Sometimes it is fun to go somewhere new for a weekend get-away, and that is what we did. We had the Indiana Dunes Park in mind, located two hours north of Lafayette, Indiana, near Michigan City. We checked online for a camping spot for our 34’ Motorhome. Unfortunately, every site in the campground was already booked for the weekend. We did not want to let a full, unavailable campground ruin our plans, so we opted for the next best thing! We called the Blue Chip Casino in Michigan City and asked if they allowed BoonDockers (Those who camp without any hookups for water, electric and sewer.) They said, “No problem!” then they told us where we could set up camp.
When we arrived in Michigan City, Google navigated us to the Casino. Seriously though, we might have been able to find the Casino without the help of a navigator because the Casino building is three times taller than any other building in Michigan City! We were told we could camp in the back parking lot, the one farthest away from the Casino. When we arrived, we practically had the whole lot to ourselves. The first spot we picked out in the parking lot was very unlevel, and we had to move because the leveling jacks on the motorhome would not auto-level. Experience has taught us that if the jacks will not auto-level, it is unsafe to deplore the slides on the camper! The one time we tried to manually level our coach and then use the slides caused the frame on the motorhome to flex weirdly, and thus, the slide would not retract properly! So, to avoid the need to call an RV mechanic, we chose another spot!
The spot we chose was the furthest away from the Casino, so it was the closest to the road. That night we discovered that the road near our camper was a busy road! All night long, we were serenaded by the sounds of automobiles and trucks busily zooming by. Occasionally, we would hear the bass from the cars of diehard partyers, celebrating the fact that they have very loud car stereos!
So, the following morning we decided to move to a quieter location! So, we packed up the trailer (sort of), pulled in the slides, raised the jacks, and traveled four hundred feet to our new and improved location! At this point, my dear reader, you might be snickering, wondering what difference does four hundred feet make? But, in terms of road noise, it made all of the difference in the world.
Some may wonder, is it safe to boondock in a parking lot? In the past, I have wondered exactly how secure is my RV? I have wondered if I left it, could someone break in? I have pondered these thoughts a lot until…we accidentally locked ourselves out of the RV. This event happened about two months ago. We had stepped out of the RV to take the dog for a walk. When we tried to reenter the RV, the door was locked up tight! At first, my husband, Joe, tried to pop the hinges off the door. While he was engaged in the futile attempt to remove door hinges, I walked the perimeter of the camper, looking to see if we could enter through one of the windows. I discovered that the only way to access the windows would be to stand on something tall like a ladder or to be very tall. Like the Jolly Green Giant! For most of our windows, one would need to also be very skinny. Like skeleton skinny! (So, I am now pretty confident that no one is going to break in through a window. Well, that is, unless that person is a very anorectic giant!) After about fifteen minutes of standing out in the 90-degree heat trying to break into our own camper, we gave up and called a locksmith! It took 45 minutes for the locksmith to arrive.
At first, the locksmith started to work with a pump-up air cushion that he wedged into the door frame. After about 15 minutes of no success in popping our stubborn lock, he switched tactics. He went to his truck and returned with his lock-picking tools. I expected him to pick the lock in two point five seconds, you know like they do on TV. This did not happen in two point five seconds. The lock was still secure after fifteen minutes! Joe and I sat quietly on the porch swing, watching. At the twenty-five-minute mark, I started to pray earnestly. “Dear Lord, pleeease help this man to break into our RV. Please. Please. Please.” I continued to pray in earnest for the next ten minutes. I was beginning to wonder if we would ever see the inside of our RV again when it happened. At minute marker thirty-five, the door quietly clicked open. There was fanfare, tons of it! Praises to God and accolades for our brave hero, the locksmith So, I am confident that we are safe parked in a parking lot.
Confident in our surroundings, we enjoyed our time shadowed by the Blue Chip Casino in the parking lot. Who needs a campground anyway? (Well, for a couple of days, we are ok without one!)
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