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Big Sur Beauty & Adventure August 3rd – 10th 2024 (7 nights)

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Big Sur Beauty & Adventure
August 3rd – 10th 2024 (7 nights)

Searching for a last minute August trip was challenging.  Most campgrounds are either too hot in the summer or booked months in advance since school is out and people are on summer vacation.  We had a big summer home renovation project and didn’t know when it would end, so we weren’t able to make our trip plans six months in advance per our usual strategy.  Regardless, we decided to give last minute trip planning a try since our schedule opened up earlier than expected and we had some free time.  The first thing we did was identify locations that are beautiful and temperate.  Big Sur rose up immediately to the top of our list:  natural beauty, cool summer weather, and accessible (with a caveat).  We had wanted to further explore Big Sur for some time and try a couple of campgrounds that are new to us — Plaskett Creek Campground and Kirk Creek Campground.  The catch is that these campgrounds are extremely popular (Kirk Creek Campground is reportedly harder to get into than Yosemite).

We decided to use a reservation scanning website since both Plaskett Creek and Kirk Creek campgrounds were completely booked on our desired travel dates.  These types of websites scan park campground reservations systems and notify users when there is a last minute cancellation.  Many of these services have a fee.  However, at least one, Campflare, is a free service that scans select reservations systems every fifteen minutes and notifies users by text and email when a cancellation is detected.  Since we had nothing to lose, we signed up.  Minimal personal information is required to use the system.  Simply identify the campsite you are looking for and the date range you would like to travel and provide your email (and mobile phone number if you want to receive a text).

We received an email and text within a few days of setting up the notifications!  We reserved two nights at Plaskett Creek Campground almost immediately after receiving the email /text (which came in shortly after 5 a.m. one weekday morning).  Fortunately, I was up early, so I reserved the site right away.  It’s a good idea to have your sign in credentials for Recreation.gov ready to go for both your computer and mobile phone (in case you are out when you get notified).  I learned this the hard way, as I received a text while taking a walk that a campsite had become available at Kirk Creek Campground.  I didn’t have my Recreation.gov credentials saved on my phone, so I ended up running home (about two miles)!  Fortunately, the campsite was still available when I got home and I was able to reserve it.

On this trip, we stopped to visit family in both Pacific Palisades and Santa Barbara on our way to Big Sur.  Big Sur is about a three hour drive north of Santa Barbara.  We took a break for lunch at Zorro’s in Pismo Beach (about half way up to Big Sur) for some great Mexican food.  We made sure to fill up our gas tank in Morro Bay before driving up the coastline to Big Sur as gas is hard to find and very expensive there.  Plaskett Creek Campground was our first stop in Big Sur.  The campground, run by the US Forest Service, sits across the street from the beaches.  We had site #43 ($49/night) which is nicely separated from other campsites.  There’s also a water spigot close to this site (note, the water here is frequently turned off due to quality issues, so it’s best to check if the spigots are available before arriving, or better yet, bring your own water).  We arrived with a full tank of fresh water in our 2020 Scamp 13’ along with three 6 gallon jugs of fresh water just in case none was available.  There is almost no mobile phone service here (although we found we could text near the Group campsites and also receive internet walking along the bluffs above Jade Cove).  For future visits longer than a few days, I think we would come with the new Starlink Mini to allow for phone and internet connectivity.

There are a bunch of adventures available at Plaskett Creek campground, so there’s plenty to do for a three day visit.  Sand Dollar Beach, one of the most beautiful beaches on the Big Sur coast, is a short walk down the road from the campground.  It’s a wide sandy beach and great for walking, swimming, surfing, rock hounding, tide pooling, fishing, hiking, picnicking, ….  There are about one hundred stairs to get down to the beach from the top of the bluff.  We expected to find sand dollars on the beach due to the beach’s name; however, we didn’t see any!  Jade Cove is another great adventure within walking distance to the campground.  It may be hard to find since there are no trailhead entrance signs (we were told the locals take them down to keep people out).  Fortunately, we have Gaia GPS on our phone and the route is clearly visible on the map (and your progress can be tracked as you walk – you are represented by an arrow).  Note – make sure to download any maps before you come to Big Sur because there is limited to no internet reception here.  Watch out for poison oak on the trail and take care not to brush against bushes as there are also ticks on the bluff trails.  Getting down the trail to the beach is a bit treacherous as the trail is very steep at the bottom and ropes are needed to descend onto the beach (the ropes are already secured in place).

Jade Cove is the perfect place to come if you are looking for Big Sur Jade (aka Bubble or Grape Jade), a rare and unique gemstone found only in the Big Sur region of California.  Jade Cove contains the only concentrated underwater deposit of quality nephrite jade in the world.  Once on the beach, spend time sifting through the rocks and look for emerald green stones.  We found a couple small pieces and were told it is extremely hard to find it on the beach (it may be best to look right after storms).  The easiest way to find the jade is to go into the water and dive (only advisable for experienced divers when conditions are calm).  The jade is also difficult to identify as many rocks look like it.  Serpentine, agates, and sandstone can be mistaken for jade.  The real jade is extremely hard and won’t crack apart if slammed against other rocks or drilled for making jewelry.  Jade is often very smooth and a dark emerald green in color.

Hiking the Salmon Creek Falls Trail is another adventure close to Plaskett Creek Campground.  Salmon Creek Falls is a stunning 120 foot natural waterfall.  The trail entrance is about a fifteen minute drive south on the coast highway.  It’s a short hike (.25 mile round trip from the highway) to the waterfalls and the last section is very rocky.  When you reach the trail split, stay left to the reach falls.  The trail on the right goes up higher to a secluded camping area.  We saw many people swimming in the large pool below the falls.  Getting close to the base of the waterfall requires climbing on boulders.  Willow Creek is another place to explore (about a fifteen minute drive from Plaskett Creek Campground).  It’s a creek that drains into the ocean.  The beach is rocky and we were told one might find Big Sur jade here (although we didn’t find any).

After spending a few days at Plaskett Creek Campground, our next stop was Kirk Creek Campground (only about 10 minutes’ drive north).  Since check out time was noon at Plaskett Creek Campground and check-in time was 3 p.m. at Kirk Creek Campground, we asked the campground host what we should do.  He advised us to stay at our campsite an extra half hour (which we did and ate lunch during that time) and then explore Sand Dollar Beach a bit more (we parked our trailer on the side of the highway for about an hour).  The coast highway here is very quiet because it is still closed just north of Kirk Creek Campground due to landslides.  We arrived at Kirk Creek Campground around 2 p.m. and found our campsite, #30 ($53/night), to be ready for us.  Site #30 has a spectacular ocean view of the stunning Big Sur coastline.  We could see white water views down the coast, even inside our Scamp!  There are no water spigots here and no mobile phone reception.  There are trash cans (which the infamous raccoons open and strew trash everywhere at night) and bathrooms here.  We were advised to be very careful with food as gangs of raccoons have been known to boldly walk into peoples’ campers to grab food (even with people inside)!  There are a couple of trails at Kirk Creek Campground (a short one goes down to the beach and a very long one, Vicente Flat Trail, which can take over four hours, goes to an old Redwood forest inland of the campground).  During our visit, the beach trail was overgrown with poison oak.  We ended up just enjoying the views and relaxing at Kirk Creek Campground.  The location offers some of the most beautiful coastal scenery in the world.  Many people come up to this campground and stay for a week, just sitting in chairs outside their trailers and marveling at the stunning coastline views.

Big Sur is one of our favorite places to visit in the summer.  The weather is cool and the scenery can’t be beat.  There are plenty of adventures to be had, including treasure hunting for Big Sur jade.  We can’t wait to go back for some more exploring and next time will bring a plastic shovel and bucket (and rock ID app).  The campsite host at Plaskett Creek Campground told us some kids dug out 14 pieces of jade right at the campground using such tools!  We find Big Sur to be beyond Sur-real!

Disclaimer:  You will get the same great Amazon price by clicking on the links here compared to buying directly on Amazon, but by buying here you will also be supporting the continuation of this website as we get a small commission from each sale.  These are products and procedures we use for our own Scamp that we selected and developed from our own research and experiences.  However, we do not endorse any specific product and cannot guarantee that the products we use are exemplary and the procedures we use are complete, accurate, detail the correct recommended procedures, or apply to your model small travel trailer.  It’s always best to double check with your manufacturer or operation manuals to ensure you are doing everything

Mammoth Lakes, California: June 8th – 14th, 2024 (6 nights)

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Mammoth Lakes, California
June 8th – 14th, 2024 (6 nights)

Mammoth Lakes, located seven hours north of San Diego by car, is an outdoors playground high up in the Eastern Sierra (almost 8,000 feet above sea level).  During the winter and spring, there is fantastic skiing/snowboarding at the world famous Mammoth Mountain ski area as well as opportunities for cross country skiing, snowmobiling, snowshoeing and sledding nearby.  Spring, summer, and fall allow for camping, hiking, mountain biking, fishing, horseback riding, canoeing, paddle boarding, as well as many more activities (such as leaf peeping when the leaves change colors to vibrant yellows and oranges in the fall)!

Although we have visited Mammoth Lakes many times, this was our first stay in town at New Shady Rest Campground (note – there is also Old Shady Rest Campground right next store).  New and Old Shady Rest campgrounds are run by the Inyo National Forest service.  The campground is right in the middle of all the great things Mammoth Lakes as to offer, so it makes for an excellent location for exploring.  There are no hookups at this campground, but there are water spigots and central dump station ($10). We reserved site #76 ($30/night) which is very spacious and is heavily shaded by tall Jeffrey pines.  We received two bars of Verizon mobile phone service (although texting was not consistent – e.g. sometimes text would say downloading but never come through).  There is a water spigot close by site #76 and the spigots are threaded:  so, we were able to use our hoses to pump the water uphill to our trailer, instead of having to use our dolly.  Joining our 25’ and 50’ Zero-G lead free drinking water safe hoses together was still just a few feet too short from being able to fill our 2020 Scamp ’13 directly, so we filled a water jug instead.  Since this was at least the third time where our hoses have been just a bit too short to reach our Scamp 13’s fresh water fill port, we ordered an additional hose for future trips.

New Shady Rest Campground is within the town center of Mammoth Lakes and the 7.8 mile paved Town Loop bike path is right at the campground as well.  The Mammoth Lakes Welcome Center is walking distance and offers a lot of information on things to do (including trolley maps) as well a nice tourist shop.  We brought our mountain bikes (hitched to the back of our Scamp 13’) and enjoyed riding from the campground through town as well as on the paved Town Loop bike path.  The path leads high up above town and offers spectacular views of the Eastern Sierra (still snowcapped in mid-June).  We road our bikes to the Warming Hut restaurant one day for lunch and enjoyed some great meals!  There’s also a nice mostly flat paved trail that goes from the campground through a Jeffrey Pine forest to Shady Rest Park (about 1 mile each way).  We enjoyed walking this path every day during our stay.  The smells of the pines are wonderful.  Although we were warned about bears, we never saw any.  The last bear seen in the campground was about two weeks before our arrival.  The black bears are mostly regarded as a nuisance in the campground by foraging for food, but are rarely aggressive towards people.

Our Carlsbad neighbor and friend Rob surprised us with a visit (on his way up to Bend, Oregon for a family gathering).  He spent a couple of nights at New Shady Rest campground in his Honda Odyssey van which he converted into a camper van.  Rob is very familiar with the area as he has spent many years skiing and fly-fishing here.  We were fortunate to have him give us a tour of some of his favorite places, including a hike around beautiful Convict Lake and a viewing of the Minarets (mountain peaks) from Minaret Vista (the highest lookout point in Mammoth Lakes, elevation 9,276 feet).  The vista offers panoramic views of the famous Minarets, the backside of Mammoth Mountain, and the magnificent Sierra landscape.

Mammoth Lakes has an excellent free trolley system which traverses all over town as well as to the lakes.  Some of the trolleys even look like the old fashioned bright red trolleys with open sides!  Each trolley route is designated with a color, so it’s important to get a map at the Mammoth Lakes Welcome Center (or view online) to determine which colored route is the right one for your destination.  Some of the trolleys even have bike racks, so you can bring your bike with you.  The trolley stop right up the street from the campground is designated #12.  We found most of the trolleys, regardless of colored route, go to The Village, where one can catch the Lake Basins trolley to the lakes.  The Village is designed like a posh European alps village and has various stores and eateries.  We had fun taking the trolley up to the lakes and hiking the spectacular Panorama Dome, which features spectacular views of the mountains, Twin Lakes, and waterfalls.

Although we only stayed five days in Mammoth Lakes, there are so many fun things to do, that one could easily spend a couple of weeks here and not get bored.  In the late spring, there is great biking, fishing, hiking, boating, shopping, restaurants … to try.  Don’t forget about taking the shuttle to the Devils Postpile National Monument and hiking to Rainbow Falls.  And, Yosemite is less than an hour’s drive away!  We also found it very relaxing sitting in a comfortable chair at the campsite and watch the puffy white clouds pass high above the tall Jeffrey pines.  Whatever, you choose to do, make sure to get outdoors, inhale the fresh air, and wonder at the beautiful natural surrounds.  The sign at the entrance of town has it right as it says, “The mountains are calling, … John Muir”.

