Trying to decide on whether or not to purchase-DECISION

[Crowe]

Looks like the RV bug has bitten us again. Found a 5th wheel we love and are ALMOST ready to pull the trigger. Issues keeping us from doing so:

1. Lack of site availability. From posts on here and doing my own research it appears sites are hard to come by. Don't want to purchase a unit then not be able to use it.

2. Possible resolution to #1-seasonal site if we can find one. Have contacted a campground we have loved in the past to check on their availability. As long as we can remove the trailer "at will" to go elsewhere we are leaning toward this. Which leads me to #3...

3. The dog. We aren't the kind to just sit at a campsite. We like to go exploring, hike, canoe, kayak, etc. Haven't found a cg yet that allows you to leave your dog at the site unattended, even if in the unit. I don't have any real issue with that because nobody wants to hear a dog bark all day but it does cause us some logistical issues. So, now onto #4.

4. The dog part deux: We have a wonderful boarding facility that's part of our vet's office. Our concern is not wanting to use the unit because we don't want to board the dog that much. Don't misunderstand me-we will take him weather and activity permitting but it's weighing heavy on our minds because during hot summer months he most likely won't come. Also we do plan on getting a puppy in July (assuming the breeding took).

My gut feel is that within the next year or two some of the availability issues will alleviate themselves when things (hopefully) get back to more normal and people are involved in regular activities once again.

Just kind of rambling but definitely open to any thoughts, other than "if your dog is quiet no one will know if he's there". Rules are there for a reason whether or not we like them. Thanks.

[Crowe]

Campinfan wrote:
Not trying to say that our dog is quiet but what I found that works for all the dogs we ever had was to turn the AC fan to High (med and low work too) and even if the temp does not kick the AC on, the fan provides white noise for the dog and it has stopped all of them from barking. My wife likes to leave the radio or the TV on for them too.

Not trying to start an argument, but if you aren't there how do you know for certain that they aren't barking? If the rules state no dogs left unattended then I will not leave my dog unattended. It's that simple because then the next step the cg may take is no dogs at all.

[Campinfan]

Not trying to say that our dog is quiet but what I found that works for all the dogs we ever had was to turn the AC fan to High (med and low work too) and even if the temp does not kick the AC on, the fan provides white noise for the dog and it has stopped all of them from barking. My wife likes to leave the radio or the TV on for them too.

[Crowe]

ferndaleflyer wrote:
I have noticed that in the North East about everything is still locked down tighter than the gates of he!!. But at the rate they are moving South from up there soon will be no one left. This morning here on the news they said 900, that's right 900, are moving into FL every day. 100 a day into the Raleigh-Durham area. Can't say I blame them. Sorry you could not make the RV work.

We are not locked down "tighter than the gates of Hell". I can move about freely in NH, ME and MA. Pretty soon in VT as well. NH has been doing well-we've had increased capacities for a while now. ME is coming right along and MA is now catching up. Only restriction in NH is masks in public places when social distancing isn't possible. In ME it's out in public all the time but not a big deal. People are moving TO NH in droves, not away, as it's considered a "free state". Out of state purchases on homes in northern NH used to be at the rate of 10%. It's now at 35% much of it due to remote work options. I don't know what your "gates of Hell" comment is based on but it's not reality.

If it doesn't work out now we'll just pursue it at another time, probably towards the end of summer when people are deciding whether or not to keep their seasonals. Don't know if the unit we looked at sold-I haven't called to ask-but they are expecting more in the July/August time frame. At a greater cost, of course, but that's the way of the world.

[ferndaleflyer]

I have noticed that in the North East about everything is still locked down tighter than the gates of he!!. But at the rate they are moving South from up there soon will be no one left. This morning here on the news they said 900, that's right 900, are moving into FL every day. 100 a day into the Raleigh-Durham area. Can't say I blame them. Sorry you could not make the RV work.

[Crowe]

Looks like we are putting this on hold. No seasonal available in the area we'd like to be, not much for site availability anywhere. It just seems the timing isn't right. Some of you have said there's no issue with availability but up here that doesn't seem to be the case. We don't want to invest the money and then have the unit sit.

[Crowe]

Beaker wrote:

Haven't found a cg yet that allows you to leave your dog at the site unattended, even if in the unit.

I have never had that problem. They are always left in RV.
If a campground restricts that, find a different campground.

I've tried. It's not just a few, it's most, if not all. Maybe different parts of the country have different rules but around here it's pretty much no pets left unattended. And that does include inside your unit. It's a rule I won't break.

Oh, and thank you to those that have welcomed me back! 🙂

[Beaker]

Haven't found a cg yet that allows you to leave your dog at the site unattended, even if in the unit.

I have never had that problem. They are always left in RV.
If a campground restricts that, find a different campground.

[mdcamping]

Crowe wrote:
Looks like the RV bug has bitten us again. Found a 5th wheel we love and are ALMOST ready to pull the trigger. Issues keeping us from doing so:

1. Lack of site availability. From posts on here and doing my own research it appears sites are hard to come by. Don't want to purchase a unit then not be able to use it.

