Girl Camper

On this weeks show I am answering FAQ's ranging from "Is Girl Camper a group I can join?" to "Do I really need to use expensive  RV toilet paper?" I am also linking here to a few of  my "go to" experts in all things RV. Walter Canon is the  Executive Director of the RVSEF,  (Recreation Vehicle Safety and Education Foundation). The RVSEF provides comprehensive information on all things RV safety related including towing ratings for vehicles. Walter is a frequent guest speaker at RV events but also produces great videos. One of the ones I highly recommend taking the time to watch is Walter's video on matching your truck and trailer.  Arming yourself with expert advice will help make your RV travels safe and fun. Another industry expert I rely on is Mark Polk from RV Education 101. Mark has perhaps the most comprehensive body of work compiled on RV Safety, Maintenance and Repairs. Mark also has the gift of being able to convey complicated subjects in a clear and concise manner. He has an extensive body of DVD's, YouTube videos, Ebooks and articles on everything you need to know about your motor home, tow vehicle or travel trailer. Mark's work on tire safety and tire inflation guides should be a must read for all RVers.

Click the arrow before to listen to the podcast. Before we head into this week's show I'm welcoming our newest Girl Camper friendly dealership and podcast sponsor,  Bankston Motor Homes of Alabama and Tennessee. Bankston's is a Number One Best in Business Award Winner with five locations and over 500 new RV's arriving each month.  They are a family owned dealership that "has been selling motor homes, and family dreams, since 1970."  Mr. Bankston,  the President and owner of Bankston's has plenty of experience RVing himself. He raised his own children doing it and still camps today in his Class A Motorhome. The fun part of a multi generational dealership is that its in their blood! Two of the Banskston grandsons run the dealership along with their Grandpa today. I've said it before and I will say it again - in my own experience it is the family owned dealerships that have the highest dedication to the customer and the industry. They are the dealerships that go the extra mile and I am so looking froward to bringing that dedication and enthusiasm to the Girl Camper Podcast listeners through our new association. Stay posted for upcoming events! We've got some great things planned. I'm also sharing my RV Show Tips for those that are ready to buy. RV Shows can be daunting and you need a strategy for tackling them and making the best use of your time. For those who are ready to buy and have done your online research the RV Show itself is a great opportunity to see the models, different floor plans and compare prices. Here's my strategy for those who are ready to buy! Know your Tow! If you already own the tow vehicle you plan to use make sure you know its GVWR. I suggest going to the RV Safety and Education Foundations video on Matching Trucks to Trailers and make sure you are buying something that can handle all you plan to tow and haul in both your truck and trailer. You will also find many good articles and FAQ's answered here. Lean heavily on this site for expert information. Walter Canon, the Executive Director has been a guest on the podcast and he is the top in his field. Before the show - get a notebook and write out the models you are looking at the old fashioned way. Keep that information handy so you can make additional notes at the show. Study the show map and mark out the dealers and models you plan to look at. The shows are often quite large and knowing ahead of time where your target spots are saves time and energy. Do online research about the dealers that are carrying the models you hope to look at. You might want to call the dealer and ask if they are bringing the model you are interested in. Take a look at their online reviews and read customer notes. Sometimes the best price is not the best deal. Sometimes paying a higher price for a dealership with a better reputation may be the better deal. Show Day Strategy - Start the day as early as possible. If you can be there when the doors open you can have the attention of sales people and floor space to really look at the models. Also, if you can take a day off work and go on a weekday you are always better off. Resist the urge to tire kick the 500K dollar Class A's and stick to your notebook. Leave the dream machines for another day. Have your phone or camera and take pictures of all the models. Before you take a picture of the trailer itself, photograph the outside of it including the name of it and the poster of all the statistics and floor plans along with the show price. It is so easy to have the information bleed into each other after you have looked at two or three models. When viewing the trailers - pay close attention to the available storage and where it is at. If it has 40% of the available storage under the bench seats and bed ask yourself if that will be a problem for you.

On this week's show I'm talking about DIY projects for your RV. Whether you own a newer model RV that you would like to personalize or a vintage trailer that you want to refresh, there are simple and inexpensive ways to make your home away from home cozy and inviting. Here are a few of my favorite projects. WALLS - You can bring light and a sense of space to your trailer by wallpapering, painting or using vinyl cut outs. WINDOW TREATMENTS- A simple way to add a personal feel to your trailer is to change the window treatments. If the trailer is newer chances are it came with a cornice covered with an industrial styled fabric of brown swooshes with mini blinds behind it!! We can do better than that! MESSAGE BOARDS - Adding a DIY message board is a good afternoon project that doesn't take a lot of time or money. Chances are you probably have all you need to make one in your house. An old cookie sheet, a painted tray or a few Dollar Store metal serving trays can become great message boards. I hang mine with 3M Command strips. CABINETS - Changing your trailer cabinets can help get rid of the cookie cutter look of most new RV's and create a more "home" vibe. I painted the cabinets in almost every vintage trailer I've ever owned. New hardware also adds a personal touch. BATHROOM UPGRADES - I recently ordered a teak bath mat for my Max wet bath. It will sit away from the drain an inch or two and allow me to drop the towel without getting it all wet. I also think I will love the warmth it adds to an all white bathroom. Another plus in wet bath design is a bunch of spring rods to hang towels, shower curtains and when doubled one in front of the other as a handy shelf for shampoo and conditioner.  

