meek7791 Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 Hello, I just returned from a long journey in my 1992 Winnebago Warrior. Leaving from the Oregon Coast we headed through the West to northern Minnesota, then up to Maine and the rest of New England, Down to Florida, across the southern states to California, then up the coast to Oregon!. It was absoultly amazing, We hit up about 30 National Parks, and spent many nights in Wal-marts! We were on a tight budget. RV ran like a champ, only one flat tire!!! Learned alot and wish I could turn around and head back out. If you have any questions on getting around in certain areas just ask! We did New Orleans and Washington DC for next to nothing!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maineah Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 Wow that sounds like a neat trip did you wave when you went through Maine I didn't see you. It would be great if you could tell us about some of your tricks to save money I'm all over that! I have a friend that lives in Standoff AB that's pestering me to come visit and that would be a 5,000 mile trip. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mulwyk Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 Meek: Details, please. More details and pictures! Very interesting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meek7791 Posted March 12, 2012 Author Share Posted March 12, 2012 Wow that sounds like a neat trip did you wave when you went through Maine I didn't see you. It would be great if you could tell us about some of your tricks to save money I'm all over that! I have a friend that lives in Standoff AB that's pestering me to come visit and that would be a 5,000 mile trip. Well, first of all we had no internet and only one phone, to cut down on bills while we were gone. We also shut off or suspended all of our utilities at our house. I went back in forth about getting a smartphone with internet, so glad I didn't. I had bought an atlas from Wal-Mart which was a life saver. It lists all the Walmarts in the country by state and tells you the services they provide ie. tire/lube, pharmacy, supercenter, and gasoline. Walmart truly made this happen for us. Five oil changes for about $35.00 a piece. Some have large bay doors others are smaller but have pits. They also get scared when you say your driving and RV or see it just reassure them that its a regular toyota truck so they don't try to overcharge you. We also bought 3 gallon jugs of water for back up so if we couldn't find water we had some for drinking and the toilet. Once you have the jugs, which could be something you already have, you can refill them at most walmarts for 31 cents. One more Walmart tid bit, most of them are located next to or very near a Lowes, Home Depot, Sams Club, or Fed Ex Office, which all have free wifi and it's very easy to connect! We also cooked all of our meals. We would go to costco and buy meat I would cook all day and wrap my food in saranwrap and freeze it. This came in so handy, We would decided over breakfast what we would have for dinner and take it out of the freezer and it would be thawed by dinner time. I would freeze enough food for about 16 to 18 days. Also since we weer staying at so many walmarts I never over bought food, I only threw away four potatoes that had gone bad the whole trip. Nothing was ever wasted! As far as finding dumpstations at the beginning of the trip we signed upfor a Pilot/Flying J's card, which gave us a few cents off for each gallon of gas, propane and $5.00 dumps. Also if you have an Ipod touch you can download a Pilot App to find out where the nearest one is, and you don't need to be connected when searching for one. We then later found out that many of the TA's (travel americas) have free dumps. Also there is a website rvdumps.com that lists free or prices of dumpstations all over. We found that many water treatment plants have them and state parks in some states will let you do it free. Also just keep your eyes open, we found a free one at a car wash in Minnesota. Their is also a gas station chain in Arizona, I don't remember the name but also had free dumps. By the way we loved Maine, we stayed in Acadia for 4 nights at Blackwoods campground. It was empty as we were there right after the snow hit around halloween, but we had beautiful weather. Also Maine is one of the most difficult places to find water, a place to stay, and services so it will get much easier when you head out. Also I don't know what kind of camper you have but make sure your house battery is charging properly, you don't want to have to plug into charge up when your are driving so much! We we so fortunate to have taken this trip we saw some amazing places and decided that staying at walmarts didn't take away from our trip, we stayed busy until dark, then when you close your blinds who cares where you are. Plus, savng the money by staying there allowed us to spend money elsewhere, redwoods national park, sedona, acadia, and more. We have hat pins from our trip but very few trinkets. Also we traveled with our 95lb dog....dog parks are abundant and a great place to chat with locals on where to go and what to see on a budget, better than any guide book! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meek7791 Posted March 12, 2012 Author Share Posted March 12, 2012 (edited) Forgot to mention we only drove 55mph, very important. Staying off the freeway when possible allows you to see more and the temptations of going faster are less as there are not cars and trucks flying by making you feel like you are standing still. Where are you thinking of heading? Edited March 12, 2012 by meek7791 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maineah Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 I Have toyed with the ideal of work camping and I understand there is a real need for people that understand camper wiring so we could stay at some pretty nice campgrounds for nothing more then 20 hours of work a week I don't mind staying 2 nights and working one day. I am not a big WalMart fan so their parking lots are not attractive to me it does not seem right to shun WalMart then stay in their parking lot. For a one time fee seniors can get a 50% off card for the National Parks and I resemble that remark so that's a option. Yes Acadia is a beautiful park we have been there several times, Cadillac mountain is a great place for a magnificent sun rise. I also agree with the back roads and a slower pace MH and campers take a huge hit with even a small increase in speed. The interstates are lovely for going from one place to another but there is no life to them we have found so many things that the highways bypass worth stopping for. I am going to Alberta not sure how that is going to work out yet but it may become a camping adventure. Thanks for your insight good tips by the way we have to deal with 2 dogs the smallest is 105# and the big one is 140# both Great Dane's! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldiesel Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 Would it be possible for you to post some info on how much you spent,even a total would be great,but even better if you could break it down like gas ,camping fees ect? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meek7791 Posted March 13, 2012 Author Share Posted March 13, 2012 Would it be possible for you to post some info on how much you spent,even a total would be great,but even better if you could break it down like gas ,camping fees ect? I can do the gas easily, I wrote down every fill-up, mileage, gln, price of gas and total price. As far as camping goes i will be able to get close. I will get it posted soon! On the camping note, if you have AAA get to your local office and pick up there campbooks, they are great and they are going to start charging for them!! we found them to be more helpful than the huge bulky woodalls book(which is now in the garbage). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maineah Posted March 14, 2012 Share Posted March 14, 2012 If you use a GPS there is a web site: poi-factory.com that has all kinds of points of intrest including the US and Canada for camp grounds among other things. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Totem Posted April 16, 2012 Share Posted April 16, 2012 Did you get lucky at any Walmart and find a light post outlet for shore power? (I have seen these before). Do you ask permission to camp when you dock there? when you lost a tire was it front or rear and what happened? We too have done the east coast and down south trips including Maine and New Orleans. This summer doing Yellowstone. Anything we should watch out for? Travel with guns at all? @ Maineah, wow 2 Great Danes, that's got to get interesting do you take them w/you on trips? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob C Posted April 17, 2012 Share Posted April 17, 2012 I am reaching mandatory retirement age this summer (57 yrs old) and am planning on 1 trip this fall and being gone for a couple of months next summer. We have always traveled cheap so that will not be new. With all four daughters gone, cheap doesn't have to be poverty anymore. We have always cooked most of our own meals, we like them better and are able to control our calorie intake better. I have only stayed in a parking lot a couple of time, but, I love BLM land. I always use the computer to find BLM before leaving home. With an extended trip, I am rethinking urban boondocking though. Let us know specifics on your trip. It sounds great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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