Reflections on Our First Long Camping Trip

First Long Camping Trip Recap

Our first long camping trip was four times longer than our previous trips and nine times as many miles.  The trip lasted twenty-seven days during the last month of winter, beginning mid-February and ending mid-March.  We camped in Mississippi, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, California, Nevada, Utah, Oklahoma, and Louisiana.

We wanted to accomplish a few things.  First, to get away from the boredom and cold of winter, so we needed to go south.  With a teardrop camper, we would not be comfortable if was very cold outside.  Second, we wanted to visit as many states as was practical.  We have a goal to camp in all the lower forty-eight.  A southwestern path all the way to California became our choice with a more northerly return to include a Utah if the weather permitted. Lastly, we wanted to experience something of the local area at each stop, knowing we could not see everything.  An earlier post details the planning we did for this first long camping trip.  Planning That First Long Trip

Our Concerns

It was an ambitious goal for us of towing just under 5,000 miles, much in areas we have not visited nor driven.   It was also a lot of together time.  We generally get along well together, but a month in a vehicle and tiny camper was new territory indeed!

The Campgrounds

There were stops in 17 different areas, nine states, and 18 campgrounds.    The type of campground with number of visits and average costs per night were as follows:

• Five State Parks, $27.11
• One County Park, $20
• Five KOAs, $40.49 (with KOA membership)
• Three Small Commercial Campgrounds, $27.77
• Three Large Commercial Campgrounds, $45.13
• One Large Commercial Campground Overflow, $15

The campground prices did guarantee enjoyment of them.  Ironically, the most expensive campground was our least favorite.  The small campgrounds and State Parks were overall the best, offering a comfortable stay, reasonable privacy, and a relatively low price.  The KOAs were consistently near popular areas and provided full hookups, laundry, and nice bathhouses.  The large RV campgrounds were our least favorite.  They offered full services and generally some extra entertainment, but little privacy.  They seemed to cater to longer term guests.

Campground Challenges

Two campgrounds did not have showers.  Okay for one night, longer stays or a string of them would not be desirable.  One had  pit toilets, but it was not an issue.  We were in overflow one night at a large RV campground  with no electricity and water.  The water was not an issue as we had access to very nice facilities, but we sorely missed the electricity.  We were a bit cold overnight and concerned we would drain our battery.

Though we visited three national parks, we did not stay at the national campgrounds.  Most sites did not have hookups and we did not have solar panels or a generator.  Also, reservations should be made early for the national parks as they fill up quickly.

To Reserve or Not

Reservations give you a better shot at desired campgrounds, but take away flexibility.  If you are having a very good or very bad time in an area, you may not be able to cut your stay short or stay longer if reservations are upcoming.  Also, we were traveling in the winter in a camper that does not provide comfortable daytime accommodations.  Our solution was to book the first few sites, including Big Bend, the single national park we were certain to visit.  We wanted to visit two others in Utah, but they are much further north.  If the weather was bad, we did not want to risk travel in ice or snow.

It actually worked out well for us.  We booked stops one, two, three, and five.  The remainder were booked a couple of days out.  We were very lucky to get our spot at Augua Caliente State Park in California, but struggled in Tucson and spent one night without electricity.

If traveling during the popular times in an area, reservations are more critical. We are making a second long trip later in the year and are reserving all the stops, but will be traveling during popular times.

Our Campsites

We did not stay long at any one place and spent the majority of our time away from the campgrounds, so our set up was always very simple.  If we were only at a site for one night, we often did not even connect the water as it was cold outside in the early morning and we frequently had breakfast away from our camp.

Setup and breakdown was very quick and easy.  We just put the items that were being transported in the cabin on a picnic table, stabilized the camper, and plugged in the electricity.  Below is an example of how simple our sites were for much of the trip.  We were basically traveling with our camper as our bed versus spending time in a campground.

We used our Kingcamp awning a few times in places with longer stays when shade was needed.  It was nice to have and setup was quick and easy.