Disclaimer:  You will get the same great Amazon price by clicking on the links here compared to buying directly on Amazon, but by buying here you will also be supporting the continuation of this website as we get a small commission from each sale.  These are products and procedures we use for our own Scamp that we selected and developed from our own research and experiences.  However, we do not endorse any specific product and cannot guarantee that the products we use are exemplary and the procedures we use are complete, accurate, detail the correct recommended procedures, or apply to your model small travel trailer.  It’s always best to double check with your manufacturer or operation manuals to ensure you are doing everything

2024 Morro Bay Kite Festival: April 26th – 30th, 2024 (4 nights)

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2024 Morro Bay Kite Festival
April 26th – 30th , 2024 (4 nights)

Every year in April something special happens in Morro Bay – the annual kite festival!  It’s a free annual event that invites everyone interested in fun to come out to Morro Rock and fly kites.  And, there are some fantastic kites to be seen in the air.  The event started on Friday night with LED light up kites and then there was kite flying all day on Saturday and Sunday with kite flying exhibitions throughout the days.  Candy drops were made twice on both Saturday and Sunday.

Because the drive to Morro Bay is long for us coming from San Diego (about six hours), we stopped overnight at our cousin Jon’s house in Santa Barbara both on the way up to Morro Bay and on the way back home.  This year we had a special treat in that we got to meet Toby, our cousins’ 12 month old Sheepadoodle puppy.  It turns out that Toby is a giant dog with an equally big friendly personality and high intelligence.  We had fun training him to go down the slide at the kid’s park and he loves playing catch and running with other dogs at the dog park.  We also got a chance to try out East Beach Tacos, which is excellent and highly recommended.  You walk up to the window to place your order and then sit on their outdoor bench seating.  All the tacos we tried were fresh and delicious.

Morro Bay Strand Campground is about a two hour drive from Santa Barbara.  There are both full hookup and non-hookup campsites here.  This was our second time at this campground and we again chose the non-hookup site #1 ($35/night).  We love this site because it is right next to the beach and fairly private.  Because the site is non-hookup, we ran our propane to operate our refrigerator and hot water heater, made sure our Fresh tank was full when we arrived, and used our lithium battery for power.  There are water spigots at this campground, but no central dump (we used the central dump down the road at Morro Bay State Park campground when we left).  Because we now have a DC-DC car charger and lithium battery, we always arrive to campsites with a 100% fully charged battery (which can generally last us up to 10 days without recharging since we only use about 10% of the 100Ah battery’s capacity per day).

One of our favorite activities is riding bikes from the campground to Morro Rock (about a 45 minute bike ride on a flat trail adjacent to the beach).  It’s a beautiful ride.  This time we had our kites packed with us and we locked our bikes above the beach where the kite festival was being held.  If driving, it’s best to park on the street before the Morro Rock parking lot and arrive early (around 11 a.m.)  as there can be a lot of slow moving traffic during the festival.  The sand closest to Morro Rock is reserved for “sponsored” kite flyers (blocked off by yellow tape).  We walked down the beach and launched our kites (elephant, octopus, scuba diver, and parafoil) along with our kite reel.  The wind on Sunday was perfect (Saturday was gusty following an extreme windstorm Friday night).  One of the sponsored kite flyers offered to send up our scuba diver on one of his manta ray lines. This turned out to be a very beautiful arrangement as the scuba diver was “diving’ next to two manta rays.  Spectators below on the sand were treated to an underwater type of view when looking up featuring the scuba diver and two manta rays swimming above.  Click here for a video we made of the 2024 Morro Bay Kite Festival.

Set against Morro Rock, the annual kite festival is a wonderful event for anyone who enjoys the outdoors and flying or watching spectacular kites.  We had so much fun; we are already excited for our visit next year!

 

Disclaimer:  You will get the same great Amazon price by clicking on the links here compared to buying directly on Amazon, but by buying here you will also be supporting the continuation of this website as we get a small commission from each sale.  These are products and procedures we use for our own Scamp that we selected and developed from our own research and experiences.  However, we do not endorse any specific product and cannot guarantee that the products we use are exemplary and the procedures we use are complete, accurate, detail the correct recommended procedures, or apply to your model small travel trailer.  It’s always best to double check with your manufacturer or operation manuals to ensure you are doing everything correctly. 

Ojai Spring Experience: March 23rd – 29th, 2024 (6 nights)

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Ojai Spring Experience
March 23rd – 29th, 2024 (6 nights)

Ojai is a great place to explore nature and enjoy small town life.  The city is located about forty-five minutes south of Santa Barbara and at about 745 feet about sea level.  In town, there are luxury hotels, spas, great restaurants, hiking, biking, horseback riding, boutique stores, art galleries, wine tasting rooms, and many other fun things to see and do.  There are also serene mountain campgrounds high above Ojai in the Topatopa mountains about 15 miles north of town, with one, Rose Valley Campground, boasting a spectacular 300 foot two tier water fall (Rose Valley Falls).  It’s fun to combine both flavors of camping into one trip!  We spent a couple days at each location.

We started the trip at Rose Valley Campground, about a thirty minute mountain drive from Ojai.  The mountain road winds and climbs up into the Los Padres National Forest to about 3,450 feet above sea level.  The campground is very remote with the closest stores and gas stations located back in Ojai.  The roads leading to the campground are paved, but we did have to drive across a couple of creeks to enter the campground.  Click here to see us crossing one such section of creek.

Rose Valley Campground is a primitive campground (US Forest Service) with almost no amenities (only trash cans and a vault toilet).  We saw a ranger only once during our visit (he knocked loudly on our door shortly after we arrived and asked if we had a reservation).  There is no water or cellphone/internet reception here (except maybe if one has Starlink).  We made sure to arrive with our Fresh tank full and also brought an additional 6 gallon water jug (which we used) as well as 4 gallons of drinking water.  Since our Scamp’s house battery is lithium, we didn’t bring our solar panels (we use only about 10% of our lithium battery’s 100ah capacity per day and recharge them when we drive at 30% capacity per hour via our DC-DC car charger, click here to read more about this).  The campground is very small, with only 8 campsites (some of which cannot be reserved, but are only available first come, first served).  We reserved campsite #3 ($30/night) which we think is the best campsite for those with small travel trailers.  This campsite is fairly private and has a fantastic view of the Rose Valley Falls.  Campsite #2 is great for tent campers, but because access is across a small section of creek and there is no place to turn around — it would be very difficult to back in a travel trailer.  For larger trailers and RVs, campsite #1 is a good choice (but is a first come first serve site).

If one wants serenity, to unplug, and a place to relax, Rose Valley Campground is the place.  Looking out our Scamp 13’s back window up at the 300 foot Rose Valley Falls made this place seem almost Yosemite like.  It’s a great place to get close to nature.  We could hear the creek and frogs from within our Scamp.  And, we saw plenty of animals and birds including hawks, red-winged black birds, egrets, ducks, and many other bird species, squirrels, snakes, … Coyotes, deer, bobcats, and mountain lions also live in this area, but we didn’t see them.  Bears have been occasionally sighted too.

There are many great hikes originating from Rose Valley Campground.  The featured hike is the one of “Rose Valley Falls” and starts at campsite #4.  It’s short (less than a mile or 30 minutes round trip) and overall easy, with one creek hopping required.  The falls were raging during our visit (as California has been having a lot of rain this year).  The bottom 100 foot tier of the falls, lower falls, can be seen from the base, where this hike ends.  Hiking to the upper falls is not recommended as there are not well maintained trails and there is a lot of loose gravel.  We hiked up a portion of one of the routes, but decided it was too treacherous due to the condition of the muddy earth and loose shale rock.  In addition to Rose Valley Falls, there is a pleasant road walk from Rose Valley Campground which passes the 3 local lakes: Upper Lake, Middle Lake, and Lower Lake (it’s an easy roughly two mile round trip walk — although there are a couple of creek crossings along the way which require careful traversing due to slimy and slippery algae beneath).  Fishing is allowed at the lakes with a fishing license.  On our last day, we drove a few miles up to Piedra Blanca Trailhead — features three popular trails (a $5 Adventure Pass or Interagency Pass is required to leave in car at parking lot): leave all valuables at home says the sign at the trailhead.

After a couple of days of being unplugged and roughing it (hardly) at the remote Rose Valley Campground, we made the thirty minute drive down the mountain and pulled into Camp Comfort with full hookups at each campsite (run by Ventura County Parks).  Camp Comfort is only a few minutes’ drive from downtown Ojai, which makes it an excellent base for exploring the town.  The first thing we did when arriving was dump our Grey and Black tanks (although we had to do it at another site as a few sites here, #13-16, have the hookups on the wrong side — passenger side! Oops!)  The ranger couldn’t explain what happened, other than a supposed mistake was made during the construction of the campground.  Other than that, our campsite #13 ($49/night) is a fantastic site–only one of three campsites adjacent to the creek.  Campsite #11 is probably the top pick here (with #12 coming in 2nd).  This campsite has amenities: full hookups, a raging creek, and super-fast free wifi (no sign in is required).  It’s located in a nice park setting and the campground itself is a small parking lot (but still plenty of space between sites).  Camp Comfort was extremely quiet during our visit at the end of March.  We enjoyed falling asleep to the sounds of the creek flowing and the frogs, crickets, and birds (with owls hooting in the trees above early morning).

We spent our first day exploring downtown Ojai.  We visited a very unusual bookstore, Bart’s Books, that has many of its used books on outside shelves facing the street!  The books are left outdoors and payment after hours is on an honor system with a can left out to accept money!  There is also the main street, called the Ojai Arcade, with nice stores, eateries, art galleries, and wine tasting rooms.  After spending a couple hours walking around downtown and refreshing ourselves at Sanders & Sons with their delicious gelato, we visited Ojai Meadows Preserve and took a nice hike within the wetlands preserve.  On day two of our visit to Ojai, we explored the wondrous estate of the Ojai Valley Inn, a beautiful hotel on sprawling grounds.  The estate is so large that the staff hands out maps to help visitors navigate the area.  The gardens, Wallace Neff architecture, restaurants, and other facilities on the property are enough to keep one entertained for hours.  We enjoyed a soap making class at their Artist Cottage & Apothecary center, bringing home six of our own soaps!  We picked up a simple Mexican lunch at the Ojai Tortilla House (a very small establishment, known for its homemade tortillas, that can hold only about two or three people inside to place orders for takeout only.  The line outside was not long).  We walked to the town park, Libbey Park, down the street and relished our quesadilla and tacos on a park bench (we saw a few other people there doing the same).  We ended the day at the Ojai Community Farmer’s Market (Thursday afternoons 3 – 7 p.m.) and purchased some quail eggs (an elusive find).  With more time and a treasure chest full of money, there are a many more highly enjoyable adventures to be had in Ojai.  There are excellent hikes, bike rides, shows (Ojai Art Center), art galleries, workshops, music events, wine tasting rooms, stores, horseback rides, restaurants, spas, golf, tennis …. April starts the Pixie Tangerine month in Ojai…maybe next time!

Disclaimer:  You will get the same great Amazon price by clicking on the links here compared to buying directly on Amazon, but by buying here you will also be supporting the continuation of this website as we get a small commission from each sale.  These are products and procedures we use for our own Scamp that we selected and developed from our own research and experiences.  However, we do not endorse any specific product and cannot guarantee that the products we use are exemplary and the procedures we use are complete, accurate, detail the correct recommended procedures, or apply to your model small travel trailer.  It’s always best to double check with your manufacturer or operation manuals to ensure you are doing everything correctly. 

Whitewater Preserve (Palm Springs Area) February 12th – 14th, 2024 (2 nights)

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Whitewater Preserve (Palm Springs Area)
February 12th – 14th, 2024 (2 nights)

Located only about 20 minutes northwest of Palm Springs, Whitewater Preserve (2,851 acres) is situated in a beautiful canyon with spectacular views of the mountains and Whitewater River.  This preserve is just one of many throughout the State of California managed by the Wildlands Conservancy.  Whitewater’s campground, park, and Visitor Center and Ranger station were built on the foundation of the historic Whitewater Trout Hatchery (which closed in 2006).

We probably never would have heard about this place had it not been for our friends Colleen and Perry.  They roll their Oliver travel trailer out of their home base in Ontario, Canada every Fall and often make Palm Springs and its surrounds their winter basecamp.  Once they discovered Whitewater Preserve, they told us we had to come and visit.  So, we organized a two day trip to meet and explore Whitewater Preserve and its trails.  There are no fees at this private preserve and camping is free (call to make reservations (760) 325-7222).  There is a large grass field for tent campers and a parking lot for trailers (and day use).  They have a 20 foot trailer length limit, but the rangers were flexible with our friends’ 24’ Oliver trailer (they were able to park across multiple parking spaces lengthwise between 5 p.m. and 8 a.m.).  The park is open seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.  (free admission).  Camping is also free ($0/night).  We chose to stay two nights.

This preserve doesn’t seem very well known and there were not many people here during the week.  The winter weather was perfect (pleasant days in the high 60’s/low 70’s and cool nights in the high 30’s).  We and our friends were the only campers the first night.  A car camper and a van camper shared the large parking lot with us on the second night.  There are water spigots (potable water) in the campground, but no electricity, sewer, or trash services.  Numerous trails originate or are very close to the campground and offer spectacular hikes.  Some of the trails follow the river and others climb high onto ridgelines overlooking the valley.  One of the trails leads to the Pacific Crest Trail.  There are also nice meandering paths along some of the ponds within the park.  The park puts on many scheduled events, including the morning ornithology tour we went on.  A biologist led the bird watching group and took us all on a long trail walk, pointing out and naming different birds along the way.  There are many species of birds at which to gaze.  We noticed the binoculars of choice among this bird group were those produced by Swarovski Optics.

