Tips for long trip with travel trailer?

72cougarxr7 wrote:
I should have mentioned, we have 2 small children, so I am planning on a 2 day trip. We will be leaving Thursday afternoon when my daughter is home from her last day of school. Hoping to make it to Ohio Thursday night, maybe camp out at a Walmart, and finish the trip Friday.

Some Ohio rest areas on the tollway have RV parking with electric hookups. Also water to fill your tank and a dump. If you're on 80/90 heading west-i think it's the second rest area.

Breaks are good!

Also a good roadside assistance.

After all of our years we still use a laminated check list. On it suggests at our first rest stop it's not a bad idea to re-torque the trailers wheels. I also check for excessive heat (by hand) from the tires and wheel bearings. Then re-check the general hitch up. After that I can say to my wife yes, yes, yes...dear..! lol... Have fun, this will be a very memorable story for years to come.

From TN my furthest trips are to Ft. Wilderness \ Disney, the Gulf Coast a few times, and Ontario, Canada.

Before you leave (in addition to "normal" TV maintenance) check air pressure and lug nuts of all tires, including spares, on the TT and TV. Know how to change a tire on the TT.

I always plan my stops, and as much as possible get a pull through site at a CG to lay over - preferably where I don't have to unhook, just drop the tounge jack, stabilizers, and hook up shore power. Makes for a quick exit in the morning.

We always keep sandwiches and food in the TT fridge. Fresh water is good to have for flushing toilets and washing hands. I typically don't use the fresh water tank, but I do keep a couple of 1 gallon containers. Being able to use the bathroom in a TT vs. a gas station is really nice.

Other than that, a long drive isn't much different than a short one - have activities for the kids and don't let em drink too much!

72cougarxr7 wrote:
I should have mentioned, we have 2 small children, so I am planning on a 2 day trip. We will be leaving Thursday afternoon when my daughter is home from her last day of school. Hoping to make it to Ohio Thursday night, maybe camp out at a Walmart, and finish the trip Friday.

With 2 small children, 400+ miles is a big day for my taste. My last big trip from Virginia to California (by way of Niagara Falls, Mt Rushmore, etc) with 2 under 4yrs + 12yo was about 4,500 miles, and I tried to keep it under 300 miles/day. Between setting up/getting everyone fed/settled at the end of the day, and getting everyone ready in the morning/breaking camp, I've found 300 miles has been the sweet spot between making progress and avoiding meltdowns.

It all depends on the heartiness of your crew though. Some have much higher tolerance for inconvenience.

Gdetrailer wrote:

4X4Dodger wrote:

Gdetrailer wrote:

4X4Dodger wrote:
To the OP: This topic comes up frequently and the answers are always divided about the same they are here. It always surprises me the number of answers that are essentially fear based...fear of driving at night, fear of mountain roads... And then there are the ones who tell you Yep! youve done about all you can now GO!! and have fun.

I'm in the latter group. Sounds like you'll be fine. I ususally do about 1600 or more one way on a trip. I drive whenever I feel like it. And I enjoy driving at night too.

It's easy to let other peoples fears and anxieties get to you and make you worry more than you should about this towing thing and some here on this forum seem to make it their life's work to distribute their fears and anxieties as widely as possible. Just go and have a good time.

As you "age" you ARE supposed to get wiser and smarter.

Some folks don't..

I don't put myself in the latter category.

For my job I travel a 100 mile round trip daily, for two hrs each day.. That is provided the weather is perfect and there is no wrecks along the way.. In the last 17 years of this job I have logged 408,000 miles, in the winter that means I drive in the dark in the morning AND evening.

I seen countless accidents, many very bad accidents which pretty much TYPICALLY happen IN THE DARK. I have seen quite a few tractor trailers over turned, 4x4 drivers who feel since they have 4x4 they are exempt from icy conditions and find themselves in places that must have hurt getting there.

I have personally had TWO deer encounters that caused severe damage to my truck and the first time it disabled me on the road, it was all I could do just to drag the broken truck off the road for traffic to move by.

The second time was TWO deer darting in front of a semi I was passing.. They took on the side of my truck smashing the front fender, passenger door and the rear passenger door.

Each time I LOST the use of my vehicle for nearly 2 weeks AND out of pocket of $1,000 each time and the insurance paid the remaining $3,000 for repairs.

I have successfully avoided more deer than I can count but the ones that can't be avoided will sure as heck ruin ones camping plans if you make even the slightest contact.

