A number of years in the past, Allie and I have been shifting each 1-2 weeks in our fifth-wheel. We have been using our Thousand Trails Membership and seeing as many locations as we may whereas nonetheless working part-time and operating our small enterprise. This was a fast-paced way of life and we have been loving each minute of it. We had visited dozens of states, nationwide parks, and campgrounds by the point we landed in Arizona for our second winter as full-time RVers.
Discovering a House Base
Throughout our time in Camp Verde (simply south of Sedona), COVID started to unfold within the USA and all of our future campground reservations have been canceled. We had been planning to journey for a full 12 months by means of the state of California however discovered ourselves with out plans or locations to go. We have been capable of keep long-term in our web site in Camp Verde, nevertheless it received us considering that we needed a extra everlasting residence base. Perhaps we wouldn’t be there full-time, however it might nonetheless be someplace we may at all times go or return to with our 42-foot residence on wheels.
This was uncharted territory for us, so we started with researching campgrounds that provide long-term rental choices. We struggled with researching on-line and located one of the simplest ways to assemble data was to name campgrounds instantly and converse with the workers. Many RV parks don’t have up to date or informative web sites, particularly relating to longer-term rental choices. We discovered that some campgrounds enable a month-to-month charge (which frequently included utilities and facilities), whereas others provide annual leases (that had further charges for utilities and facilities).
Campground Issues
After discovering such a big selection of choices, we sat right down to make an inventory of priorities for us as we moved ahead to decide on a location. Listed below are a number of the issues we thought of:
- Location: We knew we needed to be someplace that’s largely temperate. We additionally knew we needed easy accessibility to nature (forest, rivers, lakes, ocean, mountain, and so on). We additionally knew we didn’t wish to be instantly in or close to a significant metropolis, however shut sufficient to 1 to entry healthcare, neighborhood, and so on.
- Finances: We weren’t going to interrupt the financial institution on a everlasting web site as a result of we nonetheless needed the liberty to journey, but in addition as a result of we selected this life to simplify our funds and work much less total.
- Facilities: We didn’t have many wants on this space, however we knew it might be good to be in a campground with some safety and resort-features (resembling a pool or clubhouse).
What to Look For in a Lengthy-Time period Campground
If you’re contemplating long-term campground choices, we recommend you consider what’s or could also be necessary to you in your day-to-day life.
- Do it’s worthwhile to be situated inside a selected faculty district?
- Do you want entry to public transit or city facilities?
- Do you want facilities resembling a exercise room, pool, playground?
Past our wants and desires listing for our future home-base campground, we start to consider what we would wish in our particular person web site. A few of these necessities are dictated by the kind of RV you will have. For us, this meant a web site that would accommodate our 42-foot fifth wheel with 5 slideouts (in addition to our RAM 3500 long-bed, dual-wheeled truck). Aside from contemplating measurement, we determined it was important for us to have full-hook-ups. This meant 50AMP electrical, water, and sewer. Our web site additionally got here with cable, broadband web (for a further cost), and the choice to have a 100-gallon propane tank placed on our web site (that’s crammed up on a rotating foundation by an area firm). We additionally knew we needed a extra non-public web site in a smaller campground loop at our resort. This meant that there was much less automobile visitors and that almost all of our neighbors have been older and quieter than a number of the bigger loops with households that had a number of younger kids.
Attempt a Go to Earlier than You Commit
We might strongly recommend attempting out your future home-base campground earlier than committing to an annual lease or longer-term keep. Whilst you’re there, stroll round and chat with the locals, seize a espresso close by, and even scope out the native library and grocery retailer. Take into consideration what it would be best to have near residence once you settle in for an extended keep. We really feel lucky to have discovered a campground and a web site that we really feel comfy in. After only some months within the campground, we seen an end-site, tucked extra into the woods, grew to become obtainable so we shortly scooped it up! We have now been right here ever since.
Our Good Campground
We have been fortunate to discover a web site at Mt. Hood RV Village (https://mthoodvillagerv.com/) that match most of our necessities and even had a couple of extras that we hadn’t considered after we initially began trying. The resort is situated about one hour exterior of Portland, OR and provides a number of facilities in addition to a detailed proximity to Mt. Hood Nationwide Forest. The resort itself is gated with a passcode to enter, provides a restaurant, pool, sizzling tub, sauna, trendy bathhouses, a playground, river entry, and trails that result in a state recreation web site subsequent door! You possibly can even lease out the clubhouse rooms for personal occasions and events at no additional cost. There’s a small campground retailer on web site, dumpsters in each loop, and a number of other various kinds of websites to select from. Mt. Hood RV Village is a part of the Encore addition to Thousand Trails memberships, so we had stayed on the campground beforehand and knew we’d discover it to really feel like residence.
We haven’t traveled as a lot with the RV since getting our annual web site, however we all know we are going to sooner or later. For the previous couple of years, now we have gotten to know and love our mountain city. We have now expanded our small enterprise by means of our neighborhood connections. We continuously take weekends away at AirBnBs, do lengthy day journeys to the coast and have even pushed throughout the nation with out our fifth-wheel in tow! We nonetheless see as many locations as potential, however really feel assured that we made the appropriate option to discover a home-base that works for us. If you’re serious about discovering a everlasting parking spot to your home-on-wheels, know that there are a number of choices obtainable and relaxation assured that you can see one which works for you!