Colorado - RV’s. Fifth Wheels, Trailers, A-Class and sometimes a Super C

 I hate to admit it but I am turning into an even more curious soul then I used to be. As my Uncle George used to say ‘we are not nosy, we are curious’ 😉

My love now when walking the pups, which happens about 4 times a day, is to check out other peoples RV’s. In the campground there are in the majority 5th Wheels, actually every campground we have been in they seem to rule. After that it is travel trailers, followed by A-Class. What you rarely see is what we have, a Super C. Last week one came in the campground but before I was able to make contact to a fellow ‘group’ member they left after just one night. How rude 😉

We consider ourselves as pretty large with our 40 feet but I can tell you we are being put in place by many of the 5th wheels that are here. Just a couple of days ago we watched a guy back in a 43 foot long in just two tries, without a back-in camera. I tell you I so want to sit in a lawn chair and watch people arriving and setting up or getting ready to leave. Such entertainment I can’t even express how much fun it is. Well not sure if it’s just about not much else happening but it is fun. 

Yesterday we started chatting with our immediate neighbors who have an amazing setup. They are 47’ feet long with a garage at the back that turns into a balcony if not used as a ramp. Very cool and makes for a long and high fifth wheel. They just came from Louisiana where they stayed at a very nice campground right by the beach. She is a environmental scientist who works out of the RV and her husband works in construction. Very fascinating people.

Then I saw a ‘new’ retro trailer. It looks like it was build in the 50’s but is brand new with all the trimmings. It’s the couples first trailer and they are trying it out. It’s a good campground for this as it has large spaces to practice parking.

We are now on our second week here. We most likely will be here for another week. I tried very hard to find us a new campground up around Denver but it wasn’t to be. On another note that is okay. We still have things we can do here. Ron has a few appointments left and to be honest, while we would love to have new scenery there are benefits to this campground. The people that run it are wonderful. I love talking to them and they make me laugh. Oh and every Friday they hand out very yummy donuts from a local little shop that operates close by. So there is that 😂

It sounds like a cliche but every situations is a good as what you make of it. So I will go back being the campgrounds curious soul that loves watching people and sometime talking to them.

Who We Are: Full Time RV Travelers, Big Rig Gypsies….

 This time I want to give a shout-out to how beneficial FB and YouTube has been to us newbies. When you start out becoming a full time RVer there are challenges everywhere but one learns that answers are always just a click away. For one we had to learn several terminologies. Being a full time RVer can for example mean several things. One are those that stay in one location, often a lot or property they bought somewhere. That even includes full time campground lots that are sold. Then there are the famous snow birds, they spend winters in the south and summers up north but only travel in between before settling in for months in a campground, often a Resort.

Much less likely to come across is the kind of full time RVers we want to be. Those that move all the time, maybe spend a week or two in one location and then move on. Never more then one month if possible. I like to call us RV Travelers. Gypsies in the original way of thinking.

But even in this there are different groupings. Those that like some luxuries as Resorts that offer pools, entertainments and of course full hookups. Then there are some who prefer some hookups or access to dump stations and water. Those are your regular campgrounds or State and National Parks. The third group loves to Boondock, that is when you go away to BLM land, national Forest etc. You have to be self reliant as in having power, water for example. You follow the creed of leave no trace as in what you bring in you take back out. Your stay depends on how long the rules allow you to camp for free. Sometimes that is 2 weeks, other times it might be 3 days. You follow the rules of the state. Our Lucy, we figure, can keep us self reliant for 7 to 14 days, depending how conservative we are with water and our power.

Ron and I are thrilled about the Boondocking options as this is what we really like to do. After that we will look for campgrounds to recharge and once in a while a Resort. However Resorts are not our first goal as there is one thing we want to avoid and that is lots of rules and restrictions. They are good to some degree but to many makes us feel like an HOA, plus of course Resorts are pricey as well so they can cost a lot.

Another reason why the Resort and Campgrounds are tricky for us is due to planning. We don’t like to plan. We want to go where our mood takes us to, also where the weather promises us to be good enough to travel in. Campgrounds and Resorts require planning as many of them, including National and State Parks, can book or sell out one year in advance. Not an option for us at all.

Then comes another group definition. We belong to a group that calls themselves ‘Big Rigs’, meaning you are traveling in a sizable set up. In our case Lucy at 40 feet, Lou at 20 feet and add the hitch we are looking at 63 to 65 feet we need when driving and parking. We are 12’8” high and 8 feet wide. Our mapping relies on a Garmin RV GPS, plus several other Apps as in ‘Hammer’ for example as well as the Randy McNally Trucker Maps. It’s a big Atlas that we were told to carry but have not used yet. However we learned if you venture out into desolate places like Death Valley the last thing you want to rely on is electronics so this Atlas is going with us.

