Novel Fly/Drive Vacation Ideas...

[Jay Honeck]

When I was a kid, my dad would take 3 weeks off every summer, and we
would go on long, meandering road trips around the American West and
Southwest. These make up some of my best childhood memories.

We'd like to do that with our kids, but always run up against the
inevitable time constraints. There is just no way to get away from the
hotel for that long, but we're running out of time with out kid (my
son turns 17 this summer) -- so we're brainstorming some novel
vacation ideas.

For example, we would like to show the kids Yellowstone, Estes Park,
Colorado, and all of the beautiful scenery in the mountains. The best
way to do this is by car (or motorcycle), but we just don't have
time.

One possible solution: Fly Atlas to Denver, CO, and pick up a big ol'
rental RV. It seems you can rent one for around $600 per week (not
counting gas), and that would give us the "feeling" of a road trip
without the zillion hours spent getting there.

Anyone ever rented an RV? Are they a pain to drive? (I've driven
trucks, but never a motor home.) Anyone ever tried combining a flying
vacation with a road trip?
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

[john smith[_2_]]

In article om>,
Jay Honeck > wrote:

> One possible solution: Fly Atlas to Denver, CO, and pick up a big ol'
> rental RV. It seems you can rent one for around $600 per week (not
> counting gas), and that would give us the "feeling" of a road trip
> without the zillion hours spent getting there.
>
> Anyone ever rented an RV? Are they a pain to drive? (I've driven
> trucks, but never a motor home.) Anyone ever tried combining a flying
> vacation with a road trip?

You do not want to rent an RV and drive/camp the national parks out west.
Maneuverability on the winding, narrow, sometimes windy mountain roads
will give you pucker factor like you have never experienced in IMC.

(An old EAA'er in my chapter once commented, "You don't need seatbelts,
a 1-inch ball hitch will keep you in your seat.")

[RomeoMike]

With respect, that's nonsense. I live "out west." The roads in season
are full of RV's driven by old retired folks and by foreigners, who rent
them in California. They are a real pain in the a** for the rest of us,
but they manage to get around just fine. Their survival on the roads is
evidenced by the vast numbers of them who have managed to fill the camp
grounds and then return home alive.

john smith wrote:

>
> You do not want to rent an RV and drive/camp the national parks out west.
> Maneuverability on the winding, narrow, sometimes windy mountain roads
> will give you pucker factor like you have never experienced in IMC.

[Morgans[_2_]]

"Jay Honeck" > wrote

> Anyone ever rented an RV? Are they a pain to drive? (I've driven
> trucks, but never a motor home.) Anyone ever tried combining a flying
> vacation with a road trip?

No problem learning to drive one. Drive with your mirrors, a lot.

I know of three people that have rented, and all three had MAJOR breakdowns.
Two of the three got quick repairs, and one nearly had their trip destroyed.

Make sure you get a vehicle only one year old, at best.
--
Jim in NC

[Newps]

Forget Yellowstone, Glacier and the Tetons in the Summer. Those parks
are absolutely wrecked in June, July and August. I have already made it
quite clear to my relatives in Minnesota that should they ever decide to
come out here we would not ever consider joining them in going to those
parks. If you're going to go, go in September or October. By far the
best months.




Jay Honeck wrote:

> When I was a kid, my dad would take 3 weeks off every summer, and we
> would go on long, meandering road trips around the American West and
> Southwest. These make up some of my best childhood memories.
>
> We'd like to do that with our kids, but always run up against the
> inevitable time constraints. There is just no way to get away from the
> hotel for that long, but we're running out of time with out kid (my
> son turns 17 this summer) -- so we're brainstorming some novel
> vacation ideas.
>
> For example, we would like to show the kids Yellowstone, Estes Park,
> Colorado, and all of the beautiful scenery in the mountains. The best
> way to do this is by car (or motorcycle), but we just don't have
> time.
>
> One possible solution: Fly Atlas to Denver, CO, and pick up a big ol'
> rental RV. It seems you can rent one for around $600 per week (not
> counting gas), and that would give us the "feeling" of a road trip
> without the zillion hours spent getting there.
>
> Anyone ever rented an RV? Are they a pain to drive? (I've driven
> trucks, but never a motor home.) Anyone ever tried combining a flying
> vacation with a road trip?
> --
> Jay Honeck
> Iowa City, IA
> Pathfinder N56993
> www.AlexisParkInn.com
> "Your Aviation Destination"
>

