 We started our sixth year of full-time RV living slowly, traveling only 8 miles to our first destination. We kept our drives relatively short throughout the summer, averaging 173 miles (2.5 hours or so) and topping out at 436 miles between Medora, North Dakota, and Bozeman, Montana. We added three states to our map: Kansas, Nebraska, and North Dakota (leaving only four to spend a night in Tagalong in). And we snuck in a few flights — to Phoenix after the tragic death of our son DJ, to Barcelona for a transatlantic cruise, and to Scotland and Ireland. Highlights of our travels included:
Of our 40 stops in nearly 7,000 miles, these were our favorite RV stays in our sixth year of travel. Favorite boondocking spot  We really got into our groove with boondocking this year, doing so at 16 locations across Arizona, Colorado, North Dakota, Montana, and Utah. With plentiful Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest land, the western states offer abundant options for camping off the grid. We relished the quiet solitude in each location, which helped prolong our slow pace. Our favorite boondocking spot was a peninsula in Sweet Briar Lake, North Dakota, west of Bismarck. The location featured picnic tables, fire rings, and magnificent views of the water out practically every window. We enjoyed watching pelicans, Canadian geese, and occasional kayakers -- despite a scary thunderstorm passing through while we were there. Favorite Boondockers Welcome stay  In addition to our 16 boondocking stops, we camped on the property of six Boondockers Welcome hosts. These are people who allow RVers in the program to sojourn on their property for up to five nights, depending on the host. Some hosts offer electric hookups for a fee, which we find especially beneficial when the weather is warmer than we’d like. We took advantage of this camping option in Colorado, Nebraska, Kansas, and Northern Arizona. We really appreciated our sweet host in Colby, Kansas, where we spent Mother’s Day not quite a week after our son’s passing. We told her we were grieving, and she went out of her way to make our visit pleasant and enjoyable, even offering to let us stay longer than we had booked. However, our favorite Boondockers Welcome location for the year goes to Cortez, Colorado. The former farm was set up like a campground for six RVers. We were the only ones there for most of our stopover and savored the tranquility and expansive views, which included snowcapped mountains in the distance. Favorite moochdocking stop  After boondocking, our next-favorite type of camping is moochdocking, where we stay on friends’ or family’s property and mooch their water and electricity. We did that in Arizona, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Michigan, Iowa, and Montana, catching up with dear friends and family members. We appreciated the warm hospitality at each location. If we had to choose a favorite, it would have to be our friends Norm and Susan’s, situated at the end of a dirt road in Idabel, Oklahoma, providing a wonderfully peaceful respite. They were gracious hosts who welcomed us with open arms, made us feel right at home, and provided us with unique memories, including a flight on a powered parachute. Favorite campground  Campgrounds are our least-favorite places to sojourn, but sometimes they’re a must so that we can see the things we want to see. That was the case this year in Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky, South Dakota, and Northern Arizona. We liked our time at Two Rivers Campground in Nashville, but our favorite was Fool Hollow Lake Campground in Show Low, Arizona. It holds special meaning to us as we spent many nights there as a family while raising our kids. Our youngest daughter, Becky, and her husband and daughter joined us to make more memories. Favorite state  We spent a month traversing Southern Colorado, a month with family in Michigan, two weeks in Utah, and a week and a half in North Dakota. Although we lived in the Denver area when we were first married, this was our first time in Southern Colorado outside of Colorado Springs. It was also our first time in North Dakota, and we thoroughly enjoyed both.
If we had to pick our favorite between the two, it would be Colorado for its magnificent snow-covered mountains, wide-reaching prairies, tall evergreens, and extraordinary experiences. Although we got snowed on in Alamosa on Easter weekend, we spent time in the forests, really getting a feel for the land. And visiting my college, Colorado Christian University, and a couple of friends from my college days made it that much better. You might also like 5 favorite RV destinations in 5 years on the road.
