Food & Water at the RTR

[PattySprinter]

Do you all take 2 weeks (or however long you ae staying) with you to the RTR?
That would be about 30 gallons of water and 2 weeks of food and fuel.

Or do you all make runs to town and restock up? 

Do you usually stay in the same spot or move around?

I am sorta a people person but sometimes need to be alone to recharge and am wondering where to park ... I don't want to get lost in the desert trying to walk back to my campsite at night lol!

Thanks 

 

[Kia girl]

I have limited space and am sure I we be going to the rtr and have to make trips into town to restock every so often. Plus I like fresh food.

 

[jimindenver]

Shopping is within easy driving distance as is laundry, gas and trash. It would likely be less expensive to bring your own because as with an tourist town the prices can be higher.

Last year was my first and trying to park in the main group kind of freaked me out. I did not have to go very far to find a nice spot all to myself. It is a huge area, you can be as alone as you wish. I moved outside of the RTR twice and then moved back in on the fringe for a class I give.

 

[highdesertranger]

I would hate to rely on buying food in town, sure you can get almost anything but the prices are a little high. as far as fresh goes well not so much, you will have better luck in Blythe about 22 miles away. water is no problem in town many locations to get water. I bring everything I need for 2 weeks but I am used to it. highdesertranger

 

[tx2sturgis]

Barter!

Or....line up at HDR's truck for handouts....

That's my plan anyway...

 

[GypsySpirit]

I am sorta a people person but sometimes need to be alone to recharge and am wondering where to park ... I don't want to get lost in the desert trying to walk back to my campsite at night lol!

This will be a first time for me and the thought of where to park, did I park in the right place, all that will make me so angst-ridden if I think about it.  It's too far out to stress that, so I'll worry about that when I get there.  If it helps, I'll hang a flag of some sort so you can find me and we can go solo together!  LOL

 

[Trebor English]

Or do you all make runs to town and restock up? 

When I was there in 2016 I went to Parker once.  I know another person went to Quartzsite daily.  It depends on what you want.

 

[PattySprinter]

Barter!

Or....line up at HDR's truck for handouts....

That's my plan anyway...

What is HDR's truck? ... hand outs? I'm in!! 

My Kahuna holds 13 gallons for washing and I have two 5 gallon containers - probably I just need to pick up 5 more one gallon jugs?
I really am not wanting to drive back into town - just not sure what and how much I will comfortably need.
I have solar and food.

 

[sephson]

I can only make it for a few days, so that's what I bring. Even if I could make it for the full two weeks, I'm severely limited in what I can carry by the size of my vehicle. My use of a cooler rather than a refrigerator puts further limitations on my perishables.

Last year I ended up giving away my extra fruits and vegetables when I left and headed for home. I ended up using less than I thought I would because the campers in my part of the RTR did a bit of potlucking for several meals. That turned out to be a great way to make some new friends.

 

[PattySprinter]

GypsySpirit - I will look for your flag

... when you go back into town - do you leave your tent or stuff at camp? Is there a theft issue?
I want to pitch a tent.

 

[tx2sturgis]

What is HDR's truck? ... hand outs? I'm in!! 

I don't know but up there in #4 he said he'd have EVERYTHING we need for 2 weeks...



But seriously, I think a few cases of drinking water and/or several 1 gal bottles of drinking water and of course water tanks or jugs for washing/hygiene etc. I dont bathe with my drinking water and I dont drink my bathing water...I keep those things VERY seperate. 

I always have a lot of canned and some dehydrated foods along in my 'provision' totes...so even if the fridge quits or the ice melts in the cooler I will have food. I plan to bring my bike so I dont have to break camp to go on small re-supply missions. This is pretty much how I've been doing it for years so its routine by now.

 

[Kia girl]

I can only make it for a few days, so that's what I bring. Even if I could make it for the full two weeks, I'm severely limited in what I can carry by the size of my vehicle. My use of a cooler rather than a refrigerator puts further limitations on my perishables.

Last year I ended up giving away my extra fruits and vegetables when I left and headed for home. I ended up using less than I thought I would because the campers in my part of the RTR did a bit of potlucking for several meals. That turned out to be a great way to make some new friends.

I hear you.  I think we drive the same kind of vehicle.  How do you carry everything that you need?

 

[duckwonder]

Thanks for the topic.  Getting set up for longer boondocking so this sort of thing is definitely on my mind.  As far as RTR, I saw in a YouTube video that someone had stopped in Walmart in Pheonix for groceries (maybe an hour away?) and stocked up as much as possible to get a better selection than smaller grocery store and better price too.  Since I'm going through there anyway on the way, sounds like a plan.  As far as parking, I have no idea.  It looks a little chaotic but if I park too far out I'd have to walk a long way to get to and from the gatherings. I wish I had room for a bike, but I most definitely do not.

 

[highdesertranger]

here's HDR's truck.



another


at Q


another gold camp


highdesertranger

 

[tx2sturgis]

That's a mobile helipad!

Cool!

Airdrop tequila, anyone?

 

[Txjaybird]

If Queenie and I are lucky enough to go to RTR I'll probably pack way to much stuff as usual for the trip.

Since I stay stocked up on can goods etc food wise I'll just need some fresh stuff right before I get there.  I'll also get xtra water closer to Quartzite because of the weight.

This too will be my first RTR.  Hopefully in Oct. Q and I will have a shakedown cruise.   I'm sure I'll be tempted to just keep going west and not look back.

HDR what year is your truck? MY GMC '81 Dually was the same color.  It had a 454 with 4 in the floor.  I pulled a 40ft Loadcraft mini float doing oil field hot shot runs in TX., OK., LA., & KS.  Who knew KS had oilfields?    I miss having a truck that size.

Jewellann

 

[sephson]

I hear you.  I think we drive the same kind of vehicle.  How do you carry everything that you need?

That's very much still a work in progress. I'm actually working on some changes to my setup at the moment, which will hopefully help me to better organize my gear. It's slow going though since I work on it as time permits.

I'll continue to document the progress in my build thread.

https://vanlivingforum.com/showthread.php?tid=9848

 

[Almost There]

Water is the easiest of any supplies in town...there must be at least 6 or 8 Glacier water stations in town and as many places if you're filling an RV water tank. Likewise dump stations are easy to find if you need that.

It's a really small town of maybe 300 people except for 3 months in the winter when the town and surrounding areas swell to over a 1/4 million people most years. There are 2 or 3 dollar stores and maybe 3 small grocery stores, no large supermarket at all. Prices are high at the small grocery stores and selection is limited. Lots of fast food joints and a few overburdened decent restaurants and bars. There is (or was) a great bakery in town.

The biggest part of town is the flea markets...hundreds and hundreds of booths, spread all over town. There's probably at least a dozen different markets, some devoted to gems, minerals and rocks, some to real flea market goods and some to only new goods.

There is one big laundromat and maybe a second smaller one might still be funcitonal. The laundromat has 11 shower rooms = at peak times you might have to wait your turn for a shower.

Blythe with 2 good supermarkets is a 20 minute drive away. Parker with a WalMart and all the shopping you need is about an hour away.

Most of us have to do at least one trip to Blythe or Parker so we tend to car-pool it. It's an excursion....a day out on the town...

 

[highdesertranger]

Jewellann, it's registered as a 1978, but it is a '73,'74,'78,'80,'84,'87 and soon to have an '82 engine. kinda like the Johnny Cash song. highdesertranger

 

[bullfrog]

Good trucks are built not manufactured!