RV

Posts featuring the coach.

Alpine Valley RV Resort

We stayed at Alpine Valley RV Resort in Alpine, Wyoming. (Campground Reviews listing.)

A new RV resort at 5,670 feet elevation, where we stayed to visit Grand Teton National Park, an hour north.

Dates:

  • Check in: 2023-07-13
  • Check out: 2023-07-22
  • 9 nights

Weather:

  • Sunny
  • High temps ranging between 79-88°F, lows around 50-58°F
  • Some wind, 26 MPH gusts

Noise:

  • Some road noise
  • No train noise
  • Some neighbor noise (kids)

Site:

  • #20, pull-through, concrete
  • Kinda needed to disconnect toad; parked in front of coach
  • Level
  • Asphalt driveway and concrete pad about 70 feet long by about 10 feet wide (rather narrow)
  • Grass between sites about 12 feet wide
  • Young trees
  • Concrete patio with table and chairs
  • Fire pit

Utilities:

  • 50 amp power, conveniently located
  • 75 PSI water, conveniently located
  • Good sewer connection, somewhat conveniently located (1 10-foot pipe needed)

Internet (in usage priority order):

  • Campground Wi-Fi: 80 Mbps down, 90 Mbps up, 5 ms ping
  • T-Mobile: 21-40 Mbps down, 7-16 Mbps up, 80 ms ping
  • Verizon: 3 Mbps down, 1-5 Mbps up, 200-1000 ms ping
  • AT&T: negligible service (phones work, MiFi didn’t)
  • Starlink: not used

Amenities:

  • Garbage pickup from site
  • Package delivery to site
  • Coffee shop and grocery store in walking distance

Our review on Campground Reviews:

Beautiful new park, beautiful mountain views

This is a very nice, new park that definitely has had a lot of care and attention put into it. Sites were immaculate, with spacious grassy areas and concrete patios. When the trees grow up a bit, they’ll provide nice shade, but for now, you get really nice views of the surrounding mountains. At check-in, we were escorted to our site and guided in, which is always a nice touch. When folks checked out, each site was cleaned and prepped for the next arrival. Not every place does this, but the best ones do. Another small thing that makes a huge difference is the frequent trash pickup from your site. My only regret was not getting a back-in site so we’d have fewer neighbors and better views, but that gives me something to aspire to for next time. We camped at Alpine Valley RV Resort in a Motorhome.

Tip for Other Campers: Book a whitewater rafting trip with Dave Hansen with pickup from the resort. You basically get concierge service between the resort and the river, which makes for a fantastic experience. Broulim’s is a nice grocery store within walking distance from the resort. Good coffee at Punkins, also within walking distance.

The campground map:

Map

Our site:

Our site

Our site

Our site

Our site

Interesting water faucet; looks like they can remove the tap for winterizing:

Interesting water faucet

Adding the Teton sticker to our coach:

Adding Teton sticker

Adding Teton sticker

Other sites:

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

A path to a river overlook:

Path

Path

Snake River (no access from the campground; there’s a steep bank):

Snake River

Snake River

Snake River

The park is still under construction; they have a temporary building for the office currently:

Office

A white-water rafting water feature also under construction:

Water feature under construction

Water feature under construction

Playground:

Playground

Bathrooms:

Bathrooms

Nearby gas station:

Nearby gas station

A nice nearby grocery store; it was very convenient to walk to get groceries:

Nearby grocery store

Nearby Subway etc, also in walking distance:

Nearby Subway etc

Nearby mercantile:

Nearby mercantile

Nearby coffee shop:

Nearby coffee shop

A nice park. We’d stay here again, though would choose a back-in site next time, for an un-obstructed view over the river to the mountains.

Travel from Glenns Ferry, Idaho to Alpine, Wyoming

We drove our coach 270 miles, over four hours of driving, from Glenns Ferry, Idaho to Alpine, Wyoming.

