Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Camping Trailer Questions

Looking ahead at retirement, and I wanna be fairly mobile and able to move with interests and seasons. I have never owned a camping trailer and have only slept in them on rare occasion, so my knowledge is limited. Excuse me for dumb-ass questions

Looking at campgrounds here and there, they are all pricey at nightly rates. Do most offer a monthly rate at a discount?

Has anyone found that purchasing property to stay in a camper works out financially? What about zoning and utility access?

It sounds like you're contemplating being a "snowbird"- - - - -north in the summer and south when the snow flies. What part of the country will be "home base"? Do you intend to retain a permanent residence, or become a "full-timer"? There's a definite learning curve to hauling your house around behind you- - - - -backing, getting the rig leveled up in a campground so you don't end up with a headache after sleeping a few hours, and the refrigerator quits working because it's sensitive to tilt. Then there's routine maintenance on tires and wheel bearings, hooking up water and sewage lines properly, learning to pack cabinets so they don't spill during transport, and a few dozen other things you'll haver to learn along the way. No matter how big a rig you choose to tow, it's going to feel cramped compared to even a moderate sized apartment, let alone a house. A truck with enough towing capacity to handle a large trailer will get pretty lousy fuel economy, even when being run bobtailed with the trailer parked. Managing a load-equalizing hitch, trailer brakes, and sway controls is an acquired skill, but one that's necessary to travel safely. Then there's the matter of managing stopping distance and crosswind driving.

Campgrounds- - - - -most state and national parks have campgrounds with good to excellent facilities, and they're usually more reasonably priced than privately owned camps. Most public campgrounds have a maximum number of days you can stay without moving on so someone else can have your spot. A lot of privately run sites have weekly or monthly rates as well as daily fees.

I've been towing trailers of some sort or another, campers, utility trailers, race car haulers, and 18 wheelers, since the mid-1960's. I'm down to 4 utility trailers and one small motorhome at the moment. Have fun!
Jerry

No idea of your resources or plans.

But, many big campgrounds have cabins or trailers
you can rent. Off season monthly rates are quite affordable.

Or, some have permanent setups that are privately owned.
I looked at one at Ocean Lakes in Myrtle Beach. For the cost
of a new (rapidly depreciating) trailer, I could have bought
a decent cottage on a rented lot. Sure, you would have to pay
rent, but, you can also rent it out when you aren't using it.
Bad deal for me, 600 miles away and still working.


Just some thoughts.

Retired military?
Gov't

Corps of engineers, maybe BLM too have some pretty significant deals for certain people. (So I have heard)
Poke around a bit. Someone will know more

I’m sure many private campgrounds do monthly rentals. Lots of federal and state campgrounds have limits. Usually 14 days.

Yup. Get an "America the Beautiful" pass, available to everyone. 1/2 price camping in Corps of Engineers, Forest Service, and BLM campgrounds. Free "dispersed" camping on BLM land and most Forest Service too, no pass necessary.

There are many places in the west where you can camp on public land for free. You don’t need to stay in campgrounds.

Most privately owned camp grounds have seasonal rates but bear in mind northern states camp grounds open in May and close in October or November. Southern states far enough south are truly year round.
I own property with a camper on it that I keep there 365 days a year used as a cabin. If you go that route check into destination campers, they are built with the intention of long stays that is what I have. Much more comfortable than smaller normally towed campers yet can still be towed if need be. At least in Pa. If you keep a plate on it you pay no school taxes on it like a mobile home.

This. Also check out KOA

Buy a inexpensive camper, do a few weekend camping test runs before you dwell on the subject much longer and be sure you find living in a small space works for you.



Most all have a discounted rate for extended stays. There is a broad range, the sky's the limit, It's all dependent on location and amenities offered. Rates can go from free to thousands of dollars a month.

Monthly dwellers in RV parks can be "clickie" groups. It's either Northern people escaping the winter months in southern locations or vice versa, Southern types heading to cooler mountainous regions for the summer months.
Groups that get along together will congregate in a RV park and develop a social environment where they share covered dish meals multiple times a week and participate in group activities and outings. Most RV parks will have a club house or pavilion or the like to accommodate these groups and their activities. If that's your thing, just bounce around from RV park to RV park until you find a group that suits you.



I've seen property for sale that was limited to "camping only", it's rare and typically due to environmental uniqueness such as being water front or low and wet and not suitable for septic systems and no community sewer options available. Seldom will you find such property where local code will allow a electrical hook-up to be installed for RV use.

