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Rving And Caching


Alan2

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Who's done it? Do you Rv to the trailhead or park RV and switch to car? Fly and then rent the RV? How do you plan the cache hunts? Rent or own? Best parts? Best places in the country for Rving? What's your GPS setup in the cab? How do you download the cache updates from the web?

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Last September, I took a camping trip to the Sierras near Bishop, CA. There were lots of people with rented RVs in that area. They probably flew into San Francisco and rented them there. I forget the name painted on the RVs now, but they were everywhere.

 

I tent camped in two free BLM campgrounds and met some great people in RVs and fifth-wheels.

 

I think the best combination would be to tow a smaller, economical, or 4-wheel drive vehicle behind the RV. Then park the RV and use the other vehicle to get around to the Geocaches and other interesting sites.

 

The best places for RVing are as numerous as there are scenic areas of the country. I love Southern Utah for its unique scenery, Arizona for the desert and its magestic saguaro cactus, Idaho's scenery and hot springs, and the Mammoth Lakes area and its hot springs, as well as the fantastic scenery and fishing around there.

 

The West has a lot of public land where you can camp for free.

 

Even some of the smaller towns I went through had coffee shops with Internet access. I didn't check out the libraries in the small towns I drove through, but they probably have Internet access.

 

If I were to go up there again, I would put in the zip codes for Lone Pine and Bishop and load those waypoints into my GPSr, and load the Gpx files into my Palm (Cachemate). I wouldn't have to have Internet access again until I logged my finds after I returned.

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Every dedicated cacher will eventually find them self looking at a filtered find list which shows the nearest un-claimed cache 100 miles away. The new ignore feature made me painfully aware of how few unfound caches of the type I prefer there are within easy driving distance. So what is a cacher to do?

 

Recreational vehicles present an opportunity for geocachers. At this point the pundits will be thinking "That's not real camping!" and I couldn't agree more. The RV lifestyle isn't all about camping, it's about exploring new parts of our world without being tied to a hotel reservation. It's about being able to take your pet along with you. It's about being able to stop wherever you are and enjoy a sunset, not rushing to make a check-in time.

 

It is also a way to get a lot of caching in with out commuting home each day. You can drive a few hours, park the travel trailer, and spend a whole weekend caching in virgin (to me) territory.

 

<snip>

 

While Walmart doesn't encourage overnighting in their lots they don't discourage it. They only ask that you be discrete, don't roll out the indoor carpet and fire up the grill, and you will be welcome to stay for one or two days.

 

Many private RV parks offer broad band internet connection at little or no extra charge. More and more are offering wireless connectivity.

 

Making an un-expected detour? No cache listings for the area? Cyber cafe's are everywhere and most public libraries offer free internet access with a nominal charge for printing pages. Wireless access can also be had at many restaurants free.

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....

 

If I were to go up there again, I would put in the zip codes for Lone Pine and Bishop and load those waypoints into my GPSr, and load the Gpx files into my Palm (Cachemate). I wouldn't have to have Internet access again until I logged my finds after I returned.

idiosyncratic I kind of used your post as an example.

From the Inyo Co Library website

COMPUTERS

 

    All branches in the Mono County Library System provide access to the Internet and Word Processing. Research may be done at no charge.  In all branches, copies made from computer-printers are $.10/page, $.05/page for Friends of the Library members.

 

They have a branch in downtown Biship.

 

Public libraries are an amazing resource when traveling and geocaching.

 

Not related to RV geocaching, when we stay in hotels while traveling I always try to stay at Ramada Inns since they usually have a free computer room.

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We just have a Roadtrek van type RV and have done a lot of Geocaching in it. As small as it is I am still careful going down some back roads. The biggest problem with it is that it takes a 40 acre field to turn around in. Last summer we stayed in a beautiful Washington State Park in Wenatchee, WA. On that trip I towed my 80 Honda scooter on a trailer and used it to travel around town to the caches. We have everything you need in the van except room. But we enjoy it and find it useful in finding caches. Good luck. Dick, W7WT

 

Forgot to add , on the dash we have power directly to the battery. Most of the time I have the iQue on even when i make a short stop. I route with it and have all the cache data on it as well. I also have the route on the 76C and use it with follow the road. The 76S I have set to the compass page. It is nice to have it pointing at the cache. I usually use the 76C once I have left the van. Many times I also print out the friendly print page for the wife to read to me between caches.

