Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×


Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 05-13-2019, 03:27 PM   #1
Catfish1953
 
Join Date: Nov 2018
Location: Springville Alabama
Posts: 41
Working to longer trips any suggestions?

I realize this is not that long of a trip but were working up slowly for longer term trips. Any advice would be welcomed. Were headed out for 9 nights total. Starting in New Orleans LA KOA 4-nights, 1-night in Biloxi, MS @ Beau Rivage Boondocking, 4-nights Sugar Sands RV Resort Gulf Shores Alabama.
__________________

USAF Retired
3rd Herd Life Member
2019 Forrest River E-pro 19-FBS
2008 Toyota FJ Cruiser
catfish1953 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-13-2019, 06:03 PM   #2
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Payson, AZ
Posts: 3,862
you will be just fine. just do it. just check your vehicles before travelling and keep it safe. based upon what you learn on this excursion you can make adjustments for an even longer one later.
__________________
2015 cardinal model 3825fl
2015 dodge ram 3500 dually
CHICKDOE is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-13-2019, 06:17 PM   #3
D W
Senior Member
 
D W's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2016
Location: ALASKA (World's Biggest Campground)
Posts: 6,631
Just a word of advice,... When we were younger we would spend a whole lot of time on the road to get to destinations. Fast forward 40 years and we have found that too much windshield time rapidly takes the fun out of camping, at least for us. We'd get to the CG, and be exhausted from the drive. We stopped doing that two years ago. We now make it a point to travel no more than 300-350 miles per day, and we take our time and stop periodically to stretch out. Yes, it takes us longer to get to planned destination, but we arrive refreshed and relaxed.

Just friendly advice.
__________________
'07 K3500 Silverado LT Crew Duramax (LBZ)
2016 Salem 27RKSS
1984 CHEV SCOTTSDALE K20 2GCGK24J0E1XXXXXX (Chevrolet Legends-Class of 2019)
"...exhaust fluid? We don't need no stinkin' exhaust fluid"
D W is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-14-2019, 04:58 PM   #4
Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2018
Location: NPR, FL
Posts: 50
We learned to cut back the travel time after our first month. Now we shoot for 3-4 hours on the road and a minimum of 2 nights in a CG. Most stays are 3-4 nights.
Larry L is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-14-2019, 05:29 PM   #5
OYO
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2016
Location: SW Ohio
Posts: 1,023
Good advice above. We do 6 hrs max travel, 2 day min stay. Prefer 4 hrs and 3 days. Cutting back on drive and set-up/teardown time makes a huge difference in stress vs relaxation.

It's an adjustment. Before retirement we would drive SW Ohio to middle Keys straight through. I don't miss that at all. But we only had 'x' number of days to escape the cold.

It's not always the destination if you have the time.

Have fun, be safe.
OYO is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-14-2019, 05:56 PM   #6
Multi-Slacker
 
Join Date: Aug 2017
Location: SoCal
Posts: 2,279
Remember, there is generally no need for sewer hookups on a one night stay. Save that for the longer stays (assuming they have sewer hookups). Learned that the hard way.
__________________
Safe Travels
CurtPutnam is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-14-2019, 06:04 PM   #7
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2017
Location: Kalamazoo
Posts: 2,139
Quote:
Originally Posted by CurtPutnam View Post
Remember, there is generally no need for sewer hookups on a one night stay. Save that for the longer stays (assuming they have sewer hookups). Learned that the hard way.

I was thinking the same thing. shorter stays means you don't have to worry about tanks being full or fresh tank being empty depending on what ammenties are available. I often stay 4-5 days with only electric and then can dump and refill for the next short stay.
Kimber45 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-14-2019, 06:45 PM   #8
waybeck2018
 
waybeck2018's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2018
Location: Central Alabama
Posts: 762
[QUOTE=OYO;2095776]Good advice above. We do 6 hrs max travel, 2 day min stay. Prefer 4 hrs and 3 days. Cutting back on drive and set-up/teardown time makes a huge difference in stress vs relaxation.

It's an adjustment. Before retirement we would drive SW Ohio to middle Keys straight through. I don't miss that at all. But we only had 'x' number of days to escape the cold.

It's not always the destination if you have the time.


If one is still working, we can not always afford the luxury of 3-4 day stops en-route to destination. Although sound advice if you have that luxury of plenty of time and perhaps retired not everyone has that leisure. Do what you can, be safe and enjoy.


