Anna started a thread..RV, CAMPERS, MOTORHOMES. It is a great thread with folks discussing their actual RV equipment..tips...tricks... problems...solutions
As a newbie RVer..I am interested in experiences. I don't want to muck up Anna's thread by asking off topic questions especially since everyone seems to be so seasoned and I want to save my questions for actual equipment topics. I would so love to hear stories, opinions, experiences about seeing this wonderful land and its people via an RV.
So, if you have the time and energy to drop in ..please do. Tell about why you choose to travel in this fashion .. and what your experiences have been. Tips, tricks, warnings, about what works and does not. Great places to overnight (or use as a base.)
I should start..
We just completed a purchase of a small RV. It is preowned. Low mileage ..it actually looks new having been garaged and purchased as a "stock" warehouse and transportation to assist an "undergoing a midlife crisis" fellow who wanted to walk the Appalachian trail and had a willing wife to drive the RV to meet him here and there to stock up..and rejuice
We have no idea what we are doing and are trying to learn about how and when to engage the generator...vs the battery (s) .. water and waste levels and hoses and fluids. ..and WHY should I not use the microwave while on the road? But enough about that.....
The WHY - I retired 3 years ago and my spouse still works. 64 and 69 .. He is afraid to quit...fear of boredom...invading my space... growing old.... the "honey do" list...
and so ...since we both like to travel...I thought an RV may lure him to retirement.... a day at a time...a trip at a time...
We both grew up in a borough of the big city..NY..
We currently have woods surrounding our home. After the kids left..when school systems and youth activities became not so important..we moved from a typical PUD family friendly neighborhood to the country "for the peace and quiet." And so we know silence...with a qualification ....when the bleating and croaking of the frogs are not drowning out any hope of conversation. We've got crows that holler all day too. Snakes slither up the trees and across the screens..Butterflies and birds are plentiful..mice nest in glove boxes. Basically, we have everything that one might get sense-wise from camping out in the open. No Bears!
Our dream has been to someday retire to a downtown area,. Unfortunately, a small (think 700 sq feet) downtown loft in a thriving and safe downtown would double the price of what we currently have and at triple the space. ..and truthfully...that downtown would be the same downtown day after day..and the odds are we would have to climb stairs in our advancing age.
When we travel...we look for historic cities. Bustling downtowns. We love to get up early and sit outside a downtown cafe eating very sticky sticky buns. We love to people-watch. We love to browse shops and see what american craftspeople are creating. We love to be around youth and families and activity. Young families and old farts like us strolling the sidewalks are our cup of tea. Old architecture tells a story about who we are and we love to be around red brick buildings and colorful flags and old cemeteries. Small cities and big cities are our Holy Grail. I love the smell and feel of steam belching through the grates of underground train tunnels. It warms and it reminds me of my days working on 3rd and 53rd. Freezing in those 60's mini skirts..platform shoes..panty hose not doing a thing for wind and cold protection.....running for that blast of underground steam to warm....Hot dog and knish vendors on corners..along with their karts ..wafting odors of sauerkraut and hot onions...and stale buns! It's heaven!!!!
Unfortunately, city hotels are big $$$$. Additionally, we like to go with little planning...we change our itinerary often...reservation making (and cancelling) can get dicey.
And so again...that RV made sense. It is compact enough to take right into the city or small town America with not too much parking stress.
It's big enough to store a "'find" should we stumble across that wee overpainted table in a second hand shop.
The queen electric sofa bed will accommodate this queen nicely.
The windows all round will provide a grand view while traveling .. a daily shower and a small 2 burner stove and microwave will suffice..I can whip up a decent meal on just about anything (thank you papa) and will help conserve the budget for those sticky buns and hot dogs. Roasting marshmallows 'round a campfire not necessary...but that small Lithuanian baker on that small street corner....oh yes...
So, that is a bit about me and what motivates and gets me out and behind the wheel to see America via the highways... what about you?
Are you seeking to commune with nature?
Wanting to meet folks on the road?
Do you camp for a day, week, months!
Do you leave the RV park..or can you be found back lot at CrackerBarrel?
Where do you like to put up?
What do you love...or just tolerate?
Why the RV instead of plane, boat, bike, car? And hotel.
What are your best times and worst times ?
Tips! Warnings!
Please share.
