 |
| Village Camper Inn located in Crescent City was one of the gems of RV parks along the coast. |
Booking RV reservations is Hell. Seriously, a living Hell.
In many ways, this whole RV life I thought I was getting into is not the bed of roses I had anticipated. I had visions of forests, babbling brooks, warm orange sunsets and serene mornings that smelled of fresh coffee and ocean breezes. Yes, I got suckered in by the brochure of Instagram posts and YouTube videos showing happy couples hiking a forest trail and kayaking a lazy river.
But that shit ain't happenin'.
Instead we find ourselves frantically trying to book a place either for some random holiday we forgot existed (like Labor Day) or to escape scorching, 100 degree heat. We search on RV review sites for 50 amp service and 4G coverage, which only exist together in a downtown park of concrete and exhaust fumes. Mornings are filled with the sounds of lawnmowers and screaming children.
If we're boondocking (staying somewhere without electric, water and sewer hookups) we sleep with the generator running to drown out the sound of semis pulling in and out all night. There are times we can't even get cell coverage in a WalMart parking lot.
 |
| Boondocking at the WalMart in Yreka, CA wasn't unpleasant, but it certainly isn't on my Places To Visit list. |
Perhaps we don't have the hang of this yet.
We've lucked out with a few wonderful stays, such as Village Camper Inn in Crescent City and Gold Ranch Casino and RV Park in Verdi, NV. Each park was located in beautiful locations, perfect weather and affordable rates. The neighbors we had in Crescent City were lovely people who gave us fresh rockfish from their daily catch. We found excellent motorcycle riding nearby along the coast and in the redwood forest.
 |
| Gold Ranch Casino and RV Park in Verdi, NV lies in a beautiful setting literally on the CA/NV border. |
I believe we have a reasonable criteria for our stays.
Good Reviews
Location where we need/want to be
Sites - level, spacious, etc.
Comfortable Weather
50 amp electric
Water/Sewer
4G service
Reasonable Rates
Discounts: Good Sam, AAA, KOA, monthly or weekly rate
Pets allowed
We need to run our business along the way, which requires us to constantly be connected to the internet. We cannot service our clients who have hired us to manage their marketing and websites if we can't get online, which is why 4G is crucial.
 |
| At least the rest stop near Mt. Shasta was beautiful, even if there were trucks in and out all night. |
One day each month we seem to be spending hours and hours working together, struggling to find a place to stay. We've started booking months in advance to secure something reasonable. And just fucking forget about something as picturesque as Crater Lake, Lake Tahoe, the Grand Canyon or along the Pacific coastline. If you don't book in advance or have a trust fund, good fucking luck.
 |
| Oh, you're going to visit in Yosemite and get 4G? HAHAHA!! That's hilarious! |
I often have people ask me how to earn a living on the road. Well, here it is. Live full time in an RV and become an RV Travel Agent. Work for Full Time RVers who are trying to book stays somewhere other than KOA's filled with screaming kids (I've never liked kids) or a concrete parking lot without a single tree in sight. Start a business working with RV park owners to secure rentals and working with RVers who don't have the time to call 15 parks in one day, only to find out they should have called 6 fucking months ago.
And when you do start this business, call me right away. I'll pay you good money for your time. Please, just get me out of this living Hell.
We're on another Road Pickle! We hope to find great breweries, tacos, steak and biscuits with gravy, as well as some roadside oddities along the way. If you don't want to miss a thing, join us by subscribing to our vlog on YouTube. I PROMISE you'll see some cool stuff!
And don't forget about my book, Rude Biker Chick, Lessons From My Daddy. Click below for more information.
And don't forget about my book, Rude Biker Chick, Lessons From My Daddy. Click below for more information.
Thank you for this honest post. Hubby and I were just discussing yesterday our thoughts on buying a little trailer to pull behind the Subaru and at one point had thought of a truck and trailer combo for getting out and camping more. But we mentioned out loud that you couldn't just make plans to go out one weekend, you need to book months in advance and we just don't do that.
ReplyDeleteI am glad you are sharing the realities of RVing since so much of it is sugar coated by the industry. Check out Dom Chang's blog for ideas on boosting your wi-fi signal. He had to do it for his RV as he is in IT and works from home/out of the RV. And Richard Machida, retired IT from University of Alaska, also did it for his 5th wheel. Here are links to their blogs. Their mods were just done this last summer so they should be easy to find. Or you could email them.
http://redlegsrides.blogspot.com
http://blog.machida.us