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We ended up staying at 50,000 Silver Dollar RV Park, in Haugen, MT. It’s a bit of a tourist trap, advertised as “the largest gift shop in Montana” with an attached restaurant, gas station, convenience store, two bars, and casinos. The main draw for us was the free RV parking in the back with complimentary power hookups. It was our first time plugging in and we had even more lessons to learn.
Read more: 50,000 Silver Dollar, Our First Taste of Montana
Mom did a lot of homework pre-launch, and we thought we had everything we needed:
However, what we didn’t think about was what kind of 50 amp connection Tad Cooper had.
The bus had a 50 amp twist lock receptacle; all we had was blade style.
not a good fit….
I spent my first day there driving the toad back to Coeur d’Alene to get the right cord. Luckily the amazing people at Bobby Combs RV Center not only had the part but gave me a military discount!
Another minor peril of this spot was the sheer amount of yellow jackets! They were so thick that they had Mom holed up in the bus till I was able to get a yellow jacket trap which was nearly full when we left but made the situation much more manageable.
The first few days, there were thunderstorms. In western Washington, these are pretty rare, so it was a bit of a treat hearing the rain pour down on the metal roof and hear the thunder rolling over the mountains. The kids both thought it was pretty great!
Another bonus to this location was the presence of another green schoolie! While they kept to themselves the first day, by the third our kids made fast friends with their kid. The children all played together all day every day, even after our “tragedy”. The kids were exploring the woods behind the RV park when one of them stepped on an underground wasp nest!
Rawr!!
The Boy and their friend only got stung once or twice, but the Girl got stung all over! Though a bit hysterical, she eventually calmed down and fell asleep under the influence of Children’s Benadryl.
In the most self-help play I’ve ever experienced, the children were playing together the next day, holding wooden swords as “stingers” and playing at being baby bees pollinating the flowers!
The area had signs everywhere that said “no long-term parking”. Which we assumed to be no more than one week. On our 6th day, the owner came by and asked us if we knew what “no long-term parking” meant. I answered “no more than a week” and they replied, “Nope! Three days, time to leave” so while we were planning to leave the next day, Tuesday, we had to leave then. Luckily we’ve been getting better at packing up and battening down the bus and were on the road in less than two hours.
Overall, if I had to give the location a rating I’d give it 3 stars. The restaurant was okay, not great, the parking was spacious, and the free power was great! But the signage about stay limits needs to be more clear and better enforced. It’s a great spot to stop for a night, but considering it’s an hour from anything, it’s hardly the base camp that their web page bills it as.