Here’s the map route, heading east:

Route

An interactive map, with potential stops marked:

Our actual stops:

Preparing to leave:

Preparing to leave

Mural:

Mural

Snake River:

Snake River

Love’s travel centers have been adding RV parks; this looks like a decent one, with pull-through sites:

Love's RV park

Wide load:

Wide load

Shoshone:

Shoshone

Zoomed perspective of the road (highway 26):

Zoomed perspective of road

Another wide load:

Another wide load

We chose this route so we could visit Craters of the Moon National Monument:

Craters of the Moon

It has some RV parking, which barely fits us, so we were able to visit on a travel day — a first for us:

Craters of the Moon RV parking

We unhooked our truck, and drove around the park (see a forthcoming post about that):

Craters of the Moon RV parking

When we got back, the RV parking was full:

Craters of the Moon RV parking

Onward on US-20:

US-20

Arco, Idaho, the first city in the world to be lit by atomic power:

Arco, Idaho

We made an unplanned stop at a rest area, to take a break from unnervingly high wind gusts:

Rest area

Peaks:

Peaks

Fuel stop:

Fuel stop

We had to wait for a long time due to an inconsiderate truck driver that had parked and gone inside; the convention at truck stops is after fueling you can pull forward and stop for up to 15 minutes, but this driver was gone much longer than that:

Inconsiderate truck

Potato fields:

Potato fields

Snake River:

Snake River

Palisades Dam:

Palisades Dam

Palisades Reservoir:

Palisades Reservoir

“Welcome to Wyoming”:

Welcome to Wyoming

Our destination:

Our destination

Basement subwoofer

In a basement compartment of our coach was a subwoofer, presumably synced with the outside TV. We hardly ever use that TV, and wouldn’t want to be booming loud bass sounds when we do, so I’ve had the subwoofer unplugged for ages, and recently removed it and put it into storage.

Here’s the subwoofer, nicely mounted on a shelf:

Subwoofer

Subwoofer

It is a wireless subwoofer, so the only attachment is a power cord:

Subwoofer

The empty shelf:

Shelf

Shelf

That seemed like a good place to put a fire extinguisher and first aid kit, so they’re out of the way, but always reachable:

First aid kit on the shelf

A much better use of that space!

Y Knot Winery RV Park

We stayed at Y Knot Winery RV Park in Glenns Ferry, Idaho. (Campground Reviews listing.)

A brand-new RV park, still installing landscaping, plus a winery and restaurant.

Dates:

  • Check in: 2023-07-11
  • Check out: 2023-07-13
  • 2 nights

Weather:

  • Sunny
  • High temps ranging between 94-99°F, lows around 58-63°F
  • Some evening wind, 23 MPH gusts

Noise:

  • No road noise
  • Train horn noise (didn’t hear it overnight, fortunately)
  • No neighbor noise (no neighbors!)
  • A little construction noise

Site:

  • #24, pull-through, gravel
  • Didn’t need to disconnect toad; left it connected
  • Fairly level
  • Gravel about 60 feet long by about 12 feet wide
  • Grass between sites about 15 feet wide
  • Young trees
  • No picnic table etc yet

Utilities:

  • 50 amp power, somewhat conveniently located
  • 80 PSI water, somewhat conveniently located
  • Good sewer connection, very inconveniently located (4 10-foot pipes needed; could have managed with 2 if parked the truck in front of the coach)

Internet (in usage priority order):

  • T-Mobile: 17-22 Mbps down, 26-32 Mbps up, 52-115 ms ping
  • Verizon: 11-27 Mbps down, 16 Mbps up, 70 ms ping
  • AT&T: 120 Mbps down, 8-20 Mbps up, 70 ms ping
  • Starlink: not used
  • Campground Wi-Fi: none

Amenities:

  • Winery and restaurant

Our review on Campground Reviews:

So new, still under construction

We stayed here for two nights on our way through Idaho on I-84. We were in the new section, which was being landscaped as we arrived. We were originally in site 31, but they hadn’t finished landscaping it yet, and I could tell from a distance that it was going to be far too short and sloped for us. Since we had the place to ourselves, we pulled into site 24 and called the lovely ladies at the winery to explain the situation. They were more than happy to swap our site and also noticed that I had (like another reviewer) accidentally selected 3 nights, instead of 2, through the online booking site, so she gave me a refund for the extra night. This place is going to be really nice when they finish the landscaping, and I look forward to coming through in the future. The restaurant at the winery was also very nice and worth a visit. We camped at Y Knot Winery RV Park in a Motorhome.

