Land trailer
- Thread starter Big dave
- Start date
Jack in Alaska
New member
On the lower left of the sign on page of C-Brats is a link to
El & Bill Halcyon Days. They lived in their 22' CD for several years traveling all over the US. You can get many ideas from them.
El & Bill Halcyon Days. They lived in their 22' CD for several years traveling all over the US. You can get many ideas from them.
Many have done that. See this thread for one previous discussion. Also search this site and the internet for the term "boaterhome".
Many of us do that routinely. We've been down 101 twice now. The Oregon sections can be challenging to tow but are doable. Lotta sharp corners. In California, there was no issue in state parks or rv places or boondocking untill about 150 miles north of LA and then continuosly south until near San Diego. Many places 'no boats allowed'. Including state parks. Overnited in Marina Del Ray launch area in pouring rain ok. By law officer by the boat where we parked in Santa Monica ( too long 20 ft max length). Had to move. No Walmart camping ( county ordinance). Doing it again I'd miss all of mid Ca by going inland around it. I'd be going inland by Napa. Boondocked downtown in Napa and had fun seeing the sights. Head for Rio Vista for some Delta boating. Monterey and Carmel were very friendly. $75 a nite in an rv place in Monterey. Worth it too. Stay away from LA basin and drive thru smaller towns on secondary hwy's. We were made to feel unwelcome all thru mid Ca on the coast and doubtful we'll return. The PCH is particularly unfriendly to boats and rv's over 5 years old. State Park ranger told me we couldn't stay for 2 reasons. One we had a boat 2) my '07 F150 was "too old". The message we got was if you're not rich enough to drive a Prevost coach or buy a house in Malibu, take a hike. There are many interesting things to see and do along 101. In our experience small towns are way more receptive to "alternate" rv's than big cities. Go around them. George
Big dave
Member
Lots of great advice thank you for the thought and time put into your post. Been on the site for many years and I am still learning !
I wasn't planing to head into So. CA. So I shouldn't have any issues. We love the State parks in WA & OR.
I will make a sealed gray water bucket with a 5 gallon container and some plastic plumbing fittings.
Going to have to get a ladder or some sort of step system for a entry and exit. Other then that we are ready to hit the road.
Dave
Raven Dancer
I wasn't planing to head into So. CA. So I shouldn't have any issues. We love the State parks in WA & OR.
I will make a sealed gray water bucket with a 5 gallon container and some plastic plumbing fittings.
Going to have to get a ladder or some sort of step system for a entry and exit. Other then that we are ready to hit the road.
Dave
Raven Dancer
RobMcClain
Member
And don't forget that as you cross state boundaries you may encounter required inspection stations for your boat to ensure (as much as possible) that you aren't carrying any invasive species. So allow travel time for that and don't pack so tightly that the boat can't be properly inspected without having to move a bunch of stuff about. We've boaterhomed several times and to date not encountered a problem. Enjoy...
Rob
Rob
I ultimately decided not to boaterhome this time around for various reasons (so I tow with a camper van or small RV), but I have done so in the past. One thing you might want to plan for is "land dirt." When you walk all the way down a dock, or row out to your boat, most "land dirt" is gone from your shoes/feet by the time you get there -- but that's not the case when boaterhoming (or living on the hard in a boatyard :cry). I've found that the extra grit and gravel can be hard on gelcoat and other boat surfaces. However you can take precautions (mats, "boat shoes," etc.) to help alleviate it.
The "land dirt" is something we dealt with. Our solution: a rug bungeed to the swim step. We also carried a two-step step stool, to more easily step up to the two rung ladder that was the factory spec.
We occasionally had issues with RV parks not allowing boats. Not a big deal, since there was generally another park down the road who would take our money.
We did this for the 8 years of our C-Dory ownership, traveling coast to coast to coast.
One more thing worth mentioning: RV parks are different from marinas in their allowance of gray water (water from your sink or shower - NOT from the potty)... if you put anything overboard in an RV park, you will likely be asked to leave. When doing dishes or washing hands, we put a dishpan in the sink to capture the water. Those of you with 25s that have a shower: yeah, you have to schlep to the RV park showerhouse so your showerbox doesn't send your shower water overboard.
On occasion, we would put up our bimini, sit in the cockpit, and enjoy the RV park ambiance... if you have a true RV, you know the pleasure of sitting under the awning, enjoying the same.
We did occasionally overnight in a Wal-Mart lot with the boat, but I don't care for that situation - if you have to leave, you have to go from the boat to the truck. Also, don't put any water overboard. Check with the store management to be sure overnighting is allowed (many municipalities have laws that do NOT allow overnighting anywhere but approved RV parks/campgrounds). And buy something from the store.
Have fun, travel safe,
Jim B.
We occasionally had issues with RV parks not allowing boats. Not a big deal, since there was generally another park down the road who would take our money.
We did this for the 8 years of our C-Dory ownership, traveling coast to coast to coast.
One more thing worth mentioning: RV parks are different from marinas in their allowance of gray water (water from your sink or shower - NOT from the potty)... if you put anything overboard in an RV park, you will likely be asked to leave. When doing dishes or washing hands, we put a dishpan in the sink to capture the water. Those of you with 25s that have a shower: yeah, you have to schlep to the RV park showerhouse so your showerbox doesn't send your shower water overboard.
On occasion, we would put up our bimini, sit in the cockpit, and enjoy the RV park ambiance... if you have a true RV, you know the pleasure of sitting under the awning, enjoying the same.
We did occasionally overnight in a Wal-Mart lot with the boat, but I don't care for that situation - if you have to leave, you have to go from the boat to the truck. Also, don't put any water overboard. Check with the store management to be sure overnighting is allowed (many municipalities have laws that do NOT allow overnighting anywhere but approved RV parks/campgrounds). And buy something from the store.
Have fun, travel safe,
Jim B.
Must say I thought boater homing was going to be great but it rarely worked for me. Traveling from Virginia to Florida in the winter I would almost never find the temperature to be satisfactory. With 40 degree temps it would be almost impossible to warm up the boat with the Wallas stove, esp the V-berth. When the temp was 75 or 80 it would be too hot in the boat (granted I do not have AC). I've given up on boater homing. Just sold my truck and plan to purchase a van with a bed in the back which I'm hoping will be much easier to heat or cool.
joefish":33bg3uh5 said:
Although I can see that boaterhoming works great for many C-Brats, I went the route you are planning and have enjoyed it. I started out with a small camper van (late 90's 17' Ford) and would still have it if I were doing "trips from home base." It towed the boat beautifully, was comfortable, not too big, decent mileage (12 towing, 16-18 on the highway when not towing). I could use it as a "car" in town and also take road trips without the boat in tow. So all in all I was really happy with it. Since I'm traveling more now I changed to a slightly larger RV (but still small in the grand scheme of things).
In the van I had comfortable seats/bed/couch/kitchen (with sink, stove, 'fridge) and a furnace. I did not, however, have air-conditioning when parked (i.e. no AC in back). Some vans do though. Mine also didn't have a "real" bathroom or shower (just a porta-potti), but again, others do.
Not to get off the topic of boaterhoming, but since you mentioned you are about to do the same (and maybe the original poster is interested in possible alternatives as well, if for no other reason than to rule them out).