Forum Discussion

silvercorvette's avatar
silvercorvette
Explorer
Oct 11, 2015

Traveling north to UT

A few days a go I mentioned that I wanted to trade my 2009 5th wheel 33 foot Holiday Rambler for a class A and go on vacation to UT. I was planing to leave for Washington UT (near St George) in mid Oct. Now I am wondering if I should postpone the trip until I have sold my house and traded my 5th wheel for a class A. If I do not postpone the tripI will probably arrive in late Oct and stay for about 7 to10 days then head south to Tucson AZ. But I am wondering if I am taking too much of a chance running into snow, I will be heading home via Tucson in early Nov. My 2014 Silverado dually has 4 wheel drive but that will be useless if I wind up in a blizzard. If things get real bad I will always have the option of sitting it out in a rest stop with plenty of canned food and refrigerated food. I have two 30 inch tall tanks and could put another one in the bed of my truck just to be safe and not risk freezing if I get caught in a snow storm.

What canI expect weather wise between Washington and Tucson in early Nov. Is it safe to make the trip now or should I wait till the spring and hopefully I will have my class A. My cousin who lives in UT is getting on in age and so is my cousin that lives in Myrtle Beach who will be traveling with me. I am also stopping off to see a cousin (A lost cousin that was adopted and I did not know he existed until a year ago) that lives in Prescott AZ that is in his 80s so I would like to see him while he is still healthy. My childhood buddy lives in Tucson and is younger than me and in good health and I have not see him in decades.

Keeping in mind That I would rather take the trip when I get the class A, but also keeping in mind the age of my cousins and their health. Do I have to worry about weather and postpone? Or do I gamble with my oldest cousins health and wait? I figure That I can live comfortable for a week or two if I am stranded at a rest stop. I have wanted to take this trip for a few years but kept on postponing.

I think one advantage I have is that if things get real bad I can unhook the 5ver throw the truck into 4wheel drive and drive off for supplies so having a 5ver with a 4WD truck may have it's advantages. I don't think I can just abandon the RV and stay in a motel but leaving for an hour or two to get food or propane would be OK. Hopefully if there was a weather warning I can find a camp ground.
Give ypur opinions about weather, postponing until I trade in my 5ver for and A and anything I am overlooining.PS I think my truck holds about 28 gallons of diesel and I also have a 95 gallon AUX diesel tank.

I really want to wait till I have my A but one cousin is over 80 years old. And I will probably make another trip when I do get in A but I do not know how much longer my 80+ year old cousin will be around.
Class A
  • RoyB's avatar
    RoyB
    Explorer II
    Oct 11, 2015
    I know what you mean about time catching up to you... go with your dreams as soon as you...

    We were avid JEEP TRAIL guys and TENT campers from back in the 50s when living in ARIZONA...

    We relocated all over the southern part of the US from Calif to Virginia following the working days... Got to see alot of the country back then...

    Now we are situated in Virginia since the mid 70s and camping here on this side of the US has all kinds of rules to follow... Too many folks to please I reckon...

    I only made a couple of trips to northern part of US back in my working years and would really enjoy seeing all the hills around UT... Never really got much farther north than I40 haha...

    Now I am in my mid 70s and my style of camping is not so easy because I love to camp OFF-ROAD... Never really caught on being the RV TRAVELER pulling the big rigs.. I enjoy the OFF-ROAD POPUP camper which is more like a bigger tent setup haha...

    Used to go out all by myself alot but with all the crazies running loose now I'm starting to think I might get knocked in the head just to steal my boots or something...

    Times are sure changing now...

    Roy Ken
  • nevadanick's avatar
    nevadanick
    Explorer
    Oct 11, 2015
    Late Oct or early Nov storms would most likely be short and melt fast. I would go.
  • The_Texan's avatar
    The_Texan
    Explorer
    Oct 11, 2015
    Washington UT gets very little, if any snow in the dead of the winter, so no worry about Nov. Tucson is about 1500' higher and will get cooler, but again, no measurable snow to speak of. In between, it depends, as there are a couple spots that can get snow, but there are ways to bypass any snow too. From Washington, to Las Vegas, then US-95 to Needles and on south to Parker, Phoenix and Tucson. This drops you far enough south to bypass any snow in northern AZ.

    Having brunch in Washington UT this morning at the St Helen's restaurant, with friends from here on RV Net and the temps are in the mid 80's for the next couple weeks.
  • silvercorvette's avatar
    silvercorvette
    Explorer
    Oct 11, 2015
    The Texan wrote:
    Washington UT gets very little, if any snow in the dead of the winter, so no worry about Nov. Tucson is about 1500' higher and will get cooler, but again, no measurable snow to speak of. In between, it depends, as there are a couple spots that can get snow, but there are ways to bypass any snow too. From Washington, to Las Vegas, then US-95 to Needles and on south to Parker, Phoenix and Tucson. This drops you far enough south to bypass any snow in northern AZ.