The campground map; we had booked site #31, but ended up in site #24 (read on for why):

Map

This was site 31, occupied by sod pallets:

Site 31

Site 31

I asked them to move them, but we then realized that the site was very unlevel (several inches front to back, and some side-to-side), plus they were still working on it. So we decided to take one of the sites that already had sod, and was much more level:

Our site

Our site:

Our site

Our site

Our site

The sewer hookup was super inconvenient; good thing I have 40 feet of hoses:

Our site

Sometimes I think we could offer an RV park design consulting service, to help people avoid mistakes like this.

Sod cleanup:

Sod cleanup

Other sites; there were only two other RVs in the park:

Other sites

 

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

A truck with a load of trees:

Truck with trees

They took a corner a bit too sharp, and broke the sewer cap (another reason that’s a stupid place for it, though to be fair RVs wouldn’t normally be going that way around the corner):

Broken sewer cap

Unloading the trees:

Truck of trees

Distributing trees

This RV park is across the road (and part of) the Y Knot Winery; we went there for dinner:

Y Knot Winery

Y Knot Winery

Y Knot Winery

Y Knot Winery

Menu

Menu

The finest wines of Idaho (video clip):

Wine

Bread:

Bread

Charcuterie board:

Charcuterie board

My steak and baked spud:

Steak and baked spud

Jenn’s dessert:

Dessert

Vines:

Vines

Vines

Vines

The old campground; we wouldn’t fit in most of those sites:

Old campground

The new campground:

New campground

Travel from La Grande, Oregon to Glenns Ferry, Idaho

We drove our coach 242 miles, about four hours of driving, from La Grande, Oregon to Glenns Ferry, Idaho.

Here’s the map route, heading southeast:

Route

Interactive map, with potential stops marked:

Another interactive map, with the places we actually stopped:

I-84:

I-84

Cementworks:

Cementworks

Rest area stop:

Rest area

Snuggling with Paladin:

David and Paladin

A video from our internal security cam while our coach was driving down the road; it’s a rolling earthquake, but much more stable than a trailer. If you look closely, you may notice Paladin asleep on the stacked dining chairs in the lower-right corner:

River:

River

I-84:

I-84

“Oregon Thanks You, Come Back Soon”; yep, we’ll be back every year, as we tour around the country and return to Washington each year for health checkups etc:

Oregon Thanks You

“Welcome to Idaho”:

Welcome to Idaho

Another rest area:

Rest area

A biplane crop duster:

Biplane crop duster

Fuel stop:

Fuel stop

Fuel stop

Paladin asleep:

Paladin asleep

River:

River

Murals:

Mural

Mural

Water tower:

Water tower

River:

River

Y Knot Winery:

Y Knot Winery

Our coach parked at the winery while we checked in:

Our coach parked at the winery

Y Knot Winery

Y Knot Winery

Their RV park, still under construction:

RV park

Grande Hot Springs Resort

We stayed at Grande Hot Springs Resort in La Grande, Oregon. (Campground Reviews listing.)

Our second visit to this resort; our first visit was in a rented trailer on the way to Yellowstone. This time we were also on our way to Yellowstone, via the Tetons, but in our motorhome.

