Loop Recommendations needed: Big Rig + dog

[hsmytwins]

Here's my secret: at the Fort, if you come in late-morning through mid-afternoon, there's a high chance of everyone being out and about at the parks or pools - less audience!

This is our goal. Although, we have no idea how to plan our drive down. When we have driven in the past, we have always stopped along the way on purpose (few days in Gatlinburg, few days in Nashville, etc.). That was pre-Prevost. Now we don't know where that beast will fit to stop along the way, so we might not do any purposeful stops.

 

[hsmytwins]

Hsmytwins, we will actually be arriving on April 16. Let us know if we can help.

Thanks.

 

[hsmytwins]

I usually don't post (garneska, my better half, takes care of that), but I'm the driver of our class A and had some thoughts for you. Kris and I have only had our 41' class A since July 2014, so learning to drive it was a challenge. As a (relatively) new driver, here are my thoughts:
1. Yes, people are going to watch you back in. It's a fact of life in campgrounds. Most of us won't be judging you - mainly because we've been in your shoes before, trying it for the first time.
2. When backing in, don't be a hero. You don't get style points. My first experience backing into a site involved me smacking the entry door into a tree. Thankfully, there wasn't any damage - it was very low speed. That being said, take it slow. When in doubt do the following: 1. Stop 2. Exit the rig and see exactly where you are 3. Formulate a plan - even if that plan is starting over.
3. Backing into a site can be trying on a marriage. Keep calm. Kris does a great job keeping an eye on any hazards around me while backing.
4. Again, just take it slow and when in doubt, stop, look, plan, and restart.
5. Other campers may try and help you if you seem to have issues, if you don't want their help, just be polite. I tend to find it distracting rather than helpful as Kris and I have our methodology.

As for loops, I would say from experience that 700 is easy to get into, although the turn coming out can be a bit tight. 800 and 900 were doable as well. From just walking the loops, 600 appears to be the easiest, plus you see big rigs (45') there all the time. 400 and 500 seem tight to me (plus we saw an Essex clip a car in 400).

Dogs are another question. Yeti (look at the January trip report if you want pics) barks at everything. So it doesn't matter where you go. Dogs are always being walked by your site - dog walk or not. The difference between being on the dog walk and not being on the dog walk is minimal from that perspective.

All that being said, welcome to driving a big rig and enjoying learning to drive it. I will say, it does get easier, but it's taken me a year and a half of driving (and ~5,000 miles under my belt) to say that.

Bert (garneska's DH and driver)

Thanks. We haven't driven it yet. Waiting for Michigan winter to give us a break - then my hubby can get a lesson. We still need to learn how to do EVERYTHING. We are hoping for a couple of weekend trips in March to practice. Not much is open yet around here except for Indian casinos, so we will learn to dry camp first. At least hubby will get some miles driven.

 

[Marbel]

1. Yes, people are going to watch you back in. It's a fact of life in campgrounds. Most of us won't be judging you - mainly because we've been in your shoes before, trying it for the first time.

Guilty. I watch the newbies as well as the veterans, though I don't pull out a lawn chair or anything. Not judging, often learning.

2. When backing in, don't be a hero. You don't get style points. My first experience backing into a site involved me smacking the entry door into a tree. Thankfully, there wasn't any damage - it was very low speed. That being said, take it slow. When in doubt do the following: 1. Stop 2. Exit the rig and see exactly where you are 3. Formulate a plan - even if that plan is starting over.

Great advice. We've gone from a tent trailer to a 23-ft TT to our current 30-footer. For each one, we made some mortifying mistakes. Great entertainment for the neighbours!

My advice ... don't arrive after dark.

 

[Boopuff]

Anyone ever had the misfortune of arriving, and having cars/carts parked all over and no one to move them? Do you go back to try to get another site and hope people are around to move stuff? From what I've read it seems like people are ridiculous and park several vehicles per site not leaving a lot of wiggle room!

 

[hgarnes]

Ok, Tiggerdad - I would pay money to watch you back an unfamiliar rig into a site with a "hostile" companion. You're far better than I.

Marbel - your advice on not arriving after dark is very good. That just unnecessarly increases the level of difficulty, especially for those of us new to RVs.

Hsmytwins - one word of warning on the drive. While today, I'm good with driving our rig all the way to or from Disney (about 8 hours with good traffic, the most has been 11.5 in horrible traffic) today; when I first got it that would have been terrible. Plan for breaks! Pilot/Flying J, Cracker Barrel (ones near the highway tend to have RV parking), Wal-Mart, rest stops - are critical. Driving such a large vehicle takes time to become accustom to. I can't stress planning breaks - it will make the drive so much easier. If you don't know, google Maps is your friend. So are other forums like irv2.com.
Stay well rested and calm - it will make the drive so much easier.
As a note - I would now rather drive the RV on long highway drives than the car - but this took about 3k miles under my belt before I would have said it.

Bert

 

[tcu4me]

Any of the premium/pet loops should have space for your rig. These loops are a little more spread out, so as long as there is not a car or golf cart parked on the road, you should be able to get in to your site without too much heartburn.

Anytime we pull in to a CG and there is a crowd, I exit the truck and ask if anyone knows how to back in to the spot telling the crowd its my first time. It's amazing how many people offer to watch the trailer and help guide me in. Extra eyes on your side never hurt. Good luck!

 

[PrincessMom98]

This is our goal. Although, we have no idea how to plan our drive down. When we have driven in the past, we have always stopped along the way on purpose (few days in Gatlinburg, few days in Nashville, etc.). That was pre-Prevost. Now we don't know where that beast will fit to stop along the way, so we might not do any purposeful stops.

We always have a copy of The Next Exit in the truck when we travel. It lists all RV accessible stops in red print. It has been very helpful in locating gas stations with diesel and other places to stop along the highway. I also have apps for iExit and iExit Trucks on my phone. I have found RVparkreviews a good site to check for campground information. The site will list if a campground is big rig friendly but the reviews also give a good picture of the campground.

 

[KristinU]

Ditto on the Next Exit book.

We like to use Flying J gas stations since many of them have the RV lanes. They have an app that will tell you whether or not a particular station has RV lanes. They're merged with Pilot, but most Pilots don't have the RV lane.

I like to use the trip planner on the Good Sam website (you need a membership to access, but it is worth it to us). The nice thing is that we have a Rand McNally RV GPS and I can download the trips I plan on Good Sam into the GPS.

Another thing we like to do is to have the co-pilot do a google earth view if we're stopping at an unfamiliar place to make sure there is a way to drive around the back or other easy egress. The Next Exit book had a gas station in it that we stopped at that wasn't very RV friendly, and ours is "only" 31 feet! I was surprised it was listed...so we now do the aerial view just to be sure.