12 months travelling the USA by RV – could you do it?

Always a great view from the cab. Photo / Simon & Susan Veness
Simon and Susan Veness spent a year on the road, driving across the US in an RV. Is it the ideal way to see the States – or is the nomadic lifestyle not all that it’s cracked up to be?
Driving through the Virgin River Gorge in northwest Arizona was our moment of truth. We’d already travelled 9300 kilometres in our new-to-us RV but were we truly in love with this style of travel? After all, driving an 11-metre-long, 10-tonne vehicle halfway across the USA isn’t your everyday trip to the shops.
But navigating the fiendishly twisting, turning 32km river valley section of Interstate 15 was a proper test of our mettle. This switchback stretch of highway, flanked by towering cliffs and sheer drop-offs, would either reduce us to gibbering wrecks or provide a triumphal seal of approval; positive proof we were cut out for life on the road.
As it turned out, the ultra-spectacular route from Utah into Nevada proved the essential validation of our ambitious year-long RV voyage from Florida to California and back, a round-trip of 16,500km we had mapped out as the journey of a lifetime. And boy, did it deliver.
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We expected a lot of a route that included Lake Superior, the Badlands of the Dakotas, Yellowstone National Park, the Rocky Mountains, Las Vegas, the Mojave Desert, the Grand Canyon, Texas, New Orleans and the beaches of the Gulf Coast. And we figured travelling by RV – in this case, a 10-year-old Winnebago Sightseer complete with king-size bed, bathroom, full kitchen and three (yes, three) TVs – would be the ideal way to see the sights along the way. After all, America is tailor-made for road trips.
But we were so hopelessly naïve about how to spend a full year on the road that it took us several months to find our feet, and two more to reach a comfort zone in our heavyweight mobile home. Fortunately, we didn’t miss any of the obvious sights – and tastes – along the way. We’d done our homework sufficiently well to put ourselves within striking distance of the main natural attractions, and the hits just kept on coming in a year-long smorgasbord of six-wheeled sightseeing. And, from our lofty RV viewpoint, it was a pretty dramatic view.
Here’s how we did it.
Orlando north to Michigan, Minnesota and North Dakota, a quick 4000km jaunt to reach Lake Superior and its eerie summer fogs along a pristine shoreline of forests, waterfalls and Native American history. The pasties – a 19th-century legacy from Cornish miners – were pretty good, too.
Into the wide, open expanses of the Dakotas and on to Wyoming. This brought us to the scenic wonders of the Badlands, a vast, twisted prehistoric landscape of weathered rocks and river valleys, the wildlife-rich Custer State Park and the massive presidential sculpture of Mount Rushmore. We also got to try rattlesnake sausages (and would have them again).
Two immense National Parks – Yellowstone (Wyoming) and Glacier (Montana). We had managed to book an RV campground inside Yellowstone a year in advance – it is that popular – and the investment was thoroughly worthwhile. This is simply one of the most extraordinary places on earth and, while it was another trial to navigate its mountainous profile, it was richly rewarding. Its geothermal features proved other-worldly, while the wildlife – a heady mix of bison, elk, pronghorn, wolves, bears and bighorn sheep – was just stunning. By contrast, Glacier provided an awe-inspiring journey into the Rockies, complete with the insanely precipitous Going-to-the-Sun Road, where we were able to do the historic bus tour (as RVs over 6.4m long are banned). Another major discovery: huckleberry icecream.
Montana to Idaho. After reaching the 6500km mark, we had to admit defeat – to our schedule. We’d planned to head west from Glacier but realised we were straining our Winnebago beyond the limit. Too far, too quickly. Things were starting to break (water pump, hot-water heater, A/C compressor, etc). It was time to readjust our route, slow down and see more of the majestic open spaces of these northern states. Wyoming gave us the spectacular red cliffs of the Flaming Gorge while Idaho added Craters of the Moon National Monument, another alien landscape of volcanic rock and craters.
Utah to Nevada. If the previous states had our WPMs* at high levels, Utah took them off the charts. From the mind-boggling rock statues of Goblin Valley State Park to the epic National Parks of Arches, Canyonlands, Zion and Bryce Canyon, Utah dazzled us with geological marvels aplenty, with the constant backdrop of the Rockies and scenery that defied the imagination. Followed by the Virgin River Gorge drive, we were finally in RV heaven.
* Wows Per Minute – copyright Simon & Susan
Nevada to Arizona, via southern California. Hit by the arid 38-degree heat in Las Vegas and the surrounding Mojave Desert, we wilted somewhat before rallying to take in the outlandish views of Joshua Tree National Park and Coachella Valley, home of verdant Palm Springs. Northern Arizona cooled us down with more larger-than-life sights, including the Grand Canyon, Monument Valley, Meteor Crater Natural Landmark and impossibly pretty Sedona.
Arizona to Texas. Our route through Arizona included more desert territory, plus the likes of Tucson and Tombstone, still full of cowboy flavour. The wildlife bonus was Willcox Playa Wildlife Area in the southeast, where we witnessed the extraordinary sandhill crane winter migration – some 30,000 of them in one place, a feathered frenzy of outrageous proportions.
Texas. After nearly 13,000km, we were creaking at the seams – both us and our RV. A spell in one place was necessary, hence, after Christmas in the vibrant city of San Antonio, we camped in the tiny town of Donna for nearly a month. There were no National Parks or other major scenic sights, but the food – just a few miles from Mexico – was fantastic.
Texas to Louisiana. We live in Florida, so we expect magnificent beaches. As it turned out, Texas has them, too. From South Padre Island to Port Arthur, a jaunt of 730km, the glittering Gulf of Mexico was our constant companion. In places, we camped virtually on the vast stretches of clean, white sands in a revelry of beachy bliss. Then we rolled into Louisiana and soaked up the big city vibe of Lafayette, Baton Rouge and New Orleans, and some of the best food on the planet. Have you ever seen a crawfish farm? We have. By the hundreds!
Louisiana to Mississippi. Our time in The Big Easy might have been a historic and culinary wonderland, but Biloxi, Mississippi, added a new dimension to our voyage, full of glorious coastal roads, super-cute seaside towns like Waveland and Bay St Louis, plus more memorable food.
Mississippi to Alabama. Approaching the 16,000km mark, we discovered another blissful beach hideaway in Gulf Shores, close to the historic city of Mobile yet beautifully secluded. A week here was balm for the soul, as was our penultimate stop of Navarre in Florida, just 700km from home. We had truly found nirvana while embracing the nomadic lifestyle.
After 11 months and 27 days, we returned to Orlando, concluding our extraordinary adventure with a four-night stay at – where else? – Walt Disney World. We were equal parts exhilarated and exhausted, loaded with thousands of photos, uncountable memories and a sudden bout of homesickness. We were definitely ready for familiar home comforts, but would we do it again? In a heartbeat.