RV Camping Trip - Facts, Tips, Cost, etc from our trip
As I wind down the blog posts from this particular RV trip, I wanted to share a few things that we learned, cost, etc.
We stayed at a total of 8 different RV Parks during this trip (direct links to blog post are at the bottom).
- Falling Waters State Park, Chipley, Florida - Campsite #15
- River's Edge Campground, Holt, Florida (private) - front of office
- Natchez State Park, Natchez, Mississippi - Campsite #39
- Magnolia Hill RV Park, Pleasant Hill, Louisiana (private) - they only have 6 total, we were in the middle
- Cloud 9 RV Park, Hot Springs, Arkansas (private) - Campsite #B4
- Whitewater RV Park, Mountain View, Arkansas (private) - Campsite #16
- William Bankhead National Forest, Corinth Recreation Area, Yellow Hammer, Double Springs, Alabama - Campsite #10
- Florence Marina State Park, Omaha, Georgia - Campsite #39
I learned that a campsite comes in many different forms. Some have a concrete slab, some have small gravel, some have dirt - but they all seem to have electric and water. Some have sewer connections, some don't. I sometimes felt like Forest Gump and his box of chocolates - never know exactly what you're going to get, until you get there.
We travelled no more than 380 miles per day (and that was a rough stretch for us). A more comfortable number of miles for us is probably 250-300 for future planning of our trips. This would be especially important when we are not on daylight savings time because we might be more likely to arrive when it is just about dark at a given campground.
On our trip, we travelled over 2,500 miles total.
The cost for all reservations (made in advance) was $468.95 with an average of $33.50 per night.
We met several really nice people at many of these campsites. The people you meet are what makes RVing the most fun - seeing new sights, doing things each day and talking with people from everywhere.
Tips/Things we learned along the way:
1) The dogs were all pretty good in the back seat of the truck without dog beds. They wanted water at almost every stop (every 2-3 hours) - and food was good too.
2) One person had a new Sonic 2023 RV and the black water tank on her RV was not secured well and it 'fell down'. Jim checked the one our Bushwhacker and it is very well secured with brackets (thankfully).
3) Westlake tires will dry rot long before the tread will go bad. Change those tires before 3 years or you are likely to have a blowout.
4) If you are planning to leave your RV for any period of time while camping, turn off the water to your RV before leaving. This will prevent any chance of your RV flooding while you are away.
5) Having tools to fix issues while on the road is a great idea. There are mobile RV businesses that will come fix your RV, but you may be waiting a while (not days, could be weeks).
6) Sometimes someone may be in your campsite even if you reserved a specific site (this happened for 2 of the 8 stops we made). This isn't good in my opinion, but it was resolved by giving us another campsite - what happens if one isn't available?
7) The weight distribution system for our trailer definitely made a difference in a positive way on the bumping along of the trailer. However, a friend mentioned that this does put more stress on the nose of the trailer, so be mindful of this.
8) Quiet times are ok - enjoy the sunrises and sunsets.
Sunrise on the Yellow River in Holt, Florida - River's Edge RV Campground (Jim's photo)
Sunrise, Natchez State Park, Mississippi (Jim's Photo)
Sunrise at Whitewater RV Park, Mountain View, Arkansas (Jim's Photo)
Sunset (Jim's photo)
Sunset, William Bankhead National Forest, Corinth Recreation Area, Double Springs, Alabama
Dog Friendly-our dogs, etc...
1) All of the things we did were dog friendly with one exception. The cavern tour at Blanchard Springs Caverns. For this, Jim bought a ticket to do the tour at noon, I bought a ticket to do the tour at 1:20 and we switched off on who had the dogs.
2) Only one campground, River's Edge in Holt, Florida, had restrictions on the dogs and this was specifically related to "dog breed". Bully breeds were not allowed. There may be other breeds not allowed, so definitely check before booking. River's Edge also does not allow refunds so be sure before you book!
3) Our dogs, especially Rue and Ollie, prefer to be tied/leashed up outside our camper at the campgrounds. Abby did sometimes but often prefer to hang out in the camper on the bed and catch a snooze.
4) Our dogs LOVE going on these trips - I think they love spending all the time with us and having the adventures.
The Mighty Mississippi River, Natchez, Mississippi - looking north (Jim's photo)
The Ritz Movie Theatre, downtown Natchez, Mississippi (Jim's Photo)
Would I go to any of these places again?
Yes, I might - but there are so many places to see - it's possible we may not.
One thing to note, Natchez, Mississippi has a Hot Air Balloon festival along with music the 3rd weekend of October every year.
Natchitoches, Louisiana has some wonderful Christmas light displays that are very pretty (so I hear from my cousin).
The cost host at Florence Marina State Park strongly encouraged Jim to come back - they had lots of stories to share, but not enough time!
Only time will tell if we go back to any of these places.
What Next?
Several people have asked, "Where will your next trip be to?".
It is my hope that we can do some shorter trips in Florida while it is "winter" (at least cooler and not 90+ degrees).
The next longer trip we are in very early stages of planning, and we are currently thinking of trying to head to North Carolina (not the mountains) and potentially into Virginia. There are a few people we would like to visit in those areas - as well as new places!
No dates, no specifics, for our next longer trip, but it will be after concerns of freezing weather.
I have since joined a few facebook groups that are specific to RVing to learn tips from others such as winterizing our camper (should we be somewhere with freezing temps), favorite campgrounds for areas we are thinking of visiting, tools for planning trips and fun stuff like that.
I have also been exploring the possibility of trying to do more night photography with the hopes of getting some 'great shots'.
Last, Yes - we did love doing this trip!
Sunset - Almost home now
And down the sun goes....
And with this last sunset photograph just before we got off the interstate just 15 minutes away from home, we will close this blog post series and wait for more adventures to come soon. It's been one month now that we have been home from this trip, can't wait to head out for some more adventures soon!
Blog Post Links (in order)
Falling Waters State Park, Chipley, Florida
Pleasant Hill & Natchitoches, Louisiana
Mountain View, Arkansas - Day 1
Mountain View, Arkansas - Day 2
William Bankhead National Forest, Corinth Recreation Area, Double Springs, Alabama