The sky became pitch black soon after the sun set behind the mountains.  The stars came alive and we could hear a symphony of sounds produced by the frogs and other animals along the river.  This is one of the special treats offered to campers who are allowed to stay in the park after it closes to the general public at 5 p.m.   There are also plenty of other animals that might be roaming the campground!  The area is also home to bighorn sheep, California black bears, coyotes, mule deer, raccoons, roadrunners, mountain lions, bobcats, and coyotes.

After spending the first day hiking around Whitewater Preserve, we joined our friends in Palm Springs to enjoy some of what this iconic city has to offer.  We did a very special hike at Tahquitz Canyon.  On the Agua Caliente Indian Reservation, visitors (for a $15 fee) can enjoy a self-guided hike up a scenic canyon to a seasonal 60-foot waterfall (swimming is allowed).  The path also features rock pictographs made long ago by indigenous peoples.  After the moderate two mile hike, we had a great lunch at Low Desert Modern Mexican restaurant.  We ended our day in Palm Springs before returning to Whitewater Preserve visiting the Agua Caliente Cultural Museum ($10/person).  This museum is dedicated to showcasing the culture of the Agua Caliente People.  There are some very interesting presentations which feature projection systems to create a very immersive experience (highly recommended).

Although this was only a short two night stay, Whitewater Preserve was just what we needed to rejuvenate our souls after being in the city for the past several months (a lengthy time for us).  John Muir once wrote:  “I only went out for a walk and finally concluded to stay out till sundown, for going out, I found, was really going in.”

 

Disclaimer:  You will get the same great Amazon price by clicking on the links here compared to buying directly on Amazon, but by buying here you will also be supporting the continuation of this website as we get a small commission from each sale.  These are products and procedures we use for our own Scamp that we selected and developed from our own research and experiences.  However, we do not endorse any specific product and cannot guarantee that the products we use are exemplary and the procedures we use are complete, accurate, detail the correct recommended procedures, or apply to your model small travel trailer.  It’s always best to double check with your manufacturer or operation manuals to ensure you are doing everything correctly. 

Utah National Parks & More Adventure

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Utah National Parks & More Adventure
October 13th – 29th, 2023 (16 nights)

The primary goal of this adventure was to see Utah’s national parks (except for Zion which we visited on a previous trip).  We were able to reserve some of the national parks long in advance, except for Bryce which was first come first served during the time of our trip.  However, for those national parks where reservations weren’t available, we found alternative locations, such as surrounding State parks and private campgrounds.  Because our home base of Carlsbad (San Diego) is far from Utah, we traversed through the states of Arizona and Nevada on this journey.  We didn’t make reservations in advance for Arizona because we wanted some flexibility in selecting cool locations in case the weather didn’t dip down in time for our trip.

Days 1 & 2:  Prescott, Arizona
The night before our trip, we checked weather for our first planned stop, Painted Rock Petroglyph Site and Campground (about five hours from home).  It turned out temperatures were still in the upper 80’s.  Since we had no reservations here, we looked at our route and, instead, headed for the mountains to Prescott, Arizona (low 70’s daytime temps, 40’s at night).  We made calls on the way and found a private campground, Point of Rocks, nestled up in the Granite Dells area near Watson Lake (only about 8 minutes from downtown Prescott).  We were offered site #50, a premium site which butts up against granite stones (part of the Dells) (around $60/night).  The site has full hookups (water, electric, and sewer) and there is free WiFi (which was fast — we were able to stream movies).  The area is spectacular with stunning scenery of granite stone formations.  There is a trail right from the campground that leads to Watson Lake and a series of trails that follow the lake’s perimeter.  One could spend days hiking here.  We also enjoyed walking through historic downtown Prescott.  There is a town square with a clock tower and historic court building.  We walked streets lined with old Victorian homes (built in the 1800s) which are beautiful.  The farmer’s market (Saturday mornings 7:30 -Noon) was also really interesting — we purchased catsclaw honey, concord jam, Aebellskyvers (Swedish donuts), homemade berry pie, and turkey eggs!  We enjoyed our first day so much, we asked if we could stay another night and, luckily, they accommodated us!

Day 3:  Flagstaff
Our next stop was supposed to be Sedona (a must visit for anyone who hasn’t seen the spectacular red rocks here).  However, like our initial planned stop, the temperatures in Sedona were in the upper 80’s.  So, instead, we continued to head to a higher elevation with cooler temperatures.  At over 7,000 feet, Flagstaff is a cool place to visit (daytime temperatures during our stay in the low 70’s, mid 30’s at night).  We found out the the state campgrounds had just closed their season (around Oct. 10th), so, again, we researched some private ones and found a nice one very close to downtown Flagstaff (Woody Mountain Campground).  We chose one of their very private campsites (A70), which is dry ($49/night) (although they have many with hookups for not much more money, but the sites are closer together).  There is free WiFi, but we found it to be very slow at our campsite.  However, our Verizon here was extremely fast (over 100mps download), so we opted to use it instead of the campground WiFi.

Flagstaff is a university town (Northern Arizona University) and, thus, the downtown is very busy with lots of students.  There are numerous shops and restaurants and the famous Route 66 runs through downtown.  There is an Amtrak station in the middle of town and over 100 trains a day pass through!  We spent a couple of hours walking around and perusing the shops before heading back to and enjoying our quiet campsite.  There are a number of interesting things to do in Flagstaff, including visiting the world famous Lowell Observatory.  The Visitor’s Center at the Amtrak Station provides a lot of good information.

Day 4:  Monument Valley, Utah
Back on our regularly scheduled itinerary, we arrived in Monument Valley, Utah at one of the few campgrounds within the valley — Gouldings RV and Campground.  Gouldings is a private campground which also has a lodge as well as individual homes that can be rented that overlook the majesty of Monument Valley.  We had campsite #66 ($65/night) which has full hookups.  The site is spaced out ok, but, if we came back, we would ask for campsite T10, which is priced the same as #66 but is an end spot overlooking the valley.  The campground provides Wi-Fi, but it is very slow.  However, when we tried our Verizon service, we received even slower data rates (even though we had 5 bars!).  We’ve been in other remote areas before (e.g. Death Valley) where Verizon shows 5 bars but the service is barely useable.  Gouldings is a full resort and campground reservations include access to all the amenities (e.g. movie theater, indoor swimming pool, laundry room, etc.).  There are also some nice nature trails that originate from the campground.

Monument Valley is Navajo country and one gets a feeling of the old West when visiting.  Gouldings warns campers not to leave their shoes out as wild dogs may chew on them in the night.  We encountered a number of roaming dogs (likely from the Navajo reservation) in the campground and on the trails.  However, they were well behaved and kept their distance.  The main draw for visiting Monument Valley is to take in the grander of the magnificent rock formations (e.g. buttes, spires, mesas, …) and beautiful sunrises and sunsets.  If one has time, Gouldings sells tours through Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park — a seat on one of their open air trucks (covered by tarp) that last 2 or more hours (about $80/person).  Alternatively, one can buy entrance into the park ($8) and drive the 17 mile road on their own (although it is unpaved and can be bumpy).  We didn’t have time for a tour, but found plenty of excellent scenic viewing areas while driving out of town on the way to our next stop, Dead Horse Point State Park.  We left early so we had plenty of time for photographing the dramatic rock formations within Monument Valley.  While taking some aerial images along the road, a herd of wild horses ran by us!

Days 5, 6, & 7:  Moab, Utah
Moab is the town that is home base for many tourists and rock climbers/boulderers flocking to the area to explore.  There are nice hotels, shops, restaurants, and numerous adventure outfitters.  Tour companies here offer off-road buggy trips into the desert among many other outdoor adventures.  And, Arches National Park is located only about ten minutes outside town.  Of course, if one has a small travel trailer, it’s not necessary to stay where most of the tourists congregate.  Instead, numerous campgrounds provide more natural and uncrowded surrounds.  We did explore Moab a couple of times — once when driving into the area on our way to our campground (we had lunch and bought some t-shirts) and another time after visiting Arches National Park to have lunch (try Quesadilla Mobilla for an awesome quesadilla!) and do laundry (Moab Laundry Express, which is across the street from Quesadilla Mobilla).  Make sure to fill your tow vehicle when in Moab as there are no gas stations outside the town (in the state and national park areas and campgrounds).

We chose to stay at Deadhorse Point State Park (DHSP), which is about 45 minutes away from Moab.  The location is ideal because the state park is located between two of Utah’s five national parks.  Arches National Park is about a 45 minute drive in the direction of Moab, and Canyonlands National Park is about 20 minutes’ drive in the opposite direction of Deadhorse Point State Park.  There are at least a couple of campgrounds inside Deadhorse Point SP, Wingate Campground and Kayenta Campground, as well as some dispersed camping.  Of the two organized campgrounds, we chose Kayenta Campground because of its beautiful natural surroundings on a canyon rim.  We stayed in campsite #3 ($50/night) for three nights, which has a spectacular view of the canyon.  The site has an electrical hookup along with a firepit, BBQ, picnic table and pavilion.  This is the first time we used our 30A extension cord — it came in handy in allowing us to back our 2020 Scamp 13′ all the way next to the picnic area pavilion (which provides shade), while at the same time being able to reach the electric hookup pedestal.    There are no water spigots, but we were able to attach our portable drinking water safe hose with water filter onto the threads at the dish wash station to fill our water jugs (for shower and sink water).  The campground does have a free central dump station.  There is almost no cellular service here, but the Visitor’s Center close by has free Wi-Fi (along with a nice gift shop) and we also found some signal up at Deadhorse Point Overlook.

There is plenty to do just inside Deadhorse Point State Park itself for a few days without even considering the national parks nearby.  We are glad we scheduled three nights here but could have been very content and busy doubling that time.  The best view of the Colorado River as it snakes around a bend is up at Deadhorse Point Overlook.  We watched a sunrise and a couple of sunsets here.  We found sunrise the best time for photographing the river against the bright orange backsplash of buttes, spires, and mesas.  Visitors are only allowed to fly drones here November through February (with a permit).  There are a number of trails connected to the campground.  The West Rim trail is a recommended highlight as is mountain biking (if that’s your thing) on the Intrepid Trail.  Make sure to leave a half day for exploring Canyonlands National Park and another half day for hiking through Arches National Park.  Having an America Beautiful Pass ($80 annual pass) makes things convenient and avoids the $30 vehicle entry charges (if you are 62 years old or older, get the Senior Pass as it is a lifetime pass for the same price and gives 50% discounts at many campgrounds).  Reserving a timed entry slot ($2) at recreagtion.gov is necessary for Arches National Park if you want to visit the park anytime between 7am to 4pm (we made ours using the Visitor Center WiFi the night before our visit —  a limited number of slots open after 6 p.m. the night before for last minute reservations but up to 3 months in advance for those planning way in advance).  A timed entry reservation isn’t necessary if arriving before 7 a.m.  If possible, plan to go as early as possible to avoid the crowds and the heat of the day.  We reserved a 7 a.m. – 8 a.m. slot at Arches, arrived at 7:15 a.m. (no line), and finished our tour of the park by around Noon.

Both Canyonlands and Arches national parks have nice visitor centers with great stuff to buy, including cool t-shirts and souvenirs for those friends and family holding down your home fort.  Our highlights at Canyonlands were visiting Mesa Arch (0.6 mile walk), Buck Canyon Overlook, Grand view Point Overlook (1.8 mile hike), and Upheaval Dome 1st Overlook (0.6 miles).  Our favorite stops at Arches were Balanced Rock (view), Windows Section with 2 arches (0.5 miles easy trail), Delicate Arch (difficult 3 mile trail, but families with small kids do it!), a petroglyph panel, and finally Devils Garden (with the widest arch of the park, Landscape Arch) (1.9 miles, moderately easy).

Days 8 & 9:  Goblin Valley State Park
We left Deadhorse State Park heading to Goblin Valley State Park, one of the most remote places in the United States, without any assurances we would have somewhere to stay.  We tried to make reservations at the campground at the earliest possible time (months in advance), but due to the popularity of the place and limited availability (only 24 campsites and two yurts) we were unable to secure a campsite.  We crossed our fingers that perhaps the campground sets aside a few “first come first serve” campsites (like we had seen at other campgrounds).  Our backup plan would be to look for a free dispersed campsite outside the park (which we had read about online).  We made sure we used the dump for our Scamp 13′ before leaving Deadhorse Point SP and fully loaded it with water (plus our three 6 gallon water jugs which we filled at the DHSP dish wash station).  These supplies would allow us to stay several days without hookups if necessary.  Note:  there is a free drinking water pump at the Goblin Valley State Park entrance adjacent to the Visitors Center and campers not staying in the park can dump here for a $15 fee.

We arrived at the Goblin Valley State Park (GVSP) entrance station about 11 a.m. on Friday morning.  But, our campground hopes were quickly dashed by a park ranger who told us no GVSP spots ($45/night) were available.  He recommended trying the free dispersed campsites down the road and mentioned the park had purchased surrounding land from the BLM (Bureau of Land Management) last year and had created defined sites out on the dirt land off the main road, each with a firepit.  He said anything that was cleared was a legitimate free site (e.g. no parking directly on shrubs).  So, we drove back down Goblin Valley Road, the one we had just driven to get into the park, about 6 miles from the park entrance and turned left at the first dirt road we saw (a clue was that there were travel trailers parked out in the area).  Luckily, after just a very short drive down only a slightly bumpy dirt road, we were able to secure a really nice free spot (first come, first serve) with a great view (click here for video).

