Full-Time RVers – How We Stay Connected and Work From the Road

We get a lot of questions about how we make a living and stay connected while on the road. As full-time RVers and full-time employees, we have to make sure we’re connected at all times so we can work remotely no matter where we are located. We’re a little (ok a lot) untraditional in that all 3 of us have work-from-home jobs that allow us to be wherever we want to be. That gives us the freedom to live in the RV, travel the country, and work from wherever we are at the time. The downside to this is not having a home internet connection and a constant source of reliable internet.

First off, we use Verizon Wireless as our cell carrier. We did a lot of research about whether we should stick with Verizon or switch carriers and it seemed Verizon was the most reliable option for our traveling needs. They haven’t failed us yet so that’s been good so far. We each have an iPhone and we also have a MiFi 7730L Jetpack for our WiFi needs. We’re currently using about 300 GB of data each month so that one Jetpack is not enough. Thank goodness for companies renting out unlimited cellular plans. We would get throttled a lot if we only had the single Verizon Jetpack. We rent a truly unlimited data plan from someone that allows us to video conference all day, every day.

The most important item we own is the WeBoost Drive 4G-X RV Signal Booster. This thing has saved us on more than one occasion. We’ve never been out of cell phone range with Verizon, but sometimes in rural areas, it can be quite slow. Being in the social media field, I’m constantly uploading large files and documents online and with a weaker signal, it takes much longer than it should to upload these files. The 4G-X RV booster has allowed me to join video conferences when I would not have been able to do so with our Verizon coverage. The 4G-X is used by a lot of first responders who need to ensure they have a constant connection – with that being said, we trust this device a lot.

Installation was pretty simple, but also a little bit scary because you do have to drill a hole in the outside of your RV (yikes!). They provide a cap that keeps the moisture out of the camper and seals off the hole you drill. It is pretty basic installation for the most part. After you figure out where you want to put the inside booster antenna and the outside antenna, you drill the hole and run the cable through. Plug in your booster and get rolling! Ok, so there’s a little more to it than that but not much. It is pretty simple!

One major thing to note – the inside antenna booster only works within a few inches of the device you’re using. So if you’re using it to boost a cell phone, you pretty much have to hold the cell phone and the booster near each other to achieve any boost. For me, I use it for my MiFi Jetpack. I’ve figured out the sweet spot of where to place the booster and where to place the Jetpack to get optimal boosting. When talking on the phone, I generally leave my phone near it, wear my Apple AirPods, and walk around while I’m talking.

We love our RV booster so much that we also have the same booster, but the car version – the WeBoost 4G-X. It works just as well, but doesn’t require any drilling or semi-permanent placement like the RV version. The original car version has a magnetic antenna for the roof of the car rather than a large bolted on booster like the RV.

The WeBoost really has allowed us to continue this lifestyle on the road while working full-time. It really wouldn’t have been possible without it. First responders trust it enough to use it for their jobs and emergency calls – it works that well and it works with all cell phone carriers.

We also each have designated work spaces. I have a desk in my room, Mom has working space in her room, and Dad utilizes the living room area. We have doors that close off each area allowing us to all three take phone calls. The set up is perfect for us and allows to be a full-time RV family!

RV Clubs: Are They Worth It?

With so many RV Clubs out there, how do you know which ones are worth it and which ones aren’t? Depending on your travel style, the clubs that work for us, may not be best for you and vice versa. Here’s a rundown of the clubs we’re members of and the value we see in each of them. If you’d rather watch in video format, I filmed a video for Campers Inn about RV Clubs last year that I’m embedding below.

Good Sam
Good Sam is what I consider the “catch all” of RV clubs. While not every park offers a Good Sam discount, a good majority of them do. The club is cheap to join and it gets you a discount on merchandise at Camping World which, truthfully, probably provides us more value than the discounts we receive at campgrounds for being Good Sam members. The campground discounts are almost like an extra perk of receiving the club member discounts at Camping World stores. The campgrounds that offer Good Sam discounts are normally only about 10% off and while that’s better than nothing, a $50/night only goes down to $45 with your discount which isn’t really that great of a deal. We don’t actively seek out Good Sam parks like we do some of our other memberships, but we will stay at a Good Sam park over another park if the rate is decent.