Packed Versus Needed

Two items were never used:  a small attachable tent and a porta potty.  We managed to always be within a reasonable distance from restrooms and the tent was not needed as so much time was spent away from the sites.

We took a bit more food than was needed and had our footlocker with all our  dishes.  Had we known how little cooking would be done, we could have greatly reduced the dishes.  We also took a small folding table that was only used once.  We could have easily done without the table.

Clothing for a week was packed with the intent to do laundry.  This worked pretty well.  We had some winter outerwear that was not used and could have used a little more lightweight outerwear.

Biggest regret: no solar panels for the trip.  It would have made the night with no electrical hookup much better and would have provided flexibility for other stops.  We now have solar panels for future trips.

We were relying on a small heater and an electric blanket to stay warm as nights were cool.  Solar panels would not enable those options, so for future trips like this, we have purchased a down comforter rated for cold weather.  It would have likely been adequate for this trip.

There is a new earlier post with information on how we typically pack for camping where we consider a long camping trip as well.  Packing for Teardrop Camping-Our Process

The Weather

The weather was quite good considering we were traveling in the last month of winter.  It was pleasant to be outside most days with no more than a lightweight jacket.  We had one rainy day in Austin, Texas, and one cold day in Julian, California, where there was some snow on the ground.    Utah, the most northern part of our trip,  was warm and sunny the entire time we were there.   During the entire trip, typical nights were high 30s and typical days were low 70s.

Our Health

I worried about one or both of us getting sick while in the trip, but we managed to stay healthy.  Last year during this time, I was on my third bout with being sick.  Thankfully, we were well and able to enjoy this trip.

A prescription needed to be filled near the end of the trip, but we use a national drug chain and they filled it just as easily as it would have been at home.

The Tow Vehicle

We drove our SUV an extra 1,000 miles more than the camper because we used it to visit the surrounding areas.  We had no issues towing and our camper was a breeze to pull, even through some quite high elevations. I had worried a little about not having electric brakes, but our camper is very light.

Our tires were almost new, but at one point, my husband noticed that one of the tires appeared to have slung a weight and there was vibration.  We bought the tires from Pep Boys and local dealer in Arizona corrected the issue under warranty.    We also needed an oil change while on the trip, which we had done while in Utah.

Our tow vehicle suffered a minor ding at one of the stops at a very crowded campground while trying to turn around when our way was blocked.  Frustrating, but that’s life.

We were always careful to keep at least a half tank of fuel, which was important because fuel opportunities were few and far between in some areas.  We had no problems, but if we had waited until a quarter of a tank, we might have ran out of gas.  Our gas mileage for the entire long camping  trip was 17.4 miles per gallon.  We thought that was pretty good.

Long Camping Trip  Favorites

Our best stop was in Moab, Utah.  The area was absolutely gorgeous and we loved the town and Arches National Park.   We had beautiful weather and a fabulous time at this stop!

Our favorite campground was Kartchner Caverns State Park in Arizona. The park was beautiful, fairly new, and very well-maintained.  It had all the amenities we needed.  However, for those who prefer to have sewer, it did not have that.

Surprisingly, our best meal was at Big Texan Steak Ranch in Amarillo, Texas.  The entire meal was delicious at a reasonable price, with a limo that picks you up at your campground.  You have gotta love it!   Here is a link to Big Texan if you would like to check it out.  https://www.bigtexan.com

Other food highlights were apple pie in Julian, green chili cheeseburgers at the Blue Moon Diner on the way to Albuquerque, and fabulous Mexican food at La Posta in Las Cruces and Tacos El Cositas in Yuma.

There is a post to my blog for all the stops along our long camping trip for anyone interested.

We had a wonderful time!  That said, we were ready to be home near the end.  I think that for us, four weeks is about as long as we should travel, considering we have a tiny camper.

For those new to camping, get out there and take a long camping trip.  Go see some of this beautiful country.  It is so worth the effort!

HapPy Camping!