Help - Newbie traveling with new RV

[sourdough]

Just bought a new Cougar High Country 319RLS. Preparing to leave TX and travel to our kids in FL- 16 mi. S of Tallahassee (our first trip of any kind in the unit).

We are new to the RV experience and have NO idea as far as where/how to stay overnite, how to pick fuel locations etc. We are so excited but have so many worries that it is sort of ruining the trip (we are both worry worts).

Do you just stop at truck stops for fuel? With 35' behind my truck I don't want to just pull into a gas station as I usually do...many don't have any way for you to get something like that in or out. And the last thing I want to do is end up in a dead end. When you are traveling across the country do you just stay at roadside parks, find an RV campground beforehand, hope and pray or what? Do you use your inside toilet/shower etc. or just do without?

Sorry for the wide open questions but ANY help would be appreciated. We want it to be a lot of fun and are so worried we will mess something up.

sourdough

[gtsum2]

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[BirchyBoy]

I'm planning my first cross country trip as well, from CO to ME. I'm using Good Sam's trip planning service and it has been a good tool. Tell it where you are and where you're going and it will give you the route and also show you campgrounds along they way.

My trip is over Memorial Day weekend, so I've made reservations along the way based on wanting to do the trip in a set number of days. If it weren't such a busy weekend, I might not be so concerned about getting a spot. I'd be up for camping in a parking lot (with the OK of the owners) but my wife isn't.

I haven't spent much time looking at fuelling stations along the way. Since I'm on interstates, I expect to find them every 150-200 miles. I'm taking a 5 gallon can just in case, though!

Good luck and happy trails.

[Bluewater]

It would be a good idea for you to make a couple or at least one local short trip to answer a lot of your question and concerns.

[theeyres]

I have found that I will get a much better response to questions I have if I limit my questions to one at a time. When you have so many questions in one post, most will just pass it by because it is too much work trying to answer all of them. So you might want to repost one question at a time.

As for gas, you will soon find that you can quickly see the stations that you can easily get in and out...if you have a gasser I wouldn't worry about truck stops.

We take our time on long trips, only 200-300 miles a day and stay at a mix of state parks, county and private RV Parks. With an RV the journey is truly the fun. Just zipping down the freeway is no fun. Yes we use the RV facilities--that's why we bought the trailer! Enjoy the trip, see the sites, stay off the freeways.

[sourdough]

Thanks for the info.

I posted so many questions simply to show that I'm open to information from top to bottom on traveling with the RV. I'm sure much of it is simple logic and observation as you travel. But, I have pulled into locations with my 24' deckboat (28' overall) and found it was difficult to negotiate an exit.

I've seen folks staying in roadside rest areas, WalMart parking lots, etc. Is that kind of the way or is trying to get a routing service (like Good Sam's, which we belong to) the better way? We have no time constraints. We are retired and play on our own timeline.

I've pulled my deckboat from TX to FL with no issues. Maybe I'm just making a mountain out of a molehill. I bought this RV to take my wife to see our kids that moved to FL. She recently had breast cancer and I just want it to be "right". I really appreciate everyones help.

[Ken / Claudia]

I agree with #4 post. Do it first, maybe a hour drive or so and live in it overnight useing all the items, so you know how. Something will need adjusted or fixed do it near home and the dealer.
When traveling know where your going to stop for gas, overnight etc. before you leave.

[sourdough]

ken/claudia

I guess the biggest question we have is how do you know where to stay and get fuel? Is Good Sam the answer? I am very reluctant to start an 1800 mile trip and just try to pull into "some" place for fuel....or wait/hope for a place to park the rv. I feel that maybe I'm making too much of it and we can just wing it. When we took our boat to them I had zero problems taking care of that...but we stayed in hotels and checked with them ahead of time to make sure of parking arrangements. I'm sure we can figure something out - was just hoping for some helpful hints. Thanks.

[Festus2]

Sourdough -
If, as you say, you have no time constraints to get from A to B to C....., then you might want to sit down and do some pre-trip planning before you go. Good Sam has a pretty good service to help you plan routes, find gas stations, rest stops, etc. Most GPS's can be programmed to show you these things - along with restaurants, etc.
Concerning places to stay enroute ....... check out www.rvparkreviews.com. This site has campgrounds all over the US along with web sites, rates, reviews, and maps for each park/campground.

