Things We Have Learned

If you want to read about some of the things we have learned and other random thoughts, read on…

Things We Have Learned

Here is a list of some of the lessons we learned along the road (in no particular order):

• Travel with a portable 12V air inflator: We watch our tire pressure very carefully when traveling. Finding a place to fill up tires up to 80 psi can be challenging. So we purchased a small, portable 12V air inflator that plugs into our 12V outlet and works really well.

• Water pressure regulators can prevent leaks: We found that the van was leaking freshwater from under the rig. We are not sure what caused the leak, but as soon as we started using a water pressure regulator, the leak resolved itself.

• Mobile RV repair technicians are worth the price: Relying on stationary RV repair shops and dealerships means waiting a long time for an appointment and bringing your RV to them. We have used several mobile RV repair technicians both while at home and on the road. In our experience, mobile RV techs are fast, reliable, effective, and affordable. Do an online search and check reviews, or ask friends with RVs for recommendations.   

• Download maps in advance: Before leaving for an area with limited or no cell service, use Apple Maps (or any other map app) to download a map of the area you are traveling to. We did this going to Pisgah State Forest, which was really helpful in navigating off grid.

• Stay at a campsite the last night: For the last night, stay at a less expensive state or county park with a dump site rather than having to search for a dump site on the way home.

• Plan the driving route in advance: We need to plan ahead and use an RV GPS to avoid tunnels. We purchased a subscription to RV Life Pro and that works very well for both trip planning and having an RV-friendly GPS. We sometimes open Waze or Google to compare the two routes as we are driving.

• Enjoy the awning: After the first few trips of not using our awning, we finally decided to test it out on the Shenandoah trip. The awning is really nice to sit under when it’s raining a bit and definitely gave us some additional living space. We were happy to discover that the awning works really well!

• Make an extra pot of coffee for the road: In the morning, we drink a shot of espresso made in an Aeropress (which we LOVE! Thanks to our friends for that retirement gift!). Because we like drinking a lot of coffee but don’t want the caffeine, we chase our shot of espresso with decaf coffee for the rest of the day. We only have a 5-cup electric drip coffee maker for the decaf. So we learned that after we drink that first pot, we need to make an extra pot of coffee in the morning when we break camp so that we can take some decaf with us on the road. Anyone who drinks decaf coffee knows that decaf is often hard to find at rest stops and if you do find it, the coffee is awful. So having our own is important!

• E-bikes are great as a mode of local transportation: Class B vans are great for traveling and driving, but we struggle with not wanting to pack up everything to get around while camping. So after doing much research, we purchased Ride1Up e-bikes (700 series step-through). We love the bikes. They are fun, easy to ride, and allow us to travel around easily.

• Outside mats extend our living space: When looking around campgrounds, so many people have mats outside of their RVs. We resisted getting mats because we were not sure where we would store them and we did not want wet and dirty mats in the van. But when our cousin showed us to Mad Mats we decided to try them out. We purchased one small size, loved having it, and ordered a second.

• Carry a kayak inside the van: Using a bike racks, we carry either regular bikes or e-bikes on the back fo the van on every trip. But we didn’t have a way to carry a kayak on the back of the van and didn’t want to carry it on the roof. After visiting with our family in Colorado and using their blow-up “duckies”, we decided to purchase a lightweight, easy to pack tandem kayak that we can carry inside the van. Our choice was the Quest Patoka from Dick’s Sporting Goods. It works great and we used it for the first time on our trip to the Finger Lakes.

• Camping World is our friend: A lot of people give Camping World a bad rap. But we are glad that there are many Camping Worlds around as they have saved us some trouble on the road.  

• Ohio has some great rest stops with electric hook ups and dump stations specifically for RVs. Having a “stinky slinky” works well at such places instead of using the Sewer Solution system that we really like and use at campgrounds with full hook-ups.

• Look for gas options before getting on the road: We need to use Gas Buddy before we leave some place to ensure we don’t pay top dollar for diesel.

• Collapsible is helpful: We purchased a collapsible cloths rack which is great, and a collapsible bucket works very well. Both are easy to store. 

• Wearing sandals with socks is good: We needed shoes that we can use with socks so we purchased fake rubber Berkies in Frankfurt, MI that are great.

• Level parking is important when mooch-docking: When staying with friends, we need to make sure they have a level place to park, and electric hookups that we can access.

• All quick-drying towels are NOT created equally: We purchased quick drying towels at Camping World that we thought would be good. They are quick drying, but they are awful at drying us. So we purchased new towels from The Home Depot and will use the other towels as beach towels instead.

• Having a hammock is great: A friend gave us a hammock she bought from Costco and it’s great as it comes with straps to hang, so it’s very easy to put up and take down. The hammock is another way to extend our living space to the outdoors.

• Safe out, storage in: The van came with a safe in the closet that took up a lot of space and was not particularly useful. We removed it and put in a narrow shelving unit from Target that we can use as a pantry.

• Purchase wood outside the campground: We have found that often you can find wood for sale near but outside of campgrounds that is cheaper than bundles sold within the campground. 

• Flat tires happen!: After having tires gone flat on our regular and e-bikes, we now carry with us inner tubes, a patch kit, and the necessary tools for fixing flat tires while out for a ride.

“Family Friendly” Observations

Some observations for “family” travel:

• Because some of our trips were in June (Pride Month), many of the towns we visited were dressed up with rainbow flags, with stores and restaurants peddling pride merchandise. These towns included Provincetown, Ann Arbor, Traverse City, Bar Harbor, Portland (ME), and many of the surrounding smaller towns. 

• The Harvest Hosts stays in both Grove City, OH and Lamar, PA felt safe.

• The campground we stayed at in Wellsboro had a Pride Flag in the campground office.

• North Carolina was welcoming, with pride flags flying throughout.

• Both Savannah and Charleston had public gender-neutral bathrooms.