Taking A Long(ish) Trip
Although I have read oodles of rv.net posts over the past years, I can’t recall ever having read much about readying yourself for a long road trip. My husband, youngest daughter, and I have taken a few three week trips, but due to job/time constraints, I super planned these vacations. And, we always stuck to the plan.
And then….we retired. And, since our youngest daughter is still living at home and could thus, “run the show” (fingers crossed), we decided to plan a trip. Out West. Thinking to be on the road for eight to twelve weeks. Go us!!!!!
Now that we are almost home, I thought it might be advantageous for some future travelers to post the lessons I learned, while both planning and traveling, thinking others could chime in and add their own “trip tips.”
Prelude : we left the East coast July 21, 2018. We headed out West. Traveling through, to name a few states-South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana, Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona, Oklahoma, Ohio, and finally, back home. I had reservations for Custer State Park, Glacier, Olympic, Crater Lake, Redwoods, and Yosemite, as well as a few rv parks between Redwoods and Yosemite. Also, a few rental cars thrown in, since we don’t tow. In addition, I spent quite a bit of pre-trip time creating a “trip planner.” Okay, a fancy name for writing stuff down in a notebook. In the planner I broke the trip into segments, such as #1-home to Custer, #2-Custer to Glacier. Within each section I estimated how long we would travel in one day, and the names, addresses, costs, and phone numbers of two or three possible campgrounds we could stay at each evening. We did not have a specific budget.
We were ready.
Lesson one : traveling is not cheap. The cost of gas is a killer. Prices are all over the places. What we discovered-Costco and Safeway (a grocery store that, in many states, sold gas) had the best prices for gas. You need a Costco membership to pump Costco gas, but anyone can use Safeway. I also downloaded Gas Buddy, an app that was a bit of a help locating cheaper gas prices.
Lesson two : get a vpn (virtual protection network that encrypts your computer info so no one can hack into your computer). About a month before our trip, I researched vpns and bought protection for three years (cheapest way to go, for about $3.50 a month). The stay-at- home, hopefully responsible daughter, texted when a bill arrived, and I paid on-line. Easy peasy.
Lesson three: have a cell phone with a gps app, and two different maps (we had maps from AAA and a RandMcNally book of maps, and at times, one had info the other did not). We also had the book, Next Exit.
Lesson four : rvpark reviews is your friend.
Lesson five : know the cancellation policies of the campground and car rental agencies you reserve. Two weeks into our trip we decided to cancel, due to the massive fires, our Yosemite reservations and shorten our reservation at Redwoods. This then led to a flurry of calls to cancel/reschedule campgrounds and car rentals. We were lucky. Most places didn’t charge us a cancellation fee. And, although I reserved the state and national parks because they fill up quickly, don’t overdue the reservations for run of the mill, overnight stops. Because plans can change. And, not saying we weren’t a bit lucky, but we never had a problem getting a site for the night.
Lesson six : if you are like us, and one partner (in our case, my husband) does all of the driving, then know his/her daily limitations. And, keep in mind, you tend to travel more slowly in an rv than in a car. Consider that when looking at Mapquest. Plus, take a few days throughout the trip and relax. Sleep in, clean up, take a walk.
Lesson seven : plan on time for stopping at grocery stores. When you go into a grocery store, sign up for their rewards card (it takes all of sixty seconds), so that you can take advantage of their sales. If you’re up to it, cook and freeze a few meals before you leave home.
Lesson eight : if the cost of the trip is at all in issue, estimate travel costs before you go. And, try to think about your lifestyle when considering campgrounds-do you want cable tv, wifi, do you feel okay staying at a Walmart parking lot for an overnight? What about a laundry for washing your clothes?
Lesson nine: if you are traveling with another person, make sure you like him/her enough to travel with. After a long day of driving, hiking, etc watch what you say and how you say it. Bring wine. Be kind.
Lesson ten : if you get bothered by constantly dirty windshields and a dirty rv front, bring a bucket, car wash soap, a rag and a towel, glass cleaner, a short ladder, and a long handle squeegee type thing to wash your rv.
Lesson eleven : before you go, make sure your rv is serviced and ready to go
Our trip is wrapping up after five weeks on the road. The ten to twelve weeks didn’t materialize. A few cancellations, a few shortening of trips thrown in, with a touch of “starting to miss home.” No problem. We are retired and can always do more later.
We had a fabulous time.
Kathy