Thousand Trails
Thousand Trails is the most expensive camping club to join, but if you use the club right, you can really save a ton of money. You can’t join this club for less than $500, but if you take advantage of some of their specials, you can get extra months added on, extra regions, and a variety of other things based on their deals that typically fall around holidays or new seasons (fall special, President’s Day special, etc.). If you’re attending an RV show, that’s always the best time to buy into Thousand Trails because you’ll get the best deals there. If you’re looking at buying into the club and there’s an RV show happening soon that you can attend to buy in, it is well worth the drive to the show and the cost of admission for the extra benefits and discounts you can get.

We don’t use our Thousand Trails membership as much as we probably could, but when we do, we take full advantage of it. In 2018, we stayed at the Hershey Thousand Trails park during the Hershey RV Show. The cost to stay at any parks in the area were inflated because of the popular show; however, we stayed our maximum amount of 14 nights there and that more than paid for our cost of membership which we bought for 3 years. Now, for the next 3 years, anytime we stay at a Thousand Trails campground with our membership, we’re staying for free and in the positive based on how much we paid for our membership.

Thousand Trails does come with a few cons though that you should be aware of before joining. If you’ve never stayed at a Thousand Trails campground before, you don’t know what it’s like to get to your site. It’s something like being a Gladiator. Fight to the death. Fight for your site. Do everything you can to get the site you want or need. Drive in circles trying to find the right site. Lay down on the ground in a site so someone else doesn’t take it. Ok, kidding. That’s a little dramatic. We do love our Thousand Trails membership, but I would go as far as saying – IT IS STRESSFUL to pull in and not know if there’s going to be a site long enough to fit your RV, to not know if there will be a full hook up site available, and everything that comes with finding your site at their campgrounds. Read everyone’s reviews online before buying in. Take everything into consideration. Test out checking in at one of their campgrounds before buying into the membership. Make sure the stress is worth the savings for you.

The other negative aspect of a Thousand Trails membership is their 14 (or 21) night policy based on your membership level. When we stay at a Thousand Trails campground over a certain amount of nights and up to 14 nights, we have to be out of the Thousand Trails system for a certain number of days. Ultimately, this just keeps people from living off the Thousand Trails system and never paying fees, but it does make it challenging to travel solely using their memebership. It’s still valuable, but sometimes you have to wait a few extra days before you can check in using their system.

Honestly, I think Thousand Trails is most valuable if you travel on vacations like spring break, winter break, and even weekends away, but only if there are a bunch of different Thousand Trails campgrounds in your close travelling area. Since you don’t have to deal with the “14 Days In” and a certain number of days out issue if you’re only traveling a short period of time.

Passport America
Passport America is another great one we bought into because honestly, one night a year normally covers the cost of membership so everything over that first night each year puts you in the positive financially. Passport America campgrounds typically (from our experience) aren’t necessarily the nicest or newest campgrounds, but they’re great for one night stops during travel stretches. We typically use them for booking pull through sites when we don’t want to unhook the fifth wheel. They’re normally not in the most common of areas either so sometimes we have to drive a little out of the ways to get to our campground, but we’ve had times where we’ve paid only $10 to stay at a full hook up site with our Passport America discount. The discount is normally about 50% off, but it varies from campground to campground.

KOA
Kampgrounds of America mostly referred to as KOA is one of our most used camping clubs – truthfully, because of the convenience and the almost guarantee of a nice campground. We typically will book most of our stays from location to location at KOA Journey campgrounds because they are normally within about 2 miles of the interstate (if not closer). We will pretty much book a KOA without even seeing pictures if we know it is in a good area – simply because we trust the KOA name and brand. While this isn’t always my recommendation to book sight unseen, we’re willing to do that with KOA campgrounds. The discount itself is only 10% off the regular nightly rate, but you can earn rewards with them that can be redeemed for free nights or additional discounts. If you stay enough with KOA, you can become a VIP with them which brings additional benefits like a reduced or eliminated cancellation fee which is normally about $10, but is eliminated most of the time when you become a VIP.