We were also able to intermittently get one bar on Verizon service to send and receive texts at this spot.  The tradeoff was having to drive about 10 minutes to get into the park, and we did have to pay $20 for a 48 hour access pass to the GVSP park.  Note:  on our second day, we saw another expansive area of free state park dispersed camping on the road leading to Little Wild Horse Canyon trailhead (although it seemed like there was absolutely no cellphone signal with Verizon in this area).

The main draw inside Goblin Valley SP are the goblins of course!  These magical stone hoodoo structures, formed from deposits laid 170 million years ago by a vast inland sea, stand like giants in a remote forest full of goblins.  There are three main connected valleys, named appropriately:  Valley 1, Valley 2, and Valley 3.  We only explored Valley 1, but one can keep hiking for miles to meander through miles of these stone hoodoos.  Even though we visited in October, the sun was intense midday and hiking around for an hour or so was enough until dark (the fun doesn’t end at sunset here — we were told the park pass allows one to stay inside the park until 10 p.m.).  So, we came back after dark on our first day to explore the park at night.  We attended a really interesting ranger station talk about scorpions.  After the talk, the ranger led everyone on a trail and used a black light to find and show everyone scorpions (they glow under the light)!

Goblin Valley State Park is so remote that it gets really dark here at night.  In fact, it is one of the darkest places on Earth and is a certified Dark Sky Park (offering unparalleled views of the Milky Way, especially in the summer months).  A trip here wouldn’t be complete without wandering through the goblin fields under the light of a billion stars.  One of our favorite activities during our visit was to photograph some of the goblins under the stars (particularly the Three Sisters formation) on a warm Fall night.

On our second and last day here, we hiked the Little Wild Horse Canyon trail (just outside the park about 5 miles down a side road).  Instead of hiking the entire 8 mile loop (which can take up to 8 hours), we turned around after about 2 miles, returning the same way we came.  This took us about two hours going at a steady rate (it’s difficult to go very fast because of uneven stone flooring and fun obstacles on the path).  This is one of the most amazing hikes we have ever done and is a must when visiting if one is able to do some climbing over small boulders and walk on uneven terrain.  The canyon walls are like varied works of art, with different colored earth hued tones smoothly blended onto one another, crafted by millions of years of water erosion. One shouldn’t have claustrophobia to do this hike, because there are parts of the hike which may require turning to one’s side to get through the narrowest parts!  The hike is rated as “easy to moderate”, a mostly flat and shaded walk, and we saw many families with kids doing it (the trail is like a jungle gym and obstacle course for both kids and adults).  But, this doesn’t mean anyone can do it.  Being agile and sure footed is mandatory, as the rocks are slippery due to fine sand!  One can always try for a while and turn around if it gets to be too much.  It’s important to note that slot canyons can be very dangerous during rain storms as flash floods through the narrow canyon walls can be tragic to hikers caught by surprise.  So, always check the weather and make sure there’s no chance of rain (not just in the immediate area, but surrounding areas that may affect the canyon).  We were told to avoid hiking in these canyons entirely during the area’s monsoon season (June – September).  Also, take plenty of water on your hike and stay hydrated.  Note:  we wanted to buy some tshirts at the Visitor Center after our hike.  But, there was a long line of cars which looked like over an hour wait to access the Visitor Center parking lot and park entrance and only one lane (e.g. meaning campers and park pass holders still had to wait)!  So, instead of driving in, we parked our car at a close trailhead outside the park and walked past the waiting cars which were at a standstill waiting on the main road.  At this point we were really glad we weren’t staying at the park campground!  After buying a shirt, we walked back to our car and drove down the road without any wait!

Make sure to stop by the Visitor Center before leaving!  They have some excellent souvenirs, including great t-shirts, caps and arrowheads.  It’s also a good place to get connected with free Wi-Fi (and make Wi-Fi calls/emails/texts).  Lastly, drone permits can be purchased for $10 which allow pilots to fly and conduct photography missions over the Goblins!

Days 10 & 11:  Capitol Reef National Park
An often overlooked national park (4th most popular out of 5 in Utah), Capitol Reef National Park (CRNP) is definitely worth a visit while on the Utah National Park circuit.  The outstanding scenery includes impressive colorful rock formations, petroglyphs, and historic fruit orchards.  Capitol Reef NP is also a dark sky area, providing a vivid night time window into the galaxy.  Along with the scenery, there are some very cool hikes to explore.  The area is named for both the Navajo sandstone rock formation which resembles the US Capitol building’s shape and the reef-like towering cliffs which were formed over millions of years by geologic forces (known as the Waterpocket Fold).  In addition, there are arches, bridges, and twisting canyons among other natural wonders.

The first thing we noticed when pulling into this national park was there are no entrance gates or anyone to collect fees or ask for passes.  One is able to go directly to the campground and pull right into one’s space.  We reserved a campsite in the Fruita Campground months in advance.  We arrived a bit early for the 11 a.m. check-in, so we parked across the street from Gifford House (gift store featuring historic items, including their famous fruit pies) in the large dirt area known as Jorgenson’s Pasture.   Not wanting to waste time, we wandered into the historic Gifford House and purchased some home-made souvenirs and a mixed berry and a cherry pie (we were told pies sell out usually by 1 p.m, especially on weekends).  The pies are delicious (cherry, mixed berry, apple crumb, pumpkin, strawberry rhubarb, peach right now) and definitely a must try while visiting.  The following day we purchased the apple as well as the peach pies and can verify that these are also excellent!

We reserved campsite #23, a shady spot with a nice close-up view of impressive colorful cliffs.  The campground has a park like feel.  Most sites do not have hookups, and our site didn’t either.  We used the free central dump when arriving and departing.  There is also potable water at several water fills, and a general sink for grey dump and/or dishwashing.  The camp host Karen was very kind, and told us that in August 2023 the campground flooded on her watch, due to monsoon rains, and emergency procedures were enacted.  There is absolutely no cellphone signal here, however free Wi-Fi is available just a mile down the road at the Visitors Center.  We were able to make phone calls over Wi-Fi.  Mule deer roam the campground, giving the area a very natural feel.  Feeding the deer is prohibited (as they are not shy) and the general rule is to give them at least 30 feet of space.  Some of them are quite large with antlers.  The deer families seemed very calm and mostly just grazed or sat on the lawns.

One could easily spend a week here with all the things to do, but since we only scheduled a couple of days we had to pick and choose some of the favorites recommended by local rangers and campers.  We explored Jackson Orchard (which is one of many historic orchards in the Fruita Historic District where the Fruita Campground is located) and picked Red Delicious apples.  You can eat all the fruit you can pick for free as long as you are in the orchard, otherwise it’s $2/pound (cash only, self pay).  Since we were visiting in October, all the other orchards were already closed and Jackson was on its last few apples.  Fruita orchards have apple, peach, pear, plum, apricot, and almond trees.

We took the Scenic Drive which is about 8 miles each way from the campground, and it highlights the natural towering cliffs.  At the end of the Scenic Drive there is a dirt road which goes on for a couple of miles (family cars can handle it) and ends in a small parking lot at the trailhead to Capitol Gorge Road / The Tanks.  The hike starts out easy along a river wash and within a narrow slot canyon (but not nearly as narrow as Little Wild Horse Canyon).  The last short bit (which is optional) goes up a steep stone section that leads to The Tanks (holes in the rocks which hold water).  Some hikers before us told us they had just seen big horn sheep hiking to The Tanks.  The entire hike took us about one hour to complete at a moderate pace.  Since this is considered a slot canyon, all the advice about weather safety applies, aka not for rainy season times (and there are warning signs along the way).

The Fruita Visitor Center is only a 1.2 mile easy trail walk from the campground, so it makes for a good morning walk for some free Wi-Fi, pies, and souvenirs.  Amazingly, our GMRS radios were able to communicate well between our Scamp 13′ and the Visitors Center (despite the mountainous terrain)!  The Visitors Center has some nice souvenirs, as does Gifford House (which is adjacent to the Fruita Campground).  Our favorite things at Gifford House were unique soaps, apple pie, Fruita inscribed kitchen towels, homemade bread and butter pickles, jams, and syrups.

There are a lot of great hikes which can be done directly from the Fruita Campground.  We enjoyed the Fremont River Trail.  It’s a moderate 2 mile hike which includes an easy walk along the river and then climbs up quickly to a viewpoint high above.  The trail was, at times, poorly marked so having Gaia GPS really made things easy!  This hike took us about one hour to complete.  Next, right down the road, past the Visitors Center, are the Petroglyphs (it’s a quick stop with boardwalks for observation).  Our last hike during our visit was to see the Hickman Bridge (again the Gaia GPS app really saved us on this one as the trail lacked markings in places).  Hickman Bridge is a close drive and starts at a trailhead in a small parking lot.  This hike is labeled as moderate as the trail ascends up to a good elevation.  Hikers are rewarded by a view of Hickman Bridge, which is basically a stone arch.  This hike is about 2 miles round trip and took us about one hour to complete.

At the end of our second day here, we felt like we had just scratched the surface of Capitol Reef National Park.  But, with so many places to visit, it was time to move on!

Days 12 & 13:  Kodachrome Basin State Park
After a big drive over the mountains (9,600 feet elevation peak), we reached Kodachrome Basin State Park (which was named Kodachrome by National Geographic in 1949 with the consent of Kodak Film Corporation).  Take one look at the magnificent colorful cliffs and towering red and white stone monolithic spires and the name seems an obvious choice.  There are about 67 spires in the park and one can use their imagination to guess what each resembles — for example, one of the monoliths is called “Fred Flinstone” and another “Ballerina”!  Click here for an aerial flyby made at sunrise.

The first thing we noticed when driving into the park is that the Visitors Center is super nice (it’s the park’s pride and joy after its natural wonders)! They had just done some renovations in the last year and it really shows.  There is a great store with unique t-shirts and souvenirs along with archery bow rentals, a mini frisbee golf course, a small rock climbing wall, many flavors of ice cream for scooping into cones or cups, a really nice fire pit with comfy chairs in front, and open extra-long hours.  There’s a seated bar inside for visitors wanting to have something to drink and perhaps work on their laptop.  This Visitors Center makes one feel as if everyone is their special guest and they have tried to make one feel very welcome!  Guided horseback riding is also available with reservations ($65/hour or $103/2 hours per person — 435-679-8100).  The Wi-Fi is fast & free (we made Wi-Fi calls since there is no cellphone service in the park, with the exception of some trails — we found signal at the top of Panorama Point Trail).  We enjoyed early morning walks along the main road to the Visitor Center from the campground (about 1.3 miles / 30 minutes each way) to catch up on emails and news while sitting in front of the roaring outside fire pit.

We had a really nice partial hookup spot, #K-33 (at Basin campground — one of three campgrounds here) ($35/night), which is very private and has water and electric hookups.  There is a free central dump as well.  Having electric hookups was great here because it got down into the 20’s at night and having electric power at the campsite meant we could use our small ceramic heater all night long as well as electric water heater and avoid burning up our onboard liquid propane.  There’s also an awesome laundry building, called the Red Dirt Laundry (open 24/7!), on the road between the Visitors Center and the campground which we used during our trip.  We have found just packing enough clothing for about 8 days on long trips is a great way to travel light because usually there are campgrounds (or areas close by) that have laundromats (we do laundry once per week).  Note:  always make sure to carry some detergent, dryer sheets and a few $10 rolls of quarters with you!

This is a great park to ride your mountain bikes because there are plenty of accessible trails (not all trails allow bikes, but the two major ones d0).  Having bikes meant that we could cover a lot of terrain in one day which would have taken us several days of walking.  Our favorite rides were the Grand Parade Trail (1.5 miles, easy for hiking and biking), the Panorama Trail (3 miles, easy/moderate, hiking or biking) and the Panorama Point (1 mile extension to the Panorama Point trail, breathtaking views).  Note:  some parts of the trails (even the easy ones) had some erosion with steep ruts and might require one to dismount the bike and walk over the area.  There are plenty of other great trails here as well if time permits!

Days 14 & 15:  Bryce Canyon National Park
Only about a 45 minute drive from Kodachrome Basin SP, Bryce Canyon NP is just a short hop away.  Because our visit was in late October, the campgrounds had already changed from reservations to first come first served.  We arrived at the campground around 11 a.m. and there was no wait at the entrance of the park.  We pulled up to the gate station, and once we showed the attendant our America the Beautiful Pass we proceeded directly to Sunset Campground (one of two campground in the park).  The other campground, North Campground, is right near the Visitor Center at the park entrance.  We chose Sunset Campground, just about a mile and a half down the road from the Visitor Center, because many of the main trails are within walking distance of the campground (and parking space at the trail parking lots is difficult to find even in late October unless one arrives very early).