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 The RV life is one full of adventure, uniqueness, and surprise. As we’ve traveled this great country, a few unusual encounters stand out. Here are the seven strangest things we’ve experienced in six years of RV life. 1. Squirrel situation On our way back to the contiguous United States after spending a summer in Alaska, we stayed at a beautiful campground in Alberta, Canada. We enjoyed taking long walks, viewing color-changing foliage, and playing in fallen leaves.  What we didn’t enjoy was the intrusion of a squirrel that had made its way into the underbelly of our rig and even climbed up inside the back. Twitchy, as we called him, put us on our toes and gave us an incentive to seal any obvious holes in the corrugated plastic stretching across the underside of our rig. Thankfully, he didn’t stay too long. 2. Cat encounter While parked on the farm property of a Boondockers Welcome host in Yellow Jacket, Colorado, we had the place to ourselves — other than a horse keeping watch in a nearby pen. One morning, while sitting on the couch at the back of our rig, I heard “Meow.”  I had seen a cat outside, so I didn’t think much of it. But then the sound grew louder, followed by rumbling noises. I went outside but didn’t see the cat anywhere. Returning inside, I heard another “Meow.” Then I figured it out: The cat had found a way to climb up into the underbelly of our rig. Maybe it was after the nuts the squirrel had stored there. Or maybe it just wanted a respite from the cold April morning. I hit the underbelly with a broom and was able to scare the cat out. Then I had Bob reseal the corrugated plastic to prevent it from entering again. 3. Package vanishing Another day at the Yellow Jacket, Colorado, farm, we had waited hours for an expensive package to arrive so that we could go into town for dinner. Hunger overpowered us, and we decided to head out, even though the parcel hadn’t shown up. On our way to the restaurant, we received a call from a UPS driver trying to find the right place to deliver the package. Because of the cost of the item (a tuner for our truck), we turned around to retrieve the shipment. But when we arrived at our trailer — five minutes after the driver had delivered the package — there was no sign of a box. We went down the street to check with some neighbors, who confirmed that a UPS truck had been by, so we called the UPS driver. He offered to come back to show us where he put it. When the driver returned, he was flabbergasted not to see the package. But he told us he had seen a kid on an ATV. We called our host, who found the situation funny. She said that her grandson had picked up the package thinking it was for her, since it also had her name on it, and assured us he’d be right back with it. About 10 minutes later — but an hour after we had first left — we finally had the package in hand and were able to go to dinner. 4. Narrowest bridge Near Traverse City, Michigan, we encountered the narrowest bridge we’ve ever seen, as a result of construction. Approaching the structure, we saw a sign that said “9-FT BRIDGE.” Knowing that our rig is 8.5 feet wide, that gave us cause for concern, leaving only 3 inches of wiggle room on either side. White-knuckled, Bob tightly held the steering wheel, and we practically held our breath as we slowly made our way across the bridge to the other side, thankfully without incident. 5. Ladder ascent While parked at a Love’s RV Stop in Oklahoma, a van pulled up next to us one morning. It seemed odd, as the spot next to us was a designated RV site — and the vehicle was not a camper van.  The next thing we knew, a man was climbing the ladder on the back of our rig to our roof. I bolted out the door and yelled at him to get down. He obliged and apologized. As it turned out, he was a mobile RV tech answering a call for another camper three spots away.
6. Raccoon visit In Oklahoma, while we were moochdocking at our friends Norm and Susan’s place, we had a very strange occurrence in the middle of the night. It sounded like someone or something was trying to get inside our rig. I heard the doorlatch move. The next morning, we discovered three muddy prints on our door the size of raccoon fingers. If I had forgotten to lock the door the night before, we very well could have had an unwelcome visitor. 7. Noise disturbance One night, while camped near a baseball diamond in the small town of Dell Rapids, South Dakota, (population around 3,800), we heard sirens around 9 p.m. Having heard plenty of sirens in our travels, we didn’t think much of it. But then the sounds grew louder. I peered out a window and saw a brightly lit firetruck pulling into our campground, followed by a number of cars with beeping horns. The truck proceeded to the baseball diamond, as did the other vehicles. Then another firetruck and an ambulance, both with lights flashing and sirens blaring, joined. There didn’t appear to be any emergency, as this noise disturbance was followed by bass-pounding music at the diamond. Before long, the emergency vehicles turned off their flashing lights and left, followed by the cars. We never did find out what that was all about. You might also like Our most unusual experiences in 4 years of RV life.  Setting out on an RV journey can provide many learning opportunities. When you’re transitioning from sticks and bricks to living full time in an RV, the lessons can be that much more important. We’ve grown a lot since embracing this RV lifestyle five years ago. Here are our top RV lessons. 1. Communication is paramount Communication affects every single aspect of RV living. If we’re not communicating well, we’re not living well. It’s important that we share our thoughts and expectations about travel days, setups, plans, etc. Otherwise, it’s easy to assume that what’s in my head is also in Bob’s head and vice versa — which is hardly ever the truth. We had to come up with recognizable terms when parking our 42-foot fifth wheel. For example, instead of saying “straighten out” to mean five different things, like on our very first trip, I’ve learned to give more helpful advice, such as “get your truck in front of your trailer.” That may sound ridiculous because, of course, the truck is in front of the trailer when we’re towing. But we’ve come to understand that to mean the truck needs to be aligned with the trailer. 2. Leveling doesn’t have to be complicated  We’ve had more issues with leveling our rig than we ever thought we would, especially considering it has a Lippert auto-leveling system. After much trial and error throughout our first couple of years on the road, we gleaned a few tips and tricks that have helped us streamline the leveling process. We don’t push the auto-level button until our unit is above level. We determine that status using a LevelMatePRO wireless RV leveling device (paid link) we added to the rig. We also stack rubber and Camco leveling blocks (paid link) under our six stabilizer jacks before pushing the auto-level button to help prevent stroke errors. In addition, Bob learned how to reset the Lippert system using the digital display screen inside the RV. In conjunction with the LevelMatePRO unit, he retrains the Lippert system to what level is when the unit unexpectedly loses its memory. 3. Adaptability is the name of the game Nothing is set in stone when you live in a vehicle. It moves. The things inside it move. Sometimes its parts fail. Tires go flat. Weather shifts. Plans change. You have to be able to roll with the punches and adapt. Having been a perfectionist most of my life, it’s taken me many years to get to the point where I can go with the flow — and even enjoy doing so. I attribute much of my success in this area to my husband, who has helped round my edges and make me a better person. If it weren’t for his efforts, I might not be able to survive and thrive in the RV lifestyle, something I really enjoy. 4. Preventive maintenance is beneficial  Benjamin Franklin is credited with saying, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” Nearly 300 years later, that adage couldn’t be more apt for RV life. Making a point to keep up with vehicle maintenance — on both our truck and trailer — can go a long way toward preventing issues literally down the road. Keeping tabs on tire pressure, performing oil and transmission fluid changes, greasing joints, and doing similar tasks are well worth the effort and the time they take. We can’t help but wonder if preventive maintenance could have avoided our freeway mishap at the end of our last travel season. 5. A TPMS is invaluable  With 10 tires between our truck and fifth wheel, we’ve had our share of tire issues. In fact, in one year, we experienced four flat tires — all on the RV. Thankfully, they didn’t all happen at the same time. Before we first set out on the road, we invested in an EEZTire tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS; paid link) and are super grateful we did. As soon as a tire starts losing pressure, we get alerted. On more than one occasion after safely pulling to the side of the road, we’ve gotten out of the truck and heard air rushing out of the faulty tire. Thanks to early notification, the TPMS has saved our rig from damage. 6. Pleather doesn’t last  Our 2018 Jayco Pinnacle came with a three-person couch and a reclining loveseat. This furniture is wonderful for hosting family and friends who want to visit — or at least it was. Because the pieces are finished with pleather, or plastic leather, they started to peel after five years of use, making them quite unattractive.
