RV Home Yet?

Welcome!

We- Alice and Jaimie - invite you to participate in our new blog. Our intention is to have lots of good information and interesting tidbits on the RV lifestyle. We'll be happy to answer your questions too. Both of us have been full-time RVers in the past, though now both travel part-time. Jaimie is an expert at RVing for dollars. She is the author of Support Your RV LIfestyle! An Insider's Guide to Working on the Road. Alice has written Taking the Mystery out of Retiring to an RV. Together we have written RV Traveling Tales: Women's Journeys on the Open Road, The Woman's Guide to Solo RVing, and Taking the Mystery out of RV Writing. We invite you to check out our website RVLifestyleExperts.com  for all sorts of informative articles, recommended books and fun things for the full-time RVer. Whether you have already hit the road or are a wannabee, we have something to offer. We look forward to conversing with you on many aspects of the RV lifestyle! Jaimie and Alice

RV Poll: Have you weighed your RV?

Keeping your weight down is just as important for your RV as your own health! It will affect how long your RV lasts and your safety. Have you weighed your RV? If not, you should do so at an RV event. Escapees RV Club offers SmartWeigh in three locations. Make an appointment the next time you are near whether you are a member or not. Jaimie Hall Bruzenak

In the meantime, please vote in our poll:

RVs- cost more out West?

An article published by the California Recreational Dealers Association stated that the association is seeking equalized freight policies. Right now, delivery of an RV built in Indiana can add almost $4000 to the cost because of the high cost of delivery that is tacked onto the final price. Some manufacturers do equalize delivery costs but if not, you'll pay a lot more buying it in CA than in the Midwest. Or, buy from a company that manufactures in the West.

Something to consider when making a purchase of a motorhome, trailer or 5th wheel. Jaimie Hall Bruzenak

Poll: Do you have/prefer gas or diesel?

Do you have a gas or diesel engine for your motorhome or tow vehicle? Or, if not yet, which are you looking to buy? Vote in our poll. Jaimie Hall Bruzenak

RV poll: Do you do your income taxes yourself?

Tax season is over but we are curious - As an RVer, do you do your income taxes yourself or have someone else do them? Participate in our poll below. Feel free to leave comments below or at the poll. Jaimie Hall Bruzenak

Olana State Historic Site

While in New York for my daughter's wedding, we were able to visit the nearby Olana State Historic Site in Hudson. Olana was the home and studio of the Hudson River School artist, Frederic Edwin Church. He lived from 1826-1900. The home and 250-acre grounds passed to his son and was eventually purchased by the State of NY and the Olana Preservation group.

Church built a beautiful home (above), a Persian-inspired mansion filled with original sketches, studies and paintings by Church, which he built after first living in a small cottage on property. Furniture and artifacts, heavily Persian, decorate the insides, which you can see if you take a tour. (No photos allowed inside.) Landscape gardening was considered fine art at that time and Church spent effort to make the grounds beautiful.

There is a nice pond, but the flowers appealed to me the most.

You could drive an RV up to Olana and have room to park. There is a $5 per vehicle charge on weekends/holidays during April – October. Free all other times. Tours are $12, $10 for seniors and students. The tour is well worth doing. The views from the hill are stupendous and far-reaching. Plan for a few hours visit so you can walk one or more of the paths, see the cottage and pond at the bottom or the galleries, and take a tour. Plus you might like to relax under a tree. Jaimie Hall Bruzenak

Poll: Has your RV ever been broken into?

Vote in our new poll: Has your RV ever been broken into? Jaimie Hall Bruzenak

Seat belts required for extra passengers?

I learned something new today. Seat belts for passengers in the back seat or in an RV are not required in Iowa. The question was asked of a state trooper in the Dickinson County News as to whether or not someone could ride in a towed trailer or 5th wheel. The law did not prohibit it, though children under 18 must wear a seat belt at all times. Of course, the trooper did not advise it.

This article made me curious about laws in other states. Do all allow people in the back seat or in an RV to ride without seat belts? The answer is no - more than half do. I found a website on seat belt laws. As of March 2010, 24 states and the District of Columbia require seat belt use in all seating positions, including the back seats. Twenty-six states have laws that allow back seat passengers to travel without a seat belt. In some states passengers 7 years of age and older can ride without seat belts!

