A cruising Motor Home?

[FF]

http://theflyingtortoise.blogspot.com/2013/05/extreme-all-terrain-homes-on-wheels-to.
html

 

[Marin]

Those are pretty cool. My idea of perfect RVing is not doing it, but if someone held a gun to my head and said it was go RVing or else, I'd want one of those machines. If for no other reason than it would allow us to get well away from all those bloody RVers.

 

[expat]

I wonder if its still ok to park your extreme RV in the Walmart parking lot anongside the other $350000 RVs for the night instead of going to the camp ground 5 mins down the hwy.:lol:

 

[FF]

I wonder if its still ok to park your extreme RV in the Walmart parking lot anongside the other $350000 RVs for the night instead of going to the camp ground 5 mins down the hwy.

Mostly its fine overnight , do it for a week, different problem.

There is a RV group called the Escapees that prides itself on free travel parking.

Lining up side by side in an RV park is as depressing as most marinas with row on row of slips.

Just as many boaters prefer "the hook" the RV ers prefer some free space too.

Elks , Moose , VFW , police stations ,Lowes , Hone Cheapo , hospital parking areas and many many friendly eateries are good O' nite spots.Usually just asking does it.

Out favorite was in New Bedford where a fine Canary Island Portugese restaurant had a huge parking lot that was where the trucks loading the fish fleets catch would stage.

Quiet all night ,beyond fantastic food , and no problem if a second adult beverage was enjoyed with dinner.

And of course with a bus conversion , ez in and out too.

Campgrounds mostly suck,,, marinas mostly suck,
but free style camping can be better at great restaurants , that keeps the bride happy.

 

[markpierce]

... If for no other reason than it would allow us to get well away from all those bloody RVers.

 

[portager]

I'd rather spend a night in a marine than in a camp ground or Uncle Wally's parking lot. Even is Uncle Wally's is free, there are better quality people in the marine.

I would love an extreme RV so that when I go out to the desert I can get further off the main trail than the guy pulling a fifth wheel toy hauler full of dirt bikes for his herd of teenagers to terrorize the desert and me all night. Unfortunately, most of those extreme RV's start North of $M.

 

[expat]

our lake has a campground that looks like that some weekends, I do like to cruise past in the evenings to have a look, each to his own I guess.

 

[FF]

"Even is Uncle Wally's is free, there are better quality people in the marine."

Really? In what way "better quality people"?

At least the folks in a campground are moving , enjoying the USA and Canada , instead of aground in their coffee grounds , tied to the power pole , sitting in the shadow of the next gin palace..

Who is the more interesting to meet?

http://theflyingtortoise.blogspot.com/2013/05/some-things-are-just-meant-to-go.html

Or the guy with a Captains hat that leaves the slip 2x a year?

 

[jeffnick]

We're avid Wallydockers.

Even when we travel without the boat I prefer a Wallydock to anything less than a $200 motel room. I can't bear to stay in a sleezy motel.

As far as people away from home - we prefer those with the same interests as ours if we want to socialize, but most often it's spontaneous when away and that's the way I like it.

 

[portager]

"Even if Uncle Wally's is free, there are better quality people in the marine."

Really? In what way "better quality people"?

Since I'm not a boat owner and I only do charters, I guess I thinking of different types of marinas than you. The marinas where I've stayed are cruising destinations, where very few people live aboard or even living locally, so most of the people in the marine are out cruising and we have met some very nice people. The guy in the captains hat that never leaves the dock wouldn't be in at a cruise destination.

I have spent some bad nights in Wally's. Once we were parked between a VW Van perpetual emitting marijuana smoke and some collage students on their way to spring break having a drinking contest and trying to blow out the speakers in their stereo.

 

[beachbum29]

Did you move?

 

[portager]

I live in Orange County CA, but I do all my charters out of Anacortes WA.

 

[Tony B]

When we did some RVing, we stayed at WallyWorld during our overnight stops on a long trip.
1) Supplies, groceries and gasoline available
2) parking lot security
3) Usually can walk to several restaurants,
4) Not too far off of interstate exits.

