Wannabe decides doesn't wannabe

[Janet]

I used to live in Mills River - just down the road from you. The first Airstream I ever saw was at the North Mills River Campground (end of North mills river road) off 191. I was only 11 but that cool egg shaped trailer just looked totally interesting to me, I figured maybe it sprouted from the pine needles like a giant, shiny puff ball.

There are loads of off-the beaten path places to camp. Consider the hunt for those places part of the adventure.

[ROBERT CROSS]

Come to N.Y.<> We have the largest State Park in the Country!!!!!




If you don't know where your going<> Any road will take you there.

[nvestysly]

levi2,

We have been to 2 forum rallies at the Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds. We had a blast! In the case of these North GA forum rallies the Airstreams, the people and the general location (on the lake) make the event. Definitely plan to stop by to visit during Falluminum.

However, my opinion of the campsites at the Fairgrounds is they are a bit cramped (many of the sites are not very deep which causes you to park your tow vehicle off the side of the road rather than on your parking pad) and the campground lacks shrubbery/greenery between sites. The spacing between sites is fair - could be better but we've experienced worse.

In our 5 or so years of camping in the Airstream we have generally found the private campgrounds to the busiest/noisiest/most compact. That is a generalization and I'm sure there are exceptions. Private campground owners have to purchase the property, develop the property, pay taxes, etc. so they are trying to get the most bang for the buck so to speak. Many of these campgrounds also have the best amenities such as wi-fi, full hook ups, etc. (also a generalization).

On the other hand our stays at State Parks, City/county parks, Corps of Engineers parks have provided much more greenery between campsites, generally have fewer amenities such as wi-fi, although more and more offer full hookups (some with CATV) but once again this is a generalization. Many of the public parks such as these can be reserved through Campgrounds and Camping Reservations - ReserveAmerica and the campground maps are pretty accurate. Many times you can choose a spot at the end of the loop so you only have one neighbor and you can look for sites that a reasonable space between sites. We try to avoid campsites near the bathrooms, parking lots, boat ramps, and other high traffic areas, if possible.

We have not boondocked although we have "practiced" by using our fresh water tank to see how long we can last on our own. Next we have to try living off the batteries. I'm sure boondocking will allow you to visit some very remote areas particularly Bureau of Land Management out west.

Lucius

[overlander63]

Okay, i don't know about you, but It didn't seem too crowded the last time we went to this place:

[Excella CM]

It's a commitment. I guess not every wannabe is a gointobe.

[TIMEMACHINE]

We got our Airstream about 16 months ago and loved it ever since. We met many new friends at various forum rallies, and were able to travel with leisure in the comfort of our own "home" along with our dear feline companion (btw, who thinks, that the Airstream is her vacation home).

A week after we picked up our new AS, we took our 45 days maiden voyage from southern California to Florida, then head north along the eastern coast to Virginia before we headed west through the Great lake and many beautiful places. 9000+miles and 20+campgrounds/parks later, we were living in our dream.

No reservation were made, and we were able to find campgrounds at local state parks, city parks, private RV parks at our finger tips and many were in a gorgeous natural settings with no crowd of any kind like you had learned. (Of course, it was May and June when we did the trip).

So with that said, I hope you find this forum as a helpful tool for you and most of us are happy to assist you to fulfill the dream of living free and experience the great country we live in.

=^^=cat

[atomasich]

All I have to say, is last August my DH and I went to a Airstream Vintage Open House in Temecula and two months later we were the proud parents of a 3,500lb Aluminum Bambi!!!! And when It comes to campgrounds with peace and quiet, they are all over you just have to look. But, I agree boondocking is the way to go.

[overlander63]

Here's a website for a campground just down the road from you:
River Creek Campground

[Jimarq]

We bought our first Airstream just a little over a year ago and it was instant love. We did like was previously mentioned and bought a used one. First Rally and we knew we had made the right choice. Sold the first one last month and have already updated with a newer Airstream. Love it even more than the first one.

I still have 1 1/2 years before I can retire and we can begin doing some serious traveling. In the past year both of the Airstreams have been worth every penny we have spent in the mental health therapy they have been able to offer. Just a night here and there of "drive-way camping" can make me feel like we're miles and miles away. There's just something magical about entering an Airstream and closing out the rest of the world behind you. Our big, fancy king sized bed in the house just doesn't feel nearly as cozy and restful as the twins in the Airstream. And you wouldn't believe how much better just a plain ham and cheese sandwich tastes in your Airstream versus in the house. The list goes on and on.

My advice is to jump in. I really don't think you will ever regret your decision.

