I'm back from my camping trip
I just want to thank everyone who helped me learn how to camp out of the RV. I had a wonderful 2 week long trip. All the equipment I bought as recommended by you guys worked out great. Big Agnes Copper Spur HV UL3 tent someone suggested, was perfect!
I started in Escalante, Utah (1L7) as suggested by a gentleman on this site. From Houston I made one fuel stop in Double Eagle (KAEG), before Escalante. What a nice setup. Along with a nice campsite, they have a shower and covered pavilion with gas grill, and running water. Great 1st stop to get my camping feet wet. I had the whole camp to myself, and more importantly, the courtesy car all to myself! I spent 4 nights there and did a hike a day for 4 days. It was beautiful. Might I add that May is a great month for Utah. No bugs, yet comfortable during the day, nice and cool at night.
Then, wanting to get a little more hardcore, I flew out to IBEX Hardpan to spend a night on the dry lake. It was a very unique experience. It was fun to land on such a wide open space. It was nice and smooth, however, the chalky dust gets on EVERYTHING! My shoes, my pants, my tent, my tires, my wheel pants, etc, etc, etc...
Ok, Now here's the rest of the story. It was windy during the day, but I expected it to calm down as the sun went down. That turned out to not be the case. The wind never slowed, and I ended up setting my tent up in the howling wind before the sun went down. During the night, as I attempting to sleep, the wind got even worse. I learned later, there was a slow moving stationary front overhead. Very tight isobars! It was hard to sleep with all the noise, and the buffeting of the tent. At times it became very disconcerting. At 2:30am, I went outside to inspect how my tent was holding up. Right then, before my very eyes, my tent could not take it anymore, and the whole thing just imploded! I spent a very uncomfortable and frustrating rest of the night sleeping in the plane, which, BTW, was well secured using "The Claw." I was cold, tired, and ticked off. Not fun...
The next morning, still somewhat windy, I headed to my new friend Vlad's place at 33U. Vlad invited me to Spend a few nights at his place, and I took him up on that. What a gentleman! He housed me and fed me, and I did some more awesome hiking. He and I did some flying that saturday in our respective planes. It was the Coolest, most fun day of my entire trip! Vlad showed me some great spots in Utah. Hite (UT03), and Monument Valley (UT25) to be exact. Absolutely beautiful...
That next Monday I wanted to head to Johnson Creek, ID, but the weather was prohibitive. I settled on Ranger Creek (21W) in WA, but 2 hrs into the flight the weather took a dive on me. I tucked tail and turned back to Vlad's. I stayed with him for 2 more nights. Total of about a week. Vlad, you're awesome!
To wrap up my trip, I used the RAF website (theRAF.org) and found a little strip in Arizona called Grapevine (88AZ). Nice paved strip with a campsite and a port-a-potty. I spent two nights there. No hiking or courtesy car, so I took a risk and left my tent & equipment, and flew to Sedona (KSEZ) for the day. Just a 30 min flight. I rented a car from the FBO and did some awesome hiking. I see what all the fuss is about there. It is a gorgeous place, and also fun to fly into. Gas was reasonable as well. Flew back, spent the second night back at Grapevine, and the next day headed home to Houston.
It was the most fun I've had in the 4 years I've owned the RV, hands down. Don't know what else to say, it was just awesome. I learned a bit about mountain flying, and I had some great adventures with my RV. What a machine! Sometimes I still can't believe I own one. Gotta pinch myself every now and again.
So, Thanks to Vlad, and thanks to all you guys for the help. From the start, this trip was an experiment to see if I'd like it. I know now, it's just the beginning. Insert RV Grin here.
Here's a boatload of pics if anyone cares:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/gtJFYrT7GSfQsKJaA