RV Camping makes their Escape!

FINALLY, the day has arrived! Goodbyes have been said to family and friends and we're off! It's so gr8 to be driving away from Denver and all the traffic, noise, and dirty air!

OOPS....reality check! We are headed for the Flying J truck stop to use their dump station and fill up with propane. The last two months in Colorado have cost us a small fortune in propane between our RV's furnace and the Catalytic heater.

Brian and I always say it's going to be an hour at the Flying J, no matter if it's fueling up, dumping and filling tanks, getting propane, or having the buffet. Today is no exception! I make 3, yes 3! separate trips into the truck stop to stand in line and request propane assistance. I have talked to the manager twice and a stressed out gal once both claiming someone is on his way to help us.

When the propane guy FINALLY shows up, he's not friendly, and now he's going to be overworked too since an additional two motor homes have gotten into the line behind Gozer! AW shucks!

Brian had a dental appointment this morning, which put us some behind in leaving town, and now this! Clock says 12:15 by the time we actually leave the city limits. Our 5 hour drive ahead of us, we keep pushing for our destination. About dark, our dash lights go out.....flickering off and on--we'll just keep up with the traffic and hope we're going about the right speed.

We pull into the town RV park, and a pristine setting with about 4 inches of snow! Our "sled" Gozer does us proud again today, and is almost ready to take a long winters nap. Our traveling days are going to be coming to an end for a while, as we're putting down some roots.

RV Camping, still snowing, and whaddya mean the furnace isn't working?

So, we are STILL stuck in Colorado, and the term STUCK may become more of a noun than a verb pretty soon! We are in a lovely neighborhood, but the fact that it continues to snow might create some more problems for us. We are parked in a friend's backyard, and we're faced toward the gate-prepared to make our escape as soon as the weather breaks! Only thing is, the gate is on the north side and the snow is piling up on the other side of it!

Brian and I did clear the snow from the last snowstorm, and probably should have driven out of here yesterday before the storm moved in. But we had other problems yesterday!

Our furnace doesn't like cold weather, and had been making a noise off and on like a "Viking Horn" for a couple of days. We had heard this noise before, 2 years ago when we also ended up in Colorado and had to use the furnace in extreme cold. But this time it was going to force us to get it fixed since we couldn't use it for heat and the temperature was forcast to be 16 degrees! It wouldn't come on during the night and we woke up to a frozen water pump......not good! It does heat our basement, so crucial to keeping things warm and working!

Brian does a gr8 job of keeping our mobile house rolling, having fixed our generator, solar electric system and inverter, replacing burned out boards in our fridge, splicing new power for our "shore" power, rewiring our never worked since we got Gozer headlights so we can travel at night, should I stop now or keep on listing? I hope you got the idea that Brian is extremely handy and a good trouble shooter, and we could NEVER have spent 5 years on the road otherwise!

He did take a look at the furnace enough to figure out it was the blower moter, but that wasn't something he felt comfortable diving into when it's below freezing. Thanks to the power of the Internet we found a place that would come out to work on our rig! Mile High Mobile RV showed up about 5:30, had all the right tools to dissasemble and reinstall our new blower moter, all in about an hour! Thank God for Charlie!

SO.......here we sit watching it snow.......$240 less bucks in our wallet. If only we were in Arizona, we'd have that $240 and not have to worry about running the heat, never to know we had a problem! Ignorance is bliss!

RV Camping in the Snow!

Oh Joy, here we are again......Snowy Colorado!

Brian and I differ drastically in our feelings about snow. Brian sees snow, gets excited, wants to drive the Jeep around and pull people out of the ditch for fun! I see snow and I turn into a pumpkin! I would be okay NEVER seeing another snowflake, other than on a Christmas card!

I have shoveled enough snow in my past life in Colorado, to be content never having to lift another pile of it! Also slid, slipped, fell, and hurt myself in in process of trying to navigate around on something that should best be avoided--black ice!

