Parking in tight campground spaces: Is there a proper etiquette?

**Nogrey** · 01-14-2021, 03:51 PM

Thank you, sounds like a very nice place!

Originally Posted by jlk111

Check out L.L. Stubb Stewart State Park. Its located 33 miles west of Portland. They have a few pull thru sites (73 to 96 feet long) and most rv sites are 63 feet deep. They have separate areas for walk-in camping, cabins, tents, rv's and horse camping. It is one of Oregon's best state parks. There is a trail (old paved railroad grade 21 miles long) thru the lower end it. We have seen bikes, walkers, strollers, wheelchairs, horses, hikers....traveling on it. Many miles of looping foot paths for hiking. It goes from Banks to Vernonia. We go there on the 4th of July to give the horses and dogs peace from fireworks. They are strictly forbidden and we have never heard any go off there. Google earth the location and see that the location is far from highways and in a beautiful forested setting. Its a very quiet campground that is monitored by hosts or rangers several trips thru per day. A very family friendly spot. Its about an hour away from the beach, maybe a day trip. Enjoy your travels.

**imaginethat2019** · 01-15-2021, 08:21 AM

Originally Posted by Nogrey

I've been RV'ing for years. I'm 62, and camping has changed a lot since I was a kid. I'm not new to towing/parking an RV, but the GD 351M is easily the largest RV I've ever owned. I'm still learning to maneuver it and I'm careful about the spaces I choose, but sometimes I get there and it's still very tight. I was recently leaving a campground and having a very difficult time getting out of the very tight space I had to maneuver in. It took lots of cajoling to finally get her out of the spot. I sincerely try to not inconvenience anyone and was just not able to do anything to move out of the way until I cleared the space. About half way through the process, a fellow in a pickup was blocked by me trying to get out. I was aware of it and did everything I could to get out of the space as quickly as possible without damaging anything. Well, I would estimate that he probably sat there for around 10 minutes. Now, I admit, that is a long time and I hated it. Backing back into the space would have taken just as much time at this juncture. I waved at him once with an "I'm sorry" sort of wave but he did not respond. Anyways, I finally got out and rolled to the end of the park to dump my tanks. He was able to get around me once I was in the pullout. This was in an Oregon park and I am from Idaho. As he drove by he yelled out his window "go back to Idaho" and flipped me the bird. I did not respond in any way, just turned around and continued with my chores. Sorry for the long-winded write-up. This incident has bothered me ever since and it just happened to be the second camping trip in our new RV. I swear, there wasn't any I could have made things happen faster than I did without damaging something. Has anyone else experienced this kind of behavior in campgrounds? Of course, I will not be camping in that campground any longer, and maybe that was my first mistake. I'm planning on boon docking soon. Even though it's a bit more difficult to do. Thanks for listening.

I have to say as newbies to camping (weekend warriors who've had our camper for 2 years but I'm a nurse so during Covid-19 weber only taken it out a handful of times) that we would appreciate any help backing in and out that someone would provide! There's always a learning curve and I've found that campers are some of the best people ever! Never hesitate to help someone out of a tight situation if you can!

**Nogrey** · 01-15-2021, 08:41 AM

It get's easier the more you do it, and offering help is a great way to make new friends. Of course with covid we have to stay away from each other! Even with years of towing experience, I am still pretty focused when it comes to parking and backing, turning tight corners etc. These things are big, expensive and quite fragile. It's a bit like pulling an 8 ton egg on wheels.

Originally Posted by imaginethat2019

I have to say as newbies to camping (weekend warriors who've had our camper for 2 years but I'm a nurse so during Covid-19 weber only taken it out a handful of times) that we would appreciate any help backing in and out that someone would provide! There's always a learning curve and I've found that campers are some of the best people ever! Never hesitate to help someone out of a tight situation if you can!

**Ellen and Jerry** · 01-15-2021, 06:33 PM

Nogrey, At the end of your trip, your rig was not harmed, nor yourself. All is ok, which is the most important part of the ordeal. So you apparently handled things correctly and did a better job than myself and others would have.

**droundtree** · 03-13-2021, 04:51 PM

Originally Posted by Nogrey

I've been RV'ing for years. I'm 62, and camping has changed a lot since I was a kid. I'm not new to towing/parking an RV, but the GD 351M is easily the largest RV I've ever owned. I'm still learning to maneuver it and I'm careful about the spaces I choose, but sometimes I get there and it's still very tight. I was recently leaving a campground and having a very difficult time getting out of the very tight space I had to maneuver in. It took lots of cajoling to finally get her out of the spot. I sincerely try to not inconvenience anyone and was just not able to do anything to move out of the way until I cleared the space. About half way through the process, a fellow in a pickup was blocked by me trying to get out. I was aware of it and did everything I could to get out of the space as quickly as possible without damaging anything. Well, I would estimate that he probably sat there for around 10 minutes. Now, I admit, that is a long time and I hated it. Backing back into the space would have taken just as much time at this juncture. I waved at him once with an "I'm sorry" sort of wave but he did not respond. Anyways, I finally got out and rolled to the end of the park to dump my tanks. He was able to get around me once I was in the pullout. This was in an Oregon park and I am from Idaho. As he drove by he yelled out his window "go back to Idaho" and flipped me the bird. I did not respond in any way, just turned around and continued with my chores. Sorry for the long-winded write-up. This incident has bothered me ever since and it just happened to be the second camping trip in our new RV. I swear, there wasn't any I could have made things happen faster than I did without damaging something. Has anyone else experienced this kind of behavior in campgrounds? Of course, I will not be camping in that campground any longer, and maybe that was my first mistake. I'm planning on boon docking soon. Even though it's a bit more difficult to do. Thanks for listening.

I'm going to add some advice to the rest of the comments. More than once, I have damaged my rig by letting someone rush me. I, too, have encountered people who get cranky because they are trying to leave the campground and decided to do it while I was parking my rig. You should not only ignore them, but put them out of your mind and take whatever time you need to park safely and correctly. Anybody dumb enough to get upset trying to leave a campground loop while someone is parking does not deserve your concern. I once had a lady start honking when I was already partway in, yelling at me to pull out of the space and go around to let her by! I just laughed at her, shook my head and kept backing while making fully sure that she did not distract me (this was a heavily forested space and my rig is 39 ft). Damaging your rig or the campsite is just not worth it.