Most normal real estate that is broken down into small lots will have codes that often restrict extended use of RV's. The exception is what is commonly referred to as mobile home parks and even then there may be restrictions based on size that are designed to prohibit RV use.

Think about what you are asking there, why have a portable house on a permanent lot?

I bought a nicer new camper. It is small but very roomy, so that is not an issue. It is easy to tow and park. I am outdoors all the time, and I really just don't like camping. Tons of camping in my area but it still seems more like work than a vacation. I think a hotel is much better. I would rent or buy a newer used model.
State camps sites are generally very nice, and they are about 35 bucks a night. I think they have a 10 day limit, or some finite time.

Not only monthly, but 'seasonal' rates are becoming even more common and available.. You can save a bundle on those. Which is a good thing because that's what we may be doing when the wife retires..

There's a guy about 40+ miles SSE of me that looks to own about 2-3 acres, has a small shed on it and a concrete pad. Parks his camper there for the summer and lives there.. It's out in the country and on a very scenic road - and he keeps it all mowed and nicely kept. I'd do something like that in a heartbeat - but you're right about finding an area that allows that type of situation..

What you need to do is this: FIRST - find the camper (and style - 5th wheel, TT, slide-in, ) that fits your needs. THEN obtain the proper truck to pull it.. Too many have a truck and then, when they find the camper they like, realize that the truck they have can't pull it - legally.. When it comes to campers - you cannot have too much truck. We're on our sixth camper - and we've got about 25 years experience with 'em..

Are you single or married? Do you have pets that will travel with you? Personally, I have chosen to stay in full service campgrounds. Sewer, water and power are all necessities for my wife so we are Good Sams members and KOA members which gives us a wide variety of choices at slightly discounted rates.

We have gobs of those seasonal campgrounds up the Ohio River from Cincinnati. It's a very popular option.

Down by me, in the more rural parts, we have a lot of small plots with nothing but pads and utility poles. Folks come in a few times a year for camping and hunting and leave them the rest of the year. Around us, property taxes are negligible. A lot of these pads have city water and electrical, though costlier than in-town, it's still reasonable.

We are members of Good Sam's Club it will get you a 10% discount at lots of RV parks and all so 5 cents a gallon off of fuel at Pilot Flying J locations.

https://www.goodsam.com/club/

I've had RV's for the last 30 years. The most important aspect is the activity. If you use the RV for an activity you like it won't matter about costs. I offroad motorcycle and I look for the nicest places with the best features pool, hot tub, dam the prices. The mobile part is what I try to control. I don't travel in high traffic times. No Friday or Sunday travel. You need to remember you are pulling a small house down the road.

I’ve always thought of them as large porta-potties.

Whatever you get, get it large enough to have tandem axles. They pull easier and they're safer. They also smooth out the bumps in the road so you don't shake things inside apart as much.
If you want it small, there are tandems on the market that are in the 3500lb range and can be pulled with a smaller rig like a crossover SUV or mid sized pickup..

I don't believe that renting a trailer to try it out would work, for me. I'm a very large guy, and beds and toilets are gonna have to fit me.

We recently spent 4 dyas/nights in Orange Beach, AL, and the first 2 nights in a motel were great.Then my wife found what we thought was a great deal on a nice resort place. Got there and it was beautiful. Piano player singing 70s tunes in a good voice. Beautiful property, for a behemoth structure.
Dinky little toilet that I couldn't use in an emergency. 5AM both mornings found me heading down to the lobby to use their public toilets that were elevated and elongated.

My old welding partner did it right. He had a 5th wheel with a custom bed, and a custom toilet and shower installed before he pulled it off the lot. His was the trailer that I've spent more time in than any other. And my wife and I could live like that.

Wife and I have tent camped all over the country, and we know how to get comfortable. 10 weeks living out of the back of a Chevy Suburban was common to us in the years that my work was seasonal and I had summers off to play.
Maybe most importantly is that we are both comfortable with the other, and also know how to offer each other "space" in limited surroundings.

I will either maintain my present home, in Illinois or possibly find another in NE Iowa, or SW Wisconsin. The present home has the advantage of being paid off, with low taxes.

Another attractive area to buy a place is near LBL in TN/KY. The places listed online that I think I can afford don't seem encouraging. But I well remember my dad's agony over having a mortgage on a $14,000 dollar home, with a $108 monthly payment.
But I don't intend to live forever, and recognize that I am entering the endgame scenario.

Appreciate all replies and advice. Thanks...

FYI. South Dakota is the cheapest place to have residency if you’re be mobile . Source:rich,white dude who bought my camper a couple years ago.

P.s. I don’t think he had any sumac or had pop smoke’s new album.