Truck stop question

[bergeman]

Originally Posted by travelin' texans

Not questioning your choice, but you have beautiful RW & would rather pay $100+ to stay in a motel instead of $40 in a rv park & sleep in your own bed???

I have stayed at Hotels and Waysides. For me, it's trying to cover a lot of miles, quickly. With a Hotel, I can check in after midnight.

I made it back to Arlington, TX from the Rally in one shot. If I had gotten tired I would have stopped at a Hotel or Wayside. My personal rule is a Hotel if before 1am, Wayside if after 1am.

Which leads to my question, what is the latest you can go into a campground? I'm thinking 9PM but probably not 1AM?

[Ford truck guy]

Originally Posted by bergeman

I have stayed at Hotels and Waysides. For me, it's trying to cover a lot of miles, quickly. With a Hotel, I can check in after midnight.

I made it back to Arlington, TX from the Rally in one shot. If I had gotten tired I would have stopped at a Hotel or Wayside. My personal rule is a Hotel if before 1am, Wayside if after 1am.

Which leads to my question, what is the latest you can go into a campground? I'm thinking 9PM but probably not 1AM?

I have not seen a cut-off time for arrivals in campgrounds.... I do see night check in maps and drop boxes... I guess that I am oblivious to what goes on
around the park after 1am unless it is on my site . .

[mhs4771]

We want to be parked well before dark, don't care much for night time driving any more. Trust me, if you're trying to get into a spot in a CG that late at night you won't make any friends and might even have someone calling the Cops thinking someones trying to steal an RV.
I would risk staying in a Rest Area or Walmart before a Motel. I know who slept in the RW bed last, have no idea on the Motel room bed. And pre RW when we were showing our Cats every weekend and staying in Motel/Hotels we found some pretty scary things under beds and some pretty sad looking bed spreads, not to mention the stains that could be found on sheets sometimes.

[5th_Time]

Wow, this is a big topic. I think it's almost impossible to adhoc stay at an unknown campground enroute, that isn't full, that accomodates RW-size rigs, especially after dark, office closed, without a site map and you're pulling in to setup at 1:00AM.

Facing that, the scary Truck Stop experience Steve had might be the only thing viable - unless you pass a random Walmart on your way to the Truck Stop.

My problem with WM overnight is that rigs look really vulnerable sitting out in middle of that parking lot.

[spindrift]

Originally Posted by mhs4771

I know who slept in the RW bed last, have no idea on the Motel room bed. And pre RW when we were showing our Cats every weekend and staying in Motel/Hotels we found some pretty scary things under beds and some pretty sad looking bed spreads, not to mention the stains that could be found on sheets sometimes.

You've just made it very difficult for me to travel.

[bergeman]

Maybe the rule of thumb for most campground is to pull in before "quiet time" starts.

[piper guy]

I would say pulling in before 10:00 pm at the latest would be a good rule. I know I would not be happy if it was midnight or later and someone pulled in next to me and woke me up. Guaranteed dog would not be happy either .......

[RWJSIM2003]

When we had the MH Walmart never bothered us. We did not put slides out and no jacks down if needed we could put key in and drive off quickly. With RW that is not possible so we do not say in Walmarts now while on the road.

[johnboytoo]

If someone pulls in late,
I would hope you understand that not ALL are retired and can get there by dark....
and maybe not ALL have had a perfect trip - sometimes things delay you and you have to come in late...

That's part of the reason we LOVE to leave the bedroom air on so it will at least drown out most of the sharp noises that way we've been known to sleep through things that might disturb others

[Ford truck guy]

Originally Posted by johnboytoo

If someone pulls in late,
I would hope you understand that not ALL are retired and can get there by dark....
and maybe not ALL have had a perfect trip - sometimes things delay you and you have to come in late...

That's part of the reason we LOVE to leave the bedroom air on so it will at least drown out most of the sharp noises that way we've been known to sleep through things that might disturb others

Funny you say that... There was a time that we would leave for vacation from PA to FL after I got home from work on a Friday at 5pm . we would drive as far as we could before finding a campground... For a 1 week trip... ( they say "anything to keep the kids happy") ??
Thankfully those days are behind us now , and we have the ability to improvise better in advance and pre plan our departures better!

[travelin' texans]

Originally Posted by bergeman

I have stayed at Hotels and Waysides. For me, it's trying to cover a lot of miles, quickly. With a Hotel, I can check in after midnight.

I made it back to Arlington, TX from the Rally in one shot. If I had gotten tired I would have stopped at a Hotel or Wayside. My personal rule is a Hotel if before 1am, Wayside if after 1am.

Which leads to my question, what is the latest you can go into a campground? I'm thinking 9PM but probably not 1AM?