Because nighttime temperatures had started dropping very low (into the 20s), the park decided to close all RV loops within Sunset Campground with the exception of Loop A on the day of our arrival.  The free central dump (located at North Campground) was also closed due to freezing weather.  We had dumped when leaving Kodachrome Basin SP, so we had no issues for the two days of our visit.  Most of Loop A was vacant when we arrived on a Thursday morning.  The procedure is to pick a site (all are dry sites with no hookups) (make sure no one has taken it already / no tag clipped to post), park in it, and then go to the Iron Ranger at the entrance to Sunset Campground and fill out an envelope (add cash, $30/night for RVs), and put it into the payment box.  Then, go back to the campsite and attach (clip) the tear off section from the envelope onto the campsite post.  We chose campsite #240 because it is an end site (a bit more privacy and less chance of noise and smoke) and was long enough for our Volvo XC40 and Scamp 13′ with room to spare.  There is a water spigot at the central bathroom.  We found cellphone coverage through Verizon to be good here with fast speeds (fast enough to stream video).

We found the Visitor Center here to be large and very crowded.  There’s also a lodge, which has a dining room (tourist prices).  In contrast, the campground provided good solitude from the more trafficked tourist areas.  And, there were tourists visiting from all over the world — we heard a lot of different languages spoken on the trails.  Going early morning for hikes meant less people (and easier parking if driving).

We found Bryce Canyon NP to be amazing.  The geologic wonders of the rock formations (spires and cliffs) and the number of these formations throughout the park is remarkable.  The red rocks and varying hues provide dramatic color to the interesting shapes.  There are two main hikes that are a must if one is capable (otherwise, there are observation points along the canyon rim).  The Queen’s/Navajo Combination Loop is the most recommended hike and is a complete loop that passes through dramatic scenery of spires and other interesting rock formations.  We recommend starting at Sunset Point (an easy walk from Sunset Campground) and dropping down the steep switchbacks of Navajo Loop and then making the way around with the final ascent of Queen’s Garden to Sunrise Point (Sunset Point>Sunrise Point).  Then, walking back along the rim from Sunrise Point to Sunset Point provides nice overlooks of the hoodoos below (and then onto Sunset Campground).  This is the opposite direction recommended by the park (but we found that it was less busy and avoids the quite steep ascent of Navajo Loop to Sunset Point at the end of the hike).  Along the way, there are hoodoos which represent Queen Victoria and E.T.!  It’s also fun assigning traits to other hoodoos seen on the hike!  This hike is rated as moderate as there are some steep walking sections.  We spent about 3 hours on this hike (including about 1/2 hour stopping) travelling 5.8 miles on this route (with an ascent of around 625 feet going from the valley floor back up to the rim).

The second “must” hike (if one can do it), which was our favorite, is Peekaboo Loop.  It is rated as strenuous because there are many switchbacks and a climb of about 1,560 feet (more than double the climb of the Queen’s Navajo Combination Loop).  It’s best to get to the parking lot at Bryce Point before 9 a.m as the lot is small and fills up quickly (it’s a bit far of a walk from Sunset Campground).  Overall, we found the hike to be thoroughly manageable for people of all ages (as long as they stop for rest when needed).  Our new friend Dwight, who we met (along with his wife Sharon) at Capitol Reef NP (click here for their website), joined us on the hike (since they also came to Bryce).  Just like the first hike, we opted to do the hike counterclockwise (instead of the recommended clockwise direction) and felt this was a good way to go.  We took our time and spent 3 1/2 hours hiking the loop (which included about 30 minutes of stops along the way).  We thought this hike is the most dramatic as the valley is densely filled with hoodoos (including the Wall of Windows, The Alligator, and Hindu Temples).  And, every turn is filled with an awe inspiring photo-worthy sight!

Day 16:  Lake Mead National Recreation Area
About a half hour outside Las Vegas, Boulder Beach Campground is an oasis within Lake Mead National Recreation Area.  The entrance fee is covered by the America The Beautiful Pass (or, without a pass, there is a $25 per vehicle entrance fee).  We reserved campsite 83 ($20/night), which has no hookups and panoramic lake views.  There is a free central dump at the entrance and water spigots are located throughout the campground.  The campground overlooks Lake Mead and is connected to many lake side communities via a paved 34 mile bike path.

Having only a day to spend, we drove to the Visitor Center about two miles down the road from the campground.  It’s well-staffed and we received maps and recommendations on things to do.  We spent the day riding our bikes from the campground toward the Visitor Center and then along the flat DG-paved Historic Railroad Trail.  The trail can be walked or biked and follows the path high above Lake Mead that was carved out in 1931 by construction firms working for the federal government to build nearly 30 miles of railroad connecting Boulder City with the Hoover Dam.  The railroad was used to bring construction materials to build Hoover Dam.  The connection to the Hoover Dam became public in 2007.  The Historic Railroad Trail is 3.7 miles (one way) plus getting to it from the campground along the paved bike path is about 2 extra miles.  So, the ride to and from Hoover Dam from the campground is about 12 miles round trip.  There is only a slight grade going to the dam and we found the ride to be fairly easy.  There are fantastic views of the lake along the trail and five train tunnels which are really fun to walk/ride through (click here to see our video).

There are a couple of sections of short climbs when approaching the dam parking area.  We used our bike locks to secure our bikes while we took a tour of the Hoover Dam.  The 30 minute tour cost $15/person and gives an interesting look inside the dam, including views of the turbines which are used to make electricity as Colorado river water passes through them.  Biking back to our campground was a bit quicker due to the slight downward grade.  Overall, this stop exceeded our expectations by offering excellent lake views (and great weather), fantastic bike riding on a historic trail, and an interesting inside look at Hoover Dam.

Final thoughts:
This was a fantastic journey and highly recommended for anyone who enjoys nature and transcending scenic beauty.  We found creating this trip by linking the national parks and complementing the gaps between them with state parks is a great way to build an epic adventure.  There were so many highlights on this trip that it seemed like we had been travelling for months, rather than just a couple of weeks.  And, having to be spontaneous due to weather and finding unexpected treasures in new locations added to the thrill of unique and exciting travel.

Preparation was the key to making the trip easy.  Before the trip we had our Scamp 13’s bearings repacked (which we do every two years) and also had our Volvo XC40’s rear brake pads replaced.  Packing plenty of food and water to last two weeks allowed us to focus solely on seeing the sights.  Many of our favorite stops didn’t have water, so carrying three extra 6 gallon jugs filled with water for the Scamp fresh tank (along with 12 gallons of reverse osmosis drinking water) was mandatory and allowed us to stay hydrated and showered daily.  Plus, the lithium house battery and DC-DC car charger we installed was a real game changer (see DC-DC charger article).  First, we saved a lot on campground costs by not having to find sights with electrical hookups.  And, we were able to run our 12V refrigerator when driving between locations, keeping our food chilled, and always arriving with 100% charge on our battery.  We did not need to take our solar panels on this trip and never would have needed them, providing valuable extra space in our tow vehicle!  Gaia maps was essential during many of our hikes when trail markings were poor or non-existent.  Having downloaded maps for each location (often no cellular service in these areas) meant we always had detailed geographical views of each trail.  Additionally, the record feature on the app makes it easy to back track one’s path if necessary—like leaving breadcrumbs!  The Victron shunt installed on our lithium battery was also invaluable in showing our lithium battery’s state of charge (SOC), even when driving!  The GRMS radios were also very useful.  Not only did we use the radios for backing up into campsites, but they came in handy for staying in contact when one person stayed in the Scamp and the other took walks (we experienced a little over 1 mile line of sight range, which was often the perfect distance between our campsite and a visitor center where one of us used Wi-Fi to catch up on email and news).

This trip reaffirmed how travelling over land with a travel trailer is an excellent way to see natural sights.  Being able to stay within national and state parks provides the best possible location and the ability to experience these parks at night when the stars and many animals come out.  Additionally, the costs tend to be much lower than staying in hotels/motels (without the travel and time costs to access the parks daily).  There is also an affinity among campers staying at the campgrounds, and, in turn, it’s easy to make camper friends.  On this trip, we met Dwight and Sharon, at Fruita Campground within Capitol Reef National Park, and later met up again and hiked with them at Bryce Canyon National Park.  It’s not uncommon seeing the same people at campgrounds again and again when doing a tour of area parks.  We have made a number of good camping friends over the past four years who we never would have met had we been staying at hotels.  Now that we are home, the only thing left to do is to plan our next adventure!

Disclaimer:  You will get the same great Amazon price by clicking on the links here compared to buying directly on Amazon, but by buying here you will also be supporting the continuation of this website as we get a small commission from each sale.  These are products and procedures we use for our own Scamp that we selected and developed from our own research and experiences.  However, we do not endorse any specific product and cannot guarantee that the products we use are exemplary and the procedures we use are complete, accurate, detail the correct recommended procedures, or apply to your model small travel trailer.  It’s always best to double check with your manufacturer or operation manuals to ensure you are doing everything correctly. 

Wireless Weather Station for Travel Trailers

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Wireless Weather Station for Travel Trailers

We’ve wanted an indoor/outdoor thermometer for our Scamp 13’ for a long time.  We’ve been on many trips over the past several years where knowing the outside temperature before opening the Scamp’s door would have been extremely helpful.  Seeing the outdoor temperature on a big digital readout inside our Scamp 13’ helps us to assess if it will be necessary to turn on our furnace, what clothing / jackets to wear, as well as predict when to remove a fresh water connection due to extended freezing temperatures.  Having a hygrometer (humidity gage) is also very helpful in determining when the Scamp’s fan should be turned on (too much humidity can trigger a false alarm with the carbon monoxide – CO- detector).  CO detector false alarms can be extremely unnerving when they happen in the middle of the night!

After spending a lot of time researching many different weather stations, we decided on this one made by UNNI.  There’s also a different version which is capable of showing data from 4 sensors (3 outdoor and the inside unit).  Though, we’ve found one sensor to be enough for using with a travel trailer.  Although it is inexpensive, this weather station has received excellent reviews from thousands of customers.  We were also impressed that the unit is advertised as using a Swiss made high-precision sensirion sensor.  The claimed temperature accuracy is +/-0.5 degrees F and humidity accuracy is +/- 2%.  The unit is also capable of displaying the heat index, the dew point index, and the mold index at each sensor location (one at a time).  We leave the heat index showing – which is what the temperature feels like when relative humidity is combined with the air temperature.  Additionally, the weather station provides a pictorial daily weather forecast (shows clouds / sun / rain / snow) based on the unit’s barometric weather sensor (it is said to be around 75% accurate – hence, we don’t rely on this device for weather forecasts).  The UNNI manual can be found here.

The key to getting good readings on this weather station is proper placement of the outdoor sensor.  The outdoor sensor is rated to connect to the weather station if it is within a few hundred feet, so there should be plenty of good mounting options when using it for a travel trailer.  We used double sided Scotch Extreme Fastener tape to mount the sensor under one of our propane tanks.  This way, the weather sensor doesn’t get direct sunlight or wet (which can not only make the temperature readings inaccurate but also potentially ruin the sensor).  In order to protect the outdoor sensor from damage when travelling, we place it under the propane tank when we arrive at the campground and move it inside our Scamp when we are driving.  This keeps the outdoor sensor from getting destroyed by road debris (including wetness) as well as falling off while driving.  The entire system is wireless (powered by 3 AAA indoor weather station batteries and 2AA outdoor sensor batteries).  The battery life appears to be excellent.

We have been using this weather station for a couple months now and it seems to be very accurate (when compared to internet weather websites).  We really like all the great features as described above, which make our trips more comfortable and fun.  One last feature which we utilize is the light (which goes on simply by swiping a finger over the light bulb icon at the top of the display).  Having the light makes it really easy to see the temperature / humidity even when it is pitch dark inside the Scamp 13’.  So, the next time you are out in nature, give one of these weather stations a try so you don’t ever have to guess or walk outside your travel trailer in your pajamas trying to figure out what to wear!

 “Whether the weather be cold, or whether the weather be hot; whether the weather be fine, or whether the weather be not, we’ll weather the weather whatever the weather, whether we like it or not.”

 

Disclaimer:  You will get the same great Amazon price by clicking on the links here compared to buying directly on Amazon, but by buying here you will also be supporting the continuation of this website as we get a small commission from each sale.  These are products and procedures we use for our own Scamp that we selected and developed from our own research and experiences.  However, we do not endorse any specific product and cannot guarantee that the products we use are exemplary and the procedures we use are complete, accurate, detail the correct recommended procedures, or apply to your model small travel trailer.  It’s always best to double check with your manufacturer or operation manuals to ensure you are doing everything correctly. 

Four Jeffery Campground, Eastern Sierra

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Four Jeffery Campground, Eastern Sierra
September 18th – 22nd, 2023 (4 nights)

While looking for somewhere cool to go (as California was experiencing very warm weather), I did a Google search for towns in California with the highest elevations (figuring higher altitudes would mean lower summer temperatures).  Jumping out at number 3 on the list (8,500 ft. elevation), the small town of Aspendell (pop. 100) stood out as a great place to go.  It’s easy to get to (only a 25 minute drive up into the mountains from Bishop) and has stunning scenery, excellent campgrounds, magnificent hikes with beautiful lakes, trout fishing, boating, horseback riding, and some great places to eat.  We had never heard of this location before, but it turned out to be one of our all-time favorite places we have ever visited!  We chose to stay at Four Jeffrey Campground.

