Long distance and one-night stays

[caranoel]

We have pulled from Boston to Michigan before, but stopped at a hotel in New York state.

This year, we are headed to Mt. Rushmore.  From Boston, that is three good days of driving if we are lucky.

DH wants to stop in hotels, because of the set-up/ take-down time involved.  That could mean 250-300 dollars worth of hotels each way.

I'd prefer to use a campground if we can and spend the money on things to do.

We can get the camper set up and taken down pretty quickly, but it's all the other junk that seems to take forever, like the clothes, and food, and kitchen stuff.

Looking for advice from overnighters who have successfully pulled in to a spot in the evening, popped up, slept, and been on the road early.

Many thanks!

[flyfisherman]

Back when gas was a lot more reasonable we did quite a few long distance hauls where we had to spend one or two (or three) nights enroute. For the most part we stayed at campgrounds and if a "quickie" overnighter, would do a minimal set up and remain hitched if possibe. I sleep better in the PU rather than in some strange bed in some strange motel; and that's one of the reasons I went the popup route in the first place.

When traveling try to plan ahead and have some possible campgrounds listed which are close to the main highway(s) I'm traveling. Have used K.O.A.'s which are most generally close to an expressway (sometimes too close with a lot of highway road noise) but they are not my favorite and a tad on the expensive side. Some state parks are getting expensive, too, as there are "access" fees plus the site rent.  State forest campgrounds on the other hand are less in rent and have not heard of any access fees so far. But my numer one choice is the  national forest campgrounds.

Here's a great site for NFS C/G's ~

http://www.forestcamping.com/dow/list/nflist.htm

[dkutz]

We have pulled from Boston to Michigan before, but stopped at a hotel in New York state.

This year, we are headed to Mt. Rushmore.  From Boston, that is three good days of driving if we are lucky.

DH wants to stop in hotels, because of the set-up/ take-down time involved.  That could mean 250-300 dollars worth of hotels each way.

I'd prefer to use a campground if we can and spend the money on things to do.

We can get the camper set up and taken down pretty quickly, but it's all the other junk that seems to take forever, like the clothes, and food, and kitchen stuff.

Looking for advice from overnighters who have successfully pulled in to a spot in the evening, popped up, slept, and been on the road early.

Many thanks!

Good question, been thinking about the same thing for our trip to Santa Cruz this summer.  Anyone have input?  Cheap motel or CG?  WHich works better

[weathertop]

We can get the camper set up and taken down pretty quickly, but it's all the other junk that seems to take forever, like the clothes, and food, and kitchen stuff.

We use the pop up for quick overnight stays on longer trips and we

[kjcamper]

We have pulled from Boston to Michigan before, but stopped at a hotel in New York state.

This year, we are headed to Mt. Rushmore.  From Boston, that is three good days of driving if we are lucky.

DH wants to stop in hotels, because of the set-up/ take-down time involved.  That could mean 250-300 dollars worth of hotels each way.

I'd prefer to use a campground if we can and spend the money on things to do.

We can get the camper set up and taken down pretty quickly, but it's all the other junk that seems to take forever, like the clothes, and food, and kitchen stuff.

Looking for advice from overnighters who have successfully pulled in to a spot in the evening, popped up, slept, and been on the road early.

Many thanks!

Plan your trip carefully to take advantage of State campgrounds as they are the cheapest places to stay. AAA travel sight on the web is a good place to plan your trip as it lists AAA approved places to stay and sights along with gas stations and pricing for everything, plus mileage between stops. One note on seeing Mt. Rushmore, don't go when the Harley Riders gather in Sturgis. Campgrounds are full, long lines for everything, including seeing Mt. Rushmore. I accidentally did that once when we decided to drive from Denver up to South Dakota once. We pack all of our "needed extras" in clear plastic bins and they get stored outside under the camper, this way it takes minutes to set up. I pack the cooler with minimal items to get us through the travel part, I do cook on sight as that takes less time then eating at restaurant. I don't use the refrigerator until we get to final destination, one less thing to deal with and it saves propane and/or battery. Have fun!

[AZsix]

That is the one down side of pups IMO. They aren't really made for long trips when staying one night in places. However, set up doesn't take all that long. You can have dinner, relax a little, get to bed early, have a simple breakfast that requires little preparation and cleanup and get on the road early saving some money. Keep your clothes that you'll need in one overnight bag so you don't have to unpack a lot from the tv.

I think it's really whatever your personal preferences are. If you don't mind spending the extra money for motels and meals it would definitely be quicker and easier.

