I looked at the Custer state park and it doesn't appear that we would "fit". LOL

Wow, Karen that is very impressive! Your husband must be very talented it looks a lot like the big observatories. We visited one in NM up in the mountains near Alamogordo if memory serves me right.

I really need to make sure he has our small one packed. I know he made a wooden box for it to keep it safe. Even just star watching out where there is not so much light pollution is a fun way to spend an evening.

Check for RV parks outside the park near the city of Custer there are a lot of them. We have stayed in Custer State Park but not with our current rig, we just take our tow vehicle and tour the park that way, while staying in a campground outside the park. When we stay for long periods I like having laundry facilities at the campground as ours doesn't have a washer/dryer.

My DH always kept in mind that National Parks have size limits since we like to visit them he made sure we stayed within the limit so we could enjoy staying right in the parks. We have been at Glacier National Park in Montana several times and were allowed only at campgrounds near the edge of the park because anything larger was restricted due to the mountain roads which was strictly enforced. There are campgrounds outside of these usually within a reasonable distance, to us it is just not the same as staying in the park where it is right in the wilderness.

@AnnaZ Betty is right. We stayed twice at a KOA and once at something Rafter -- can't bring up the name now, but there are parks close by where I'm sure you would fit.

[quote="rocklady"]@plantmanager Showed your pictures to DH and he said "Give her a Thumbs-Up" So I will give you his plus mine

Aw, thanks, and tell him thanks! He enjoys the observatory and I have my greenhouse. We both love them!

My very own stargazer..that sounds like heaven...no pun intended.

Betty, I knew about your hubby's health challenges from another thread...but I forgot. So happy he is in remission. May he remain so for a very very very long time (like forever) with many more miles of adventure in your travels.

Jean..who you foolin...you aren't ever going to get so old that you are not going to go, go, go! 😊 You are my hero(ine)

It has been many years since I camped... too many. But I loved " setting up the tent" clothesline...water bag to wash dishes.... I am a nester.

The RV -- (now learned it is a class B) is to us a means to go from point A to B. I may change my mind, but we wanted a place to sleep - for trips where multiple hotel stays would be cost prohibitive. Plus, we like to change our minds about where to stop and when. So, not looking for a campground as the destination. JUST A CRACKERBARREL PARKING LOT!! We are hearing about an entire community of people doing that. Retirees...go to bed with an empty lot and wake up to an instant neighborhood of coffee and people kanoodling ! I bet you all are saying " what a nut! ".

This RV has a generator....but are you saying we FILL it with propane?? I thought it is a tank exchange. Gee, I better read before we go on our maiden voyage. It has two batteries..one for the actual vehicle and another to run things when the generator is not engaged ..like on the road. Winnebago is the outfitter. The counters are Quartz. It has an air conditioner. No sunroof in the toilet...but a vent! DOESN'T THE BOWL FLUSH??? Oh kill me now. WHAT DO YOU MEAN A WATER JUG Anna?? Huh?? It has a potable water tank AND a grey water tank. It MUST have flush. Hell, I am not going to use it unless there is a public emergency involving imminent rupture. THATS what the CrackerBarrel is for. 😊 Yup.

There is a temperpedic (?? Spelling ) in it.

I have a big box on the back for the hoses...now I am looking for a HAZMAT suit for the actual work of the flush. Rubber gloves to the shoulders??

I understand there is an application to download that lists the waste dumping areas...just like a restaurant app.

Oh God Rosie, thanks for the laughs you are a sweetheart! Let this old timer to the world of camping try to fill you in otherwise Jean the other old timer that I know of here can perhaps enlighten you.

I'll bet you two already are well aware of this stuff just in case here goes:
Ok, the generator has nothing to do with propane it is used to provide electrical power using fuel from your vehicles tank. The propane tank on ours provides fuel for the kitchen range and our furnace. We have a water tank that has a water pump to pressurize it for use in sinks and the toilet so you can run water and flush the toilets. Darn if you don't sound like my brother they wouldn't use the bathroom in theirs instead went to the campground bathrooms with a flashlight at night, think that has changed when his DW got upset. Then there are waste water tanks one for the toilets and one for grey water from the sinks. Please do read your manual before your maiden voyage. Also the dealership should have shown and explained how to do things. All will be fine just take a deep breath and take it one step at a time.

Thank you for the well wishes it means a lot to us!

I know for sure the generator runs off of propane. What I am not sure about is what form it comes in ( I know for sure it is LP gas ) but not sure if I buy a tank and exchange it or " pump " it from a big holding tank at a fuel station.
We pick it up Monday, I will ask. I know the air works quite well to cool off of battery when moving but when parked needs the generator and then when shut lasts a good bit. Itis near the electric bed ( sofa by day) and so I expect noisy..that is the advantage of an official campground..the electric....no need for generator. The battery lasts well enough to run the fridge and the pumps...lights, TV. But that flush issue ...I will need to learn. There is no microwave ..I need to be sure the battery will drive that ...oh wait hubby says there is a microwave. Can you tell I just jump in?? But there are some duties I am not going to jump in and do ( without that HAZMAT gear)

I will come to you old hands for quite a bit. Glad Anna started this thread.

Question...I don't like guns. My brother gave me a revolver. I am signing up (we both are) for lessons and the safe handling etc. My question is ...do you all feel safe and do you travel with a weapon?

Rosie ours has a built in LP propane tank that has to be filled by people trained to do the filling it is not something you can do yourself. They have large propane tanks they use to fill yours they are usually located at places that sell propane sometimes campgrounds also have them. I am not sure if some RV's use portable tanks that you switch out.

