RV Podcast 310: Great News about the 2021 Quartzsite RV Show [IT’S ON!]

This week we learn about the 2021 Quartzsite RV Show, scheduled Jan. 16-24. This just may be the biggest RV show in the world, drawing from the estimated 750,000 to 1 million visitors (most in RVs) who flock to the tiny desert town every January. Our guest on the RV Podcast Interview of the Week is Kimmy King, producer for the 2021 Quartzsite RV Show. Plus we have lots of RV news, tips and travel ideas, including an off the beaten path report from the Burketts. You can listen to the podcast in the player below. And scroll down this page for shownotes. The question of the week about a 4 season RV is at 19:15 in, while the interview about the 2021 Quartzsite RV show is at 26:09 RV Podcast Show Notes for Episode #310, released Sept. 2, 2020: WHAT MIKE AND JENNIFER ARE UP TO THIS WEEK Special Live Feed Friday at 3 PM ET on the 2021 Quartzsite RV Show We’re having fun doing live stream broadcasts simultaneously on all our platforms. We’ll have our next one coming up this Friday, Sept 4 at 3 PM Eastern Time and our special guest will be Kenny and Kimmy King, the producers of the giant 2021 Quartzsite RV Show. Kimmy will be our guest in the interview of the week in this episode of the RV Podcast. And in our live video stream Friday, she’ll be joined by her dad, Kenny. This will be a really fun broadcast and you will have an opportunity to ask them questions live. So if every you have had questions about boondocking in Quartzsite, about the biggest RV show in the world (that’s what their event has become) tune in live at 3 PM Friday Sept. 4 on our RV Lifestyle Facebook Group, our RV Lifestyle Facebook Page and our RV Lifestyle YouTune Channel. Fall Camping Updates We’ve had some really fun discussions on the blog lately about fall camping. Just this week we have published articles on fall camping in the UP and our five favorite RV destinations around the country to see the fall colors. You can read them and much more at rvlifestyle.com RV service issues I have an update on the status of our RV issues. The inverter failure while on battery power that I taked about last week had a very easy solution. It was a blown fuse. The fuse that blew was a 150 amp fuse between the house batteries and the inverter. My service tech at Holland Motor Homes in Holland, MI said the reason why it blew is that someone put the wrong sized fuse in at the factory. It is supposed to have a 250 amp fuse. Not a 150 amp fuse. Problem solved. And my dealer even gave me a spare fuse if it should happen again. As to the Dometic three-way refrigerator door that keeps falling off there is bad news. The dealer says Dometic told themthere is a 70 day wait time for replacement parts. Since I talked about it on the podcast last week I have heard from several others who have the same problem with the door falling off. One said he grew so impatient with Dometic’s lack of service that he has replaced his fridge with a new one from a different company. We are considering the same thing. This part of the RV Podcast is brought to you by Camping World – America’s #1 RV Dealer For a 10% discount on purchases over $99, use the discount code RVLIFESTYLE10. RV PODCAST RV NEWS OF THE WEEK Wild fires continue to cause havoc in West, California closes 34 state parks, Oregon, Montana, Arizona, Utah and more states affected Wildfires continued to devastate the West with 1.4 million acres burned, and more than 800 new wildfires between Aug. 15 and 29 in California alone. California closed at least 34 state parks because of fires, many will be closed indefinitely. Historic Little Basin Campground in California's Big Basin State Park was destroyed, with visitors evacuated in a rush last Tuesday just before the flames came through. But California is not alone. An 850-plus acre wildfire is in Yellowstone National Park, just three miles from Old Faithful. Oregon and Colorado are also especially hard hit, but fires are popping up in many western states. If you are camping in an area at risk, be sure to check out this story on emergency apps you should have to stay informed. Camping up by double digits in many states this summer Numbers are continuing to come in from state campgrounds throughout the country, showing the number of campers is up over last year by double digits. In North Dakota, a recent story showed North Dakota's 13 state parks saw the number of campers up 28 percent from May, June, and July 2019. Ohio state parks are reporting higher numbers, as is all public land in Wyoming. The reason states are attributing the large numbers to is that more people are turning to camping during these COVID-19 times. For tips on how to navigate camping during a pandemic, click here. Visitors told to avoid all contact with Virgin River as highly toxic algal bloom continues to pose safety concerns A toxic algai bloom at Zion National park that we warned you about last month after it killed a