So now under that umbrella of Full Time RVers we fit into a much smaller but very wonderful grouping:

We are RV Travelers, in a Big Rig that prefers to Boondock as well as use some state or COE Parks if we can fit.

My biggest help has come from some wonderful friends and family that has had experience in this but also from Facebook. We are members of the following:

Renegade Valencia/Verona/Explorer Owners Group, as well as Renegade Motorcoach Owner Group so we can get technical advice. No matter what questions I asked so far the group members are awesome. You always get wonderful advice in a very friends setting (like my induction cooktop challenge).

Next comes the following groups that keep our dream alive as the members in those are the spirits I love and adore:

Big Rig RV Boondocking

Boondocking for Big Rigs

RV Boondocking

Boondockers Welcome

Big Rig RV

RV Parks for Big Rigs Review

Big Rig Campgrounds and Parks

Fulltime RV’ers and Dreamers

RVing Full-Time with Pets

After loving on those pages and asking a few questions I met several couples that fit our grouping that are YouTubers and now I get to follow their adventures on YouTube. What I love about that is that one young couple is so inspiring in choosing this life at a younger age and embracing it. Both are photographers and their images are incredible and can probably be found in National Geographic’s. Those two Boondock in the most beautiful places with their ‘big rig’ as in a pickup and very long fifth wheel. They also have two pups traveling with them.

The other couple is closer to our age and I love them as they are adventures and have an even bigger rig then what we have. They have a semi truck that holds their smart car plus a huge fifth wheel. What I truly appreciate about them is that the places they go to we can add to our to do list. If they fit so will we.

So the internet has been a true friend of mine these past two months. While we are still stuck in limbo I am documenting and organizing locations and places. So when we are set free we have probably several years of destinations already set up. In that regard we are planning just not in the traditional way…..

Induction Stove Challenge

 Ah I recall how thrilled I was when I initially learned we would have an induction cooktop in our Lucy. I also loved the pots and pan set my husband gifted me. That was until I realized only the two big pans and one large pot worked. My little pan and pot did not. At first I thought to blame the cookware until I researched it (thank you youtube) and it turns out our cooktop does not have enough sensors to recognize the little ones.

This is when I figured I just better get used to only using the larger pots and store or gift the little ones. However time was my friend, I have now browsed and participated in so many wonderful RV Facebook groups. The insight and advice in them is incredible. So I finally thought I ask if there was a way to fix this without having to pay way to much for a new cooktop. It turns out there is, as one wonderful human posted for me a tool that will transfer the heat to any pot or pan. May it be magnetic but to small, stainless steel or Aluminium etc etc. 

I then promptly forwarded the Amazon link to my husband and within a couple of days the UPS store handed me my ‘gift’.

This morning I cooked our first eggs in the little pan and I am thrilled I did not give them away. Honestly, with everything I have faced in life one would think I know by now that every problem has a solution. We might not always like the solution but there always is one, but this one I love.

Colorado Residents… At least for 1 More Year.

 Today was an incredible productive day as we knew we needed to get our butts in gear and get Rosalina, Lucy & Lou registered. The reason for the delay came due to us planning initially to get our home base in Texas. We had everything moving in that direction as the recommendation for full time RVers is to claim either TX, FL or SD as home bases due to them being RV friendly. Our miscalculation came when we learned a tad late that in Texas you are required to have all your vehicles inspected every year. Well, that just doesn’t work for us as we are not worried about them being road ready or safe but we sure don’t want to be locked into having to be in Texas every single year at the same time. So that left us now with FL or SD, but also our time was running out as all three needed to be either renewed or registers. 

So hence the second big reason why we headed back to CO. Here we are still considered residents as of course we paid our taxes, have a P.O. Box and our Drivers-licenses, plus Insurance as well. So to Fairplay we went today, a beautiful 1 1/2 hour drive one way. The best part and what I am most proud of is how I had all the paperwork lined up and how smooth and efficient the process went. Now all three have registration stickers, two have new license plates and two new titles. We are ready to move under the Colorado Banner for one more year. Now after that we have some research to do. I admit South Dakota has a good look about it.

Our reward for getting this off our checklist was a very yummy lunch at Serrano’s in Woodland Park. Some of the best homemade Mexican food outside of Mexico in my humble opinion. So if you pass through look them up and let me know what you think. 

We made it back home to Lucy by around 2pm and just in time to get a little nap in before having coffee and cake.

