One of the most intimidating tasks awaiting any new towable RV owner is backing into a campsite. The process is counter-intuitive. When traveling in reverse, you’ll find that the trailer responds to steering inputs in a fashion that’s completely opposite to what you expect. Sometimes back-in campsites can be narrow, and require the type of precision usually reserved for LASIK eye surgeons.
But we’ve learned a few techniques over the years. Here’s one of the best. If you perform this maneuver we call “the scoop” (TM) you’ll find that back in campsites are really nothing to worry about. Armed with this knowledge, you will tackle back in campsites without fear!
Note that the degree of angle of “the scoop” (TM) represented in the video is a bit exaggerated for emphasis. You just want to scoop the tip of your rig into the campsite, and then scoop it back out. This little wiggle gives you the angle adjustment you need.
Of course, there’s more to backing up a travel trailer than doing “the scoop” (TM). But I think you will discover that this little tip can be INVALUABLE when you’re faced with a “back in” campsite. Read More
Overall, we’ve been happy with our Airstream Classic. Although the company makes hipper models with contemporary interiors, we also like the “old school” experience of Airstream camping.
Sure, the decor is a bit long in the tooth, but it channels generations of Airstream campers who have preceded us. It’s more of a country cabin than an [...]
According to Wikipedia, “in North America, a tailgate party is a social event held on and around the open tailgate of a vehicle.” Which begs the question, what is a tailgate party in South America? A form of sociopolitical rebellion? But I digress.
“Do they still make those things?”
Every Airstream owner, sooner or later, hears this question. This indicates the degree to which the Airstream travel trailer has achieved iconic status. But if I were running the company, I’d find the question deeply troubling. I mean, if your potential customers don’t even realize you are still manufacturing your [...]
Probably the highest compliment I can pay Niagara Falls is that it looks fake. To be more precise, at times the natural scenery is so spectacular, it seems to good to be true. We snapped a couple of photos with our SLR. Viewing the results, I just shook my head. But it is true.
People often [...]
Oh, Canada? Oh my… Where to begin?
The transition from Quebec to Ontario is subtle, but the difference is dramatic. There’s no border check (not yet anyway) but when you see that first “Welcome to Ontario” sign you’re already back on more familiar turf.
Whereas Quebec feels like another country, Ontario feels like another state – a [...]
When visiting different places, travel “experts” tell us to visit museums, tour historic buildings, and generally behave like obedient fourth graders on a field trip. Our approach, for better or for worse, has always been a little different…
For the past six months, Maine has been an ethereal, theoretical destination for our Long Long Honeymoon. If we had a dollar for every time we exclaimed, “This spring, we’re taking our Airstream up to Maine!” our fuel expenses would be covered. So now that we finally made it, has Maine lived up to our [...]
Is it possible to visit Boston without actually, um, visiting Boston? When we rolled into Beantown, we set up camp in a rural area some 30 miles outside the metropolis.
On our Long Long Honeymoon, we’ve enjoyed our share of rustic camping locations. Places like Yellowstone, the Grand Canyon, and Glacier National Park come to mind. Getting back to nature is what camping’s all about, right? But what happens when we take our “condo on wheels” into an urban environment like NEW YORK CITY?
As a general rule, our “Long Long Honeymoon” is a lighthearted show. We focus more upon the fun stuff than the alternative. I figure there’s enough bad news in the world. Why add to it?
‘Tis said that “the journey is the destination.” But what does that mean? For our Long Long Honeymoon, it illustrates a key upside to RV travel vis-a-vis the old fly-and-rent route.
Extended warranties — to buy or not to buy? That is the question.
One of our ongoing missions here at LongLongHoneymoon.com is to document the RV ownership experience. After all, many of our readers and video watchers are researching RV purchases when they discover (and immediately bookmark, right?) this site.
This leads us to cover a few topics beyond the usual. Sure, it’s fun to capture photos of our [...]
On our Long Long Honeymoon, we often like to talking about “seizing the day.” But what does that mean? To me, it means having the courage to live the life you want to live.