Some folks don't mind spending an overnight at Walmart or at a rest stop. Be mindful of any state laws concerning staying overnight at rest stops. Most Walmarts allow you to stay there but I'd check with the management before you "set up camp". You have to remain hooked up and should try to find a "remote" part of the lot - near the perimeters where you aren't going to impede traffic. Use common sense if you are going to be extending your slide outs. Personally, I wouldn't stay at either a Walmart or a rest stop unless I had no other options or was "dead beat" and needed to get off the road.

I think almost all fuel stations that are along major highways have sufficient room for RV's. Before pulling into one, I always check to see if I can get in and get out. If it looks tight, I keep on going. You also need to be aware of going into cities and towns that you are not familiar with. As you have discovered, sometimes you find yourself in a situation where you cannot maneuver to make a turn to get out. You should always be asking. "If I go down here, is there a way out?"

You are bound to make some mistakes the first few times out. We all do and try to learn from them so that they are repeated. It's not a big deal ---and I am always reminded "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff".

[bobbecky]

You will find, getting fuel with the trailer connected, especially gasoline, will require shutting off all your gas appliances, heater, water heater, and fridge, prior to fueling. Don't want your fueling experience to be a disaster. We try to limit our days to maybe 6 hours of travel, leave after 9 AM and be at our next stop before 4 PM, so we don't have to fight rush hour traffic, (did enough of that when we worked). We normally get to a park, disconnect the truck to level the trailer and put out the slides, connect what we need for the night, water, sewer, and electric, push the button on the satellite dish control, and figure out what we are doing for dinner. I will take the truck out to fill it up for the next day's travel, and if we are eating out, my wife goes with me. Rarely have to drag the trailer through a fuel stop, as we can do over six hours travel on a tank. You will find that quite a few travel centers, (Loves, Pilot, etc) have plenty of room to fuel up with gas and get out again. Just be careful pulling in and out, and like a friend told us, size does matter :D, most other drivers don't want to get too near you and your rig. And, like what was already said, potty stops are almost always in the trailer's facilities, just stop in a safe place or in the truck parking area of a rest stop. Just don't stop in a turn-out intended to allow faster vehicles to get around you. And most of all, HAVE FUN!!!

[Festus2]

You will find, getting fuel with the trailer connected, especially gasoline, will require shutting off all your gas appliances, heater, water heater, and fridge, prior to fueling. Don't want your fueling experience to be a disaster. !!!

I am wondering if, in fact, this is necessary. Is there any real danger of an explosion? I've never seen any signs, warnings, or cautions at any fuel/gas station that says that you must do this prior to fueling. No attendant has ever approached telling me that I have to turn off my LP tanks before I can get fuel.
If there was a danger, I would think that there would be signage posted at each pump warning people to turn off their propane tanks.

I think almost everyone does not bother shutting off their tanks when they refuel. My fridge is always on and the tanks open. I have read various articles about this topic and from what I have been able to glean is that there is no danger of refueling with the propane tanks turned on.

Perhaps someone who has knowledge of this will chime in and shed some light on this.

[BillnDeb]

Congratulations and may God bless you for doing this for your wife! We're newbies so we can relate. All good advice here, except turning off LP. We've now traveled 5,000 miles and stayed in 12 campgrounds - motivated because of our first grandchild that lives nearly 900 miles away. We're members of Good Sam (free for now as it came with our new RV), Passport America-only cost $40/18 months (It paid for itself as campgrounds are discounted around 50% but check reviews as sometimes you get what you pay for) and we joined KOA because that's the only decent CG near our grand baby!
We plan every leg of our trip and learned travel between 9 & 4 is ideal the maximum travel - always arrive and set up and take down in daylight. Also travel 250-300 miles is ideal. We've gone 450 when under time constraints up to see the grand baby - all on I-95. We found a decent campground along the way. We've decided since we can afford it, always stay in a CG. We smell the roses on the way now that we're retired!
We joined Pilot/Flying J and I have their great app on my phone. We get 7 cents per gallon discount on our gas and it's usually the best price-but not all have the gas RV lane. I complained about it to their rep at an RV show and he gave me a 2014 catalogue that shows which do and which don't. The app shows it but you have to figure it out! Loves also work. We are careful about our gas stops with a 5er!
We don't carry water - but since we always sleep over in CG, we use full hook ups and city water. We use our bathroom to the fullest! DH has mastered the sewer hook up which takes some doing. We rarely stay just overnight - try to at least stay 2 nights but prefer 3 nights and sightsee!
It took me a while to use our shower, so initially I used the woman's shower facilities - check the ratings - and most were fine. But I finally figured out how to manage all my stuff in our bathroom!
Wishing you the best! Enjoy the journey!
Debbie the navigator!

