In a recent survey by RV.net, the majority of comments came from those relatively new to RVing and who were looking for RVing tips, how to fix things, where to go, what to pack, anything that might help a new RVer to better enjoy the RV Lifestyle. So, acknowledging that the majority of my recent blogs have been about Green RVing, on this post I will offer some of my own personal thoughts on RVing based on my 40+ years of RVing, ten years as General Manager of an RV rental and sales company, 16 years as a fulltimer, and 9 years as a travel writer, photographer, and seminar leader on RV travel and lifestyle.
- Avoid the temptation to buy an RV with the same floorspace and amenities as your house. You will find, after you get used to the downsize, that you can go a lot more places, visit far more campgrounds, and manoever through far more gas stations, parking lots, visitor centers, national and state parks, than you could with a larger rig. And you will also find that you won’t miss the space.
- For the ultimate RV experience try boondocking (without any hook-ups or other amenities) in non-designated campgrounds on our public lands, such as in our National Forests, on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) lands, almost all of which is in the eleven western states and most of the southwestern deserts. Once you get the hang of it, you can find isolated campsites just far enough off main roads where no lights obscure the star-filled night skies, where the sound of traffic is non-existant, and where your only neighbors are coyotes, elk, and great-horned owls.
- Keep your onboard stuff at a reasonable amount–yeah, I know, everybody can define “reasonable” as they want. My guess is that most RVs are overloaded, which can result in decreased performance and stopping power, additional stress on the suspension system, and other potential problems. Many RVers follow the rule that if you haven’t used it in a year, off it goes. This, of course, does not apply to safety gear like fire extinguishers. A similar rule is that if you bring something aboard than something has to go off to accommodate it.
- Stay loose. By following a pre-arranged travel agenda you will miss so much. Learn about the area you are in, and what attractions or personal interests would be worth visiting or exploring before moving on. Keep your daily travel miles low so that you can get into campgrounds early enough to avoid the necessity of making reservations, just in case you did find something interesting along the way to stop at. This also leaves time for needed relaxation, and a chance to visit the sights and scenery of the immediate area. And if you find something unusual or intriguing to visit only 25 or 50 miles into your trip–take it. You may not pass this way again.
- Make notes in a journal or campground guidebook or record the GPS coordinates as you travel, especially when you find a perfect NFS campground or hiking trail that you won’t remember exactly where it is when you pass through years later. There will be times also when you just cannot alter your travel plans to explore some offbeat place you notice. Write it down. Believe me, even if creeping senility is not yet a problem you will not remember all this stuff the next time.
- Most important, enjoy your travels. Turn back stressful encounters, long and arduous travel days, loud or boisterous campgrounds, and traffic snarled rush hours around large cities. Travel the two-lane backroads of America, stop in the small villages and towns, walk the streets, talk to the locals–they can often steer you to stuff not in the guidebooks. Happy travels.