On this week's show I interview Danielle Howard - Girl Camper. Danielle grew up tent camping with her family primitive style! Each year they took their tents and equipment by boat to an island where they camped without running water, showers or bathrooms. They were her favorite vacations and even though her husband was not a camper, she knew she wanted to camp with her daughter. When Danielle's young husband died suddenly from a heart attack she made a decision to give her daughter the life she had imagined before widowhood- road trips, adventures and camping. She bought an older trailer without any towing experience and made up her mind to renovate it and learn to tow. While her daughter napped she took the baby monitor out to the driveway and started making her dream a reality. With help from her supportive dad she rewired and renovated her fiberglass Trillium.  This summer Danielle and her sister loaded up the car and set out with her daughter on a nearly five thousand mile adventure. From there home in Southern California they made there way to the Texas panhandle for a family reunion and then toured Texas, Louisiana, Tennessee and everything in between. Tune in to hear this inspiring story from a woman who would not let the crushing loss of her husband take away her dreams for her family.

On this weeks show I am talking about my top ten reasons for choosing RVing as my favorite mode of travel. As I pondered my reasons I actually had to cut it down to ten. There seem to be so many advantages to owning an RV but here are my top ten. You can go where you want. What interests you? Fiber arts? Railroad history? There are museums and fairs and towns that celebrate what you're interested in. In an RV you can travel there at your leisure, in comfort and make all the stops you want along the way. Budget Friendly. RV travel allows you to travel as your personal means and style allows. You can stay in state parks over resort RV's. You can make your own meals and save on restaurants. You can travel longer and farther on the same amount of money others spend on one nights travel. Pet Friendly. RV travel allows you to travel with your fur family. You save the expense of kennels and  you don't have to worry about how long you are gone or how your pet is being treated when he's away from you. Nature is a tonic.  Being able to  spend time in nature has a healing effect on the senses. Sitting around a campfire watching the stars and being disconnected from wifi allows you to decompress in a way that hotel vacations don't. Visit family and friends. So often we really want to visit those special people in our lives but when we fly over them all the time we never quite make it. Having an RV allows you to visit your roommate from college or your best man and they don't even have to make up the guest room. Food. RV travel allows you to control the menu. If you are on a restricted diet or are watching  your waist line  there's no problem because you are traveling with your own kitchen. You are able to pull over and have last nights leftovers. You don't have to wait in long lines and overpay for food you don't even like.  If you deal with food allergies you can control what you are eating. Quality time. Road trips give you time to connect. There's a simple pleasure in following your path on an old fashioned road map on your lap and discussing the upcoming towns, marked historical sites and possible stops ahead. It gives  you the chance to indulge in togetherness without laptops, books or televisions to compete with. People Friendly. It would be hard to find a group of people more willing to share their experience, knowledge and tips for RVing than those you meet at a campground and the active online community of RVers.  Whether it's a restaurant recommendation or a tip for keeping your RV running smoothly, fellow RVers are a great source of information and inspiration. You are always home.  As  much fun as it is to tour your favorite historic sites and National Parks when the day is over it is great to come home to your home away from home. You can relax in your trailer,  sleep on your own sheets and clean up in your own bathroom. As they say, there's no place like home. When you travel with an RV, you are always home. Backroads America. Traveling the two lane highways of America allows you to get away from strip malls, chain restaurants and toll booths. It also allows you to see where and how other people live. Stopping in a small mom and pop diner and meeting the owners and hearing their story allows us to look at our fellow citizens in a different light. We become less red state and blue state people and more friends in different parts of the country.  