We found a temporary fix with a self-adhesive leather repair kit (paid link). That lasted for a year. It’s still holding at the time of this writing, but it’s starting to detach at the edges. On top of that, our furniture began peeling in other areas. We’ll probably bandage it with the temporary fix as well, but eventually we’ll need to replace our furniture with fabric pieces. You might also like Our biggest RV mistakes. * As Amazon associates, we earn from qualifying purchases.  In our fifth year of full-time RV living, we traveled 8,233 miles, averaging 257 miles per trip and staying at 29 places. Having headed east, where boondocking options are minimal, we spent the bulk of our six months on the road moochdocking. That gave us considerable time with friends and family while keeping our expenses low. Our travels took us to New Mexico, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, New York, Ohio, Michigan, Iowa, South Dakota, Wyoming, and Colorado. Highlights of the year included sledding down white sand in Alamogordo, New Mexico; witnessing the total solar eclipse in Paris, Texas; visiting Buc-ee’s for the first time in South Carolina; touring Fort Sumter in Charleston, South Carolina; and seeing the bombers from CAF Airbase Arizona in many places along the way. We often get asked about our favorite parts of the country. So, rather than spotlight our top stops of the year, we thought it might be fun to count down our five favorite RV destinations in five years on the road. As you can imagine, narrowing down the best areas this great country has to offer was no easy task. To be fair, there’s still a lot of the U.S. we haven’t seen (seven states, to be exact, not including Hawaii), but here goes. 5. Waveland, Mississippi  Located on the Gulf of Mexico, Waveland, Mississippi, is unique in that the city doesn’t allow commercial buildings on its 5-mile beachfront. That means residents and visitors can enjoy beautiful views year-round. Most buildings in the area are on stilts in case of flooding, making for even better panoramas. What drew us to “The Hospitality City,” population nearly 7,000, was Buccaneer State Park. The campground is set back away from the waterfront, so at the end of my workdays, we’d pack our beach chairs in Gulliver and drive to the coast to bury our feet in the sand and bask in the warmth of the sun. The area is probably abuzz during the summer months. After all, Buccaneer State Park spans 343 acres and features a waterpark. But we visited in late March 2022, far from peak season. We liked it so much that we returned in late April 2024, still beating the crowds. 4. Louisiana Another Southern state made our top five. Louisiana boasts beautiful state parks, many that offer cabin rentals literally on the water, in addition to canoeing, fishing, and hiking. Having stayed at these campgrounds in Delhi in the northwestern part of the state and Westwego near New Orleans, it was difficult to pinpoint a favorite area. Compounding our choices, we spent time in Ville Platte in the central part of the state to visit friends Dwaine and Belinda. The entire Pelican State made our list for its delectable Creole and Cajun cuisine, crawfish boils, and completely different way of life than what Bob and I grew up with in Massachusetts and Arizona, respectively. The people are genuine, friendly, down to Earth, and extremely hospitable. 3. New Mexico Deserts We’ve spent a fair share of time in the deserts of New Mexico. The wide open areas offer plentiful boondocking opportunities, something we’ve grown to prefer. Being out in nature away from the hustle and bustle of city life has a lot of appeal, at least for us. We weathered a wind storm with gusts up to 50 mph in the desert near Carlsbad, had the privilege of experiencing the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta while camping at a casino nearby, spent an adventurous week in Alamogordo, and braved the heat near Deming in mid-September. Although we didn’t boondock at all of these stops (we had hookups near Albuquerque and Deming), they were all remote and shared amazing vistas, alluring mountain views, and magnificent sunsets. 2. Michigan’s Upper Peninsula When we started RVing, we knew we wanted to head to the Upper Peninsula (UP) of Michigan sometime in our travels, despite having to drive our long, heavy rig across the 5-mile Mackinac Bridge. We took that opportunity in May 2021, before the tourist and Black flies seasons, and spent a week in St. Ignace on Lake Huron, a week in Gladstone on Lake Michigan, and a week in Christmas on Lake Superior. The UP is renowned for its numerous waterfalls, Porcupine Mountains, and Pictured Rocks — in other words, natural beauty. It definitely lived up to that reputation when we visited. Each stop offered lighthouses and unique things to see. Our favorite of the three was undoubtedly Christmas. While there, we rented a pontoon boat and toured the vast lake with frigid wind in our faces, docking on a small beach to grill lunch — an unforgettable experience. 1. Gravel Lake, Alaska  Our trip to Alaska in 2023 remains the top highlight of all our travels. We drove our fifth wheel on the Alaska Highway both ways, with picturesque overnights in Canada’s Alberta, British Columbia, and Yukon. We spent the entire summer in the 49th state, from Memorial Day weekend to Sept. 1.