[Newps]

john smith wrote:


>
> You do not want to rent an RV and drive/camp the national parks out west.
> Maneuverability on the winding, narrow, sometimes windy mountain roads
> will give you pucker factor like you have never experienced in IMC.
>

Ah, baloney. I've driven them recently pulling a 26 foot 5th wheel.
Glacier has a portion of the Going to the Sun Road that they don't allow
vehicles over a certtain length. Other than that you won't have a
problem. Somebody may be looking down a several thousand foot drop but
that's about it.

[Newps]

The best drive ever is the Beartooth Pass road between Red Lodge and
Cooke City, MT. They just opened it up last Sunday for the season.
You'll have places on the road where the snow is 30' deep on either side
of the road. A cool little store near the top, the "Top of the World
Store". It's also cool to fly the area.

http://gorp.away.com/gorp/activity/byway/mt_beart.htm



Jay Honeck wrote:

> When I was a kid, my dad would take 3 weeks off every summer, and we
> would go on long, meandering road trips around the American West and
> Southwest. These make up some of my best childhood memories.
>
> We'd like to do that with our kids, but always run up against the
> inevitable time constraints. There is just no way to get away from the
> hotel for that long, but we're running out of time with out kid (my
> son turns 17 this summer) -- so we're brainstorming some novel
> vacation ideas.
>
> For example, we would like to show the kids Yellowstone, Estes Park,
> Colorado, and all of the beautiful scenery in the mountains. The best
> way to do this is by car (or motorcycle), but we just don't have
> time.
>
> One possible solution: Fly Atlas to Denver, CO, and pick up a big ol'
> rental RV. It seems you can rent one for around $600 per week (not
> counting gas), and that would give us the "feeling" of a road trip
> without the zillion hours spent getting there.
>
> Anyone ever rented an RV? Are they a pain to drive? (I've driven
> trucks, but never a motor home.) Anyone ever tried combining a flying
> vacation with a road trip?
> --
> Jay Honeck
> Iowa City, IA
> Pathfinder N56993
> www.AlexisParkInn.com
> "Your Aviation Destination"
>

[[email protected]]

Jay Honeck > wrote:
> When I was a kid, my dad would take 3 weeks off every summer, and we
> would go on long, meandering road trips around the American West and
> Southwest.

We never did it in an RV, but my parents did the same thing. Most of
the time we drove the whole trip, but once we flew commercial and rented
a car; eastern Kansas to Seattle was a bit far to drive.

> One possible solution: Fly Atlas to Denver, CO, and pick up a big ol'
> rental RV.

Having driven one a very little bit, I've got a couple of suggestions:

1) Get some "dual" locally before you go.

It doesn't have to be exactly the same model as what you're going to
rent, but at least approximately the same size. IMHO, the main
difference between most large RVs and other vehicles is that the front
wheels are at best under your butt and at worst a few feet behind you,
which necessitates a different technique at street intersections. It's
not hard, just different. If you know somebody that has an RV, it's
probably worth buying them a couple dozen dollars' worth of fuel (or
giving them some bucks off of a night at the hotel, or whatever) and
driving around with them for an afternoon, both in town and out on the
freeway.

2) Get a good briefing on how all of the gadgets work.