In celebration of 100 episodes of travel inspiration I could think of no better guest than my own Aunt Sue! My Aunt, Suzanne Saunders to the rest of the world, is an 81 year old continent hopping, mountain climbing, adventure seeking, parachute jumping, wonder woman who has inspired me to go places and do things. She has solo traveled the US multiple times in her Class C RV. She has been to over 70 countries so far and has no plans to stop. She is not one for big city travel to famous European locations but prefers small travel groups and immersion experiences. Her favorite travel agency for far out vacations is OAT, Overseas Adventure Travel. With this group she has traveled to Mongolia and slept in a Yurt with local sheep herders. She has also traveled to all of the "stans" - Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. Her coming travels include a trip to Sri Lanka and southern India. She was first on the podcast on episode 38 which generated more mail than any show to date. Women all over with wanderlust wrote in with questions for my Aunt and I put them to her in this 100th episode show. Aunt Sue and I are planning an epic adventure in 2019. I'm letting her pick the location and I'm going along for the ride. I just hope I can keep up!

My guest on this week's show is New Jersey Girl Camper, Charlotte Brown. Charlotte is a single, empty-nester whose long term plan does not include the purchase of a new trailer. She did not want to let that prevent her from going places and doing things so she jumped in with a borrowed tent and had a blast. She came across the Girl Campers when she was doing an online search for women who camp. Charlotte's childhood memories of camp stoves and campgrounds kept surfacing in her and she felt it was time to see if she could find like minded souls to camp with her. Her kick off camp out was this past spring at a local campground. She was a little chilly but otherwise loved the experience and camaraderie. There are two pending events on the Meet Up site, Camp Like a Girl. One is the Wild West Weekend at Inn Town Campground in Nevada City, California that is taking place the weekend of October 20-22 and the other is What a Hoot 2 at Beaver Creek State Park in East Liverpool, Ohio. The What a Hoot trip is a Mister Sister event that all are welcome at. You can sign up for either trip by joining Meet Up and becoming a member of Camp Like a Girl.  

On this week's show I'm sharing my tips for camping in and touring Yellowstone National Park. When camping in Yellowstone you have 12 campgrounds to choose from offering 2000 sites within the park. Seven of them are run by NPS and are offered on a first come, first served basis. They have no hookups but offer fire rings and lush surroundings. The only campground in the park that offers full hook ups is Fishing Bridge Campground. The campground is conveniently located but not very camp like. There are no fires allowed and the sites are stacked on top of each other without even picnic tables.   Touring the park requires patience and a plan. Some of my tips are: 1) Start your day early before most tourists are out. The roads don't start to get crowded before 10 am and you can see two sights by then without all the people. 2) Ask a Ranger for advice. They know the peak and off peak times to see things, where the animal sightings are and the best hiking trails.  A ranger suggested to me that we travel counter clockwise on the lower Grand Loop because the majority of people travel clockwise. 3) Pack a lunch. You will save time, money and be healthier! The food is concession grade, expensive and you have to wait a long time for it. 4) Wear appropriate shoes. Yellowstone is not a sanitized theme park. The hiking trails are full of sticks, vines and gravel. Flip flops can ruin your day. 5) Keep jackets and rain gear in the car. The weather can change dramatically and very quickly. 6) Allow extra time for animal jams, heavy volume and poor parking. Everything takes longer than you think it will. 7) Follow the rules for staying away from the animals. Photograph them at a safe distance.

(To listen to the podcast attached to this blog, scroll to the bottom and click on the arrow.) I had the opportunity to take Little Guy Worldwide's new Max trailer on my four week National Parks Tour.  I slept in it for 28 straight days, towed it 6,228.3 miles, stayed in state parks and private campgrounds, used it with and without hook-ups, showered in the wet bath many times, experienced temperatures ranging from the high 90's to low 30's, used the air conditioner, heater and fan, cooked inside and outside and used the microwave for precooked frozen dinners, and ran the appliances on electric, propane and battery! In other words, I put it through the mill!! I have broken down my review to my five favorite things about this trailer. There are many great features in this well built and thoughtfully designed trailer and I encourage people to go to the Little Guy website and take the virtual tour.  For my part I will focus on what made it enjoyable to use for me. Number One Favorite Thing - The Windows While I was traveling and posting pictures of my trip, the most comments I received had to do with the windows. The windows, the placement, size, number of them and functionality of their design make the trailer a light, bright and airy retreat. When I would come home from a long day of sightseeing and open all the windows I had sight lines, airflow and incredible brightness. One of my favorite features of the windows are the integrated privacy shades and screens. In the morning I would pull the screens all the way down and let all the light and air in.  In the evening I had the option of drawing the privacy shade up about 2/3 of the way and leaving the top of the window screened so I could have privacy and airflow. The tinted acrylic windows made it possible to have another measure of privacy because they allow the light to be filtered in the trailer keeping it cooler in the sun while making it impossible for passersby to see in the trailer. As a solo woman traveler this daytime effect was an added bonus for me. Because I work while I on the road I spend a lot more time than most people sitting at the kitchen table/desk. The window placement in this trailer made my rolling berth the best corner office ever.  Sitting at my desk with all the windows open and the door latched with the full door screen pulled across made working while in Yellowstone tolerable. I initially had reservations about the large window over the bed. I thought that it would make me feel vulnerable while I on the road but I soon discovered that the exterior of the trailers design actually places the bottom of that window fairly far from the bumper of the trailer. What I thought was going to be a problem for me turned into my favorite window in the trailer. At night I was able to pull the privacy shade up from the bottom and lay in bed at night looking at the stars and moon and watching the rain. I also started having my morning coffee on the bed so I could look up at the trees. Number Two Favorite Thing - Storage I have spent the last 12 years Girl Camping and am always looking for storage solutions with trailers. For years I camped in vintage trailer which I love but am always worried about safety. I thought I was solving my trailer storage problem last year when I bought a new but vintage styled trailer. While the trailer I bought was well built it wasn't particularly well designed. Despite its being new it lacked adequate storage for the essentials for camping trips. I was so pleased with the amount of storage in the Max. It has an astounding 57.94 cubic feet of storage.  I packed that trailer for two people for a four week trip bringing both hot and cold weather clothes and never put anything under the bench seats of the booth. There was so much storage space that I had to use dish towels to pack my bowls in the kitchen drawer so they wouldn't move around.