Today the "high" temperature was predicted to be 30, and same for tomorrow. Nighttime lows are in the lower teens. Thank God for our electrical plug (for the electric blanket), our RV catalytic heater, and Casey for providing a "one dog night"!

As we watch a re-run of Denver's Parade of Lights, the annual lighting ceremony for the Denver City and Country Building, we laughed to think about the times we actually braved the cold and went to the parade in person! We froze out there, and no quantity of peppermint schnapps and hot chocolate could change that.

Today was "Cookie Day" at my folks place--an annual event for us girls and Mom to get together and make all sorts of Christmas goodies to share for the holidays. Dad made elk chili and we enjoyed the fellowship of being together at a time we are usually in Sunny Arizona. I have to admit it's been nice to be around family, but once the snow and cold starts, I have a hard time being this far north.

My idea of heaven would be a desert campsite with some mature saguaro, miles of country to walk with Casey and Brian, and a frosty beverage in the shade of the motorhome! Also no visable neighbors would be a bonus! Us modern day hermits still fantisize about that perfect campsite, especially as the time passes and the possibility of us being on the road may be in sight!

RV Camping battles the cold, and man's best friend?

As we are still being held hostage by Brian's dental work, our minds wander often to the desert Southwest and warmer temperatures. Colorado is NOT our choice for the winter months, and our propane costs have escalated as the temperatures drop.

We have made a purchase that seems to be a life saver, an electric blanket with dual controls! We turn it on a few minutes before climbing into bed, and it really does the job! We are sleeping comfortably warm, and our dog Casey loves it too! No more mounds of blankets, only to still slide into the freezing cold sheets! It's wonderful!

We are still "camping" in the midst of town, and getting good walks in for us and our dog is really a chore. We are in a lovely neighborhood and there are no sidewalks (which is part of the beauty of the area) but then you have to dodge the traffic to get some exercise. I have a usual route that I travel each morning with Casey, and it even has a trash can to deposit our "goods". Lots of barking dogs, but they are all fenced or in their homes. For some reason I figured an extra walk would be good, and set out about 4pm. We were having a nice, sunny day (prior to the current cold front) and we were almost home with just one more block in front of us, when a black dog came running towards us! It had a collar but no human attached to it. It attacked Casey, rolling him on his back and biting on his neck! It was growling and snarling, Casey was wimpering, and I was screaming! I tried kicking the other dog, but it snapped at my leg and kept biting and chewing on Casey. A good Samaritan, Randy-in a burgundy Toyota pickup-stopped to help and managed to get the dogs separated and kept the other dog from Casey. It kept circling us, and wanting to attack Casey again. Another neighbor came out and said the local dog catcher had been trying to catch the loose dog for over an hour. I said "well, I have the bait here now (Casey) why don't you call the dog catcher again?" Cell phones were created for just such times, and two dog catcher's showed up within about 5 minutes. This whole time the agressive Akita kept trying to get to Casey, and we 3 spent our time chatting and trying to keep Casey from acquiring any more dog "jewelery". Apparently the dog lives right where he was attacking us, but his owner is an elderly lady and the dog gets away from her often. The dog catcher's even knew where the dog belonged!

This made me crave the solitude of our lives alone in the desert even more, and wondering how soon we'll be away from the sprawl, noise, and irresponsible pet owners? If a dog is too much for someone to handle, perhaps they need to make a decision regarding the safety issues for themselves and others? When you live in a community you need to be aware that your actions, or lack of them, affect your neighbors-no matter who they may be. It's the same way when we're dispersed camping out by ourselves, we have a responsibility to leave our campsite better than we found it so the folks that come after us can enjoy it as well.

Remember that every action has a reaction, and we CAN chose to make it a positive one!

City Stuck

We're still stuck in the city waiting for Brian's dental work to wrap up. This has been a recurring issue for us over the years since he had cancer radiation therapy, but usually we've not had a problem that required extensive time durations between procedures.

Being in Denver this long, we get to visit family more than we probably should, and we've been dealing with temperatures in the low teens so keeping things thawed in Gozer has been a challenge too. I know people pack bales of straw around their RV for winter camping, and we would too if we thought we were going to be here much longer.