The truth about KOA for us is we simply trust their campgrounds and know each campground goes through rigorous reviews each year to continue meeting quality standards of the brand. We love KOA so much that we’re not only members, but we’ve been workampers with them in several locations and have been for a few seasons. We were KOA loyalists prior to becoming workampers and that’s just fueled our love for their campgrounds even more – say hello to some great amenities – especially in the KOA Holidays and KOA Resorts.

7 Things All RVers Should Have on Board

Road & Home RV Supplies Full-Time RV Blog Family

We’ve been on the road full-time for a little over a year now, so I think it is about time for a must-have list! Whether you’re new to the RV lifestyle or you’ve been living or traveling in your RV for years, there’s just certain items you should always have on board with you. Here’s my list of 7 things every RVer should have on board.

Command Hooks – Let’s be real. Command Hooks were secretly invented for RVs. Ok, maybe they weren’t actually invented for RVs, but there truly is no better way to hang and organize items without drilling holes or damaging walls. With the various types of hooks available now, you can use Command Hooks to organize just about anything in your RV. We use them for everything from key hooks to cord organizers to décor hangers.
Diffuser – While this one might not be a necessity, a diffuser is a great substitute for candles. I love burning candles and the aroma they disperse across a room, but since it really isn’t safe to burn candles in an RV, I’m almost always diffusing scented oils for a clean, fresh environment.
Level – I hate when our RV doors slowly creep closed or the shower doesn’t quite drain all the way because we aren’t precisely level. While we might not always get it just right, we keep a small level right inside the door of the RV, so when we park at a new location, it is always easily accessible.
Tape Measure – While a tape measure is good to have on hand for a variety of uses, you can use it to determine if you have enough space to let your RV slides out. The worst thing is when you get parked and leveled, but you go to put your slides out only to find out you’re an inch too close to something like a tree or the electric box. Open your tape measure to your slides and use a permanent marker to mark your distances. If you have multiple slide depths, be sure to mark the various depths on your tape measure.
Surge Protector – I think it goes without saying that surge protectors are immensely valuable, but I often see people hooked up to electric without them. Don’t use the mentality of “There are no storms here” or “The power never goes out here” when deciding whether or not to use a surge protector. A power outage is always out of your hands, and it only takes one time for an electrical surge to cause damage. Did you know many of the RV surge protectors come with a replacement warranty? Some companies will replace your surge protector for free if it gets fried from a surge.
Tire Pressure Gauge – Never leave for a trip without checking your tire pressure. We travel with an air compressor in our front storage so we can always fill our tires on the go. While you may not have room (or the weight capacity) for an air compressor, a tire pressure gauge weighs next to nothing. Keep one in a handy location and check your tire pressure before traveling in your RV. This will help keep you and your family a little safer on the road. Plus, tire pressure is a huge contributor to gas mileage.
Extra Hookup Supplies – No matter how you travel in your RV, whether it be casual travels or full-time living, you should always have extra supplies for hooking up at campsites. We see so many people purchasing longer water hoses, additional sewer hoses, and even new electrical cords from campground stores. While it is nice that a lot of campgrounds have these items for purchase, they are frequently overpriced and often not exactly what you need. Most people buying in a campground store are purchasing out of necessity rather than by choice. By traveling with an extra set of hookups, you’ll always be prepared, no matter what situation may arise. Road & Home has put together a nifty Ready for the Road Checklist and we travel with extras of almost all the items on their list. You just never know what kind of campground setup or hazard you may run across while traveling!