The drive from our home in Carlsbad, California to Four Jeffrey Campground is about six hours straight.  However, we chose to break it up by spending the weekend in Los Angeles with family.  It took us about four and a half hours to drive to the campground from Los Angeles.  The drive goes up Highway 14 through Mojave and surrounding desert communities and then up Highway 395 past Lone Pine, Independence, Big Pine, and finally to Bishop.  We stopped in Lone Pine on the way up to eat lunch at the Alabama Hills Café (the burgers are great as are their homemade pies).  https://www.alabamahillscafe.com/  Note:  we spent a week camping up in the Alabama Hills on a previous trip which we really enjoyed.  We stopped in Bishop for gas and an RV dump (free if you fill up there, otherwise a monetary donation is requested) at Speedway Bishop. From Bishop, it’s about a twenty five minute drive up into the mountains on Highway 168.  There are many campgrounds in the area, but the biggest is Four Jeffrey Campground which has water spigots, an RV dump (free if staying at the campground, otherwise $10) as well as flush toilets.

Four Jeffrey Campground is spectacular, featuring stunning views across the Eastern Sierra.  There was snow in the mountains even in late September due to the high elevation (Four Jeffrey Campground is at 8,300 feet elevation).  We stayed in two campsites alongside Bishop Creek ($30/night, note:  America the Beautiful Senior Passes (age 62 or older) are accepted for half priced camping @$15/night)  – we were at campsite #10 the first night and then moved over to campsite #8 the next couple of nights.  When talking to regulars, we learned campsite #8 is a favorite.  There are a couple of campsites right across from campsite #8 which can accommodate large trailers.  There’s almost no internet service here (we encountered 1 bar on Verizon in certain areas when walking around the campground).  However, there is a short 10 minute hike up a utility service access road across the street from the campground which leads to a spectacular view over the valley and has about 4 bars on Verizon.

We felt like we were in the mountains of Switzerland while camping at Four Jeffrey Campground.  The air was crisp and cool (60’s during the day and 30’s/40’s at night).  The campground is in a valley surround by high mountains.  The evenings were filled with dark skies and brilliant stars (although we were also gifted a dramatic thunder and lightning show one night!).  We had fun spending one night outdoors photographing the stars and Milky Way (best seen in dark sky locations during the summer).  The South Fork of Bishop Creek runs through the campground and many of the campers brought their fishing rods and reeled in a lot of trout.  Everyone seemed very happy here.  The campground was not crowded during our stay, but perhaps that was because it was mid-week and the end of the tourist season in the Sierra.  It was cold at night and we ran our propane furnace to keep the Scamp warm inside.  We had a great hike from the Bishop Pass Trailhead past South Lake up to Long Lake.  The trail is clearly marked but somewhat difficult due to rocky and steep terrain.  There are many connected lakes and some people tent camp outdoors overnight when hiking to farther areas.  It took us a few hours round trip from South Lake to Long Lake and the hike was one of the most scenic hikes we have ever done.  The scenery of the lakes and mountains is stunning – seemingly untouched and unknown.  After our hike, we went to the Cardinal Café, in the small town of Aspendell, and had a tasty meal.    We also had a chance to take a horse / mule ride up to South Lake using the services of Rainbow Pack Outfitters ($100 per person for 2 hour ride at the time of this article).  The horses / mules are friendly and the guide was very good at getting us up on the animals and leading us along the trail (even beginners are welcome).  Rainbow offers longer trips as well as overnight trips into the backcountry.  We had such a great time up in this area of the Sierra, we didn’t want to leave.  There are enough activities that one could easily stay a week or longer.  And, for those without a travel trailer, Parcher Resort (adjacent to Rainbow Pack Outfitters) has cabins which can be rented.

Instead of driving straight back to San Diego, we stayed overnight at Red Rock Canyon State Park (about halfway to home).  We had camped here before and really enjoyed the area.  This campground is first come, first serve, but was easy for us to get a choice spot during the week when arriving around noon.  We chose site #29 ($25/night), which is one of the best campsites at the base of the bluffs.  There is plenty of room between campsites too.  There is a water spigot across from site #29.  The only cellphone service we found was at the visitor’s center, along with free WiFi, which is about a ¾ mile walk from site #29.  There is also a private RV dump across from the visitor’s center ($20).  The visitor’s center is stocked with some great souvenir values (we purchased a Red Rocks t-shirt and sweatshirt).

Red Rock Canyon State Park is true to its name, featuring brilliant red bluffs which are especially vibrant at sunrise.  There are trails that go up the bluffs, offering spectacular views of the surrounding desert.  It was around 85 degrees when we arrived, so we waited until sundown to hike.  The wind kicked up in the early evening, but didn’t exceed 30 mph and the gusts were minimal.  As we were getting ready to leave the next morning, we were treated to a beautiful sunrise (and the sounds and sights of two large owls perched on the bluffs directly above our Scamp 13’ hooting a friendly hello to start the day)!

We enjoyed this trip so much; we definitely plan to go back.  There is an area of free dispersed camping on BLM (Bureau of Land Management) land, called the Buttermilks (between Bishop and Aspendell), which we were told are similar in their unusual rock formations to the Alabama Hills.  The Buttermilks access road was closed during our visit so we couldn’t check them out, but we plan to on a future trip!  The area acquired its “Buttermilks” name in the 1970’s when a dairy operated here, but the rock formations also look like piles of curdled buttermilk so the name stuck.

In a crown of jewels (camping areas of special parks offered in California), Four Jeffrey Campground and surrounding areas in the Eastern Sierra are hidden gems — few talk about and even fewer experience the magic of this place.  Highly recommended for the trip of a lifetime!

 

Disclaimer:  You will get the same great Amazon price by clicking on the links here compared to buying directly on Amazon, but by buying here you will also be supporting the continuation of this website as we get a small commission from each sale.  These are products and procedures we use for our own Scamp that we selected and developed from our own research and experiences.  However, we do not endorse any specific product and cannot guarantee that the products we use are exemplary and the procedures we use are complete, accurate, detail the correct recommended procedures, or apply to your model small travel trailer.  It’s always best to double check with your manufacturer or operation manuals to ensure you are doing everything correctly. 

 

Why & How I Easily Converted My Scamp Travel Trailer from a Lead Acid to Lithium Battery

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Why & How I Easily Converted My Scamp Travel Trailer from a Lead Acid to Lithium Battery

Why Switch?  The Benefits of Lithium Batteries
Our 2020 Scamp 13’ came with a wet lead acid battery (Northern brand Group 27 – est. capacity 67 -100 amp-hours) which was manufactured in June 2019.  [Note:  the term amp-hours (Ah) is a measure of battery capacity.  For example, a 100Ah 12-volt lithium battery can provide 100 amps to a 12-volt 100 amp device for one hour (after which time the battery would be completely depleted).  The same 100Ah battery could supply power for 4 hours to a 25 amp device (100/25=4).].  We find we use about 12 amp-hours per day (running LED lights, pumps, etc.) when boondocking (no electrical hookup), giving us about 8 days of power (100/12=8.3 days) if we don’t use any source to recharge the battery.

The lead acid battery is considered “wet” because it has liquid solution (battery acid) and requires monitoring levels.  If the liquid levels get too low, the battery can be damaged.  So, periodically, the plastic caps have to be opened on the top of the battery and distilled water added (other maintenance is also recommended on occasion such as periodic equalization and checking electrolytes – but, who does this?!!!).  These batteries can also off-gas hydrogen when charging, so they need to be vented to release the fumes (on a travel trailer, this means they are mounted outside on the trailer’s tongue).  The average lifespan of a lead acid battery is 3 – 5 years but can vary depending on the manufacturing process, the care it receives, and the conditions in which it operates (e.g. extreme heat may greatly reduce the life of the battery).  The figure of 1,000 charging cycles is often cited by manufacturers for this type of battery.

Our Scamp’s lead acid battery had served us adequately, although its limitations were apparent since day one.  First, lead acid batteries should not be discharged more than 50% (about 12.0V) or irreversible damage may occur.  So, effectively, only half of the lead acid battery’s capacity can be used (so the 100ah battery is equivalent to about 50ah)!  We needed to closely monitor the Scamp battery when using multiple appliances at night to make sure the voltage didn’t drop below 12.0 volts for too long. We spend a lot of time boondocking (without electric hookups) and the battery ran down fairly quickly (within two to three days of use running our LED lights, fan, water pump, shower pump, furnace, etc.).  Our 100 watt solar panels, though, had saved us on many occasions when hookups weren’t available by allowing us to charge the battery during the day in good weather.  The Scamp’s lead acid battery also had to be maintained periodically by filling it with distilled water (when levels were low).  Fortunately, our friend Phil helped us test and maintain the battery using distilled water and a kit to test electrolytes.

Our Scamp’s 2019 lead acid battery began to show its age this year.  At about four years old, it was nearing the end of the average lifespan for this type of battery.  We noticed that the full charge didn’t seem to last quite as long.  Instead of trying to milk it for a few more years, we decided it was time for a change.  We planned the switch to a lithium battery ahead of a big trip to the coastal California redwoods – knowing there would be long periods without electric hookups (under densely shaded heavy foliage in the forest which would limit solar charging).  Not wanting to deal with lead acid batteries any longer (or battery issues on our trip), I extensively researched lithium batteries.  The first thing I discovered is that modern RV lithium battery chemistry, LiFePO4 (lithium iron phosphate), is considered very safe (said to be the safest of the lithium battery types) and unlikely to catch fire (very different than other types).  They have a very low risk of overheating and catching fire due to their more stable cathode material and lower operating temperatures.  Additional benefits over lead acid batteries include increased capacity (about double lead acid batteries), faster charging (4 x faster), reduced weight (about ½ the weight), and longer lifetime (10 years or more — 2 to 3 times lead acid battery average lifespan).  Additionally, high quality LiFePO4 batteries have a built in BMS (battery management system) that protects the battery from overcharge, over-discharge, and short circuits.  Some even have a temperature controller to shut down charging when temperatures dip below freezing (which can damage LiFePO4 batteries).  After learning about these additional benefits in lithium battery chemistry, I was really motived to keep researching.

Trailer Converter & Wiring Compatibility
Before purchasing a lithium battery, I wanted to verify that I would be able to charge it safely with the Scamp’s Progressive Dynamics 45 amp 9245C converter (converts AC to DC 12V when hooked up to an AC outlet to run the Scamp 12V appliances, like lighting, and charging the Scamp battery) running through the trailer’s existing wiring (I was told by Scamp they used 12-gauge wire on 2020 models).  LiFePO4 lithium batteries generally require a charging voltage between 14.4 – 14.6V (higher than lead acid batteries).  So, the converter needs to be able to output this voltage for sufficient charging.  SOK Battery recommends 20 – 40 amps charging current (i.e. charging a 100ah battery at 20 amps will take it from 0 to 100% in five hours – very fast). However, I wasn’t too concerned about getting this many amps to the battery to charge it quickly because we generally stay at the campground at least 24 hours – so, slower charging would be acceptable.  So, the main questions I had were if the 12-gauge wire (rated for 20 amps — and there is a 20 amp fuse on the positive converter connection at the Scamp battery) would handle the current output by the 45 amp converter going to the battery (wouldn’t blow the 20 amp fuse at the battery) and if the converter could output a minimum of 14.4V.

I called Progressive Dynamics and spoke to a tech.  He told me that the PD9245C converter that our Scamp 13’ came with can charge lithium batteries with the optional pendant (sold separately here).  It’s a little box that plugs into the converter (less than $15 at the time I purchased) and has a button which allows the converter to output 14.4 volts in Boost mode (for four hours at a time when its button is pushed).  Otherwise, the converter won’t get up to the required minimum voltage (14.4V) to fully charge lithium batteries.  He also said that whatever current isn’t used in the trailer will be sent to the battery (potentially up to almost 45 amps!).  So, he strongly recommended changing the existing wiring going from the converter to the fuse box to the battery (both positive and negative wires) to 6-gauge wire.  He said that the 20 amp fuse at the battery would likely blow often if this wasn’t done.  Because our Scamp 13’ has a bathroom and the wires run behind it, the job would involve running the wire up to the refrigerator area in the front of the Scamp and then cutting a hole in the floor and running it under the front part of the trailer up to the battery.  I took a look under the bench seat where the converter is mounted and followed the wiring to the fuse box next to it (and removed the fuse box from the wall to look closely at the wiring) and then onto the side of the trailer by opening the side refrigerator panel.  From there, the wiring goes into the wall behind the bathroom and comes out the front of the Scamp through the front closet floor.  This didn’t seem like too difficult a job, so I ordered the copper 6-gauge wires, battery lugs, brackets, etc. ($271 altogether on Amazon at the time of my order).  Fortunately, all of the supplies I ordered were returnable, because, as you will read below, I ended up not using them!

Choosing A Brand
Once convinced our next Scamp battery would be a LifePo4 lithium battery, I shopped brands (and there are a ton of choices) and watched YouTube videos of experts taking apart these batteries to conduct extensive analysis on them to help distinguish between the high quality from the numerous poor quality batteries.  Here’s one such video that reviews a variety of Chinese brands.  After a couple of weeks of this type of research, I was able to identify some of the highest quality US and Chinese brands of LiFePO4 batteries.  I also called battery distributors carrying the best US and Chinese brands and asked about build quality and return rates between the batteries.  What I learned was that one of the leading Chinese made batteries, SOK Battery, is comparable in quality and return rates to one of the leading US brands but costing about half the price.  After doing this research, I purchased a 100ah SOK marine battery which has a battery management system (BMS, including low temperature charging shut-off) and Bluetooth.  This battery fits perfectly within the Group 27 plastic battery box that came with our Scamp 13’and sits outside at the front of the trailer near the hitch.  Many of the batteries I researched (including other SOK batteries) were too big to fit inside our existing battery box.  I ordered a marine battery version (water tight enclosure) because, although the battery goes inside a plastic battery box, the battery/battery box sits outside on the trailer’s tongue and is exposed to the elements.

