RVing For The First Time

It has been about a year now since my husband and I bought our first RV and started camping. There have been good times and bad times.

WIth the New Trailer

Prior to the purchase of our Travel Trailer I had never experienced camping of any kind; but my husband camped all his life in a 5th wheel with his Grandparents. Some of his best memories are of camping with his grandparents. I have to admit I was not for the idea at all, not in the least bit. It did not sound fun to me, but my husband wanted to do it and his childhood memories of camping were so great that I could not put a damper on his dream of buying an RV. We hated leaving our dogs at home when we traveled, so having an RV would be great for bringing them along (our dogs are very spoiled).

After we decided we were going to buy a RV my husband poured himself into research, trying to find the RV that would best suit our needs. We decided on a Shadow Cruiser because they are light and easy to tow. We also liked the inside decor of these trailers as compared to other trailers on the market. Unfortunately for us they are not sold very many places in California so our options for dealers were limited to one, and they were not very good. Buying the RV was, in itself, a process; if you have never bought an RV buckle up cause it is going to be a bumpy road - or maybe we just bought from a not so great dealer. 

When the buying process was finally over we picked it up and brought it home. We planned to park it on the side of our house and we spent a weekend clearing away bushes and one large queen palm - it was a chore and I was not getting any happier about the idea of owning an RV at that point.

When we took our first trip everything started to change. I tried to prepare as much as I thought was possible, but I didn’t prepare half as much as my husband did. He had literally everything we needed, things that I never would have thought to buy. He had chocks, a baby barbecue that fit in the under-storage of the trailer, tools, mats to set our chairs on, a generator, and the list goes on and on. But that was a trip on hooks-ups (which at the time I had not idea what that meant). 

One of our next trip was a trip to the Grand Canyon. The canyon was amazing and we had fun hiking with the dogs, but that was it. The camping was by far one of the worst experiences of my life. Take my advice, if you are planning a trip to the Grand Canyon just get a hotel. We were camping off hook-ups for the first time and the campground was small and dusty. My dogs were literally laying in the dirt and they were not happy about it. My husband and I fought allot, but nothing could prepare me for my first shower in the trailer. Up to this point all of our trips were only 2 night stays so I would take a shower the day we left and then wait until we got home to shower again. Once again, unfortunately for us our trailer had water pump and tank issues. Since this was our first trip off hook-ups we had no idea that there was a problem with the water pump. The shower was cold, FREEZING cold, and right after I put the conditioner in my hair the water turned off and never came back on. I was screaming at my husband to fix it but it was beyond what he could fix. When we got home we made arrangements to have it fixed and since then we have not had any problems with the water pump and shower system, but I still refuse to take a shower in the trailer - I’ll just wait until we get home -thank you very much.

Even though that was a horrific experience and I will probably never take a shower in that trailer again (you think I am kidding, but I am not) I have taken a liking to trailer life and I my husband and I are even talking about some day selling our house and traveling the country in an RV. I know what your thinking “when does this girl plan to shower if she is not going to take a shower in this trailer ever again?” We are planning on selling our current travel trailer getting an Airstream to travel the country with. Oh, and I will require a test of the shower prior to that purchase (again you think I am kidding but I am not, when you are standing naked in the shower covered in conditioner and your husband walks into the bathroom covered in dirt from crawling under the tailer and tells you just get out there is nothing we can do - it sticks with you).

I think everything changed for me when we took our first trip to the beach. My husband was born and raised in Orange County and we love the beach. We stayed for four nights in Malibu and it was amazing, one of the best trips I have ever taken and I did not want to leave. But the funnest trips I think we have taken are our trips to Phoenix International Raceway. We LOVE NASCAR racing and only live about 4 hours from the Phoenix track. We only pay $60 and we get to camp as early as one week before the race and stay as long as the wednesday after the race. Phoenix and the beach are my two favorite trips. 

Now that we have had our trailer for about a year and have worked all the bugs out. I really love it, and it is in large part due to my husband. He was like a seasoned pro even though he never owned a RV before. He was and is prepared for everything. Last month we were on our way to Phoenix for our semi-annual race trip and my husband noticed we had  a flat tire on the trailer. We were about 30 minutes outside of Palm Springs where my mom and dad live and I was panicked. I suggested we turn around and go back to Palm Springs so my dad could help change the tire, but my husband said no we didn’t need to do that and the tire was so bad that we probably would not have made it. We pulled into a large parking lot and it only took him about 20 minutes to change the tire. 

I have to say if it were not for him I would have given up on camping after the Grand Canyon trip, which was only our third trip. He makes everything perfect and it is because of him that I would even consider selling our house for a life on the road with our dogs, but there still are times when I want to give up. Anytime I am helping him back the trailer up there is a guaranteed fight, GUARANTEED!! We are defiantly better than we were in the beginning but we still fight every time. The space where we park the trailer on the side of our house is very tight and you can not back straight up into it. You have to come in at an angle. I try as hard as I can to communicate to him in the way that he wants to be communicated to, but its hard. It hard for me to communicate to him things he can’t see and I am sure its hard for him to back it up in that small space we keep it. My least favorite part of our trips are coming home because we fight every time, if I could change one thing that would be what I change.