    Having brunch in Washington UT this morning at the St Helen's restaurant, with friends from here on RV Net and the temps are in the mid 80's for the next couple weeks.


    Mr cousin in Washington UT is separated from her husband and is living in an apartment so there is no place to park the RV. I noticed there are 4 or 5 RV parks in the area, Are you familiar with them and if you are do you have a preference? The plan is to have my RV checked up from top to bottom in Columbia SC then pick up my cousin in Myrtle Beach and leave my valuables with her son for safe keeping.. I am more concerned with the weather where my cousin lives in Prescott AZ than I am worried about the weather in Tucson where my buddy lives.

    I just found out about the cousin in Prescott last year. He was adopted as a child and he had some researcher track us down. If I run short on time I can skip Tucson and spend time with my 80 year old cousin in Prescott while he is still is in good health. and my buddy in Tucson is only in his mid 60's I feel better about postponeing the trip to see him till spring
  • The_Texan's avatar
    The_Texan
    Explorer
    Oct 11, 2015
    Yes, Prescott will get snow, but usually October/November is a safe time. The bad areas are the Flagstaff area and up to the Grand Canyon, but again, October/November is not known for winter weather in AZ.

    Not really familiar with the RV parks in Washington & St George. We have a couple here in Hurricane that are decent. My suggestion is to use the RV Park Review, as it is usually pretty accurate.
  • ncrowley's avatar
    ncrowley
    Explorer II
    Oct 12, 2015
    I recommend the Willow Wind RV park in Hurricane which is just east of Washington. I lived there for 3 months in the dead of winter while my house was being built and it is a nice park.

    The weather should be great in Washington. To get to Tucson, you can either go through Flagstaff or the route through Las Vegas recommended by The Texan. You should be fine through Flagstaff that time of year, but if things do not look good, just take the route through Las Vegas and you should be just fine.
  • The_Texan's avatar
    The_Texan
    Explorer
    Oct 12, 2015
    Hey Nancy, where is the house you built? We are renting in the townhomes just behind Willow Wind while ours is built in Toguerville, on the west side of Ash creek. We stayed in Willow Wind last year when we first started looking here in the Hurricane area. Love this area, but NOT in the summertime.
  • silvercorvette's avatar
    silvercorvette
    Explorer
    Oct 12, 2015
    The Texan wrote:
    Yes, Prescott will get snow, but usually October/November is a safe time. The bad areas are the Flagstaff area and up to the Grand Canyon, but again, October/November is not known for winter weather in AZ.

    Not really familiar with the RV parks in Washington & St George. We have a couple here in Hurricane that are decent. My suggestion is to use the RV Park Review, as it is usually pretty accurate.


    When I made a trip in the early 1980s I stopped off at the Grand Canyon for no other reason that it was a good place to stop off and sleep on my way to Tucson. I did not think the GC would be anything special, but I pulled in just as the sun was starting to go down. There was something about the way the sun was going down that made that view of the Canyon one of the most beautiful sights I ever saw and I wound up staying a few days instead of sleeting overnight. I think my cousin may enjoy seeing the GC and it isn't too far from where my other cousin in Prescott lives. Back in the early 80s I had a small trailer with a primitive heater. You had to hold a match to the pilot light and hold your finger on the thermocouple safety push button until it warmed up. One night it got windy and the pilot light blew out. It was so clod that it took almost forever for the thermocouple got hot enough to take my finger off the button. Not only was it windy it was cold enough to freeze the water hose. By late morning early afternoon it was warm enough for T-shirts and shorts and this was late Sept early Oct. I am going to ask my cousin if she wants to see the GC so that may effect my route. The heater in my old camper was crude but I am sure with modern electronic ignition I will not have any problems with heat

    Vegas sounds like a nice stop over but I am afraid I may like it so much I may stay longer than I intend to stay
  • 2gypsies1's avatar
    2gypsies1
    Explorer III
    Oct 12, 2015
    I really doubt you'd have snow issues late Oct or November in any of the cities you're talking about. Dec/Jan can have snow but it doesn't last long. Prescott and the St. George area will be the coolest for temps but usually warms up nicely during the day.
  • ncrowley's avatar
    ncrowley
    Explorer II
    Oct 12, 2015
    The Texan wrote:
    Hey Nancy, where is the house you built? We are renting in the townhomes just behind Willow Wind while ours is built in Toguerville, on the west side of Ash creek. We stayed in Willow Wind last year when we first started looking here in the Hurricane area. Love this area, but NOT in the summertime.


    I live in Dixie Springs in Hurricane. It is a wonderful community just north of the Sand Hollow reservoir. We built a large RV garage for the coach. We really love it here.

    Yes, the summers are hot. We made the decision to go somewhere hotter in the summer because that is a better time to travel. We looked for many years for a place to retire, and we have chosen very well!

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