We are using our vent less propane heater a lot, but at least we get some passive solar heating in the RV as most Denver days are clear. We've only had to pull out of our parking space once for propane in the motor homes main tank since we left California. Dang...sure seems like we left California a lot longer ago than mid October.

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RV Camping-Fools for the City

So here we are, still in Colorado and camped amongst 3,000,000 of our neighbors. Don't get me wrong, we have a wonderful place to park at a friend's place, but it's not our idea of a typical RV camping site.

While we've been here in Denver, we've been reminded all too frequently of the things we don't miss about city life. So much traffic and sprawl, that we are getting a little desperate for our usual solitude and about 2,999,998 less people!

Being this far north in November is making me nervous, and thinking about years we lived here previously doesn't ease my fears. Once the snow starts we'll be limited with our travel plans, and we really prefer to travel when we want too, not when we can.

Finding a dump station here is a bit of a problem too, with many being seasonal and closing once there is a danger of freezing temperatures for water stations. Not easy and accessable like Southern California or Arizona, where you don't have to worry about hunting down a "dumperoony".

We will continue to camp out in the big city, and anxiously await our exit from "civilization"!

RV Camping Herd Mentality

It's been a heck of a week for us. Started a week ago when Brian developed a nasty dental nightmare. To make a long story short, we had to make a run to Denver for emergency oral surgery, and camped a couple nights in Chatfield State Park.

Now Chatfield is a nice park, and we like the way the campsites are spaced for the most part. This time of year, there are few campers, and in the camping loop which closes tomorrow, there are only 2 RVs in the entire campground. Us, and a guy that pulled in across the road from us.

I find it a bit amusing that here is an entire campground, and the guy decides he wants to camp next to us. We've had this happen on public lands where there was nobody for miles until somebody decided they wanted to camp close enough to get to know us. I think this has more to do with herd mentality than anything else.

RVers very often tend to "herd" themselves into campgrounds, long term visitor areas, or what-have-you, because that is their choice for safety, social interaction, or they don't know better. It's not only RVers either. Drive down a remote freeway at the speed limit and observe the cars passing. You will certainly see a "herd" of 3 or 4 vehicles traveling around the same excessive speed. Is it safety in numbers?

Am I complaining about people infringing on my camping location? Not at all. After all...public means public, and if you choose to camp right next to me that is your choice. It's also my prerogative to pack up and move if you do.

Campsite Of The Month - RV Camping shows you a free RV camping location near Badlands National Park. Location maps, directions, campsite description, and photos.

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Customer Service - Different Drums

First off I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that the Horton Creek campground camphost site has had the shredded tent removed and the site is neat and tidy. The fee tube has also been emptied. I may have been premature in my comment about the host site as the wind we had last night would certainly change a campsites appearance. Wind gusts to around 90 mph will do that.

Yesterday was a beautiful day, and we explored a bit into the Sierra Nevada to Lake Sabrina. SR168 is quite steep as it leaves Bishop and winds into the mountains. There are numerous forest service campgrounds, but we didn't see any campsites that called our name. The campgrounds for the most part are near the road, and are in a narrow valley. Numerous pullouts along the road afford anglers good access to the stream, and fish & wildlife was stocking Lake Sabrina when we arrived. The scenery is pretty good as you can see...

Oops...back on topic. After enjoying the the lovely scenery, we headed into town to get a few supplies, and fill our small 20 lb propane tank that we use for our ventless heater. Getting supplies was no problem, but getting propane turned into a comedy episode from the "Customer Service Files".

First we went to one of the major propane suppliers in town and was told that nobody was available to fill our tank. When asked when someone would be in, the answer was "I can't tell you, whenever someone comes in". You can get propane at place A, B, or C.

We had driven past place B on our way here, and there was a line of RV's waiting for propane, so off to C. Go to C...same story that guy unavailable...guy sick. Go to A...SAME STORY that guy won't be back for a couple hours. Told to go to place D.

