A Challenging Campsite!
~Tuesday, March 23, 2021~
Day 282 (Travel Day)
As we were packing up to head to Greenville, South Carolina, we met one of the campground hosts, Kevin, who had a lot to talk about the campground, how much he works (15 hours/week with free lodging), and a little about his personal life. He’s kind of in the same boat we are…..semi-retired, looking for a new place to move to. But he is waiting, like us, until the housing market isn’t so wacko...maybe 2022. But the most interesting thing he shared with us, is what newbie campers are doing. Since COVID, people seem to be buying new stuff...new tents, coolers, sleeping bags, stoves, what have you. They stay a few days, then leave virtually all of their new purchases behind. Isn’t that the strangest thing you’ve ever heard? And then there’s the issue with new RVer’s who really don’t know what they’re doing. They get calls to the office saying that they can’t back into their site, simply because they don’t know how. So the staff has to guide them in. But THE funniest story was about an older woman who drove into her site, then called the office to say her electricity and water were not working. The office staff said, “That’s strange….we’ll send someone right down”, only to discover she never hooked up her electricity or water. She thought “hook-ups” meant they hook everything up for you (supply and installation), like a full-service gas station. Whippey!
The drive was short and sweet (about 90 minutes), but have to say, this was the second most difficult campsite to maneuver since the Markagunt Plateau at Cedar Breaks, UT. “Why”, you ask? As soon as we arrived at the campground section of Paris Mountain State Park, we could tell it was going to be challenging. All of the campsites were pretty close together, with lots of trees (trees are always a good thing, but not right where you need the room to back into a site), and with a narrow drive as well. As if that weren’t enough obstacles, you throw in the slope of the sight and it’s a real party! Once we got in the site itself, it was fine for our rig size (29 foot rig + 16 foot truck). This was a site specific booking (most state parks are, unlike RV parks) and the only photos on the website were of the campsite itself, where they indicate the size of rig that will fit on it. But they also have to factor the tow vehicle length, which is usually not a problem, but it was at this park. It took us about 30 minutes to back in the trailer. Definitely not a level site, which in most cases we have to use leveling blocks to even things out. But the kicker was the tongue jack, which needed to be fully extended.
At first we didn’t think we were going to have enough extension on it, which would have meant moving to a new site. But it just made it. The other thing that was maxed out was our stabilizers. Whew! We’re level and in!
After a few hours of cleaning and set up, Jeff stayed back with Sadie while I took full advantage of shopping at the 4 T’s…….Target, TJ Maxx, Total Wine and Trader Joe’s. 🛒Life is Good!! Greenville is looking mighty nice for real estate pursuits.😉 But right before I left, I mentioned to Jeff that I couldn’t find the other set of keys…...the set with a $300 Fob and keys to our life basically. We looked high and low. I bet at this point, you assume it was me who lost them (I do have a reputation). Anyway, I mentioned to Jeff that I had seen a set of keys on the electrical post at our last campsite. OMG, is that where they are? Jeff was in complete disbelief that he had left them there without noticing it on a final walkthru. He was kicking himself with the fact he had thought about moving the keys at the time he was breaking things down, so he wouldn’t forget them. %&^@ happens! So we immediately called the office which was closed of course and left a message to have them check there and the dump station. Thank goodness it was the middle of the week, and that we felt confident no one was likely at that sight yet. Plus, if someone did find them, it would be useless to them, and would have turned them in, right? Stay tuned…….