2. Possible resolution to #1-seasonal site if we can find one. Have contacted a campground we have loved in the past to check on their availability. As long as we can remove the trailer "at will" to go elsewhere we are leaning toward this. Which leads me to #3...

3. The dog. We aren't the kind to just sit at a campsite. We like to go exploring, hike, canoe, kayak, etc. Haven't found a cg yet that allows you to leave your dog at the site unattended, even if in the unit. I don't have any real issue with that because nobody wants to hear a dog bark all day but it does cause us some logistical issues. So, now onto #4.

4. The dog part deux: We have a wonderful boarding facility that's part of our vet's office. Our concern is not wanting to use the unit because we don't want to board the dog that much. Don't misunderstand me-we will take him weather and activity permitting but it's weighing heavy on our minds because during hot summer months he most likely won't come. Also we do plan on getting a puppy in July (assuming the breeding took).

My gut feel is that within the next year or two some of the availability issues will alleviate themselves when things (hopefully) get back to more normal and people are involved in regular activities once again.

Just kind of rambling but definitely open to any thoughts, other than "if your dog is quiet no one will know if he's there". Rules are there for a reason whether or not we like them. Thanks.

If the seasonal campground doesn't work out, not to far from you is Old Stage Campground in Madbury. I know some people that camp there every year and have visited myself, Clean family campground if that is your thing.

Glad your getting back on the open road! :C

Mike

[rk911]

we can usually find doggie day care places when on the road.

[Mayor30]

We just went to Texas on a 15 day trip from Pennsylvania.I booked a few weeks ahead but had no trouble getting sites. That was Mid march to April 2nd.We stayed exclusively at state and federal campgrounds.We have a dog too. We usually take her with but have left her in the trailer for up to 6 hours. She's a Black Lab and is well behaved. We have taken her in the canoe too. People who say they can't find sites are usually looking for sites on summer weekends or holidays.Yes, those will be booked early. We usually leave on a Sunday and come back on a Thursday or Friday which makes it easier to get a site. We also try to go in spring and fall. I can tell you even in March, most of the campgrounds were fairly full, but we had no trouble getting sites.We are not fussy about hookups. We usually like to have at least electric but have stayed at a site with no hookups on occassion. RV's are self contained so you don't need hookups if you know how to conserve. In those sites without hookups, we usually take a Honda generator to charge batteries and so my wife can use microwave or blow dryer.So don't make excuses, do it while you have the chance. I've been camping for over 50 years and love it.

[Grit_dog]

I/we although not retired have the same thoughts.
3 dogs and a cat. We never leave home for more than a week or 2 tops. And never board them. Just have neighbors kids or friends kids watch them and the house.
But yeah, if you’re traveling, you’re either tethered to your RV by pets or not.
Solutions to have your cake and eat it too are limited and likely very creative.

[Grit_dog]

MFL wrote:
I know pets can make activities more difficult, when camping, but SPs, and not close spaced parks work best. My Angel loved to go camping, hiking, but most of all, just wanted to do whatever I did. She loved kayaking, or boating, would ride with me on a snowmobile, but not motorcycles (too dangerous).

Maybe the OP has a St Bernard! Would be an interesting combo in a kayak!
JK, I agree it is a challenge to take pets and there are limitations as such.
No real magic answer unfortunately. Good luck figuring it out. Sounds like a cabin on a lake with a fenced yard would check more boxes than a RV.
Canoe/kayak no problem.
Pets no problem.
Leave pets for the day no problem.
Leave pets longer (easier if they stay at home and someone feeds them).
No dry camping, full amenities.
No worry about finding a “site.”
No depreciation like a RV.

[Grit_dog]

midnightsadie wrote:
things will never ever be like the old days ,a virus can,t be killed it keeps changing to another form. things will improve but never will it be the good old days.buy the camper enjoy while your own personnal life lets you.

OMG. OP was talking about camper sales, not a doom and gloom view of society....
You need to get out more.

[Campinghoss]

Good to hear you are thinking of starting rving again. As far as sites being non available we have not had even a remote problem getting a site almost anywhere we want. Our fiver is 40 feet as well. I most certainly would not worry about that. Now to the dog thing. We have not ran into a cg yet after all the decades we have travelled that had a problem as long as the dogs don't bark continuously. Heck, there are a couple of cgs we actually leave a spare key fob with the front desk in case a fire or something happens that Lucky and Lucie would need to be moved. Now with that being said we keep a mifi in the fiver with a Cloud Cam camera that records movement and sound. We also can talk to our dogs. We also have a temp stik that records and monitors temp and humidity. I also have my inverter set to auto activate in case of a power failure along with mine and my wife's smart phones to alert us.
One of my most favorite things to do is if a neighbor tells us our dogs bark I pull out my smart phone, open the app and tell them show me where they are moving let alone barking.

Don't know about seasonal cg's so I will let that one go. We do stay 3 months at one cg each year simply because we love it.

Safe travels

[MFL]

I know pets can make activities more difficult, when camping, but SPs, and not close spaced parks work best. My Angel loved to go camping, hiking, but most of all, just wanted to do whatever I did. She loved kayaking, or boating, would ride with me on a snowmobile, but not motorcycles (too dangerous).