[fla-gypsy]

Just bought a new Cougar High Country 319RLS. Preparing to leave TX and travel to our kids in FL- 16 mi. S of Tallahassee (our first trip of any kind in the unit).

We are new to the RV experience and have NO idea as far as where/how to stay overnite, how to pick fuel locations etc. We are so excited but have so many worries that it is sort of ruining the trip (we are both worry worts).

Do you just stop at truck stops for fuel? With 35' behind my truck I don't want to just pull into a gas station as I usually do...many don't have any way for you to get something like that in or out. And the last thing I want to do is end up in a dead end. When you are traveling across the country do you just stay at roadside parks, find an RV campground beforehand, hope and pray or what? Do you use your inside toilet/shower etc. or just do without?

Sorry for the wide open questions but ANY help would be appreciated. We want it to be a lot of fun and are so worried we will mess something up.

sourdough

Truck stops are one solution. You will learn quickly to assess the entrance and exits of fuel stations to determine if you can do them. I like to plan my trips and I am an avid state park camper. Florida has a great SP system and you can make reservations using Reserve America. They show site information and most have pictures of each site. There are other great resources for CG's as well like campsitephotos.com that show you pics of campsites and provide other info. My TT has facilities and I use them. You will have much to learn but this is a great resource for you.

[jsmith948]

As others have said, just be sure to survey the area around the fuel islands. You should be able to see if there are obstructions, curbs/walls or low overhangs. Keep in mind that drivers of passenger autos many times do not understand how much room you need to maneuver and will pull up right next to you and block your exit.
We usually make advance reservations for our stops along the way. Just less worrisome for us. Try to map out each days travel based on your comfort level. Having pulled your boat to Florida, you should have an idea how many miles you can make each day. When figuring your daily mileage and time remember that most rv's come equipped with ST tires rated at 65mph max.
Carry enough water to be able to use the potty along the way. We don't shut the propane tanks off - we do shut the refer off before fueling. Don't KNOW that this is necessary - it just seems to make sense to us. We burn diesel but at some fuel stations our trailer ends up positioned next to the rear-most pumps where the guy in the next lane is filling his gas rig. The refer IS a source of ignition - we just figure "Why take the chance?".
Good luck on your trip:)

[Ram189]

We travel to many Nascar races and have made several trips to Fla from Maryland over the past 10 - 15 years.
The one thing I will tell you is plan your fuel stops. Do you have gas or diesel? If running diesel the truck stops are the easiest in and out. Most have "auto" pumps so you don't have to get tied up with the rigs. The car pumps are usually easier to get in and out of at these places.
Love's, Flying J, most of these types of travel plazas.
As for camping along the way KOA has a good travel planner and something like MapQuest can sometimes help with the planning also.
Good luck and above all else take your time and make sure you make wide turns in and out of the stations.
Nothing worse than wounding one while traveling and having to bandaid it together to keep going.

[antiqfreq]

I use the internet exclusively to find my campground spots, if I can't find a Good Sam on my route. Otherwise, I am a member of Good Sam camping and I like to use them.

But in addition to that I use RV Park reviews to see the reviews on the campground.

Also, if you go to state parks you can search for those on the internet and view the actual site, and it give you some stats (width, depth of site, if it is gravel or paved, how close are you to the bath house). Also you can just call the ranger station and ask them questions.

As far as fuel, we use a lot of the Love stops, Pilot stops and T/A stops and even sleep there if we can't find somewhere else for a quick few hours.

You'll be fine but definitely a quick maybe 1-2 hour away trial might be good for you to familiarize yourself with the towing, fueling, set up and general feel of what your longer outings are going to be like.

Best of luck and enjoy your travels,

Jo

:)

[bobbecky]

You will not see anything about propane at a gas pump, but without fail, you will see no smoking/or open flames on the pumps. All the mentioned appliances have open flames, including the fridge. Another thing to be aware of is, many locations where there are tunnels, and also ferrys, require the systems be shut down and the tanks turned off, all this due to fire danger.

[dandjh1958]

Pre-planning is a must if you want things to go smoothly. I'm also a fairly new traveler with a bigger trailer and I'm super paranoid about getting stuck looking for gas. As the other have said, traveling 6 hours is max in a day or you'll just get tired and not enjoy your experience.
I know what the gas mileage is on my rig when towing so I plan out about that distance between stops (sooner is better than later for my anxiety).

Then, after you get everything planned, then be able to "go with the flow". Things don't always work out so if you need to stay a day or two in one place- no worries. Weather can get in your way and you don't want to pull in unsafe conditions.