Have fun, be safe.
__________________
2012 F-250, 6.7 Super Duty Powerstroke; 2019 291 BR Primetime Tracer,
Days camped in 2018-61

Looking Forward to Completing This Map Soon !
waybeck2018 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-15-2019, 08:41 AM   #9
Catfish1953
 
Join Date: Nov 2018
Location: Springville Alabama
Posts: 41
Thanks for all the great advice. We have been camping in Tent, Pop-up, Travel Trailer on and off for the last 25 years. Have not retired yet 4 years until I am eligible. In fact that's the first part of this trip to New Orleans. We are going to our retirement seminar provide by my employer. We intend to ramp up longer and longer trips until I retire. Those are mostly destination trips so we would visit some along the way. Planning to make a 4-6 month walkabout when I retire. Starting slowly now working through what we need vs. want in our rig.
its not huge but plenty big enough for us. Making changes slowly as we learn what our camping style might be as we get closer to that date. Seriously considering joining Harvest Host next year. We love meeting new people and making new friends in our travels. We were both in the USAF and have friends scattered all over the country. Cant wait to meet friends we will make on this site also. Thanks again for all your input.
__________________

USAF Retired
3rd Herd Life Member
2019 Forrest River E-pro 19-FBS
2008 Toyota FJ Cruiser
catfish1953 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-15-2019, 01:24 PM   #10
Member
 
Chief Lou's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2017
Location: Newton NJ
Posts: 56
I’ve learned to take my time too!

I’m retired but She Who Let the Dogs Out is still working. She works overnights and gets out on Thursday a 9am and doesn’t go back until 1am on Monday, and so we plan travel on longer trips for using only 5 vacay days she’s off for 16. Each winter we head south too. NOLA is one our regulars. We plan no more than 300 miles per day and recently started to stay more than one night on the road.
It is much more relaxing and on that first overnight is when we de-winterize!
This past winter we went to both NOLA and Destin FL. 4 days in each and a two night stay in Alabama on the way home to NJ...discovered Little River Canyon !
Much more relaxing stopping after only5-7 hours on the road.
__________________
Chief Lou & She Who Let the Dogs Out! (Michelle)
2022 Heritage Glen 23BHHL pushing a
2016 GMC Sierra 5.3L 4wd Crew Cab, Short Bed
Chief Lou is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-15-2019, 02:03 PM   #11
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2019
Location: Nevada
Posts: 1,781
DW knows what he is talking about.
I love being at home so anything more than about 3 weeks we head for the barn.
ppine is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-15-2019, 02:56 PM   #12
Senior Member
 
Bluepill's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Pensacola, FL
Posts: 1,645
I'm 75, so I need a break about every 2 to 3 hours. It has to include rest for my eyes and back. Guess what? I have a portable bedroom with A/C that follows me around.

When it's mild weather, I just pull over to rest stops, large mall lots, or even truck stops. Fire up the generator or heat if needed and take my Senior Nap. If it's quite cold or hot, I will fire up the heat or A/C about half an hour before my stop.

Sweet Dreams!

The second most important thing is to plan to avoid rush hours in metro areas. I may start out earlier or later depending on the time that I will be passing through heavy traffic areas. Great stress-reducer.
__________________
2019 Coachmen Freedom Express 192RBS
2015 T12RBST Flagstaff Hardside

Disclaimer: The actual value of my "Two Cents" of advice varies just like a bitcoin.
Bluepill is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-15-2019, 03:55 PM   #13
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2015
Posts: 840
Last summer my DW and I along with another retired couple spent more than two months on a "Grand Tour" which included nearly every National Park west of Denver. The key to our very happy and enjoyable trip was more than a year's worth of planning, including making reservations at some of the most popular sites, notably Colter Bay in Grand Teton NP. We usually stayed 3-4 nights at each location so that we could make easy day trips to our destination parks. Rarely drove more than 3-4 hours each day in between stops. In between stops, even our drives towing our 35-foot fifth-wheel often included the "roads less traveled" rather than the Interstates. We rely on the Good Sam Road Atlas, and the Camping World RV Park Directory to find the best and/or most convenient RV parks. There are also some excellent smart phone apps that can help locate RV parks, but I refuse to carry a cell phone that doesn't fold up, and fit in the "watch pocket" of my jeans!! My wife is the one with the smart phone!!
Jakieboy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-15-2019, 07:16 PM   #14
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: Fort Smith, Arkansas
Posts: 305
Catfish, i'd be interested to hear your thoughts on the drive and the stops. Maybe you could share a few pics of the campgrounds too. We used to enjoy vacationing in Biloxi many years ago before we got our TT. We haven't made it back since Katrina. Just a couple of months ago we talked about someday making it one of our camping destinations. Safe travels.
__________________
2016 Wildwood 230BH X-Lite
2011 Ford XLT Supercab
Days Camping -
'15 (6) : '16 (32) : '17 (41) : '18 (35) : '19 (38) : '20 (15) : '21 (15) :
Sebourn is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-16-2019, 03:24 AM   #15
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Southern MD
Posts: 282
So, I am going to buck the trend.....if we have a long distance between our home and final destination, we will drive 8-10+ hours to get there. We would much rather spend more time at the place we wanted to see, so that we have more time to sight see. Yes, I am tired after a long drive, but it doesn't take me much time to refresh and then we have more time to hike to see the sights we had on our list. Do agree, it is more relaxing being able to spend more time at destination.