Siberian husky puppy is apparently spreading, causing new concerns. Rangers say all visitors – humans and pets - need to avoid all contact with the Virgin River until further notice because the toxin is at extreme levels and has spread to the Narrows section of the river. People need to avoid hiking through the water, which means people should not do the Narrows hike which is one of the most popular Zion hikes as it is down the river between towering canyon walls. And people should especially keep the water far from their eyes or mouths. The algai colonies produce a toxin that impacts the nervous system and can be fatal to children or pets. An Inn and Campground tied to 127 COVID-19 cases temporarily loses license before state reinstates it last weekend The Big Moose Inn and Campground in Maine temporarily had its license revoked last week by state officials for violating COVID-19 orders after an outbreak was traced to the facility. The Inn hosted a wedding reception in early August, that has since been linked through contact tracing to 127 COVID-19 cases. Apparently one person at the wedding reception had COVID, which then spread to some of the 65 guests who attended, and those guests in turn spread it more. Maine limits activities like receptions to 50 people, and apparently the Inn and Campground violated other Maine rules like requiring contact tracing information for guests, requiring 6 foot social distancing, and requiring employees to wear masks. While the campground and inn did call and cancel reservations when it did not have a license, after its license was reinstated last weekend, it was back open. Woman transforms bland camping trailer into bright, inviting living space for $6,000 Mike and I love seeing how people personalize their RVs. We are betting a lot of you like seeing this, too, which is why we wanted to share a story about a woman who purchased a camping trailer for $10,000 and then gave it a complete facelift, putting in another $6,000. The woman swapped out the floor, and transformed the trailer, decorated with a variety of beige and browns, with bright whites and eye-popping colors that made it seem more like a contemporary apartment than trailer. There are many companies out there to help people remodel their RVs, and it made me think of a podcast interview we did recently with Renovation Camp, designed to help you do the work by yourself. To listen to that report, click here and scan down to the Interview of the Week. This part of the podcast is brought to you by RadPower Bikes, America's #1 e-bike brand, offering direct to consumer pricing on powerful premium electric bikes. Now with free shipping RV QUESTION OF THE WEEK - Is there a real 4 season RV? This question from Ginger comes via our RV Lifestyle Facebook Group: ”We are looking to purchase a true 4 season RV, any manufacturers that you know of that are true to their advertising?” We get this question a lot and I like the fact that Ginger specifically asked about RVs that live up to their advertising claims. Because a lot of them claim they are 4 season, or are “4 season capable,” or have “insulated pipes,” but that is a far cry from a true 4 season vehicle that can camp and operate ints fresh water, black water, and grey water plumbing system in below-freezing weather. Some can work in the thirties but when the tem[s really drop in the far north, not many can live up to the true 4 season claim. Our RV Lifestyle group members have really chimed in with the answers. Greg McHugh says to check out the complete line of Northwood Manufacturing, based om Oregon. Northwood makes a very full line of travel trailers and fifth wheels, in particular, the Arctic Fox brand. These are true 4 season RVs with heated, enclosed holding tanks and dump valves designed for cold winter climates. The coaches are super-insulated with various residential quality rigid foam, batten, and reflective foil to protect the interior from winter cold and excessive heat in the summer. Northwood is the only brand that claims to fully be 4 season. There were other suggestions by readers of other brands that look to be really well insulated but don't claim to be truly 4 season. Greg also suggests looking at the Bigfoot RV brand of truck and travel trailers, made in Armstrong, BC. Canada Brandon recommends the Black Series, a rugged Australia brand now available in the U.S. Matt says “We have a Columbus by Palomino and when it was 15° outside we stayed nice and toasty warm inside.” Susie says Grand Design has great insulation and kept us warm all winter. No tank/line problems. Deb says to check out Lance truck campers and trailers. Again, with the exception of those RVs made by Northwood, the others do not claim to be full 4 season RVs but they do have extremely good insulation and usually perform much better than the competition during cold weather use. Do you have a question you’d like us to answer or a comment on the things we’re discussing? If so,