We pay our neighborhood HOA $72 a year. In exchange they repaint the sign at the entrance, put up streamers for the 4th of July, and ban RV parking. In all likelihood, the ban is partially based on aesthetics and partially based on the fact that RVs are humongous vehicles. Our RV is only 27 feet long, on the small side as far as motorhomes go, but we knew that it would be tricky finding a place to park it once we got it home from Washington.
The RV spent its first night at home blocking our driveway, access to all of the mailboxes, and partially blocking the driveways of our neighbors on either side. As a peace offering we invited the neighbors over for happy hour in the RV. We had a bottle of Cuban rum we had been saving for something special and this seemed like the perfect occasion. We ended up hanging out in the RV until nearly midnight. It was so homey that we didn’t want to leave even though our big comfy house was just steps away. A good sign.
The next day we parked Brandon’s truck and my car down the street so that we could put the RV in the driveway (and let the mailman deliver the mail). It fit but just barely.
Before we bought the RV we knew we would need somewhere to store it so Brandon called around to a few nearby storage facilities. There are lots of different places that offer RV storage. Some are just business that rent out space in an unused back lot. No frills. Brandon did his research, however, and found a newly opened facility just outside of town that specialized in RV storage. Everything at the facility was fresh and new and protected by some pretty intense security. Prison-style barbed wire fencing surrounds the whole lot and you need a personalized code to get in or out. There are also security cameras all over the place. They offered a number of different storage options: covered, three sided, fully enclosed, and open.
We ended up with an open uncovered spot because that was all that was left. They’ve only been open a few months, so business must be good. And I’m not surprised, their prices were not much more than traditional storage facilities and they offer so much more. In addition to intense security they have onsite propane refills, an RV wash station, ice, and a dump-out station.
They also have climate-controlled wine storage.
And, yes, it is just as secure. They won’t let anyone steal your pinot!
The storage facility is called Sentinel Self-Storage located in Sherwood, Oregon. All of the photos are from their website.
ALPHA 1 ON THE RUN 