that's good."

roblaura · 05-20-2021, 07:01 PM

Both. But, unless you want to identify a dozen really nice campground and rotate your travels among them, you may want to reconsider the toad decision. Driving a Class A diesel pusher (DP) is not physically difficult, but it does not fit in tight spaces, and it takes concentration on the road. Many car drivers do not understand, don't care, or are too busy staring at their phones - to recognize that a large coach cannot stop or maneuver quickly. They will cut you off, slow quickly in front of you, tailgate you, and ignore you when entering the highway. Thus, you have to keep your eyes far down the road and plan ahead. You have to watch all the vehicles around or approaching you in case they do something unwise (stupid). It makes you appreciate the truckers. Thus, we take our time, park the coach at a nice, but $ reasonable campground, unhook the toad, and see all the sights within about 50 miles in all directions over several days. We then move on to the next campground. This way you get to really see the country in greater detail. You haven't really seen America until you have driven the Blue Ridge Parkway, toured Yellowstone NP, ridden the Pikes Peak cog railroad to the top, ridden inside the St. Louis Arch to the top, or driven the PCH through Big Sur. These are all things you need to toad to access. Hope you enjoy your RV.