On this week's show I'm sharing my top moments of the 2017 National Parks Tour. I started out thinking that I would break it down into tips and tricks for bucket list trips but quickly realized I was not ready to leave the after glow. I was still in the moments and meaning and personal revelations about my travel nature to step out and get academic. This show is about travel and becoming a girl camper even for those who already are. I learned a few things about my own travel quirks that I wanted to share. I would never want anyone to think I've got this all figured out. I had to make a few adjustments along the way. Yes, I know how to tow; how to back up; how to troubleshoot an RV issue. I melted down half way through and had to put myself in time out. Being a Girl Camper is about a willingness to be uncomfortable in odd places far from home and still be happy you're on the road. It's about being adaptable and comfortable alone. It involves being able to question your choices and be honest about your own limitations. I faced all of these issues on this trip and had no choice but to deal with them. It was a great learning experience but more about myself than travel expertise.    

On this week's show I welcome returning guest Mike Harlan, Airstream Manager of North Trail RV Center in Fort Meyers, Florida.  Few people have a deeper love for the road and the RV industry than Mike and it is always a pleasure to have him on to talk not only about what's new in the industry but what's new in Airstreams. Many people have the Airstream Dream and think this classic trailer is out of their price range. Mike discusses price versus value, financing a trailer purchase and, what some good models  are for Girl Campers.

On this week's show my guest is Laureen Vinicombe, Girl Camper! Laureen wanted to be a Girl Camper but was not in a position to buy a travel trailer. She took to heart my advice to not let the lack of a trailer prevent her from joining the fun. Laureen tricked out her family mini van and joined us on her first camping trip this past spring. At the beginning of the year I said that I would be talking about how to overcome the obstacles to becoming a girl camper. One mental obstacle is the idea that camping is about owning a trailer. If you want to camp you can do it in a tent, rented cabin or tricked out minivan. The allure of girl camping is the time spent with friends, being outdoors, gaining confidence in your ability to do things. Laureen had so much fun she joined sisters on the Fly and has been camping line a girl ever since. Listen in as Laureen shares her journey.                

On this week's show Lynn Butler,  owner of Setzer's World of Camping in Huntington, West Virginia talks about the advantages of buying from an RV dealership with membership in the Rte.66 Club. When I am home from Yellowstone I will post pictures but I'm working on one bar of 3G!

On today's show Joe Kicos, co-owner of Liberty Outdoors,  talks about the new Max trailer. The Max is a new product by Little Guy, a brand within Liberty Outdoors. It is the trailer I debuted here yesterday and that I am traveling in on my National Parks Tour. Also joining us on the show is Anthony Chiera, Director of Sales  for Liberty to talk about the details of this trailer. Anthony has watched this trailer go from drawing board to reality and he takes us through the features step by step. The Max trailer is performing well so far and I have only one complaint - the people knocking on my door at each campground asking for a brochure!

On this week's episode I continue with Part Two of my Trip Planning Show. A road trip of any length requires planning but a 5,500 mile, 4 week trip really takes some forethought. I am sharing what safety measures I am taking from roadside assistance programs to filling prescriptions and even what bear spray I purchased. Part of the fun of long road trips is experiencing many different ways of camping and I cover the variety of camping options we plan to use  from Harvest Hosts to State Parks to Bureau of Land Management properties. The Allstays app is a great resource for campers. I'm covering my gear choices including the hiking sneakers I chose from Cabela's and my new outdoor pants from Duluth Trading Company. To hear the rest of the Trip Planning episode click on the arrow below,