Larger 5th wheels in/on state and federal parks

[philh]

We're kind of settling in on Cedar Creek 38EFK or it's Riverstone twin. We both love to cook and these units really fit for that.

I keep hearing things like, anything larger than 25' won't fit in most parks, tough to tow, etc etc etc.

We're going to sell the B&M and live in our park model for 6-8 months in MI and travel the rest of the time in the 5th. After spending 3 weeks in our little TT, it was an awesome trip, but with a significant amount of rain, it's a little bit much.

how bad are the big trailers to find places to stop? I know at one campground we were at, we were surrounded by what I called NY skyscrapers 🙂 I do want to do some travel and see new things. We took one route this Christmas, where it was posted no trailers over 30'... and I believe it. 15mph switchbacks, but what a beautiful drive.

[Lightning55]

My FW is 37' and there are a lot of state and Nat'l parks that I can't fit in but it's never kept me from going to just about any region that we travel. I've never changed plans because I couldn't find a park or campground that I couldn't fit in.

[rmalik1]

Smaller is easier but I've seen parks handle bigger rigs, my 40 ft 5'ver fits some. I'd say most can't but I'd rather have my Cedar Creek and find somewhere close for sight seeing.

[philh]

Veebyes wrote:
Take this into consideration. Many of the monster 5ers & many class As today are not built for anything but CGs with services.

Freshwater tanks are small. 60 gal goes nowhere. Holding tanks are small. Domestic fridges are used needing shore power or a large battery bank for the inverter. Space for a large battery bank is extremely limited in all RVs.

Choices for those who want to get out & enjoy CGs with limited services & do it in self sustained comfort are limited. Water capacity & battery power is king.

One campground we visited over Christmas, was obviously crowded. the private campground had a completely unusable arrangement of pods with 10 radial allocated spaces per pod. Given the setup and anarchy of parked trailers, they were getting 5 trailers around each pod. the campground has a LOT of space available. When we go back, I think our approach is going to be, just charge me for a site with no services, and I'll park where I want... but I have to figure out water usage for a week or more.

[Veebyes]

Take this into consideration. Many of the monster 5ers & many class As today are not built for anything but CGs with services.

Freshwater tanks are small. 60 gal goes nowhere. Holding tanks are small. Domestic fridges are used needing shore power or a large battery bank for the inverter. Space for a large battery bank is extremely limited in all RVs.

Choices for those who want to get out & enjoy CGs with limited services & do it in self sustained comfort are limited. Water capacity & battery power is king.

[big_bird_2]

Length is only one consideration when buying to camp in State and Federal RV parks. Another consideration is utilities. Most public RV parks do not have full utilities. We do some dry camping if that is all that is available. It is not first choice. When I backpacked I had none of that and it was great. I have grown out a little and have different ideas of fun. Public parks are more crowded and have more kids. Don't get me wrong I love the kids down the street. And love to see them having fun down there.

[Road_Phantom]

We got into a lot of trouble hitting national parks in the Northwest with our 34ft 5th wheel. Save yourself a lot of trouble and headaches by settling with something under 30 ft with a good floor plan you like.

[laknox]

philh wrote:

MNRon wrote:
For any “mid-high end” 5er like a CC you really need a 1T to stay within weights; and a dually if you’re over ~35ft. Lots travel over their rear axle weights, I won’t recommend it but that’s your call. I’ve seen MANY that started out with an SRW and then weighed their rigs ready for travel and subsequently lost a bunch of money trading in their new SRW for a dually. Make sure you make an informed decision.

I get it. Told SWMBO, if we go dually, it will be a 450.

Make sure you get the =right= 450. Some actually have less GVW than the top of the line 350s.

Lyle

[MarkTwain]

Yosemite Sam1 wrote:
Yes, anything above 25 ft will be an issue in finding camping spots in state and national parks.

We had a 21 ft before and we have to plan out to get into a campsite that will fit our TT. And even if it says it can fit 25 ft, maneuvering between trees, rocks and very tight park roads is an obstacle.

Commercial RV parks almost always can accommodate you. But you have to compromise as it will be just a tad better than a parking lot.

Very accurate observations and comments. In Calif. state parks have a max of 30'. Whenever possible do a walk through BEFORE pulling your RV into the park and check out the sites they want to put you into. Really check overhead branches that could damage your roof. I carry a small branch clipper just in case I need to cut any branches.
In some fancy RV resorts, there is a minimum length of trailer they will accept:(. Arizona El Mirage Resort min. length is 28'.

[philh]

MNRon wrote:
For any “mid-high end” 5er like a CC you really need a 1T to stay within weights; and a dually if you’re over ~35ft. Lots travel over their rear axle weights, I won’t recommend it but that’s your call. I’ve seen MANY that started out with an SRW and then weighed their rigs ready for travel and subsequently lost a bunch of money trading in their new SRW for a dually. Make sure you make an informed decision.

I get it. Told SWMBO, if we go dually, it will be a 450.

[MNRon]

Looked up the specs on the CC38efk you’re looking at. 41ft 8in, so actually closer to 42ft...see my comments above.

More importantly, it says dry pin weight of 2700lbs, dry weight of 14.4k and gross of 18klbs. Pretty much guarantee you will be over your rear axle weight if you get an SRW.

My VL 320GK has a “dry pin” of 2600, dry weight of 12something, and gross of 16k. Actually loaded it weighs in around 15.5k (extra batteries, stuff, and water). Actual pin weight is 3550. I’m right on the spec’d capacity of my SRW.

For any “mid-high end” 5er like a CC you really need a 1T to stay within weights; and a dually if you’re over ~35ft. Lots travel over their rear axle weights, I won’t recommend it but that’s your call. I’ve seen MANY that started out with an SRW and then weighed their rigs ready for travel and subsequently lost a bunch of money trading in their new SRW for a dually. Make sure you make an informed decision.

[philh]

MNRon wrote:
Regarding trucks, I assume you have a diesel dually 1T for the trailers you’re looking at.

Thank you for all the great responses.

WRT truck, we will be purchasing a superduty. diesel yes, dually... still in discussion.

[MNRon]

Recognize your CC38efk is really 41ft long. We stay at a lot of state parks and some national ones. Our last 5er was 34’, and current one is 35ft...that was max length I wanted to go. Our length limits us somewhat, but not significantly. I do carry a pole saw because height can also be an issue. We haven’t traveled much in the NE where I suspect we’d be limited a little more but still doable. 41ft would be well beyond a lot of sites, but if you’re willing to stay at commercial parks I’m sure you can still always find something. If you wand state and national parks I’d look real hard at your need for >40ft.

Regarding trucks, I assume you have a diesel dually 1T for the trailers you’re looking at.

[ford_truck_guy]

With all my fivers being physically longer than 38', the ONLY place I was gonna have trouble was a state park in Florida. that was due to the HEIGHT, NOT length...

We drove through it the year before we wanted to go and just ended up going somewhere else. We normally do not do the National parks, but the state parks we have been in have had plenty of room to move and park...

[blofgren]

There are a lot of good comments in this thread regarding the length so I don't have anything to add there. One thing to be aware of is that the larger fivers tend to be very tall which is also something to be very aware of. We have run into a few situations where trees have not been trimmed high enough both on park roads and in sites which can cause a lot of damage if attention is not paid to this.