Walmart makes money from overnighters and is very RV friendly.

 

[Marin]

When we did some RVing, we stayed at WallyWorld during our overnight stops on a long trip.
.

RVing totally baffles me. I cannot conceive of anything more boring and dull. We have several friends who've gotten into RVing and their descriptions and stories of their trips sound downright depressing. Even the "nice" RV parks sound like (and usually look like) slums. To sit there surrounded by other RVs with a view of even more RVs, having people constantly right on top of you with their radios and flat screens and generators, that would be like hell on wheels, literally.

We are not social boaters and have absolutely zero interest in getting to know other boaters, either in the marina or when we're out in the boat. But the great thing about boating is that even when there are other boats around, you can still be isolated if you want to be. People aren't constantly coming over to talk and tell you the same boring stories you've heard from other people a thousand times already. If you like that sort of thing you can do it or encourage it in your boating, but you can also be completely isolated from it.

Not so in an RV park where if Sam Smith wants to walk over and talk your ear off, by God he's gonna do it.

When we drive north to Bellingham we pass a couple of WalMarts along the way. The lineup of big RVs camped out in the parking lot with their folding chairs and portable picnic tables on the asphalt looks like sheer hell to us.

We love road trips-- we're taking our new pickup on its first road trip over Memorial Day to Idaho to do a bit of fly fishing in the St. Joe river. But to drive all day only to end up in some RV park off the freeway with a bunch of other people who just did the same thing---- shoot me now.

 

[FF]

RV parks like marinas run fromslums to the RVers" Tage Mahal.

The best are State parks , built in the last decade or so.With no taxes to pay , the park may be 10x the size a commercial park could afford.

Usually located for a reason , an attraction ocean side with great miles of beach , mountain view . Happily the State parks are in a competition , as they try for awards.

Out favorite Henderson Beach in Destin FL is an award winning spot and most of the camp sites are behind a pull thru (think of river oxbows) and no other campsite is visible.

Sure in season , summertime , the place is packed with vacationing families , and probably awash with screaming kids , on the beach. In out of season winter its like having your own estate.

AS out winter digs are really over 50 miles from a city FT Myers, and the summer cottage about 15-20 the huge piles of up scale shopping stores is our once a year mall/shopping walk.

Some folks may confuse a trailer park , Bill Clintons sex partner hunting grounds with an RV park.

AS RV folks can easily move commercial RV parks may offer stuff like golf course access , hot tubs and swimming pools ,tennis courts resturiants etc .

Not all but enough that if you wish its just a look in the RV guide book.

AS a lifestyle a liveaboard boat is great , loved it for almost 23 years.

" Full timing" the RV equal , is of zero interest , but as a pleasant way to travel for a person that spent thousands of nights in a hotel or motel while working , it cant be beat.

 

[jeffnick]

Here's our favorite RV spot.
One More Time Around: James Island - Charleston SC

 

[alormaria]

RVing totally baffles me. I cannot conceive of anything more boring and dull. We have several friends who've gotten into RVing and their descriptions and stories of their trips sound downright depressing. Even the "nice" RV parks sound like (and usually look like) slums. To sit there surrounded by other RVs with a view of even more RVs, having people constantly right on top of you with their radios and flat screens and generators, that would be like hell on wheels, literally.

We are not social boaters and have absolutely zero interest in getting to know other boaters, either in the marina or when we're out in the boat. But the great thing about boating is that even when there are other boats around, you can still be isolated if you want to be. People aren't constantly coming over to talk and tell you the same boring stories you've heard from other people a thousand times already. If you like that sort of thing you can do it or encourage it in your boating, but you can also be completely isolated from it.

Not so in an RV park where if Sam Smith wants to walk over and talk your ear off, by God he's gonna do it.

When we drive north to Bellingham we pass a couple of WalMarts along the way. The lineup of big RVs camped out in the parking lot with their folding chairs and portable picnic tables on the asphalt looks like sheer hell to us.

We love road trips-- we're taking our new pickup on its first road trip over Memorial Day to Idaho to do a bit of fly fishing in the St. Joe river. But to drive all day only to end up in some RV park off the freeway with a bunch of other people who just did the same thing---- shoot me now.

