planning a major trip across country. and i have a 28' class c, and the toad consists of a dolly and a vibe to be put on the dolly. in traveling so far mainly for extended stays at one spot the toad works great and i have restricted my travel so far to a tank of gas there and back sense i purchased it last yr. and i have been watching my travels for gas stops that would have enough room to pull in for gas with the toad. and so far i have noticed very few places i would pull into with the toad because of the turning radius of the rig and the cars which have no consideration for a longer rig and their turning rad and i wouldn't be able to back the rig. the trip i am planning goes from the east coast through mt rushmore , yellowstone, glacier national park , mt riener,glacier lake,and then south to hit Yosemite national park,las vagas, hover dam, grand canyon,Bryce canyon, flagstaff and then back to the east coast. so with all thee traveling i am wondering if a toad would work ok with the gas stops and also the gas mileage, because we plan to do this in 10 weeks. so any advice would be helpful !plan to spend 1 week in yellowstone and 2-3 days around mt rushmore plus 2 nites near vagas and maybe some other out trips to tour.help !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The one thing I missed most on our Alaska trip in our B+ vs making the same trip in our Class A was the lack of our toad. Kind of a pain tearing down to go explore, when you are in an area more than one night. We have towed a vehicle four down since getting our 1st Class C in 1981, and prefer it that way. If a dolly was my only choice, I probably would go without a toad, because to me loading and un-loading the toad would be worse than unhooking and then resetting the RV on our return..

I wouldn't go anywhere without the Toad. As far as getting gas is concerned it's really not that hard. Sometimes you have to piss a few people off. Make sure you have an escape route before you pull in. I haven't encountered many regular stations that I couldn't work out a plan for getting gas with our 38 Ft class A and toad.

We flat tow a 2007 Vibe (stick shift) and have been on some long trips towing it behind our 31 ft class c.Regarding fuel stops, it can be managed, as previously said, always look ahead for an exit before pulling in. When pumps are at right angle to the ever present convenience store, try for the end pumps, sometimes its best to pull all the way around to the opposite end so you are facing out .

I had a 28' V-10 Four Winds C-class and it seamed a little unhappy pulling a 3,500 trailer around on a trip to Oregon form Texas. Depends on where your coming from, If you have to cross the Rockies Id suggest maybe buying a scooter of small MC, and trailering it behind your RVHeres a pic of my father C With MC lift on the back.

Two years ago we did a ten week, 13K mile trip back East covering much of what you plan on doing. We took our 1995 Sidekick and would not have had nearly the fun we had without it. If you have no problem with the dolly, I say go for it, you won't be sorry. As for gas stops, we have been COSTCO members for years and my brother included us in his Sam's Club membership. There was one COSTCO station that was tight but all were doable. We didn't buy gas for the rig anywhere else so don't know about regular station other than the one on Blue Diamond near the Oasis RV Resort in Vegas and that is really tight except on the end pumps.Our mileage suffered, but, I still take the towed and have upgraded to a 2006 Grand Vitara which is a little heavier.

toad or no toad | Good Sam Community

Rolin
Explorer
Dec 28, 2013
Our experience first with a 24ft and now with a 26ft motorhome.

If we are going to stay in one location for a month then a toad or scooter is nice. However, when we are traveling..like to Glacier, Yellowstone, Tetons, Brice, Zion, Canadian Rockies we found it to be much easier going without a toad. Each of the parks have buses that will take you all over the park for free or a reasonable price and you learn more, meet interesting people, see more, and are more relaxed.

All the restaurants we stop at have room at or nearby for our Motorhome. Have not found an attraction that we could not visit with our motorhome. However there are places enroute that would be difficult to visit if we were pulling a toad.

Just depends on what you plan to do or what you plan to see. If you want to go four wheeling on the back roads then you need a toad.

We live on the West Coast and have traveled from Coast to Coast and through much of Canada toadless.
wbwood
Explorer
Dec 28, 2013
You already have the dolly and toad. Take it. As far as finding gas, you need to stick with bigger gas stations. Perhaps places like flying j, loves, etc. if you were going to one destination and staying there for a period of time, then I would say just rent when you get there.
OldRadios
Explorer
Jan 17, 2014
My wife and I have been trying to figure out what we are going to do as far as a toad. We are purchasing a 29 foot C and I think we have settled on pulling a small motorcycle trailer with our Harleys. I don't think the gas mileage will suffer and we will have the Harleys and won't have to break camp if we don't want to. Besides, camping in the C and seeing Yellowstone on Harleys might just be the best way anyway.
tenbear
Explorer
Jan 17, 2014
If you are happy with touring on motorcycles, that is probably a good choice. You can probably back-up with the trailer. May not be so nice in the rain or cold though.
OldRadios
Explorer
Jan 17, 2014
We figure if it's real nasty out we'll just take the C.
Retired_VSP
Explorer II
Feb 26, 2014
Planning to take a West trip from Virginia....been to Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, and now want to go farther west to Rockies, California, etc. Pulling toad for first time in our 33' gasser and a little apprehensive. Lot of advise here....thanks.
pnichols
Explorer II
Feb 27, 2014
Rolin wrote:
Just depends on what you plan to do or what you plan to see. If you want to go four wheeling on the back roads then you need a toad.

We do take our 24 foot Class C on back roads depending of course on how rocky the road is, how deep any washouts might be, and how soft the surface might be. For hard core 4X4 roads of course you'll need a 4X4 small towed vehicle. We often find ourselves on flat, firm back roads in dry weather with severe washboarding being the only issue, which can be dealt with by slowing down. During a Monument Valley trip we enjoyed comfortable dust-free air conditioned sight-seeing on the valley floor by taking our Class C with no problems (... taking it slow and careful) on the main tourist road signed as "Not Recommended For RVs".

It's very enjoyable camping out in the middle of nowhere in a comfortable Class C just off some back road!
Retired_VSP
Explorer II
Mar 04, 2014
Dakzuki wrote:
We did a month long trip of the western national parks pulling a toad last year and getting fuel was a non issue. We used the Gas Buddy app to plan our fuel stops based on price and access. Nancy (navigator) would use Google maps to get the lay of the land before we committed to a particular station. If I could do it with diesel it would be a piece of cake for a gasser.

We pulled our toad over the hog's back of Utah 12. It did have my undivided attention but it was no problem.

We put a hundred miles on the toad in Yellowstone in one day alone.

Make your reservations early. Arches is awesome but the camping area is small and sells out early.

We are planning a California trip from Virginia in mid-June through the end of July....pulling a toad for the first time in my 33' gasser Class A....can you give me any advise on pulling a toad in general and the challenge of crossing the Rockies, difference in fuel mileage etc. I'm a little apprehensive in gas stations and eating places and I know I have to plan ahead...always rented a car in the past. Also, is weather a challege for that time of year....? Any info will be very much appreciated.....P.S. we have been to Yellowstone, Grand Canyon, and Mt. Rushmore in '06 in our old Class C.....didn't pull a toad then either but travelled with a buddy who had one.
jauguston
Explorer
Mar 04, 2014
Old Radios,

If you don't buy a enclosed trailer for your motorcycles you will have some awfully dirty bikes when you stop. DON'T get covers to try and keep them clean. No matter how you tie the covers down the wind will flap the covers and grind the dirt that gets under them into the paint and ruin the chrome. Been there-done that.

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