My name is Jeff (46 years old) and I am very new to RVing, but I want my family to see some of America before they get too old to want to hang with dad. The school year is ending, and we (I and my wife Kate...age withheld) are now the proud owners of a 1997 Newmar Dutch Star Class A RV. It sleeps 6 and since school is ending, decided to take the family up to see Mt. Rushmore, the Jewel Caverns, Crazy Horse, and the Badlands. We will be making some stops along the way at Callaway Gardens, Crater of Diamonds National Park in Arkansas and visiting family in Kansas City MO. This is a very new experience for us.
We did pick up the RV on April 13th in Titusville, FL across the state from us. We rented a car one-way and drove the RV to Disney's Fort Wilderness for a 2 day shakedown cruise and then home. It was wonderful! The RV is now with the lovely folks at American RV Technology in North Port. They are really nice and very reasonably priced. Fred is going over the RV with a fine tooth comb. They fixed the mushy break pedal, fixed the cruise control (so necessary on an RV or your right leg is SO tired after driving 100 miles). They changed the rear axle fluid, transmission fluid and are now fixing the rear main seal. Luckily I opted for the Good Sam Gold Extended Warranty Plan, so most of this should be covered under warranty.
But starting June 2nd, we will be leaving North Port Florida with our 14 year old named Jacob, 4 year old Kallie and 6 year old Joseph...Oh, and our Corgi Catherine and our cat Gizmo are coming too (we just had Gizmo microchipped in case she gets loose, Catherine is already mircochipped) for almost a month. It should be a wild ride. I am working on replacing some out-dated equipment (backup camera, Satellite TV, internet, radio, gps, etc.) in between ARVT doing their work.
If you need a great RV packing list, check Kristen's here...Kristen's Check List. She has THE most comprehensive list of items your RV needs.
So we are in pre-planing mode. Also, if you want the BEST RV route planner go to RV Trip Wizard. It costs $37 dollars for the year, but it is well worth it. You can plan your stops...RV sites. It will show you fuel costs...it's wonderful for RV trip planning especially when you have multiple stops and it shows all the Good Sam, AAA, etc. campsites around your destination. If you do register, let them know jsherknus@yahoo.com sent you, because I get a discount on my fees. Thanks!
More to come....
Our Destination
Mt. Rushmore