My wife usually stays in the van and we stay in touch with a couple of FRS radios. They also help when backing a boat down the ramp or into a campsite.

Edited by W7WT
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Who's done it? Do you Rv to the trailhead or park RV and switch to car? Fly and then rent the RV? How do you plan the cache hunts? Rent or own? Best parts? Best places in the country for Rving? What's your GPS setup in the cab? How do you download the cache updates from the web?

We recently bought a Roadtrek van conversion RV to see more of the States and Texas in particular. We often spend weekends in the Texas state parks and it has been my experience that there are between 3-7 caches in these parks. Bastrop, Misson Tejas, Brazos Bend all have caches to name a few.

 

I do most of my prep at home. I use a Garmin 60cs, GSAK and Mapsource in various combinations to preload the caches around the park we're visiting. I have the auto navigation kit for 60cs as well and use it for driving too. Once at the park, my wife and I typically hike from the campground to the caches. we're also planning to add a bike rack to allow us to bring our bikes along.

 

Hope this helps.

Barry

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Just spent three weeks in the desert. 30 foot fifth wheel trailer wth a Dodge truck. I was in Joshua Tree National Park, Ridgecrest, Quartzsite, Desert Hot Springs and Indio. I ran all my queries before I left and had them in QSAK. I had set the queries to run once a week and as I traveled I would pick them up. At each location I would use GSAK and Mapsource (that came with my iQue) to filter caches I wanted to look for. Print out a map of the area and go hunting.

 

Using those resources I was able to explore areas quite thoroughly. Just like at home some days were just harvesting but others took me on hikes and drives that I would never have found without geocaching. I plan on going back to those areas a couple of more times for more exploration. I was traveling with another couple who towed a SUV we used for 4 wheeling but when I return I figure I will try to hook up with a cacher or just look around for someone with a 4 wheel drive and introduce them to this hobby.

 

Am also planning a 2 month trip to Canada next year and will have the caches lined up.

 

I get bored quite easily while my wife can sit for days watching trees grow of waves crash so this hobby work out for both of us. When I go out alone I don't do the ones I think she would like i.e. Rose Garden and make sure I do ones she wouldn't be able to handle physically (bad back). We go back together to do those.

 

One thing though about when you get to the desert. The terrain definition changes. Normally anything that takes special equipment (4 wheel drive) is a 5 star. Out there if you need a 4 wheel drive it rates a 3 and you wouldn't believe what they classify as a 5. Once I figured that out I was fine. Tried a couple of 3.5 and 4's in my 3/4 ton Dodge truck and had to back out before I got in trouble. You don't want to be stuck 20 miles outside of Ridgecrest and 5 miles off the main road. No AAA.

 

I run queries when we go over to the coast for a weekend or any other trip we take.

 

So RVing and geocaching work well together.

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We've RVed and cached since we began caching. Wherever we plan to travel we look for caches in the area. Set up base camp somewhere and cache out of there. Will be heading to New Orleans in a month for the 3rd yr in a row. Will camp on the north end of the lake and travel the 4 directions. See what we want to see and cache while we're looking. Or cache and see while we're caching.

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Our family didn't get into Geocaching until after we started camping in our RV. The season is about to start, so this will be our first RV / Geocaching adventure. We like going to the State Parks (mostly Maryland), so we keep our travel fairly local and go during the weekends.

 

I have a 30 foot travel trailer http://www.forestriverinc.com/nd/default22...rec&page=sierra that I pull with an F150 (with oversized engine to pull the extra weight). It makes it easy to drop the trailer and then have the truck to go places we want to. Plus, I can throw the bikes or whatever in the back of the truck for the kids. I usually import all the waypoints of caches in the area I will visit, which makes it easy to choose which ones to go after. Having a base camp to Geocache from will be lots of fun, but I don't want to plan much more than to ensure I have all the options ready. When we go caching, now, we are limited by time and travel distance from home. With the RV, we can be as active or inactive as we want to because we'll have everything right there. Besides, how cool is it to curl up to an outdoor fire after spending a day out and about.

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Have been full time RVing since 05/01. We don't call it camping, we travel in a 40' diesel motorhome and tow a jeep wrangler (used for our caching events). We have been fortunate to have traveled to about 35 states so far, plan on hitting all of them. The Garmin 3600 aids us in traveling the country, then doubles in the jeep for geocaching, It works great. We been able to go paperless by using our cell phones as modems, and downloading to our 3600.