[erich0521]

Weathertop has some good ideas.

1. Keep as much packed in the TV as possible.  You don't want to have to unload a lot of stuff in the PUP then have to reload it the next am.
2. overnight bag is a great idea.
3. We tend to keep our beds made with blankets/sleeping bags (our pup will close with that amt of stuff on the beds fine) so that getting ready for bed is easy.
4. I like the idea of just pulling your TV up a foot or two so that hitching in the morning is easy.  Our front bed will not pull out all the way if the TV is hooked up.
5. We also will eat perhaps fast food for dinner or at least something very easy such as soup/sandwiches.  I don't like to have much clean up.
6. I probably drive less miles if staying in the PUP given I don't really like setting up after dark.  If I really am driving a LONG way for the day I'd opt for a hotel.
7. Don't set up awning/screen rooms, etc.  Wanting to make for an easy leave in the am.
8. Breakfast again is simple such as donuts (gosh my eating habits are BAD) :eyecrazy:   But toast, juice, etc. can be done easily.
9. Although I hate paper plates I carry some just for this type of thing so that it's just dump them in the trash in the am.

I like national forests and SPs as they tend to be quieter but I've stayed at a KOA or something similar while travelling.  Do some researach online before heading out and you can get a few ideas of about where you'll be stopping for the night along the way.  

The bottom line is that it is certainly doable and if you do a bit of planning you can absolutely save some $$.

[pricerj]

We travelled 3.5 weeks last summer on a cross country loop. Several destination spots and several one nighters.  

For a quick one nighter
- don't unpack everything
- dont set up the awning or patio carpet
- use the covered area outside under the pulled out bed for storage of things from the main cabin that you don't want to set up.
- treat your camper like a tent - don't hook up the water
- grab fast food instead of using cook gear at night
- grab a McMuffin & coffee on the way out after breaking camp the next morning
- buy firewood at the campground and build a campfire (its amazing how just having that fire changes the mood of one nighter - and keeps the bugs away)

It still takes a little longer (for us, 20 minutes set up & 40 minutes packing) but you save on the hotel, still get a good sleep & a shower.

[GeneF]

Several years ago we did 47 days cross country with the two kids in an 8 foot popup and a minivan.  We did three nights in a motel and three nights at a friends.  Rest was in the popup.

Each of us was allowed one dufflebag plus the kids were allowed one backpack for games, books, etc.  these we kept in the back of the minivan.  Just made it a lot easier not having to move all that stuff around when setting up.  We had a small storage cabinat that I put in some winter clothing like jackets and gloves.  Glad we did as it got down into the 30's in Yellowstone in July.  Only time we needed them but glad I had tucked them away.

Once at a campground, each of us had assigned tasks and setup was done in no time.  DD was 6 and DS 11.  Sure it was slower when we started but we got real good as time went on.  

Breakfast was generally cereal in paper bowls to save time on cleanup.  Mom and Dad could get a cup of coffee at the camground office.

When we travel, we generally like to pull into a cg before 5.  Reason, everybody else seems to want to pull into a cg at 5.  We generally start thinking about a cg around 3 pm.  DW will look into Woodalls, pick out a couple of cg's and calls ahead to make a ressie on the cell phone.  Although not my favorite, KOA's are pretty standard and clean.

We have also found that buffet's are generally as good a deal if not better than MacDonalds.  Example is the Golden Corrals.  Lunch menu is about $6.50.  This way, everyone can find something that they like.  

Of course you never really know what you will be getting into.  We stopped at Terry's Bison Ranch CG in Wyoming one time.  Nice cg except for the interstate, railroad tracks and airport traffic next to the cg.  Just have to keep a sense of humor.  Place did have a good restaurant.

You may want to add Crazy Horse to your itinerary.  Been there twice.

I don't know how long you have for this trip but about the best advice I can give you is to not cram your itinerary so full that you won't have time to stop and experience the unexpected.  Lots of places will crop up along your route that will be worth a stop.

Have a fun time.

[CajunCamper]

Lots of good ideas here. When the boys were young we towed our pop up with a fill size conversion van. For the quick overnight stay, we would pull into a KOA or any campground we could find and just park and sleep in the van. My wife and I would sleep on the fold out bed and the boys would recline the captains chairs all the way and sleep in them. In the morning I would wake up early and start driving looking for a Cracker Barrel along the way to stop and eat breakfast.

