People who travel a lot in their recreational vehicles or even live in them are familiar with the words boondocking and moochdocking. RV living can be less expensive if you boondock or moochdock.
Boondocking is a term used when you stay in a place that doesn’t have the amenities and hook-ups of a campground. You have to rely on your own power, either solar or a generator. You have to have your own water and a self-contained bathroom.
Some BLM campgrounds require you to boondock, as they’re remote and don’t offer water, sewer, or power.
Moochdocking on the other hand is when you stay on a friend’s property or park on their street in front of their home. You plug your power into their house and use their water. If you’re really lucky, your friend may even have a sewer hook-up. You’re basically mooching off their generosity.
I’ve had the enormous pleasure to moochdock with some great people in some beautiful places this past summer.
Beckenridge Vineyard, soon to be renamed (I can’t tell you the new name because it hasn’t been formally announced). Our friends who own the vineyard have an RV pad with full hookups. This Dallas, Oregon vineyard has an amazing view of the grapevines and the hills beyond. Hubby and I stayed there for 17 days. I helped with some of their events, and hubby helped by organizing their shop and tools.
We moochdocked in Colorado with hubby’s brother. Fall in Colorado is beautiful. Cold nights and mornings, but warm, sunny days. Lots of pine trees with wildlife wandering through. Deer, fox, squirrels for the kitties to watch, and lots of birds.
Oklahoma is OK with friends like these!
My friends in Oklahoma hosted us on their property, allowing us to plug into their house power when our generator refused to stay powered up. Who knew it could get that cold in October? We about froze our first night there. No power = no heat. Brrr. But they fed us well. We laughed a lot over the crazy card game called Golf. Sorry, Bob, you just couldn’t win at that one!
Moochdocking as a lifestyle
I hope you find the kind of friends we have that will let you moochdock. The advantage is that you get to hang out with your friends, but you still have your own space. Do you know that old saying about friends being like fish? After 3 days, they both start to stink. Avoid stinkiness – park your rig in their driveway, mooch off their power, and enjoy the fellowship.
To get started on your own RV journey, check out Bish’s RV. http://www.bishs.com
Jane S. Daly is the author of two nonfiction books and five novels.
Jane is addicted to coffee, purple pens, and her husband, not necessarily in that order. A self-proclaimed introvert, she enjoys the solitude of riding shotgun in Rigsby, her 37-foot motor home. But when they pull into a new campground, her favorite thing is to make new friends and find hangouts featuring local musicians. Her fantasy involves writing lyrics for country music songs and hearing them played on the radio. In the meantime, she’ll stick to writing novels. And seeing as much of the country as possible.