Picking up our new trailer and heading to the Hill Country of Texas!

Hello New Friends!

We pick our new Airstream up on Saturday in Austin and found a RV Park in Kerrville that had an open spot! I grew up camping with my family and extended family but this is the first time my husband and I will have our own trailer. We are close to retirement so thought we better get ready!

I know we will not have all that we will need so let me know what the basics our that we will need on our first journey out.

Thanks!

 

Welcome to the forum and the RV world. I think you will find that having an RV is not just a different way to travel, but a completely different lifestyle. Instead of hurrying to your destination, you will end up taking your time and enjoying the trip as much as the destination.

As far as basics, there are some easy ones like pots and pans, your choice of plates (paper or plastic or china), bedding, etc. If either of you are do it yourselfers, be sure and take some basic tools, hammer, drill, socket set, screwdrivers, etc. Also, a multi meter is very helpful (if you are familiar with this tool) in troubleshooting non-working outlets, appliances, and checking power at pedestals in RV parks.

Try to go to local parks for your first trips out (like you did), to see what items you can't live without. Remember, the more items you pack, the lower your gas mileage, which can become important if you are on a budget.

 

Thanks Fitzjohnfan! My husband had his volt meter out yesterday checking his trailer light plugs on his truck so I told him to take it along. It's little things like that that are so important to have on a trip. He bought a few items this morning and was as excited as I was about my new bedding and melamine dinnerware. We may be using plastic forks and spoons on this trip but that's ok.

I do hope we can keep our new little home clutter free and efficient. We have had trouble with this for years. We just purged our barn this past weekend so we can park Lizzy in there. What a great feeling that was to see it all clean and and the alley empty!

 

Welcome to the forum and congrats on your rig.

Typically, there are two givens when it comes to new RVers in packing their rig. One is that you will cram it full of stuff then at some future point you will figure out you didn't need it after all then leave it behind. Second, you will fail to pack something that you need 5 minutes after you are on the CG site. But the latter is easily fixed by a trip to WalMart. There is a WalMart SuperCenter in Kerrville.

Also consider duplicates. One for the house and one for the RV. Packing and unpacking the rig for trips gets to be a royal pain without duplicates.

One suggestion would be for you to Google the subject "Rving Tips and Tricks". You will find it a valuable education.

 

Hey RLM my fellow Texan!
Thanks for your thoughts! It is good to know there is a Walmart in Kerrville. We live in Collin County so not real familiar with the area. We will definitely have time to checkout the "RVing Tips and Tricks" with all the rain forecast for this weekend.

You may be able to help us with this question also. We are looking for a CG or two located conveniently between San Antonio, Austin and Houston...yay Hill Country. Hubs needs good wifi for work. Is there such a CG?

 

I second what RLM said above. Buy duplicates of just about everything in utensils and dishware, pots and pans, etc. Much, much easier in the long run and you'll be glad you did. Welcome to a great way of life. Nothing like hitting the open road in an RV and tossing out the old anchor at all the incredible areas this country has to offer. Drive safe and enjoy your travels to the max.................

Regards, BankShot (aka Terry)

 

Thanks Terry! Im actually on my way to Bed Bath and Beyond now. I'm after an egg frying skillet and an oatmeal pot. Oh and some bed pillows. Coupons in hand.

I love tossing out your old anchor! Hmmm....strange bunch of emojis..lol

 

Welcome to RVPR and the Edwards Plateau. You might want to think of Fredericksburg, close to the big cities but far enough away, and a lot of parks to choose from. Also much to do.
When we went full-time we gave away everything and except for one item it worked ok. Had to go back to our daughter and ask for our tall folding ladder. Couldn't put the screen/covers over the big front windows of our MH. Duh!
What to get? I would suggest extensions/extra sections for your sewer hose, potable water hose, and electrical power cord. Month after month they'll just sit there, then you'll come to the park with the power pedestal and hookups on the road edge. There is also the inexplicable utilities on the wrong side site where you will be throwing your power cord under your trailer.
Also pickup one of those pigtails that covert the plug type you've encountered on a strange pedestal to one your trailer can use.
Have a great time! Oh, and it took us two years to start using paper plates. Enjoy!!

 

Jack B thanks for confirming that Fredericksburg is where we should hang out when hubs is working. We tried to get there this weekend but they were pretty booked up for Memorial Day already. We love Fredericksburg so we will be excited to be staying close by. We got everything else that you and Mike suggested except the extension for the power cord and sewer line and the saw. We will get those next month. So glad you mentioned the head lamp Mike. That is one thing that tends to get left behind on any project we try to do.

We have a few more things to load into the truck and then we will be off at 6 am.

Thank you all so much for you great help and welcome!

 

I rarely RV toward the Houston area. But I suspect that there are some nice ones around Lake Conroe. I'm in the middle of the state, so it's convenient to most any location. For weekend trips from your area, you might consider Shallow Creek in Gladewater, Texas or Lakeside Corp of Engineer park in Coleman. Don't recall the WiFi situation in the latter.

Buckhorn Lake Resort is Kerrville is very nice, but I prefer Peach Country RV Park in Stonewall. It's right down the road from LBJ ranch and centrally located between all the tourist stuff in Hill Country. I'm not a fan of CGs in Fredericksburg. Too cityfied.

Between Austin and San Anton is Potter's Creek Corp of Eng park at Canyon Lake. It's a bit isolated so WiFi may be an issue.

If you visit Fredericksburg, then don't miss Rustlin Bob's. And, outstanding Tex-Mex can be had at Mamacita's restaurant. Go to the Chamber of Commerce and get the map of the historic homes drive. It won't take long and there are some neat older houses in those blocks.

If you haven't already figured it out, the best route to hill country from you is US 67 and US Hwy 281. Avoids the madness of I-35. Lunch at Firehouse BBQ in Lampasas is a convenient stop with an RV and good eatin'.

 

Love all your information RLM. We are staying at Buckhorn Lake because it was the first one we called that had an open site for Memorial Day weekend. We love it. We went to the BBQ event on Saturday night. The food was great and we made several new friends. we are already looking forward to seeing them again when we come back. The Saturday night storm was a little over the top. We were holding our breath that it wouldn't hail. We only got a teeny bit. We will not cross BLR off our list. Since we have a 25 foot we got a sweet little inside corner lot with lots of green space and it is close to the pool, hot tub, red barn, etc etc etc. Everyone here are delightful.

Yesterday we went to Fredericksburg to check out the CGs. Our feelings about the ones we stopped at were the same as the advice you gave. Peach Country is a great park and rate and a good location to head out to meetings. We did see Rustlin Bob's yesterday but we ate at Altdorf,s...we love their German food and beers.

We have decided we need to check into bumping up our AT&T plan the next time they offer a big chunk of their world for free again. It appears their are a lot of full-time RV's that are still employed full-time beside just us. LOL And they are around the Hill Country year round. We will just have a back up for our internet load. I would hate to cross off a lovely park for a internet issue.

The other parks you mentioned will be put on our list! Thank you so much for the time you took to respond,

This is funny...I have already renamed our trailer from Lizzy to Rosie...in honor of Rosie the Riveter and my Mom who was a riveter of fuselages during WWII. I need a new profile name now.

 

Glad you had a good time. I've never met a fellow RVer who didn't share the same camaraderie about the lifestyle.