Reservations for extended trips?

I always make reservations if I'm going to be somewhere a week or more. On the way, I lay out my route on S & T, figuring about 300 miles/day and hunt for a FHU park in the area. Since I stop at 2 or 3 in the afternoon, I don't make a res for those stops, and I've only been shut out once in 10 years. That was in Helena, MT. and there was some kind of festival going on, so the CGs were full. I drove on to Great Falls, about 100 miles, and found a KOA for an overnight. The trick, for me at least, is leaving by 8AM and stopping around 2 or 3 PM.

We are traveling up the Oregon coast with one of our wants being sites with a direct view of the Pacific.

If I would not have made reservations we'd have been out of luck.

To each his own but it does not cost a dime more to get a site you want.

in southern ontario if you don't reserve for july and august, the chances of getting a good site are slim, the chances of getting a site at all on a weekend, slim to none,
off season,, all except May 2x4 and thanksgiving (CDN) you will not have an issue finding a site weekday or weekend, depending on the weekend premium sites will be taken, but still lots of selection.
some of our parks even close sections of the campgrounds in the off season

I've put well over 100,000 mils on three different trailers since retirement and other than on major holiday weekends, I've NEVER made reservations. So far at least, I've been SOMEWHERE every night :) Travel is supposed to be fun and being on a schedule is NOT my idea of fun (sounds more like my job to me).

Stay south of the Mason Dixon line and rest assured, there will always be a place to stay. On the east coast and left coast, you should make reservations, way in advance.

we only make reservations for a place when we really want to be there at a specific time or if it is a place that is so busy you need to do reservations to be sure to have a place at all.

We never reserve a commercial park. Just National Parks and beaches that are otherwise jammed full sold out 5 to 12 months in advance.

I don't full time. When traveling, I make reservations at our destination. While enroute we always find a suitable place to stop.
Enjoy your travels and don't stress.

My perspective is based more on my employment experience, first as an extended traveler and now a f/ter. A self contained RV eliminates the need for motels and restaurants, thus affording one much more flexibility with time. Boondocking, permitted black-top parking or public/commercial parks are available practically anywhere for the highly mobile. In the last 10 years, I can only recall making 3 reservations, all to meet friends coming from afar.

Initially, my biggest challenge in transitioning from extended travel to f/ting was learning to... slow down. Still working, it's the difference between farming an area and cherry picking. Like most folks, I make plans with friends and family in different venues. I get much more time with them today than when I had a sticks and bricks. I visit popular areas during their shoulder season. But, I no longer drive 35k miles/yr, seldom move more than 150 mi in a day, rarely staying just overnight and I still don't make reservations. When I go on both medicare and SS next month, I'll semi-retire... lol.

We only make reservations for the weekends or holidays, or for popular areas in the summer that we know will be booked, like Yellowstone. We usually stop early in the day and have not had a problem finding a campsite.