Thanks to trial and error, seasoned motorhomers know the travel routine. This month several readers join the following discussion:
Complete this sentence: “Don’t leave home without _____ when you go motorhoming.”
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I don’t leave home without my husband. I am handicapped and walk with a cane, and he makes my RV travel so enjoyable and secure. He takes care of the outside hookups, and I do the slideouts and inside chores. When driving long distances, we take turns behind the wheel so that the driver can rest. It’s a beautiful world we live in, and we enjoy being together to share our many travels. Fueling up in a busy truck stop is not easy for me, so I let him do the honors, and, yes, he also pays our diesel fuel bill. That makes me glad that I didn’t leave home without him!
Arlene Chiarolanzio, F181694
Florham Park, New Jersey
Don’t leave home without lots of patience when you go motorhoming . . . patience to handle bad weather, road construction, mechanical difficulties, flat tires, coach interior problems, bad fuel, full campgrounds, lack of communication. I say to myself, “In the overall scheme of things, will this matter?” Usually I can answer, “No, it won’t.” So I just go with the flow.
Polly Holmes, F323788
Mountain Home, Texas
“Stop!” He never responded so fast to my command. It sounded desperate. It was. We were leaving a campground in our brand-new motorhome, across a small bridge with a sign very close to the edge. In the side mirror I spotted the bedroom slide. . . out! We missed the bridge railing — the slideout was too high. The sign barely scraped the slide awning, leaving a slight mark that later rubbed off. After we stopped shaking, we sat down and wrote out a checklist — more complete than the simple one we already had. We posted it on the refrigerator, promised ourselves that we would never leave any parked position before we had checked the list, and walked around the exterior to be sure we were safe. We learned a valuable lesson: Don’t rely on memory; distractions can lead to disaster. We never leave home without checking the list, and we update it as necessary.
Billie Torbeck, F236771
Largo, Florida
Don’t leave home without passports when you go motorhoming! We live 40 miles from Mexico, so passports reside in our car’s glove box. This past January we left for the Western Area Rally in Indio, California, after lunch because of a morning of meetings. I looked over at my wife as we left Tucson driving north and, since she was napping and as I was also tired, I pulled over for a nap myself — the wonderful thing about traveling with your bed! Upon awakening, we realized we’d forgotten our passports. After a 45-mile return trip, we were off again. As a side trip on our travels to Indio and the Western Area Rally, we go into Algodones, our favorite Mexican town, every year. But we always like to come back into the United States. Don’t forget your passports!
Steve Ault, F106024
Green Valley, Arizona
Don’t leave home without packing enough food. A few years back at Christmastime, we camped with two other couples at Skidaway Island State Park, just outside of Savannah, Georgia. The other couples go out for meals and usually pack only snacks. On Christmas Eve we all headed for Savannah and arrived at Paula Deen’s restaurant by 9:00 a.m. to sign up for lunch or dinner. We discovered that Savannah businesses, including restaurants, close on Christmas Eve and don’t reopen until December 26. Thank goodness we had packed plenty of food. When we returned to the campground, our friends started a nice fire, and we cooked hot dogs and burgers and had a wonderful Christmas Eve. We even found a nice church to attend that evening. On Christmas Day, I cooked spaghetti. Even now, when we take off for our summer trip, every available space in the motorhome is packed with food. We don’t leave home without it!
Rick & Travis O’Leary, F406519
Haines City, Florida
Future questions:
1. What strategy can you suggest to keep motorhomers on the road despite rising fuel costs?
2. FMCA’s 87th Family Reunion & Motorhome Showcase takes place in Indianapolis, Indiana, this August. What are some must-see stops in the area?
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