I ordered the SOK 100ah marine battery with BMS and Bluetooth directly from the manufacturer’s website here, priced at $500 (free shipping) at the time of this article (in comparison, a decent new sealed 100ah AGM battery – an advance type of lead acid battery — cost between $200 and $300).  The SOK battery comes with a 7-year manufacturer warranty.  SOK ships to US customers from their US warehouse and I received the battery, which was well packaged in protective Styrofoam, in about five days.  The SOK marine battery is super clean looking in a nicely sealed black plastic case.  I weighed both the old lead acid battery (48 lbs.) and the new SOK battery (24 lbs.) and was pleased how easy it is to lift the new SOK battery.

Installation and Configuration
The SOK battery fits perfectly into the Scamp’s existing plastic Group 27 battery box, taking up about the same amount of space as the old lead acid battery.  It was easy attaching all the battery connectors from the Scamp’s various systems (e.g. converter, brake, electric jack, etc.) to the SOK battery terminals because I was careful to label each wire (and indicate which was positive and negative) before removing the wires from the old battery.  I downloaded the ABC-BMS app to my Android phone, opened it, and it did not connect to the SOK battery.  I guessed the battery was in a deep sleep after being shipped from China, so I plugged the Scamp into the AC wall outlet and the app quickly connected.  Note:  the battery also goes to sleep every six hours without use.  Simply turn on the shower floor water pump or other appliance that has significant current draw and the battery will wake up and the app will then connect.  Another way to wake up the battery is to plug in the trailer to shore power (and perhaps press the button on the Wizard pendant to get the voltage up over 14v).

I initially liked the app because it not only shows State of Charge (SOC) of the battery in percentage but also a lot of other really useful data.  One extremely helpful piece of information on the app is the current flow (amp) into and out of the battery.  I relied on this extensively when testing the new lithium SOK battery and it allowed me to forgo rewiring the Scamp because I saw that the current flow to the battery when charging was never over 20 amps (the rating for the circuit breaker at the battery).  Eventually, though, I grew tired of having to wake up the battery to get the app to work and I also found the SOC value to become inaccurate when the Scamp was sitting for long periods in the garage.  The voltage would continue to drop over a couple of weeks, but the SOK app would still show 100% SOC.  The app fails to register small parasitic loads from appliances when calculating the SOC (which quietly drain the battery over time just by being plugged in, even when all accessories are off).  I contacted SOK and they advised that an external shunt would be much more accurate than the internal BMS for measuring SOC.  In turn, I purchased a Victron SmartShunt which is extremely accurate and works whether or not the battery is sleeping.  The external smart shunt, which sits between the lithium battery negative terminal and all negative loads, very accurately calculates SOC by effectively measuring all the current going out of the battery.  The Victron SmartShunt app shows that my Scamp has a drain of about .14 A when sitting in storage in the garage.  Here’s a video I made showing much more detail on how the Victron SmartShunt is installed and set up.

Victron calibration guide:  click here.

Testing New Battery
The first thing I did after installing the new SOK battery was plug in the Scamp to the AC wall outlet to see if I would need to change out the trailer’s existing 12 gauge wire.  The battery arrived at 60% SOC and I intended to charge it to 100% while carefully monitoring the amps received at the battery using the SOK app (after putting the converter into 14.4V Boost mode, by pressing the button on the pendant).  Without any electric appliances running in the Scamp, the SOK app showed 9 to 10 amps going into the battery from the converter (so nothing like the high number of amps the Progressive Dynamics tech warned about).  At 10 amps, the 100ah battery charges at about 10% per hour and would take 10 hours at this current to go from 0 to 100% charge.  Since the SOK battery was already at 60% SOC, it only took about 4 hours to charge to 100%.  During the charging process, I periodically felt the + and – converter wires at the battery.  They remained cool the entire time, the 20 amp fuse never blew, and the charging current never exceeded 10 amps (far below the 20amp rating of the existing 12 gauge wire on the Scamp).  I also tested the current from the 7-pin connector plugged into our Volvo XC40 tow vehicle when the SOK battery was at 82% SOC.  With the ignition off, the app showed no power coming or going from the SOK battery.  With the car running, the app showed the SOK battery receiving 4 amps from the 7 pin connector.

Because lithium batteries take more current and charge faster when they are at a lower state of charge (Ohm’s law:  Current (amps) = Voltage [voltage charging – voltage battery] / Resistance), I decided to run some additional experiments with the SOK battery at a much lower SOC.  I used the three way refrigerator in 12 volt mode to deplete the battery (at 82%) down to 20% SOC (it took about 6 hours to do this since the 12V refrigerator uses around 10 amps).  As expected, the charging current rates when the SOK battery was at 20% SOC were significantly higher than previous tests at 82% SOC.  But, were they high enough to heat up the wiring and blow the converter wiring’s 20 amp fuse at the battery terminal?  Fortunately, they were not.  With the Volvo XC40 plugged into the Scamp via the 7-pin connector, the SOK battery received between 8 – 10 amps when the car was running (no amps when the car was off) compared to only 4 amps previously when the SOK battery was at 82% SOC.  When the Scamp was plugged into the AC outlet, the SOK battery received between 14-16 amps.  As the SOK battery charged, the current rate fell back down to around 10 amps (at 45% SOC).  So, it seems the battery follows Ohm’s law and gets noticeably hungrier and draws in higher current when charging at very low state of charge (less than 30%).  But, even so, the wires remained cool the entire time, and the 20 amp fuse never blew (keeping below the 20amp rating of the existing 12-gauge wire on the Scamp 13’).

Charging Scenarios
There are at least four ways to keep a lithium battery charged when travelling.

  1. Electrical Hookup
  2. Solar Panels (optional)
  3. 7-pin car charging
  4. DC-DC Car Charging (optional)

Each of these methods is discussed below.

Real World Testing –20 Day California Coastal Redwoods – Oregon Adventure
As testing predicted, our Scamp’s existing 12-gauge wiring did work well for charging with the converter when staying at campsites with an electrical hookup and also with the 7-pin connector while driving.  But, a big question was whether the 100ah SOK battery would be sufficiently charged for our style of camping.  In other words, would the mix of our camping between campgrounds with and without electrical hookups (with solar panels when there was sunshine) and driving distances (charging with the 7 pin connector and running our 12 volt refrigerator while driving) be sufficient to keep our 100ah SOK battery charged on long trips?  Since we often spend long periods of time (up to a week) boondocking (no electric hookup – at one or multiple locations) and only periodically stay at campgrounds with electrical hookups, considering all forms of charging seemed like a good idea.  Fortunately, our recent twenty day trip up the California coast into the redwoods and beyond into Oregon offered a mix of different types of camping, providing perfect testing conditions for our lithium battery and insight into the best ways to keep it charged for our travelling style.

We travelled with the Scamp’s 12V refrigerator running to test the actual draw on the SOK battery while driving since the goal is to keep refrigerated food cold without having to run propane (we don’t want to take the safety risk of running the refrigerator from propane while driving and also the inconvenience of having to turn the propane off before entering gas stations).  We found that running the refrigerator while driving consistently depleted the SOK battery at about 10% of charge capacity per hour.  So, for example, when we left a campground with our SOK battery at 100% charge and drove four hours we would arrive with our battery at 60% SOC.  Fortunately, we had no issues on this trip because we used our solar panels to charge up at most campsites after arriving.  However, we decided to add a DC-DC car charger (see below) after this trip so we can run the refrigerator and charge our SOK battery at the same time while driving.

1.  Electrical hookup
Using shore power (AC outlet) is the simplest way to charge a lithium battery.  When the trailer is plugged into an AC electrical hookup, the trailer’s converter will provide around 14.4 volts power to charge the battery (as discussed previously, our converter required an add on “wizard” pendant to increase the voltage to 14.4 volts which is required for charging lithium batteries).  Standard (“non-lithium”) converters will not be capable of fully charging a lithium battery, so it’s important to research what converter is in your trailer and either replace it or upgrade it (like we did) if necessary so that it is capable of charging the new lithium battery.  Our 100ah SOK lithium battery charges at about 10% per hour when plugged into an AC outlet (mostly while in “boost mode”, which is when the pendant button is pushed on the “wizard” and the voltage is increased to 14.4 volts).  The SOK battery charged well at campgrounds with hookups.  We found our battery fully charged every morning on our recent trip.

2.  Solar Panels
We have a 100 watt solar briefcase which we had been using successfully to charge our old lead acid battery at campgrounds without hookups.  The panels are capable of supplying up to 8 amps (100 watts/12 volts, from the formula amps x volts = watts) of power.  So, on a sunny day, with eight hours of good sun, the panels could possibly provide the 100ah SOK battery up to 64ah of capacity (8 amps x 8 hours) or 64% of the total battery capacity!  Because we usually have good weather when camping (i.e. good solar charging conditions) and estimate our daily battery use at around 12Ah or less, the solar panel solution seemed like it would work great for the lithium battery.  The only change we made was replacing the existing inexpensive solar charge controller to one that has a LiFePO4 setting.  The solar charge controller sits between the solar panels and the battery and regulates the charge states so the battery is safely and properly charged.

We opted to purchase a high end charge controller since we are charging an expensive LiFePO4 battery with double the useable capacity (and ½ the weight) as our old lead acid battery.  This Victron Energy smart controller features MPPT technology (as opposed to the PWM technology that basic controllers have) with a long five year warranty.  Without getting into a lot of detail, MPPT is widely recognized as more efficient (up to 30% more efficient) than PWM technology, which generally means higher amps collected from the panels and sent to the battery (faster battery charging times).  The downside of MPPT controllers is that they are generally much more expensive and complex than PWM controllers.  The PWM controller we used for our Scamp’s original lead acid battery was only $16 on Amazon and seemed to do a good job charging it (although not compatible with LiFePO4 batteries).  However, because we wanted to make sure the much more expensive SOK battery is safely and efficiently charged, we decided to spend more ($112 at the time of this article) on the Victron smart controller which is compatible with LiFePO4 batteries.  Having the extra charging efficiency is helpful because there is more battery capacity to replenish with a lithium battery compared to a lead acid battery.  This is because a comparable lead acid battery should only be allowed to run down to about 50% capacity or 12 volts whereas a 100ah lithium battery can be safely discharged to a much lower SOC — some manufacturers say safely to 0%, others 10-20%.

The Victron Energy SmartSolar MPPT 75V 15 amp 12/24 volt solar charge controller with Bluetooth arrived quickly after ordering from Amazon and was easy to install.  I removed the old controller (which I had attached to the back of the solar panels with Scotch extreme fastener tape), screwed down both the positive and negative wires from the panels and the battery leads into the new Victron controller (being careful to make sure the red positive wires and black negative wires went into their respective slots), and used extreme fastener tape to secure the controller to the back of the panels.  Fortunately, the thickness of the new Victron controller was thin enough to allow the panels to fully fold up into a briefcase and lock.  To program, I opened up the panels inside my house and exposed them to some outdoor light to power the controller (the panels were not connected to a battery).  I used my mobile phone’s reader app to scan the QR code on the controller, which opened up the Victron app page on the Google Play store to download.  Downloading the Victron app was fairly quick and it required a couple of updates after downloading.  The only thing I adjusted in the settings was for the battery type, LiFePO4, which sets the parameters for this type of lithium battery.  After the quick setup, I took the panels outside and connected them to the Scamp.  All the information shown on the Victron app is amazing.  The app shows voltage generated by the panels and the regulated voltage and current going into the battery.  There are also graphs that can be generated showing a variety of different parameters.  It was interesting comparing the Victron data against the SOK battery data in real time, which, it turns out, were very similar.  For example, the current and voltage coming from the panels as displayed on the Victron app was very similar to the current and voltage going into the battery shown on the SOK app.

The solar panels coupled with the Victron controller did a great job recharging our SOK 100ah lithium battery on our recent trip.  We often arrived at campgrounds without hookups with our lithium battery depleted to between 60% and 80% SOC as a result of running the 12v refrigerator.  In most cases, placing the solar panels out in the sun resulted into a full charge to our SOK battery in less than 6 hours.  Under partly cloudy to sunny skies, the panels usually output between 6 to 7 amps per hour to the SOK battery.  The panels didn’t produce much if any electricity at all under heavy cloudy skies or no sun conditions (like we experienced in the dense redwoods forests).  In these cases, the DC-DC charging scenario of charging comes into relevance (see below).

 3.  7-pin car charging
Connecting the travel trailer to the tow vehicle with the 7-pin connector not only allows the trailer’s tail lights to mimic the tow vehicle’s signal lights (e.g. turn signals, brake lights) and control the electronic brakes, power can also pass through it between the tow vehicle and trailer.  On our twenty day trip to the California redwoods and Oregon, the power flow was usually around 4 amps from the tow vehicle into the Scamp lithium battery.  However, on some occasions, the flow was actually negative, with power going from the Scamp battery back to the tow vehicle’s battery.  Current usually flows from high voltage to low voltage (known as “potential”), so when the travel trailer battery has a higher charge than the tow vehicle, current may transfer from the trailer battery to the tow vehicle battery.   Since we like running our 12V refrigerator while driving, we found that even with the 7-pin connector providing some power, our new SOK lithium battery usually loses about 6 to 10 amps of capacity per hour while driving.  So, after a typical four hour drive with our 12v refrigerator running, our SOK lithium battery state of charge (SOC) would often be around 60% (when starting at 100% SOC).  The bottom line is that the 7-pin connector cannot be relied on to charge the trailer battery while driving as it puts out very little current for this purpose.