It seems to me that even a big RV with all the toys is a lot like an
airplane - there are only a few controls that are absolutely critical
to making it go and stop (stick/rudder/throttle, steering/brakes/gas),
but a lot of other stuff that you have to know how to operate to have a
safe and enjoyable trip. On an RV, this is stuff like the dual battery
system, propane tank, fresh and waste water tanks, HVAC, kitchen
appliances, etc. Again, most of it is simple, but it's nice to have
somebody that _knows_ show you how to do it. You can learn some of this
locally, but ask when you pick it up for the specifics of the one you're
getting.

There is one argument for renting a car vs. renting an RV. Renting a
car means that you need to tent-camp or stay in a hotel, but since you
know the secret handshake, you can get hotel rooms for like $10 a night,
right? :) On the other hand, staying in somebody else's hotel, for
you, might be like some of the small-plane pilots I know that hate to
fly commercial - not because of the money or the hassle, but because
_they_ aren't in the left seat.

Matt Roberds

[Jay Honeck]

> Forget Yellowstone, Glacier and the Tetons in the Summer.

Agreed, but the school schedule rules our lives for another few
years...
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

[Jay Honeck]

> 2) Get a good briefing on how all of the gadgets work.

Good idea. I've seen some of these RVs, and it takes a Masters'
Degree to understand half the stuff on board...

> There is one argument for renting a car vs. renting an RV. Renting a
> car means that you need to tent-camp or stay in a hotel, but since you
> know the secret handshake, you can get hotel rooms for like $10 a night,
> right?

Yeah, we might just do that, although it would take away some of the
"coolness" of the trip. The kids have camped in our pop-up, and in
tents, but never in an RV.

As for the "secret handshake", strangely there isn't a "clearing
house" for hoteliers to swap rooms. I've thought about starting one
on-line, but don't have time to mess with it.

With many thousands of hotels in America, it would be a simple thing
to set up, so that hotel owners/managers could go on-line and swap
hotel nights with each other.

It would work great, and could be a pretty profitable little venture
on its own...
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

[Montblack]

("Jay Honeck" wrote)
> Anyone ever rented an RV? Are they a pain to drive? (I've driven trucks,
> but never a motor home.) Anyone ever tried combining a flying vacation
> with a road trip?


I'm thinking....


Montblack

[John Clear]

In article om>,
Jay Honeck > wrote:
>
>Yeah, we might just do that, although it would take away some of the
>"coolness" of the trip. The kids have camped in our pop-up, and in
>tents, but never in an RV.

As a kid, my parents took us on a two trips in rented RVs. It was
a great experience. One of the biggest benefits of an RV over car
camping or hoteling it is that as soon as you or Mary wakes up,
you can start driving for the next destination. You can be hundreds
of miles down the road by the time the kids wake up.

On one three week trip, we left from NY, stopped to visit friends
near Chicago, and then went out to Mt Rushmore, Yellowstone, Teton,
Bryce Canyon, Grand Canyon and many smaller stops along the way.
Other then Yellowstone, which we just spend the day in to watch
the geysers and then drove over to Teton, we spend several days in
each location. I still remember paddling like mad to get the canoe
back to the dock as a storm rolled in across the lake in Grand
Teton NP. My dad and I also hiked down to the Colorado River at
Grand Canyon NP.

The RVs we rented were fairly new, and we didn't have any problems
with them, except for the fact that they burnt a lot of oil. This
was in the late 80s, so I don't know if RVs today have better power
to weight ratios. Probably not, with all the extra gadgets they've
added.

There were five of us in the RV, and it was the type on a van
chassis, not the bigger custom chassis or bus conversions. It
was close quarters, but much better then road trips in the car.

John
--
John Clear - http://www.clear-prop.org/

[Matt Barrow[_4_]]

"Jay Honeck" > wrote in message
ups.com...
>
> One possible solution: Fly Atlas to Denver, CO, and pick up a big ol'
> rental RV. It seems you can rent one for around $600 per week (not
> counting gas), and that would give us the "feeling" of a road trip
> without the zillion hours spent getting there.
>
> Anyone ever rented an RV? Are they a pain to drive? (I've driven
> trucks, but never a motor home.)