Of the myriad places we explored, manmade Gravel Lake (you won’t find it on a map), about 20 minutes south of Tok, ranked as our absolute favorite. We spent three wonderful weeks there, enjoying occasional appearances of moose, trumpeter swans, and fellow campers. For the most part, we had the quiet, peaceful place with mountain views to ourselves and appreciated its proximity to town for supplies. It also made for a good jumping-off point for a trip to Chicken, Alaska, a unique and worthwhile place to visit. You might also like 4 Perks of Full-Time RV Living.  When we set out to become full-time RVers, we never envisioned spending a single night in a location en route to somewhere else. We quickly learned the folly of that mindset and have come to appreciate the respite of overnight stops when trying to reach distant destinations. Not all overnight options are big-rig-friendly, however. That means they can’t all accommodate a class A motorhome or a camping trailer that extends beyond 40 feet in length. Our fifth wheel is about 42 feet long, classifying it as a big rig. In our travels, we’ve found six big-rig-friendly overnight RV stops. 1. Rest Areas  Rest areas are convenient stopping points on a long journey as they offer easy on-and-off access to a freeway. They also provide the added benefit of saving space in the RV wastewater tanks if we choose to use the public facilities instead of those in the rig. Some rest areas even have dump stations. In five years of RV travel, we’ve spent 15 nights at rest areas. Because of the length of our rig, we park with the semi-trucks. Although some run their engines all night long, it’s a constant hum that doesn’t really bother us. Not all rest areas are created equal, however. Some are smaller than others, and some are cleaner and feel safer than others. To determine if a rest area is big-rig-friendly, we examine the satellite view on Google Maps to get a better feel of the layout and ensure adequate space for opening our stairs. 2. Cabela’s/Bass Pro  Many, but not all, Cabela’s and Bass Pro Shops allow overnight RV parking and can easily accommodate big rigs. Some locations are restricted by city ordinances, so it’s best to talk to the manager at the location you want to visit to make sure doing so is permissible. Although we’ve only spent three nights in a Cabela’s or Bass Pro parking lot, this is one of our favorite overnight stops. They’re usually quiet and close to restaurants, offering welcome relief after a long day of driving. 3. Walmart  Like Cabela’s and Bass Pro Shops, some Walmarts don’t allow overnight RV parking, but most do. They also tend to be near restaurants. If not, they have food inside. We’ve stayed at eight Walmarts. This is often our last option because these parking lots can be noisy with people coming and going. At a Walmart in Gallup, New Mexico, we parked near a light pole and heard music blaring from a speaker on it all night long. If you choose to stay at a Walmart, avoid parking spots close to the store entrance and be aware of your surroundings. 4. Casinos  Many casinos welcome RVers with the thought that you’ll go inside and spend money to cover the cost of your spot. Some casinos even provide hookups. And some charge for parking and/or hookups. We’ve stayed at three casinos — one on two separate occasions. With any overnight stop that offers food or services, we make a point to patronize the place as a courtesy for allowing us to stay there. Although we don’t gamble, we’ve found some good food options at casinos. 5. Boondockers Welcome/Harvest Hosts  Harvest Hosts acquired Boondockers Welcome in 2021. The combined entity offers overnight (and sometimes longer) stays at more than 2,400 sites for an annual fee. These locations can range anywhere from residential driveways to farms to museums. These hosts expect RVers to be fully self-contained, but some provide electricity, water, and even sewer dumps for a small fee. We’ve stayed at nine and met some wonderful, generous people as a result. Some shared fresh eggs and garden harvests with us. 6. Love’s Travel Stops  Although a bit costly, Love’s Travel Stops can be a good alternative for an overnight stay if you need to run an air conditioner. They typically offer water and electricity, as well as a dump station. Plus, they have food available for supper and breakfast, including coffee. We’ve taken advantage of this option twice.
Wherever you choose to spend a night, be a good camper and leave no trace. Let’s all work together to keep these big-rig-friendly overnight RV options available. If you don’t feel comfortable or safe in a location, don’t be afraid to move. It’s better to be safe than sorry. You might also like Our Favorite Phone Apps for RVing.  Some full-time RVers are drawn to the lifestyle by the freedom to fly by the seat of their pants, deciding when and where to move based on how they feel upon waking any morning. Others, like us, take a more disciplined approach. It’s more conducive to success with our 42-foot fifth wheel that stands 13 feet, 3 inches tall.
