When do you plan to travel?

[Kirk W]

Like most members of these forums, we have been holed up waiting for the covid-19 to decline and restrictions to be lifted. We are now beginning to see states loosen restrictions and reopen parks with attractions soon to follow. As part-time RVers we have more latitude than many about traveling, but whether part-time or full-time, the question remains. At what point do we resume our normal lifestyle? 

To me, it seems to be an issue of how much risk are we willing to take? We both happen to fall into the higher risk group, being in our 70's and with some health issues so for us the risk degree seems very high. I am thinking that this will be something that each of us must figure out, but a discussion of the issue might prove helpful to everyone. For us, we have only begun to weigh the issue and have no conclusions but wonder what others are thinking?

[Dutch_12078]

My wife is a bit more high risk than I am due to health issues, and we're both in our mid/upper 70's as well. We have a reservation at a NY state park made last year for the last week of June and first week of July that we're hoping will be honored. The only travel we're planning before then is a possible trip to our friend's farm in VT to help him with the spring chores and planting for a couple of weeks. In the meantime, we're quite happy staying on our upstate NY site in the southern Adirondacks.

[Beerboy]

We're hoping to start moving again after Memorial Day.  Where will depend on where we can find camping since our preference is with state parks.  I think the bigger question is HOW will you travel.  If the museum or restaurant is open are you going in?  What about the potluck at the RV park?

We've kept isolated by doing curbside pickup for groceries and package delivery for other needs.  I don't see that changing as we move along.  Our preference is for outdoor activities that are best without crowds anyway, so beyond missing out on breweries, we're not overly affected.  Fortunately we are not in a high risk group.  Our behavior is about protecting those who are in a high risk group if we are inadvertently asymptomatic carriers.  The less contact we have, the safer are those in high risk groups.

[Randyretired]

We are also part time and high risk.  Our summer plans are to spend time in remote mountain  areas and we are still thinking of that.  We will reevaluate next fall but barring a vaccine I think we may not travel then.

[ms60ocb]

Our destination will be NW Illinois most likely after Memorial Day. There the RV will stored  for maybe a month or so depending on events.

We are a high risk couple who will plan out our route before we leave. Hopefully carrying enough food for a week.  In the meantime you are staying at a distance from all at Kerrville TX. 

Clay with 41 foot Fifth Wheel

[George the greek]

I'm traveling  this coming Wednesday  I need to bein Wisconsin in a couple weeks. I'm late 60's and some health issues. I am self contained only needing to stop to take on fuel and occasionally dump tanks. Risky? maybe but..... 

G the G

[Jim & Alice]

My wife and I are Full-Timers, with recent medical situations that place us in the 'High Risk' category. We normally workamp a wonderful job in the Black Hills during the Summer... and then travel to family and our House in Michigan.   After much discussion and reflection, we have decided to 'stay in place' in hot Wellton, AZ (Yuma).   We are taking steps to mitigate the heat.   The reason we chose to do this is simple - except for the heat, we have an excellent & safe place to avoid virus contact.  Other than aforementioned risk factors, we are in excellent health generally.

In other words... for us, the potential benefit of Summer travel does not justify the risk.

We will sit the Summer out and see what the Fall brings.   We will resume travel when we feel the risk of infection is no longer a material factor.   Our workamp destination has assured us of our positions in 2021.   We wish all folks well in these tough times.

 

Edited May 2, 2020 by Jim & Alice

[Mr. Camper]

We canceled an extensive trip this year in late summer/early fall to the southwest and western states.  Since I am at high risk we don't plan on going anywhere until there is a vaccine available.  The risk is not worth it.  We may do all we can but we also can't count of others doing what's right.  Against medical advice too many states are opening up too soon and that will only end one way.  There is a lot out there about COVID-19 coming back in the fall.  I see no evidence of it leaving for it to have a comeback.  No state has yet met the guidelines of 14 days of declining cases/deaths.  There is no way either of us are willing to take the chance of traveling when the risks are so high.

