Financial Question Pertaing To Road Trip (camping, cruise, cost, cycle)

[royhinkley]

I am going on a road trip that starts in Wisconsin and takes me through, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, up through California, Oregon, Washington, Northern Idaho and ending in Northwestern Montana. I am purchasing a smaller motorhome for my journey. I will also be stopping at several National Parks along the way in the states before mentioned for sightseeing and camping. I will be buying an annual park pass, much cheaper that way. And who knows where else I'll end up along the way, not really set to a specific plan or schedule. My question is, how much money do you think I need? The only planned expenses will be gas and food. I am buying most food at grocery stores to save money, just buying simple things to make sandwiches and things like that. I know this is a tough question for an outside source to answer but hopefully you can give me your best opinion. I am thinking $10,000 will be sufficient. Thanks for you help!

[EllenArlingtonPark]

I think that 25 a day plus fuel and park fees would cover it unless your vehicle breaks down and have costly repairs and have to stay in a hotel. Just eating sandwiches will get old fast, budget for a good meal at least once a week.

[royhinkley]

i am looking for more of an overall price when answering the question. how much do you think for the entire trip?

[jlawrence01]

You are not providing enough information.

How many miles are you driving? In other words, list out where you are going, and run a Mapquest to determine hoew many miles.

What kind of mileage will you get with the vehicle you are buying?

What kind of repairs will it need to keep running on a long road trip?

How many days will you be gone?

What time of year are you going?

[royhinkley]

Not exactly sure on the mileage. Also not sure on the gas mileage that my motorhome will get. I will know that once I get one. Not sure on the repairs either, hopefully none. I will not be gone for more than a month or two. I am planning on leaving in May and finishing up at the end of June to the middle of July??? Kinda whatever happens, happens kinda thing. Not really on a set schedule.

[StealthRabbit]

I would figure ~ 5,000 miles for that trip. (50 days)

gas @ 10 mpg & $3/ gal = $1500

Food, simple = $10/day = $500
not-so-simple = $1,000
eating out = $2000

lodging = $15 / night for no hookups $650
= $40/night full hookups $2000

entertainment $80 for National Parks pass, $50/ week for sauna / hot springs... = $350

Total econo trip = $3080. 'upgrades' = ~$1,000

Repairs are tough to calculate, but with oil / tranny change with fresh Baldwin or equiv filters & synthetic (for heat tolerance). + replace hoses and belts and rubber fuel lines. Keep a spare water pump and electric fuel pump ($20) and fuel filters. GOOD tires and wipers! Check data code on tires, they are only good for 6-7 yrs. Check muffler and exhaust for rust. I would expect no repairs, but keep a credit card handy. Hopefully you can get by W/o using it

I would also buy a 'good-sam' membership or triple A 'plus' ~$150
Maybe a discount campground membership, or use my usual resource.
Free Campgrounds for RVs

You didn't mention Wyoming, but you've GOTTA Go There !!! (coming from a Colorado kid, who escaped to WY every weekend) I like Snowy Range (Near Laramie) and rte 14 and 14a in the Bighorns (Sheridan to Lovell) and of course the Beartooth Highway & Tetons. + Devil's Tower (NE) Lots in SD too. In WY, many city parks offer free camping (Powell is one spot that is GREAT)

Some other 'must see's I've found
NE = Capital tour, Prime Rib at the Oak Tree in Malcolm, near airport (only on Friday and Sat Eve). Windmill Recreation area Windmill State Recreation Area - Gibbon South - RecreationParks.net Pioneer Village (free admission w/ camping, last I was there, it is really great). North Platte for history. Burger in Paxston at the cafe / bar (tons of stuffed wildlife). Cabela's @ Sidney (free Camping), 'Car Henge' in Alliance.

Colo, I have many recs, since it was home for 25 yrs.
Colo Springs is worth the trip, AF Academy and Garden of the Gods., then head up to Buena Vista, and over Independence pass to Aspen.
Be sure to spend a night in the Glenwood Canyon, free, and plenty of train noise !, very nice place, but many sites are similar nearby. Glenwood Springs pool is great at evening and in early morning (even better w/ snow)


UT, I really like Arches and Bryce NP
NV - Great Basin NP is a gem (maybe the only gem..., but Valley of Fire 50 mi north of Vegas has nice camping)
CA I spend most time on the coast from SF > Crescent City. I like to eat at Samoa Cookhouse near Eureka (all-you-can-eat 'family style' at a Logging camp kitchen / great museum) Go for breakfast if they are having French toast !! (menu changes daily, call first) Another inland great in CA is Lassen NP and Lava Caves (on the way to Klamath Falls, OR)