For our plan of attack, we rely on a number of phone apps to aid us in navigation and exploration. Apps for RVing abound, many of which we haven’t tried in our four years on the road. But a few have become standbys. Let’s take a look. 1. Campendium If we’re not moochdocking on the property of friends or family, Campendium tends to be our first app of choice for checking camping possibilities in a given area. For an annual fee, it shows us campgrounds, boondocking options, dump stations, overnight parking stops, and even Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land to help us make informed decisions. We’re able to search based on location, price, hookups, cell signal strength, amenities, and more. What we really like about this app is the reviews of people who’ve stayed at the places we’re considering. Freecampsites.net is another source we consult sometimes when researching places to stay. 2. Harvest Hosts If we don’t like what we find on Campendium for the area we plan to visit, we check our options on Harvest Hosts. We’re part of Boondockers Welcome, which was acquired by Harvest Hosts. The app incorporates both memberships. Harvest Hosts allows RVers to stay at museums, farms, wineries, breweries, and more for a single night. Boondockers Welcome lets guests stay on people’s personal property for up to five nights, depending on the host. Some hosts even offer electric, water, and/or sewer hookups for a small fee. Each host and experience is unique. We enjoy meeting our hosts, learning about their area, and spending time with them. 3. Open Roads As we travel the country, we make a lot of fuel stops — but fewer than we did before upgrading our fuel tank. Open Roads is our go-to app to save money at the pump. It allows us to get trucker discounts at Petro, TA, Love’s, and a few other truck stops across the country — and fill up at the diesel pumps the truckers use, which is super helpful since our rig is only 3 inches shorter in height than most semis. We’re also able to fill our diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) at the pump this way, instead of having to pour the smelly stuff into our truck’s DEF reservoir from a box. We use a handful of individual fuel station apps as needed in concert with Open Roads: TA, Love’s, Pilot, and Maverik. Although Open Roads tells us the prices for diesel fuel with our discount, it doesn’t tell us if a given stop has a dump station or other amenities we might be interested in, such as restaurants. The individual apps help with that. 4. CoPilot Because of the size of our rig, navigating can be challenging. We pay an annual fee for the CoPilot trucker app, which allows us to enter the dimensions of our rig and then routes us accordingly, steering us clear of low overpasses and bridges that can’t handle our weight. Other apps, such as Roadtrippers, allow RVers to enter their rig’s dimensions as well. We haven’t used those apps much as we’ve been very happy with CoPilot. However, after entering our height, length, and desired stops into Roadtrippers to plot a possible course for travel, I received a warning that certain legs of the journey wouldn’t work for us. But the app didn’t reroute us to routes that would. 5. Google Maps Although we trust CoPilot and its directions, we don’t solely rely on it for navigation. We also check Google Maps — especially satellite view — to ensure we can get into and out of fuel stops, parking lots, and potential camping spots. In addition, we take advantage of Google Earth and its distance-measuring feature to give us a realistic picture of what we might find at a given destination. 6. Ultimate RV Checklist To ensure we don’t forget any steps when packing up the trailer for travel and connecting it to and disconnecting it from the truck, we use a checklist app. We had used Tasks for a couple of years, but when it suddenly lost our checklists, we decided to trade it for an app with a backup option. Ultimate RV Checklist fit that bill. It comes with preloaded checklists you can use as is, or you can create your own to fit your needs. We did the latter. At one point, that app also stopped working. When that happened, we found that the backups couldn’t be easily reloaded into the app. So we moved them into Google Keep. I plan to put them back into a checklist app, where I can easily check them off and then uncheck them to reset the app for the next use. 7. OneControl Our Jayco Pinnacle came with OneControl by Lippert onboard, which we can use to turn lights on and off, open and close slideouts and awnings, and level the trailer. The control unit is right inside the trailer door. There’s also a OneControl phone app that offers the added convenience of being able to use it from outside the trailer. It comes in handy to assist with retracting the rear and mid stabilizers when we’re getting ready to connect the truck to the trailer, as well as opening and closing awnings while outside enjoying nice weather, and things like that. Other apps we use on occasion include CAT Scale and Allstays. You might also like 4 Reasons We Avoid RV Resorts.  Kapow. Kapow. The sound of gunshots jolted me from my work. With Bob still snoozing, I knew the TV wasn’t on. Darting from window to window, I peered out in search of the source of the noise but saw nothing conclusive. When you live in an RV and are parked in unfamiliar territory, gunfire can be quite sobering. We were camped completely on our own close to a lake about a third of a mile from the main highway near Tok, Alaska. Noise travels fast in the vastness of Alaska. Just because I had heard what sounded like nearby gunshots didn’t mean the shooter was close by. Research confirmed bull moose hunting season open in the Tok area. I hope the hunter got his or her moose. We didn’t hear any more gunshots after that. The incident was only one of many unusual happenings we encountered during our fourth year of RV travel. Here are some others: Wacky Waterfill Station We like to take advantage of boondocking and moochdocking opportunities whenever possible. Oftentimes, doing so means being strategic about filling our 75-gallon freshwater tank. We’re able to make the water last for a while, but there always comes a time when we need to refill our supply. Many dump stations offer potable water that can be used for this purpose. After leaving our campsite in Valdez, Alaska, we headed into town to empty our black and gray wastewater tanks. We opted not to get freshwater there because we had to climb through a mountain pass on our way back to the main highway and didn’t want to tow the extra weight. Beyond the pass en route to my cousin’s remote cabin and boondocking thereafter, we needed to fill our freshwater tank. We learned about a place near Glennallen where the locals got drinking water after a flood contaminated their regular source. It turned out to be quite an unusual fillup. The first “spigot” we came to was an open pipe with no hose fitting nor the capacity to attach a hose. Using that “faucet” required turning a wheel nine times to get the water to come out. Since we couldn’t figure out a way to connect a hose between that fixture and our trailer, we walked to the other side of the booth building to check for another option. Sure enough, we found a normal-size hose — but again with no capacity to attach another hose to it. Getting water into our rig requires a screw-tight connection. Bob remembered he had picked up a Water Bandit hose fitting (paid link) for just such an occasion. After locating it, he fitted the adapter to the hose. We deposited four quarters for 3 minutes of filling, and Bob moved the valve to make the water flow while attempting to hold the hoses together. Cold water spurted everywhere, dousing the bottom of my jeans. Good thing I was wearing boots.  