When we started using an SUV to tow the pop up , we still pull into a KOA and perform a minimal set up taking maybe 10 minutes with a 10 minute to brake camp in the morning. For me I find it takes as long to check into a hotel and get up to the room and settle in as it does to set up in a campground. In the morning I find it takes longer to check out of a hotel than it does to brake camp and drive out of the campground.

Sandwiches for dinner and cereal for breakfast also keeps cost down and saves time as well.

Go to KOA's website and find campgrounds along your route, thet're usually very close to the interstate exits. This is the only time we use a KOA by the way, but they do come in handy for one night stays.

CajunCamper

[Craigtheretired]

We drove from Fort Wayne to Mt. Rushmore in June, 2008.  We left at 0400 and made our first overnight stop at the KOA in West Des Moines, Ia.  Second stop was at the KOA in Sioux Falls, SD for two nights.  Third stop was the KOA at Hot Springs, SD just outside of Rushmore which we made our headquarters for the week.  The weather east of Sioux Falls was horrendous, but we managed to arrive and depart between storms.  We needed two nights at Sioux Falls as our borrowed truck had electrical problems which needed to be fixed before heading into any mountains, (lost the trailer brakes).  The entire Rushmore area was jammed with people so we were unable to make reservations anywhere except KOA.  We prefer KOA camping when we are making long trips.  My camping history on the KOA website says we have stayed at 57 KOAs for a total of 119 nights.  When we camp in state or national  parks or forests we stay for at least a week in each.  Texas has some truly great state parks.

[suprz]

all very good advice!   I too have been thinking about taking the PUP to Rushmore and Crazy Horse.   I think i would do the "fast food" before the campground, or sandwiches in the cooler, and something light for breakfast, and just treat the PUP like a tent. minimal set up, just pop her up and pull out the beds and sleep.   in the morning, tear down, and beat feet outta there to the next stop.  

[4Campers]

If you don't mind stopping early every day to set up, everyone here has good suggestions. Setting up in the dark is hard, but remember in the summer it won't get dark until 9-10 PM. If you have reservations, then pulling in at 7-8 would be OK. Typically I like to get to where I'm going and will drive until dark or later, then stop and motel it for the night. However we usually only have one night in the hotel on any trip. When the kids were little, it was tough enough travelling for all the potty stops and let them get out and burn off some energy stops. Guess that's why I drove so late, maybe hoping they would fall asleep and I could drive with some peace & quiet for an hour or so. Anyway, planning will be your key. Just don't schedule your nightly stops too far apart or too close together. Plan for the unexpected too, flat tires or mechanical problems and you won't reach your destination on time or until dark. If you travel during the week, almost any campground will have a spot available for the night, so reservations may not be necessary, and money won't be wasted if you don't make it on time to one. And the best suggestion is: Avoid the Sturgis area during the bikers rally. Not that you'll have problems with the bikers, but way too crowded everywhere. Have a Great Trip!

[Cat]

Hello-I try to take a month every year and go across country. This was the first  year I did it in a pop-up. (7K miles, 30 days round-trip.)Towing with a Toyota Tacoma with no bed cap on it, I packed one carry on size suit case and put it in a large trash bag when traveling for weather, a cooler in the truck and the dry food stored in the camper. Our first destination was Yellowstone from Florida. So we had many one nighters. Mostly stayed at KOA's on the road. They're dependable and seem to be everywhere off the interstate. We had the camper packed so nothing was in the floor ways except a mattress topper and a large (2 person) size sleeping bag and the dry food box. All the bedding just flopped into place. Very easy. I timed the entire set-up at 15 min.! I have a Fleetwood and they are famous for their quick and easy set up systems. All I would need to grab out of the truck was my one bag. Planned easy meals. Pulled the TV just far enough up to unhitch. Yes, it may be a little bit more work then a TT but I got 18-22MPG towing w/ a 2.7L Tacoma all over the country. (You could've passed me on a bicycle going up some mountains!) But it was worth it. Although on the final return trip home I opted for a 'rent-a-room' after a couple of very long driving days but I do not like hotel rooms, they skeeve me out! I would much rather be in my own camper any night. (And rather be in a respectable campground, you never know who's doing what in the room next door, or for that matter, the room you're IN...Ewww!) Anyway, I suggest anytime you're able to hit the road, DO IT! Have fun...

Home is where you hook-up!

[Dray]

Some of the California State Parks have something called "en route" camping.  There are certain restrictions, like having a self contained camper and you have to leave by 9 am.  It's a cool thing to offer those who are just in need of someplace to sleep for the night.  I think you end up in the parking lot and still pay the full price.