Campground owners/ideas/links

[RobS]

Yeah Bird, we've been burned at some pretty poor KOAs in the past. When we first started out we assumed that being a KOA meant meeting some pretty high standards. That is apparently not the case! 'Course you can't alway trust those Woodalls ratings either. Oddly enough, we've had pretty good luck with Yogi-Bear parks. Obviously kid oriented but the several we've visited have always been very nice and well kept. Perhaps they have a higher standard to keep the franchise /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[MadReferee]

I have been doing the RV thing since 1970 with a variety of rigs from a slide-in pickup
camper to our most recent 34ft Allegro class A motorhome. Been around the country
a couple of times and even used my RV for business one year.

There are good and bad campgrounds as has been said before. I usually choose a KOA since
they at least had some standards and 95% of the time they met my personal standards. On
the occassions where we stayed elsewhere, accomodations ranged from super fantastic to real
toilets (and that's even being generous). Never believe the Woodalls or Good Sam ratings,
always subtract at least 1 star and sometimes 2. You can always tell how a good a campground
is by the condition of their public restrooms/showers.

Some of my pet peeves were:

- roads that were too narrow and curves that were too sharp which made
trying to get into a site nearly impossible with a longer rig.

- no 30 amp electrical service

- sites that were not big enough for my tow vehicle

- overhanging tree branches

- unkempt facilities

- inconsiderate neighbors

When traveling we always tried to stop before 5pm at a campground. This method really
kept the kids under control. We would relax, hit the pool, eat, relax more, and be on
the road by 8am the next morning.

When the kids got old enough to be on their own (16+ yrs) our RV'ing slowed to the point
that I sold the rig. In a few years we will retire and probably purchase a high end
coach (bus) and be back on the road again.

 

[mwechtal]

Bird,
How about no ground. That's not optional, but I've seen it a few times.

Yes, how could I forget the faucets!?!?!?!? /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif I've seen them pointing in all directions, and at places that are even slightly unkempt they all seem to leak. There was one place where the faucet was very low, and within inches of the sewer connection. We used our tank, and filled up later. A place near Harrisburg PA has water that's so brown I'm surprised it goes through the pipes. Since then I ALWAYS crack the faucet before hooking up.

Mike

 

[mwechtal]

Well, it sounds like just my knid of place! Maybe you don't need any suggestions! /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[mwechtal]

Rob,
Yes I should have mentioned that. There are some very nice KOAs. It's just that when we're trying to cover a lot of distance we always seem to get "stuck" with the basic parking lot type. I don't even like them for just an overnight stay.

Mike

 

[Bird]

Yep, Mike, I made a habit of opening the faucet before hooking up, then put a pressure regulator on the faucet before my hose, and used two hoses (one very short) because I had a water filter between them. I also learned to use quick couplers, so all I had to do was screw a little quick coupler onto the faucet, then just plug everything else together.

 

[theboman]

Modern campgrounds have electric hookups that handles 50 amp/30amp/15amp receptacles at the box and water.
As far as sewage, all the ones I go too have dump station and usually a honey dipper (sewage truck) comes by and pumps out RVs that's been there several days for a small fee to the truck owner/driver.

Electric, it's big dollars to get an RV park wired correct. Those RVs will make up a small city with every thing that a normal house has: AC/heat/heat pumps, washer/dryers/microwave, hairdryers/coffee pots etc. So you put in 100 RVs and that's a pretty good load.

The most important thing, is if you have activities of some sort folks will come camp. If you provide great service the folks will come back again and again.

Treat the folks as your friends and they will be your customers.

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Several people have mentioned the parking lot types. Like everyone else, I usually prefer a little more character and landscpaping, myself. But, one of the most unusual, and one of the neatest (for its purpose) spots we ever stayed was in downtown St. Louis, about a mile from the arch. Basically, they tore down a warehouse in a business section of town, exposing a square city block. They installed the plumbing and wiring, and then just paved the whole thing. There was about a 3' border of grass just inside the fence. There was a small office/store/shower room, with a swimming pool on the roof! The campsites were only about 14' wide, so basically, there was another coach about 4' or 5' away from your entrance door - there wasn't room to put up an awning. It wasn't exactly the best part of town, but it's right across the street from a police station...

But, we were there for a trade show, on the same weekend that March Madness basketball was in the arena, and the place was absolutely full. The city bus stopped right outside the gate, and you could travel anywhere in the city for a buck. It was close enough that we walked back from the convention center one afternoon.

Not exactly a typical RV experience, but since then, I wish every city had something like it! As an urban "campground" it was perfect.

 

[mwechtal]

Bird,
We just bought a new motorhome, and I'm interested in the water Quick-Connects that you mentioned. Did you find some that were better quality than the ones I find in Home Depot, and Lowes? They seem to develop leaks fairly quickly, and are basically pretty cheap looking.

Mike

 

[Bird]

Mike, I started out using green plastic quick couplers (Nelson brand, if I remember right), but later changed to nothing but brass when I found that the plastic ones didn't last long. Right now, I can't think of the brand name, but got most of them from Walmart. However, I've noticed that Walmart doesn't have them in all their stores. If they have them, they'll be in the garden section along with the sprinklers, hoses, etc. They've held up for years for me without leaking.