Roving Reports by Doug P: 2013-2 Preparing to Head on Out

Friday, March 1, 2013

2013-2 Preparing to Head on Out

2013-2

Tucson Arizona, Desert Trails RV Park

Preparing to Head on Out. ETD: 19 March 2013

It’s getting closer to the date to start my spring and summer adventures back out on the open road. The winter months in Tucson this year were pretty chilly and we didn’t have enough warm evenings for those wonderful happy hours around the campfire. A wave of flue, the crud and colds and sniffles filled the air for months as well. I was under the weather for a full month, a real bummer for sure.

Snow dusted the cactus recently in Tucson

The snow lasted all of two hours

quite a site in sunny Arizona

But the time is getting closer with each day to head on out and the travel bug has once again caught me in it’s grip. My first destinations will be in New Mexico where I plan to spend up to two months exploring that great state from top to bottom. I plan on signing up for their yearly park pass at $250 for out of stators which gets me into all the state parks and camping for that yearly price. Elect is an additional $4 a night. What a great deal for camping and exploring all those great State Parks in NM.

I was hoping to meet up with fellow campers here at Desert Trails along the way, but they have obligations to head on back to Washington State and won’t be able to explore other states along their route back home.

Photo Clubs trip to De Grazia Museum

I’ve been leading the RV Travel Club this winter at Desert Trails and we’ve had a wonderful time sharing stories about states we’ve visited, places to stay and things to see and do in each one. Had an open forum style this past week which was just a blast to share and learn from others.

De Grazia chapel

The dynamics of wintering in one location is quite different than being on the open road. I get a chance to meet new people, gain friendships that often last for years to come. The only part that’s a downer is that I have to move on down the road eventually and it’s not easy leaving all those friends behind. Thank goodness for e-mails, blogs and face-book to keep us all in touch with each other.

A Trip to the Gem and Mineral Show, Tucson AZ

Here is a list of a few places I’m planning on heading to in New Mexico in the coming months:

City of Rocks State Park, near Silver City

Elephant Butte Lake State Park, near Truth or Consequences

Ruidoso

Albuquerque

Cochiti Lake Reservoir, near Santa Fe

Chaco Cultural NHP

This a just a partial list of all the many places I hope to get to in the coming months. From there, I’ll most likely begin to head north and east with possible visits to my sisters in northern and southern Michigan and possible stops to visit relatives in Minnesota.

Possible other locations for this summers travels include Wisconsin, stays in Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia and North Carolina.

Who knows how long it will take to travel to all these destinations as I plan this year on staying in each area for longer periods of time, exploring and discovering all those hidden places along the way.

I’m looking forward to sharing those stories with you. So all you arm chair travelers, get your arm chairs fluffed up and ready for the next adventure. Oh and let me know what great adventures you have planned for this coming season. Happy Travels!

1 comment:

Unknown said...: Looking forward to showing you some of the beauty of NM around the ABQ area --- and catching up!!!; March 1, 2013 at 11:18 PM

Favorite Camping Resource Books

Camping on a Shoestring, 3rd Eastern Edition by Don Wright (Great list of free and cheap campgrounds eastcoast, lists many city and county park/campgrounds)
Camping with the Corps of Engineers by S.L. Hinkle (a complete guide to campgrounds owned and operated by the US Army Corps)
Coleman, National Forest Campground & Recreation Directory (A detailed list of all the campgrounds in National Forests)
Don Wright's Guide to Free Campgrounds, Western Edition (Great list of free and cheap campgrounds, lists many city and county park/campgrounds)
GOOGLE SEARCH (Don't forget to use the Internet to search: use (city name, campgound, camping for your search)
Military Travel Guide USA (Lists all the Military campgrounds for DoD and retired military)
Passport America book (lists all the half price campgrounds)
RV Camping in State Parks, D.J Davins (A listing of all state parks)

Camping Club Info:

CAMPING CLUBS:

Joining the various camping clubs can be a great help. Each makes their own mark on camping and building communities within the camping world.

Many of the camping clubs I've listed are 1/2 off clubs. By joining, you get 1/2 off the camping rate for one night, a week and some are unlimited stays at their campgrounds.

Also, most everyone who plans on camping for part of the year or is thinking about full-timing get either the Motor Home or Trailer Life magazine. Both offer tons of helpful hints and trips to take throughout the year. Good Sam’s has Highways magazine which you get free with your membership.