They're not hard, but they take some getting used to. I would NOT recommend
driving one in the Colorado Rockies if you're what we mountain folk call
"Prarie Chickens" (those who are used to flatlands, then come to the
mountains and PANIC!!!!)

> Anyone ever tried combining a flying
> vacation with a road trip?

Yeah! It was easy, but it was drving in the flatlands of Texas, not the
Rockies.

You mentioned Estes park, so I assume you're going to Rocky Mountain
National Park. That would mean a trip up Trail Ridge Road. That, my friend,
is not for the faint of heart in a car, much less a motor home.

Rent a SUV or just a nice car. See RMNP, then take a trip out Highway 24
down to HW50 through the Black Canyon of the Gunnison to Montrose, then head
into Ouray. From there, if you want a "white-knuckle" drive, take the
Million Dollar Highway to Silverton. From there take the NGR to Durango and
back again.

If you take the Million Dollar highway, don't expect the driver to see very
much sceanery...only the roadway. :~)


--
Matt Barrow
Performace Homes, LLC.
Cheyenne, WY

[Matt Barrow[_4_]]

"RomeoMike" > wrote in message
...
> With respect, that's nonsense. I live "out west." The roads in season are
> full of RV's driven by old retired folks and by foreigners, who rent them
> in California. They are a real pain in the a** for the rest of us, but
> they manage to get around just fine. Their survival on the roads is
> evidenced by the vast numbers of them who have managed to fill the camp
> grounds and then return home alive.

Yup....two days to drive to Colorado, then six weeks to drive 100 miles.

[Matt Barrow[_4_]]

"Newps" > wrote in message
...
>
>
> john smith wrote:
>
>
>>
>> You do not want to rent an RV and drive/camp the national parks out west.
>> Maneuverability on the winding, narrow, sometimes windy mountain roads
>> will give you pucker factor like you have never experienced in IMC.
>>
>
> Ah, baloney. I've driven them recently pulling a 26 foot 5th wheel.
> Glacier has a portion of the Going to the Sun Road that they don't allow
> vehicles over a certtain length. Other than that you won't have a
> problem. Somebody may be looking down a several thousand foot drop but
> that's about it.

Yeah, but you and I are used to it. For "Prairie Chickens" it's a different
story.

--
Matt Barrow
Performace Homes, LLC.
Cheyenne, WY

[Matt Barrow[_4_]]

"Newps" > wrote in message
...
> Forget Yellowstone, Glacier and the Tetons in the Summer. Those parks are
> absolutely wrecked in June, July and August. I have already made it quite
> clear to my relatives in Minnesota that should they ever decide to come
> out here we would not ever consider joining them in going to those parks.
> If you're going to go, go in September or October. By far the best
> months.
>

Changing of the Aspen.

[Matt Barrow[_4_]]

"Jay Honeck" > wrote in message
ups.com...
>> 2) Get a good briefing on how all of the gadgets work.
>
> Good idea. I've seen some of these RVs, and it takes a Masters'
> Degree to understand half the stuff on board...
>
>> There is one argument for renting a car vs. renting an RV. Renting a
>> car means that you need to tent-camp or stay in a hotel, but since you
>> know the secret handshake, you can get hotel rooms for like $10 a night,
>> right?
>
> Yeah, we might just do that, although it would take away some of the
> "coolness" of the trip. The kids have camped in our pop-up, and in
> tents, but never in an RV.

Rent an SUV or van and take your gear with you.

[Ross]

Morgans wrote:
> "Jay Honeck" > wrote
>
>
>>Anyone ever rented an RV? Are they a pain to drive? (I've driven
>>trucks, but never a motor home.) Anyone ever tried combining a flying
>>vacation with a road trip?
>
>
> No problem learning to drive one. Drive with your mirrors, a lot.
>
> I know of three people that have rented, and all three had MAJOR breakdowns.
> Two of the three got quick repairs, and one nearly had their trip destroyed.
>
> Make sure you get a vehicle only one year old, at best.

