Dapperdan

Hello, I'm looking for some travel advice, we're in the Florida Panhandle now and will be traveling south to the Orlando, Winter Haven area. Right now we're in Fort Walton Beach and we are looking to stop over in Lake City Florida in a couple of weeks. My question is, looking at the map we could take HWY 20 east out of Niceville Florida towards Tallahassee, picking up I-10 there and then getting on I-75 heading south. Is HWY 20 a "trailer friendly" route or should we be using I-10 all the way? We're pulling a 39' fifth wheel with a pick up. Thanks in advance for any insight. Dan

Go for the residential fridge and don’t look back! We’ve had a compressor based fridge for the last 9 years and haven’t yet “missed” our absorption fridge!! Temps hold WAY better and it takes much less time to cool the fridge down when preparing for a trip. We have a 1,000 watt inverter and 4 golf cart batteries, plenty of electricity to run that Whirlpool! We love it and would NEVER go back to “the dark side”! 😝 With 4 batteries we can be off grid for at least 24 hours with no problems We do campgrounds with hooks ups exclusively, full disclosure Dan

I Agree with Jaydrvr, get an EZ Pass or and I Pass (Illinois's version of EZ Pass) and breeze through the tolls. The I-Pass works all the way to the east coast fyi! Timing is everything in large cities and Chicago is no exception, 80-94 isn't too bad mid day. We've done it many many times! Coming from Indiana, you won't be on much of the toll road to begin with so paying online might work for you. If I remember correctly you have 7 days to go online and pay your tolls. Stay in the middle lanes until you close in on the I-80 exit, watch for a back up for the I-80 west exit ramp, we've seen that ramp pretty backed up. LOTS of truck traffic heading west, I-80 is a MAJOR route for commercial trucks heading west! From that split you should have easy going into Iowa. Good luck, safe travels. Dan

Good luck, it’s “difficult” finding spots under normal conditions even in AZ! Can’t speak for TX but there’s going to be a lot of unhappy snowbirds this fall thanks to Mother Nature! Sorry for the negativity but I believe it’s going to be a sad reality! 😔 Dan

We spent a day exploring downtown Knoxville, went up in the Sunsphere. Breath taking views from up there! Walked through World's Fair Park, beautiful...... Enjoyed a nice lunch at a food court type thing very near, that was great as well! Knoxville is a beautiful area to explore, enjoy!! Dan

Ditto on aknavy's post! Depending on where you are located ALL of his suggestions are excellent! I would add if you're near the DRV plant you might also try Indiana Interstate RV Repair (Paul Cross) in LaGrange IN or Twin Lakes RV Repair (Jay) also located in LaGrange IN, both work closely with DRV and have limited hook ups. Be prepared to be put on a waiting list, most if not all RV repair shops are booking months out! You do know DRV does NOT service units out of warranty right? Good luck with your repair needs. Dan

Had something very similar, went to start up our HR24-100 DVR box and couldn't get past "refresh" stage. Every time I tried the refresh, the box would lock up. Short story is I had to have a DirectTV guy out to look at it, it was determined it was shot and he replaced it with another one! Luckily for us he happened to have the exact same box with him! All is good now. Dan

Another vote for Red Gate. We’ve stayed here twice, both times were pleasurable and convenient. We used one of the trolley services to take tours. Old Town comes right into Red Gate, can’t beat that convenience! Savannah is AWESOME, we love this area!! 🙂 Dan

If you get the chance go on You Tube and check out Watts on Wheels. Those folks have been pulling a Freedom Hauler behind their fifth wheel for a few years. There's a segment where they show hooking it up to their RV and all that entails! Spoiler alert, it aint easy. 😆 I think the nicest feature about a swivel carrier is that you can back your unit up no problem. Dan

Thanks for sharing!! I saw that schedule earlier but it doesn’t hurt to get the word out! I haven’t seen the Big Boy in motion but we were to the train museum in Green Bay a number of years ago to see that one up close and personal. LOL AWESOME!!! We’re going to be in Cheyenne next September and I plan on viewing that one then. Dan

I bought Blaster Dry Lube with Teflon at Menard’s. You should be using some kind of “dry” lube, grease will attract dirt and grime. Not good. Dan

Yes, Insignia has residential style ranges that will fit in an RV. Not sure what RV manufactures offer them other than DRV. We were just at a rally in Sevierville TN and DRV had several of their new units on display, most had the "residential" style ranges! Dan

Ryan, we did that route only backwards 8 or 9 years ago. We came onto the 101 in Oregon and drove to Petaluma. Absolutely beautiful ride!! Take your time heading north, lots to see! Lots of areas to pull off (with the RV) and take in the fantastic views! We had NO issues with our old Montana (38’), you shouldn’t have any either. Make sure you take in the “Avenue of the giants”, unbelievable! The Redwoods are AWESOME!!!! Dan

If you decide on DRV, check out Whiskey Mountain in Mesa Arizona. That's not too far from you, they only deal in DRVs but they have LOTS of nice looking RVs in ALL price ranges! They only sell USED RVs there. They have a super staff there that are extremely knowledgable about DRVs and their quirks. They're GREAT people to deal with, we were just there. ALL RVs have problems from time to time, pick your "poison". LOL Good luck in your upgrade search! Dan

You could try talking to the dealer you're going through to purchase an RV, ask if they have suggestions as to where you might seek financing. They want to see you get the loan almost as much as you do. It doesn't hurt to ask, others here have really good suggestions as well. IMHO you are in a "good place" credit score-wise. Take your time, there's NO rush, decide what you want, in the price range realist to your budget and go from there. Good luck. Dan