Went to place D - Ace Hardware on US 395 in Bishop, was treated kindly and got our propane without any further delay. We had almost the exact same scenario in Mammoth Lakes this summer with people at lunch or their day off. I guess small town business runs to the beat of a different drummer.

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RV Camping in Horton Creek Campground

We headed downhill about 30 miles and a couple thousand feet in altitude to settle into BLM's Horton Creek campground located about 10 miles west of Bishop, CA. The campground is situated at the base of the Sierra Nevada mountains with outstanding views in all directions.

This is a typical BLM campground with vault toilets, fire rings, barbeque grates, and picnic tables. There are trash dumpsters near the fee station, and the nightly rate is currently $5. Length of stay limit is 14 days per season. Bishop BLM offers an LTVA (Long Term Visitor Area) pass, but it does not include this campground. This campground is seasonally open.

The campsites are all pull-in/back-in with many spaces capable of any size RV including a towed vehicle. The campground road is in terrible shape, and BLM would be better off to scrape off the old asphault and leave the road gravel than leave it the way it is. You will want to try and miss the biggest potholes in the road to avoid pinching a tire if you have a large RV.

We've not seen the campground host, though there is a vehicle in the host position. It's a little disturbing to us that there is a shredded dome tent, as well as a rather unkempt camphost site as we feel camphosts should be setting a good example. The fee station was so full that it would be easy for someone with needle nose pliers to remove several pay envelopes.

We love this campground. The scenery is spectacular, there are only a few campers in the entire campground, we've heard coyote's last two nights, and a herd of 10 deer strolled past our window just a few minutes ago. It's a short hop into Bishop for supplies and laundry, and other than the campground road itself, access is on good asphault roads. There is fishing, hiking trails, and back roads great for exploring with a high clearance vehicle nearby.

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RV Camping - Nature's Treats

Yesterday was an exploration day for us. After stopping at Tom's Place on US 395 about 20 miles east of Mammoth Lakes for breakfast, we headed north along the Owens River Gorge Road to where it intersects with Benton Crossing Road. We then turned west toward Crowey Lake to return to our current campsite. While exploring, we found a great boondocking site perfect for our our 36' class A motor home...

The view reminded me of places we saw along the Alaska Highway a couple years ago. Access to this campsite is perfect for us with good gravel access, and along a road seldom used. It's 15 miles from US 395, but this great boondocking location is one you will have to find for yourself.

We went to sleep to the sound of rain on the roof at our base camp at the BLM Crowley Lake Campground (location map)about 15 miles east of Mammoth Lakes.

When we awoke this morning, the mountains have their first significant dusting of snow. The clear blue skies highlight the crystaline new snow on the jagged Sierra Nevada mountain peaks. Nature has once again treated us to some of it's magnificent splendor.

It won't be long until snow levels drop a few hundred feet more, and this campground closes for the season November 1. We'll be gone by then as the weather forecast is for snow on Tuesday.

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Winter RV Camping Safety

Happy Birthday Margie!!!

The leaves are changing colors, the temperature is dropping, and snow rests on the high mountains nearby meaning cold weather RV camping conditions can hit at any time. Many RVers love to camp in the changing fall colors of the forest, and hunters search for remote locations where snow storms and cold temperatures can make RV camping difficult, if not downright deadly.

Not only the weather and cold temperatures, but use of portable heaters or your own RVs gas appliances can kill you under the right conditions. RV Camping Winter Safety has information you may not be aware of about portable ventless propane heaters, carbon monoxide, and some ideas that may save your life. You will also find information about camping in -0 degree weather by an experienced RVer.

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RV Camping - Heading South For The Winter

We're out of the woods and back searching for great RV camping locations...

Winter may officially be a couple months away, but winter weather can hit just about anywhere from now on. Keeping up on weather forecasts is important to RVers this time of year. I don't know any RVers that look forward to icy road travel, so many folks head south early. But some of us full time RVers don't like spending too much time in one area, and spending 5 months in the Arizona/California desert can get kinda long for some. So how do we avoid going south too early?