12 of us rented a 35' RV one summer and took it from north Texas to NW
Arkansas. It was no problem to drive. I did have to get use to driving
past 18 wheelers - the air pressure between the two as they passed.
Worst part was the 10 drunks while 2 of us stayed sober to drive. We
went to the Buffalo River area in Arkansas and the driving was not bad
in the mountains (yes, there are not the Rockies, but I have seen lots
of big RV (motor coaches) up there in Colorado)).

--

Regards, Ross
C-172F 180HP
KSWI

[Ross]

Matt Barrow wrote:

> "Jay Honeck" > wrote in message
> ups.com...
>
>>One possible solution: Fly Atlas to Denver, CO, and pick up a big ol'
>>rental RV. It seems you can rent one for around $600 per week (not
>>counting gas), and that would give us the "feeling" of a road trip
>>without the zillion hours spent getting there.
>>
SNIP

> Rent a SUV or just a nice car. See RMNP, then take a trip out Highway 24
> down to HW50 through the Black Canyon of the Gunnison to Montrose, then head
> into Ouray. From there, if you want a "white-knuckle" drive, take the
> Million Dollar Highway to Silverton. From there take the NGR to Durango and
> back again.
>
> If you take the Million Dollar highway, don't expect the driver to see very
> much sceanery...only the roadway. :~)
>
>

That is a beautiful drive. One year we stayed in Ouray, rented a Jeep,
and drove all over the Jeep trails there. Again, most beautiful. We
stayed at the Best Western there.
--

Regards, Ross
C-172F 180HP
KSWI

[Jay Honeck]

> You mentioned Estes park, so I assume you're going to Rocky Mountain
> National Park. That would mean a trip up Trail Ridge Road. That, my friend,
> is not for the faint of heart in a car, much less a motor home.

I know -- I did it in a fully-loaded (for a 2-week camping trip)
Goldwing.

It was an amazing ride.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

[JGalban via AviationKB.com]

I'm not sure about Estes Park, but if you want to see Yellowstone and
Teton, you can use the plane. Load the plane with camping gear and fly
yourself to West Yellowstone (WYS). Set up in the Pilots Campground on the
field and rent a car at the terminal. Early in the AM and late in the
evening are the best times to visit the parks in the summer.

I guarantee you that the Pilots Campground on the field will be 10 times
better than any campground within 100 miles of the parks, that you'd park an
RV. It's quiet (except for the occasional airplane), no reservations
required and there's a hot outdoor shower in the campground and mountain
bikes for going into town or just exploring the local area. The Madison
River and Hebgen lake are nearby. Also a visit to nearby Earthquake Lake,
shouldn't be missed. The lake was born in the summer of 1959 when a 7.8
magnitude earthquake caused the side of a 7,600 ft. high mountain to collapse
into the Madison River.

http://members.cox.net/jgalban/id29.htm

John Galban=====>N4BQ (PA28-180)

--
Message posted via AviationKB.com
http://www.aviationkb.com/Uwe/Forums.aspx/aviation/200706/1

[Matt Barrow[_4_]]

"Ross" > wrote in message
...
> Matt Barrow wrote:
>
>> "Jay Honeck" > wrote in message
>> ups.com...
>>
>>>One possible solution: Fly Atlas to Denver, CO, and pick up a big ol'
>>>rental RV. It seems you can rent one for around $600 per week (not
>>>counting gas), and that would give us the "feeling" of a road trip
>>>without the zillion hours spent getting there.
>>>
> SNIP
>
>> Rent a SUV or just a nice car. See RMNP, then take a trip out Highway 24
>> down to HW50 through the Black Canyon of the Gunnison to Montrose, then
>> head into Ouray. From there, if you want a "white-knuckle" drive, take
>> the Million Dollar Highway to Silverton. From there take the NGR to
>> Durango and back again.
>>
>> If you take the Million Dollar highway, don't expect the driver to see
>> very much sceanery...only the roadway. :~)
>>
>>
>
> That is a beautiful drive. One year we stayed in Ouray, rented a Jeep, and
> drove all over the Jeep trails there.

