Camino Turtle's RV Maiden Voyage

Yes friends, I completed my maiden voyage from the National Indoor RV Center (NIRVC) in Georgia to Silver Spring, Maryland. The trip took three days as I went nice and slowly (Camino Turtle speed). I left on Sunday, August 13 (my mom's birthday) from the NIRVC around 11:00 and arrived at my sister Ginny's home in Fort Mills, South Carolina around 5:00. (Pictured here) I have to admit I was a little nervous and actually drove around the NIRVC parking lot a few times before leaving just to remind myself of everything Michael taught me. During the trip I took rest area breaks every 90 minutes so I could stretch and regain some energy for the next leg of the day. It was kind of fun at my 12:30 break to get out of my driver's seat and go back to my RV fridge to make a sandwich and grab a bottle of water. At the 2:30 break, I actually took a quick catnap on my bed in the back of the motorhome.

Day 2 was nice as Ginny and I had breakfast together and chatted a little before I left around 11:00. After getting out of her neighborhood, the bulk of my driving was all interstates, which I didn't mind at all. The only tricky bits were the parallel parking spots at some of the rest stops for buses and trucks. Luckily, I didn't have to try and squeeze in anywhere. I know I told you I took an RV driving class and practiced parallel parking with cones, but I don't feel quite ready to do tight parallel parking next to other vehicles yet. I think I need a little more "empty parking lot" practice before I do that in real life.


Around 5:00, stopped at a KOA campground in Staunton, Virginia. It was a little more expensive than I wanted but since it was a last minute reservation, I was lucky to find a place. The park was easy to access off of I81 and had a nice cozy feel to it. I was assigned a pull-through site with water, electric and cable. I parked the RV facing southward so that the window at the foot of my bed and the large window behind the couch faced the setting sun. As the sun set, my neighbors, Jim and Sherri from San Diego invited me to join them for some wine, beer and to watch the sun set.


Other site neighbors joined us and we talked about our motorhomes, families, life experiences, churches, books we've read and just all kinds of "stuff".

I think I am going to enjoy this new nomadic lifestyle.