Overnighters

[CWtheMan]

Kellogg, IA

We have never boon docked or used someone’s parking lot. So a lot of our stops were just overnighters. Some we just used once and others were used numerous times.

I’m not going to make a new thread for each individual stop. I’ll just add them to this thread as I write them.

This was a very interesting & enjoyable stop. We were traveling west on I-80 and saw a sign for $10 W/E sites that a farmer had built across the street from his home. There was a dump station on their exit road. It was on the outskirts of Kellogg, IA. They had also added a stand-alone dining room just beyond the truck in the house picture. They served three course pot luck dinners with home made pie for a very reasonable price. Before going back to the interstate there was a large easy in and out big rig service station with diesel for our trucks.

[CWtheMan]

We traveled in TN a lot. Going north and south or east and west, TN is hard to miss. We had destination stops in TN but probably more overnighters.

The RV Parks & CGs along the TN I-40 corridor generally have large sites and many of them are pull-through sites long enough for just about any rig.

Countryside RV Resort is far enough off I-40 where most of the highway sounds are muffled. The short term sites are on a hill but the sites are about 70’ long and level and provide FHUs.

These pictures were taken in the spring. We were headed for Peoria, IL to link-up with our friends for northern summertime adventures.

[CWtheMan]

This is another one of the nicer CGs found while traveling on Rural roads. However, it’s also close to I-70. Anyway, it’s the only time we ever traveled up US-51.

On this trip we were on our way to Peoria, IL to hook-up with our friends. Once there we planned our trip west, then south for the winter.

We were coming from FL and had been using mostly interstate highways. When we got to I-64 we decided to go over and use US-51. We took it all the way to I-74. Great country traveling topped off with some nice weather.

Not many RV parks/CGs up that way but we did find the Okaw Valley Kampground near Brownstown, IL. Just before crossing I-70 we saw a sign advertising the CG. We followed some frontage roads all the way to the CG.

It was a weekday and a little out of season so there weren’t many campers there. We took a FHU site (72) which was nice and level and very easy to get into. Because we seldom go more than 250 miles a day there was plenty of daytime left for fishing in their well stocked pond/lake.

Lots of people would not take a 50 amp FHU site for overnight parking. We spoiled ourselves right away and always took them, when available. We almost always wash and dry one load at every stop. We can do it on 30 amps but have to be careful with what else we turn on. With the 50 amps it’s not a problem at all. Nice level sites allow us to stay connected to the trailer making for easy departures.

http://www.okawvalley.com/directions.html

Here are some pictures I took of the CG. Nice clean place with a well stocked store and a nice book swapping area. We learned early on that books are too heavy to carry in large quantities so we carry 8 or 10 each and swap them out whenever a CG has a swapping area.

At the camp store we were told how to go up some back roads to reconnect with US-51. We made all the right turns going that way the next morning.

As always the pictures can be enlarged by clicking on them and the CG link is active.

[CWtheMan]

While heading west on I-80 in southwestern NB, we spotted a little golf course backed up to a reservoir lake with a huge power plant on the far side. We saw a few smallish RV trailers parked there so we decided to investigate. It was a little early in the day and we had no reservations. The little RV Park at the golf course had nice large FHU sites right on the lake. The sites were nice and level and by the time we got our rigs set up for the night we had a golf cart and were headed for the first tee. While Don and I were off golfing the girls decided to go to town so they disconnected one of the trucks and went on their adventure. The little 9 hole golf course was in very good condition and we enjoyed the afternoon chasing little white balls. Later, as the sun was going down, we had a nice supper on the lake while watching the birds coming and going. They were getting their last drink of water before heading to their roosting places.

This is one of those places you just don’t find in the books or on the internet. We thank you Sutherland, NB.

Not many pictures taken here. Some were shot into the sun and the quality isn’t very good. Just click on them to get a larger view. The link has pictures.

http://villageofsutherland.com/orego...s-golf-course/

[hornet28]

I looked that up on Google maps. That was great spotting

[CWtheMan]

T-Rick's is sort of a strange little place to park. No park office, you pull-in and park and then walk over to the quick stop type service station - with everything - and pay. The sites all have W/E (50 APMS) and the dump station is out behind the store.

It’s strictly an overnighter. On this stop we were the first ones there and by dark-30 all sites were taken.

The service station has just about all you would want at such a stop, even a buffet dinner. There are probably a dozen trucker parking areas out behind the store so getting diesel at long drive-thru pump entrances is easy.

There have been a lot of complaints about park cleanliness at T-Rick's during the years we were using it but we never saw why. It’s very easy and convenient to use and after all, it’s just an overnighter.

[CWtheMan]

For the most part KOA campgrounds are very good for overnight parking. They are usually close to the highway, have a nice inventory of necessities and are usually close to fuel servicing facilities.

After the first full year of full time traveling, our KOA card was golden (15% discount).

