Sept 19 - The Famed Wal-Mart Campout

Many fellow travelers had told us of their favorite overnight stop over...in the parking lot of the all convenient and ever present Wal-mart Store. Finally we had the opportunity to experience first hand this adventure. One of my trusty travel book that lists truck stops and facilities includes the local Wal-marts. I called ahead and located one in Colby, Kansas, half way between Wichita and our next destination of Colorado Springs.

When we arrived at this particular Wal-Mart, we discovered it was not one of the new, large "super" stores and had a relatively small parking lot. Not willing to be discouraged easily, I entered the store and asked the manager about their overnight RV parking policy. He was very gracious and directed us to the outer edge of the parking area where there were no cars (or Rvs) parked at that point. We backed got settled in and I went inside to do a little Wal-mart shopping as a courtesy. It was a challenge as this was the worst stocked Wal-Mart I have experienced.

As the evening wore on, we read books and watched some television, but the real show was watching the other RVs come in and "jockey" for positions. By morning we were like a little city of self-contained circus wagons. While we were quiet and subtle about our "camping" status, some of the other RV units ran out their awnings and sat around on lawn chairs reading and visiting with their "neighbors".

In the end, this was a very positive, overnight experience that we will utilize in the future. It sure beats paying $20 to $30 per night for those nights when we are in transition between one destination and another.

Sam Walton would have been proud!