Now on to our next item on the checklist….. TAXES 😱

Colorado - Stuck In Limbo

 So the good news is we are still having Lucy for now. We are however not sure for how long as we don’t know what the timeline is to order parts, get them shipped here and have the green light from the insurance. 

So yesterday morning we went back to Transwest and picked up Lou. From there we went to Peak RV Resort and booked one week for now in one of their ‘premium’ pull throughs. Now by booking the weekly rate we got a better deal but there are a few hiccups with this Resort. For one, it isn’t a Resort and advertisement can be subjective. It is a large parking lot with rows and rows of RV’s. We barely fit into our premium spot and had to unhook Lou and park her on one side so we could pull somewhat behind her to reach the hookups. There are no picnic tables on the sites, there is not much in regards to walking the dogs. Two little dog runs that neither K or O is impressed with. We can’t really walk out if the RV park as it is in the Industrial section by the airport next to a busy road. 

One of the limitations here is that your RV can not be older then 10 years and has to be self contained. The reason I think this might be as they don’t offer restrooms or showers either, only a little port a potty building. Well I am not as picky as others but heck no to using that. You better have a bathroom or two on your RV. I am glad we have two nice toilets and a great shower. Plus I used our washer and dryer several times now and they work really great!. 

So in my opinion, this will do as we are not really here to play but to get things done. We both have paperwork to do and I need to organize my office. So in a way it might be good there are no outside distractions in fun activities in a supposed Resort. However I can’t help and think it would be a lot more fun being at the KOA. Yes we had a couple of issues there as in not being able to hook up our sewer but darn the dog walking area by the river, plus the pool sound heavenly right now. 

On a bright note we did meet up with Alex yesterday for lunch. Being back in Colorado has of course the benefit of us catching back up with family and friends. Sooner then we thought but always a highlight in the end.

Colorado - Maintenance and More…..

 A long day for us Gypsies. Well we were really missing our other and very important part for those last couple of days and that of course is Lucy. To think that for so many years we loved traveling and staying in Hotels, due to work and pleasure and now we both agree we missed our cottage on wheels more then we ever imagined. None of us liked being in a hotel room, even thought I do want to give a shout out to the Micro Inn by Windham in North Fountain, CO. The staff here is beyond wonderful and attentive. We had fun conversations with the staff as we brought dinner to the hotel to be closer to our pups but also did not eat in our room but in the breakfast area by the front desk. So no complain on the service at all, it’s just that Ron, the pups and I have gotten so used to living in Lucy that we did not do well without her.

Well, after a long long day we finally got her back right when the shop closed at 5 pm. It was not however how we had hoped for. Not everything is fixed, the locks on some of the bays still don’t work, the awning now needs to be replaced which kind of took us by surprise. This will need to be ordered however. I still don’t know how to use our solar but hallelujah we did get her back so tonight we are back to sleeping in our own bed. 

The collision service guy also showed up today (45 min before closing) and he will need to order all the parts before any of the body work can be done. We have no idea how long it will take for all the parts to come in but he did tell us that it will indeed take 10 to 15 business days to do the work once they arrive. Which means we will be stuck in Colorado for a while, plus we are looking at needing to find a temporary home for up to three weeks. Not something I will be looking forward to but as we say ‘shit happens’ and this shall pass as well. 

Our pups have been troopers throughout all of this and I even found a nature park close to the hotel were I took them for a walk this morning. A free roaming Doberman pup wanted to play but I kept our babes on their leashes. That has been the biggest challenge for me as in walking K and O. It seems leash laws and picking up poop laws are not observed as much as I like.

So tomorrow the plan is for us to move to a fairly new RV Resort for one week at a time (until those parts arrive). The park sounds nice as it was build with the idea of supporting big rigs. Tonight we are in the parking space by the Hotel and we had one homeless person knock on our door asking if we had a belt. I read in a blog that this seems to be common around here but then we already knew the homeless population is quiet large here in CSprings. This I admit always saddened me considering how cold it is here in the winter and even now in the spring. It still is in the 30’s at night.

So goodnight little world. I am counting on sleeping well…..

Texas - International Connections

 So I am going back a few days to the day we left Magnolia Beach. While driving along the beach my husband noticed two Class A Motorhomes that were pulling a car on an open trailer. That car had the tie down wheel set up my husband has been working on for weeks but couldn’t get to work.

