getting ready for a big trip across country...

[luvmymanor1]

this is going to be our first big trip. final destinatio will be yellowstone nat. park befor we turn back around to NY. we plan on taking a westerly route all the way and plan on covering about 6-7 hours drive time between destinations. on the way back we are planning a slightly more northerly route on the way back through montana, north dakota, minesota then snake along the great lakes to niagra and back.

We have been going nuts tring to find decent campgrounds. To my surprise its more difficult to find full hookup inside the national parks. we are traveling with kids so swimming pool is essential and we love fishing, and the small boat is tagging allong so places to drop the boat in is ideal at areas where we stay more than a night for rest. yellowstone, badlands/mt rushmore, wisconsin dells and some other places (I forget now) will be at least 2-3 night stays (yellowstone probably more).

I'd love to hear of some good family freindly rv campgrounds allong the way that I should look into.

also any advice you could share. for one I never left the ref. running while on the road. any other consideration that I should be thinking about??? we have alloted three weeks for this but may stretch it another 3-4 days if needed.

The Wisconsin Dells have wonderful water parks, so the swimming pool may not be needed in that area.

Have you considered fishing from the banks, or going on a fishing excursion with locals? That may prove to be more productive and about the same cost as hauling yours (cost of increased weight/drag) across the country.

I would suggest set reservations for the National Parks. It can be difficult to get those during peak times of the year. Colter Bay Campground in the Teton National Park is a great place to stay.

Custer State Park in the Black Hills is another nice place to stay. Only have electric hookups with a drive to dump. Water is available from central locations in each campground.

WiFi may be your friend. WiFi friendly fuel stops may help a lot. Certainly you can use iPhone or its clones, but Wifi is usually cheaper than your plans.

I really like AAA mapping service. They have a online TripTik program that is integrated with their tourbooks besides being able to tell you how much the fuel costs along the way. No only that you can build your own custom maps and save them to use in the future.

I always hit the the travel centers at the state line. They list all the sights and sites in the state. As a general rule, I try to stay at state/county parks when available. They are usually quite nice, spacious, and cheaper than the private parks. They usually lack swimming pools though.

You will also need to remember the maximum range of your toilet and gray water. In parks without site sewage hookups be sure to dump your gray water both ways (going in and out). If you are going to stay for more than few days you are going to need a tote or fold your trailer and head to the dump station.

When I get out into the arid west, I generally travel with a lot of water in the fresh water tanks. By doing that should I breakdown somewhere I have got plenty of water until help/tow truck arrives. Since we bring the "girls" (our dogs) I use the external water drain valves to fill their water dish at stops.

I know carrying that weight is less efficient, being without water is worse especially if you are some lonely road heaven know where.

I also have found that some of the small towns have their own RV parks. Most of them are kind of selfserve but I really like them. Most have their own unique character. The problem is that SOME of them have their own unique character.

Hope this helps...

[ThePair]

Recently stayed at Devil's Lake just south of the Dells. Very nice, you can boat on the lake, and swim there--no pool needed! Electric is the only hookup available at site, but there is dump and water available in the CG.

Make sure you have metal valve stems on your wheels. I am convinced that the rubber ones are the cause of many blow-outs people have experienced.

[T and C]

Originally Posted by luvmymanor1

this is going to be our first big trip. final destinatio will be yellowstone nat. park befor we turn back around to NY. we plan on taking a westerly route all the way and plan on covering about 6-7 hours drive time between destinations. on the way back we are planning a slightly more northerly route on the way back through montana, north dakota, minesota then snake along the great lakes to niagra and back.

We have been going nuts tring to find decent campgrounds. To my surprise its more difficult to find full hookup inside the national parks. we are traveling with kids so swimming pool is essential and we love fishing, and the small boat is tagging allong so places to drop the boat in is ideal at areas where we stay more than a night for rest. yellowstone, badlands/mt rushmore, wisconsin dells and some other places (I forget now) will be at least 2-3 night stays (yellowstone probably more).

I'd love to hear of some good family freindly rv campgrounds allong the way that I should look into.

also any advice you could share. for one I never left the ref. running while on the road. any other consideration that I should be thinking about??? we have alloted three weeks for this but may stretch it another 3-4 days if needed.

I use two sources to find good campsites:

1. I bought a Woodall's campground guide. The listings are by state and town. Each campground is rated for facilities and recreation. Number of sites, hookups, drive throughs, electricity, swimming pools are all listed and more. I use the phone numbers listed to call ahead for reservations when we figure out where we will stop that night.

2. I google "rv parks near..." You will get the parks listed and usually ratings from other rv folks.

BTW, we do not leave the fridge running while we drive. We put perishables in an ice chest. Many TM owner's, including us, find that not enough power reaches the TM to keep the batteries up if you run the fridge and fan on the road. There are entire threads about how to correct this, but most of it is over my head. Some folks drive with the fridge on propane. Not me. I am just too cautious and having a fire burning in a closed trailer just gives me the willies.

Hope this helps.

Tom

If you have tongue mounted batteries, I strongly recommend tapping into trailer cable on tongue rather than have 12V line go past batteries all the way to the converter and back. Totally unnecessary cause of voltage drop. Doing that basically solved the refrigerator drain while driving issue for me and only takes about an hour at most.

Note: if you want to virtually end power usage concerns, copy MudDog's solar panel setup. I did and couldn't be happier. For example, I am drycamping right now and was power positive by 0700. I should be back at 100% battery by 1000.

[luvmymanor1]

[QUOTE=M&M Hokie;84729]If you have tongue mounted batteries, I strongly recommend tapping into trailer cable on tongue rather than have 12V line go past batteries all the way to the converter and back. Totally unnecessary cause of voltage drop. Doing that basically solved the refrigerator drain while driving issue for me and only takes about an hour at most.[QUOTE]

I do have a single 12V battery on the toungue... could you give me some instructtion on how to solve this. exactly how do you tap into the trailer cable??? thanks

[luvmymanor1]

great suggestions everyone. keep them coming as I'm checking into all of your suggested stays ect. much appreciated.

[luvmymanor1]

does anyone know...in my current setup, the ref. and fan will be drawing poer from the 12V battery on the toung of the TM. so as we are driving the alternator is providing power back to the battery, BUT, from what I'm hearing there isn't enough power to recharge the TM's battery while running the ref. and the fan.

My question is... is there any chance that when we pull over the TM's ref. and fan will be drawing power from the car's battery when we turn off the TV??? thanks again.

I'll also post this to the electrical section. much appreciated