Does anybody actually measure the length of your trailer to see if it's over their max.

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Administrator
Staff member
Re: Does anybody actually measure the lenght of your trailer to see if it's over their max.

No one has ever measured my rig. You might be all right, or your rig could be sticking out four feet into the road.
You take your chances.

Peace
Dave
 

GOTTOYS

Well-known member
Re: Does anybody actually measure the lenght of your trailer to see if it's over their max.

Nothing I ever worried about..I always try to find a park that has longer spaces than that. I don't like being crowded in...Don
 

Ray LeTourneau

Senior Member - Past Moderator
Re: Does anybody actually measure the lenght of your trailer to see if it's over their max.

I usually call ahead to see if there's space available for my trailer and give them specifics. It's easier than having to turn around and find another park.
If you plan on going to a city, county or state park, they usually post any restrictions on their website. Again, calling ahead is best. I've found that while traveling, most privately owned parks that you might consider an overnight stop usually can handle up to a 45ft. bus and their toad.
 

TXBobcat

Fulltime
Re: Does anybody actually measure the lenght of your trailer to see if it's over their max.

When I go to a park I will usally call them about an hour before I get there (Unless I have a reservaton, which I usually don't make) and ask them if they have room for a 38ft 5th Wheel and truck and for how many days I intend to stay. If they say no I have a couple of others in my cell phone and in my GPS..

BC
 

DW_Gray

Well-known member
Re: Does anybody actually measure the lenght of your trailer to see if it's over their max.

Out of the 75 locations I've stayed, no one has ever measured my rig. When I come across a park such as you mention, I use the Google Maps satellite images to look at the park. It's not to difficult figure out if your rig will fit in the space.
 

pegmikef

Well-known member
Re: Does anybody actually measure the lenght of your trailer to see if it's over their max.

. . . and I have found that some parks sometimes exagerate their capabilities and the spaces are often a little smaller than advertised . . . "big rig friendly." . . . yeah, right.
 

caissiel

Senior Member
Re: Does anybody actually measure the lenght of your trailer to see if it's over their max.

I reserved a campsite in Daytona last spring for a 35ft camper. Of course my 5th wheel is actualy 39' but being a 5th wheel it takes a 35ft TT space with the truck. It was my first time doing it that way.
When I got in, the site was big enough for a 30ft 5th wheel, but as I told the parking attendent I will park it in the site anyway.
He was amazed at the method I used to park the unit and in one try I was perfectly straight on the site and realy filling in the site lenght good thing because I was jamed in a tight spot that was just right and no room to manover anymore.
I was on a discount price so I was not going to complain staying 5 nites for under $100.
But from now on I will say the real lenght of the trailer instead of the nominal lenght of 35'.
 

mmomega

AnyTimer
Re: Does anybody actually measure the lenght of your trailer to see if it's over their max.

So far every park we've been to I can check them out online where they usually mention the lengths of their pads. Then I'll give them a call to actually make the reservation and make sure the site is long enough for me, which I usually tell them 2-3 ft longer than my trailer is so I end up with the longest pads they have.

My first and last nightmare with a park was when I took a friends word for it that I could fit into some spots at the park he camps at in SC. So my DW called and made reservations we're thinking all is good, 15 hrs of traveling and we get there at about 7pm and the road is barely wide enough for two vehicles,2 fifth wheels forget it you'll be in the ditch trying to pass one another. The actual driveway for the camping spot circle was about 13ft wide with drop offs on both sides, so I parked on the road and walked down to where the site was. Horrible is what is was, if I would've gotten in there I would have been almost jack knifed to unhook and hook back up to the trailer and the incline it was on was just ridiculous. Then I found out the water on that side didn't work and wouldn't work for the next few days.

Never again. I had to end up moving in and out of 7 different camping spots between 2 different parks over the next 2 weeks because we had to find new places to camp and most were already booked for 2-3 days here, 2-3 days there so needless to say it was a pain in the rear but.... You live and learn.
 

caissiel

Senior Member
Re: Does anybody actually measure the lenght of your trailer to see if it's over their max.