4.  DC-DC Car Charging, “The Game Changer”
We chose to install a DC-DC car charger so we could drive with our 12 volt refrigerator running without depleting our 100ah SOK lithium battery.  It allows the tow vehicle (assuming the tow vehicle’s alternator can output enough amps) to charge the trailer battery at a very fast rate.  Heavy gage cable (6 gage cable in this case) is run from the tow vehicle battery (hidden under the cars body panels) to Anderson SB50 quick connectors at the back of the tow vehicle.  The DC-DC charger is installed next to the travel trailer battery.  The DC-DC charger takes power generated by the tow vehicle’s alternator and regulates the voltage up to a certain amount (just over 40 amps in this case).

Without the DC-DC car charger, our lithium battery generally is depleted by about 10 amps or 10% of its charge per hour when driving with our 12 volt refrigerator running (as mentioned above).  In many cases, we can make up this shortfall in capacity by using our solar panels at the new campground.  However, in some circumstances (like we experienced in the dense foliage of the redwoods on our last trip) arriving with 100% SOC is a better plan (especially if staying for a long period of time).  Bad weather (e.g. windy, rainy, heavy clouds, etc.) or being in a sketchy environment (where risk of solar panel theft might be high) may also throw a wrench in charging plans, sidelining the use of solar panels.  So, after reviewing experiences from our recent twenty day trip we decided integrating a DC-DC car charger would be desirable for how we travel.  The DC-DC car charger gives us peace of mind, ensuring that our lithium battery will be fully charged when we arrive at the campground (even when running our 12V refrigerator).

We did a lot of research and purchased a RedArc 40amp DC-DC car charger (RedArc BCDC1240D) with the RedArc 60A Fuse Kit (FK60).  RedArc is one of the highest regarded manufacturers of these chargers and makes some very powerful ones (like 40 amp and 50 amp versions).  A 50 amp DC-DC car charger can charge a 100ah battery in about two hours of driving!  This brand is one of the most expensive (and based on our experience worth it!), but there are also other brands (such as this Renogy 40 amp DC-DC charger) which may do a good job.   We chose a local company, Basil’s Garage, to install the charger as it requires removing body panels within the tow vehicle and installing heavy gage wiring from the engine compartment within underbody panel compartments to the back of the tow vehicle (installation was about $500 and took about 3 hours).  The techs at Basil’s Garage are excellent and really know their trade.  Additionally, a cable is needed to the tow vehicle’s fuse box to keep the DC-DC charger from stopping when the smart alternator drops the voltage to save power.  After the installation, the SOK app showed 42 amps going into the battery (vs. about 4 amps from the 7-pin connector when the DC-DC connector was disconnected).  And, after turning on the 12V refrigerator, the SOK app showed 32 amps still going into the SOK battery with the tow vehicle running!   We put our new DC-DC car charger to the test with a trip up the coast to several beach campgrounds (see trip report here).  Indeed, the DC-DC charger worked wonderfully during our trip supplying our Scamp’s lithium battery up to 32 amps of power when needed while powering our 12 volt refrigerator at the same time.  The system worked so well that we didn’t even need to use our solar panels (we arrived at each campground with cold refrigerated food and our lithium battery SOC at 100%)!  We consider DC-DC charging a real “game changer”.

Final Thoughts
Now that the price of high quality LiFeP04 batteries for travel trailers has come down to more reasonable levels, it seems like a no brainer to swap out a trailer’s lead acid battery for a LiFePO4 lithium battery.  For just two to three hundred dollars more, one can buy a lithium battery that compared to a lead acid battery is ½ the weight, gives 2x the capacity, doesn’t off gas hydrogen, doesn’t require maintenance, lasts 10 years or more (2 to 3 times lead acid battery average lifespans) and charges much faster.  Additionally, the LiFeP04 battery in a travel trailer sitting in storage can sit a lot longer without getting depleted by parasitic loads from appliances due to higher useable capacity.  This can mean fewer trips to the storage facility to charge the battery.  Lastly, there are a lot of great optional methods (e.g. AC hookup, solar panels, and DC-DC charger) available to quickly charge up a travel trailers LiFePO4 battery when travelling.  And, because LiFePO4 batteries charge much faster, there’s a better chance of having battery capacity when it is needed!

Disclaimer:  You will get the same great Amazon price by clicking on the links here compared to buying directly on Amazon, but by buying here you will also be supporting the continuation of this website as we get a small commission from each sale.  These are products and procedures we use for our own Scamp that we selected and developed from our own research and experiences.  However, we do not endorse any specific product and cannot guarantee that the products we use are exemplary and the procedures we use are complete, accurate, detail the correct recommended procedures, or apply to your model small travel trailer.  It’s always best to double check with your manufacturer or operation manuals to ensure you are doing everything correctly. 

Southern California Beach Camping

 150 150 gavin
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Southern California Beach Camping
August 5th – 11th, 2023 (6 nights)

When the weather gets hot, the best place to direct your travel trailer is toward the California coast.  And, with so many fantastic locations from which to choose, it may even be possible to book a few beach campsites at the last minute!  That’s exactly what we did when we needed a short trip to test out some new systems on the Scamp (and also enjoy some cool ocean breezes).  Using the Reserve California website, we were able to find stray single night availability campsites (often from last minute cancellations or gaps in reservations) and piece several together from different beach campgrounds to create a nice trip along the coast.   The Reserve California website is great because it shows many campground locations within a given area, so that if the one you are searching is booked there are others pictured which may show availability.  To see a short video we made on our trip, click here.

Gaviota State Park (Gaviota, “meaning Seagull in spanish”)
Located about thirty minutes north of Santa Barbara, Gaviota State Park is a small parking lot style campground adjacent to a nice beach.  We were camped in site #038 ($45/night + $7.99 reservation fee, good Verizon cellphone coverage) toward the back of the campground.  There are water spigots, but no other hookups here.  We read it can get quite windy here (sometimes blowing away tents), but it was calm during our stay.  When we arrived, we inadvertently started testing our Scamp systems when we discovered that, even though our water pump was on, we had no water at our sink!  Fortunately, I remembered what our plumber Oscar had taught us – if you don’t use your plumbing for a while, your water pump can lose its prime.  I removed the PEX connection at one side of the pump, and, with the pump on, let the water squirt out for a couple of seconds.  Then, I reattached the PEX and the pump’s prime was restored and the water worked!  Phew!

The public pier (with a boat hoist) is now closed due to damage sustained from past storms.  One of the most striking features at the campground is the 811-foot span, 80 feet high Gaviota railroad trestle (erected by Southern Pacific Railroad in 1900) which towers over Gaviota Creek as it enters the Pacific Ocean.  The trestle is one of Amtrak’s most photographed landmarks anywhere in the country.  To capture a photo of the trestle with a train passing over, use Amtrak’s train tracker to get an idea when the train is coming.  We found that trains arrive at the trestle within about 15 minutes of leaving or arriving at Gaviota station.  Freight trains also pass over the trestle but their schedules may be harder to determine.

In addition to enjoying the beach (swimming, relaxing, kite flying, fishing), there is a nice trail (strenuous, 3 miles round trip) that goes to the Gaviota Wind Caves up in the mountains behind the campground.  Walk up Hollister Ranch Road toward Hollister Ranch (adjacent to the campground station entrance) and access the trail at the top of the grade through the gate on the right.  The dirt path leads up a strenuous mountain trail to the striking sandstone caves with distant ocean views. Hollister Ranch Road also makes for a nice walk adjacent to and above the ocean and we could spot several dolphin pods on a morning walk.  You can also drive north down the road, but there is a guard gate at the entrance to Hollister Ranch which is only open to residents and workers.  Hollister Ranch is a gated 14,000 acre private residential community amidst a working cattle ranch.  Some of the residents include filmmaker James Cameron, Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard, and musician Jackson Browne.  There is much controversy here about the ranch and its residents blocking public beach access to its pristine beaches (among some of the best surfing beaches in the country).  For a detailed article on this click here.

An interesting recent study by UC researchers using motion activated cameras found a myriad of unexpected animals visit the beach here (including coyotes and bears)!

Emma Wood State Beach (Ventura)
Emma Wood State Beach is about an hour and a half south of Gaviota State Park.  We stopped along the way at the Winchester 76 gas station in Goleta to dump ($7.50).  Emma Wood State Beach campground is “primitive” with no hookups (no bathrooms, electricity, or dump, not even water spigots).  Only travel trailers are allowed and they must be self-contained with bathrooms (tents are not permitted).  We had site #055 ($40/night + $7.99 reservation fee, good Verizon cellphone coverage) which was incredibly close to the water’s edge (we estimate waves breaking less than 30 feet from the rear of our Scamp at high tide!).  A notice on the parks website says “high tides may close the campground at any time.”  Looking and listening out the Scamp’s back rear window facing the ocean made us feel like we were on a boat.  The breaking waves were loud, masking any possible road noise from Pacific Coast Highway above.  Even the occasional train passing by was hard to hear.

Due to the proximity to downtown Ventura and an excellent bike path, there’s a lot to see and do at the campground.  We went out to lunch with our friends Cheryl & Hugh to Andria’s Seafood Restaurant in Ventura Harbor.  They serve nice salads and all types of fish as well as burgers.  We hadn’t seen our friends for some time, so it was nice catching up.  We strolled through the harbor after lunch and checked out the boats and shops.  We also stopped in the Channel Islands National Park visitor’s center and at the transportation company shop, Island Packers Cruises, to find out about how to visit the Channel Islands (boats to the Channel Islands National Park islands leave from this harbor).  Back at the campground, we walked along the bike path which goes on almost all the way to downtown Ventura.  Many of the campers here brought their electric bikes and were riding the path.  Downtown Ventura is really quaint and inviting with a lot of interesting shops and restaurants.  The old Mission Basilica Buena Ventura here can be viewed for free during masses or by paying the $5 entrance fee.  We will bring our bikes the next time we visit this campground.

Thornhill Broome Campground (Pt. Mugu State Park, Malibu)
Only about thirty minutes south of Emma Wood State Beach, Thornhill Broome Campground is right on the sand (quite a distance back from the water).  We had site #17 (31 foot maximum length, $35/night + $7.99 reservation fee, water spigots, no cellphone service, no visitor center or store).  There’s a nice wide sandy beach here with a scenic view of Pt. Mugu.  There’s also significant road noise (as well as headlight glare at night) from car traffic on Pacific Coast Highway just behind the campground.  We needed to use ear plugs to sleep so we wouldn’t hear car and truck traffic noise.  The closest stores or town is downtown Malibu (about 8 miles south).

I used the app PhotoPills to time and plan an aerial sunset photo; the app has an AR mode which shows where and when the sun will be throughout the day.  Just a little ways down the road, Sycamore Canyon Campground is across the street from Sycamore Cove beach and offers a quiet canyon campground setting with an abundance of sycamore trees (free dump here).  A number of trails start at this campground.  We hiked the Scenic Trail and Overlook Fire Road Trail (about 2 miles round trip).  We would stay here if passing by again instead of Thornhill Broome Campground (due to less road noise, available dump, and easier turn around).

We had an unexpected surprise on the morning of our departure.  We found out the campground turnaround was washed out during a recent storm, so turning the trailer around would be difficult (as there was only about a car length of open width on the road).  I tried lifting the Scamp’s tongue to see if I could manually turn the Scamp around 180 degrees.  However, the tongue was too heavy for me to lift (somewhere between 100 and 200 pounds).  I think it would have been easy for me to turn the Scamp around manually  if I had brought my trailer dolly, but we didn’t know about the closed turnaround so we didn’t bring it.  (My friend Perry had a great idea which he suggested after the trip — try having someone sit on the Scamp bumper to help reduce the tongue weight).  We ended up getting a bit stuck in the sand (while being directed during our turnaround by another trailer owner), but finally managed to get out of the sand by unhitching the Scamp.  The other trailer owner helped us lift our Scamp by the tongue and physically pick up the trailer and turn it around.  We then hitched up and were able to get out of there!  Phew!  Life lesson – never drive in soft sand if there isn’t concrete under it!  Yikes!

Overall Thoughts on Beach Camping
The beach camping experience was a fantastic time (overall).  The scenic beauty of the ocean and trails, the sounds of the waves and nature, and the friendly people (and family) we met along the way made it all worthwhile.  It was also very satisfying experiencing how all the systems and knowledge in our Scamp we put together over the past several years really came together to make the trailer very self-contained.  And, the new lithium battery and DC-DC charger allow us to use our 12 volt refrigerator while driving and greatly extend the time we can stay without electrical hookups (almost indefinitely) (article forthcoming).  And, we seem to get stronger and learn whenever we have adversity on an adventure.  Fortunately, we didn’t have any issues we couldn’t solve during this trip!

 

Disclaimer:  You will get the same great Amazon price by clicking on the links here compared to buying directly on Amazon, but by buying here you will also be supporting the continuation of this website as we get a small commission from each sale.  These are products and procedures we use for our own Scamp that we selected and developed from our own research and experiences.  However, we do not endorse any specific product and cannot guarantee that the products we use are exemplary and the procedures we use are complete, accurate, detail the correct recommended procedures, or apply to your model small travel trailer.  It’s always best to double check with your manufacturer or operation manuals to ensure you are doing everything correctly.