I'm a bit slow so please define "Wayside".
I also would think 10pm would be about as late as you'd want to arrive. Also leaving early can be annoying also. The last 2 mornings we've had MHs next to us that fire up at the crack of dawn and between the idling for 30 minutes, smell of diesel exhaust fumes, diesel exhaust noise, hollering back & forth, & their dogs barking under our bedroom slide, the fan wasn't making enough noise to drown out all the ruckus, I wish they would have stayed at a hotel.

[bergeman]

Originally Posted by travelin' texans

I'm a bit slow so please define "Wayside".
I also would think 10pm would be about as late as you'd want to arrive. Also leaving early can be annoying also. The last 2 mornings we've had MHs next to us that fire up at the crack of dawn and between the idling for 30 minutes, smell of diesel exhaust fumes, diesel exhaust noise, hollering back & forth, & their dogs barking under our bedroom slide, the fan wasn't making enough noise to drown out all the ruckus, I wish they would have stayed at a hotel.

Wayside is another name for rest stop. Maybe a term I learned from childhood.

[5th_Time]

Danny, you're lucky they drove away. Many times, people make all that noise and end up as your neighbors for a week...

[mhs4771]

Don't you just love it, when they fire up the DP and they haven't even started to pick a thing up yet. So it sits there idling while they dump the tanks, pick the hoses, put away chairs, then they finally get to the point of pulling in the slides, now disconnect the power cord, then finally pull out to stop right in front of you site and proceed to hookup their Toad which take some 15 to 20 minutes. Just gotta love it.........NOT

OOPS, I guess we're getting way of the topic of Truck Stops

[piper guy]

Michelle - that's why God invented dogs that can walk around to their side and look really mean. Course in our case it's definitely all bark, the grey cat is much more aggressive when he wants to be !

[Dave&Ginny]

I've stayed at many rest areas without any issues but I also don't look like an easy target. I am prepared if things go bad. I usually don't like arriving past 9pm at camp grounds and the diesel doesn't idle more than a few minutes which was the same with the F350. Other than the air brakes, the coach is quieter than I was with the 5th wheel.

[spindrift]

Originally Posted by mhs4771

Don't you just love it, when they fire up the DP and they haven't even started to pick a thing up yet. So it sits there idling while they dump the tanks, pick the hoses, put away chairs, then they finally get to the point of pulling in the slides, now disconnect the power cord, then finally pull out to stop right in front of you site and proceed to hookup their Toad which take some 15 to 20 minutes. Just gotta love it.........NOT

OOPS, I guess we're getting way of the topic of Truck Stops

Personally, I love the DP guys who just can't seem to be able to feather their throttle properly through the campground. Speed up, hit the air brakes, SWOOSH!, speed up, hit the air brakes, SWOOSH!...all the way through the place. Hilarious!

[RCAircraft]

Originally Posted by travelin' texans

Not questioning your choice, but you have beautiful RW & would rather pay $100+ to stay in a motel instead of $40 in a rv park & sleep in your own bed???

Great point however $100/night is more like $175-250/night. We plan ahead and book motels with large rig parking however when the unexpected happens and it is late at night we run the white flag up the pole and crash at a Flying J (three times in five years). Our preference is a nice hotel with a great dining room located within sight of the interstate highway. We don't carry any food in our RW and travel with the refrigerator off and defrosted. It is less hassle for us to stop at a suitable hotel than set up in a RV for one night at a RV park/campground which could be some distance off the interstate for large rigs. We have overnight bags prepacked in the truck so when we park at the motel we grab the small overnight bags and check in within minutes of parking. It would be nice to use the RW to save the lodging and food expenses however it could add more time and hassle to the trip. We budget $600/per day for road expenses which includes fuel, service, food and lodging. Sightseeing/RX's and other stuff are extra. If time is an issue we fly and then rent a car. The daily cost can really jump for this flying scenario and is is nowhere as fun as RV'ing with our Redwood (once we arrive at our destination).

[5th_Time]

You're traveling in style Bob... Yes, hotels even higher up here.

[atom ant]

At the State Parks we go to, they will hold the reserved campsite through the night, but if you are no show by morning you lose the rest of the reservation.

We have people pulling in all hours of the night at the lake, and after 35 years of going there I'm OK with it. I was young once - get off work early at 4:00, tear home and throw the last things in the camper, hook up the boat, grab the babies, and off you go to hit holiday traffic, only to have one of the parties in your caravan get a flat or breakdown. All in fun.

As far as diesel noise, I try my best to limit the time, but I do start it to bring in the slides and raise the jacks, and by then the air is up and off I go. Probably less time than what it took to hook up the diesel truck to the trailer, but this one is probably much louder.