Total Newb at 29

[DaBear1130]

Hey all!!

So here I am, getting ready to buy an RV and live the terrestrial Pirate's life for the next several years. Let me give you some background:

I move. A lot.

Since I was 17, I've moved house to house, state to state, on average every 1.5 years. I love it! I am, however, tired of paying a ton of money in rent and getting stuck in places while saving up for the next move. First/Last/Deposit is a nightmare. I hate that I can't have a dog. I'd like to go back to school and I'd like to continue to live the adventurous life. It's just me. No kids, no spouse. Just myself.

That being said, I'm new to the RV living side of things. I've been pricing out lots in my current area and monthly seems to run about $350-$600 depending on trailer size, amperage, and amenities.

What I need advice on *first* is I am looking into a KM membership tomorrow... Does anyone have one of these? Are they cost effective for long-term RVing? Do you like them? Should I get one? Pros/Cons?

I plan on moving around quite a bit within the next three years or so and gradually becoming more stationary over the following two.

Haha! I also plan on picking your brains far more often in the future, as I can only imagine I'm going to need all the help I can get. So *please* ANY tips you can give me on campground memberships or a way to find cheap monthly sites, would be amazing!! And, if you can throw in any gems a newbie needs to know, I would be forever grateful!!

Thanks in advance:heart:

 

[rvwandering]

Welcome to the CRVL forums Bear!
I'd never heard of K&M but I googled it and it looks pretty limited as far as parks and locations. Have you checked out Thousand Trails? They have a zone pass so you can try it out and then decide if you want to buy a membership - http://www.thousandtrails.com/

We've never had a membership or even tried the zone pass but we have friends who love the parks. You can save a lot of money by buying a used membership. Just be very careful and read all of the fine print. Apparently each membership is different and some are a lot better than others- http://www.rvparkstore.com/rv-park-and-campground-memberships

Since you're new to this it might be a good idea to just call the RV parks in your area and ask about the monthly rate before you get stuck in a membership that you might not use.

To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips & Tricks" post lists some helpful information to get you started. We look forward to hearing more from you.

 

[Seraphim]

Be careful with Thousand Trails. There have been a lot of complaints about shyster sales people (a lot of places one can buy memberships aren't directly associated with TT IIRC), and complaints about being able to get rid of a membership; that the only way to get rid of a membership was to sell it to someone else.

Haven't checked them out for several years, so things may have changed. Just a caution.

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That said, DWs aunt and uncle full timed in a Class A and used TT successfully. Many TT campgrounds may also have 'standards' about what type of camper they will accept.

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Or the age of camper they will accept.

 

[HarmonicaBruce]

Welcome to the board. So where about are you located? If you'll be working, not sure how the dog will work out with no one to let it out, etc. You can pay a lot for camping with electricity. That's because people don't try to conserve electricity and they use a lot of it since they're paying a flat rate. You came to the right place, there are people here who know the answer to any question you might have.

 

[cyndi]

I was staying in campgrounds for short periods of time,once or twice a month. When it was time to do laundry, dump tanks and/or I wanted a long hot shower I'd find a less expensive campground. Passport America and Good Sam's Club helped to keep the fees lower if I was in a more resort type of area.

The membership fees were low enough thatit was worth it to me.

Escapees have parks all over the west that a membership makes more reasonable and Loners on Wheels have a few, too.

 

[Bdog1]

One thing you have going, at 29 you seem to have discovered this lifestyle a little earlier than most of us. Congratulations!

I love by dogs, but they do complicate traveling. You gotta be dedicated!

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[DaBear1130]

Oh my gosh! Thank you all so much for the input! I didn't know if it was better to get a membership or just pay month to month. I plan on trying to stay in the same place for 2-6 months at a time. I'm currently in Washington State, stuck in Spokane. Not my ideal environment. I don't mind switching it up every couple of weeks, but I was hoping to have a firm foothold for my first few months, just to get organized and comfortable with it. My trailer should have washer/dryer hookups. Any experience with these? The trailers I've been looking at (30-40'. All season... Tank heaters, heat wrapping on the pipes, etc. etc.) are almost bigger than most of my apartments. Essentially this is my next 5-10 year housing plan, so I figured I had better make it nice. I'm a paramedic and this job has travelled with me well and I expect it to continue to do so.