[Kirk W]

Just to let you know, Melanie Carr (wife of Travis, Escapee's president) posted on Facebook that her dad is now hospitalized with covid-19 and in very serious condition. I just hope that people continue to social distance and wear masks as things begin to open and that doing so makes the spread continue to decline. 

We had hoped to travel but now are considering a short visit to family in Kansas come July, when we will be staying out on a farm. But we still and not sure if we will travel at all.  How much risk can we accept? I just do not know. 

 

[Jinx & Wayne]

We have been full time and retired for the last two years.  We were wintering in Florida when this appeared on the horizon.  We are COVID-19 at risk.  Given the lack of any reliable information about where it is and the fact that it is spread by asymptomatic people, we decided to stay put until a reliable vaccine is available.  That looks like late next winter at the very earliest.  We are in a pretty large  FHU site in a park in rural Florida.  We were the last people into the park, at least until fall.  The off season population is pretty low.  Golf courses are still open here so I am playing and walking the course as much as possible.  Jinx is sewing and golfing.  With luck we will travel in 2021.

[docj]

We had had a super excursion last year so we weren't planning on doing all that much this year, anyway.  With all that's going on, we've decided just to stay in place at our site in Rockport TX.  We have a small casita which serves as my wife's sewing "center"/TV room. We have lots of patio space for sitting outside when the weather is nice, which it usually is in south TX.  Hopefully, we'll survive and will be able to resume traveling in 2021.

[hemsteadc]

Glove up, mask up, boondock and stay away from crowds and I'm sure you'll be fine.

Edited May 2, 2020 by hemsteadc

[NDBirdman]

All our travel plans have been cancelled for the year.  Stinx, we have a young grand-daughter we miss but with them being in what my son in law calls ground zero (Seattle), we will just have to be happy to see/talk to them on messenger.  We took a drive friday to check out our camping spot bout 1.5 hours from home, no one has been there, the fish are biting so we are talking about spending some time there camping again shortly.  We rarely see anyone there, it's a very nice dispersed site on a nice little lake.  We also have a section of land north west of us no one else is allowed on so we are going to spend time there, again also dispersed but not a problem, it's the way we like it.  It will give us alot of alone time to cut lots of firewood for our house as we used up most our stockpile this past winter.  It will also give me time to assemble a tractor I have in pieces there, always something to do... LOL  Our plans to snowbird next year has been shoved under the rug for now.  I doubt we go anywhere around people until a vaccine is created.  My wife is very high risk due to health issues, I'm also in the risk group due to age and minor health issues.  Just not worth taking a chance.  Next year, maybe.  Time will tell.  We are fortunate, our place is in the sticks so avoiding ppl is easy and we can go out and about without going stir crazy.

[Randyretired]

Our semi rural county in Colorado has seen very little wuan flu so they have decided to open up a little more than the rest of the state.  However I picked up a curb side delivery at Lowes today and it was very crowded.  Social distancing  not followed and I could see many without masks coming and going from the store.  I was able to park away from all that but trouble could be brewing.  Be safe.

[Barbaraok]

It is Covid-19 or SARS-COV2, virus.  It is NOT the flu.  

[GR "Scott" Cundiff]

I'm thinking that June will tell the story.  Either cases will drop to near nothing (as is predicted by some) or we will see a big second wave (as is predicted by some).  

With that in mind we hope to start traveling in July.  

[Dapperdan]

We're both in the "high risk group" as well, we aren't going anywhere for a while.  We'll wait it out in our stick and bricks, when the CDC proclaims it's "safe" to mingle we'll get going again.  We'll take our cue from the CDC and health professionals NOT the politicians, thank you very much.  To us it's not worth the risk, it's easier to sit and wait and stay healthy.

 

On a side note we took a ride through a county-run park south of us to see if anybody was camping.  The park was about a forth full, signs ALL OVER warning to "keep 6' spacing" BUT we saw several groups of at least 6 or more sitting "close" around the fire rings chatting and whatever.  Definately NOT social distancing!  I hope they're all healthy after the camping trip is over!  