Did you say 'fly fishing'?

 

[Scout]

Love fly fishing! My first adult hobby. I've been on the St Joe several times. A nice river and I hope the run-off isn't too bad. Sorry for the thread hijack.

 

[CPseudonym]

I echo most of FF's sentiment above for the west coast. Frankly getting into boating I've noticed nearly no difference except many of the participants in boating can tend to act more high brow.

I'm good friends with several very wealthy folks that enjoy RV'ing that are FAR more down to earth than the average boat owner I've met thus far.

We ditched the RV for the boat but someday may ditch the boating to return to the RV. Their both equally enjoyable and more similar than some here let on to IMO.

 

[Marin]

Frankly getting into boating I've noticed nearly no difference except many of the participants in boating can tend to act more high brow.

That's part of the problem for us. We don't have a clue what most boaters are like since we pretty much ignore them. But when we've had the occasion to visit acquaintances in RV parks or have been near RV parks on road trips and such, the impression we always come away with is that it's mostly a bunch of loud Elks Lodge-type people who are bound and determined to tell you their boring life stories and stupid jokes at the top of their lungs come hell or high water.

I first encountered this way back in the late '70s when I shipped my Land Rover to CA from HI and a friend and I spent five weeks fly fishing in the Yukon Territory. The worst were the Airstream folks who invaded the provincial parks like Patton and insisted on dragging everyone within sight into their activities. From what I've observed nothing has changed since then except the RVs have gotten bigger.

My friend still refers to RVers as "Bubbas on Wheels" and I have to agree with him. I imagine it's even worse now with the purpose-built RV parks that pack them in like sardines so there's no escape.

 

[jeffnick]

Hey Marin. An even tougher challenge than abstainance would be 25 words or less after 10,000. That way we could keep you around and under control.

Anyone else see the humor in the post above?

 

[beachbum29]

I have a difficult time controlling myself so there's no way I can control others...

 

[CPseudonym]

Anyone else see the humor in the post above?

Frankly I prefer the "Bubba's with wheels" to the "Bubba's with keels" myself. A small part of me wished to name our boat "Pretentious Oakie". However after visiting some of the nicest marinas and yacht clubs locally I found myself somewhat inadequate to fulfill that title in the presence of such seasoned and superior yachtsman.

 

[FF]

Years ago the convention was a small set of lights (or day flags) mounted on the spreaders ir on a motorboat mast.

White or blue "crew at meals" or "owner absent " (or not receiving) was the meaning.

Sad that today there is no such common convention , for either boats or RV's.

At Bus Bashes , where folks go to show off their conversion or see others the organizers give cardboard foldouts with YES or NO, that can be left in the windshield, to create visit or private times.

A Blue light or flag would work for me!

 

[Marin]

Hey Marin. An even tougher challenge than abstainance would be 25 words or less after 10,000. That way we could keep you around and under control.

Anyone else see the humor in the post above?

No, I'm done here pretty quick.

And at least with a forum you don't have to read what you don't want to read (Which is something that baffles me about you Jeff-- -you keep whining about the length of my posts so my question to you is--- why do you continue to keep reading them? Hell, even my dog is smarter than that. Just do what he did and put my name on your ignore list. That's what it's there for. Then you won't be tempted to read my posts because you won't even see them and the rest of us won't have to read your whining about them.)

In the RV parks, you've got no control over the bozos who come up and want to talk your ear off about total rubbish. A lot of dock walkers are like that too but we long ago discovered how to get rid of them almost immediately.

 

[Pluto]

Well don't leave us hanging Marin! How do you get rid of them "almost immediatly"?

 

[alormaria]

Marin has left the building.

 

[FF]

The Flying Tortoise: Some Of The World's Oldest Motorhomes...

Another look at really old MH , probably 19teens

 

[FF]

Wonder if there is a boat version?

The Flying Tortoise: If Your Vehicle Makes Funny Noises...

 

[FF]

This is for the hard core woods folks.


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