Be sure to be considerate of your campground neighbors
This time of the year many of our popular campgrounds are filled to capacity, which means you might be spending a long weekend within a few feet of your neighbor’s RV.
With so many new RVers visiting our region’s beautiful forests and lakes, this may be a good time to take a quick glimpse at campground courtesy.
RVers Online survey
A couple of weeks back Tom and Stephanie Gonser, founders of the RVers Online Web site, talked about campground etiquette in a workshop at the Life on Wheels Conference in Moscow, Idaho.
“The campground or RV Park does pose certain specific issues that RVers always need to be aware of,” said Tom Gonser of Friday Harbor, Wash.
“Rigs are parked closer together than houses are and are not as insulated from the noise of the neighborhood,” he said. “Each site becomes a minihouse with its own private miniyard, resulting in the need for special considerations.”
During the workshop, the Gonsers referred to information gleaned from a survey on issues of etiquette collected from 500 RVers Online readers. “We asked readers to list the things they hoped other RVers would consider when they were visiting RV campgrounds,” said Tom.
“ Take care of Fido and Fluffy.
“Always at the top of everyone list is responsible pet ownership,” said Tom. Pet owners need to keep pets contained, clean up after them and not leave them unattended in the campsite.
“ Honor “property” boundaries.
“RVers tend to get this sense of proprietary interest and ownership of their RV space,” said Tom. “That’s their space even if they can reach out the front door and practically touch the next RV.”
In general, unless invited, stay off other campers’ sites. Don’t cut across the imaginary property line.
Campers (and their children) need to stay on roadways or designated paths and walk around sites.
“ Parking issues.
“Check to be sure your rig is parked fairly in its assigned site and not encroaching on the space of another,” said Tom. Check to be certain your tow vehicle is in your space and not blocking the access or passage of other RVs.
“ Keep the peace.
Campers need to be courteous with the noise they make and keep it within your campsite. Sounds travel very far and very clearly on a summer’s night or in the early morning hours.
If there are no times, a rule of thumb for quiet hours is between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m.
In an online article on “RV Park Etiquette, work camper Larry McLemore wrote: “When you are parked close to others, remember that just closing your cabinet doors can be heard by your neighbors. So, if it’s early in the morning, close them softly.”
For a complete listing of findings from the RVers Online “Campground Courtesy” survey go to www.rversonline.org.
‘Code of Dry Camping Etiquette’
When traveling straight through from one destination to another, some RVers, out of necessity or convenience, may choose to rest overnight at a shopping center or casino parking lot.
Many big-box stores, including Wal-Mart, K-Mart, Target, Costco and Sam’s Clubs, allow RVers to dry camp free overnight in their lots. Dry camping, also know as boondocking, is when there are no utility hookups such as water, sewer or electricity.
The RV Escapees Club offers nine guidelines to its 34,000 members, said Sherri Burks on the phone from Escapees headquarters in Livingston, Tex.
“Most of it is common sense,” she said. “It is just a gentle reminder to RVers that these private businesses are allowing them to park there, and they should not abuse the privilege.”
The Escapees’ etiquette code includes:
1. Obtain permission from a qualified individual.
2. Park out of the way. Leave a buffer between your RV and perimeter residences.
3. Do not place personal items outside your RV.
4. Avoid using slide-outs if at all possible.
5. Do not use your leveling jacks on asphalt.
6. Limit your stay—one night maximum.
7. Purchase gas, food, or supplies as a form of “thank you” when feasible.
8. Always leave an area cleaner than you found it.
9. Practice safety precautions.
Bob Gummersall, a longtime RVer who lives in the Seattle area, wrote an article on “Boondocking Etiquette” posted on RVers Online. In it he states: “In this type of parking we never open the awnings, get the barbecue and chairs out or otherwise ‘camp.’ We just park for a quiet sleep.”
For more information
“ RVers Online ( www.rversonline.org) is a free Internet site that is noncommercial and updated frequently. There are nearly 2,000 pages of RV-related information and online help from a cadre of four dozen volunteer technical advisers.
Gummersall’s article on “Boondocking Etiquette” can be found at www.rversonline.org/Boondock.html.
“ Escapees RV Club’s basic cost for new members is $70 for the first year; renewal is $60. Reach them by writing to 100 Rainbow Dr., Livingston, TX 77351-9300, by calling toll free (888) 757-2582 or by going online to www.escapees.com.
Wheel question
A non-RVing colleague was grousing the other day about “all those huge motor homes hogging the roads in the national parks.” What’s your pet peeve about RVs?