Sometimes you’ll be glad you’re just staying for a single night. This KOA at Scott, LA (Lafayette KOA) provides very close and compact sites. But, our rig (connected) is 57’ and the pull-thru sites were slightly angled and about 65’. It was a FHU with 50 amps and cable TV.

We seldom extend our passenger side slide for overnight stops. Everything we will want to use is provided with just the left slides out.

[JRTJH]

This is my opinion, not a "confidential insight into the business model".

KOA's started out as a pretty nice place to spend a few days. They were usually equipped with water, electric (20 amps) and some even had sewer. As RV's grew, so did KOA's. In order to make enough profit to stay in business, they had to increase the number of spaces. Most were in "land limited locations" so the only means to increase profits was to increase site density. Many KOA's that we visited in the 70's were really nice, out of the way, but still fairly close to major highway places. When returning to those same KOA's in the 90's and 00's, they were "jam packed parking lots with water, 50 amp electricity, sewer at every site, a overpriced convenience store, pool, game room (with pay as you play electronic games) and prices at the top of any campground cost comparison...

Sort of like Holiday Inn, changed to Holiday Inn Express, same features, closer to travel routes and higher prices. Ramada Inn, on the other hand, held out for "old style amenities with bigger rooms" and became a dinosaur in the hotel/motel arena.

KOA, is OK for an overnight, but like most of the "chain franchises" has to have the "TeePee registration desk" the "required pool, putt putt golf, store, bathroom facilities and prices to match. Usually there's a "mom and pop campground" nearby with similar offerings and larger sites for less per night. One nearby KOA charges $65/night for a full hookup site on which you can't open an awning. Four miles away, a casino offers similar sites (still can't open the awning) for $15. The difference? TeePee shaped convenience store and a putt putt golf course that costs "3 rounds for $5".

Seems it's more about "brand recognition" than value of service for cost. YMMV

[flybouy]

I agree with everything John said except the casino comparison. The casino will loose money on the rv parking (don't consider that camping) just to get you in spending money, like the "free drinks" they offer while emptying your bank account at the tables.

We stopped at one KOA (no reservation) and registered, paid, pulled in, and couldn't open our rear driver side slide because the camper behind us had a curb slide open. We got a refund and left. We used to go to the Philadelphia KOA when our daughter lived in her first house (closest cg for 12 miles). The "premium sites" had enough room, nice patio, flowers, charcoal grill, etc but were $90+ a night. The rest of the cg was so uneven and hilly that you needed a Sherpa to walk you to the office.

When we stay longer than overnight we typically day trip to nearby cgs and will note the one's and site numbers to stay at in the future. Been doing this for years and have not found a KOA that wasn't super tight and grossly overpriced for my taste.

YMMV

[Northofu1]

I would be hard pressed to use a KOA again. If I want an overnight, I will stop at almost any free site and save $60 - $70 US per night. JMO

[CWtheMan]

Originally Posted by Northofu1

I would be hard pressed to use a KOA again. If I want an overnight, I will stop at almost any free site and save $60 - $70 US per night. JMO

I guess I should parodically reiterate my purpose for starting this thread. The following is from my first paragraph in post #1.

We have never boon docked or used someone’s parking lot. So a lot of our stops were just overnighters.

[CWtheMan]

We have traveled extensively across Interstate 40 and have found a lot of friendly places to spend the night that are not overly expensive, have a friendly family owned and managed atmosphere and are easy to access and depart from.

If you’re traveling across TN on I40 your probably going to have to spend the night somewhere. During our traveling years - full time or otherwise - we never boon docked or used those free parking lots. It was just our way. So, we found a lot of overnight stop-offs, like this one; Bean Pot Campground. Sometimes, like this one, they are also family campgrounds with areas for seasonal parking and other areas with nice pull thru sites for those that just want to stop for the night or a day or two. This one has a nice office with a well stocked store.

The link is active and the pictures can be enlarger by clicking on them. (Their link is using 3-4 of my pictures from one of my campground Blogs. Its a public domain and they have every right to use the pictures).


http://www.beanpotcampground.com/

[Roscommon48]

overnighters? walmart and casino are great overnighters. when KOA in Charleston was going to charge me $77 --at a discount, they can have their site.

[chuckster57]

When we went across the country in ‘09 we stayed 1 night in order to get to Connecticut in a timely fashion. We chose KOA’s because they all had the services we needed. I had reservations for the next day before I went to bed. Some KOA’s were very nice and some not so much. I wouldn’t hesitate to stay in them again. And we too had over 30,000 points.

