Upcoming camping and trips - (just some coffee talk this morning)

[scott nutter1]

You will never know for sure until you try it. The two of us take the month of May off and spend it in Florida in our Motorhome. It is plenty big
enough for the two of us. We could easily spend 3 months in it. But we do not dry camp.
Scott.
--
Scott Nutter
1978 Royale Center Kitchen, Patterson 455, switch pitch tranny, 3.21 final drive, Quad bags, tankless water heater, everything Lenzi. Alex Ferrera
installed MSD Atomic EFI
Houston, Texas

 

[roy keen]

Just be sure that gravel road is hard packed with out soft or sandy patches. Deep dips would also be bad you don't want to get high sided. That Winnie
can go places you can't go. A friend of mine with a 43 ft American Eagle got high sided in a campground a year ago . He got high sided backing into
the campsite ( dirt) his drive wheels loss traction because his tag axel was on hard dirt and the drive wheels were on soft dirt. His towing insurance
refused to pay because he was a little more then 100 ft from the parking lot. It cost him $800 to get towed 10 feet! He probably should have demanded
the camp ground move his rig because he was blocking the entrance to a bunch of camp sites. It is always best to have another rig with you when you go
off the beaten paath.
--
Roy Keen
Minden,NV
76 X Glenbrook

 

[Carl Stouffer]

Some will reccomend against leaving pavement, but we do it all the time. One of out favorite campgrounds is Burro Mountain Homestead, just south of
Silver City New Mexico. It requires us to drive about 7 miles of mountain dirt/gravel road to get there. Also, my anual trip to the Imperial Sand
Dunes has a dirt road (sand and gravel) to get to it, and I tow a trailer with the Jeep on it down that road.

Another place we have camped was along Loy Butte Road between Cottonwood and Sedona AZ, a long dirt road with free BLM campsites along it. The GMC
handles roads like this just fine with the only potential issue being questionable traction. I DO have a 3.70 limited Slip final and wider tires on
wider wheels on the front. I'm sure that helps. The GMC's air and torsion bar suspension handles rough or washboard roads better then a truck
chassis based motorhome.

Also, having a 4our wheel drive dinghy is a plus just in case you get into a traction situation you need a little help with. We went down a two track
road to find a camping spot one time and got kind of stuck at a diagonal washout on the road. Kathy got in the towed ( a 2003 Chevy Tracker, put it
in four wheel drive, and pushed me past the rough spot without issue. I have gotten stuck at the dune campsite a few times, but a little tug from one
of the other vehicles got me going easily each time. Momentum is your friend on dirt roads with the GMC.
--
Carl Stouffer
'75 ex Palm Beach
Tucson, AZ.
Chuck Aulgur Reaction Arm Disc Brakes, Quadrabags, 3.70 LSD final drive, Lenzi knuckles/hubs, Dodge Truck 16" X 8" front wheels, Rear American Eagles,
Solar battery charging. GMCSJ and GMCMI member

 

[douglas smith]

We've been on gravel a lot. No problems at all when you drive conservatively.
But there are a couple of things to remember:

First, you are a front wheel drive vehicle with a lot of weight not on the drive wheels. Stay away from the slippery if you can and covet your
momentum if you're caught in a bad spot. We have gotten stuck and needed a tow in wet grass only because we were stopped. All this is not any kind of
a problem if you stay alert to your situation and avoid soft, slippery, and loose sand, etc.

Secondly, dust is an annoyance if not a problem. On gravel or dirt we always pressurize the coach. Use dash air if it works, or if it doesn't, like
ours, we put the forward Fantastic fan on medium IN, and close everything else. That means no dust in the bathroom, no grit on the bed, no problem
with singing down a country road where no Winnebago would ever dare to go.

We got these things to have fun. Remember?
--
Douglas & Virginia Smith
dsmithy18 at gmail
Lincoln Nebraska
’73 “Canyonlands” since ‘95: Wanabizo"
Quadrabag/6 wheel disks/3;70 final/Paterson QuadraJet/Thorley’s/Sundry other
P&W PT6, no wait, that's the wish list...

 

[Matt Colie]

Tom,

We have been off paved roads on many occasions and had no difficulty. I will admit that that traction on slick surfaces is a very real issue, but
taking the coach places with snow and ice has another issue that has plagued many. The frame, while entirely adequate to the purpose, is relatively
light wall. As such, it does not take much corrosion to have it become a very serious issue. While the frame(s) can be replaced, it is not a trivial
operation.
So, snow is fine as long as they are not spreading salt (aka fender solvent) as thick as the snow.

Matt
--
Matt & Mary Colie - '73 Glacier 23 - Members GMCMI, GMCGL, GMCES
Electronically Controlled Quiet Engine Cooling Fan
OE Rear Drum Brakes with Applied Control Arms
SE Michigan - Twixt A2 and Detroit

 

[johnny]

I had a real problem going up a gravel county road in southern Missouri a couple years ago. The coach wanted to spin both wheels even though the
loose gravel had a solid under surface. Wasn't steep, just an up slope on a gentle curve and I entered it too slowly. The dure was to back up and
get up to about 25- 30 MPH and pull it.

--johnny
--
Foolish Carriage, 76 26' Eleganza(?) with beaucoup mods and add - ons.
Braselton, Ga.
I forgive them all, save those who hurt the dogs. They must answer to me in hell

 

[johnny]

I was visiting friends, and was down the damn thing by the time I realized. Second try got me out the next day.

--johnny
--
Foolish Carriage, 76 26' Eleganza(?) with beaucoup mods and add - ons.
Braselton, Ga.
I forgive them all, save those who hurt the dogs. They must answer to me in hell