Our First RV Trip of 2026: What We Learned, Mishaps We Overcame & Gear You Need
Waiting for Spring Break to arrive was like a kid waiting for Santa to arrive on Christmas morning. We have been itching to get out in our new, 2016 Jayco 26BHW. We had done a weekend of just sleeping in it, camping at my parent’s property, but we were itching to get outdoors as soon as we had the time! Our family always loved Evan’s Campground along Lake Roosevelt. It is usually gorgeous, right next to the water, peaceful, and has a great boat launch, so ideal for camping while going out on the water. There is nothing quite like chilling in a Wise Owl hammock, sipping on a drink and listening to the waves roll in.
However, there were some things that threw us for a loop. For starters, based on projects being done on the dam farther up river and lowering the water, it was much less of a lake, and more like a bmx cross track. It was still a beautiful time, and the kids loved exploring the river beds. We even saw a jet do a flyby!
Here is our first adventure for 2026 and a list of essentials to make your next adventure amazing.
As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. If you click on a link and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
Jumping Out Into the Boondocks
Every trip you take out, it is essential to have water. We filled up our Jayco with water from the house and headed out to the campground. If you are filling up your RV from your faucet in town, I highly recommend the Aussio RV Hose Adapter. This made filling up the RV fast and easy and I could control the PSI as I filled it up, so I knew my pipes were safe from being damaged.
Once filled up with water and we had the trailer loaded up with gear, we headed out! Given that spring break in Washington is still a pretty cool and cold environment in the spring, most of the campgrounds are not open yet. Usually, Evan’s campground is a beautiful campground right on the lake and has flushable toilets. Going this early in the season, most of the amenities at every campground we looked at were shut off. Even though Evan’s is a well groomed campground, there were still elements that felt like we were boondocking in the outdoors.
The first thing we did was level the trailer left to right and then front to back. I highly suggest the RVMate Leveling Blocks. It made leveling a breeze and we were able to get set up in no time. The boys took off on their bikes, and I got to finish setting up the campsite. The next step was getting our power sources figured out for the week. I used a Honda Power Equipment EU3000IS 3000W 120V Portable Home Gas Power Generator. This generator was amazingly quiet and kept us powered up through the week. After giving it one pull, all I had to do was turn the key and it started right up. Some good friends of ours used 2 smaller Honda EU2200 for their setup, and one thing I can say is that Honda generators are definitely some of the quietest and best generators you can get. For someone with Sleep Apnea, having this generator to power my battery pack allowed me to sleep without worry. If you have a CPAP, BiPap, Apap,whatever Pap, THIS is the single most important thing I would buy if you want to go camping; the Easylonger ES960 CPAP Battery Backup. Before getting this, I was always limited to finding a campsite with electric hookups and we couldn’t go to a lot of places that we would have loved to go to.
Check out my other blog on surge protectors to make sure your electronics stay safe!
The Adventure
Right now, they are working on some projects up the river, so they have lowered the water around Evan’s campground to extremely low levels. It felt different not having the water crash up on the shore all night long, but one of the coolest things for the kids was being able to walk around on the river/lake bed. They were able to see some old foundations from before the dam was put in and scavenge along to see what things people had lost over the years. They were able to ride bikes up and down the natural drift mounds that had formed from the running river. With that, I would highly suggest you bring a first aid kit like the Mini First Aid Kit - 150 Piece Waterproof Hardshell as well as not riding a mountain bike with dress shoes. Those bike pedals have teeth, but you should have seen how much air I got!
The Campfire Chill
One of the greatest things about camping is the leisure activities and the lack of having too much of an agenda. The biggest agenda I had was to start a campfire and stare at embers for a few days. To do this we used the best fire starter I have ever used, the Super Cedar Fire Starter Discs. They caught instantaneously and we had smores roasting on our Coghlan's Camp Forks in no time. I also highly suggest you mix up the s'more options with cookies and cream chocolate or roast a starburst all by itself. It changed my life! While sitting around the campfire, we decided to try out a few new camping chairs on this trip.
One of the most important decisions is the what is the best camping chair for you! Check out this review on of the GCI!
The Alpha XL Oversized Chair - This was very sturdy and well made, had a deep cooler pocket and had some extra plush that made sitting in it and staring at a fire quite enjoyable.
The GCI Rockers - These are great for me, because I am one that jitters my feet a lot and are relatively lightweight. The rocking feature allows for me to move and not feel like a bar is holding me back under my legs.
Sierra Black Plush XL. - This chair is definitely an XL chair and is bulky to carry around. However, it is also one of the most comfortable camping chairs I have ever sat in.
Chef Boy RV!
If you want quick fast prep ideas for cooking check out my other blog: 30 Easy & Family-Friendly RV & Camping Snacks (Kid-Approved + Travel Ready!)
The one thing most people dread or worry about, especially if you have 3 boys along for the trip, is figuring out meals and food. Figuring out what you will cook and how you will cook, can cause a lot of people to not want to camp at all. If you are feeling stuck, our friends used AI to create their menu, and it did not disappoint. The first night, we made smoked gouda macaroni mixed with maple ground sausage. I used our Jetboil to heat up the water insanely fast, and then our Coleman 2 burner stove to cook up the sausage. It was super fast and tasted amazing. We used the Blackstone Griddle 2364 Combo to make smash burgers, pancakes, fajitas, french fries. The food was incredible and the least of my worries.
If you make a mess like I usually do, check out the video I made on what I use to clean up that heavy duty grease stuck on the drip pan on the Coleman.
Final Thoughts
I am so glad, we invested in a trailer and chose to make these memories. The kids had an incredible time with friends and family. It was a relaxing way to finish spring break and gear up for the remainder of the year. It caught a spark of passion in myself and my family to go out and continue to share our passion for the outdoors. Follow us on Facebook, Youtube, and Pinterest for more adventures, advice and gear reviews to help make your next adventure something you will always remember and cherish. See you around the campfire!
Affiliate Disclaimer
As an Amazon affiliate, I may earn a commission from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you. I only recommend products I would personally use.