Hi there, today we're talking about how to prepare for your next boondocking adventure. Boondocking
is a term used to describe off-the-grid RV camping without any hookups, so you won't have any
electricity water or sewer. Your RV is basically a self-contained unit with no utilities. The main
advantage of boondocking is that it allows you to go out into nature and camp in a more private,
secluded, quiet place than you would find in an RV park. Tip number one is to plan your destination
ahead of time and to do as much research as you can, just to make sure your vehicle can traverse
some of these off the beaten path roads and also make sure your RV can fit in some of these
campsites. Just to give you an idea this is a boondocking location at Sam Houston National
Forest and as you can see there's a big roundabout with a fire pit so it could fit pretty much any
RV but not all of these sites are like that, so you want to make sure you know about where
you're going before you get there. The best way to research your destination is on Campindium.com
because you can read reviews from previous campers, you can see photos of the campsites,
and you can see what kind of rig they were driving and also the longest RV reported at that campsite.
Tip number two, fill your propane tanks because when you're boondocking your refrigerator will
run off of propane and so will your furnace, your water heater, and your oven, and stove.
Tip number three, fill your fresh water tank at or near your destination. That way you're not driving
down the highway with all that extra weight. Also make sure your water pump works, if this is your
first boondocking Adventure you probably have never even used your water pump before because
you don't need it when you're hooked up to city water. But whenever you get out there in
the woods turn on the water pump and all of the water in your fresh water tank will come out of
your faucet like normal. Tip number four, empty your black and gray tanks before you get there.
That's the hardest thing about boondocking is not filling up your tanks before your trip is ended.
Tip number five is to make sure your RV battery is fully charged and working properly. When you
bought your RV it probably came with one lead acid battery and that's enough to get you through a
weekend, you're not supposed to let the capacity get below 50% on those things so if you want to
take a longer trip you could always add more batteries or switch to lithium batteries. The
things that drain power from your battery while you're boondocking are your furnace, your awning,
your lights, anything that's connected to the 12 volt system. Speaking of batteries it's a
good idea to charge all of your mobile devices and you might want to bring a portable battery,
this one here is a small one it's about 300 watts and that's enough to power my laptop recharge my
phone and maybe run a box fan for a little while. But they make some much bigger ones nowadays so
you may want to get one of those if you have a large family. The next tip is if you're bringing
ice chests fill them with ice and bring plenty of drinking water. If campfires are allowed
make sure to bring some firewood and maybe some marshmallows. The next tip to prepare for your
boondocking trip is to wash all of your dishes and vegetables or any other kind of meal prep
that you can do to conserve water while you're out boondocking. You can also prepare some quick
and easy meals and freeze them that way you don't have to cook more than you have to. The next tip
is to bring disposable plates and silverware or any other way that you can cut down on the amount
of water that you're using while boondocking. If you do have to wash dishes you can use a basin
to catch the water that way it doesn't go in your gray tank. If you need the phone or Internet while
you're camping make sure to check the coverage maps for your plan you can check the cell phone
coverage on Campendium.com and read the reviews about what others have said about the major
carriers and just as a safety precaution always tell somebody where you're going and when you'll
be back if you're not going to have any cell phone service. Now let's talk about some best practices,
it's best to cook outside on a grill or a griddle that way it reduces the amount of
heat that's inside your RV and it's also an easier cleanup. The next tip let's talk about garbage,
make sure you dump all of your garbage before you get to your destination and when you leave
make sure you take all of your garbage with you. Also make sure to animal proof your garbage that
way while you're camping all the Bears and raccoons and other animals can't eat your
garbage while you're sleeping. The last tip is to respect other campers, try not to park
too close to other people if you're not in a crowded area some people enjoy their privacy.
Keep your noise to a minimum especially if you have a generator or loud music and at night turn
off your exterior lights that way other people can look at the stars. Well I hope those tips helped
you prepare for your next boondocking trip, make sure to go to Campendium to research or site and
go to roadpass.com to check out all of their RV related apps and services. Till next time.