So this is paradise, eh? Well, if your idea of paradise is parked in a crammed, dumpy RV “resort” for a whopping $40 a night, where you are so close to the next RV that you can’t roll out your awning, where you have snotty French Canadian neighbors that refuse to say hello or make eye contact, then Paradise RV Resort in Fort Lauderdale is for you!
We’re always on the lookout for remote off-the-grid state and national parks where we can boondock, but have had a hard time finding any since we left Wisconsin’s tornado country.
It seems like there was never a problem finding cool places to boondock out West. We often went without hookups in California, Utah and Colorado. But even here in the middle of the Okefenokee Swamp we have water, power, paved roads and a few neighbors.
Seems that many folks aren’t aware that there are quite a few places where an RVer can park the rig overnight for free. No hookups of course, but when you’re pooped out after a long day of driving, anything can look like the Hilton. And you can’t beat the price.
WalMart is known for being nice to RVers and allowing them to park overnight. Good capitalists that they are, they figure that most overnighters will shop there too, so why not let ‘em. A word of caution, more and more locations are banning this practice due to long term campers checking in. Check for listings of WalMarts that don’t allow camping.
We had not tried boondocking in a parking lot until just recently, when we were halfway to Appalachia. The reason is because until now it had been too hot, and since we don’t have an internal generator, we aren’t able to run the air conditioner. Now it’s getting cold (really cold) here in the East, so we were willing to give it a shot. Here’s what we discovered: (more…)
There’s nothing like a good dose of yard work to reaffirm one’s choice to live a simpler life on the road. But it was the least we could do. After camping out in my sister’s yard for over a week, I figured I could at least mow their lawn to show my appreciation. Besides, René had already provided some pretty good housekeeping a couple times already. It was my turn.
When we embarked on this trip, I often imagined kicking back in my hammock with my Powerbook and enjoying my new office. Well, the first couple times that I have actually strung up the thing I ended up not spending any time in it at all. If my hammock time wasn’t called on account of rain, there was either too much on my RV honey do list or simply too much of the outdoors to go enjoy.
I am now happy to say that my vision has finally come true. The view from my new office is well worth the wait. The only thing missing is our internet connection.
But yesterday, my birthday, was a long driving day, full of wrong turns, close calls with construction barricades, backtracking, and hot sweaty weather. So after about 4.5 hours of driving, we caved in and parked for the night in Somerset, just inside the Wisconsin border across from the Twin Cities, where stripmalls meet farmland, and sports bars are the only entertainment.
Worked most of the day yesterday, finally developing our long-awaited road trip soundtrack page – complete with lyrics to classic travel tunes we’ve deemed appropriate for our trip, local radio stations that have stuck on our dial, and interesting internet radio streams.
But I couldn’t leave Devil’s Tower without a report of this awesome place I’ve always wanted to visit. OK, technically, I did leave since I’m writing this from our new home for the week at Whistler Gulch Campground in Deadwood South Dakota. But I digress…
Traveling across Wyoming, we saw numerous signs stressing that we were in cattle country. As if all the herds weren’t enough to indicate such. As a vegetarian, René was especially amused by the billboards boldy telling us to “Eat Beef!” Personally, I took it as a sign to seek out and grill a great big Wyoming steak. And of course, I would just have to do my best Richard Dreyfus impression by sculpting a replica of the Bear’s Lodge from my mashed potatoes.
After a long day of driving, the last thing you want to hear is that the only campground in a small town is booked. But of course, that’s exactly what we were told when we called the KOA in Devils Tower, WY at 4;30 pm on a Monday. We were only about 50 miles from the KOA, and they are the only game in town. Not wanting to boondock at a rest area on I-90, we pulled out our Woodall’s Directory and found a small listing for Keyhole State Park, about 35 miles away.
The Eastern Wyoming countryside approaching Keyhole is dry, scrubby and blazing hot. Keyhole State Park is a reservoir (really, really low right now), in the middle of dry high country. We weren’t expecting much, just a spot for the night that would be better than the dumpy “RV Park” we saw in Moorcroft, the nearest town to Devils Tower.
We pulled up, tired and hungry and expecting a low quality experience. But what we are learning most on this trip is, don’t assume before you get somewhere, and open your eyes before drawing any conclusions on a place. We were relieved when we arrived at Keyhole.
For just $12 a night, you get:
huge, shady, level RV spots
no hookups, but there’s drinking water (you pump it )
clean, new restrooms
walking distance to the lakeshore
big new picnic tables
walking / bike paths
a gorgeous prairie and waterfront view
Keyhole is well worth the 9 mile detour off I-90. If all of Wyoming’s state parks are this nice, we are impressed. In comparison to the California State Park System (sorry Ranger Mike and Cindi), Wyoming’s parks rank high above the $20-something a night, no-hookup spots we had in CA, where you have to make reservations six months ahead of time and solitude is impossible because campers are crammed right next to each other.
If you’re in a tight spot on the way to Devils Tower or the Dakotas, be sure to make Keyhole State Park a stop. You won’t regret it.
Arizona’s canyon lands, painted dessert and red rock buttes are beautiful sights to be seen and appreciated. That being said, I am happy to say I can check that area off my list of potential places to plant permanent roots. I’ll never say never, but the heat and local societal attitude that I encountered – yes, first impressions do count in my book – throughout Northern Arizona put it on a back burner for now, quite literally.
Whether it’s the weather change, the incredible drive through Monument Valley, or today’s office view of the canyon rim, or the San Juan River swim, I’m already liking things better as we head back north. Good decision to bypass Four Corners and opt for the Valley of the Gods. I will admit the direct sun may actually be just as hot, but the shade trees are better and there is a consistent awning-tolerable cool breeze off the river.
The heat over the past week in Flagstaff was much drier, but the saying “It’s a dry heat,” means nothing when everything is just so hot, dusty, and well, dry. The dirt here from the Southern Utah canyons, however, is much more like sand – course with the multicolored crumbles of this land’s distant past.
It was wonderful to visit with the Agredanos. It is always a pleasure to share good times with them, and I’m glad to have finally seen Jerome with Raul and the Douglas Mansion Museum at the site where his father was a copper miner. A good time was had, hopefully by all. But it feels good to be back on the road. There’s much catching up to do with pictures, videos, and tales of our recent adventures. Stay tuned… Now that we have seen everyone on our agenda for a while and over a month has passed since we officially started our full-time RV adventure, it’s time to get back to work. Life is hard. Life is good. Enjoy it. Thus is the essence of my live/work dream.
, it is recommended that you stay away from any RV parks with the word “Resort” in the name. Should you see that word, rest assured, you will pay a lot more money than any nearby campground, just for some amenities.
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