So we slowed down and tried to get a closer look, but by then the owners of that setup came out and looked at us. I told my husband to stop Lucy and to go ask them about their hookup and maybe they can give us advice. I then sat back and watched my husband walk over talking to them. The conversation was awesome to watch, everyone became very animated and even my husband was using lots of hand signals. After approximately 10 minutes my husband walks back over to me and asks if I spoke French (which I think after 23 years of marriage he knows I don’t) but being a good sport I figured I can manage some sign language. Let’s just say we all had fun and laughter but communication was limited. We learned we need larger tire fittings and a longer bar for the hooks. I finally recalled ‘merci’ as it is the chocolate I love so much and after much waving we moved on.

I admit I have yet to meet antisocial campers, we met some annoying ones but mostly all are wonderful, funny and relaxed.

During our one night stay at the KOA in CSprings we met another wonderful couple. They are from Yuma, AZ but are heading to WY. They are older, drive a very long A Class plus tow vehicle and have been full time RVers for 4 years now. The husband was giving us much insight and the lesson on ‘stuff happens’ and to roll with the punches. Then he walked off to get breakfast for his wife. 

I for one have pure love for those little interactions. It reminds me of the time, long long ago, when I was a flight attendant and how I loved talking to passengers, to connect and then most often never see again.

We think all that matters are the long term relationships that make life worthwhile, and yes they do, but one misses out on little doses of daily joy but connecting with someone even for just 15 min brings. If we both can walk away with smiles on our faces it is a win.

So go out and touch or better yet, talk to someone 😉 

Colorado - Missing Lucy

Yesterday was a sad morning as we had to close up Lucy, move many of the items inside her into Lou, the trailer, and then drive her the 3 miles to Transwest and their service Department. Lucky for us they had a spot to park Lou as well so we could then go and find us some lunch and subsequently a Hotel that would be pup friendly.

We got lucky on both, a yummy lunch and the Microtel by Windham for our stay. They accept dogs for an additional fee of $25 per dog…… oh well.

I admit everything is going as smooth right now as we could hope for, considering the circumstances of why we are here instead of playing gypsies. So there is nothing to complain about at all but tell that to my heart! All day yesterday I was sad and anxious. It hurt having to leave Lucy at the shop, I felt edgy sitting in a hotel room. I was just not a happy ‘camper’ even thought in my brain I know this is something that had to happen.

We now lived in Lucy for over a month, actually 5 weeks now, and she is in every way our home. I love living in her, she is cozy but functional, she is quaint and comfortable. She is our cottage on wheels indeed. Even driving her is becoming a joy for me. I am calculating that by  now I have about 20+ hours with her and my confidence has been improving a lot. I do very well on the road now, feeling her moods and I have been passing now as well as keeping up with some Semis. One Semi especially, who was my ‘Pilot’ car for many miles leading us from 287 to I40. I felt we made a great team.

I also park her now, as long as I don’t have to back her up. I can even pull her into the fuel line at Truck Stops but that’s when Ron still takes over. He fuels and parks. 

So now we are waiting…. 

Waiting to hear from Transwest who told us yesterday they might be able to solve the maintenance issues by this afternoon. 

Waiting to see if the collision repair peoples will show up to give us an estimate and timeline….

I dislike waiting and I just want our baby girl back. Oh and did I mention yet it is cold up here? 5 weeks away and I come back to -2°Celsius temps this morning. I will start working on mapping our escape soon. Not East as that looks like messy weather with the tornadoes. Not north as it is still to cold for us. So that leaves us with south or west…… let’s see as one thing that keeps my anxieties at bay is being proactive. 

Texas to Colorado - On The Move

 Well we have some tough three days behind us on our move from the gulf coast to Fountain, CO. The first day was the hardest as we were driving for close to 10 hours, that included truck stops plus a wash for Lucy to get the salt off her. We finally stopped at a rest stop in Decatur and I think I was asleep within 30 minutes of us parking. I love how we always have our home now with us. Our bed, our bathrooms, kitchen etc. All right there when needed. 

The second day we drove for about 6 hours but they were a tad strenuous as well as we faced high wind advisory after we left Amarillo, TX. Ron was driving then and once we got just short of Capulin NM we found a rest stop and lined up next to two Semi Trucks to help brace from the 35mph to 45mph wind gusts. Before we knew it we had two more motorhomes as well as one more semi lining up next to us. After a couple of hours many started moving out again but we decided we were to tired to move on. So we parked Lucy towards the end of the large area in the rest stop and we faced her into the wind for even more protection and by 8 pm we were in bed.

