Yep. We did it. We “camped” at a Love’s Travel and Truck Stop.
We have zipped into a zillion Love’s travel stops over these nearly 2 years of vanlife adventures–for gas and to use the restroom. Often times, we would hear the announcement on the overhead speaker, “Customer 31, shower #6 is ready; please proceed to shower #6”, leading us to wonder who on earth showers at a Love’s?
Obviously, truckers who spend an overnight getting rest in a Love’s truck parking area also shower there. As well, we have noted a laundry room at most of the Love’s at which we have stopped. You have all seen the numerous Love’s stops along the highway, even stopping yourself to get gas and to use the bathroom, perhaps (gasp!) grabbing something to eat from their seemingly endless supply of grab-n-go food items.
Since we have been to so many Love’s more recently, we have noticed that many of them have added “camping” to their offerings. Camping! Only if you consider parking in their lot, in one of the designated spots that provide electricity and water to be camping. I’ll admit that we have made fun of “campers” on a Love’s site, in big rigs or small vans–we could not imagine what would inspire a person to camp there. We have literally discussed scenarios in which camping at Love’s would be the decision made, but could always think of a more pleasant Plan B. Well, not Tuesday night, our second night out on this trip.
If you see me on FaceBook, you would have seen that we were surprised by wintery conditions–24 degrees–at our southern Kentucky site on Monday, our first night out where we were caught in a snowstorm, which iced the outside of Vanda, including the gray water drain pipe. We had kept the hot water heater on all day, so water flowing in was not an issue, but the sink would not drain on Tuesday morning. Even with hot water running, the gray water was backing up. It was not a big deal really, we assumed that as the day warmed, that the pipe would thaw, which is exactly what occurred. However, looking at the predicted temps of a low 17 degrees at our mountain campsite in North Carolina for Tuesday eve, we thought we’d have a repeat freeze situation. John looked at quite a few state parks into South Carolina, getting us closer to the ocean but the temps were not much more appealing there either, due to the weird cold stream coming down from Canada. So, dear readers, we swallowed out snide comments and judgements, and John decided we could stay at a Love’s Travel and Truck Stop, where the low temp was predicted to be 35–above freezing.
We arrived there at dusk, activated the check-in code sent in the email confirmation, and set up our … “camp”. Oy Vey. I cooked our dinner and cleaned up, after which we went in to the Love’s to check out the shower scene [side note: a shower for just anyone costs $17!!! That is crazy. Because we were camping and because of our senior discount, our showers would cost $10 each. Still a Yikes.] We settled in for the night with John reassuring me that the big trucks coming and going would quiet down soon. Well guess what? Truckers come and go all day and night, so there was truck noise throughout our sleeping time; as a light sleeper, this was slightly problematic, but I did doze on and off. The next morning, Wednesday, we each had our shower, which was surprisingly delightful. The shower rooms are huge with a sink and a toilet, and they give you a towel, a washcloth, and a floor mat. Hence, the high price? Anyhow, after our shower, we moseyed along.
I am finishing this blog from our camp at Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. We have a lovely spot in the trees, a real “campsite” spot. We were able to grab a quick bike ride to the ocean when we arrived yesterday afternoon, ate a delicious dinner, and slept well. This morning we awakened to birdsong as we made our way to the ocean for sunrise photos. This feels like the vanlife we have come to cherish, we are back in our element now. The high today will be 67 degrees — I can live with that! A longer bike ride will happen later today. Life is good. Love’s was a very interesting experience, one we hope to not repeat. As it turns out, All You Need Is Love’s.
