The USA is all about RVs. And not small camper vans, I’m talking about massive, gleaming houses on wheels. I know Canadians RV as well, but it seems to me that the US has a definite love affair with recreational vehicles. I’ve never seen this many in my life!
The other night, after about 7 hours of driving the California coast, we pulled into the Westport Beach RV and Campground. The guy was friendly enough even though he grumbled at us that he was closed. I pondered letting him know that he had his ‘open’ sign on but, decided that being smart might not win him over. Instead I made friends with his cat, aptly named “Miss Kitty,” and he let us camp on the beach. On the short drive down to the beach we passed about 25 RVs (according to the locals this is the low season) and set up our tiny two-person tent.
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I woke up around 9am the next morning and was interested to see that most of the RV owners were already up preparing their mammoth vehicles for the road. After a rather chilly evening in the tent and a sore back, I was beginning to understand why people love their motorhomes.
So, what if you wanted more of an RV adventure rather than the typical North American road trip?
I did a bit of research before we left on our trip, and located a company called Adventuretours that specializes in RV tours to Latin America. They take no more than 15 vehicles into Central and South America from the US. Pretty cool if you like to travel with all the comforts of home. I know that many people like to travel with others to enhance their time away and meet new people. The neatest thing about this company is that they encourage travelers to break off from the group and explore on their own instead of as tour group where everyone wears the same color shirt, takes the same picture and remains in a group at all times. I contacted them a few months ago when I was trying to figure out how to get around Colombia thinking they might have some inside information. They were more than helpful and even offered to meet up with us on the way.
Hmm…maybe I should have convinced Tom to buy an RV…
“No Wrong Turns” chronicles Kelsey and her husband’s road trip — in real time — from Canada to the southern tip of South America in their trusty red VW Golf named Marlin.