Am I nuts?

[F.R.O.G.]

Ryand, on the issue of whether the park is open: We stayed there for about four nights over Christmas when we were back in the area and visiting with kids / grandkids in St. Charles. That's going to be an excellent RV park, and is pretty darn good now.

The small staff was extremely helpful and friendly. They've planted about 3000 trees that will take a while to mature, and have plans for a couple of large pavilions. All of the roads are paved, and the sites are packed gravel, although still muddy in some spots. Extensive walking / biking trails wind around the lake, and there's lake access for small boats (under 10 HP, if I remember).

Temperatures got into the teens while we were there, and the wind was about 30 mph coming across the lake and rolling between the levees like a wind tunnel. There's a chain across the entry road at night, and you'll get a key and/or combination for access.

The night we arrived there were only three units there for about 75 spaces. The site we were assigned had a lot of mud, so we moved next door, and stopped by the office to let them know. Naturally, even thought they don't "normally" assign sites, we had picked the only one where they had send out confirmation of a specific site. So with about 70 sites to choose from, we moved about three spaces over the next day, rather than have the other folks reassigned to an identical site when they came. Of course, you already know that the end of the story is that no one ever arrived and occupied that site while we were there.

[Oakman]

Originally Posted by Rebel702

So is the gray the 2010 or is the red? Time to update the avatar?
Any fish in that pond?

The gray truck is my current one. Yes, it's time to update my avatar but I don't have a photo that I like. Perhaps this season I'll take a picture just for the avatar.

Yes there are fish in the lake but it became apparent to me last year that I lack the skills required to fool a fish into taking my bait.

[Wildcat Chris]

Originally Posted by Dave_Monica

Save your propane and use the electrical hook-up and portable heaters in the camper. You may even want to run an additional extension cord into the camper from the 20A service at the site post. Running a couple of 1500W heaters doesn't leave much to run anything else on your 30A power supply. I've wired up a 20A connection outside to a dedicated outlet inside for this reason.

Dave

That's one of the reasons we started offering optional bedroom fireplaces in most of our models (even standard on some Sterling Edition models). While most people will still run the furnace in below freezing temps, the electrical heating from a 4600BTU fireplace can really help keep you toasty in colder camping situations.

[Oakman]

Bob, thanks for that update on 370 Lakeside Park. The chain across the entry road is something new. I wonder if they will continue to use it during the warm months when they get a lot more RV’ers using the park?

We stayed there twice last year and one of my rubs with the park was the fact that anyone and everyone could drive through the RV portion of the park. Since it is a city park and not just an RV park, many people were driving through the RV section every night. That was something I really didn’t care for.

The park opened for the first time last year and it is still a work in progress. Even so, I would much prefer staying at 370 Lakeside over the nearby Sundermeir RV Park. One nice feature of the park that I didn't expect was that they have a couple of coin-operated clothes washers and dryers available.

My other main rub with 370 Lakeside park was that the surface of the sites were recycled blacktop. During extreme heat conditions the surface became soft under the weight of landing gear. Here’s a photo of how far the leveling pad of a motorhome slowly sank into the surface over a weekend. Temperatures were in the upper 90’s when I took this photo.

[F.R.O.G.]

WOW! We didn't have that issue with the feet of our Sportscoach sinking, but the ground was frozen solid when we were there. That kind of sinking could cause serious damage to both RVs and the sites. I'd forward that photo to the folks at the park.

The chain is right at the top of the levee, just north of the exit from 370. It shuts off access to the entire park, not just the RV portion. I believe they plan to put in a gate with a keypad in the future.

[ng2951]

Besides the cold, I usually recommend the first camping trip in the driveway. Anything goes wrong, everything is easily accessible and no one is truly miserable. You also get around trying to learn how to park too.

We did that with our old TM and it was a smart move.

[ryand]

Bob/Oakman...Thanks for all the details about the RV side of the park. This area was in need of another alternative for campers and really another good park in general. I live just about 3 miles to the East...So its really perfect for me to test things out and not annoy the neighbors.

[ryand]

Well I'm doing it!!!! First night in our camper. Everything worked great....no issues to speak of. Few others here in the park...but overall very quiet. The wife chickened out and went back to the house! The bed is a bit uncomfortable for her...might look at a topper. Spent the day getting familiar with all the systems and testing out the generator. It runs the a/c and everything else but not all at the same time. Had some issues filling the fresh water tank...put about 3/4 in....went to do something else and attempted to top it off and it wouldn't take any more. Seen some other posts about this and will look into it. Tomorrow is the re-winterizing test but overall we are extremely happy so far. Our 3 year old is absolutely nuts over the whole thing.

[Oakman]

I'm glad everything is going good for you. Yes, a mattress topper is the way to go, your wife will sleep much better. If the topper doesn't work then plan "B" should be the ol' three glasses of wine before bed trick.

[Earth Station]

Originally Posted by ryand

This weekend we plan on setting up our Coachmen TT for the first time at a mucipial park CG.....Lakeside 370 in St. Peters Mo. More than anything I want to do a Shakedown night or 2 to see if there are any real issues that may arrise. MY biggest concern is the temps. The trailer has an enclosed and insulated underbelly...I am not certain if the Furnace provides the heat to the area or if the tanks are heated with pads...but thats another issue. Anyhow I am a bit concered about water and freezing issues as the low is to be in the mid 20's. I plan to sanatize the water tank and lines (Easy Enough to do) and check for leaks while de witnerizing. The CG has full hookups so water is not really an issue. Outside of a late night bathroom run I cant see using the water system much for conventinal use as we live only 5 minuts away. I plan to winterize the system again this weeked. Am I crazy for doing this so early in the season? With the weather so oddly warm here in the Midwest I just would feel better knowing I checked everything prior to our first real trip.

We hope you went out and had a great time! Weather (though not perfect) was great for the middle of February!! We are working on getting the TT ready for trade and looking forward to this camping season with our new FW!!!

[ryand]

Few photos form the 1st night...I cant think of anything I missed testing the systems. Everyhitng worked without issue. Had a scare at aroung 4am....a whole lot of commotion and yipping and howling just outside my door. There were tons of geese all over the lake but this was not the same. Peeked out the windows....finally opend the door to take a look.....Must have been 10 Coyote's rasin' hell. They took off when i hit them with the light. Pretty neat!!! Only have one un resloved issue....Wheel alignment might be out. I will post a seperate thread about this.

[ryand]

Few more Pics

[Oakman]

It sounds like everything went great for you. I guess the lack of RV'ers and the presence of geese attracted the coyotes to the park. It looks like momma missed out on a great time, but as I said previously, a topper will help. Thanks for posting the photos, I love looking at other campers pics.

[ryand]

Our House sits just to the east of the CG..at night we can hear them when the windows are open and will occasionally get a glimpse of one running through the strees of the subdivision....we have a real rabbit issue here and the coyotes are welcome IMO. However this pack seemed to have their guard down and were acting like a bunch of puppies.