"Your RV is a ski chalet on wheels" says CanaDream

Many RVers dream of palm trees and sunny beaches during the dead of winter. But how's this for sometning entirely different.

A company by the name of CanaDream, with offices in eight Canadian cities and a fleet of about 800 vehicles of different sizes, thinks they can rent RVs in the middle of winter in--of all places--Canada.

With the slogan of "Your RV is a ski chalet on wheels" they are promoting ski vacations by offering winter RV rental packages that include suggested itineraries in the British Columbia, Alberta, and Quebec Province ski areas.

Their winter-rated RVs are fully insulated, have snow tires, a robust furnace and a generator, which they say are comfortable to -30 C (that's -22 degrees fahrenheit for the Celsius challenged). They also have secure compartments for storing skis and snowboards.

And if you are concerned that you won't be able to find an open campground when the ground is covered with that white powdery stuff--as they would be in the states--you can go to the CanaDream website and, in addition to pricing and other details, you will be directed to a list of campgrounds that remain open in winter and are accessible to RVs. Would you expect less from Canadians?

So if Canadian skiing has you day dreaming, consider a snow vacation with CanaDream’s “Pillow and Powder” packages, available to March 31 for vehicles picked up and returned to Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Montreal or Halifax. Call 1-800-461-7368 for more information.

RV the Yukon? Now's a good time to make plans

Yukon: In the language of the First Nations it means "Great River." In the language of the visitors it means Great Views. At 19,551 feet it's hard to miss Canada's highest mountain, Logan, second only in height for North America to Alaska's Mount McKinley. But there's so much more to see.

Yukon's tourism officials call it a larger-than-life wilderness. And it is huge, and in it's largeness you'll find large wildlife: Try on moose and grizzlies for size. And large roadways, the Alaska Highway, the Dempster, the Silver Trail. Some of the world's most renowned road trips are up here, and some of the smallest number of vehicles per driven mile.

But consider the long, cold winters and the short, short summers. It may be a long way to Tipperary, but it's a real long way to say, Whitehorse, the territorial capital. Got your motorhome parked in Denver? Figure a bit of a trip, 2,500 miles one way. For some, that's just 'too fur a piece' to drag the fifth wheel.

There are alternatives: Plenty of visitors to Canada's westernmost (and smallest) territory find that flying in and renting an RV saves not only time, but wear and tear on both their RV and their backside. Writing in the Baltimore Sun, Lester Picker recalls a happy August trip with five friends to the vast landscape of the Yukon. He recommends sticking with a couple of mainstream RV rental agencies out of Whitehorse, and he makes a valid point. While some of the 'smaller' rental agencies may have lower rates, they may also 'stick' you with a poorly maintained rental unit, or worse, with charges on your return for invented damages. You'll find Picker's memoirs will stir you to digging out Yukon maps.

Planning your trip should begin with a visit to the territory's tourism outlet on the Internet. They'll offer you plenty of suggestions on things to see, routes to take, and more than enough places to spend your Yankee dollar. Pay attention to the "Weather and Climate" section under the "Plan Your Trip" tab to see just what season matches your druthers. As we said, winter around the fire is a great time to make plans for a trip to the Yukon.

photo: Emerald Lake, Alan Vernon on flickr.com

Kamloops Walmart retracts RV welcome mat

For RVers looking for a place to overnight in Kamloops, BC, the pickings have thinned out a bit. Signs are now posted at the Hillside Drive shopping giant prohibiting overnight RV parking. Don't blame the good folks at Walmart, point the finger at the shopping mall owners.

SmartCentres, a corporation that owns many shopping mall properties, told a local news provider that the rule against overnighting has always been company policy, they've just decided it was time for a crackdown.

"More and more campers were coming and staying for longer periods of time, to the point where we were losing parking spaces that we have to provide to our tenants," ownership spokeswoman Sandra Kaiser told BC Local News. She said there had been complaints from shopping center tenants.

Walmart was not one of the complainers. In fact, the local Walmart manager suggested that RVers weren't really the problem at the shopping mall. Apparently the parking lot is a favorite of students who attend a nearby university. Regardless of who is at fault for the congestion, it's apparent that RVers won't be at issue--at least during the nighttime hours.

photo: bclocalnews.com

RV license changes ease in Ontario

Bringing Ontario into harmony with 41 US states and six of its fellow provinces, the Ontario provincial government has eased license restrictions for many RVers. Now what for many rigs required an "A" license (at an initial cost of nearly $200 more) now only requires a "G" license. However there are a few sticky requirements:

--The combined weight total of both towed RV and tow unit most not exceed 11,000 kg, and the towed unit must weigh no more than 4,600 kg.

--The RV must meet Transport Canada Manufacturing standards.

--The rig must be for personal use.

--No more than one unit at a time may be towed, and

--The "clinker" in our view: The combination must be attached via a fifth-wheel hitch. It would appear that standard "tow ball" units won't be in compliance with the new law, which went into effect July 1.