Here are some tips we use to help with our seasonal RV travel plans.

Knowing the historical weather averages by month and even day can be very useful. Why? Well...if a big snow storm is heading your way, and you wouldn't leave if the weather was going to be nice, knowing that historically the weather should be quite nice tells you that this storm is unususal, should depart quickly, and the following weather should still be good for RV camping. Of course this method of travel means you travel without schedules. You can find state by state NOAA historical weather links at RV Camping by clicking on the state you wish information for, then clicking on the "Historical Weather" link.

High altitude remote camping this time of year can be problematic. We've camped in snowy conditions numerous times, but almost always in Spring or early Fall when we were confident that the snow would soon melt. Late season RVers can get into big trouble being off the beaten path as the snow may not melt until next summer.

We try and slowly change altitude from summer RV camping at around 9000 feet to winter elevations of a few hundred feet in the deserts of Arizona and California. We typically stay put until night temperatures drop into the upper 20's, then drop a couple thousand feet in altitude and repeat the process. Depending on your planning, it can take a long time to go a couple hundred miles.

Be creative. Go a different route. Take time to research state tourism web sites for travel ideas. Ask other RVers for their recommendations. Go someplace completely different. Once you get where you're headed, volunteer to help BLM, USFS, NPS, USACE, or any other organization that needs people to help out. It will make your time fly!

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Camping In Snow Again - What Was Margie Thinking?

First, I'd like to apologize for the lack of posts lately. We got ourselves into a camping situation where we're located in the trees, and our satellite internet connection doesn't work. We'll soon be correcting that. For now...

Our campsite was chosen by Margie, so I'm blaiming her! What was Margie thinking??

RV Camping Perspective - If You've Seen One Mountain...

We were recently asked for our thoughts about camping in Colorado vs our current camping experience along the eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains. We've been RV camping in both locations extensively, and there are some differences.

The Colorado mountains were exploited by early miners that left a network of roads and trails across the mountains that have become forest access roads, and highways. Colorado has numerous mountain passes suitable for all types of vehicles, making access across the mountains quite easy in most cases. This allows people many different areas to go outdoor recreation activities, and I feel offers the best opportunities for remote dispersed RV camping. There are numerous developed campgrounds as well.

The eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains of central California are spectacular! The granite and volcanic mountains are steep and rugged, and few roads cross them. Wilderness areas and national parks such as Yosemite and Kings Canyon follow the "Sierra Crest" for hundreds of miles making RV access out of the question in many areas. Scenic areas have numerous developed campgrounds, and these are usually full of campers. California has far more developed campgrounds than Colorado. Boondocking (dispersed camping) is widely available, but access can be an issue. Much of the ground is a fine volcanic soil much like sand. Getting into many remote campsites needs to be undertaken with care.

Weather at 9000 feet elevation in California is similar to 9000 feet in Colorado. We feel that Colorado gets much more summer afternoon shower and thunderstorm activity than the California Sierra. California requires a free campfire permit for charcoal grills and campfires when there is not a fire restriction, while Colorado does not.

Do we have a favorite? Not really. We love the California Sierra Nevada for their beauty and crystal blue skies for weeks on end. We love the Colorado Rocky Mountains for their easy access to a wide range of different areas of the state.

Both offer great RV camping!

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RV Camping and cell phone service

RV Camping uses Verizon for cell service and we've had excellent coverage throughout the Western US! With the exception of Lake Havasu City, AZ. Our phone will NOT work within the city limits! Crazy!

Our plan allows for a new phone every two years, and wouldn't you know we just got to upgrade! All phones seem to have a camera feature now, and that isn't something we are interested in as we do have a digital camera we use a lot! But the kinda fun part for me is, I can take my own pictures and use them for wallpaper!

RV Camping and Good News!

Good News regarding length of stay in the Inyo National Forest, Mammoth Lakes California Ranger District! The 14 day limit has been changed to 28 days effective in 2007! Great news for us boondockers that fall in love with a certain camp spot and never want to leave!