Today we made it to our destination for Lucy, which is Fountain CO. We first took her to the police station to have her inspected so she can get registered. That alone was quiet a spectacle. They had a not very large parking lot and getting Lucy plus Lou in there and turned around took Ron more then 30 min, plus some assistance by two officers. I wish I could have video tapped it but I was a mess as it was literally inch by inch work getting her turned around. Now we are spending one night at a KOA which is okay as we have power and water, plus getting laundry done. However it is pricey at $84 a night and the black and grey water hook up doesn’t reach. So tomorrow morning Ron will have to back up Lucy and Lou so we can empty her. Not convenient as the write up says it supports a big rig but I guess not one with a trailer behind. We saw several large A-Class that had to unhook their cars, and move back their Motorhome to connect. We don’t have that luxury in our setup, but it will work out.

Texas - Disturbances, but not for long 😉

I had way to much fun with a group of young people that moved onto the beach this past Friday. I am trying to reflect actually if it’s me getting older or if they just are what I nicknamed them ‘The Little A$$holes’.

Lucky for us they are not right next to us but close and loud enough to observe nicely. They arrived with three pickups, one pulling a fifth-wheel, one a large generator, and another a fishing boat. The first hiccup came when they pushed the boat and trailer right up to the water but didn’t put the boat in the water and setting up camp where beach strollers had a hard time moving through. Second hiccup was running one of the pickups and reffing it up frequently. Third, once sunset came around they didn’t just play music but blasted the whole beach with horrid achy breaky heart and trucks country music. Darn that was the moment when I wanted to go over and ask if they could get over their broken hearts somewhere else please. They even had Elvis songs in their lineup. I admit I was watching and waiting for other beach goers to unite and take them on as the stinky eyes that group was getting was fun to watch. I am not sure if they got the hint or if someone actually told them but for about one hour the music went on and off before being shut of completely. 

Heck I really do love music but those that know me well know I do not do country music well. I do have some Randy Travis and Dolly Parton on my playlist but that’s about it. 

And yes I made fun of them as I felt I was watching 20 year old spoiled I considered brats. I was able to laugh about it because the best part of our new lifestyle is that we can at any time leave and set up somewhere new. It takes us just 2 hours to get moved out and voila, we can leave bad neighbors in the dust. A much tougher thing to do if you have bricks and sticks 😉 

As it was we were leaving on Saturday anyway so we only got to watch their antics for one day. I did feel a little sad for our immediate neighbors as they started hiding out in their camper once the noise started. 

Texas - Magnolia Beach After A Few Bumps In The Road

 We made it, it wasn’t easy and didn’t go as planned but we made it to the beach and it is beautiful.

As to how we planned our day and how it went was very different. We started out good by getting up early and working on getting Lucy packed up. The first slow down came when we started filling up the fresh water tank. We received a call from the camp to ask us when we would be moving out and with good intentions we told them in about 1 hour - ha! Due to the filter it took a long time to fill up Lucy. So we waited and waited and waited and we finally stopped at 3/4 full so we could start loading up Lucy. After moving Lucy in the trailer we got a new surprise. The new tie downs did not work! All the work we put in was not doing is any good and after another 45 min Ron went and tied Rosalina up the same way we had her tied down initially when moving out of Colorado. By then the time was 11:45. Nothing at all what we had hoped for. We pulled out of by the Base Growden Gate by Noon. Now driving time to Magnolia Beach was to be 2 hours and 50 min, but we had to stop at a Loves Truck Stop first to fill up Lucy. $444 for 49 Gallons later and a lunch, which was needed so we wouldn’t be arriving in what is called a ‘hangry’ mood at our destination. So this stop took us back almost another hour. 

I shortly after leaving Loves Truck Stop took over driving Lucy. I drove her for most of the way down to the coast and was proud of myself maneuvering even through towns and crazy turns. I did drive however quiet a bit slower at times then the speed limit posted as I still don’t like to move her to fast. So not going the full speed also lost me some time. About 30 minutes out from our destination I asked Ron to take over as I wasn’t sure what the drive onto the beach would look like. Well, sadly we missed a turn and the turn Ron was able to take was to sharp and heartbreakingly Lucy and Lou took a hit. So now we have some damage to both that will need to be addressed sooner then later. However both a drivable so we will be staying on the beach for the weekend!

As to Magnolia Beach it is BEAUTIFUL!!!! My heart is so happy being here ♥️

So yes we arrived around 16:30 with some broken spirits after a very rough day but we are not beaten down by this. Stuff happens, things can be fixed and lessons are learned. What matters is that we are okay and we got to sit outside and watch a most beautiful sunset. I took Keetna and Oliver for a nice long walk on the beach and we look forward to a nice night with the sounds of the waves and the salty air surrounding us.

Ron will make calls tomorrow to find a good repair place and we got a name of a company up by Lubbock. If they can take us in then on Sunday we will make our move up there. 

But for now I leave you with gorgeous pictures I took tonight. I feel at home, but that has always been the case when I am by the ocean.