*We’d like to extend a huge thanks to Road & Home for sponsoring this blog post and sending us a backpack of supplies including their Ready for the Road Checklist which you can find HERE. Road & Home products can be found online via their website and at many Lowe’s stores across the country.*

Full-Time RVers – Campground / RV Park Review: Yosemite RV Resort an RVC Destination – Coarsegold, California

This post is way overdue! We stayed at Yosemite RV Resort – an RVC Destination just about a week after bring Cash home in October. It was great for us because it gave him plenty of space to run around with not many people around since we were here during the off season. They were dealing with the dry California weather while we were there so everything was very dusty, but there was nothing they could do about it. We can only imagine how beautiful this place must be when they aren’t in a drought. There are so many beautiful hills that would be green grass if there wasn’t such a water shortage.

This place has the best bath house I’ve ever seen. The stalls are huge with hooks for hanging clothes, towels, and more. They also have fully locking doors instead of just curtains you pull – this is a huge plus in my book! The entire shower area was fully tiled and seemed very new. The water was so hot, it could burn you. I love when I can’t turn the water all the way on high heat!

The laundry room here is decent, but not fantastic. While it was very close to our campsite, it was just your standard laundry room. Nothing about it stood out as above average, but there was nothing wrong with it either.

They do a great job at ensuring activities around for all ages. There was a pool up front near the office and there was a bounce house right near us. Each morning, they would come blow up the bounce house around 10 am and each night, they would come deflate it for the evening. There was also a very large dog park for dogs to run around free reign. If our new pup wasn’t so little, we definitely would have taken advantage of the large fenced in area for him, but he was too young to be in areas where other dogs have been.

This park was pretty convenient to Yosemite, but it was still an hour away. There were a couple of small little towns in between us, but nothing major. We were only here for a weekend so we could visit Yosemite and that was long enough for us. While the park was nice, there wasn’t much else around. There were very few restaurants in the area, but we did find this great whiskey distillery in the area called Oakhurst Spirits Distillery. We love visiting these unique, local distilleries. They’re always so different, but the best part is always listening to the stories of why and how they got started.

If you’re looking for some of our pictures from Yosemite National Park – go to this blog post for those.

Full-Time RVers – Campground Review: Paradise by the Sea RV Resort – Oceanside, California

Pacific Ocean Sunset Oceanside California RV Full Time

Paradise by the Sea RV Resort truly is paradise. I think we could live here. Actually, I know we could live here.

Only 1 block away from the beach in Oceanside, California, Paradise by the Sea is high-end RV resort that rather than just a campground. With fairly luxurious amenities and as close to the beach as you can get in this area, Paradise by the Sea brings their A game.

From the moment you arrive and get checked in, every aspect of your stay here is top notch. The check in area is very nice with your basic campground store inside. Once you’re escorted to your site, you discover the concrete RV pads awaiting your rig. While the sites themselves are not the most spacious, they aren’t cramped either. There is decent enough room between sites to eat outside at the provided picnic table and watch football in the beautiful California sunshine. Another great thing about this park is they have 24 hour security on site. When you’re in the park, you have no idea what is going on outside the concrete walls around the perimeter. While it isn’t in a bad area, it also isn’t in the best area of town. The security team monitors the premises all day and night which is a very nice feature.

We thoroughly enjoyed the pool and hot tub area and frequented the hot tub on a nightly basis. The best part of the hot tub is the adults only aspect. After a certain time each night, the hot tub is officially adults only. No children are allowed to be in the area. They can enjoy the pool, but they are no longer welcome in the hot tub corner. The pool boasts luxury chairs, tables, and umbrellas and even a glass fire pit in the corner.

The bath houses are nice, new, and very clean. While the showers themselves are kind of small, the privacy and cleanliness are some of the best we’ve ever seen. The laundry room was also nice and spacious with plenty of machines for the size of the park.

All of this is just a block from the beach which is accessible via the gated back entrance to the resort. Just use the code provided by the front office and come and go as you please. At the gate, they post the tide times so you know what to expect once you get to the beach. There’s also a beach sand rinse-off area when you come back in so you can clean yourself off before going back to your RV or jumping in their showers.

