If you’ve been following along, you know that I recently purchased my very first RV, a Winnebago View.  Check out my post about the Logistics of the RV Purchase Process if you want to know more about all that entailed.  Or, if you want to know more about why I chose this specific motorhome, check out my Search for the Right RV.  Since the day I officially made the motorhome mine, I have been anxiously awaiting the chance to have my first adventure in it.  This past weekend, I finally took it out for the weekend, and what a weekend it was!  Although not everything was picture perfect, it was a wonderful maiden voyage and truly showed the freedom that comes with having a house that can go anywhere at any time.

Maiden Voyage Location

The setting for this first ever weekend adventure was the beautiful St. Vrain State Park in Longmont, CO.  My friends over at Never Stop Adventuring were already staying at the park with their RV, so I was excited to spend time with them.  I also wanted to go somewhere fairly close by to give myself and my cat, Lyla, a chance to ease into the driving part of the process.  It’s a scenic park, with several lakes and beautiful mountain views in the distance.  It’s also very popular for fishing!  They were almost full, even early in the season.  But, I managed to snag a reservation for an electric-only spot.  Since I had previously decided not to de-winterize my RV quite yet, the spot worked out well.

Maiden Voyage Views from St. Vrain – Lake and Mountains in the Distance

I didn’t have much planned for the weekend.  I mainly just wanted to spend time with my friends, try out the new motorhome, and relax.  That worked out pretty well, especially since the weekend was pretty short.  I, unfortunately, didn’t get on the road until mid-afternoon on Friday.  I also had to head back early in the morning on Sunday.  So, the majority of the downtime for the weekend was on Saturday.

The Drive

Thankfully, the trip up to St. Vrain was only around 50 miles.  Piece of cake, right?  Despite the short distance, I was still a bit apprehensive about the drive.  I had already driven the motorhome on a couple occasions, but not enough to feel fully confident.  I also wasn’t exactly sure how Lyla would react to the whole process, so it was a good test run for both of us!

The Maiden Voyage journey started off with a bit of white-knuckle driving, due to high winds in the area.  Thankfully, the View handled it all like a champ.  Unfortunately, I also left right in the middle of Friday afternoon rush hour, so I spent quite a bit of time sitting in bumper to bumper traffic.  Even though it meant overall longer time spent on the road, it also gave me a chance to get used to driving the RV at slower speeds.  And, Lyla definitely did better at the slower speeds as well.  For some reason, she always seems to get more nervous the faster the vehicle goes.  This has been the case both riding in the car and now the motorhome.

Adventure Cat in Training

Lyla watching the birds out the window of the RV

Speaking of Lyla, it took us a while to figure out the best travel arrangement for her.  She had previously spent quite a bit of time in the RV while it was sitting, so she was fine with that part.  But, predictably, as soon as the RV started moving, she started to protest loudly.  I started out the trip with her roaming freely, as I figured she might be more comfortable finding a spot of her own choosing to settle in.  Unfortunately, that didn’t work…because she decided that her safe spot was right under my feet in the driver’s area! 

So, when I stopped to get some diesel, I put her in her carrier.  She did much better after we got back on the road.  She still meowed every five minutes or so, but that was a vast improvement over every ten seconds!  Thankfully she also did much better on the drive home later that weekend.  Just as it will take me time to get comfortable driving the motorhome, I think time will continue to improve her comfort with driving.  We will probably stick with the carrier for now though!

All Systems Go

When we got to the park, I backed into the spot with no issues and got it all lined up on the first try!  One of those awesome perks of a short motorhome with no tow vehicle.  I leveled the motorhome, put the slide out, plugged it all in, and was good to go!  The water system was still winterized so the whole set up process took about five minutes.  Throughout the weekend, I tried to utilize all the different RV systems (other than the plumbing) to ensure that everything was working.  Thankfully, I didn’t have any problems at all!  The facilities at St. Vrain were very well taken care of, so I was completely happy without the water running in the RV.

The interior – a work in progress

Throughout the weekend, I enjoyed fun times with friends, reading in the sun, naptime, a campfire with s’mores, and kitty cuddles. All in all, it was a lovely and successful Maiden Voyage!  Now it is time to look forward to all the upcoming future adventures.  Stay tuned for a big announcement soon to be posted on my website – can’t wait to share my plans for what’s next.