Did you "do" the $Million Highway (550)?

> Again, most beautiful. We stayed at the Best Western there.

If there really is a "God's Country", that's it.

We (wife and I) recently moved from Montrose (35 miles away) after living
there for eleven years and we hated to do it, but now that we're empty
nesters, we couldn't justify it anymore.

Hope Jay can get all through that part.

--
Matt Barrow
Performace Homes, LLC.
Cheyenne, WY

[Matt Barrow[_4_]]

"Jay Honeck" > wrote in message
ups.com...
>> You mentioned Estes Park, so I assume you're going to Rocky Mountain
>> National Park. That would mean a trip up Trail Ridge Road. That, my
>> friend,
>> is not for the faint of heart in a car, much less a motor home.
>
> I know -- I did it in a fully-loaded (for a 2-week camping trip)
> Goldwing.
>
> It was an amazing ride.

A few years back we had friends visit us from the Chicago 'burbs (Elmhurst)
and one place we took them was RMNP. The husband, a real bicycle enthusiast,
did just fine, but his wife was getting altitude sickness at the top. Then
she freaked coming down the mountain.

Next May (2008), we're going to Waxahachie, Texas for a four day, outdoor
concert (think: pickup trucks and gun rack rather than VW microbuses with
peace signs all over them). We're going to rent one of these
http://www.usarvrentals.com/rv_rentals/07/a39d-1_rvrental.asp and stay in it
for the four days (beats driving back to a hotel/motel after all that Lone
Star beer).

Other than earth moving equipment, the biggest thing I've ever driven is a
3/4 ton pickup truck, but Texas is pretty FLAT (at least where we'regoing)
and pretty much dead STRAIGHT.

[Ross[_2_]]

Matt Barrow wrote:
> "Ross" > wrote in message
> ...
>
>>Matt Barrow wrote:

SNIP

>
>
> Did you "do" the $Million Highway (550)?

Yes, and several of the Jeep trail, Engineers Pass, Ophra (sp?) Pass,
and I cannot remember the others. We would take a picnic lunch and have
it somewhere on the trail. In late July the wildflowers are everywhere.
I do want to go back sometime. And someone mentioned the Aspens. We went
once when they were aglow. Cannot be described.
>
>
>>Again, most beautiful. We stayed at the Best Western there.
>
>
> If there really is a "God's Country", that's it.

It is nice. So are the Canadian Rockies around Banff.
>
> We (wife and I) recently moved from Montrose (35 miles away) after living
> there for eleven years and we hated to do it, but now that we're empty
> nesters, we couldn't justify it anymore.

We were going to use the last day to go over Stoney pass out of
Silverton. This is July and we got over the pass and on our way down and
we had lightening, rain, sleet, you name it. I was not going back over -
too slippery. We had to drive to Gunnison then over to Montrose and back
down to Ouray.
>
> Hope Jay can get all through that part.

It certainly will beat flat Iowa, and TX
>
Ross

[Margy Natalie]

Jay Honeck wrote:
>
> Anyone ever rented an RV? Are they a pain to drive? (I've driven
> trucks, but never a motor home.) Anyone ever tried combining a flying
> vacation with a road trip?
>
Many years ago I (not having much sense) flew to Denver with my 2 kids
and my mother where we proceeded to rent a 31' (or 37' I can't remember,
but it was big). I was the only one who could drive it. I spent the
next 16 days and 3,600 miles crammed between my mother and my kids. It
was great in a sick sort of way.

We saw lots of things and I didn't hurt anyone! Although my mother was
on the short list :-). How the same woman who never let me get away
with anything could encourage my kids ... I digress...

It was great, do it!

Margy