Our road trip to Charleston, SC... good; bad and ugly
We left New York for Charleston on Monday, June 24th. Figured about 900 miles and planned to do around 300 per day and find camp sites along the way for two nights down and two nights back. We had reservations at James Island County Park for 5 nights. Just got home this afternoon.
Long before we left, I went through everything with a fine-tooth comb; the 5'r, repacked the wheel bearings; the truck, had it serviced, etc. I thought we were as ready as you can ever be. Well, here is the good the bad and the ugly. Learned a lot along the way........
The Good........
* James Island County Park is a class RV park. I would go there again and would highly recommend it.
* The city of Charleston was everything we had heard about, could have hoped for and more. The people, the history, the architecture was all fabulous.
* All the tours we had booked came off without a hitch... Palmetto carriage ride, Ft. Sumpter, the Drayton and Magnolia plantations, the H.L. Hunley tour and off course Patriot Point. Outstanding stuff! Also went back into the city just to walk the Battery and surrounding streets.
The bad........
* We blew not 1, not 2, but 3 tires on the trailer on the way south. Unbelievable!! After I put the spare on and blew the second one in West Virginia, we had to abandon the RV along the highway and find a tire shop. Bought 2 brand new trailer tires and after a couple hundred bucks and 2 hours lost time, we were back on the road. Outside of Charlotte, NC the 3rd one went. I was fit to be tied! Put the spare back on and we limped into JICP. In Charleston I replaced the other two tires. There was around a total of $450 out of the travel budget. I checked those tires for tread wear, weathering and found nothing to indicate any problems. Since, I've been told to expect around 5 years on these tires. I honestly have no idea how long these tires have been on the trailer. Could be original, for all I know.
* Always traveled I-79 to I-77, when going south. Might not have been the best choice, towing the RV. My truck handled it ok but she got a workout. Whew!! Came back I-95. All flat running 'till past D.C. The traffic around D.C. is, well,******but it was worth putting up with not to have to pull those mountains. Another lesson learned!
* We had rain almost every day, from the time we got to JICP 'till we got home. And, when it rains in the south, the sky opens up. Now I know why they call that area the Low Country. We had ankle-deep water all around the camper, the first night there. It rained 5-6 inches, along with a tornado warning. Could it get any better?
* We found out that all camp sites are NOT created equal, even though we stayed at all KOA's for the 1-nighters. Learned that we need more TV cable and another section of water hose. Had to change sites at the last stop just so we could reach the water hook-up. Don't know who laid out the utilities in that park but I don't think they were RV'rs.
The Ugly......
* KNOW THE CLEARANCE TO THE TOP OF YOUR RV!! (Nuff said!)
Long before we left, I went through everything with a fine-tooth comb; the 5'r, repacked the wheel bearings; the truck, had it serviced, etc. I thought we were as ready as you can ever be. Well, here is the good the bad and the ugly. Learned a lot along the way........
The Good........
* James Island County Park is a class RV park. I would go there again and would highly recommend it.
* The city of Charleston was everything we had heard about, could have hoped for and more. The people, the history, the architecture was all fabulous.
* All the tours we had booked came off without a hitch... Palmetto carriage ride, Ft. Sumpter, the Drayton and Magnolia plantations, the H.L. Hunley tour and off course Patriot Point. Outstanding stuff! Also went back into the city just to walk the Battery and surrounding streets.
The bad........
* We blew not 1, not 2, but 3 tires on the trailer on the way south. Unbelievable!! After I put the spare on and blew the second one in West Virginia, we had to abandon the RV along the highway and find a tire shop. Bought 2 brand new trailer tires and after a couple hundred bucks and 2 hours lost time, we were back on the road. Outside of Charlotte, NC the 3rd one went. I was fit to be tied! Put the spare back on and we limped into JICP. In Charleston I replaced the other two tires. There was around a total of $450 out of the travel budget. I checked those tires for tread wear, weathering and found nothing to indicate any problems. Since, I've been told to expect around 5 years on these tires. I honestly have no idea how long these tires have been on the trailer. Could be original, for all I know.
* Always traveled I-79 to I-77, when going south. Might not have been the best choice, towing the RV. My truck handled it ok but she got a workout. Whew!! Came back I-95. All flat running 'till past D.C. The traffic around D.C. is, well,******but it was worth putting up with not to have to pull those mountains. Another lesson learned!
* We had rain almost every day, from the time we got to JICP 'till we got home. And, when it rains in the south, the sky opens up. Now I know why they call that area the Low Country. We had ankle-deep water all around the camper, the first night there. It rained 5-6 inches, along with a tornado warning. Could it get any better?
* We found out that all camp sites are NOT created equal, even though we stayed at all KOA's for the 1-nighters. Learned that we need more TV cable and another section of water hose. Had to change sites at the last stop just so we could reach the water hook-up. Don't know who laid out the utilities in that park but I don't think they were RV'rs.
The Ugly......
* KNOW THE CLEARANCE TO THE TOP OF YOUR RV!! (Nuff said!)
