The Complete Book of Boondock RVing: Camping Off the Beaten Path

by Bill Moeller

Here’s Your Guide to Camping Off the Beaten Path Ever feel frustrated by crowded RV parks? Yearn to camp out in the wild beside a babbling mountain brook or before a remote panoramic vista? Bill and Jan Moeller have been doing just that for more than thirty years, and The Complete Book of Boondock RVing is their complete guide to camping without hookups (aka "dry camping"). Whether you’re planning to spend an occasional overnight in a parking lot or an extended stay in the wilderness, you’ll learn how to equip your rig for boondocking, find great campsites, manage and conserve electricity and water, and camp in complete RV comfort and convenience.

Genres: Nonfiction, How To

176 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

Reviews

[Nate Jordon · Rating 4 out of 5]

While some info is outdated, the book contains a good chunk of base knowledge that every RVer should know, whether boondocking or simply at a primitive campsite with limited amenities. Specifically, there’s a lot of basic info regarding RV electrical systems that is crucial to understand if you find yourself with limited or no access to electricity.

[Stacy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Helpful, but outdated.

[Max Pietsch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delivers on the title. A good book if you're going to go boondock in an RV.

[Andrea Menzies · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have just read the book The Complete Book of Boondock RVing, or Camping Off the Beaten Path available on Amazon books. The definition of Boondock RV use in this book is camping without hookups or “dry camping” as they put it. There are luxury RV parks out there that try to make people pay out the nose for every activity. Authors Bill and Jan Moeller show you the thrift way to save a buck when on the road. They first started using RVs in the 1960s to go surfing, and are living the RV life now. I highly recommend people considering buying or renting an RV for the weekend to learn the world of exciting weekend driving. RVs have become more popular in modern day, and we can all use extra cash at the end of the month. My family likes to use and rent RVs, and this has tips and tricks I did not know.
It has become the domain of the youthful and adventuresome to wish to travel by recreational vehicles or RV for short. For a while they were stereotyped as the retiree way to go fishing. They can still be used for such endeavors. However hotels have increased in expense, and decreased in cleanliness and convenience over the years. This has made people visiting music festivals, friends, and family living a day or more’s drive away reconsider the use of RVs. Don’t even Google the words “Burning Man Festival” without wishing to see the many diverse skull shaped, dragon shaped, and tinfoil wrapped RV images common at such a place. (For example factinate.com/things/51-weird-facts-b... demonstrates long lines of RV vehicles.) These images are a testimony to the popularity in RV travel to the modern music festival circuit, Sci-Fi conventions, and renaissance festivals across the United States. Even the TV show “The Walking Dead” features the RV of the character Dale in almost every scene. It seems to say having an RV is the one way to escape the end of the world with every RV ride.
The book quotes “RV Business” magazine saying “campground prices will eventually reach a level of 50% of the cost of a midlevel hotel or motel” meaning you save on hotels even if you use the luxury RV resorts. “If you pay $50 for one night’s camping and then boondock for the next three nights at no cost, you have reduced your average cost to only $12.50 a night” for four nights of travel. How to locate free Forest Service campgrounds, public lands, free rest areas, casinos, and retail stores and restaurants okay with RVs using their parking overnight is included in this book. This includes a section saying what I have read in dozens of other RV books about Walmart’s love of being RV friendly. You can stay at most Walmart stores overnight free of charge as long as it is only for one night. There are YouTube videos of entire Walmart parking lots being filled with nothing but RVs. This makes wise sense as RVs lack storage, and so in the morning the RV people will flood the store buying food, toilet paper, and soap.
The book has many fun stories of travel, and is not too much of a dry read. Fun photos of the couple on surf boards RV traveling when young are a fun part of the book. In addition it teaches information about RV batteries, wireless Internet at campgrounds, and using solar energy in an RV. Going off grid with your energy needs is also addressed in many chapters, and it gives good information about being thrifty with electric devices. This book is a must have starting point for any journey and people should check it out. More information at http://www.FH7publishing.com

[Tracey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't know what edition I read, but it was before smart phones and wifi became commonplace, so there are certainly parts that could be updated. That said, some basic knowledge such as contained here is useful when you are on the road in a vehicle reliant on a limited power supply.

[Deborah M Monroe · Rating 4 out of 5]

lots of good info.

Boondocking is a good book either for the novice camper or someone looking to make their experience more rewarding and independent. It bogs down a little towards the end wth too much info on the electrical "stuff. " but the charts are healthy.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Excellent reference book. Since I know nothing about RVs or boondocking, I learned much.

[Mark Polino · Rating 4 out of 5]

Too much time spent on batteries.