The long and short answer is we are not traveling at the moment. We are sheltering in place in Las Vegas, NV. We will stay in Las Vegas, as long as our RV Park stays open, until sometime in May. We have been given no notification that our RV Park will close but who knew that two weeks ago that the Las Vegas Strip would be completely closed and those folks would be furloughed or laid off. We are flexible to whatever happens.
Full time RVers are starting to run into issues with traveling. Small towns that are gateways to National Parks like Moab, UT have ordered all RV Parks and campgrounds to close whether they are publicly or privately owned. Due to school and work closures they have been influx of tourists. The small grocery store has no food for the locals. The local community is worried about sick folks due to size of their hospital. The local hospital in the area has 17 beds. I understand it is a resource issue. Keeping the National Parks open in that area – Arches and Canyonland – have created a tension for folks who have been welcomed to the parks due to fees being waived. Parks are a great way to social distance yourself. I can see both sides of the argument. There is a town in Oregon that is having a problem with Spring Breakers. They have created an exemption for campgrounds that state if you have been in place since March 11 and have a long term stay you can continue to stay but new reservations and short term stays must be canceled. This seems a little more full time RV friendly. There will be no perfect solution. Most folks I know are trying their best to shelter in place.
We have received word that Xanterra, the contractor we work for in Yellowstone, will have a delayed opening. We will report sometime in late May. This is why we are choosing to stay in Las Vegas until we need to go to work. We continue to hike at Lake Mead Recreation Area. We go for drives. We have food. We have toilet paper. I know we will get through this together if we do our part to flatten the curve.
How are you doing?
New Mexico closed all RV parks–public and private–for an indefinite time. If you have a reservation and are in place before April 1, you can stay. The state also issued a statewide lock down, closing all but essential businesses. We stood in line today, under the watchful eyes of a state trooper, waiting for toilet paper and paper towels. My daughter-in-law’s nursing unit in Lawrence, Kansas, was designated the Covid19 unit. Two days ago, they already had nine patients and were short supply of N95 masks. I don’t fear for us; we will be fine even without toilet paper. But I do fear for all those out there working to save people who labor to breathe, and most are doing that work with nothing to protect themselves.
Hi Judy,. We saw the closings in New Mexico. I hope you have found a safe space. I am more worried about folks who work in healthcare than us. This is why we stopped moving. We made the decision to shelter in place to help stop the spread.
I am sorry that you are under guard while shopping. Only essential services are open in Nevada now. We went grocery shopping yesterday morning. We were glad to see better stocked shelves. It was sad to see people who refused to follow guidelines about 1 pack of eggs, toilet paper and meat. I am not sure if that got enforced once they hit the register.
What I have realized is that I eat way different from most folks. I have not been to a store that has been out of fresh fruit and vegetables. That is my bright side.
Glad to hear you are doing so well. First, we moved out farther into the desert to Hidden Valley Ranch, amazingly enough, just about a week before things got crazy. We are several miles north of Deming, 9 miles down a dead-end road from the highway, and surrounded by 7,000 acres of BLM land. The place has it’s own well; three actually and all potable water. This is a working ranch, so two of those wells are used for cattle, but could be backup if needed. Second, even though we have police watching us, each person down here, that I’ve encountered, has been kind. From what my family, who are scattered across the country, are reporting, that isn’t the norm in most places. And yes, vegies and fruit are plentiful. Life is good.