As I am watching a storm blow in over the lake, I am reminded about how much I love living here. Not only do I get to see beautiful, awe-inspiring scenery, I also get to meet people from all over the world. Some of our returning guests have become great friends and we look forward to their yearly visits.
Tonight as the storm was just starting to make its presence felt, my husband came in the office to ask me if I had checked a camper into the back field. I had responded that I hadn't, but that I would check the computer as we had help here today and we may have a guest that I am yet not aware of. We usually like to make sure we know who every single person is in the park at all times as it can be a security issue.
After a quick check, his suspicions were confirmed. There was no one staying with us in a tenting site. The reason for his query is that he had just spoken with a gentleman at the water/sani-dump station who was filling numerous 5 gallon jugs with our treated water. His vehicle was not familiar and my husband had made the comment that he seemed to be in need of a large quantity of water. He was told that since they were staying with us in an unserviced site they needed it. That's fine with us, but it did make us wonder what he could possibly need with that much water over the course of a night. At about this point we started to think that maybe he was a great storyteller and we were a captive audience.
We do not like to jump to conclusions, however, so I went to go see if I recognized him. I didn't. By this time he was making his way to the showers where his wife had been, and I found myself in the uncomfortable position of having to let him know that we do not permit use of the facilities by people not staying here. Now he owns a large holiday rambler and they were just checking out the park to make sure that it's large enough to accommodate their large turning radius. He then proceeded to stay parked by the shower house to see if I would leave. I didn't and he eventually gave up. Did I mention that it was raining?
Later on our drive tonight, we noticed this guy (notice how he is no longer called a gentleman?) parked at the local WalMart parking lot. If you prefer to boondock in parking lots during your travels, that is up to you. What that means though is that you get all the perks that come with not paying for your site. Level parking spot... check. Shopping for all your supplies at the crack of dawn... check. What it does not entitle you to is a hot shower and treated water at the RV Park down the road. RV Parks across North America are disappearing at an alarming rate because they are finding it more and more difficult to compete with free. For $30/night (the most expensive site) you could have hooked up your water and sewer hose, hooked into our cable to catch up on all your favourite shows and surfed the net to your hearts content. You also could have woken up to the sound of the loons in the morning and watched the mist rise off the lake as you enjoyed your morning coffee. Instead, you chose to freeze your butt off in the rain as you stood there with a hose crouched in the back of your pickup truck. You also went without a shower... again. On the flip side though, you did get to go back to your half a million dollar coach parked in the local parking lot. Lucky you. You are also getting more and more adept at telling your tall tales. Maybe by the end of your trip you will have all the experience necessary to start your political career.
If you would have just been honest and come into the office, we would have shown you around and treated you like a guest. We love the challenge that comes with converting the hardcore parking lot fanatics, and I am proud to say that we have a very high success rate. -R
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