Although we only RV’d for a short while in Argentina, we learned quite a lot. In this article I’ll review some of what you can expect if you rent an RV in the country.
If you want to RV camp in Argentina, the most obvious method is to fly into the country and rent an RV. So that’s what we did. Our rental company of choice was Ruta|Sur (the name’s Spanish for “Road South”).
My love for technology and gadgets is well documented. I’m usually an early adopter when it comes to this stuff. Confessional case-in-point: in 1995, I made the unfortunate decision to install Microsoft Bob on my PC. We can’t be absolutely certain, but I think I was the only person in North America to install Bob. [...]
Kristy and I will be appearing on HGTV’s “RV 2009″ show on April 3. During the filming of “RV 2009,” a TV crew followed us as we toured “America’s Largest RV Show” in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The premise of the show had us shopping for a larger RV. Unfortunately, we had no Airstreams to tour at [...]
Over the past couple of years, we’ve managed to stock our RV with a variety of useful items. A few of these products have achieved “must have” status, in that we wouldn’t go camping without having them on board. Since we often receive questions about these products, we thought we’d create a page with a [...]
Maps. No great American road trip is complete without ‘em.
Or is it? Sometimes it’s tempting to think we can leave the maps at home. After all, these days they’re packing GPS units in cereal boxes. And GPS units have maps, right?
There comes a time in every creative venture when the show must travel overseas. The Brady Bunch went to Hawaii. The Facts of Life went to Paris. And Steve Urkel? I guess Urkel never went anywhere, although I really wish he had done so. (He could have stayed for a long time.) So it only seems reasonable [...]
I have a friend in the RV business. He studies the industry and the people who buy RVs. He’s privy to a lot of “inside information” about RV travel, the results of some sophisticated market research. Well, this fellow insists that RV travel promotes healthy marriage. As evidence supporting his claim, he says that the [...]
With overnight temperatures dropping into the teens, Kristy and I decided to hitch up our Airstream, tow it to a nearby state park, and do a little camping in the cold. The low temperature was a bone-chilling 21 degrees Fahrenheit, with wind chill dropping into single digits. By any measure, that’s a hard freeze.
So what [...]
When we first embarked on our Long, Long Honeymoon adventures, we quite frankly had no clue what we were doing. Since we were newcomers to RV travel, there was much to learn. And I’m talking about more than electric jacks and sewer hoses. We were also learning about campground options, and where we might like [...]
Ancient philosophy and RV camping: the two go together like lobster and smores.
We get several requests from folks who want to see more of our Airstream, which we sometimes call “Liv.” (What? You don’t name your inanimate objects?) So here’s a brief video of the gal…
We experienced a few episodes of extreme wind and rainfall in Santa Fe, New Mexico. It’s always interesting to ride out a storm in an Airstream. Due to the trailer’s aluminum skin, you enjoy the “rain on a tin roof” effect that’s actually rather soothing (assuming, of course, your shelter doesn’t topple over in a [...]
You watch The Long, Long Trailer for one reason. And that’s to see Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball together at the height of their 1950s popularity.
After we bought our RV, we quickly realized that electricity is quite useful. Unless you like ice-cold coffee, blank TV screens, and sweltering summer heat, you’ll want the ability to camp with substantial amounts of the stuff on hand. But since one can’t purchase extension cords in mile-long lengths, we need portable options.
Thanksgiving offers the opportunity to reflect on life, liberty, and the pursuit of full hookup campgrounds. As we take a fond gaze in the proverbial rearview mirror, we see another action-packed year of whimsical RV antics, mind-expanding personal growth, and charming Wal-Mart parking lots.
Recently, someone asked us to name a few favorite camping locales we’ve discovered on The Long, Long Honeymoon. I’m partial to remote, rural, dry camping sites out West, in obscure places far removed from civilization. But my wife has different tastes. Her favorite is probably that little full hookup spot we found down in Florida. [...]
As a devout online blogger, an Internet connection is as important to me as fresh water and diesel. More than once we’ve made overnight camping decisions based upon the answer to one crucial question: “Do they have wifi?” Thankfully, we no longer have to ask that question. Now we have our own wifi. We’ve installed [...]
