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Old 12-10-2016, 02:54 PM   #1
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Brand: Thor Motor Coach
Model: Axis 24.1
State: Florida
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Winter 2016 travels to AZ

So far the Axis is doing well. Getting 8 MPG towing the Jeep, about 4500#.
First stop at Open Pond we got in just ahead of the rain. Short day the next into Service Park where we saw the 2015 Vegas. Fog/drizzle the next morning but it cleared after about 50 miles. Pulled into Clear Springs, about 30 miles from Natchez, and the only ones in the CG. Stopped by Tractor Supply, easy in and out on US 61, for propane. Then on to Kincaid Lk west of Alexandria LA. Scary moment there, we were passing a slow truck when someone shot across the 4 lanes from a side street and imediatly jammed on their brakes to make a left turn. Really don't like "one blockers".
Long day Friday to Stubblefield near New Waverly TX. Bridge out at Burrs Ferry required a 30 mile detour the construction then some one had reended some else. Rest day today taking care of chores.

Our next stop will be Inks Lk, a TX sp and we will hit enough TX SP's this trip so will pick up the annual entrance pass at $70. For those who aren't aware TX SP's have a per person per day entrance fee on top of the camping fee. Last time we checked it runs 3 to 7 dollars per person.
Gives a discount in the camp store on most items and if you plan on more then a one night stay; tell them at check in and get the 2nd night 1/2 off. Or was the last time we used it.

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Old 12-12-2016, 12:50 PM   #2
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Took Farm to Market roads to bypass Austin; the last two miles of 487 near I-35 was a mud hole. 10 miles an hour and still had to clean the rear camera.
Inks Lk is a nice SP but if you want in here on a weekend make reservations is the advice they gave us. With the annual pass we saved $20 so far between the $6 per person entrance fees and some trinkets at the camp store.
300 watts of solar and full cloud cover got the batteries back to 90% at Stubblefield. Got some more numbers to plug into the energy audit since the heater cycled about every 15 minutes for two hours. Our worst case is 55 Ah in 24 hours.
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Old 12-12-2016, 11:21 PM   #3
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Left Inks Lk for Balmorhea SP via SR 29, US 190 and I-10. Less hills and not fighting the wind MPG up to 8.4. For a West TX field Balmorhea is a nice CG with views towards the Davis mountains. Annual pass saved $35 for two nights. Used one of our 1/2 price camping tokens; part of the pass card.
They have a great spring fed swimming area here. Showers are so so.
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Old 12-17-2016, 03:21 PM   #4
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Riding out the winds here at Rockhound SP, NM. Winds 36 mph gusting to 46 last time I checked. Solar panels so far are doing fine in such high winds.
Showers here were cold; they use to be nice and hot. Maybe a water heater problem. Bathrooms are still the cleanest any where to be found. $10 for dry camping with fire ring, covered picnic table on concrete pad; that's half what we will be paying for the same kind of site in AZ. The picnic table isn't cover at the AZ SP.
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Old 12-17-2016, 03:40 PM   #5
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Scrub -- as you headed west did you have advance reservations at the camp grounds or RV parks where you stayed? Or did you just arrive and do a first come first served.

We are planning a national park 2 month adventure and I have never done an extensive RV trip. Also we don't have a toad so that will be something we need to work around. I'll make reservations at the national parks where we stay, but I was wondering about the places along the way.

Thanks in advance.
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Old 12-17-2016, 04:42 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bevedfelker View Post
Scrub -- as you headed west did you have advance reservations at the camp grounds or RV parks where you stayed? Or did you just arrive and do a first come first served.

We are planning a national park 2 month adventure and I have never done an extensive RV trip. Also we don't have a toad so that will be something we need to work around. I'll make reservations at the national parks where we stay, but I was wondering about the places along the way.

Thanks in advance.
We have done several 4 to 8 week tours of the west, the longest we have stayed in one place has been 3 nights. We had no problem not having a toad because we are 25 foot we just unhook and go. We make the majority of our reservations as we move, we will estimate where we want to go and I will make reservations night before or that morning. Sometimes we just take off and wing it and the wife will call places midday. If we have a place we want to stay for sure like a park or something, we try to make those ahead of time because some places fill up early. For example we went to Mesa Verde in southern Colorado and stayed outside of the park, took a tour that picked us up at the RV park, the other days we just unhooked and explored the area. Happy Travels
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Old 12-17-2016, 11:01 PM   #7
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Originally Posted by bevedfelker View Post
Scrub -- as you headed west did you have advance reservations at the camp grounds or RV parks where you stayed? Or did you just arrive and do a first come first served.