I will be working a schedule that I've had a dog with in the past. I hope to kennel train the little monster well and be with him pretty much all the rest of the time (they're the only kids I've ever wanted/liked). But, I definitely won't bring him/her into the mix until I become more familiar with the lifestyle (btw your dogs are GORGEOUS bdog1!!!).

Eventually, my goal is to make it to the Boston area and go to med school by either this coming fall or the next. Which ever happens to be most financially/vocationally viable.

Again, thank you guys! I really appreciate all the feed back and support! I love that I've got some road veterans to talk this over with!

 

[cyndi]

You'll be hard pressed to find any kind of reasonable RV park/site near Boston. Especially one that's open year round that would allow you to attend school.

 

[DaBear1130]

You'll be hard pressed to find any kind of reasonable RV park/site near Boston. Especially one that's open year round that would allow you to attend school.

Snap! I was worried about that. Most places I had found had a max of just a few weeks and even fewer looked open in the winter time. Ironically, that's where this whole RV living concept was born! I read an article that it was quickly becoming vogue in that area to life in an rv because rent was so appallingly high.

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

good luck man, the east coast sucks for camping. maybe you can try something like boondockers welcome, its like coach surfing with parking spots. a lot of spots probably open up as snowbirds fly south in winter.

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checking boondockers welcome, there is a short term spot near boston, a long term possible spot about 25mi out, and then about 8 more 35 plus out. the short guy might go for longer stay with some green...

 

[gypsychic]

Welcome Bear! I'm pretty new here too and have gleaned a lot of knowledge off these wonderful folks. My goal is to full time in a van and I'm finding lots of answers to questions I didn't even know enough about to ask. Read thru the threads. If you have a question, chances are that it's been asked before. I find searching for topics helpful with a specific question. For more general things the items in the nav bar are very informative. Then I have been just keeping up with the day-to-day correspondence. Post questions as they come up. Everyone here is friendly.

I was disappointed that the traveling with pets section was not more robust. I will be housing 2 cats. I'm not yet in my van. Both are older and I will eventually get a dog. I understand about apartment living and not having a dog. The main thing I've gleaned from researching here and the net for traveling with animals is making sure your space is climate controlled for their comfort, just like in a regular dwelling. Animals have fur and are built for the outside but I don't think that people realize how hot it can get in a vehicle so quickly and that essentially the animal is trapped inside and not able to leave if the immediate environment becomes dangerous, either heat or cold. There are workarounds and for those of us that love our animal companions it's worth it.

A 30-40' - wow. That is probably bigger than my current apartment. Please show pics when you pull the trigger on one. Can't wait to see it. Definitely no stealth there.

Enjoy the adventure!

GypsyChic

 

[DaBear1130]

Boondocking eh? ...I must learn more of this boondock that you speak!

Yea, that's why I don't want to get a pet until I'm comfortable with the lifestyle, climate, sites, etc. So far everyone has been amazing! I do some standard pecking around when I have a question, but I really enjoy starting dialogues with people and building 'forum relationships' with people [emoji1]. So I tend to ask redundant questions.

I will definitely post pictures! I plan on half gutting it and doing a nice DIY redo, slowly but surely. Mostly I just don't want my adventure hampered by mobility (or lack there of). But, I am kinda of a princess, I like nice things and semi-spacious living. I work hard to get the life I want and I'm excited to live it! I'm also excited to have so many wonderful and interesting people to talk with about my journey!!

Haha! I've probably referenced this forum in at least three of my last four conversations!