One of the best upsides to RV ownership, as we’ve discussed, is the ability to haul around your own hotel room. It’s even better when you park it right next door to a major community event. That’s just what we did in Albuquerque, New Mexico, when we attended the fantastic International Balloon Fiesta. Owning an [...]
How valuable was this camping experience? We’ve been told that a half acre of land on the Las Vegas Strip recently sold for $47 million. And yet, here’s a massive swath of such land dedicated to a full hookup RV campground. So I guess our little campsite is worth at least $5,000,000, and the campground [...]
Being travel enthusiasts, my wife and I have stayed everywhere from flea-infested hostels, to skanky motels, to cozy bed & breakfasts, to five-star resorts. I’d like to think we’ve learned something about hotels, and how they compare vis-a-vis RVs. So let’s ponder the timeless question: “What’s better, staying in an RV or in a hotel?”
Probably [...]
In a recent blog post, we discussed our mysterious tire wear. One of our tires has been rapidly wearing on the inside, in a pattern suspiciously reminiscent of crop circles. What was causing this strange phenomenon?
Traveling to historic places is obviously good for the mind. Nothing enhances one’s understanding of history like viewing what’s left of it.
But it’s also good for the soul. There’s something both sobering and magical about being amongst sites that were occupied by humans long ago. It provides perspective. It’s not just a matter of sociology [...]
Okay, so it finally happened to us. We managed to lock ourselves out of our Airstream.
“How did this happen,” you ask? (And yes, I can hear you snickering.)
It was easy! On an Airstream there are two door locks. One of these is a deadbolt-style lock. We use it on a daily basis.
The second lock is [...]
Do you believe in miracles? Sometimes in our RV travels, we come across things that cannot be easily explained. That was the case a few weeks ago in Santa Fe, New Mexico, where we explored the Loretto Chapel and its “miraculous staircase.”
As you’ll see in the video, this hand built wooden staircase is a stunning [...]
America is replete with privately owned RV parks. Some of these parks have been in operation for decades. The best deliver not only a pleasant camping environment, but also a sense of history. It’s more than a good night’s rest. It’s a cultural experience.
It’s always a good sign when your campground hosts also own the [...]
Q: How many times have you camped in a Wal-Mart parking lot?
A: I’m not sure exactly. Maybe a dozen.
Remember when you were a child? You’d receive new toys with no concept that they might someday actually break. You’d tear open that shiny new package, rip out the contents, and start putting your new acquisition through hell. Ah, those were the days.
One mission of this website is to document the details of RV life. Want to know what RV travel is REALLY like? We’ll lift the curtain for you.
In a little over a year of ownership, we’ve had three flat tires on our Airstream.
The first occurred in Myers Flat, California. After rolling into one of the prettiest private campgrounds in California’s redwood forests, our tire died. We woke up the next morning, and it was just…gone. It didn’t even leave a note. Thankfully, [...]
A few years ago, a friend of mine — who also happened to be one of the most talented comedians I’ve known — suffered a heart attack. As a comic, this guy was absolutely hilarious. He was always bursting with rambunctious energy and zany, off-the-wall humor. So his heart condition came as something of a [...]
For someone who has consumed more than his fair share of wine (just ask my liver), my palate is remarkably imprecise. I know what I like. I know the difference between a good wine and a bad wine. Thanks to the words “corporate expense account,” I’ve had a fair amount of experience with high dollar [...]
A few years ago, a couple of employees at Yellowstone National Park played a joke on the tourists. They placed a large hand crank apparatus on top of a wooden box. Next they set the whole contraption in the vicinity of the world famous Old Faithful geyser, which always naturally erupts once per hour. Just [...]
When in college, I worked a couple of summers in Yellowstone National Park. My job was usually in the kitchen, where my friends and I could be found chopping vegetables, flipping burgers, or (if we were lucky) scooping ice cream for tourists. As you might imagine, the work paid peanuts. We invested many long, hot, [...]