Longer campsites

Although it's been some time since I had an RV, and we have had several, I forgot that trucks and trailers can hit this length very easy.

One further suggestion: If you are using a trailer (and sometimes even if you're using a dolly), it can be mighty convenient to get a trailer hitch put on the car. That way, if you need to store the trailer and/or car someplace other than your campsite, you can tote it around a bit with the car as opposed to using the motorhome for that duty.

Most cars won't have any trouble pulling their own empty car hauler trailer around for a short distance at slow (campground) speeds. That's an entirely different usage scenario than pulling a trailer down the highway or toting it with a significant load...which may or may not be advisable, depending on the car.

With your 31' and towing a car - if you're traveling in the West you will have no issues using public parks such as national parks, national forest campgrounds, COE, state parks, county and city parks. Definitely no problem if using RV parks.

We used all the above with our 40' motorhome towing a car - no trailer. Parking the car and the trailer might give you problems however many parks have a separate area where you could park the trailer while there.

Are you talking a trailer or a tow dolly? Those with a dolly seem to have it easier because they can sometimes tuck the dolly under the RV without needing a lot of extra space.

The eastern public parks might be a problem except for some of the spacious sites in the COE parks. RV parks shouldn't be a problem in the east.

Personally, I wouldn't worry about it. There are always places nearby to where you want to stay that you will fit. It'll just take some research by you. Enjoy yourselves.

You are going to need way more than 50 feet. You are probably neglecting the hitch and ramps. Once you remove your 16 foot long car, you have that to add to the length of what you need. We limit rigs like yours to just a select few sites. They just plain take up too much room. A motorhome and car trailer won't be a problem everywhere, but it is likely to be a problem somewhere.

Bukhrn,

While it may not be obvious to you, the maximum vehicle length is just that. They expect that vehicles longer than that length will have extreme difficulty maneuvering in the camping area. They are not saying that the campsite slip is only that long. I can also tell you that there are places where the slip at the site is just that long and they invite you to leave the towed and dolly in an outer lot.

Matt

KeninAZ wrote:
I have an older 31 Class A. We are starting to travel and will carry a car with us on a trailer which will mean our overall length will be just less than 50'.
How much trouble am I in in locating a space that long or a space that is wide enough to disconnect the trailer and have it along side?

I'd say what your bringing is a common length for typical commercial RV parks..and it helps that you're willing to disconnect the trailer and park it along side. In fact in many spots you can pull through with the trailer. If you do have a problem, it will be in public campgrounds, some of which were laid out decades ago with tent camping in mind. If you're making reservations, I'd request site to suit. If not, you may want to call ahead and check..or look at the campground description online. RVparkreviews can tell you what kind of rigs have been there. Also check address on google earth and see whats in the sites. Overall don't see a problem in most commercial campgrounds, especially newer ones.

I've found that most State & Federal Campgrounds thend to list their sites shorter than they really are.
We've been in many of these CG's that listed Max Vehicle length of 30 ft, we put our 29' Class C, Dolly & toad with room left for another toad, I have no idea WHY they do that, most of the listed lengths are for the camping unit (RV) only.

My TT and truck measure in at 60 feet and I have never had a problem with that length.

We're at only about 45' so we try to look for spots that are 40'+. In my experience, many campgrounds we go to have "overflow" parking or room elsewhere on the site that you can park another vehicle. I find using google satellite view and campsitephotos.com becomes helpful for this.

My Travel Trailer is 35.5 feet long (real length), and my truck is 22 feet long. (57.5 feet), add 2.5 more feet for my cargo carrier on the back of my trailer bumper and that makes my length 60 feet (just legal in Indiana!).

No problem with campsites and parking both. BUT! it does take some searching and checking going to a new location. State Parks will often give the length of the campsite pad and a description. We always compare with Google Earth satellite imaging to see about actual trees and such.

Bottom line, with prior planning, there is no problem with most parks, private and state or federal owned. Just do your research before making reservations.