But other then that it is a real blast, our dogs love it, my in-laws love it, and we love it. We are able to go more places and do more things because we don’t have to rent a hotel. And we really look forward to the day that we buy an Airstream and travel the country. We can not wait for that adventure!

Use a Checklist to Safely Hitch Your Travel Trailer

The pre-trip trailer hitching checklist is a must have for hitching your travel trailer and ensuring your tow vehicle and trailer are in proper condition and are safe for towing. Even seasoned travel trailer towing veterans can benefit from the pre-trip towing checklist. The towing checklist is a helpful reminder of the steps that need to be completed to safely connect your travel trailer to your tow vehicle. 

A checklist is not needed because youíre not capable of hitching your trailer on your own. A checklist is needed to help you remember the steps that need to be followed to safely attach your travel trailer to your tow vehicle. Many travel trailer owners do not see the need for a hitching checklist, but checklists are very valuable and many professionals, including airplane pilots, use checklists to ensure critical steps are not missed. RVers use checklist for other RVing tasks too, but for the purpose of this post we will focus on the hitching checklist. 

Before you start the process of hitching your travel trailer to your tow vehicle, get out your hitching checklist and review the steps you will follow to attach your travel trailer to your tow vehicle. After reviewing all the steps on the checklist you can start your checks. Although some steps may seem simple, especially after you have hitched your trailer many times, it is important to follow the checklist items in order and to check each item off after you complete the task. If you take the checklist out and leave it setting in your tow vehicle it will not help you to safely hitch to travel trailer to your tow vehicle.

Once you have completed your trailer hitching checklist give the checklist one more review and walk around your tow vehicle and travel trailer one last time to ensure everything is in its place and in good condition. After all checks are complete, youíre ready to have a safe and fun camping trip with your travel trailer in tow.

To avoid wasting paper and printing multiple paper checklists, print one checklist, laminate it and mark your checks with dry erase markers. Using this method you can use the same laminated checklist over and over. Check off each item with the dry erase marker and when youíre done simply wipe the laminated sheet clean with a paper towel. 

This is PART: 1 in our RV Checklist series. Subscribe to our site to stay up to date.  

I have attached a hitching checklist you can use the next time your hitching your travel trailer. 

Travel Trailer Hitching Checklist

Dump Your RV Tanks At Home?

One of the less glamorous sides of traveling with an RV is the need to dump your tanks after camping without hookups or "boondocking". RV dumpstations are not abundant and more are disappearing everyday. Depending on your location RV dump stations can be found at truck stops, rest areas, storage facilities and more.

When I'm planing a boondocking trip I like to research and plan out my dump station stops before we leave for our trip. There are different resources on the internet you can use, but I have been most successful using the major truck stop web sites such as Flying J and Loves. On the Flying J and Loves web sites you can look at their locations along your route and see what services are provided. If the truck stop has a RV dump it will be listed on their website. Normally there will be a small fee for the use of the dump station the most I have paid is $5.00. 

If there is not a truck stop on your route that offers a dump station you will have to look for other options. In some states rest areas have dump stations and they make for a convenient stop. If there are no truck or rest stops near your desination you can check for RV parks along the way. Even if you are not staying the night many RV parks will let your use their facility to dump your tanks for a small fee. 

The majority of our camping trips are boondocking trips without hookups. There are few dump stations in our area so finding a dump station that is on the route to or from our destination can be a challenge. Because of this, I have been looking in to other options for dumping my black and grey tanks after our short weekend trips. 

sewer clean out at our house

Wouldn't it be wonderful to dump your RV tanks at your own home? While only appropriate for short trips when you only need to dump your tanks once, it would take one more step out of our RV trip. It is possible to set up your house to make dumping your RV tanks at home possible. Outside of installing the plumbing for a standard RV dump station, the solution I have been looking at is the Flowjet Portable RV Waste Pump. The pump is a macerator, which means it process the large waste deposits in your RV's black tank and sends the waste through a garden hose to the location you want to dump. With the Flowjet waste pump its possible to dump your tanks into a toilet in your house or a outside sewer clean out if you have one. I'm planning on using the sewer clean out that is close to the location we park our RV. Once we get the Flowjet and try it out I'll give a full review.

Where and how do you dump your tanks? Leave a comment below. 

Why pay more for an Airstream?

Last year when we were seriously shopping for our first RV buying a Airstream was a consideration. Ultimately the price of a Airstream was prohibitive in selecting a Airstream as our first RV.

We seriously considered purchasing a Airstream for a few reasons. The unique and appealing exterior design as well as the modern interior. 

Airstream

There is something special about the look of a Airstream, sleek, silver and glimmering in the sun a Airstream makes everyone take a second look. Compared to the relatively bland white and boxy exterior design of typical travel trailers a Airstream is an eye catcher. You can be proud of the shinny trailer following behind you. Aside from looking great, the Airstream's exterior design is aerodynamic and low to the ground aiding in towing ease. Judging on aesthetics alone the Airstream was the only choice. 