 

I was diagnosed with cancer in 00' which started us thinking about our future. Tim McGraw has the best advise "live like you were dying". Have since acquired diabetes and heart problems. The Geocaching affords us a method of excerise other than just walking and we love it.

 

Please don't think that we are complaining, life is wonderful and exciting. We plan on continuing as long as we can.

 

A message for all you over 40 males. "Do you know you PSA" B)

 

TFTH's and God Bless B)

Edited by davidcarie
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We travel fulltime in a 40' bus conversion and tow a Toyota 4x4 pickup. We also publish the Gypsy Journal RV newspaper, which KND was so kind to mention above. We park in an RV park in area that looks interesting and use our truck to make day trips in the region to gather stories for the paper, and also to chase down geocaches. We're new to the sport, so have only found a few so far, but we really enjoy it. RVing give us the opportunity to hunt caches wherever we travel. We have a wireless internet dsh on our bus, so we can log onto geocaching.com and search for caches in the area we are visiting.

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Thanks all for some really great responses. Since I'd be trying RVing for the first time, I'd like to rent to try it out. Any recommendations for a first timer? Concerns? Cost ranges? (It would be just for my wife and I and our dog.)

Rent now, many rental Co.'s may already be booked for the summer.

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Alan2

 

Renting is a good idea to find out what you like and don't like about an RV trip. My wife and I had taken a trip via rental a few years before buying our RV, so we had an idea of what we were getting into. Financially, you need to use your RV often if you buy it, or else it doesn't make sense to purchase outright. Here are the Google results for RV rentals in the NY area:

 

http://www.google.com/local?hl=en&lr=&q=re...&sa=X&oi=localr

 

davidcarie,

 

I wish your recovery continued success. My brother is only 42 and is blessed to be in remission. Health is everything, so good advice on getting an annual physical and testing. Get well!

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[Renting is a good idea to find out what you like and don't like about an RV trip. My wife and I had taken a trip via rental a few years before buying our RV, so we had an idea of what we were getting into. Financially, you need to use your RV often if you buy it, or else it doesn't make sense to purchase outright.]

 

We own a 30ft fithwheel and a f250 diesel to pull it. We never rented before we bought and that was mainly because our parents and friends have them, so we have always been around them and knew what to expect. Wev'e only used it on 2 trips where we have gone caching but it works great.

 

Financially, you can count it as a second home if it is equipped with certain things, such as a bathroom.

 

Last summer my brother and my aunt rented rvs in Colorado. They had a few problems but overall it was enjoyable.

Just be prepared and don't expect everything to be perfect, because it probably won't be.

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I know the term RV is often associated with MotorHomes, but many owners of Travel Trailers consider themselves RVrs too. That being said.......I pull a 30ft Travel Trailer and enjoy caching wherever I happen to be.

Usually I arrive at my campsite, set camp and then pull out the laptop and GPS to see what caches are nearby. But I also will find caches along my planned route and pick them up along the way. On 2 occasions I have decided that I need to drive closer than the 30 footer will allow. On one of those occasions I actually dropped the trailer on the roadside, and followed the 2track to within walking distance. The other time I dropped the trailer in a church parking lot, and proceeded up the park road again to within walking distance. Both these caches were worth the experience, but my caching partner (sometimes reffered to as my wife) wondered if I had lost my mind ;)

 

No matter how you RV, combining Geocaching with it adds much to your experience in the outdoors.

Edited by Gary and Mary Adventurers
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We bought a 29' travel trailer around Christmas, been out "camping" a few times already and have looked for caches in the areas we camped. We are planning a big trip to DC this summer and I have already started looking at the caches on the route and the area we will be staying! I wonder if my wife would get upset if I unhooked the trailer and went looking...Good idea though, opens up a little more area for finds if I did that! ;)

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I have a 10 foot slidein self contained camper on a 3/4 ton Chevy Pickup. Probably the single most best purchase ever. I used to wander every chance I could. Left the house/property to my neighbors for a couple weeks and took me six months to find my way back home. Put a trailer behind and towed my motorcycle and that was a good combination.

 

My retired income has been rather fixed so cannot travel as much as I used to. Since picking up geocaching Oct 2004. I will find ways to make some extended trips this year.

 

Let's just hope gas prices come down ... but not holding my breath.

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