Bob backed off the water pressure, adjusted his grip, and succeeded at keeping the hoses connected. Three minutes of water filled our tank about 10%. We had started with about that much, so that brought us to 20%. We inserted another four quarters for 3 additional minutes with the same results. Clearly, we would need to do this about seven more times. The water running through the hoses left Bob’s hands frigid, to the point that he didn’t think he’d be able to endure the process for much longer. I grabbed a mechanic’s glove from our trailer basement and a leather work glove from the truck. (Neither had a match.) Donning those, Bob changed his position on the hoses to use different muscles. My job was to deposit quarters and keep mosquitos off of Bob.  We continued the painstaking cycle until our tank was completely full — about 30 minutes and $10 later. By then, we had gained a greater appreciation for traditional water fills with a regular hose bibb, something we had previously taken for granted. Plentiful Pasta Making Not all unusual experiences are, or have to be, challenging. While visiting family in Oregon, we had a rare opportunity to make pasta from scratch, something we couldn’t pass up, as neither of us had ever done it before. With all five of our kids in town for a family reunion, we needed a lot of pasta, so Bob’s brother Rick put us to work. We felt like we were on a TV cooking channel, breaking eggs into a well of flour on a countertop and mixing it with a fork.  After getting the dough to the desired consistency, we shifted to putting it through a pasta maker to press it thin enough to cut into spaghetti noodles. This involved many rounds of feeding the dough through the machine and adding flour in between, a backbreaking process. We made more than enough spaghetti for everyone to eat their fill and combined it with marinara sauce Bob had made earlier following Alton Brown’s recipe. Since then, we picked up an all-in-one pasta maker that mixes ingredients into dough and pushes out pasta as spaghetti or penne noodles. Making pasta is no longer novel, or backbreaking.
In addition to those incidents, we had plenty of other unusual encounters in our fourth year on the road, including getting snowed on, visiting an ice house, seeing the midnight sun, dealing with rodents, camping in fall foliage, and tracking dinosaurs. They’re all part of our amazing, adventurous RV life. You might also like Our Most Unusual Experiences in Year 3 on the Road. * As Amazon Associates, we earn from qualifying purchases.  Each year of full-time RV living leaves us feeling more comfortable and experienced in our lifestyle. Despite that, we continue to encounter challenges and even scares along the way. Our fourth year of RV travel was no different. Here’s a countdown of our scariest experiences in our fourth year on the road: 6. Police Visit While camped in the parking lot of the Museum of Mountain Flying in Missoula, Montana, with permission, a loud rap at our door made us stand at attention. Glancing out the window, we saw a white truck marked POLICE and an armed, uniformed officer standing at the base of our stairs. Bob went out to greet the man. They chatted for a bit as Bob explained our connection to the museum, which we had visited a couple of years earlier while on tour with the Commemorative Air Force. Satisfied with the discussion, the officer wished us well, climbed into his truck, and drove away. 5. Honked at While Camping We had just gotten set up at a beautiful dispersed campground in McCammon, Idaho, with a panoramic view of red maple leaves. We saw no other soul at our three-site campground, 50 feet or so from the main camping area.  Before long, a vehicle came to a stop next to our rig and emitted the annoying beep of a horn. I looked out the window and saw a car with a driver accompanied by a dog in the passenger seat. We had no clue who the person was and no inclination to exit our trailer to find out. We figured if they really wanted to talk to us, they could knock on our door. Meanwhile, Bob looked up info about the campground and learned it had 10 RV sites and five tent sites. Were we in a tent site? The car had no signs of being an official vehicle and eventually moved on. A short time later, a truck marked RANGER drove through and didn’t bother stopping, leaving us relieved. We later discovered after a walk through the campground that we were definitely in one of the RV sites, as we found the five clearly identifiable tent sites. Maybe the driver thought we were someone else. 4. Parking Lot Knock On our way to Dawson Creek, British Columbia, to reach the start of the Alaska Highway, we overnighted in a Calgary, Alberta, mall. We had found the option online. Staying at the mall only required signing in at guest services inside the complex, where we received a dated paper to put on our truck dash. After a delicious meal at one of the mall’s many restaurants, we returned to our trailer and settled in for the night. At about 9:30 p.m., we heard three pounds of a fist on the side of our trailer. I thought someone had knocked on our front door, but that was not the case. Some kids walking by decided to try to scare us. It worked on me. 3. 4 a.m. Truck Alarm On our return trip to the Lower 48 after a wonderful summer in Alaska, we stopped at a rest area in the middle of nowhere about an hour north of Watson Lake, Yukon, in Canada. We had stayed at the same place on the way to Alaska and liked it there.  After an unsuccessful attempt to spot the northern lights for the second time, we dozed off to sleep. At 4 a.m., the beeping of a car alarm woke us from our slumber. It turned out to be Gulliver’s alarm, something that had never happened before. We quieted the disturbing noise and went outside to investigate, finding no signs of foul play or anyone around, for that matter. The next morning, when we got into Gulliver for the next leg of our journey, the culprit became evident: The monitor for our rear trailer camera had fallen from the windshield in the cold of the night. 2. Tsunami Warning We arrived in Homer, Alaska, on a foggy, rainy afternoon. When I looked at my phone to check the weather, I saw a tsunami warning. Talk about a wake-up call. I quickly took a screenshot. But later when I looked, the warning had disappeared.  We had been through four tornado warnings since becoming full-time RVers, so we knew to take these things seriously. No longer finding the tsunami warning readily available, I did some quick research and discovered it had been issued after a 7.2-magnitude earthquake off the Alaska peninsula. The tsunami warning had been canceled five minutes after issuance, so we were in no danger. 1. Stuck in Museum Parking Lot Our scariest encounter in our fourth year of RV travel happened the day after the Calgary mall incident. We had made arrangements to park overnight at the Alberta Aviation Museum in Edmonton, Alberta, which houses a B-25 WWII bomber similar to the one we work on with the Commemorative Air Force. We pulled down the road leading to the museum, finding it lined with cars on both sides. The museum lot offered nowhere to park our big rig, so I pulled into the fire lane, facing a fence, while Bob went inside to talk to the staff. As it turned out, an organization had leased part of the building to host a reptile show that weekend, drawing quite a crowd.  The museum supervisor came out to assess the situation and, finding illegally parked cars, essentially told us there was no safe way for us to work our way out of the parking lot. Yet, the executive director, who had approved our stay, wanted us to leave and come back later.