I am smarter as I have gotten older, my eyesight is not that of a young teen, oncoming headlights bother me more and more each year and when night falls I SLOW DOWN CONSIDERABLY and my DW also is on the lookout for deer on hill sides and along the road.

Don't act young and dumb, you may not ever get to see your kids grow up just by not realizing the added danger of flying down a unknown road in the dark while towing a combination weighing easily three times the weight of your vehicle it will not stop as fast and may not react/handle emergency manuevers.

When towing you have added responsibility of recognizing potential danger and compensating for it like slowing down or even pulling off for the night..

Camping is all about getting to your destination in one piece, enjoying the time then getting home in one piece. It is not about trying to win the Indy 500..

You also SHARE the road with other motorists and your bad judgement can and will affect ALL..

Take your time, drive safely, make as many safety stops as you need, take breaks and recognize your limitations. Stop if you get sleepy, and take a few winks.

First of all I am 62. Second I have driven in all 50 states in all seasons and countries all over the world including Egypt, Cambodia, Vietnam, Sri Lanka and more...I have literally millions of miles and never an accident that was chargeable to me. Whenever I was hit I was legally standing still at a light or sign.

I have had plenty of close calls in my life with animals and bad drivers. Knock on wood I have been able to avoid them.

And with respect, I think your remarks are based on anxiety/fear of your own experiences. I try to offer a counter point to that as I don't believe in spreading that kind of attitude. The BEST drivers are those that are CONFIDENT, ABLE, AWARE and know their own and their vehicles limits. It's the drivers who are nervous, afraid and uneasy with the roads or their vehicles that to me are the ones that bear watching out for.

No "anxiety OR FEAR" due to my "experiences".

It is more an "acknowledgement" that and AWARENESS that I AM WILLING to admit that that the "rewards" of taking EXCESSIVE chances to get somewhere in a hurry in the end COULD result is loss of not just my life, but my entire family OR even worse, living with HARMING OR KILLING OTHER MOTORISTS..

If you call that "anxiety or fear" then you have MUCH to learn little grass hopper.

You remind me about my struggle with trying to get my now 88 yr old Dad to GIVE up driving.. He barely can see, can't hear and gets extremely confused.. He sounds EXACTLY LIKE YOU and is a hazard on the road.. So far we KNOW that he HAS drifted off the road MULTIPLE TIMES, has smashed the entire side of one vehicle, dented and scratched his other vehicle and BLAMES OTHER "MOTORISTS" for being on HIS SIDE of the road..

Thank goodness so far nobody has been hurt or killed.

Sorry, but you are only KIDDING YOURSELF, perhaps you need to take a good hard look at what you think is really safe..

For myself I want to hang up driving BEFORE I am an unsafe driver.

Well my goodness, such vitriol. But thank you, I think you made my point about fear better than I ever could have. Your post is full of it, for your Father and of your own experiences.

Little Grasshopper? WHERE on earth DID you get that? LOL. Your condescension is only exceeded by your charm, which somehow I have missed.

And your assumptions about me are legion...comparing me to your 88 year old father...Excessive chances apparently I am taking? Risking others lives? Good Grief.

To you I am sure it is very scary and taking excessive chances to hire a motorcycle in Sri Lanka and drive around that beautiful country for a month? I am willing to bet that nothing in your experience would prepare you for the chaos on those roads. (Think India at it's worst) I rode with a young man nearly 25 years my junior, he ended the first day throwing up from tension, fear and exhaustion...I was fine. To me that is the best. And it's just one of many such drives I have made in my lifetime. Believe me if I didnt know safety and was not a very competent driver I wouldnt be alive now for sure. We all have differing skill levels in many things including driving. Mine have kept me alive and unhurt for 47 years driving all over this planet in conditions most Americans cant imagine in all types of vehicles. Can you say the same?

72cougarxr7 wrote:
Planning on having a full water tank for our Walmart camp out on the way. I'm hoping to make it to Ohio by the 1st night(Thursday), camp out at Wally World, and the rest of the way to Illinois on the 2nd day(Friday). We have my wife's nieces wedding to attend Saturday in Illinois, so I hope everything goes to plan.

I'm sure everything will be fine. Hope you enjoy the trip.

4X4Dodger wrote:

Gdetrailer wrote:

4X4Dodger wrote:
To the OP: This topic comes up frequently and the answers are always divided about the same they are here. It always surprises me the number of answers that are essentially fear based...fear of driving at night, fear of mountain roads... And then there are the ones who tell you Yep! youve done about all you can now GO!! and have fun.

