Getting Started - Longer Distance Camping
We aren’t new to camping but new to venturing into longer distances. We are thinking about going out to Durango Colorado, from Michigan. We’ll be camping in a regular RV campground. What do we need ...
Forum Discussion
New trailer, eh? Congrats. Be sure to camp near home with it for a night or two to make sure everything's working and all that. Nothing worse than getting 300 miles into a planned vacation and finding out they never hooked up the plumbing or whatever.
If I were you, I'd avoid Chicago traffic. I usually take I-65 south a half hour or more, cut over to US41 and continue south to US24 which I take west to I-57. Or continue west to I-55 if you like. You can go through or around St. Louis (your choice) with much less hassle than Chicago, and follow I-70 to Colorado.
For camping spots, you might want to look at (online or phone app) Ultimate Campgrounds, or RV Parky, or similar. You might like forestcamping.com for extra details on national forest sites. Also check out freecampsites.net for some less conventional ideas. Personally, I favor the state parks, forest campgrounds, and BLM and municipal CGs; I don't care for private parks. I have a 17' trailer that doesn't need hookups.
There is one IL state park I've been to, Beaver Dam SP north of St. Louis, and it was quite pleasant.
My strategy is to decide about how far I want to go each travel day, then use the above resources to pick a preferred CG plus an alternate or two. Then I go without reservations and if the first choice is full (which hasn't been often, for me) I fall back to the next one along the way. If I'm going to need to travel later than about 4 pm or if I'm trying to head to a popular destination, I will get reservations.
Some people will decide each morning how far they want to go, then pick a CG at that distance and phone for a reservation. That's another strategy that removes the pressure of having to meet a whole string of set-far-in-advance reservations. Another thing is, if you can't get into a CG you really want to go to but can camp within a couple hours of it, you can break camp early and hit the preferred place before noon, and often someone will have left and opened up a site; this is how I was able to get into Yosemite's Glacier Point CG for 5 days in 2013.
I assume you're going in the summer, right? Mountain passes can be snowy in spring and fall. Good luck, take your time, relax and enjoy Colorado's mountains and woods! Be sure to drive the Million Dollar Highway to Ouray, then loop around to Telluride.
If I were you, I'd avoid Chicago traffic. I usually take I-65 south a half hour or more, cut over to US41 and continue south to US24 which I take west to I-57. Or continue west to I-55 if you like. You can go through or around St. Louis (your choice) with much less hassle than Chicago, and follow I-70 to Colorado.
For camping spots, you might want to look at (online or phone app) Ultimate Campgrounds, or RV Parky, or similar. You might like forestcamping.com for extra details on national forest sites. Also check out freecampsites.net for some less conventional ideas. Personally, I favor the state parks, forest campgrounds, and BLM and municipal CGs; I don't care for private parks. I have a 17' trailer that doesn't need hookups.
There is one IL state park I've been to, Beaver Dam SP north of St. Louis, and it was quite pleasant.
My strategy is to decide about how far I want to go each travel day, then use the above resources to pick a preferred CG plus an alternate or two. Then I go without reservations and if the first choice is full (which hasn't been often, for me) I fall back to the next one along the way. If I'm going to need to travel later than about 4 pm or if I'm trying to head to a popular destination, I will get reservations.
Some people will decide each morning how far they want to go, then pick a CG at that distance and phone for a reservation. That's another strategy that removes the pressure of having to meet a whole string of set-far-in-advance reservations. Another thing is, if you can't get into a CG you really want to go to but can camp within a couple hours of it, you can break camp early and hit the preferred place before noon, and often someone will have left and opened up a site; this is how I was able to get into Yosemite's Glacier Point CG for 5 days in 2013.
I assume you're going in the summer, right? Mountain passes can be snowy in spring and fall. Good luck, take your time, relax and enjoy Colorado's mountains and woods! Be sure to drive the Million Dollar Highway to Ouray, then loop around to Telluride.
