During our many snowbird winters, we have found ourselves exploring the US SouthWest desert area. We’ve discovered there are many beautiful and free or very cheap places to dry camp (AKA Boondock). We love the awesome scenery, wide-open spaces, and have each year embraced boondocking more and more.
Here is an archive of all my boondocking related articles with many containing video clips. Some are howtos, tips and tricks, and reviews. Others are detailing the many gorgeous camp spots we have enjoyed.
Bogart SC2030 CC and Trimetric TM2030-RV Installation
RV Solar Upgrades So, if you have been following my blog for the last while you will know that I have upgraded the RV battery bank from two six volt…
Upgrading our Renogy RV Solar System to 400 Watts
Our First RV Solar Experience About a year ago I popped my RV solar cherry and installed a simple little 200 watt RV solar kit from a company called Renogy….
RV Solar Power System Detailed Install Advice and Tips
Last spring we had the great pleasure to meet with some fine folks from Wyoming, Eddie, his wife Aileen and daughter Laura. We spent about a week or so boondocked…
Upgrading My RV Battery Bank and 12 Volt System
A Little of My Rigs Battery History When we bought our 30 foot Keystone Cougar fifth wheel new it came with one preinstalled deep cycle battery rated at 85 ampere…
Cover Photo and Article in the RV Open Road Magazine
A little bit of banging my own drum here but I’m pretty excited to see our beloved Cougar Trailer gracing the cover of the RV Open Road Magazine!! I knew…
8 Simple Effective Tips for an RV Boondocking Solar Power System
Guest post by Eddie from Mobile Homestead Solar Services One of the biggest and most liberating changes in the 7 years that my wife, daughter, and I have been full-timing is…
Renogy Firefly Review Part 3 – Real World Tests
Introduction So far in my extensive review of new Firefly portable power box from Renogy I first (Part One) gave you my initial impressions of the build quality and functionality….
Maintaining and Testing my RV Batteries
Our RV Batteries All the batteries in our rig are of the lead-acid (wet cell) variety. There are other types commonly used in RV nowadays such as Gel Cell, AGM…
Renogy Firefly Review Part Two – The Guts
Curious to See What’s Inside? Prior to becoming a full-time RVer I spent over 25 years as an electronics repair technician. Because of this background I just had to see…
6 Amazingly Scenic US Southwest Desert Campsites
Introduction We were treated to many beautiful camp spots during this last snowbird season down in the desert. But, six of them really stand out for me in several ways….
Renogy Firefly Review Part One – The Unboxing
Introduction I recently received a 200 watt Renogy solar kit for the fifth wheel as a Christmas gift. As I usually do for our RV upgrades I wrote up a…
Camping at the Trona Pinnacles in California
One Last Stop in the Desert It was mid-April and we had time for one more boondock stop in the desert before heading for the coast and back up to…
My Friends Awesome 580 Watt RV Solar Power System
Introduction I recently had the great pleasure to meet up and do some boondocking with some RVing friends from Wyoming. Eddie, his wife Aileen and daughter Laura are full-time RVers…
Boondocking Fun in the Valley of the Gods Utah
Deciding on a Southern Utah Destination We were looking for a new place to explore when passing through southern Utah this spring. While camped out at the Bisti Badlands with…
Catastrophe and Panic on the Way to the RV Sewer Dump
Here is a humorous story one of my RVing friends emailed me detailing a very eventful trip to the sewer dump station. We all have stories of RVing woes and…
RVing Big Bend Ranch State Park in Texas
Off the Beaten Path in Texas Big Bend Ranch State Park is located a little further west of its more well-known and visited cousin Big Bend National Park. During our…
Alien Eggs and Hoodoos at the Bisti Badlands BLM
Bisti Badlands Wilderness One place that my wife Anne has wanted to go visit for years is the Bisti Badlands up in northwestern New Mexico. But, being that the Bisti…
Mr. Heater Big Buddy Hooked to My RV LP Gas
Introduction Our Mr. Heater Big Buddy propane heater has been an awesome addition to the rig. We use it a ton, especially when camping off the grid without electrical. The…
Camping at City of Rocks State Park
This Place Rocks! The City of Rocks is a little gem of a state park located about a half hours drive north of Interstate 10 and Deming, New Mexico. Access…
Dry Camping Fun at Whitewater Draw Arizona
Introduction My wife Anne loves to photograph wildlife. In fact she recently traveled all the way to Africa pursuing the passion. So, she was really excited when I told her…
Boondocking Tips and Tricks for Newbie RVers
Introduction Over the last 4 years of full time RVing we have really embraced dry camping AKA “boondocking”. We love to get out into the more remote dispersed camping areas…
Our Most Scenic Camping Spots of 2014
Introduction My wife Anne is an avid landscape photographer so finding ourselves scenic camping spots is an integral part of our RV lifestyle. The best photography light happens in the…
Installing a Renogy 200W Solar Kit in the RV
Introduction Well Love Your RV! is finally getting some solar! This Christmas, Santa (my lovely wife) sent me a special package from Amazon containing a brand new Renogy 200W Solar…
Salton Sea Camping at Salt Creek
We just spent 9 terrific days boondocking in the Salton Sea State Recreation Area. Here is a brief description, video clips and images from our stay at the Salt Creek…
Twist On Waste Valve for the RV
Valterra Twist-On Waste Valve I’ve seen these twist on waste gates attached to some other RV’s sewer outputs and always thought they would be a good idea for my Keystone…
Installing the Fantastic Vent Fan into our RV
Introduction Well, I was able to strike another one off the old RV wish list the other day with the arrival of a new Fan-Tastic Vent Fan. I’ve wanted one…
Fun RV Tip Get Yourself a Flag!
Last winter we explored the American South West and spent a good deal of time boondocking (dry camping without hookups) out in the desert. One cool thing I noticed was…
StarLights Brilliant Light LED RV Fixture
Upgrading a 12 Volt RV Lamp Fixture Recently I updated our Keystone Cougar Fifth Wheels lighting systems to new LED bulbs. While installing the new bulbs, one of my fixtures…
Use Vent Cushions to Help Regulate Temperature in the RV
RV Vent Insulator Cushions Tip Cushions designed to fit in the square vent openings on the RV roof can be made or purchased on Amazon. When it is too hot or…
Boosting RV Internet with the Wilson Sleek 4G
Why We Need to Boost the Cell Signal For a few years now we have traveled in our RV using a Verizon MiFi Hotspot as our primary source of internet…