I joined a number of clubs and magazines the first couple of years before I became a full timer, just to get an idea of what the community was like out there. After a couple of years, I’ve kept my favorites and dropped the rest. Listed in no particular order.

TIP: Always call ahead and inform them you are a member of a particular CLUB. Sometimes campgrounds drop out or change their policy. It's always good to call ahead and confirm they are still members in the club you've joined.

Escapees: It’s one of the best communities of Rv’ers you’ll ever find. With great support groups and individual clubs with just about every interest and hobby a person could think of. They own a number of campgrounds that you can get really great rates for camping and they provide a 10-15% discount at other campgrounds throughout the country.

http://escapees.com/index2.asp Membership: $60.00 + $10 enrollment fee.

Good Sam’s Is good, but personally I haven’t had much need for them, and their 10% off campground fees has not been much of an incentive. They do have lots of Rally’s and caravans if you have the inclination and are willing to pay for the trips. The trips can be very pricey.

https://www.goodsamclub.com/Membership: $29.95

Passport America: My favorite club!!!!!!!!

It’s a 50% off camping club that gets you 50% off the campgrounds that have signed up with Passport America, (1,800+ campgrounds) good online web site and book for browsing campsites.

If you join, please let them know your were recommended by:

D Palosaari C-271417

http://www.passport-America.com/main/default.asp

Membership: $44.00

Happy Campers: Another 50% off camping club and mirrors Passport America with perhaps a few different campgrounds than what Passport has. Their camp book is small and doesn't have good maps for directions.

http://www.camphalfprice.com/Membership: $49.95

Camping Club USA: recently merged with Passport America

Recreation USA:

I found this club on the Internet and it advertises that all of it’s campgrounds go for $10.00 a night. They also have a half/off section as well. I have been a member for two years, and though I've stayed at a couple of campgrounds on their list, many are no longer available or haven't heard of Rec. USA and I end up not being able to use the camping club discount. Always call ahead on this one to confirm that they are still participating. I've met the owners of the club and they are nice, it's just that they don't seem to keep up with the campgrounds who are supposed to be participating.

http://www.campingandcampgrounds.com/member_updates.html Membership: $44.00 per year.

Brief History

I grew up in the Copper Country's Upper Peninsula of Michigan. I started working from age 13 at the Copperama during the summer as a dishwasher. I remember being so small that I had to stand on two wooden pepsi crates to put the dishes in the dishwasher. After highschool, I attended Suomi College (a Finish oriented college) renamed to Finlandia University a couple years ago.

I had a chance when I was around 20 to travel to Florida with a co-worker from the Copperama (after our usual layoff in the fall) and upon arriving in Fla, I sent a letter home the second day and said, "I'm Staying". My Mom wrote back and said, "Stay, it's the best decision you made in your life.... and when you get settled, we'll come visit".

It worked out well, having moved from one peninsula in the U.P. to Florida, another peninsula surrounded by the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico. I love water.

Mom gave very little advice, but reminded me that no one would ever be able to take care of me after I left home, that I could not come back home after I left (except for a weeks vacation), and that I should never ask for a loan, because they didn't have the money.

What she did give me though, was some advice. And that was to look at the years my Dad struggled with making a living. Getting layed off from his construction work every winter until he finally got a job with the State of Mich. at MTU as a maintenance worker. Life was good after that.

So when I got to Florida, I got the hint and after a short period of working at 7-11 and a couple other small jobs, I started to apply for any Gov. job. City, County, State and Federal.

I finally got a job with the Navy starting out as a GS-2 temporary part time not to exceed 90 days putting cans of beans on the shelves at the commissary. My foot was in the door and a career that eventually spanned 31 years ending up as a Logistics Manager.

my desire to travel was realized after years of camping and enjoying the great outdoors. I got started camping just to save money and it became a lifelong source of joy.

Hint to those just starting out in the working world: Every job has it's fringe benefits, some are written down, some aren't. Learn what they are and take advantage of them.

Example: If I got on committees that required travel, I could travel at the Goverments expense. Plus, I could extend my stay after the work as vacation. The Gov. paid my way out and back for my job and for my vacation!

Dreams do come true. Stay focused and keep working on them and one day, yours will come true too.

Roving Reports by Doug P

Friday, March 1, 2013

2013-2 Preparing to Head on Out

1 comment:

Provinces traveled in w/camper

States traveled in w/camper