Remember the scene in "The Long, Long Trailer" where Lucy is cooking dinner as Rick bounces down the road and goes up and over a mountain and the rocks she had hidden are rolling all around? This should give you a clue why it's not a good idea to ride back there!

What is required by law and what is safe are two different things. Passengers in a motorhome should wear seat belts for safety's sake. An accident, mechanical or tire problem or a quick stop could send unbelted passengers flying. And, it's just not a good idea to ride in a towed vehicle either. They don't come with seat belts and you could become a projectile in there too. And, there is the added danger - though probably slight - that the trailer could break off from the tow vehicle if it's not secured properly or there is a defect in the hitch or where you attach the safety chains. We have RV friends who watched their toad (towed car) fly past them going down a hill on the Top of the World Highway! The installer had set it up so the chains were attached to the bumper of their RV rather than to the frame so it broke loose under stress. Fortunately a tree stopped their jeep from rolling all the way to the bottom and they were able to retrieve it. Think of the momentum of a trailer that broke loose!

Wear your seat belts wherever you sit. Jaimie Hall Bruzenak

RV poll: How many states have you RVed in?

How many states have you traveled in in your RV? And what is your criteria? Must you spend the night? Participate in a certain activity? Whatever your criteria is, tally them up and vote in our latest poll! And leave a comment about the criteria you use below. Jaimie Hall Bruzenak

Dead Horse Ranch State Park - a gem

I've gone by the directional signs dozens of times and never checked out Dead Horse Ranch State Park. I wanted to go to the Cottonwood, AZ area and see Old Town Cottonwood plus George wanted to paint. Dead Horse Ranch State Park has water so that sounded appealing on a day that promised to be in the 90s.

The Verde River is the southern border of the park and the river day use area is right on the river with fishing and non-powered boating. Water is diverted into three lovely lagoons. Facilities for overnighters include cabins for rent and sites for equestrian groups, tenters and electric sites for RVers. One loop with electric hookups is down nearer the river with some trees, the other is up on the hill with no trees but has expansive views.

George set up along one of the lagoons. I did a quick watercolor of cattails then walked around the adjoining lagoon, enjoying the birds - coots, red-wing blackbirds - and trying out my new camera. Noisy grackles were everywhere, not my favorite bird.

We were a short drive from Old Cottonwood. The shops are fun to wander around in. For lunch or other refreshments there were several eating establishments plus wine tasting and a brewery. We chose Old Town Red Rooster Cafe. I had the SW Veggie Salad with chicken that was fantastic. An unusual ingredient for a salad was chunks of sweet potatoes. The reduced balsamic & garlic infused olive oil had a very nice taste too. George had a Turkey Bacon Avocado Wrap that he devoured.

Summers get pretty warm in Cottonwood so I'd recommend visiting Dead Horse Ranch State Park in your RV in spring and fall. It would be much more pleasant, though the water and all the cottonwood trees in the riverbed and around the lagoons were cooling. Much of the land away from the river and lagoons looks like the cliffs in the background of the photo above left. You can check the website for current admissions and to reserve a campsite. Most of the pull-through sites can accommodate up to 40-foot motorhomes and truck & trailer rigs up to 65 feet. A dump station is just inside the entrance to the park.

Cottonwood has many stores, a nice laundromat plus is close to Sedona and Jerome. Three national parks are close by; Tuzigoot is just a few minutes from the state park. Check it out! Jaimie Hall Bruzenak

Venice law to get rid of homeless struck down

Judges of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals struck down a law prohibiting people from sleeping overnight in their vehicles. The judges said that the law is too vague. Several defendants were included in the appeal. People were arrested for having a sleeping bag in the car, for stopping to shop because they looked like there possessions were in the car, and other activities when they were not spending the night in their car or an RV. One woman was driving her RV when she was stopped and cited.

The judges remarked that the law was so vague that an RVer driving through Venice could be stopped and cited. It was not clear - to either citizens or the police - on what violated the law. You can see a summary of the decision in the Courthouse New Service bulletin.

RVers have complained that police in Flagstaff, Arizona also hassle and ticket RVers who have no intention of spending the night. Many RVers now avoid the city and refuse to spend any money there. Good for them.

Certainly people parked on the streets can be a health hazard, but harassing residents and tourists who are not actually sleeping in their vehicles at night should not be permitted. Jaimie Hall Bruzenak