Walmart: An RVers Best Friend?

My ideals seem to have left me. My long-standing boycott of Walmart has completely ended. I no longer get upset that small mom-and-pop stores are going out of business. I don’t allow myself to think about the exploited workers or Walmart’s disdain of unions. I now find that I get excited when we approach a town or city large enough to have a Walmart. I know we are near because I’ve even purchased map books that tell just where all the Walmarts are located in each state or Canadian province.

Even before we started the trip, we learned that Walmart is an RVers friend. Most stores have an entire section of RV supplies at almost half the price of dedicated RV stores. Plus, we learned that most Walmarts allow RVers to camp in the parking lots for free. We assume that Walmart hopes we will purchase all our food, clothing, and camping equipment from them.

When I started seeing the cost of food at small grocery stores near state and national parks, I started to panic. How can they charge $6.99 for a box of cereal that HEB and Walmart sell for $2.50? I started getting angry when I saw their prices. So, off to Walmart I go when I get the chance. I stock up on anything that will keep. I’ve started purchasing lots of frozen and canned food. Adolfo has now taken to shopping with me to curtail my spending at Walmarts.

Adolfo and I have yet to camp at a Walmart. In Fairbanks we drove up to the Walmart and Adolfo’s jaw dropped. “Are all those people freeloading?” The parking lot was full of RVs.

Then, we both saw poles beside each parking space. On the top of the poles were electrical plug-ins. “Is that what I think it is?” Adolfo asked as he started to reach into his wallet to tear up his KOA membership card. We looked around, and none of the RVs were hooked up. Meanwhile, cars with Alaska plates all had electrical cords hanging from the front of the cars. But why? Is Alaska way more progressive than the rest of the nation in electric car use?

No, these were normal gas-guzzling vehicles. Alaskans have to plug in their cars to keep them warm in –40 or –50 degree temperatures when the anti-freeze actually freezes. Walmart, wanting to be sure that its customers spend plenty of time in the store without worrying about their cars, provides the hook-ups. Wow! They are not only friends to RVers; they also support the average shopper.

Here in Denali we met another couple who are full-timing. We explained that we had no income and were just surviving on savings. When we explain this to others, we generally get comments about bank robbing or rich relatives. Instead, this couple asked, “You’re not paying for camping, are you?”

Looks like we will be camping at Walmart once we get to Anchorage.

When we finally settle down and start earning incomes, perhaps I can return to my righteous boycott of Walmart.