5 Places I Regret Not Visiting in My 4 Years as a Full-time RVer

There's always next time!

Georgia State Patrol paid me a visit today at home. No, I’m not in trouble with the law. The officer came to do a VIN verification for my RV so that I can finally get my Georgia tags.

While filling out the paperwork, he asked me about my travels. He said he hadn’t spent much time out west but vividly remembers the first morning he woke up at Lake Tahoe and saw the stunning mountain views.

“You’ve seen more than me, then!” I told him.

He looked at me, surprised. “You haven’t been?”

“Nope!” I answered. “The guy I bought this RV from told me the day I signed the paperwork that I must have Tahoe on my list. But every time I’ve tried to go, it’s either on fire or in the middle of a snowstorm.”

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Tahoe isn’t the only place I’ve yet to tick off my bucket list. While I’ve seen my fair share of North America, there are still quite a few spots I’ll eventually head back west to explore.

Here are the top 5 places that are still very much on my list.

5. Redwood Forest, CA, USA

In 2018, when I first shared an interest in exploring California, someone recommended the Redwood Forest. I spent most of my US-RVing time in California but never made it further north than Joshua Tree National Park.

To be honest, going into woodlands wasn’t very high on my list as an RVer. I always preferred the desert. But now that I’m surrounded by trees in Georgia, I do wish I had gone to see these gigantic redwood trees in person.

4. Grand Canyon National Park, AZ, USA

I spent almost all of my years as a full-time RVer in the Desert Southwest on both sides of the border. Arizona is the second state I visited with my RV. It’s also where I had flag wars with Confederates in November 2020 and witnessed parades of Trump and Confederate flags on Sunday evenings through Lake Havasu.

Yet, believe it or not, I’ve never been to the Grand Canyon. Why? Because after those experiences, Arizona has been firmly on my sh*t list.

Until leaving the West this summer, I didn’t set foot in Arizona except to go in and out of Mexico. I do wish now that I had ventured back up to the Grand Canyon and seen it before leaving. But at least I got to see Coconino!

3. Vancouver Island, BC, Canada

To be fair, I did try to go to Vancouver Island. I started planning a trip in early 2022. The plan was to drive along the West Coast from California to Oregon and into Washington. I would then put the RV in storage and take just the FJ to Vancouver Island.

So, what changed my mind?

A suspicious encounter with an Airbnb host who ignored my stay request—and lied about the listing’s availability. The experience left a bad taste, so I wondered (quite unseriously!) how much it might cost to go to Spain instead. It was cheaper by a landslide, so off I went to the Mediterranean. Considering how things turned out, maybe I should thank that Airbnb host.

Still, even in early 2023—before leaving for Spain—I had plans to head up there the following summer. But paying for school out-of-pocket meant canceling all expensive travel plans and focusing on an early finish.

2. La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico

Another international location that lives rent-free in my head is La Paz. When I lived in Baja Norte, I was friends with an older gentleman who traveled down monthly as a tour guide. He invited me a few times to join his caravan, which sometimes included several other overlanding rigs, but I never had the chance to go.

Every time someone tells me about their trip down to Baja Sur, I feel a pinch of loss. It would have been an amazing trip. But alas, I had to pay for school!

1. Lake Tahoe, CA & NV, USA

I look forward to the day when I get to see Tahoe in the flesh. After visiting Coconino National Forest during a fire, I do wonder whether I overestimated the impact of those wildfire warnings. But I’d hate to learn otherwise the hard way, so I won’t be testing it. I’ll just keep checking the next time I’m out west and hope the stars align with my wishes.

It will be a long time before I take an RV back out on the road. But who knows where my adventures with Samson will take me? Are there places still left un-ticked on your bucket list?