- m

[davidz71]

I've been to 5 Georgia state parks and fully enjoyed each one. I'm a State of Tennessee employee and get 50% off any stay in our parks. I have found one to have sites extremely too close to each other. I will never go back there. One park is less than 20 miles and has a number of gravel sites more conducive to shorter than 25 foot trailers. Some sites are OK and after spending 4 days there one time, I will be back. Another nearby was so over shaded as I drove through that I'm not sure I want to bring the trailer through with my solar panels possibly hitting branches. Another park was really shady and I definately had to disconnect the truck to park at an angle so that I was not in the road. I'm sure there were other sites with longer parking areas but I did not get a chance to really look around that much. I am ashamed to say that I have not camped out at any of the other TN. parks but I'm working on it.

I make a yearly trip to Ashland City Lock A and Dam overseen by the Corp. of Engineers. They have a great campground and I will keep going back especially to the sites 20 feet from the river water. I also boondock over 20 days a year during Turkey/Deer season on one of the State game preserves.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that there are places you can find that you will really enjoy, some that are so so and some you will never go back to again. The important thing is that you have the freedom to make any changes you wish to make. Like a friend of mine who workkamps in CO. told me, it got too hot for her so she went a little farther north for the summer and will come back down when it starts cooling off.

As you get ready to retire, spend time on this great community to get ideas of where some of the members have been and why they enjoyed their stays. Some things won't interest you and others will tickle your fancy. I was born and raised on the Gulf coast of TX. and love seafood. One member mentioned they were on the New England coast and stuffing themselves with shellfish. Since I used to have a cousin who lived in Conn., I've spent a few times gorging myself with scallops, crab, lobster and steamed clams. I want to take a trip and stay up that way for over a month eating all that stuff until I can't stand it any more. Maybe sometime in the future.

Whatever you do, do not let any one group decide what you will do for the rest of your life. That is your decision and I say go for it until your gut says you have had enough and you're ready to try something else.

[garry]

Campgrounds come in all sizes and shapes. Many of the smaller mom & pop campgrounds are really wonderful then again some are run down.
I have found the larger campgrounds usually have narrower spaces and on some weekends can be very crowded.
We prefer to camp during the week and very rarely have we had a problem with a neighbor camper. In fact the only time I can remember was a holiday weekend in FL with a full campground police had to break up a family squabble.

The attached picture should read 5/2 (loaded the date wrong) but shows what many campgrounds look like during a school week. There was less than 20 campers here all week and only 1/2 full on the weekend.

Garry

[tin sista]

Oh dear if crowded parking lot rv parks were all there was to camping I wouldn't do it either.

Say, Asheville isn't too far down the road from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, perhaps you haven't yet seen the campgrounds there? Inside the park itself Elkmont is wonderful, especially the riverside campground, you can put your feet up and listen to the sounds of the river as it tumbles over the rocks, cool your toes in there, fish too if you'd like...ahhh.

[uwe]

Originally Posted by levi2

Well Folks,

I'm kinda sad because I was fairly excited about getting a airstream and talking off & seeing this beautiful country . But after looking over the RV parks-top picks-on RVers online, it just seems to me awfully expensive to be jammed up against other people with trailers everywhere , bands playing until 11pm, kids running around, etc. Can you really go anywhere anymore during peak season and have privacy in an RV park ? Seems the time to go was back in the 50's, but now ? It seems like the average space between your trailer & the next one is about the size of a picnic table ! Just not for me.

You must be talking about camping in commercial parks in California during peak season.

[safari57]

levi2

I find motel/hotel stays even worse for congestion. People right on the other side of the wall, ceiling and floor. Cleanliness is subject to someone you don't know. You have to lug your stuff in and out of a room every time you head out, and if you want to do anything outside your room at the location you are sharing the exact same space with all the other folks lodged there. I have lived in hotels for work for years and it is very wearing and intrusive.

We have camped for so long I'm afraid to say but all our married lives as well as when we were kids with our families. The memories we have and the places we've been able to experience that no one staying in a local motel/hotel/B&B can equate to is one of the reasons we love the RV life. We sleep on beds that are always comfortable, we can carry all the things we need, we can stay over longer if we choose to, and through out the entire trip we have our privacy.

We have had experiences over the years with unruly campers and cramped quarters but they have been extremely few and far between, and we learned to stay away from the big commercial CG's on busy weekends, and to ask our fellow RV'ers for suggestions on where to camp next when heading in a direction they are from.

We love the campgrounds nestled in the forests, those along a creek or along the ocean, high in the mountains and out in the prairies. Small towns often have great little parks and the locals are quick to adopt you. Not every camping trip is great - rain and wind are low on my list when I'm hooking up to head home, but it's all part of the overall equation and IMHO there is absolutely nothing like an RV for exploring, sharing experiences, and maintaining our sanity. Rally's are great but they are only one view - you may want to pull into state and town parks as you are traveling and have a look at what they are like. My wife and I have spent so much of our work time with other people that often when we go to camp we just want to spend time with each other and there's no better way than in our Airstream for us.

Barry