Trip Report -- the shake down trip or the maiden voyage.
Hi All,
Figured I'd report on our shake down trip with our new AF 990 :)
We left home about 5:40pm to head north about an hour to a park we've often passed on the highway but never checked out. Until, that is, a year or so ago when I was routed through the park due to an accident on the main road (HWY 17 in WA).
This State park was not our first choice and wouldn't normally have been on the list at all really, but we were looking for somewhere close by to try out the camper and see how things went. This would be the first trip, fully loaded for a weekend away and we were looking forward to it.
Our original destination was a lake called 'Coffee Pot' that was also an hour away but we'd learned late in the week that a big race was going on in Odessa (the nearest town) and all campsites would likely be full. So, change of plans. Sun Lakes, Dry Falls State Park it was.
Not having stayed in many state parks (I tended to shy from anything remotely civilized in my younger years and at best chose Forest Service camp grounds if I couldn't just go somewhere no one went) I did some checking and saw 'primitive' camp sites listed as $12 per night. Ok, fine, I'll pay. We headed out.
The weather was going to be wet with 100% chance of rain but we didn't care :) We have cards, a crib board and bourbon (or in her case Fireball). What did we care?
The drive out was fine, 60mph for the most part, a bit windy but not bad and 9mpg (which was lower than I expected). When we arrived we drove to where I thought we could camp but nothing was open or there was no camping and fearing the rangers and their ever present 'ticket' pads we headed back to the camping areas and were unable to find any 'primitive' sites listed. This park was not what I'd want to camp at usually with it's many 'apartment' complex like sites stacked one next to each other. Why not just plant trees in a parking lot and call it a 'camp site'? OK, ok! I know! I grew up in BC in mostly out of the way small towns where you could 'rough it' for real 5 minutes out of town! ha! So, we chose one of their 'desirable' sites dropped $60 into the box (and cringed since it was $30 a night for their 'desirable' sites) and headed off to our corner, or rather alley, to hide out in. The place was basically abandoned anyway which really made us question the whole $30 a night thing!
It was raining and chilly when we arrived but I'd warmed up the camper before leaving and it was about 60F inside once set up.
We were alone in our 'alley' of a camp site which was small and very close to all the others. I really don't understand this kind of 'camping'. It seems more like sleeping in a park where you can have a fire and pitch a tent 5 feet from someone else and hope they don't snore because they will wake you up as well as the other 50 people within 50 feet of you....but I digress! This was a shake down trip after all and no one was around.
And heck, once my VA claim goes through (don't hold your breath on time frame though) it will be free to go there so I should be grateful right?
Once set up we watched a young couple move in a few campsites over and set up a tent. I was thinking the whole time "didn't you check the weather report?" Funny thing though, weather never would have stopped me 30 years ago either.
The next morning that couple moved on (in the heavy rain) and we played cards and hid in our warm and cozy camper. Life was good!
At one point, however, I was looking outside and thinking "it's starting to become a pond out there" and decided it was time to move. So we pulled up stakes, rolled up onto the blacktop on a flat spot in the middle of our 'alley' and dropped anchor again. TO heck with it right? We're here to enjoy the place and paid our $60 so we're staying. We're just not going to need 4 low to get out! ha! Rangers be dammed!
More to follow....
Figured I'd report on our shake down trip with our new AF 990 :)
We left home about 5:40pm to head north about an hour to a park we've often passed on the highway but never checked out. Until, that is, a year or so ago when I was routed through the park due to an accident on the main road (HWY 17 in WA).
This State park was not our first choice and wouldn't normally have been on the list at all really, but we were looking for somewhere close by to try out the camper and see how things went. This would be the first trip, fully loaded for a weekend away and we were looking forward to it.
Our original destination was a lake called 'Coffee Pot' that was also an hour away but we'd learned late in the week that a big race was going on in Odessa (the nearest town) and all campsites would likely be full. So, change of plans. Sun Lakes, Dry Falls State Park it was.
Not having stayed in many state parks (I tended to shy from anything remotely civilized in my younger years and at best chose Forest Service camp grounds if I couldn't just go somewhere no one went) I did some checking and saw 'primitive' camp sites listed as $12 per night. Ok, fine, I'll pay. We headed out.
The weather was going to be wet with 100% chance of rain but we didn't care :) We have cards, a crib board and bourbon (or in her case Fireball). What did we care?
The drive out was fine, 60mph for the most part, a bit windy but not bad and 9mpg (which was lower than I expected). When we arrived we drove to where I thought we could camp but nothing was open or there was no camping and fearing the rangers and their ever present 'ticket' pads we headed back to the camping areas and were unable to find any 'primitive' sites listed. This park was not what I'd want to camp at usually with it's many 'apartment' complex like sites stacked one next to each other. Why not just plant trees in a parking lot and call it a 'camp site'? OK, ok! I know! I grew up in BC in mostly out of the way small towns where you could 'rough it' for real 5 minutes out of town! ha! So, we chose one of their 'desirable' sites dropped $60 into the box (and cringed since it was $30 a night for their 'desirable' sites) and headed off to our corner, or rather alley, to hide out in. The place was basically abandoned anyway which really made us question the whole $30 a night thing!
It was raining and chilly when we arrived but I'd warmed up the camper before leaving and it was about 60F inside once set up.
We were alone in our 'alley' of a camp site which was small and very close to all the others. I really don't understand this kind of 'camping'. It seems more like sleeping in a park where you can have a fire and pitch a tent 5 feet from someone else and hope they don't snore because they will wake you up as well as the other 50 people within 50 feet of you....but I digress! This was a shake down trip after all and no one was around.
And heck, once my VA claim goes through (don't hold your breath on time frame though) it will be free to go there so I should be grateful right?
Once set up we watched a young couple move in a few campsites over and set up a tent. I was thinking the whole time "didn't you check the weather report?" Funny thing though, weather never would have stopped me 30 years ago either.
The next morning that couple moved on (in the heavy rain) and we played cards and hid in our warm and cozy camper. Life was good!
At one point, however, I was looking outside and thinking "it's starting to become a pond out there" and decided it was time to move. So we pulled up stakes, rolled up onto the blacktop on a flat spot in the middle of our 'alley' and dropped anchor again. TO heck with it right? We're here to enjoy the place and paid our $60 so we're staying. We're just not going to need 4 low to get out! ha! Rangers be dammed!
More to follow....