Surfer’s Cove is another great little area of the park. It’s a common area with lounge chairs, fire pits, and ambient lighting to set the vibe straight to beach mode.

They also have a peaceful little nook called Paradise Gardens – this area is a secluded, private garden that’s great for reading, meditating, or just relaxing away from everyone.

Some things to do in the area:

Must visit The Baked Bear – the closest location is in Carlsbad (original location is in San Diego)
Susie Cakes – we found this bakery with tons of delicious gluten-free and gluten-filled goodies that were just divine – located next to The Baked Bear in Carlsbad
Oceanside Sunset Market – every Thursday night from 5:00-9:00pm
Ride your bike to the pier for a milkshake at Ruby’s Diner

Also, this post is WAY over due and you’ll realize that when you see these next pictures from Mom and I in Disneyland. We took a day trip over to Anaheim from Oceanside because – hello, Disneyland – our favorite place. It was decorated for Halloween when we went – I know, I know – it’s May. I’m catching up.

And, Cash was such a little baby! He is such a beach bum!

And because every post should end with beautiful scenery and sunsets —

Full-Time RVers – Campground / RV Park Review – Las Vegas RV Resort – RV Park Near the Las Vegas Strip

Las Vegas RV Resort Campground Pool Hot Tub Review

Viva Las Vegas.

I love this city. My mom taught me to have a great appreciation of these sparkling lights while I was growing up. Then she planned a trip for the 3 of us to visit Vegas on my 21st birthday. Her and I have made a trip out there almost every year since and this year, we got the opportunity to stay for an entire month. News Flash: we didn’t want to leave.

The Las Vegas RV Resort is close enough to the Strip to take a $10 Uber ride and be dropped off wherever you want to go (use invite code kaylak138 to receive $5 off each of your first 2 rides [for a total of $10] – then I get $10 off my next ride, too!). We were able to visit the Strip multiple times each week, but still not live right on the Strip which was nice. There’s also a place called Sam’s Town right next door and we learned it’s where the locals go. We loved this place, too! There’s wonderful BBQ restaurant called Big Mess BBQ as well as a steakhouse called The Angry Butcher – both were AMAZING. The highlight for me may have been the Dunkin’ Donuts though because I love me some Dunkin’ iced coffee (and haven’t had it in forever since it apparently isn’t real big on the west coast yet).

As far as a rating goes, we’re giving this one a 5 out of 5 for being the best in the area. Sure, it isn’t perfect, but I think it is the best you can get within this proximity to the Strip. It is a pretty great park and we love the amenities. The one thing we really wish it had was some grass for the dogs, but I’ll talk about that next.

The RV park is quite large, but it is pretty spacious. The sites aren’t too crowded, but unfortunately there is no grass for the dogs. This isn’t entirely their fault though. Las Vegas isn’t too conducive for growing grass, but it did make it hard for the pup, especially one who is still potty training and learning that grass is good and inside or concrete is bad. Cash had difficulties understanding where was ok to go and where was off limits.

The facilities were great though. Lots of bathhouses were spread throughout the resort including some individual rooms – yes, entire individual bathrooms. The individual bathrooms were really nice with very large showers and lots of counter space. There was plenty of room to get ready and not feel cramped which is a nice change of pace from most bathhouses. This first set of images is from one of the private bath stalls while the second set of images is the bathhouses spread throughout the park.

They also boasted a great pool and hot tub area that even has cooling misters for the hot summer days. The pool is heated in the winter and closes after the first freeze, but the hot tub remains open year round. The pool was perfect for lounging in the desert sun and soaking in that Vitamin D. We frequented the hot tub nearly every night during our month long stay.

The small workout room isn’t much, but I’ll take anything I can get. This is one of the most under provided amenities by RV parks in my opinion. So many people are full-time RVing now-a-days that I think it would be highly beneficial for RV parks to start offering a small workout area. Even things as simple as small weights and a treadmill or a stationary bike would be enough to make a lot of people happy. This one had not only a treadmill, stationary bike, and cross country skier, but it also had a Bowflex and weights. I frequented the workout room quite a bit while we were there which was so great.

