RV lovers make do with gas prices

The price for regular gas continues to float around $3 a gallon.

RVers, like most other vacationers, are looking for ways to conserve on fuel costs and still take their treasured weekend escapes.

Wheel Life readers were asked to share some of their thoughts on how the current fuel prices are impacting their outdoor adventures and exactly where they plan to RV during the dog days of summer.

“”There may be a number of persons that the price of fuel has no effect on,” writes Wayne Schulte in an e-mail, “but most of us that have been on a fixed income for any length of time are greatly feeling the effect on our budgets.”

Wayne and his wife, Sharlene, of Medical Lake, canceled a trip to the Oregon Coast because of the high fuel costs.

“We have been trying to investigate any campgrounds close to home that will give us the opportunity to still enjoy getting away from home with camping friends,” writes Schulte, 67.

“We plan on using our motor home as long as we possibly can,” he says, “but our trips will become closer to home and probably not as frequent.”

“Phil Bergin of Spokane reports that he towed his 20-foot trailer to California in May.

“Originally when I made the plans for the trip I had expected to spend about $250 for gas each way,” writes Bergin in an e-mail.

When he tallied up his receipts, however, it cost him $357 for the trip down, alone.

“I will confine all my trips to the Spokane or Idaho panhandle regions from now on,” he writes. “No more long trips.”

“Marilyn Currier of Sandpoint has been RVing since the mid-‘80s and is on her third motor home, a 2002 27-foot Jayco class C.

Currier says her RVing this summer will include a drive over to the Grand Coulee Dam to see the laser show and camp out for a couple of days.

Another trip is one she takes each year to the Huckleberry Festival in Trout Creek, Mont. The festival, the second weekend in August, includes a fun hometown parade, arts and crafts booths, a carnival, and lots and lots of huckleberries.

“We camp about 15 miles outside of town and just drive in for the festival and have a great time,” she says.

“Jaci and Todd Zimprich of Chattaroy made a quick trip last week up to the Riley Creek Recreation Area in Idaho to escape the summer heat.

“We didn’t have a reservation,” says Jaci Zimprich, “but we were only staying for one night. We heard that other people in the park who were staying longer had made reservations as far back as October.”

Zimprich reports that this U. S. Army Corps of Engineers campground was “very, very clean and quiet.”

It sits on the banks of the Pend Oreille River, on Highway 2 near Old Town, Idaho. There are 67 campsites with water. Basic camping fees are $15, plus $5 for electricity. A dump station is on site.

“Penney Sales of Coeur d’Alene says her favorite place to camp is Round Lake State Park, about 10 miles south of Sandpoint.

There is “great fishing off the dock, swimming, canoeing, hiking around the lake, horseshoes and camping,” she writes in an e-mail.

People can “use an electric motor but all gas motors are prohibited, which makes it a very quiet and peaceful place,” she says. “There are gorgeous, tall ponderosa pines. It is a great place for families.”

“Dick O’Brien of Spokane says that he and his wife of 34 years have “always camped.”

“We tented it for about 14 years, then we bought a used tent trailer and had that for 17,” he writes in an e-mail.

A couple of years ago they stepped up to a hybrid expandable trailer.

“We now own a Starcraft 21SSO and we are really enjoying all of the nice amenities,” he says.

The family spent last weekend camping at Mount Rainier.

“Our two daughters have always camped and now that they are grown it is a special time when we can all get together,” says O’Brien.

In early August they are pulling their trailer over to Ocean Shores, Wash., for an annual reunion with “a bunch of old college friends.”

For 22 years the group has met each year, camping in spots all around Washington state.

The O’Briens end their camping season each year at Sullivan Lake near Metaline Falls, Wash.

“We have been going there since we moved back to Spokane in 1978,” Dick O’Brien says. “We have always believed that traditions are invaluable to a close family.

“Camping has given us many traditions that we love to continue as the years pass. Sitting around the fire reminiscing about years past makes each trip something special.”

Wheel question

What traditions do you have on your camping trips? Maybe it is a special place, as with the O’Briens; a spectacular recipe; or a favorite activity with the grandkids.

Let us know at one of the addresses or the phone number below. Don’t forget to give your name, city and way to get back in touch with you.