We are planning a national park 2 month adventure and I have never done an extensive RV trip. Also we don't have a toad so that will be something we need to work around. I'll make reservations at the national parks where we stay, but I was wondering about the places along the way.

Thanks in advance.
Ed,
The only place we made reservations was Lost Dutchman, a SP near our daughter in Mesa, AZ The park is at Apache Junction and a 30 minute drive to where she is at.

Normally we go to first come first serve only CG's as they tend to be smaller which is what we prefer.
We also primarily dry camp usually looking for CG's with at least a vault toilet and pitcher pump. Our planned stop tomorrow has no water but does have vault toilets.
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Old 12-26-2016, 12:24 AM   #8
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Lost Dutchman so far

Been at Lost Dutchman a week so far. This is a nice SP. Showers have plenty of hot water but because there is no vent they turn into a sauna, also no dry place on the floor. Sites ate roomy and not to closely spaced except for the ones with electric and water.
Hosts are all nice. Good views and be prepared for pack rats.
Spent yesterday on forest roads between 5 and 7k feet. Got a lot of snow driving practice.
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Old 01-06-2017, 11:35 PM   #9
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Back at Rockhound SP in NM, Demming, after an intermediate stop at Riverview CG. This is a BLM near Safford, AZ. $5 a night, $2.50 with the Interagency pass. Vault toilets and water. 13 huge sites which are well separated.This CG is located in the Gila RCNA. It's almost exactly half way between Lost Dutchman and Rockhound SP's.
They have the hot water fixed at Rockhound. If you plan a stop at this time of year I suggest reservations for one of the 5 spots they reserve.
Went from the 8th of Dec until today on the propane; took 7.9 gals at a Flying J. Even got the Good Sam card to work for the propane, $.35 per gal and $.03 per gal saved on propane and gas. Used the AARP card for a discount at the Denny's there. Easy stop for everything at Lordsburg, NM on I-10. Sunday will be a long drive, 300 miles mostly I-10 to Davis Mtn SP on TX 118. El Paso should be less bad on a Sunday.
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Old 01-29-2017, 11:40 PM   #10
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Took 90 out of Van Horn to Davis Mtns. Bad idea as 90 was in really bad shape. Site 28 is the one at Davis Mtn we'll request next time; pull in head first.
Two weeks dry camping at Big Bend NP, they butchered the trees at Cottonwood CG. The nesting pair of Great Horned Owls that are normally there we only saw once. Spent a lot of time in the back country with the Jeep and have several sites picked out for next time. The Axis will be easy to get into several.

4 days dry camping at spur 406, Amistad NRA in Del Rio, then on to South Llano River State Park. While not big on state parks this one is a keeper. Excellent biking and hiking trails. Tubing the river if you want but was 26 this morning when we left.

Stopped for the night at Wilson Fox, ACOE, near Granger TX. Nice CG but bath rooms are typical for the FT Worth corp district; in need of TLC. Huge covered picnic table area at each site with some screened.
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Old 02-03-2017, 02:30 PM   #11
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Wilson Fox to Ratcliff, USFS, left Crockett for Ratcliff on hwy 7 which was in bad repair but they were in the process of resurfacing. Bad accident, some one wasn't paying attention, at the east bound flager. Little car destroyed itself against a pick up bumper.
Ratcliff was closed a couple of year ago for repairs from storm damage. They should have redone the parking pads at the same time. Hard to get the rv level.

After Ratcliff stopped at Gum Springs, USFS, which is a favorite near Winnfield, LA. Laundry and resupply in Winnfield.

300 miles yesterday to stop at Service Park, ACOE, another favorite. Not as much barge traffic as in December. An Axis pulled in about an hour after we did. Haven't figured out how to tell the different years, this one has the logo below the bed room window.
Next stop on Sunday will be Open Pond, USFS, for one night then on home. Very poor cell coverage at Open Pond.
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Old 02-10-2017, 03:39 PM   #12
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Arrived home Monday afternoon. Had a chance today to go over the trip and crunch some numbers.
Total miles: 4333
Avg MPG: 8.2 this includes some ginny use, hills and winds. elevation change was from sea level to around 6200 feet for the trip.
Avg cost per gal: $2.16
Over all cheap memories.
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Old 02-14-2017, 02:16 AM   #13
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BEVEDFELKER ..When are you traveling west? We are leaving outa Waynesville 1 March headed to Mayport NAS to unwind the thru Destin FL (Army Resort), Lake Charles? LA, San antonio, Big Bend (If we can get a First Come spot), El Paso (Walmart?) Tuscon (Spring Traning) Phoenix (Spring Training), ....CA, OR, WA ...Utah?... Planning to be back 1 May...
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