I'm in the latter group. Sounds like you'll be fine. I ususally do about 1600 or more one way on a trip. I drive whenever I feel like it. And I enjoy driving at night too.

It's easy to let other peoples fears and anxieties get to you and make you worry more than you should about this towing thing and some here on this forum seem to make it their life's work to distribute their fears and anxieties as widely as possible. Just go and have a good time.

As you "age" you ARE supposed to get wiser and smarter.

Some folks don't..

I don't put myself in the latter category.

For my job I travel a 100 mile round trip daily, for two hrs each day.. That is provided the weather is perfect and there is no wrecks along the way.. In the last 17 years of this job I have logged 408,000 miles, in the winter that means I drive in the dark in the morning AND evening.

I seen countless accidents, many very bad accidents which pretty much TYPICALLY happen IN THE DARK. I have seen quite a few tractor trailers over turned, 4x4 drivers who feel since they have 4x4 they are exempt from icy conditions and find themselves in places that must have hurt getting there.

I have personally had TWO deer encounters that caused severe damage to my truck and the first time it disabled me on the road, it was all I could do just to drag the broken truck off the road for traffic to move by.

The second time was TWO deer darting in front of a semi I was passing.. They took on the side of my truck smashing the front fender, passenger door and the rear passenger door.

Each time I LOST the use of my vehicle for nearly 2 weeks AND out of pocket of $1,000 each time and the insurance paid the remaining $3,000 for repairs.

I have successfully avoided more deer than I can count but the ones that can't be avoided will sure as heck ruin ones camping plans if you make even the slightest contact.

I am smarter as I have gotten older, my eyesight is not that of a young teen, oncoming headlights bother me more and more each year and when night falls I SLOW DOWN CONSIDERABLY and my DW also is on the lookout for deer on hill sides and along the road.

Don't act young and dumb, you may not ever get to see your kids grow up just by not realizing the added danger of flying down a unknown road in the dark while towing a combination weighing easily three times the weight of your vehicle it will not stop as fast and may not react/handle emergency manuevers.

When towing you have added responsibility of recognizing potential danger and compensating for it like slowing down or even pulling off for the night..

Camping is all about getting to your destination in one piece, enjoying the time then getting home in one piece. It is not about trying to win the Indy 500..

You also SHARE the road with other motorists and your bad judgement can and will affect ALL..

Take your time, drive safely, make as many safety stops as you need, take breaks and recognize your limitations. Stop if you get sleepy, and take a few winks.

First of all I am 62. Second I have driven in all 50 states in all seasons and countries all over the world including Egypt, Cambodia, Vietnam, Sri Lanka and more...I have literally millions of miles and never an accident that was chargeable to me. Whenever I was hit I was legally standing still at a light or sign.

I have had plenty of close calls in my life with animals and bad drivers. Knock on wood I have been able to avoid them.

And with respect, I think your remarks are based on anxiety/fear of your own experiences. I try to offer a counter point to that as I don't believe in spreading that kind of attitude. The BEST drivers are those that are CONFIDENT, ABLE, AWARE and know their own and their vehicles limits. It's the drivers who are nervous, afraid and uneasy with the roads or their vehicles that to me are the ones that bear watching out for.

No "anxiety OR FEAR" due to my "experiences".

It is more an "acknowledgement" that and AWARENESS that I AM WILLING to admit that that the "rewards" of taking EXCESSIVE chances to get somewhere in a hurry in the end COULD result is loss of not just my life, but my entire family OR even worse, living with HARMING OR KILLING OTHER MOTORISTS..

If you call that "anxiety or fear" then you have MUCH to learn little grass hopper.

You remind me about my struggle with trying to get my now 88 yr old Dad to GIVE up driving.. He barely can see, can't hear and gets extremely confused.. He sounds EXACTLY LIKE YOU and is a hazard on the road.. So far we KNOW that he HAS drifted off the road MULTIPLE TIMES, has smashed the entire side of one vehicle, dented and scratched his other vehicle and BLAMES OTHER "MOTORISTS" for being on HIS SIDE of the road..

Thank goodness so far nobody has been hurt or killed.

Sorry, but you are only KIDDING YOURSELF, perhaps you need to take a good hard look at what you think is really safe..

For myself I want to hang up driving BEFORE I am an unsafe driver.