Dates:

  • Check in: 2023-07-09
  • Check out: 2023-07-11
  • 2 nights

Weather:

  • Sunny, thunderstorm
  • High temps ranging between 84-92°F, lows around 51-59°F
  • Some evening wind, 20 MPH gusts

Noise:

  • No road noise
  • Rumbling train noise (no horns)
  • No neighbor noise

Site:

  • #31, pull-through, gravel
  • Didn’t need to disconnect toad; left it connected
  • Fairly level
  • Gravel about 90 feet long by about 11 feet wide
  • Grass between sites about 20 feet wide
  • Tiny picnic table on grass

Utilities:

  • 50 amp power, conveniently located
  • 50 PSI water, conveniently located
  • Good sewer connection, conveniently located (1 10-foot pipe needed)

Internet (in usage priority order):

  • T-Mobile: 15 Mbps down, 8 Mbps up, 45 ms ping
  • Verizon: 13-27 Mbps down, 9-13 Mbps up, 36 ms ping
  • AT&T: 5 Mbps down, 0.5 Mbps up, 140 ms ping
  • Starlink: not used
  • Campground Wi-Fi: not used

Amenities:

  • Garbage dumpsters
  • Thermal pools

Our review on Campground Reviews:

Convenient spot to stop in Eastern Oregon

This was our second stay here, and it was just as nice as the first time. However, I didn’t remember feeling the earth move whenever one of the huge freight trains went by, which we definitely felt this time. If you’re a light sleeper, just be aware they go by all night. Our site was a decent-sized pull-through with the most ridiculously tiny picnic table I’ve ever seen. The hot springs soaking pools were nice after a long day of driving, but the mosquitoes put a damper on the experience. As did the loud, obnoxious group of partiers in one of the pools. Having said all that, though, we did enjoy our stay here as it’s a nice, convenient stop along I-84, and the grounds are very nice, with a small stream running through it. We camped at Grande Hot Springs Resort in a Motorhome.

The campground map:

Map

Interactive map:

Our site:

Our site

Our site

Our site

Our site

Tiny picnic table:

Tiny picnic table

Utilities:

Utilities

Our site:

Our site

We went for a dip in the big pool on our first evening, during the adults-only time after dark (which was not as pleasant as it could be, due to several very loud people, and mosquitos):

Pool area

Pools:

Pools

Pools

The entrance sign:

Entrance

Fountain in center of driveway:

Fountain in center of driveway

Fountain in center of driveway

Fountain in center of driveway

Office:

Office

Bridge over hot canal:

Bridge over hot canal

Canal

Canal

Tent sites beyond canal:

Tent sites beyond canal

Tent sites beyond canal

Open area:

Open area

Open area

Open area

Feral cat (notice the ear tip); probably staff:

Feral cat

Fire pit:

Fire pit

Group tent area:

Group tent area

Cabin:

Cabin

Yurts:

Yurts

Garbage and recycling:

Garbage and recycling

Other sites; the park was mostly empty:

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Neighboring hot lake:

Neighboring hot lake

Sunset:

Sunset

Travel from Welches to La Grande, Oregon

We drove our coach 262 miles, about four hours of driving, from Welches, Oregon to La Grande, Oregon.

Here’s the map route, heading east:

Route

Interactive map:

Preparing to toad up in the maintenance area:

Preparing to toad up

Mount Hood:

Mount Hood

Mount Hood

Mount Hood

Our tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS) reported a high temperature on the front passenger-side tire, which was concerning, but resolved itself (they normally run at less than 99°F):

TPMS high temperature

Columbia River:

Columbia River

A stop at a rest area:

Rest area

Paladin was enjoying sitting on the stacked dining chairs:

Paladin on dining chairs

Interesting overpass:

Interesting overpass

Dam:

Dam

Sternwheeler river boat:

Sternwheeler river boat

Bridge:

Bridge

Wind turbines:

Wind turbines

Another dam:

Dam

Bridge:

Bridge

Another rest area; we were amused by the motorhome towing a jet-ski:

Rest area

We ran the generator so we could use the ACs, but got a wiring status error; when I looked at the generator later, I noticed that the breaker was off; no doubt from when we got it serviced recently; I’m glad it wasn’t an actual fault:

Wiring status error

Solar farm:

Solar farm

A viewpoint stop:

Viewpoint

A sharp corner onto a dirt road towards our destination:

Sharp corner

Our destination:

Our destination