We've enjoyed our time out on the volcanic soil...pumice! It's like living in a house with xeriscape lava rock, but you don't have to rearrange it, rake it, clean it out of your neighbors yard, or any of those other unpleasant homeowners tasks.

This is an area with lots to see and do, and the roads take off everywhere! The USFS has done an excellent job of thinning out trees and burning underbrush to help with wildfire control.

We've seen lots of BIG deer, and the chipmonks have really had a banner year for offspring! We did have a baby chipmonk INSIDE the motor home a couple days ago! Our pets didn't know what to think about him, and I'm sure he was sorry he ventured into "Gozer's House of Horrors!" He was too cute to trap so we just propped up the bed over the engine compartment and let him make a jump for it! He made it out, but his tail didn't! One of the pets separated him from it sometime during his visit. Poor little guy. Hope he tells his friends to stay away from us!

Views of the Sierra's are spectacular, and sunrises and sunsets provide amazing colors and hues. We'll be sad to leave when our time comes!

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RV Camping and Bears

While camping at the higher elevations in California, we've had the opportunity to enjoy some of the largest animals up close and personal! Bears! They are an interesting creature and their sheer size makes one respectful of them.

We saw grizzly bears in Alaska last year and were amazed to see them running on the road ahead of our tour bus--they are very fast for their size!

Mama's and cubs can be especially fun to see, but also very dangerous if you happen to get between them accidently. They are playful and enjoy romping around and giving each other a bad time. They seem to have a good sense of humor and like to interact with each other.

Their only "job" once they emerge from their winter den, is to EAT! Humans need to be more responsible towards bears and prevent them from getting "people food" or trash. Bears are smart and learn quickly how to purvey such goodies from us.

When you are fishing along the shore and a bear approaches, don't let him have your stringer of fish! Make yourself big, wave your arms in the air and order it to get away. They're not used to NOT getting their own way and will soon move along. Don't leave coolers and sandwiches out where they are a temptation. Leave such things locked in your car.

All too often people think it's cute to leave out dog food or a fish to attract a bear for a picture or just to watch it. Every time a bear encounters people food, it becomes that much closer to being "put down" by local wildlife officials. The bears won't forage for their regular diet if they can find easier pickins' and then they start to become a problem for people living around them. They will become more aggressive as they get used to "people food" and the ease of which it can be acquired.

Please do our bruins a favor and keep those tasty morsels out of sight and smell! The Forest Service doesn't always relocate problem bears, and it's sometimes easier and more cost effective to eliminate them altogether.

A fed bear IS a dead bear.

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RV Camping is California Dreamin'!

We LOVE California! Just like Ahnold says it, "Cal-E-forn-ia"! This state has it all going on....beaches for boarding, mountains for climbing, you pick your chosen form and recreate towards it!

We truly love the east side of the Sierra Nevada since it's less crowded and for our particular likes, it has everything we need. And the views! WOW!

Wanna see a big tree? Come here! Wanna see amazing wildlife? Come here! And such an abundance of areas to camp and explore without seeing another person for miles!

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RV Camping in it's element!

We are parked in a beautiful forest location with a million dollar view of the eastern Sierra range! The forest Fire Ranger just drove past, and he's the only person/vehicle we've seen since we arrived.

We went for a walk in the woods last night and saw two deer! My dog has been highly entertained by the chip monks he'll NEVER catch! And we've been blessed with the solitude and cooler temperatures that come with high country camping.

This is the way we love to live, and find it to be rewarding in so many ways. Our attitudes are refreshed and spirits are lifted!

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RV Camping and a not so perfect campsite

July has surprised us with some plans that we weren't planning on....hence the surprise! We are traveling through the western US with a quick timeframe, and it's HOT!

Usually we spend time reseaching a place to stay, but we're in a hurry to reach our desitination, and it's HOT!

We spent last night in a truck stop which normally would work out just fine except....it's HOT!

Last time I looked at the bedside clock it was 83 degrees in our bedroom at 3 am and it was HOT!

Note to self: Traveling in HOT country in summer months may require an RV park for elec and A/C....

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