Rosie, we've camped for years without any sort of weapon and I've never felt fearful of either animals or people. We never lock up, and usually just close the screen door at night to keep critters from coming in, leaving the regular door hooked open. I like the feeling of being close to the outdoors. I do have an unreasonable fear of bears and our gun-dealer friend has given me a couple different revolvers over the years. I never did fire either one; I think I'm more fearful of guns than bears... Just not for me.

Your first couple trips will be a learning experience, but once you get the hang of your system, it will just become second nature. Even the dreaded emptying-of-the-tanks evolves into a routine where each of you does certain things to make it all go smoothly. If you plan to 'share' your RV with family members, it is a good idea to keep a small notebook of instructions as you learn. Whatever you have questions about will likely be the same questions others have.

My folks had both boats and RVs over the years, and there was never any question that NO ONE but Dad would operate any of his toys. I have vowed to not take that attitude and have encouraged both our sons to use whatever we have if we aren't using them. In reality, though, we often all go camping together with our mix of tents, camper, kayak, boat, bikes, whatever else anyone brings along.

I also recommend keeping a journal of some sort - could just be a wall calendar, a paper diary, or you could plot your trips onto some sort of on-line mapping program. Whatever works for you. It's fun to look back and see where you've been. I will sometimes note 'good' camp sites if I think we will return.

That is a great idea!!! A journal. RIGHT UP MY OCD ALLEY ...notes and photos all neat and orderly. I will do as you say with the instructions too. We know the kids will borrow. My brother also has asked to test it with a fishing trip. And a young couple we know has asked...

I will do as I do with my pickup which is popular with everyone's hauling needs ...

You borrow it...great..but if a tire blows...you replace it...if a meteor falls from the sky and dents the roof..,you fix it..if the water pump burns up ..you got it. It may seem harsh but what can I do? I got burned with a a transmission that was perfectly fine until it hauled who knows what and I got " how do I know it wasn't on its way out?" And so if they want to borrow...well they pay nothing....but they must assume risk to repair if something goes on their watch.

@MISSINGROSIE Do get instructions for anything you don't understand. As Betty said, some of the things you and your DH will do together, each of you with a specific job. A really good thing to do is HAVE A CHECK LIST and go over it each time you leave home and arrive and depart a campground so you won't be like the couple in our club who pulled out of their campsite still attached to sewer, water and electric. I don't know how many times we see RVs driving down the road with their Antenna up. I have kept a diary for our trips which I call The Great Motorhome Adventure and I believe it has now surpassed War and Peace in pages!

Oh my...sewer ......

I will do it. I sure hope that manual isn't too big. I did see a panel with all sorts of lights and gauges that shows battery levels, water levels both fresh and waste etc.

But I will make the lists and keep it on a cupboard door.

I have not kept a diary/journal of our RV trips..............I will make myself do it starting in 2017. I have tried to remember to take pix of each place we stay, unless it is the same place. And I do take some each time the grands come with us.

When we went to the NASCAR race in KC last spring, we drove part of the way on the first day (because we didn't leave till I got home from work about 4 or so) and we stayed in a Flying J truck stop that first night. We were able to park beside a grass median divider in the lot so we could put the bedroom slider out just enough to get past the dresser and into bed. There were LOTS of semis in that lot, but the noise didn't bother us at all. There was a Denny's restaurant there, so we had our supper and breakfast the next morning there so I didn't have to mess with cooking. When we got to the KC area, we had reservations at Worlds of Fun village for the "camping". It's a really nice place, I'd recommend it. Clean and well-kept up and reasonably priced. We were less than a half hour from the track, and very easy to get there from the campground.

Best part of that trip was finding out about the Heartland garden center down there................holy guacamole..............what a place. You can bet that if the SU drags me to those races again in the spring (he will...........he's going to get tix next week) he will have to do penance and take me there again. Payback is a b@@@h..............just ask him.

@MISSINGROSIE When I showed DH the pictures of your new RV this morning he said, "Maybe we should downsize. That looks great! Camping World has them!" Oh, dear, Rosie. Now look what you've done!

Rosie...............re: the gallon jugs of water........................yes, the toilet flushes. However, the SU does not travel with water in the tanks. So, in case we have need to use the restroom while traveling and there is no decent place to get off the road and use a gas station, etc. we just pull off the side of the road (and act like we need to get something out of the RV............ ), go in and *P* and just use the water from the jug for a flush. The SU always re-flushes and drains the tanks after we get home, so a little whiz and water isn't gonna hurt anything.

He keeps some of those black nitrile gloves in the cubby where the hoses are for when he drains the tanks. I realize that some people are squeamish about "waste tanks"..............we farmed and were in excretia daily so it was not a big thing. There is always soap and water available for hand washing afterwards, so we're good to go.

@AnnaZ We do the same with the jug of water for flushing rather than filling the water tank full while we are traveling and hauling it around, same for the black nitrile gloves. The jug of water was one of those hey wait moments -- why are we hauling around all that heavy water probably cutting the mileage down.

I've got to ask...do any of you have trouble with mice invading your trailer? Ours is stored at home most of the year, and we have sealed everything we can. Despite this, mice have gotten in and made nests. One year they chewed up a beautiful blanket for a nest, and had their babies in it. We have traps out, and do catch them, but can never catch all of them. It's frustrating to be in bed and hear them running around in the undercarriage or walls. We heard they hate Bounce dryer sheets, so when we close it up for a while we put them everywhere. All food and clothing is removed. Anyone have this problem and solve it?

We are in a forested area where there are mice galore. We have problems with them in all of our outbuildings, and even in our vehicles. They made a nest in the glove box of our truck one year!

I've not had any rodent problems, but my sister had pack-rats move into their rig and they caused quite a mess. Good topic.