Gdetrailer wrote:

4X4Dodger wrote:
To the OP: This topic comes up frequently and the answers are always divided about the same they are here. It always surprises me the number of answers that are essentially fear based...fear of driving at night, fear of mountain roads... And then there are the ones who tell you Yep! youve done about all you can now GO!! and have fun.

I'm in the latter group. Sounds like you'll be fine. I ususally do about 1600 or more one way on a trip. I drive whenever I feel like it. And I enjoy driving at night too.

It's easy to let other peoples fears and anxieties get to you and make you worry more than you should about this towing thing and some here on this forum seem to make it their life's work to distribute their fears and anxieties as widely as possible. Just go and have a good time.

As you "age" you ARE supposed to get wiser and smarter.

Some folks don't..

I don't put myself in the latter category.

For my job I travel a 100 mile round trip daily, for two hrs each day.. That is provided the weather is perfect and there is no wrecks along the way.. In the last 17 years of this job I have logged 408,000 miles, in the winter that means I drive in the dark in the morning AND evening.

I seen countless accidents, many very bad accidents which pretty much TYPICALLY happen IN THE DARK. I have seen quite a few tractor trailers over turned, 4x4 drivers who feel since they have 4x4 they are exempt from icy conditions and find themselves in places that must have hurt getting there.

I have personally had TWO deer encounters that caused severe damage to my truck and the first time it disabled me on the road, it was all I could do just to drag the broken truck off the road for traffic to move by.

The second time was TWO deer darting in front of a semi I was passing.. They took on the side of my truck smashing the front fender, passenger door and the rear passenger door.

Each time I LOST the use of my vehicle for nearly 2 weeks AND out of pocket of $1,000 each time and the insurance paid the remaining $3,000 for repairs.

I have successfully avoided more deer than I can count but the ones that can't be avoided will sure as heck ruin ones camping plans if you make even the slightest contact.

I am smarter as I have gotten older, my eyesight is not that of a young teen, oncoming headlights bother me more and more each year and when night falls I SLOW DOWN CONSIDERABLY and my DW also is on the lookout for deer on hill sides and along the road.

Don't act young and dumb, you may not ever get to see your kids grow up just by not realizing the added danger of flying down a unknown road in the dark while towing a combination weighing easily three times the weight of your vehicle it will not stop as fast and may not react/handle emergency manuevers.

When towing you have added responsibility of recognizing potential danger and compensating for it like slowing down or even pulling off for the night..

Camping is all about getting to your destination in one piece, enjoying the time then getting home in one piece. It is not about trying to win the Indy 500..

You also SHARE the road with other motorists and your bad judgement can and will affect ALL..

Take your time, drive safely, make as many safety stops as you need, take breaks and recognize your limitations. Stop if you get sleepy, and take a few winks.

First of all I am 62. Second I have driven in all 50 states in all seasons and countries all over the world including Egypt, Cambodia, Vietnam, Sri Lanka and more...I have literally millions of miles and never an accident that was chargeable to me. Whenever I was hit I was legally standing still at a light or sign.

I have had plenty of close calls in my life with animals and bad drivers. Knock on wood I have been able to avoid them.

And with respect, I think your remarks are based on anxiety/fear of your own experiences. I try to offer a counter point to that as I don't believe in spreading that kind of attitude. The BEST drivers are those that are CONFIDENT, ABLE, AWARE and know their own and their vehicles limits. It's the drivers who are nervous, afraid and uneasy with the roads or their vehicles that to me are the ones that bear watching out for.

Planning on having a full water tank for our Walmart camp out on the way. I'm hoping to make it to Ohio by the 1st night(Thursday), camp out at Wally World, and the rest of the way to Illinois on the 2nd day(Friday). We have my wife's nieces wedding to attend Saturday in Illinois, so I hope everything goes to plan.

The original poster and I are a lot alike. I do everything I can do by the book - prep prep prep prep - and still worry about the little cra$. Unless we're going to be without a full hookup, I normally travel with 1/3 to 1/2 of a fresh water tank - for bathroom breaks at rest areas, water for the dogs, etc. I bring my generator and a 5gal tank of gas just in case. I've never overnighted at a walmart but know several people who have. They travel until they get tired / weird, and pull into walmart and spend 7 or 8 hours sleeping. Go into Walmart and buy a hot chicken and a beer to relax. My thoughts are if you're not having fun, it's not worth it - all the expense and work in owning an RV that is. Enjoy your rig and the experience - after all, that's what most of us do to decompress.