 

Dan

[fpmtngal]

I delayed leaving Quartzsite until last week, when I went down to Yuma for a week, parked next to a friend’s house.  I just got to Show Low where I’ll stay for May and June.  I figure by June there will be a better indication if it is safe to really travel or not.  I’m still hoping to be able to visit Idaho this summer, though I’m not expecting it.  I am expecting that I’ll need to find another place to stay for July and August that doesn’t involve much travel.

When I was in Quartzsite, it was pretty easy to social distance - I was in one of the less populated LTVA areas.  Now I’ll have to work at keeping my distance, though the park where I’m staying has wide sites and space between them.  I’m not far over 65, so am not as high risk as others.  But I still don’t want to be in densely populated areas, including many RV parks.

I still have reservations the week after Labor Day in Branson (joining my sister who has a timeshare the same week).  It would be nice if life would return to normal and we could go to some shows, but I’m not counting too much on it.

[Zulu]

We're work camping in Inyo County, CA, so we'll getting ready for the floodgates to open for campers coming from all over.

We're very apprehensive as currently Inyo County is almost coronavirus free (see graphic below from Wunderground) as compared to the surrounding counties, and Inyo County has limited medical facilities. 

[2gypsies]

2 hours ago, fpmtngal said:

I delayed leaving Quartzsite until last week, when I went down to Yuma for a week, parked next to a friend’s house.  I just got to Show Low where I’ll stay for May and June.

Did you find the park suitable for you?  You were apprehensive at first.

[sandsys]

Since we are no longer RVing our new version of travel is Dave going to a gathering of friends to operate various model railroads. The next one is scheduled to happen in a couple of weeks. But since social distancing is not an option at those I don't think Dave will be going to any this month. We'll see what's happening in June. I'm hoping to be able to do my annual physical mid-July but even that's not guaranteed,

Linda

[fpmtngal]

9 hours ago, 2gypsies said:

Did you find the park suitable for you?  You were apprehensive at first.

Yes, the park I’m in is very nice.  It’s more or less in town, so there’s a certain amount of street noise, but the park itself is lovely and the sites bigger (as in wider) than many parks I’ve been in.  And it’s a lot cooler than Yuma!  I think I’ll be fine here.  I probably should have committed to 4 months, but will probably get itchy feet by the end of May, certainly by the end of June, and will want to go somewhere else.

[fpmtngal]

11 hours ago, Zulu said:

We're work camping in Inyo County, CA, so we'll getting ready for the floodgates to open for campers coming from all over.

We're very apprehensive as currently Inyo County is almost coronavirus free (see graphic below from Wunderground) as compared to the surrounding counties, and Inyo County has limited medical facilities. 

 

Good luck - I’m active on my RV’s owners forum and there’s a lot who are really itching to go camp in the eastern Sierras, as soon as things open up some.  Many of them boondock so they wouldn’t necessarily impact the campgrounds, but will still be a big presence there.

[agesilaus]

Right now tentative plans are a week or so of camping in FL/GA around May 15th. The rumor is that FL parks will reopen camping on the 15th if so we may go to a beach side state park. Then we have a bunch of family birthdays near the end of May. After that we want to head out. Originally planned to be going to WY then the PNW but that is out the door so we'll have to play it by ear until the situation becomes clearer. There are some state parks in GA and TN that we wanted to visit, so probably GA then who knows. Want to end up in northern mountain states for summer tho.

We planned to start full timing the summer, my wife is retiring from the school system an it's uncertain whether she will have to come back and work for 2 weeks or can just take terminal vacation. She's getting conflicting info from different people. So we may have to come back to FL for 2 weeks at the end of August.

[Randyretired]

12 hours ago, Barbaraok said:

It is Covid-19 or SARS-COV2, virus.  It is NOT the flu.  

As this pandemic ruins untold lives and more and more each day and loved ones ripped from families and friends I have heard it called a lot of things.  Sometimes very graphically but you are demanding that we only call it by its "official" name for the virus or the disease as if it is a sacred thing?