Chasing Autumn: Is Your RV Ready for the Journey?

There is something special about waking up in an RV on a cool fall morning. Coffee is brewing, the air is crisp, and brilliant red, orange and gold leaves fill the view outside your window.

RV travel gives you the freedom to follow the fall colors—but each region can place different demands on your vehicle. Preparing for the destination can help make your trip memorable for all the right reasons.

Blue Ridge Parkway and Shenandoah National Park

Traveling through Virginia and North Carolina, the Blue Ridge Parkway and Skyline Drive offer remarkable mountain views. Colors typically peak from mid to late October.

Before leaving, know your RV’s exact height. Marys Rock Tunnel on Skyline Drive has a maximum clearance of 12 feet, 8 inches. Mountain climbs and descents also make it important to inspect your brakes, transmission and cooling system.

New Hampshire and Vermont

The Kancamagus Highway and Vermont’s Route 100 deliver the classic New England experience: covered bridges, small towns, cider mills and colorful maple trees.

Peak color often arrives from late September through early October. Because nighttime temperatures can drop quickly, test your furnace and propane system. Inspect the seals around windows, doors and slide-outs, and reserve your campsite early.

Michigan’s Upper Peninsula

Michigan’s Upper Peninsula combines colorful forests with waterfalls and Lake Superior views.

Remote roads and changing weather make preparation especially important. Check your tires, spare tire, wheel bearings, batteries and heating system. Carry emergency supplies, basic tools and an alternative way to charge your phone when service is limited.

Colorado’s San Juan Skyway

The San Juan Skyway connects Durango, Silverton, Ouray and Telluride beneath mountainsides covered with golden aspens.

Before driving its steep grades and sharp turns, have your brakes inspected. Check the engine, transmission, cooling system, towing connections and trailer brake controller. Never begin a long descent with brakes that are already overheating.

Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Fall color can stretch from mid-October into early November in the Great Smoky Mountains. Cades Cove and Newfound Gap Road offer beautiful views from the ridges to the valleys.

Mountain rain and fog can arrive quickly, so inspect your roof, awning and exterior seals. Test your lights, windshield wipers and defroster. If camping inside the park, prepare for limited hookups by checking your batteries, freshwater and wastewater systems.

Prepare Before You Follow the Color

Every fall destination offers its own scenery—and its own RV challenges. A pre-trip inspection can uncover problems before they interrupt your adventure.

The team at Rivertown RV in La Grange, Kentucky, can help prepare your RV for the journey ahead. When your RV is ready, you can focus on the road, the changing leaves and the memories waiting around the next bend.