What’s it like sleeping along the highway in an RV?
#rvlife #travel #california
2022-01-02
What’s it like sleeping along the highway in an RV?
The two and a half day journey from our home base in British Columbia to our destination near San Francisco, California was a journey of challenges. It all started with a frozen hitch in record breaking low temperatures on the morning of our departure.
It was -22C outside, which I know is common in the winter in some parts of Canada, but is not a common occurrence in southern BC. It was so cold that our hitch froze and got stuck in a half-closed position without us realizing it at first. Then, once we did see that it was not properly secured to the truck, we had to take it all apart and redo the hitching up process. Did I mention it was -22C?
We faced one small challenge after another that day and by the time we stopped for the night we were pretty tired, cold, and a bit grumpy (on my part). A good night’s rest was what we needed, but highway rest areas don’t generally offer that. We wanted to save on time and money for this leg of our journey, so opted to sleep (for free) in our RV at rest areas along the way.
Each night was a chilly waiting game until the furnace was able to warm the inside of our travel trailer after a long day of towing it in freezing conditions. Each night was restless with the sounds of transport trucks pulling in and out of the spots nearby and of the highway traffic. It was amazing how much quieter the highway noise was from inside our truck. When we would pull up to a rest area, it didn’t seem so loud, but once we got out and into the trailer it was a lot louder and harder to ignore.
Would we do this again? It definitely makes for a cheap way to spend a night while en route to your final destination. I think it would be more comfortable in fair weather so that there is only the noise to deal with. I also think it makes for a very convenient stop since these rest areas are right next to the highways so there is no additional navigation in towns looking for a campground that you may or may not have visited before. I guess we’ll see how we feel when it comes time to head back north.
Until next time, keep on living the life you’ve imagined!
Mel, Jay & Benny