finally on my way

[CricketSail]

What a year. The house got sold, I bought the rv. I will officially move in to the rv on New Year's eve/day. I'm staying parked in the driveway at a friend's house, but will depart here 1/4. I'm moving over to the rig a few days early just to get used to it, and to let the cat get settled. No problem with the dogs, they are over there every day with me, love it, get it. Milo (the cat) will take a little adjusting though. I think he'll be fine with the rig (he's an indoor cat), but the diesel engine may freak him out a bit. I think I will see if I can get him a sedative for his first trip.

I have a wonderful first leg planned, and will be traveling from the Salem/Boston MA home base to western MA to stay a few days with family. I'm getting off later than I planned since I've had to stay to get some dental work done. Now that's set, I'm off.

Ah. But I have been so overloaded with cleaning up the lose ends here and transitioning from house to rig, that I haven't put much into how I'm going to get south. On the plus side, I've driven the rig to points around MA so I'm comfortable with that. I've had the rig checked out at Camping World, and she's good to go. My objective in the long run is to be an off-grid full timer without a lot of reliance on camping grounds. I've done a little looking and so much is booked up this time of year. I'm fine stopping over at a Walmart, and Camping World has been good to me. I will be calling ahead to see where I can make stops with them on my way to FL.

I had a trial by fire when my rv gps took me through downtown Boston, but I actually did ok. My rig is 27', but only 7.5' wide, so she's easy to maneuver even in some back alley streets! In the long run I will have to be very budget minded, and have already arranged with Camping World here in MA to put on solar panels when I get back in March. Any suggestions on places to stay/park economically on my way from MA to FL, passing through Maryland and North Carolina, & Georgia on the way down, very much appreciated. I will be traveling with my best buddies, Milo the cat and my dogs Cricket and Magic.

- Sharon

[Pooker]

Safe travels! I was going to mention RVing in the Northeast in mid-winter might be a tad iffy and then I remembered when we relocated from Western Mass. to California we left Mass. on Feb. 14 - Valentine's Day. Followed tire tracks in the snow through Pennsylvania! Wasn't until South Carolina that we discovered the winterized RV had water leaks everywhere!

Stay warm and safe.

Pooker

[Bethers]

Have a great and safe trip!

(I don't want to put a damper or sound negative, but would suggest you use just about anyone else for the solar panels and installation - particularly possibly someone down south who probably has done them before.)

[MandysMom]

Beth's thought on the solar was actually my first thought as well. Do consider having them installed in areas where they are much more familiar with them. And congratulations on your big move. Are there pictures of your rig?
Velda
In sunny and very dry northern California

[bluepinecones]

Good news.

I have never made trip up/down east coast but we have several members who do it yearly. Many of them mentioned stopping at Flying Js to spend night/shower, etc. Don't have those where I live but think they are truck stops that allow RVs to park free overnight on first come, first serve basis.

[IrishIroamed]

HI 5's for finally getting on the road permanently! Be safe, have fun, and stay out of trouble (ok maybe a little when you go to gtg's )

[Lopo]

A note about Walmarts- if you're in a tourist area, like much of Florida is, don't count on overnighting in them. I suppose if they allowed it in my area (Florida Gulf coast), there wouldn't be a spot left for regular shoppers. if you travel the interstates, the Flying J' truck stops or cracker Barrels are good free overnight stops, but if you travel the US highways, like 301, for example, Walmarts in small towns should work. I don't know if state parks north of Florida are open this time of year, but if so, hopefully there'll be some near your route. And don't rush. The rule is that 4 hours a day on the road is enough, although my BFF hauls buggy down I-95 from PA to Florida in her Roadtrek with only brief snooze stops. Not recommended! Safe travels, and welcome to your new life!

[OutandAbout]

Congratulations on moving into your rv and your new lifestyle. There are a number of places to stay overnight for free. Flying J, Love's and TA Travel centers all offer first come first serve spots to stay overnight. I have stayed at Flying J's and Loves and have had no problems. I prefer them over Walmart, but they are noisy. Next time you are in a WalMart, pick up their guide, it will list the stores that allow overnight parking. There are other sites that are a good source of info for low or no cost parking, such as rvparkreviews.com, overnightrvparking.com and similar sites.I don't know if these sites are still up or how accurate they are, but it's a place to start. RVdumps.com will list dump sites in the area you are traveling. Hope this tidbit of information helps. Linda

[avalen]

congrats and safe travels Sharon, will probably meet you down the road some day, sometime

[grammynmaggie]

Great news...you are on the move ...I travel from Pa to Fl every year..
I stay at WM, Cracker Barrel, St Parks...there is a book at Camping World called
The Next Exit it tells you about all the stops along the interstates...like where the
Walmart and Cracker Barrel that welcome over nighters... I use it a lot
Just take off...don't worry about it and have fun...also look for city and county camp
grounds ...they are not always so popular with snow birds and have openings ....
donna

[snowball]

Congratulations on your entering your new life!!! have fun and be safe
sheila

[cpatinjones]

Congrats! Enjoy!

[CricketSail]

Thanks for the good wishes everyone. I didn't have a choice about when to leave, so I will just deal with it. I rarely travel more than 4 hours per day and watch the weather, so I should manage. Very interested in those comments about solar, though, I will have to look into that more.....

[retiredhappy]

I use my Passport America a lot for overnights when traveling. Have their app downloaded on my phone to find PA parks for overnights. Altho not free, the halfprice rates save a lot if you can't find a place to stay for free. Another favorite place of mine are church parking lots if its not a night they have services. If anyone is there, I ask permission otherwise just go ahead and park.

[Redetotry]

Sharon and any others traveling with dogs who live in an area where heartworms aren't a problem, if your dogs aren't on heartworm preventative please get some before you head south! I suggest Sentinel as it protects from heartworm and various other worms plus if a flea bites them it can't reproduce which is also important in warmer climates.

Congratulation! You have had quite a year and I hope that the coming year is filled with many happy days!!