The layout and design of the interior of a Airstream is also great. Even though Airstreams do not have slide outs, like other travel trailers, their smart layout and cylindrical shape make the small space feel bigger than it is. I always feel like I have more headroom when standing in an Airstream. 

If there are so many positive aspects of the Airstream, why did we choose against the purchase of one? They cost to much! 

Airstreams are priced significantly higher than your average travel trailer. To give you an idea, the MSRP of our travel trailer was $22,000 and the MSRP of a comparable low end Airstream is $45,000. If you want to own an Airstream you will pay a premium. 

Is the added price worth it? After owning a trailer of our own for one year I think it is. While we are happy with our white box RV and still think it was a smart purchase, that let us get our feet wet in the RV world. We are now willing to pay for the quality of an Airstream. We know we like traveling in a trailer and we know what we want in an towable RV. 

Our Shadow Cruiser was affordable and after using it for a year it's easy to see where corners were cut to keep its price low. We had a drawer that fell apart, plywood that split, a water tank that did not work on our first trip, broken blinds and more. I'm not saying that if we buy an Airstream we won't have any problems, but from visiting our Airstream dealer many times I can tell you they are constructed with higher quality material.

Economically an Airstream is expensive, but when you figure in depreciation. Airstreams don't seem so bad. Normal RV's depreciate fast just like a car, but Airstreams hold their value much better. 1980's Airstreams can still be sold for $20,000 or more. In addition, Airstreams really don't go out of style. 

In the end there is also a since of nostalgia and Americana that go along with Airstream. Airstreams elicit an emotion and that is priceless. 

I cannot go out and buy an Airstream tomorrow, but I have decided that my next RV will be an Airstream.

What Is Boondocking In An RV?

Boondocking; if you are new to the RV world you may not know what it means, but it is one of the best parts of owning an RV!

boondocking at the beach

Boondocking has different definitions depending on who you ask. Some define boondocking as simply camping without hookups and some define it as camping in wilderness areas such as BLM or forest land.

Regardless of how you define boondockig, if you are boondocking, you are camping without hookups. No power, water or sewer. To some RV'ers this is a foreign concept. Many RV'ers don't want to stay anywhere but a nice RV resort with power, water, sewer and cable TV. However, if you are the more adventurous type then boondocking will interest you. For those who own a RV because they love the outdoors and enjoy a good adventure boondocking is the only way to camp with your RV.

Typically, boondocking does not involve camping in a organized campground. When you boondock with your RV you visit places off the beaten path. You may stay in the California desert on BLM land, under the shade of pine trees in the National Forest, or in the sand at designated beaches. Some people on the other hand, consider staying the night in a Wal-Mart parking lot or at a campground without hookups boondocking. No matter what you consider boondocking or where you boondock all boondocking involves camping off the grid without hookups. 

This means you will need to have a large battery bank to power your systems over your stay, or have generator or solar power to recharge your batteries when needed. Yow will also need plenty of fresh water and available space in your black and grey tanks to hold waste for your stay. It's important to leave no trace when boondocking and that includes grey water. Don't dump your grey water and your boondocking site as it is illegal in most locations.

One major Benefit of boondocking is saving money. Generally boondocking is free or low cost. The are many BLM campgrounds that are free or only ask for a small donation. National and State Forests offer free or low cost dispersed camping. You can locate BLM and Forest boondocking locations by visiting the Bureau of Land Management website or the National Forest Service website. When camping in the forest check in at the closest ranger station to let them know where you plan to camp and inquire about required fire permits. In national and state forests you often need a fire permit and it is often free.   

Solitude

Many people including myself like to boondock because it allows you to get away from civilization. When you boondock in wilderness areas camping is a whole new experience. While, I don't mind staying at traditional campgrounds and RV parks doing so does not necessarily make you feel like your escaping everyday life. Traditional RV parks have spaces that are positioned close to each other and privacy is limited. The RV parks may be right in the middle of the city next to a tourist attraction. They can be convenient, but are not necessarily focused on enjoying the outdoors. Boondocking locations on the other hand are off the beaten path and solitude is easily found. 

You will have to work to find a good boondocking site as they can be hard to find. Talk to fellow RV'ers as they may be able to point you in the right direction on your search for boondocking locations in your area. Many RV'ers will however keep the best locations to themselves as too much publicity can turn your private retreat into a cluster of RV's. Find a great spot and keep it you your self too!

Our favorite boondocking location is next to the beach and staying there for a few days makes it easy to forget about the stresses of everyday life. I did not truly love getting away in our RV until our first boondocking experience in the wilderness. In my mind boondocking is the best kind of RV'ing. 

Shadow Cruiser S-195WBS Video Review

After owning our Shadow Cruiser for 1 year we have a good idea of what we like and don't like about this trailer. Check out the video to get our review of the inside of the Shadow Cruiser S-195WBS. We will post an outside review soon. 

Here are some of the items we discuss in the video:

Our awesome Umbra magnetic key holder:

The RV Shower head we added:

The Simple Human space saving soap dispenser we absolutely love.

 The great little TV mount we used to mount our TV

If you have questions about anything you saw in the video comment below. Something else you want to learn about our trailer? Leave your comments below.