After a harrowing first day on the road, filled with a traffic accident and heavy winds (see our post Does Size Really Matter?), we were ready to find a peaceful place to park for the night. I originally had chosen Dodge City, Kansas for our first night, with the intention of visiting the museum and attractions in town either that afternoon or the next morning. As it turned out, our best laid plans went to waste. The accident had delayed us enough that we arrived too late to see anything, and nothing was open until 1 pm the next day. We had made plans to visit with family, so we had to keep moving. The best we could hope for at that point was a restful night’s sleep.
We knew we wanted to try our hand at boondocking, but we were worried about finding a place large enough to accommodate our rig. We also knew we didn’t have the optimal set-up for serious boondocking, but we figured one night would not only be within our capabilities, but would also help us pinpoint any modifications or additional equipment we would need to be able to extend our periods of dry camping.
I had located some small lakes just outside Dodge City, and scrutinized the roads and camping areas around the lakes on Google Maps. There was no worry about overhead clearance, they were close to paved roads, and the areas looked relatively level. Just to be sure, I called and spoke with the park rangers, who were extremely helpful. I described our rig, including the length and height, and the ranger I spoke to recommended Ford County Fishing Lake to us. It was free for up to 14 days, and the roads and campsites would accommodate us.
When we arrived, we found two loops of campsites to choose from. We saw a very large Class A diesel pusher motorhome parked in the lower loop, so we drove the upper loop to look for a campsite, hoping to give the other camper plenty of room and privacy. Unfortunately, the sites in the upper loop were either too short or we would have had to back up too steep of an incline, so we headed for the lower loop. We were able to find a wide, flat site right next to the lake. We felt bad about parking near the motorhome, but the area was large enough that there were still several hundred yards of open space separating us.
We quickly set up camp for the night, hooking up our portable generator “just in case.” We left the trailer and truck connected, since we would be heading out the next morning.
Unfortunately, the cold temperatures and persistent wind prevented us from sitting outside and enjoying our surroundings. It was peaceful and secluded, and I imagine it must be beautiful in spring, when the trees are blooming and the grass is green. Instead, we locked down the trailer and bundled up inside with the furnace running.
Since this was our first dry camping experience with this trailer, we were curious to see how the refrigerator performed. We have an electric-only, residential-style fridge. The manufacturer says it can run off of the battery, via the inverter, for 14 to 16 hours. We wanted to see if that was really the case. We hadn’t added any additional battery power to the trailer other than the one standard battery that it comes with, and we hadn’t added solar either. We knew we would have to really watch our energy consumption. As it turns out, the fridge will run about six hours before we need to fire up the generator and recharge the battery.
We pulled out of Dodge City the next morning, well rested and happy to have had a good first night on the road. We had been concerned about how well our rig, which is better suited to the luxuries of RV parks, would handle a rugged night of dry camping. We were pleased to find it handled the experience well, and we enjoyed the solitude. My only regret is that we had our road trip so carefully planned out, it didn’t allow for us to adjust and visit Dodge City the next day. Looks like we’ll have to go back again someday, and maybe spend a few more days at the lake.
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