FARGO - Pete Moe is gradually getting ready to call the open road his home.
Moe and his wife have been living a couple months of the year in their motor home for about six years. Now that he's just a couple years from retiring as a teacher, football coach and athletic director in Washburn, N.D., they're shopping to upgrade to their dream machine to coast across America's backways and byways in a recreational vehicle.
"I just think it's a neat way to travel," Moe said last week outside of his RV, parked in Fargo's Lindenwood campground. "You get a good view of the road."
The Moes aren't alone. Camping with some or all of the comforts of home has made a roaring comeback as the nation has put the Great Recession into its rearview mirror.
The Recreation Vehicle Industry Association estimates 22 million Americans have planned trips this summer by RV, a term that can cover a broad range of trailers and vehicles-from basic pop-up campers and pickup toppers to large fifth-wheel trailers and bus-size luxury motor homes worthy of rock stars.
ADVERTISEMENT
Shipments of all RVs for the first five months of 2016 hit 186,214 units, a 10.3 percent improvement from a year ago. That would represent an annual rate of 380,000 units, RVIA estimated.
In a June 15 report, RVIA said the industry pumped $49.7 billion into the U.S. economy in 2015 and provided the fuel for 289,852 full-time jobs.
That popularity hasn't gone unnoticed - at least by reality TV. Flipping through cable and satellite channels, you can trip across shows like "Going RV", "RV Nation" and "Flippin' RVs".
Modest options popular
Motor homes can be pretty pricy. A Class A motor home, which resembles a bus, is typically 21 to 45 feet long and might start in the $50,000 to $100,000 range for basic models, but they can run up to $800,000, depending on the amenities, Costhelper.com reports.
For those that like luxury with a capital "L," Therichest.com in 2014 pegged the priciest motor home as the Marchi Mobile EleMMent Palazzo. The futuristic mansion on wheels cost $3 million to drive off the lot.
Smaller motor homes can range from $40,000 to $140,000, Costhelper estimates.
According to Minnesota Department of Public Safety records, ownership of large motor homes has drifted downward, from 39,032 licensed in the state in 2005, to 30,993 licensed in 2015. North Dakota Department of Transportation's records show a similar dropoff in motor home licensing, from 5,513 in 2011 to 5,168 in 2015.
ADVERTISEMENT
But there are more modestly priced RV alternatives. That includes travel trailers that can be pulled by many types of cars or SUVs and their larger cousins, fifth-wheel trailers, which have a hitch pin that attaches to a special mount in the bed of a heavy duty pick-up truck. Truck campers and pop-up campers offer even more affordable options.
In Minnesota, ownership of those types of recreational trailers is on the rise. In 2005, Minnesotans licensed 108,884 trailers, which rose to 136,145 in 2015. That's an increase of 25 percent over a time period in which the state's population grew 7 percent.
RV trailer records were not available in North Dakota, NDDOT said, because all trailers, including semi trailers, are lumped together.
Kenny Wienckowski, a salesman and lot manager for Outlet Recreation in West Fargo, said he's seeing a broad range of people RVing, particularly in travel trailers and fifth-wheel trailers.
With a solid economy and low interest rates for financing, people are trading for newer or fancier RVs. "The most trades I've seen in the last two years," he said.
At McLaughlin's RV and Marine in Fargo, owner and manager Jess McLaughlin said sales of travel trailers are rising, especially to young families.
A new travel trailer with two sleeping areas is $17,700 with a two-year warranty, he said. Some even come with 40-inch TVs, he said.
"You don't have to spend 30, 40, 50, 60 grand," McLaughlin said. "That's pretty easy for people to get involved in camping."
ADVERTISEMENT
Different views every day
Though a motor home can be pricy, Moe said one of the benefits is the cost compared to staying in hotels. Hookups for water and electricity at a campground might cost $25, whereas it's $75 or $100 a night for a hotel, he said.
He and his wife traveled most of June in Utah and Arizona, taking in the Grand Canyon. They tow a Jeep with the RV so they can be more mobile when they get to their destinations.
When he retires, they'll follow nice weather.
"Spend the winters where it's warm and come up here in the summers," Moe said. "Just getting out and seeing this great country and all the things we have."
Paula and Rick Arney, of North Platte, Neb., had also parked their motor home recently at Lindenwood Park.
They were visiting Fargo-Moorhead to see their grandsons compete in an American Legion baseball tournament.
The Arneys are seasoned RVers. They got their first motor home in the mid-1990s, Paula Arney said. They're on their fourth now, a 33-foot rig, she said.
ADVERTISEMENT
"We just like having our own bed, the kitchen. We have everything ready to go. It makes it easier," Paula Arney said.
"It gives you a lot more freedom," Rick Arney said.
Recent low diesel prices make tanking up easier on the pocketbook, Rick said. Their RV gets 12 mpg, thought that tips to eight to 10 mpg when they tow their car, he said.
The big rigs are easy to drive, he said, though on windy days "it gets kind of tough."
Paula says they're mapping out their first big trip in retirement - a leisurely three-month jaunt from Maine to Florida. "Everyone's very friendly," Rick said of the people they've met on the road. "RV people ... they're nice."
Gary and Linda Hudson used to live in Colfax, N.D., and West Fargo, but now they call Mesa, Ariz, their home. The retirees were at Outdoor Recreation recently returning and buying parts for their fifth-wheel trailer. They've been RVing for at least 12 years, Gary said.
They live in Arizona for the winters and fly back to F-M and pick up their stored RV to enjoy Minnesota's lakes in the summers.
"It's a wonderful way to see the country," Linda said. "I like a different view outside my kitchen window."
ADVERTISEMENT
Their fifth-wheeler can run with electrical hookups, use propane fuel and generate power with a solar panel. It also has its own freshwater and sewage reservoirs, Gary said.
Rainy days can mean playing board games. But they can also be spent watching a flat screen TV with a satellite feed, while a fireplace pumps out heat, he said.
"It's an adventure," Gary said. "Home is where you park it."