In OR see Crater Lake, and take the rte out to the NW and down toward Roseburg, great camping spots along the river BEFORE Roseburg (A free hot springs, and pretty hike to falls also). OR coast is best between Newport and Seaside. Hug Point state wayside is a MUST SEE. Check Google images. There is a wagon road blasted in the rocks on the north side of beach, it has great tide pools on low tide. Nice caves and water falls, perfect red rock colors for sunset pics. Cannon Beach has a couple nice RV parks, I like the one on the North side near the road to Ecola SP. (No CHEAP places to stay near Cannon Beach.). Then drive into Portland and enjoy free nightly concerts in beautiful parks (be sure to see the Rose Garden, ~1500 varieties. (garden is near zoo + one in NE Portland off Rosa Parks way). Stop at Powell Books (one city block of 3 story book store), then off to Columbia Gorge and on up to St. Helen's and Rainier. Try to fit this in (free art stroll near Rainier) Dan Klennert's Spirits of Iron

Olympic Peninsula is great with Rain Forest + ferries are free eastbound on your way top Seattle (for passengers). Depart from Bremerton or Poulsbo (nice little German town). North Cascades is nice rte. See the Laser Light Show at Coulee Dam. (Army Corp has NICE campgrounds in many areas) RV Camping at USACE/COE US Army Corps of Engineers Campgrounds

too many places, too little time.

For a vehicle If you are single, I would consider a conversion van (Roadtrek is nice, as well as Pleasureway ...) I've used many a VW van, but having a toilet is a plus (at my age now). I think the best deal is to find a used DHL Sprinter and convert it to camper. These get 25mpg on Diesel and drive NICE.

I currently use a Rialta Rialta Heaven - Home. ~17-21 mpg, full Class C. genset, shower (nice outdoor one too), microwave, sleeps 4 rides 8. These have a weakness in high tranny temp, so need a $90 cooler (or a $5,000 tranny every 50,000 miles... VW says it is a 'lifetime' tranny, and it doesn't even have a dipstick!!, but those in the know change fluid frequently, as it runs at 250F +)

While camping is OK, I really prefer to use my 52 mpg Diesel Passat wagon and stay in private Guest homes (~$10-$20 / night). I enjoy the info I get from the hosts, and they are often very well traveled and full of great ideas. They are super when traveling overseas. (one directory I use in USA is largely farmers and that is great for activities and helping out + quiet sleeping & FREE place to park camper).

2 of us did a 12 wk / 12,000 mile trip for $2000 total quite a few yrs ago. (40 mpg car w/ bicycles on top, and tent in the rear, cookstove close at hand (we were freezing camping in Canada in October). Washington DC was like the tropics when we finally got south. Lots of bike trails there, we spent 3 weeks at that stop!

[royhinkley]

thanks for the great advice StealthRabbit! i would like to talk to you more to learn more about the private guest houses you mentioned.

[royhinkley]

oh yea and i didnt mention south dakota or wyoming because i have spent some significant time in both those states. for this trip i am focusing on states that i either have not been to or havent spent as much time as i would have liked to. wyoming and south dakota are beautiful though.

[nwcountrygal]

I rented a RV last year from Cruise America. Drove around 4500 miles WA to South Dakota. Had a family thing to do and then toured Yellowstone area along with other sites along the way. Spent around three weeks. I did stay in a few motels to break up the small shower situation. With eating out and in. Staying in KOA to parks total for two of us was around $4200. I didn't make any reservations along the way. The trip was end of May to end of June.

If you go to Oregon Coast I really recomend Manzanita area - south of Cannon Beach. Much cheaper and a great campground in the state Park. You might need to make reservations at that time of year. Close enough to take drives around the area (just south of Hug point) agree good spot. I really enjoyed Newport area also. Manzanita area is my favorite and central to drive to many of the places during the day.

In WA there is a great state campground down on the mouth of the Columbia also outside of Astoria. Plenty of RV and campgrounds around the coast and Olympics. Near Mt Rainier not so much for RV camping. Don't try to do Mt Rainier and Mt St Helens in one day. Too much driving. Randal has a really nice campground/RV Park. That is located between both Mt Rainier and Mt St Helens.

Have a great trip!!

[jtur88]

Buy a campstove and get some pots and pans and tableware from Goodwill. You can cook anything that you can make on your stove at home. Everything from oatmeal to omelets to chicken-n-dumplings. You can save a ton of money if you stoke up on things like potatoes and rice and supplement the dishes with cheap veggies that have long shelf life, like onions, cabbage and carrots. When you're not driving, time will pass slowly, so you can simmer soups and stews for hours. Learn to like cheap meats, like liver and chicken hearts. A whole ready-to-eat roasted chicken at a supermarket deli will cost half the price of a bucket of chicken pieces, and about a quarter of the price of a pizza. Big packs of generic cola are less than 20 cents a can, so why pay a buck or more for a fountain drink or put 75c in a vending machine? For nibblies and snacks, it doesnt get any cheaper than a package of tortillas and a can of refried beans. Breakfast cereals are just as good with fruitjuice on them, and milk doesn't travel well. Take powdered milk if you need it for things you cook. If corn is in season, buy a few ears every day from roadside stalls and cook them at rest areas. It cooks in less than five minutes in a frying pan full of boiling water. Always check trash barrels at rest areas and campgrounds. If its a place where there has been a school outing, the kids will have eaten all their junk, and thrown away the healthy goodies their mommies packed for them. The shelf life of most foods is about five times as long as people think. I once got a whole home-made pecan pie, untouched, discarded after a church picnic.