I hope your have a wonderful time and my prayers for your wife and her battle.

Happy camping!

[geo]

I like the advice of one of the Forum members from a few years ago. To paraphrase:

"I believe in the 330 Rule. After 330 miles or 3:30pm, it's time to find a campground and set up!"

The 330 Rule has worked well for us!

Ron

[byrdr1]

one thing to remember is "DONT GET EXCITED!"
Plan the day and the trip, everybody has given you great examples of what to do.
one thing KNOW your fuel mileage and gallons your tank holds that will give you an approximate of how far you can drive until you need fuel/gas. I know I get right around 10MPG on my truck towing so with a 38 gallon tank, I need to be mindful of at 300-350 miles I will need fuel. That is also around a 5 hour drive too. good time to stretch your legs and let mama out to do her thing. That way I am not pushing the fuel mileage either..
I can drive from home to Myrtle beach in around 4&1/2 hours. I can drive it straight through but I cant walk when I stop. We usually stop half way to stretch our legs and dogs like to go pottie too. Get drink or snack.
Be safe and take that rig out a few trips local before a long one.
most of all have fun.
JMHO,
randy

[sourdough]

Thanks to all for all the helpful hints and advice. I will use use the advice and resources mentioned to plan this trip in as detailed a manner as I can. The websites mentioned should help a lot in the planning and the advice given will certainly help us feel more comfortable.

We will definitely take the 9-4, or 3:30 rule, to heart. We do want to stop and enjoy some places we usually just fly through but now we have a way to stop and smell the roses.

Thanks so much to everyone for all their insight and well wishes.

[Dave & SUe]

You really need to smell the roses.Our first trip,we both just retired,we drove way to long and felt we needed to hurry. We had stops pre-planned and the were way to far apart. Also you couldn't stop to see any thing as you had to be at the next stop. Haven't made that mistake since. Have fun and enjoy the trip. Getting there really is half the fun.

[gearhead]

Keep your tires aired up. Think in advance how you will change a flat. Look for the TrailerAid or keep a bottle jack and some short pieces of wood in the trailer.
http://www.campingworld.com/shopping/item/trailer-aid/10867
Take a few deep breaths, after the first 25 miles there's nothing to it!
Rvparkreviews and good sam are great resources.

[JRTJH]

You really need to smell the roses.Our first trip,we both just retired,we drove way to long and felt we needed to hurry. We had stops pre-planned and the were way to far apart. Also you couldn't stop to see any thing as you had to be at the next stop. Haven't made that mistake since. Have fun and enjoy the trip. Getting there really is half the fun.

We found the same to be true. Our days of "have to get there, can't stop, keep pushing" are well behind us. There are some days when after stopping for the night, we get up, have coffee, get the trailer hooked up, ready to roll, look at each other, say, "Nah" and walk to the campground office, register for another night and go put on bathing suits and walk to the pool. Other days, we'll "plan" to make it some "few hundred" miles, and as the day is beginning, we'll see a billboard on the side of the road, think that it might be an interesting "side journey" and maybe only make it 50 miles before we're ready to spend more time than "allowed" so we find a campground and go exploring...... Life's too short to set destinations and "omit" everything in the middle just to say, "I've been there"..... enjoy the trip, "getting there" is at least a significant portion of the journey and may turn out to be the best part when all is said and done. The destination isn't the only part of RVing.....

[Koladog]

Hi Sourdough. As a newbie we had the same concerns as you with all the same questions. Extensive preplanning, google view all the potential gas stations along the way, booking each and every night, turning off all potential explosive sources, etc. This was overkill but gave us a piece of mind for our schedule. We are not retired yet so we do have a schedule to keep.

However, our last trip from Vancouver, BC to Palm Springs, CA we only booked our extended RV stay in Palm Springs plus one other one on the way back because it was over a long weekend. We had no issues whatsoever. We gave ourselves plenty of time to get there and back home. We have a diesel truck so finding fill up stations is a little more problematic (number of stations with diesel and placement of pumps) but we found that most stations along major highways will accommodate large RVs and there are plenty to chose from so if you're not sure move on to the next one. We only used truck stops a couple of times but most Shells, Chevrons, 76s, etc will be fine. One rule is that if we can't see if from the highway, we don't go to it. Once camp is set up we always fill up for the next day's trip. We also carry a 5 gallon jerry can so that's good for another 70-80 miles.

We also noticed that there are plenty of signs along the highway advertising RV parks. So many to chose from. Take your time and enjoy the trip.