If I get tired, DW will take the wheel allowing me some rest time. We stretch our legs during bathroom stops.

We do plan our departure times hoping to avoid rush hour in and around DC, and if reasonable will drive further to avoid going near larger cities.

I'm retired, wife still working.
__________________
Mike K
2019 Cedar Creek 34RL2 w/disc brakes
2017 GMC 3500 D/A, DRW, 40Gal Aux Tank
USN 76-82
Retired Dept of Navy: Navy/USMC Flt Test Engineer
Splashes3 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-16-2019, 05:51 AM   #16
Senior Member
 
Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 5,712
I use to be...Go-Go-Go !! Now the only time I hit it hard is when I go to brothers. 900 first day, and finish with a 6 hr run on second. It's harder than it use to be.
TheWolfPaq82 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-16-2019, 08:03 AM   #17
Retired Panpsychist
 
Theo's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2016
Location: Western Massachusetts
Posts: 1,043
Back in 2004, we took a Lap of America from New England to California using a southern route and back via a norther route. We were in a sedan and stayed in hotels the whole time. Just under 10,000 miles in 5-weeks. The trip was actually quite delightful!

Like others have mentioned, the key to making this fairly effortless was a full year's planning and making reservations at least 6 to 10-months in advance. Chief among the planning goals was not to drive more than 280-320 miles when we were on the road. Thus, our stopping points were carefully spaced apart and about 90% involved multi-night stays. We also recognized the need to divert from our original planning so we could happen upon serendipitous roadside attractions (e.g.; The Spam Museum in Austin, MN).

Also, back then I used MS Streets & Trips to plan our route by specifying maximum daily driving hours/miles between stops. I think that software has been abandoned, but I have recently discovered RV Trip Wizard and it seems to feature what I would need to plan a trip like this again. A planning tool like this also helps handle fuel stops and allows one to experiment with daily start times that might avoid arrival in or around major cities at rush hour.

It is also important to have the luxury of time. I think this would be especially true when towing a travel trailer. I note that you are retired USAF so perhaps this is a moot issue.

A word of caution: these suggestions come from a slightly OCD-riddled person. I actually enjoyed planning all the details almost as much as I did the actual trip!

Thanks for your service, catfish1953.
__________________
Theo & Carol

2007 GoldenDoodle ("Cooper") R.I.P.
2020 Rockwood Roo 23IKSS
2015 F-150 4WD XLT SCab, 5.0L, 3.73, 36gal, HD Towing Pkg (53A), 1,980lb Payload
Theo is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-16-2019, 08:12 AM   #18
Senior Member
 
KNMIB's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2017
Location: WASHINGTON, ILLINOIS
Posts: 288
We left mid March and will return home June 1stish. We only run 3-5 hrs a day max. Some places we stay a week (like the Keys) and sometimes we stay one night. We have gone from central Illinois to the Keys and up the East coast to DC. We have a 28ft. motor home and we don't tow, if we settle in and want to see a lot we rent a car although we can unhook and go about anywhere. We keep it very simple we can hook up and unhook in about 10 minutes. We have about 4 more states to see then we start over. We all have different ways to travel, so do what fits your needs. Our goal is to see the country, so we go out a couple months then go home and spoil the grandkids. We are never in a hurry anymore. Safe travels to all.
KNMIB is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-16-2019, 08:20 AM   #19
Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2019
Posts: 33
Returning from a 2 week trip to Rockport, TX in February I white knuckled it 585 miles in one day. The last half of the trip home was on divided 4 lane highway. I'm like a horse that runs back to the barn as fast as he can!!
__________________
2020 Ram 3/4 Ton; 4WD; 6.4 Hemi; Transforce 10 ply tires
2020 LaCrosse 3399SE Travel Trailer, One Wife and One Dog.
Sticki is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-16-2019, 08:24 AM   #20
Recently new!
 
Paulie1138's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2014
Location: Arizona, in The Land of Scorch!
Posts: 1,206
Send a message via AIM to Paulie1138
Our biggest plan is to avoid congested areas during rush hour! Time breakfast or supper to be pulled over to eat around those times. We try to head out before morning rush, and try to be in camp by 4pm-ish if driving that far. We really dislike trying to negotiate lane changes in bumper-to-bumper traffic.
__________________
1987 Starcraft Nova tent trailer, purch. '87, sold 8.14
2013 Crusader 290RLT bought new, 8.14 lotsa mods!
2001 Ford F-250 7.3
Loving wife, R.I.P., 6/6/19
and Mason the always dirty dog! R.I.P, 2/19
Paulie1138 is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Disclaimer:

This website is not affiliated with or endorsed by Forest River, Inc. or any of its affiliates. This is an independent, unofficial site.



All times are GMT -5. The time now is 06:07 AM.