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

wait...30 or 40 foot for 1 person? thats huge...consider mobility is going to present unique challenges, as is parking some places.
Boondocking just means camping without hookups, but the site i mentioned has spots with hookups sometimes, they arent using the term literally. my first spot i offered to people i had electric and fresh water hookups. oddly, even tho i was the only spot in my state, no one ever asked to stay.

 

[DaBear1130]

Huge is kind of where I'm at. Like I said, I'm a bit of a princess with multiple hobbies. To include ones that require some space. And it's full time. Sincere tip of the hat to anyone who can live in something 100-200 sq. ft. (Or smaller), but that's not something that I wanted. I understand it may seem a bit opulent, but I plan on making it my home for up to ten years, which may eventually include more than one person. Most people I've discussed this with personally, are retirees that live in a trailer year round, or very close to year round have similar sized campers. Hahahaha! Gosh, laying it all out I do sound like a pampered brat. But like I said, I'm not necessarily looking to save money, but remain on the budget I currently exist within and save my freedom!

What sort of mobility challenges should I consider? I've done more inquiry into resort memberships, some sound better than others. I'd really like to move less often than once every six months. And school would be a stationary position for a minimum of three years. So I guess I'm looking to do less camping and more renting (is that the right verbiage?). I want to learn the ins and outs of all the options involved, resorts, campgrounds, national parks, boondocking, et al! In case I find myself in a bit of a land rental pickle.

 

[Almost There]

Since you've already got your education place picked out, IIWM, I'd do some serious looking at what parks are available there way before I'd go shopping for the RV/TT/whatever.

No point in having a 30 to 40' home if you have no place to put it.

Several people have mentioned mobility challenges - a bigger rig takes a larger pricier vehicle to haul it around and the gas mileage, depending on what you need may be somewhere south of 10 mpg, some way south... . There's also the problem that while a lot of private RV parks are set up to handle the big rigs, a whole lot of the public camping areas where you have lower prices and better scenery are not.

 

[rvwandering]

For the type of RV living that you're considering public campgrounds, national parks, and boondocking are pretty much out of the picture except for short vacation trips. As you've already discovered most have a two week limit and boondocking is not compatible with a pampered life. :-D

Try these sites for private parks - http://www.rvparkreviews.com/
http://www.woodalls.com/

Also try googling "mobile home park" and "trailer park" for the cities where you'd like to live. Some have a few RV sites for rent and they should be cheaper than resorts. You'll have more trouble finding a park in a cold climate but there should still be a few places that are opened in the winter.

Make sure that you get a truck that's capable of pulling a heavy trailer. Do your own research and don't count on the information from the RV or truck salesperson being accurate.

 

[cdiggy]

Since you've already got your education place picked out, IIWM, I'd do some serious looking at what parks are available there way before I'd go shopping for the RV/TT/whatever.

No point in having a 30 to 40' home if you have no place to put it.

Several people have mentioned mobility challenges - a bigger rig takes a larger pricier vehicle to haul it around and the gas mileage, depending on what you need may be somewhere south of 10 mpg, some way south... . There's also the problem that while a lot of private RV parks are set up to handle the big rigs, a whole lot of the public camping areas where you have lower prices and better scenery are not.

Quality advice right there

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

there are some long stay private spots with hookups here for 350/month..which is about the same as rent on a small rental home. so i guess you save a little on deposits and utilities, especially if you relocate a few times a year. im not knocking your desire to live big, to each their own, just thinking its a different set of challengea involved.

 

[DaBear1130]

Where is here Dazar?

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Oh yes!! Definitely! It's those challenges, that I think exist in all living situations in some form or another, that I crave info on!

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

west viginia, tho i imagine such places exist everwhere. i literally had to knock on some guys door that lived near the spots and ask if he had a number or knew who to reach about pricing. so to get deals you might have to hunt off beaten path, be bold. they were suspicious about my rig and sewage but i told them i have cartridge porta potti i empty in work toilet(i actually use a bucket/litter and dispose in garbage), to get 50 knocked off the price. still i didnt take it, i live free at a truck stop, park n ride etc. rent is not for me anymore