I suggested maybe Bob could back into a parking lane so that we could pull forward to get out, despite people moving about in every direction. A friendly gentleman helped direct foot and vehicle traffic while Bob’s years of trailer-backing experience led to a masterful job of getting us out of a sticky situation. People inconvenienced by the maneuver proved understanding and supportive, which we appreciated. We returned later to a virtually empty parking lot and spent an uneventful night there. You might also like Scariest RV Moments of 2021.  In each of our first three years of full-time RV travel, we towed Tagalong less than 8,000 miles. A more adventurous trip to Alaska in our fourth year on the road scored Tagalong 9,302 miles. Gulliver earned additional mileage from our explorations while disconnected from the trailer, including an ambitious 1,015-mile round-trip journey to the Arctic Ocean. We kept our travel days relatively short, averaging an enjoyable 202 miles per stint, from expansive desert to amazing red rocks to snow-capped mountains to lake and river views. Our longest trek, not counting the Arctic Ocean adventure, spanned 500 miles, from Valley of Fire in Overton, Nevada, to Twin Falls, Idaho. Our record 46 stops (due to multiple single-night stays both ways on the Alaska Highway) took us through four states we were able to add to our RV map — Washington, Idaho, Montana, and Alaska — plus three Canadian provinces: British Columbia, Alberta, and Yukon. We stayed at only eight campgrounds with some form of hookups and at another four with no hookups. We counted those that lacked energy connections among our 14 boondocking sites. We also overnighted in 14 parking lots and moochdocked at seven locations. Here are our favorite stops in our fourth year of RV travel: Favorite Campground  The eight campgrounds we visited offered convenience. I remember pulling into the Sourdough Campground and Cafe in Tok, Alaska, and taking advantage of the electricity to vacuum the inside of the trailer after the long haul on the Alaska Highway. We did the same thing upon arrival at Fool Hollow Lake Campground in Show Low, Arizona, after a couple of weeks of boondocking. Many people frequent campgrounds to get away from those conveniences. We go there to enjoy them. Our two favorite campgrounds for the year were both in Canada. The Kimberley Riverside Campground in British Columbia, as its name implies, sits near a roaring river. We enjoyed spying on deer from our windows and walking along the water to explore our surroundings. More than Kimberley, we liked Brewers Campground, situated close to a beach in Lacombe County, Alberta, despite the unwanted RV guest that came with it. We visited this location in the fall and relished the changing foliage colors and crunching leaves under our feet. Because we were there after the busy season, we found the place incredibly serene. Favorite Boondocking Stay  Our boondocking stays for the year ran the gamut, from desert dwelling outside Las Vegas to hanging out in a tree-shrouded dry campground next to some natural hot springs to backing up our trailer to overlook Cook Inlet and Port Valdez in Alaska to camping against a backdrop of red maple trees. It’s nice to be able to live off the grid and rely on solar and generator power to supply our energy needs. It allows us to get into some pretty quiet and remote areas. Narrowing down our favorite boondocking spot was a tough choice between Gravel Lake in Mentasta Lake, Alaska, and Goodenough Creek Campground in McCammon, Idaho. We spent three wonderfully relaxing weeks at Gravel Lake, where we appreciated an occasional moose wading into the water, trumpeter swans skiing to a stop on the manmade lake, and quiet solitude interrupted infrequently by a camper passing through. Despite that peaceful and much-needed stop after a very busy and ambitious Alaska adventure, we named Goodenough Creek Campground our favorite boondocking stay because of the incredible beauty of vibrant red maple leaves that surrounded us there. I owe the benefit of viewing the amazing scenery at Goodenough Creek to my free-spirited husband, who’s successfully worn down my rigid edges over the years to make it possible for me to move locations within an hour of his suggestion. It used to take me many days to think about a decision of that magnitude, and by then, the opportunity would have evaporated. Favorite Overnight Stop On the way to Alaska and back, we mainly boondocked at turnouts along the highway. In addition to those overnight stops for the year, we stayed at a few truck stops, a museum, a mall, and a grocery store — all with permission. As you can imagine, some of those stays were more scenic than others. Kluane Lake Viewpoint Parking in Destruction Bay, Yukon, made the top overnight spot in our book. We visited the site on our way to Alaska, when ice covered much of the lake, and again on our way back, when the mountains lacked snow. We found both times to be beautiful and refreshing. Spotting the northern lights from this location made it that much more special. Favorite Moochdocking Spot  We’re pretty spoiled in that we’re blessed to be able to stay with family and friends across the continent during our travels. We spent two weeks with cousins near Fairbanks, Alaska, another few weeks with cousins in Willow, Alaska, and a week with an aunt and uncle in Palmer, Alaska.
