Your Speed?

[Whirrlly]

On your rv travels with your lifestyle.......we met a camper next to us that was in and out all day. Doing 'this' 'that' and the 'other thing' tourism vacation play the fast game to cram it all in and later we chatted while walking the dog and we mentioned he was out and about like crazy all day and he said something like-----I love camping but I never camp. I rv to 'do things' on vacation and cram it ALL in best I can. I am so tired. Just beat. I need a vacation from the camping vacation when I get home and he was not truly a happy camper, in that he said he likes doing a few things but the family pressures him to do it all. And with the rv lifestyle he wanted to just chill, do a few things and rest rest and relax a bit and slow down but it just wasn't going to happen

I get it. We were there pushing the 'do it all' vacations.

So now we don't do that anymore. We SLOWLY find our stride but when you have only 5-7 days to cram it all in you go full speed sometimes.


What kind of camper are you? How do you 'do vacations'? Pick a destination, do it all and go home tired and spent but happy or do you pick 1-2 major things and also truly enjoy the quiet, relaxing, do nothing days?

Sometimes it is hard to marry them both in a way but we are now more of the do nothing and enjoy the heck out of life doing just that with throwing in a few things we like for sight seeing, adventure etc. We find we don't need to do it all, at least right this minute

Where do you stand on your rving experiences and how much do you cram in or not cram into your 'vacation time' in your rv?

Just curious how everyone rolls

[Podivin]

On our vacations, RV or otherwise, we'll do some research on the area, if we're not already familiar with it, and find things that look like they would be interesting to do.
There may be one or two that are MUST dos. There may be a dozen others on the list too. Implied after every item on the list is 'if we feel like it'.
The TOP thing on the list, but never actually written down is RELAX AND ENJOY THE TIME OFF.
We 'do' something every day. That something may last an hour or a half day. Nearly never do we plan a full day, there is always time to sit and watch the world spin around.

[60sumtin]

I can't say we ever came home tired. When we had kids at home we had to do a bit of cramming to see the things we wanted to see within the vacation time allotted. Now its just the two of us at home, I'm retired but my wife has a few more years to go. However she gets much more yearly vacation time than I ever did so now we can move along at a slower pace. For weekend outings we usually reserve ahead but during vacation we just roll with it snagging first come first served sites. As life changes so do the demands on our free time.

[Bubba1]

When we were both working fulltime, we crammed as much sightseeing and touristy things as we could in the 5 to 7 day time frame. Now, I'm retired and DW will retire soon. She works PRN (as needed) and has up to a month off at a time.
Travel now comes at a much slower pace. Max daily travel distance is 200 to 250 miles a day. When we arrive at our destination we do the things that appeal to us. If we run out of time before we do or see everything we want to, we just make plans to return. Works well for us right now. When DW retires our length of stays and travel distances will increase.


Mike H

[monkey]

I'm getting more to the point of "camping" where there is something we can do with our 'kid' (4 legs ).. My vacation is more limited than some, as I still work 60+ hrs a week, so we try to make the most of it. But sitting in/near the RV is part of that enjoying being outside. Thank goodness DW likes getting the RV out too !!!! I might add the few times I get to talk to other RV people, I love that !!!!
Monkey (still like my tv though)

[ThomB]

I work full time from the road. I’m one of those people that crams what you can into the time you have. I’m taking today and tomorrow off so we can explore San Francisco and then we move on.
It’s pretty typical for my day to begin at 4:50am PST (I stay on EST time for work) then be done at 2:00pm. We will then go visit someplace, do something and get back around 8 or 9 that night, go to bed and repeat the next day. Because I’m working we will typically move on The weekends so it’s harder for us to tour then. Occasionally we will “slow down” and spend 2 weeks someplace and have an extra weekend to explore. Nowhere near the ideal way to see things but we’re getting to see them. We are on our second loop of the US and now going back to spend extra time in the places we deemed worthy of a return trip.

[wildtoad]

We pick a destination(s) then plot how long it will take to get there in a leisurely manner. We try to stay under 65, but plan on an average speed of 50, and no more than 5 hours of driving time. We plan a few days at some spot every couple of days to just relax and see what’s local. On the last day, we may go more than 5 as there won’t be a need to setup when we get home.

[Dropthejacks]

We like to spend the day touring, seeing the sights, fishing, kayaking, hitting breweries, etc. Low key entertainment. Then follow that up with a few drinks by the propane fire pit at night by ourselves or with fellow campers, or maybe kick back with a movie. I'm not one who can just sit under the awning in a camp chair all day, I can do that at home. But we definitely don't go wide open sunrise to sunset. Relaxed pace all the way.

[xrated]

I have two speeds.....slow & stop.

[medic868]

S....L....O....W
When we go camping I don't really plan anything but drink in one hand and fire poker in other interjected with cooking & hammock lounging
My trip to see my daughter this summer who moved to Missouri will probably have some sightseeing and things to do but we'll see what it brings

[dix39]

Looking back, I don't think our camping/traveling activities have changed much since moving OR from WV in the early '70s. At that point I was 35 and my wife was 28. All our friends and family were in WV and most of them could not afford to visit us, so we visited them every year except the year we went to AK, and the year we spent several weeks in the San Juan Islands with the boat.

Until '94, when I retired, all our trips were limited to one month which included travel time. I drove 70 then, and still do. The three kids traveled with us until they got older and got to see many parks and a lot of country in between. We also visited EAA Oshkosh nearly every year through the '80's, '90's and somewhat more sporadically through the 2000's, much of that with the kids too.

Our camping activities have never centered around "camping", but seeing/doing whatever we were there to see/do. We've had the "new" MH three years now and I don't even know if the TV works, it's never been on. Perhaps some would consider that a "hurried pace", but we've enjoyed it immensely. It has allowed us to see/do everything on our bucket list over the 40 year period, and visit the folks in WV too. It also kept the kids in touch with their grandparents and relatives in WV as they grew up.

Steve

[mortsciAndy]

I'll admit, since we have three children, we try to fit in as much as we can during our vacations. See everything and do everything in the area. However, we do many weekend trips to local state parks and those are usually slower pace and more relaxing. Once the kids are out of the house and its just the DW and I, we will definitely be slowing down more.

[Waiter21]

Generally, our first "trip" somewhere is a hectic "look-see" to get the lay of the land, figure out what we would like to do, etc, etc..

Then the corresponding trips are a little more leisurely..

[Unicorn Driver]

We spend between 2 to 7 nights at state parks. After breakfast we go for a 2-3 hour hike with the dog. Come back for lunch and Kayak for an hour or two. 4pm is refreshments and chill out for the evening and night and a big campfire. We dont even bring a toad with us normally. If a week long trip my wife will take a long my truck but we may use it only twice.

When with friends somethings it gets a bit hectic.