Tennessee camper

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wildwest450

New member
Joined
Feb 28, 2013
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Hello all! I'm from middle Tennessee where great camping abounds. I've only ever camped with friends, and am about to purchase my first camper. My wife and I are in our early 40's and are looking to bypass the popup camper stage. Any advice is welcome, we are looking at our potential first baby tonight, feel free to weigh in on the thread. Thanks!!

http://www.rvforum.net/SMF_forum/index.php/topic,61539.0.html
 
Welcome!  My wife and I are also in our early 40s and just got our first RV too.  We also bypassed the popup stage, although I have vague memories of my family's Starcraft, which my folks sold when I was 6.  Sorry I can't help you out on the Rockwood.  Whatever you negotiate, I'm sure it will work out well.  I have a friend in the process of buying a 2013 Roo.
 
Welcome! I would never be so bold to offer an opinion on what to get as I switch RV's what feels like every year!
 
My wife and I went from a popup to a 2007 Dynamax 350 SL . We love the Dynamax it runs and handles great and the gas milage isn't that bad for it's size. Im not sure what's the best RV but the Dynamax was the best fit for us. I think you need to do your research on line once you find the one you like. I plan on camping in Tennessee this May any suggestions ?
 
Welcome to the forums!  We also live in Tennessee...the middle part.  :)

We started out with a pop-up when the kids were small and we were very tight on funds.  Later, when we had a couple more kids and a little more money, we bought a 1983 Class C.  It worked pretty well for us for about ten years.  We had four daughters and usually would haul a few neighbor kids with us.  Sometimes, the older kids would sleep in a tent.  Back then, we mostly did weekend camping at a place called Hermitage Landing (Now, it's Nashville Shores) or some of the wonderful state parks. 

Kids grew up and didn't want to camp, so we sold the camper and bought a GMC van with a sofa that made into a bed.  We used that for a few years touring and staying in motels most of the time.  A few years afterwards, we decided we didn't like motels and wanted to get back into camping, so we bought a new and improved popup...lol.  We went all the way to the Pacific Ocean, up to Yosemite and back through Yellowstone dragging the popup.  After our 5000 mile trip, we realized that our much older backs did not really enjoy the popup adventures, so in 2006, we traded the popup for a Class B Gulfstream Vista Cruiser.  It was similar to the Pleasure Way van campers, but not as expensive.  We loved that vehicle.  We put over 70,000 miles on it in the six years we owned it.  It was on a Mercedes/Sprinter chassis and had no slides.  We got 22-24 mpg, so it was efficient.  We could park anywhere and never had to tow a car. 

Fast forward 2012...DH retired, I am getting close to retirement.  The Sprinter van is great for driving and sleeping.  There is no comfortable way to sit unless you make the bed every day.  We didn't like the folded bed scene, so we put a good mattress in and left the bed made all the time.  That took up the entire bed area...no room to walk around.  The toilet was a shower/toilet combo...efficient for a night or two, but not for much longer.  We decided that we want to slow down the pace and spend more time at a campground and drive less.  This past November, we traded our camper for a Forest River Sunseeker 3010DS.  It is really awesome for us at this stage in our lives.  The floorplan is great.  We have two slides and it is easy to drive and has a much larger kitchen and refrigerator.  We do miss the small size of the class B and the mpg...we get about 9 on a good day now, but diesel was getting expensive and maintenance on that vehicle was not cheap either. 

My point with all this is that everyone has different needs and at different stages of your life, your needs will change.  As we get into retirement, comfort is the number one thing for us.  Do the research, look at lots of campers.  You can find most any kind of camper in any budget range.  It's all a matter of determining what you need at this stage of your life. 

The important thing is to get out and enjoy life and have fun!

 
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