[Toadman]

I'm picking up my girls (young ladies) from their college graduation in California. I'm borrowing a friends RV. My wife and I will be doing a mad dash across the the country and then taking our time on the way back (to Virginia).

Any tips/tricks/recommendations would be greatly appreciated. I'd like to head off any potential problems since I'm an RV neophyte.

It's a Class C RV (Forest River, Forester).

Thanks in advance fellow FReepers!

[wyowolf]

Not sure about your route, but Montana Wyo would be on my list depending upon where you are going.

Yellowstone and Glacier, also the Black Hills SD area is nice...

[C19fan]

I did a similiar trip a few years ago:
1: Las Vegas
2: Four Corners/Colorado Plateau Region
3: Yellowstone
4: Black Hills SD

[glorgau]

Firstly, calculate the carbon footprint of the trip. ;-)

[mfish13]

Bear Tooth Highway.

[Sasparilla]

On the practical side,make sure you take a box of disposable rubber gloves to have some to wear when you dump the blackwater/ gray water holding tanks.

[RegulatorCountry]

Plan your trip to avoid being in cities during morning or evening commute traffic.Plan your stops for fuel, meals on the road and bathroom breaks, being new to an RV you don’t want to have to deal with a tight parking lot so find places with Truck/RV parking to accommodate. Even with planning you’ll find that you occasionally have to back up, so I hope your RV has a backup camera.

[silverleaf]

Rocky Mountain national park, Royal Gorge, Lake Powell, Grand Canyon , world’s largest ball of twine ( Kansas I think)

Be sure to watch “National Lampoons Family Vacation”
Bon voyage sparky!

[BBB333]

Wal-Mart allows RV’s to park overnight in their parking lots, just in case.

[Alberta's Child]

In the lower 48 states there are three places I would never miss on a cross-country trip between May and September: the Bitterroot Mountains along the Idaho/Montana border, northern Minnesota, and upstate New York.

[Raycpa]

Travel mostly at night.
Use toilet sparingly.
Find dump stations.

[silverleaf]

http://www.kansastravel.org/balloftwine.htm

There Ya go! If you can’t avoid Kansas might as well see something interesting

[V_TWIN]

Take time in the Colorado Rockies if possible. Only God could create something as beautiful as that.

[Dan(9698)]

For the practical side, change the fuel filter before a long trip.

An old fuel filter stresses the pump. Most pumps are mounted inside the fuel tank and so if it fails, it is a big job to replace.

[TNoldman]

Watch the Movie “RV” with Robin Williams.

My wife and I have RV’ed for over 20 years - 4 to 6 months every year - all states except Hawaii. Always great times.

Don’t forget to take a bag of tools - screwdrivers, cutters, duct tape and etc.

[redfreedom]

I suggest building your trip on your personal likes.

If you really like people and city oriented trips, then the country is not for you.

We are country people and shy away from anything over 100,000 people. We take 2 trips per year and go for the raw scenic beauty.

This you will find in the western states. Our favorite is the South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana Colorado area where there are mountains.

The wildlife, the scenic beauty is just awesome. Just a simple drive on Beartooth Pass is fun.

If you are driving a Class C, then your off road options are limited, but you can still have fun. Many National Forests have back roads that are just fun to go on. Along the way you will find ATV rentals. I suggest doing that, going on some back trails. Maybe find a moose, bear or get lucky and be chased by a mountain lion.

Same with fishing and boating, there will be boat rentals and places to fish.

We prefer National Forests over Parks because there are fewer restrictions, and often times a Park Rangers get big headed over being federal cops and can be aggressive whereas forest Rangers are few and far between and always very friendly.

[babygene]

You should check this... I think 30 feet is the largest motor-home national parks can accommodate.

[calljack]

I have a Forester, it is a good rig. Make sure you have an external water pressure regulator and use it (about 8 bucks). Some RV parks have high water pressure and anything over 40 PSI going into the rig could blow out the the water connections. Make sure you have the right toilet paper, its not the same stuff. I would visit the north rim of the Grand Canyon, not nearly as commercialized as the south rim.

[sportutegrl]

On the Eastern Half: Cross the Mississippi in Natchez, then take the Natchez Trace 400 miles to Nashville, TN. There are some great state parks to camp at on the road, usually free, plus a lot of little interesting stops with history and scenic tidbits.

[drjimmy]

First of all, have fun. As the saying goes, it's not about the destination, it's about the journey.

On a practical note, be aware that you may be SOL if you want to camp inside the national parks. They are super popular, and you generally have to reserve a site up to a year in advance for something during the summer months. That being said, there are plenty of private campgrounds surrounding most of the parks, which may have more openings.

As others have said, boondocking at Walmart may be a good choice in many cases. This website (not affiliated with Walmart) has lots of good info. Bon Voyage!

[rstrahan]

Right now, Bridal Veil Falls at Yosemite is flowing after years of being dried up (drought). Worth stopping in. Sequoias in north California. Lake Tahoe, the Rockies (Estes Park Skyline Road may not be open yet), Mt Evans is a great drive. Kansas, meh, but you might swing north to see Mt. Rushmore. Great Smokey Mountains, Grand Ol Opry (lots of camp grounds in the Nashville area), just a few suggestions.