We also took advantage of a week with friends near Nampa, Idaho, a night with friends in Calgary, Alberta, a night at a Boondockers Welcome host in Carvel, Alberta, and a week at the Museum of Mountain Flying in Missoula, Montana. We always appreciate our moochdocking stays and find it difficult to rank them. Each offers something different and memorable. If we had to choose our favorite for the year, it would be a toss-up between Willow, Alaska, and Nampa, Idaho. In Willow, we parked in such a way that our rig overlooked a lake and gave us inspiring views of the water and the birds and beavers that call it home. Finding campgrounds costly and boondocking options minimal in Nampa, we stored Tagalong for a week and stayed in the home of friends Kerry and Bev — and their little dog, Kona, whom we fell in love with. Favorite State Without a doubt, our favorite state of the year was Alaska. We found our time there fun, adventurous, and tranquil. We enjoyed catching up with family there and being able to get up close and personal to God’s amazing creation. We’re already planning another trip back. You might also like 5 Favorite Things About Our Summer RV Trip to Alaska.  Trumpeter swans descend for landing, skiing across the water as they touch down. A moose wades into the lake past its knees to munch on aquatic plants, seemingly oblivious to anything around it. Ducks dip their heads into the water and disappear, popping up elsewhere. These are a few of the sights we were blessed to witness while boondocking in our fifth wheel RV in the great state of Alaska. We fell in love with the 49th state’s incredible beauty, serenity, and magnificence. Before we set out on our RV trip to Alaska, we wrote down five things we wanted to experience there: glacier calving, dog mushing, whale watching, northern lights, and the Arctic Ocean. We also thought it would be nice to observe a salmon run, catch some Alaska-size fish, and visit with family in the area. I’m proud to say we accomplished all those things in one truly amazing summer. Not all of the five “high-priority” items made it to our list of favorite things about our summer in Alaska, but we’re glad we experienced them. After much thought and consideration, we agreed these were our five favorites, in no particular order: 1. Trip to the Arctic  Making a trek up the Dalton Highway to the Arctic Ocean was a truly unique experience. It took us through a snowy mountain pass, gave us a chance to witness the midnight sun, and exposed us to the tundra and native sounds. We enjoyed driving the isolated road, following the Alaska pipeline, and dipping in the frigid Arctic Ocean (just so we could say we did it). Our favorite part about this experience was staying in a hotel in Deadhorse and briefly immersing ourselves in the lives of pipeline workers. It gave us a greater appreciation for them and the hard work they do. 2. Remote Cabin  With 571,000 square miles of land and a population of 733,583, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Alaska is the least densely populated state, offering numerous opportunities for remote living. It’s not uncommon to meet someone there who has a cabin in the woods. The state even offers more than 300 remote cabins for public use, according to Alaska.org. Perhaps what’s most unique are the cabins that are only reachable by boat, seaplane, or snow machine (as snowmobiles are called in Alaska). It doesn’t get much more remote than that. We had the privilege of visiting one such cabin with my cousins. Having watched a number of survival shows, we felt like we were in a movie. We liked the adventure so much that we considered buying one of the cabins nearby. 3. Proximity to a Calving Glacier  Alaska is home to around 100,000 glaciers, according to Alaska Kids. Of those, only 650 or so have been named. The named glaciers are generally easier to get to and see. We put eyes on Matanuska Glacier, Portage Glacier, and Worthington Glacier, among others. While observing the immenseness and mystery of Columbia Glacier, the largest in Prince William Sound, from about a quarter of a mile away, we watched it seemingly throw itself into the water below, creating a thundering crash and making waves. One section would tumble into the water. Many minutes would pass, and another section would fall. We spent about an hour at the glacier, making for an incredible experience. 4. Valdez  Our glacier-calving encounter took place while on a boat tour from Valdez, an absolutely beautiful place. The more than two-hour drive into the city provides breathtaking views of mountains, glaciers, rivers, and waterfalls. That served as the “cake” of our wonderfully enjoyable time there. Viewing the salmon run, catching Alaska-size fish one after another, and taking the boat tour to spot aquatic wildlife and the Columbia Glacier were the icing. Camping with our back window overlooking Port Valdez gave us a nice, picturesque bonus. We’re really glad so many people we talked to raved about Valdez. 5. Northern Lights  Experiencing the northern lights is a lifetime dream for many who aren’t privy to their seasonal wonder. The conditions have to be just right for the naked eye to capture this amazing phenomenon: darkness, clear skies, solar activity, and the right time and place. Seeing the lights is more common in some areas than others.
We’re super fortunate to have been able to witness the aurora borealis on our summer trip to Alaska. We nearly missed the spectacular display. In fact, we tried to catch the splendor again on a clear night two days after our first sighting, but two hours of watching the sky yielded nothing. Every time I think about the night we caught the natural light show, I can’t help but smile. It was a truly magnificent experience. In addition to these five favorite things about our summer in Alaska, we enjoyed gold panning, touring an ice museum, and seeing areas of the state that many tourists don’t visit. What a fabulous summer! You might also like Is a Trip to Alaska All It’s Cracked Up to Be? |
AuthorThis is the travel blog of full-time RVers Bob and Lana Gates and our truck, Gulliver, and fifth wheel, Tagalong. Categories
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