How many nights do you spend in your rig?

[ski3pin]

77 nights thus far this year. We both work. Major surgery last spring cut down the numbers. We'll try to work on that.

 

[SunMan]

Working full time but we average 30-40 nights a year though we don't really keep track (in fact we added a couple of extra nights just this past weekend!)

 

[longhorn1]

Working...13 nights since picking up our camper on August 1st. Weather got bad last week and cancelled a weekend trip, winterized and put it to bed for the year. Hope to do at least 25-30 nights next year, starting early April and ending late October.

jd

 

[Accrete]

I'll say semi-retired after stepping down to part time to have more time for our (wife's & my) ~monthly mini-adventures (~mon > fri). Sooo... About every 5th week from March through October we take off in our van conversion & fiberglass trailer combo. Nearly every trip is off-pavement and unplugged.

...though I will add we do spend 365 days a year in one of our three RVs as we live full time on wheels.
Thom

 

[clikrf8]

Retired early at 60: hubby laid off and I quit my PT job due to unstable boss. At the time it was scary, especially in 2008. However, one door closes and another opens so fate was kind.

2014: total 103 days * fuel: $$$$ * food: about as home as we cook on board * camping: around $300 more or less as we boon dock a lot. ferries: $140 Park fees: $47 as we have Washington State Parks Pass and National Seniors pass

April: 24 days in Nevada, Idaho, California, Oregon, Washington
May-June: 24 days in Arizona, Utah, Nevada, Oregon, Washington
August: 4 days at the Mt. Baker Blues festival
September: 21 days in Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Oregon, Washington
October-November: 30 days in Utah, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, California, Oregon, Washington.
The rest of the year, we may camp at several state parks as we bought Washington state's Senior Off-season Camping Pass with free camping at state parks October - March and Sunday-Thrusday in April for $75.

Happy trails

 

[Smokecreek1]

Retired. Allot for me depends on the time of the year and if my arthritus is acting up- almost just kidding! I try to be out between 1 and 2 weeks a month-about half of the time. I try to plan at least one 5-10 day run a month plus a couple of short 2-3 dayers, during the spring-fall field time. Living where I do(high desert/mountain interface) , I can take a quick run out for a few days just to get away-even if it is just to park up at Eagle Lake/Aden and watch the water level drop even more in the lakes'/creeks. During the winter, it takes more planning to get out and find a place a long way away, so i end up again up at the lake and watch the snow fall, or over to the north coast-don't mind if it's just me and the dog, books and some vodka. Have noted thoooo of late, if it's real cold out there (unlike Mark BC)-low teens and below, may just stay home(that's where the arthritis comes in). Been getting ready to explore the south lands on 395 south near Death Valley and Saline Valley (keep up the TR's on those areas guys-need just a little more inspiration to do it) to expand my winter wonderings into new lands with some longer trips. Retirement is grand.

Smoke

 

[Captm]

We both work full time, the wife is 9-6 m/f, I travel. We got our Fleet the end of March '14 and managed to get in a 5 night trip before work got in the way. Back from Alaska the first of October and spent 7 nights camping, 5 of which was on the White Rim Trail which is a perfect way to reconnect . Planning 7 nights going to KOFA and a weekend trip to Death Valley. I guess that will leave us at around 23 nights for 2014.
Cheers

 

[Riverrunner]

Put me in the "not enough" category also. I had to count and last year was a whopping 14.

Work full time (retirement is a long way off). I have too many competing activities. Sometimes I combine them with the camper and sometimes not. If I can get 3 or 4 pure camping trips in a year I'm sadly doing well.

 

[Lighthawk]

Put me in the "not enough" category also.

Ditto, brother! I remember we did 60 nights in our first two years. I just counted 30 YTD, and we have a couple nights coming up over Thanksgiving, and plan on two weeks over Xmas / New Years, so we're doing well. Better than I thought until I counted.

I have been swapping the camper on/off my truck somewhat seasonally. Right now it's ready to go for next week. But otherwise, I find it can be a deterrent if I have to put the camper back on the rig. We prefer to leave on Friday nights to get a headstart, rather than try for the Saturday start.

The downside of keeping the camper on the truck is that I get stuck driving the bench seat only, stripped down F150 work truck as my daily driver and it just doesn't work well for the dog, or have any storage for me to carry a photo bag or extra gear (skis, fishing gear, etc.). As a result I am considering buying a Subaru or similar as my runnabout, for better mileage and better stowage of dog/gear. Then I will keep the camper on the Tundra as my dedicated camper rig and get even more days out wandering.
That's the whole point!

 

[raymondmom]

My camper stays on the truck - I didn't buy the jacks! Took the truck to the mechanics for maintenance today and someone wanted to buy my Grandby!
I have a little Subaru for a daily driver.
I'm leaving Friday and will have nine more nights in the camper for this month.

Joanne

 

[Foy]

Empty-nesters, pushing 60 (59 and 58), looking to sell my practice and go part-time with the buyer starting 3 years from the present. That is also the time our grandson will be approaching his 5th birthday so we're already scheming to "kidnap" him for some long weekends and weeklong trips to the East Coast beaches and various hideaways in the Southern Appalachians. Even now while working full time, my self-employment and seasonal work (CPA in a tax practice) gives me loads of flexibility and several one and two-week vacation intervals each year--just as long as none of them are January-April. Wife and I are plotting a return to the Montana-Idaho border area for July 2015 and if we pull it off, it will be a 3.5 week trip.

Our hardside A-Frame popup trailer is set up for boondocking and we expect much of our 2015 Western US trip to be in that mode, especially along the trout stream where we'll spend about half of our time in MT. We don't much consider food costs while out inasmuch as we eat 3 squares a day no matter where we are. The old diesel gets close to the same mpg towing as not towing, I suppose due largely to driving slow. We'll still spend close to $2,000 on diesel next year if the prices remain lower, as the most recent forecasts suggest they will.

We just took delivery of the A-Frame at the beginning of June 2014 so only 4 short trips before I winterized it 2 weeks back: three 3-night runs and a two night outing, to the Alleghanies of western VA and WV, to the Blue Ridge of NC, and to the Chesapeake Bay in VA. We did, however, seriously scout out some killer spots to set up the camper, which by the way has a personalized license plate "BASECAMP", in locales with abundant hiking, cycling, and trout fishing. Fortunately, the only 2 genuinely hot springs in the East are in the mountains, surrounded by National Forest lands, and are somewhat remote, keeping crowds at bay. Our thinking is that we should put around 45 nights on the camper in 2015.

Foy

 

[mojave joe]

Working full-time, out of town. I drive my TC each week and stay in the camper 3 nights. I tried moteling, I got real tired of dragging a suit case back and forth, eating take out, etc. I load my fridge Sunday afternoon and exchange my dirties for clean. It's like having home with me.
I guess it's about 150 nights a year, I've been doing this for 3 years now. I wish I could use it for fun more often.

I have the same rig as Whazoo100, I'm hoping to catch up with him for some driving lessons in Moab.

 

[Cayuse]

Work full time. Bought my Grandby in April, since then I have 32 nights in it, one 2 week trip one week long trip and the rest weekends. Going someplace for Thanksgiving just not sure where, a lot depends on weather and climbing partner(s).

Before i bought the camper i also had 12 days sleeping in the back of my truck on a sleeping platform that i'd built. I figure next year should be 50-60 nights!