Our First Trip-- Silver Strand State Beach: Coronado, California

After my good-natured husband had fully recovered (after a good shower, and a good night's sleep) we began planning our first RV trip in "The Skinny Winnie" as these rv's are sometimes called. We wanted to go somewhere pretty close by, since we weren't totally familiar with our new rig and wanted to be near home in case something should go wrong.

We decided on the Silver Strand State Beach in Coronado, California. I knew there were beachfront spaces there...and how can you go wrong with that?! It was very easy to get reservations, as the campground is not terribly in demand in February. There are no hook-ups or dump stations there, and rv's must be fully-contained in order to camp there.

We arrived on a Friday evening, and pulled in to our space. The spaces there are like large parking spaces in an asphalt lot. Beachfront spaces (like ours) allow your back end to be directly over the sand.
Here is a pic of our spot:

Beautiful spot at Silver Strand State Beach

As you can see, the beach is gorgeous, and our spot was very nice. However, this picture was taken before our neighbors arrived the next day. With the spaces filled, there is hardly any breathing room. Our rv is tiny, and it barely fit into the spot. The beach was very nice, with plenty of running space for the kids.

The view from our "master bedroom" (ha HA) window:

My favorite thing about beach camping is the sound of the waves crashing as you fall asleep each night. So soothing and beautiful.

We all really enjoyed walking on the beach each morning. Camping right on the shore is a huge perk when you have small children. Especially small children like mine who like to wake at the crack of dawn each day. Somehow it's much tougher to be in a bad mood when they wake you so early, if you are walking along a beautiful beach watching the sunrise and drinking a strong cup of coffee. Mmmmm...dare I say, it's almost enjoyable. I found myself almost thanking them for enabling me to find little treasures like this on our early morning shore walks...

Yes, a sand dollar! I haven't found a whole sand dollar on the beach since I was in college, (way too many years ago to mention) and we were thrilled to find this one. We framed it and put it up in the "Winnie" as a keepsake of our first outing in her. 

My girls also found these cool shells as we were walking:

Lots of shells that were still closed (no sea creatures inside though). My little girls were thrilled to find such large, whole shells to collect.

There was one fire ring on the beach, and we were determined to get it, as our little ones had begged to make s'mores that first evening. We walked down to the beach and flew kites with the kids while we waited for darkness. They seemed to be enjoying themselves:

Our kids have so much fun while we're camping that it truly is a joy to be around them. My husband and I comment that it is fun to see them "in their element" and really enjoying nature and each other. 

That first weekend out was a great time. We accomplished everything we set out to do on our first rv'ing trip. We tested out the rv and determined how successful we had been at packing. While we were camping we made notes about things we needed to add to, or take out of the rv. 

Honestly, we weren't too crazy about this campground. The beach was very pretty, and it was fun to be close to Coronado. We went on an excursion to the island on our way out of town.

Silver Strand Beach- beautiful, long beaches with plenty of seashells to find.

The kids loved frolicking in the waves. They were gentle enough for even our little children to easily wade in.

Exploring a monument in the central square on Coronado Island. 

Beautiful memorial for our United States Armed Forces. "Freedom is not Free." Very true. So very grateful to those who serve and have served. 

The campground served its purpose. It allowed us to get to know our vehicle better, while camping fairly close to home and civilization in case anything went wrong. We didn't care for the parking-lot type feel of the park, it was just too close of quarters for us. Our neighbors on one side had several guests at their site all day (and night) long and even blocked our rv with their extra vehicles. The smoke from their campfire blew into our windows all night, and it was unnerving to see it unattended so close to us. Also, the lack of dump station and hook-ups were a detriment as well. 

All in all it was a great trip for us, but not a favorite campground.