3,343 miles- One Month Some Stats and thoughts
Here are some statistics and thoughts on some of the RV Parks we stayed at on our journey so far from Minot ND to Arizona. We left Minot on the 30th of Aug and arrived in Phoenix on the 30th of September.
We traveled from Minot to Bismarck then to Spearfish SD then up to Cody WY on to Yellowstone National Park, Livingston MT then down to West Yellowstone through Grand Teton Natl Park, Jackson WY and then cut down through Utah to Capitol Reef Natl Park on to Monument valley, Flagstaff and now Phoenix via 89a and Jerome AZ.
For those of you not consulting a map by now it’s a lot of mountains with many long steep grades almost no Interstate driving (except in Utah) and lots of Roller Coaster roads.
Here are some stats you might find interesting:
Total Mileage to arriving in Phoenix: 3,343.5
AVG MPG: 9.44
Fuel Quantity: 334.8 gallons
Total Fuel Cost $ 908.32
AVG cost per Gallon: $2.745
My truck is a 2014 Dodge Ram 2500 4x4 5.7L Hemi my trailer is 33ft overall and weighed in at 8320 with one propane tank empty. This is with everything we needed packed in the trailer. (The trailers GVWR is 10,720 lbs.)
The entire rig with my truck, 2 pass, 2 dogs, generator (in the truck) et al weighed in at 16,300 lbs. My truck was nowhere near its capacity or its towing limits.
For most of this trip we have concentrated on staying in National Parks or USFS campgrounds. We have stayed at only 4 Commercial RV parks. Here are some thoughts on those.
Standing out as the WORST RV park we stayed in is OSENS RV Park in Livingston MT (a Good Sam Park). Facilities were a bit rundown and there were more rules than the East German Stasi had but even sillier. B ut there was nothing glaringly bad except the owners who had this surface friendliness backed by this creepy intrusiveness. We talked to some other people in the park who felt the same. I would not stay there again unless it was the last choice and I didn’t have enough gas to get me to the Bozeman Wal Mart parking lot.
The next park we stayed in was the Gouldings RV Park in Monument Valley. We were here this Spring also and loved it. The staff is responsive…truly friendly and helpful it is set in a beautiful canyon with views over MV. There is a complete supermarket ½ mile down the road with everything you need at normal prices.
Woody Mountain RV Park in Flagstaff was our next Commercial Park and while the facilities were run down, the restrooms needed a good deep cleaning and falling apart but the setting was so serene and beautiful that you could forget all of that. The staff was friendly and not intrusive.
We are now in the Destiny Phoenix RV Park in Goodyear AZ. Their website oversells the place a bit but it is very pleasant with orange and grapefruit trees and some shade at almost every site. The facilities ar good and clean. It is convenient to a million stores of every description yet out alone by itself and very quiet. The only real irritating thing about this place is that they demand FULL payment when you make a reservation.
Among the National Parks that we stayed in our favorite CG was at Fruita in Capitol reef. Large sites in a stand of huge elm and cottonwood trees surrounded by fruit orchards. It’s truly a great place to stay.
At Grand Teton we stayed at Colter Bay CG (not the RV park) and had an electrical hookup. Great sites. Great restrooms and showers and a friendly staff. There are some wonderful hikes from there around the peninsula with stunning views of the mountains.
We leave Phoenix soon to spend a month in Tucson and then we are off to the Baja for the rest of the winter. More on that later.
We traveled from Minot to Bismarck then to Spearfish SD then up to Cody WY on to Yellowstone National Park, Livingston MT then down to West Yellowstone through Grand Teton Natl Park, Jackson WY and then cut down through Utah to Capitol Reef Natl Park on to Monument valley, Flagstaff and now Phoenix via 89a and Jerome AZ.
For those of you not consulting a map by now it’s a lot of mountains with many long steep grades almost no Interstate driving (except in Utah) and lots of Roller Coaster roads.
Here are some stats you might find interesting:
Total Mileage to arriving in Phoenix: 3,343.5
AVG MPG: 9.44
Fuel Quantity: 334.8 gallons
Total Fuel Cost $ 908.32
AVG cost per Gallon: $2.745
My truck is a 2014 Dodge Ram 2500 4x4 5.7L Hemi my trailer is 33ft overall and weighed in at 8320 with one propane tank empty. This is with everything we needed packed in the trailer. (The trailers GVWR is 10,720 lbs.)
The entire rig with my truck, 2 pass, 2 dogs, generator (in the truck) et al weighed in at 16,300 lbs. My truck was nowhere near its capacity or its towing limits.
For most of this trip we have concentrated on staying in National Parks or USFS campgrounds. We have stayed at only 4 Commercial RV parks. Here are some thoughts on those.
Standing out as the WORST RV park we stayed in is OSENS RV Park in Livingston MT (a Good Sam Park). Facilities were a bit rundown and there were more rules than the East German Stasi had but even sillier. B ut there was nothing glaringly bad except the owners who had this surface friendliness backed by this creepy intrusiveness. We talked to some other people in the park who felt the same. I would not stay there again unless it was the last choice and I didn’t have enough gas to get me to the Bozeman Wal Mart parking lot.
The next park we stayed in was the Gouldings RV Park in Monument Valley. We were here this Spring also and loved it. The staff is responsive…truly friendly and helpful it is set in a beautiful canyon with views over MV. There is a complete supermarket ½ mile down the road with everything you need at normal prices.
Woody Mountain RV Park in Flagstaff was our next Commercial Park and while the facilities were run down, the restrooms needed a good deep cleaning and falling apart but the setting was so serene and beautiful that you could forget all of that. The staff was friendly and not intrusive.
We are now in the Destiny Phoenix RV Park in Goodyear AZ. Their website oversells the place a bit but it is very pleasant with orange and grapefruit trees and some shade at almost every site. The facilities ar good and clean. It is convenient to a million stores of every description yet out alone by itself and very quiet. The only real irritating thing about this place is that they demand FULL payment when you make a reservation.
Among the National Parks that we stayed in our favorite CG was at Fruita in Capitol reef. Large sites in a stand of huge elm and cottonwood trees surrounded by fruit orchards. It’s truly a great place to stay.
At Grand Teton we stayed at Colter Bay CG (not the RV park) and had an electrical hookup. Great sites. Great restrooms and showers and a friendly staff. There are some wonderful hikes from there around the peninsula with stunning views of the mountains.
We leave Phoenix soon to spend a month in Tucson and then we are off to the Baja for the rest of the winter. More on that later.