They had several dog parks, but the one complaint many people had was that they ask you to only let your pet do their business in the dog park to keep the smell in that area. They claim that because of the dry desert, the smell lingers. We saw several times where owners were attempting to get their dog to the park, but the pups can’t always make it. Luckily, we’ve been training Cash to use a portable grass mat/catch tray so we didn’t have to worry about this, but other people definitely have issues with it. It just isn’t feasible to expect an animal to only go in one area that can be quite a long ways away. While we weren’t there in the heat of the summer, we heard a lot of people say dogs sometimes have trouble walking to the area on the hot asphalt in the summer. Many people have strollers or wagons to transport their pets to the park in during the hot summer days.

A final note about this park – it isn’t in the best area of town, but it is the only RV park in the area with 24 hour security. This includes a security guard gate that is very strict about letting people in (they won’t even let Uber in without giving you a call). They also drive around at night with flashlights ensuring there are no suspicious activities occurring.

Overall, this was a great RV park and we’ll be back in future for sure

Full-Time RVers – Campground / RV Park Review: Gila Bend KOA, Gila Bend, Arizona

Gila Bend KOA Campsite Campground Review Full Time RV

While we don’t usually review a campground when we’re only there 1 night (I don’t think it is fair and we can’t give a campground a just review based on a few hours), I’d be remiss if I didn’t tell you about this campground. It was still heavily under construction while we were there, but it is going to be a fantastic campground when it is complete (and you’re reading this at least a few months after our stay so it is likely complete by now!). We’ve been a full-time RV family for almost a year now and this Gila Bend KOA is one of our favorite campgrounds we’ve stayed in to date.

Let me start out by telling you about the owner of this KOA. His name is Scott Swanson and his background is top notch. He came from the entertainment industry, but he also worked hard to turn his family’s RV park around (a different RV park). Let’s pause for a minute and let me tell you, when I say entertainment industry, I mean he was the post-production manager for GILMORE GIRLS. YES. GILMORE GIRLS. <Insert squeals of joy here>

Let’ start by talking about Kamp K9. Most (if not all) KOA campgrounds have a dog park for your pups, but this one is really one of the nicest ones we’ve seen. With 3 separate areas for social and non-social pups and their humans, there are areas both grassy and rocks for pups to choose their turf. They had toys to play with and a water dish and fountain to help wet their whistle after a rough play session.

And now for the humans – the pool. Scott went all out on this one. Between the travertine tile surrounding the pool and the nice lounge chairs, we could hang out at this pool all day. The pool is the absolute nicest we’ve seen at any campground and it has a ledge all the way down one side for sitting and relaxing. Just off the edge of the pool is a gorgeous turf area with a swing. And since pets aren’t allowed in the pool area, it is a nice place to kick off your shoes and feel the grass between your toes. Oh, did I mention he keeps the pool heated to a beautiful 90 degrees? Because, he does. It was a PERFECT place to wallow in those post-Vegas vibes. I even sipped some Bee Cosmopolitan juice by the pool (because you know I stocked up on that from The Juice Standard before I left – I SO wished they would ship their fresh pressed juices – hint, hint!).

The bathrooms just aren’t quite done being built (at the time of our stay in November 2017), but based on everything else we’ve seen Scott incorporate at this KOA, we’re certain they’ll be just as wonderful. There were a few other things like the mini golf/putting green area under construction, but some other nice features were the huge laundry room and the beautiful landscaping. I just love a good desert landscape and this campground really accentuated their nature environment with over the top, beautiful landscaping.

The Ranch House is a large common area where many of the activities happen and I must say, it appears that there is always something going on here. Lots of activities from water aerobics to chair yoga and everything in between.

He also has one very unique RV site that I must tell you about. I’m certain this one will be a tough spot to get as I imagine it will always book far in advance. One of his upgraded sites not only has a concrete patio for the humans, but it has a private fenced in dog run for your pup! Yes, your very own private dog run to play in with your pup. I. JUST. LOVE. IT. Why don’t more campgrounds offer this upgrade? We would absolutely pay more for a private fenced in area for our sweet Cash.