[G Giroux]

I am, and have been for years, a pro KOA camper/traveler. Some of what my fellow contributors to this thread dislike is what we seek:
PRO's:
Easy access to main travel ways, local attractions and services
You know what you will get as most follow the same plans and set up.
Easy check-in/check-out.
Great locator map and detailed driving directions. Great recognizable signage
Good grading system allows you to choose Good, Better, Best subject to your taste.
CONS
Upfront payment upon reservations, even months in advance.
Strict cancellation policy, even when dealing with unforeseen travel emergencies
Pricey, but fair value for the amenities
My 2c worth

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by G Giroux

I am, and have been for years, a pro KOA camper/traveler. Some of what my fellow contributors to this thread dislike is what we seek:
PRO's:
Easy access to main travel ways, local attractions and services
You know what you will get as most follow the same plans and set up.
Easy check-in/check-out.
Great locator map and detailed driving directions. Great recognizable signage
Good grading system allows you to choose Good, Better, Best subject to your taste.
CONS
Upfront payment upon reservations, even months in advance.
Strict cancellation policy, even when dealing with unforeseen travel emergencies
Pricey, but fair value for the amenities
My 2c worth

I think everyone has their preferences. We can, and do, stay anywhere we want but I dodge KOAs. A few years ago I joined their "membership" to see what it was and tried staying at several in a years time. Not for us.

KOAs cater to having a "packed house". They do have some amenities but generally nothing more than other RV parks except their "cabins" and such. Those additional "amenities" mean nothing to us...we find things to do outside our RV park. Couple that with the fact that the rates are generally 50% higher (in our experience) to comparable parks without the "KOA" designation we just don't see they offer anything for us. Stayed in quite a few and none were memorable. I do stay in one in LA a couple times a year because it is near a catfish restaurant we love. High prices, and even when I always stipulate the "premium" concrete site it amazes me; they went to the trouble of making all those sites with a nice concrete pad and none, not one, is level; they just follow the natural grade. Our 1st stay in that particular place I didn't opt for the "premium" site. I was lead to the "outback", in a field in a little grassy area with a ped and utilities - all at about $15 more per night than others in the area for a "regular" site.

This is in no way meant to start a "KOA" love/hate discussion, just our experiences to take or leave.

[CWtheMan]

One time when going west out of Las Vegas on I-15 I ran over a huge black road gator. Just barely missed it with the truck tires but both right side trailer tires ran over it. The lead tire exploded immediately and the aft tire was flat by the time I got stopped. Our friends were following and completely missed it. I was blinded from it by an 18 wheeler in front of me. It wasn’t until after he swerved to miss it that I saw it….too late.

We used our spare and our friends spare and went looking for a place to get more tires. Barstow, CA was the first place with a sizeable tire retailer so we stopped there at the KOA. Got some new tires and then moved-on to our destination

At that time the CG was being worked by local college students. They were very friendly and helpful with everything.

The CG is probably the most disarranged lay-out of any we have stayed at. There was no way they were going to cut down any trees or shrubs when they put in most of the infrastructure. So, some sites were zigzagged and misaligned throughout the CG. But there were still some large ones and the they were FHU with CATV.

The link is active.

http://koa.com/campgrounds/barstow/overview/

[CWtheMan]

When traveling we like to hunker down around 3:00 to 4:00 PM. When we saw there was a state park just off the highway we decided to call and see if there were sites for just a single night, would they be close together and large enough for our rigs. "Sure enough they said, just drive to the gate and they’ll direct you to a couple of sites". And that’s how we got to spend a night at Roosevelt State Park.


All paved roads into this SP and a lot of paved parking sites.. It’s Kind of out in the boonies but a nice quiet place. And our 35’ & 38’ fivers with trucks attached fit nicely into the sites assigned to us. From our site I walked down the hill behind our trailer to the lake. I got some nice pan fish but nothing larger.

Our sites were FHU but getting a dish signal wasn’t possible and we have over 200’ of cable. We did get good reception from our bat antennas that got all the major local channels.

The link below is active and the pictures are enlargeable by clicking on them.


http://mississippistateparks.reserve...&parkId=154848

[linux3]

I agree with the OP.
I don't really like pulling for more than 4 hours or so and we usually get kind of a late start (11:00 AM) so around 4'ish we are looking for an overnight.
I have Android Auto so it's "OK google, campgrounds near me". We check ratings and locations and pick one and call.
Often KOAs are close to the highway, easy to find and have pull through sites.
Even though our TT is small I'm often willing to pay for a pull through, drop the rear jacks, hook up connections and crack a beer.

[CWtheMan]

Originally Posted by linux3

I agree with the OP.
I don't really like pulling for more than 4 hours or so and we usually get kind of a late start (11:00 AM) so around 4'ish we are looking for an overnight.
I have Android Auto so it's "OK google, campgrounds near me". We check ratings and locations and pick one and call.
Often KOAs are close to the highway, easy to find and have pull through sites.
Even though our TT is small I'm often willing to pay for a pull through, drop the rear jacks, hook up connections and crack a beer.

Sounds good to me.