Hmmm I got caught in Myrtle Beach this spring with one CG. I had to camp in the same CG as my sister and booked at the last minute. I had to move 7 times in 8 days and after a while it only took us 21 minutes to uncamp and resetup. The pads were perfectly lined up and it was not so bad to setup.

Yahoo for technology, in the old days I bet I could have been accomodated manually but these reservation programs realy cause problems for late arrivals.
 

Bighurt

Well-known member
Re: Does anybody actually measure the lenght of your trailer to see if it's over their max.

In my experience, the rules say you must park within the confines of the site. Rear jacks don't seam to matter, whether you read it that way or not. So you can squeeze a few feet out of the site by hanging the tail over the end a bit. I've had more issues with slides than length, and if I have to I'll park the TV somewhere else. Most sites it seams weren't designed for slides let alone slides off both sides.

I use Dave's method, Google satellite, if in doubt I don't go there. Or visit without the trailer.
 

aatauses

Well-known member
Re: Does anybody actually measure the lenght of your trailer to see if it's over their max.

We always call ahead and ask about length and more importantly is the slides (we have 4 on the BH 3670). We have also found that most of time iut is not the site size, but the roads getting to the site---if the road is wide enough to back up and manuver, then you should be ok
Call first!
al
 

yelnad

Member
Re: Does anybody actually measure the lenght of your trailer to see if it's over their max.

So common consensus is that you should book your site based on the ACTUAL length of the TT. For instance, I have a Trail Runner 25SLE, but I should book a 30' site?

Thanks for answering my newbie question! :)
 

Silverado23

Iowa Chapter Leaders
Re: Does anybody actually measure the lenght of your trailer to see if it's over their max.

So far the state parks that I have used have been pretty close to the length advertised. Even trying to squeeze out the extra feet over the rear jacks can be difficult because of the steep dropoff or trees at the rear of the sites. One site had my axles at the high point of the pad and nearly 4 feet from the bottom of the frame to the ground at the rear and nearly the same at the front made for an interesting time leveling and cribbing up the stabilizer jacks.

The private campgrounds have had narrow roads and dead ends with no turnarounds making a longer rig more challenging to turn around or having to back up back down the road to get out. I use the longest sites in the area as an indication if a site that is close would be usable or not. I can reserve a site that might be listed as 35 feet but may avoid the 30 ft site if it is the longest site listed in a loop.
 

jcarnevale

Well-known member
Re: Does anybody actually measure the lenght of your trailer to see if it's over their max.

This is an old thread, but still a good topic. I use Google Earth's ruler tool. I find it incredibly accurate down to the foot. By using Google Earth you can also avoid those dead-end oops I have to back up situations.
 

TandT

Founding Utah Chapter Leaders-Retired
Re: Does anybody actually measure the lenght of your trailer to see if it's over their max.

I usually cheat up to about 4 feet on length. It's rarely ever been a problem, in a normal CG situation.

Some of the beach campgrounds in California are parallel parking and you can't cheat there. They have lines on the asphalt. Trace
 

Westwind

Well-known member
Re: Does anybody actually measure the lenght of your trailer to see if it's over their max.

I cheat - I always add a foot or two to the length of the trailer and so far it's worked, but we do go to campgrounds we have used before as we travel to and from Florida.
But for example this year we went to Myrtle Beach for the first time and made out fine. But I have stayed at campgrounds and walked around and saw some sites that were really really tight length and width. Older campgrounds were just not layed out for the types of RV's that are on the road today, with slides out both sides and long lengths.
 

Marge

All who wander are not lost.
Re: Does anybody actually measure the lenght of your trailer to see if it's over their max.

We have found so far, even in a smaller spot, we can back the trailer in and have it hanging over the end of the campsite, the cement stop at the end is generally low enough for us to clear.
 
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