And also, because we mentioned Cash – here’s a few sweet photos of him protesting the next car ride.

Be sure to check out this KOA if you’re ever near the little town of Gila Bend, Arizona! Let us know how everything is now that it is finished. We’d love to make it back here one day! Send us pics if you see updates!

Full-Time RVers – Campground / RV Park Review: Elk Country RV Resort & Campground – Trinidad, California

Elk Country RV Resort Campsite Campground Review Full Time RV

To be completely honest, I didn’t get many photos of Elk Country RV Resort. I didn’t mean to not take photos of this beautiful location, but we picked up our brand new puppy the weekend we spent here so we were a little distracted, to say the least!

Elk Country RV Resort and Campground is in a little town called Trinidad, California. The area is gorgeous as it is right in the middle of the Redwood National Forest. We were able to visit an area called The Trees of Mystery which takes you up to the top of some of the Redwood trees via a sky tram / gondola type vehicle. It was so beautiful and we’re so glad we got to see this area. While we weren’t here very long, we were also here plenty of time to see the gorgeous Redwoods. These trees are indescribable, but as large as people tell you they are, you can’t fully comprehend the breadth of their size without standing next to some of the largest ones and just staring at them.

Here’s a few photos of the elk in our campground. They weren’t kidding when they said elk roam the area and frequent the campground!

This first picture is taken from INSIDE the RV. The elk were right there!

Full-Time RVers – Campground / RV Park Review: Shady Lane RV Camp

I’m not doing a full review on this campground as we drove in, slept, and drove out first thing in the morning. We never even saw the place in much daylight, but I just have to say how nice the people at Shady Lane RV Camp are! This little place is in Barstow, California and I just love that they call it a camp instead of a park!

While it is a tiny overnight stop kind of campground, it is just off the interstate and a great location if you’re ever headed from Oceanside, California to Las Vegas. We simply needed a place to sleep and we were happy to support a family owned campground like Shady Lane.

The only thing I managed to get photos of was the Shady Lane Time Machine – a phone booth converted into a “time machine.” It truly was a work of art!

Full-Time RVers – Campground / RV Park Review: San Francisco North / Petaluma KOA – Petaluma, California

San Francisco North Petaluma KOA Campground Review

The San Francisco North / Petaluma KOA is one of the nicest KOA’s we’ve been to. From the gorgeous landscaping to the amazing laundry room, this KOA is a great one.

The restrooms were nice, but I want to focus on the laundry facilities here because they are fantastic. There is no shortage of washers and dryers at this campground. They even have large commercial washer and dryers which are great for getting the chance to wash the bed comforters. It was great to be able to clean these items without trying to stuff them into a regular washing machine.

Security here is tight though and every person staying at the resort is required to wear a bracelet (think the bracelet you receive to get into a concert or fair or club or something like that). It was quite strange to have to wear one of these to stay an RV resort and with a 9 week old puppy, he just wanted to chew them off.

They have a nice playground for children as well. And, if you’re wanting to venture out to San Francisco for a tour, they actually have their own tour bus and tour. It sounds like a great option if you’re interested in seeing San Francisco without the fuss of driving into the city.

With close proximity to Napa Valley, we couldn’t miss the opportunity to visit a winery recommended by our friends. We took a trip over to Cuvaison Winery, a beautiful little dog-friendly winery. I’m not a huge wine fan, but I absolutely loved the wines we tried. Cash had his very first outing and here and they loved him! They brought him water and treats and just loved on him the whole time we were tasting the wines. He was in pure puppy heaven.

We also luckily left this area just before it was ransacked by wildfires. While the KOA and the Cuvaison winery survived, many of the places around them were not as lucky. Many wineries in the area did not survive the fires and the KOA ended up housing many people who lost everything. We were very lucky with our timing and leaving the area when we did, but we’re so thankful we got to spend the time there we did!