Do you keep abreast of changing climatic conditions? Here’s what several FMCA members had to say in response to this month’s question:
How do you monitor severe weather while you are traveling in the motorhome or parked at a campsite?
I have a weather “app” on my smartphone that can pick up emergency broadcasts as I’m traveling. It also shows me the radar weather. I was traveling through Nebraska when a tornado warning was heard, and the weather was bad. Many drivers pulled off the interstate, as did I, to look for shelter. I saw a motel office that was in a brick building, so we went inside and waited the storm out. Before I had the smartphone app, I would bring along a weather radio and program it for the campground, if we were staying at one for a few days. I’ve even seen some campgrounds that provide instructions on what to do in the event of severe weather (location of shelters, etc.).
Tony Trimarco, F408182
Grand Forks, North Dakota
As full-time RVers, we monitor the weather while traveling or staying at a campsite by using NOAA Weather Radar (http://radar.weather.gov/). You can pull up any sector in the country and zero in on a specific area. By clicking the “loop,” it will show the moving radar and any bad weather that may be moving in. We also keep track of the name of the county we are traveling through as well.
Bernadette Berland, F270976
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
To keep an eye on the weather, we tie a Redneck Weather Rope just outside our sliding dinette window and monitor as follows:
If the rope is:
Wet . . . it’s raining
Moving . . . it’s windy
Hot . . . it’s sunny
Cool . . . it’s cloudy
Stiff . . . it’s cold
White . . . it’s snowing
Gone . . . get out of the motorhome and take shelter!
Chris and Jean Christensen, F420774
Fort Myers Beach, Florida
Future questions:
1. What is the most unusual or intriguing tourist attraction you have visited?
2. How do you practice the custom of leaving a campsite, campground, or other place you visit better than when you arrived?