Over the years we have loved looking at 5th Wheels. Before purchasing the Redwood, we considered a Motorhome, but decided it was not a good fit for us. We did exhaustive research to narrow down the 5th wheel manufacturers that met our criteria and were within our budget. We narrowed our search to several brands: Excel, DRV Mobile Suites, Solitude or Crossroad Redwood.
Our criteria:
- Full body paint exterior
- Good inside storage. Although we knew we would be downsizing... Lisa LOVES clothes, shoes and handbags.
- Residential refrigerator
- Sturdy frame (we liked the 12" I-beam design)
- Large enough basement storage for George's mountain bike and for our tandem bike.
- We wanted to be able to tow our jeep without voiding the manufacturer warranty and without compromising the integrity of the 5th wheel frame.
- Fiberglass shower (we have had issues with previous plastic showers)
- Because it will be our full-time home... it needs to feel like our home.
We had several long days in Denver looking at RV's with our friends, Tom & Sandy Burke. They were great keeping us on track with our goals and helping us keep a level head. They kept us focused on our RV requirements.
Word to the wise... take a friend on your RV shopping journey. It can really help take the emotion out of it and keep you on track.
We fell in love with the Crossroads Redwood. The Redwood started at about $128,000. The dealer gave us double for our Montana than we paid for it 6 years before. We really felt like this one was going to meet all our needs. We purchased our Redwood 5th wheel in December in Denver, Colorado--perfect time to buy an RV! They need to move them off their lot.
We want a simpler, smaller life--but we are happy to have life's little luxuries wrapped up in our Redwood. We do not feel like we are missing much from our "Sticks & Bricks" house with this RV.
We walked in and instantly felt like we were home. Here is an RV we can travel in and feel comfortable... we will be WARM in the winter and COOL in the summer.
Our Montana was 37 ft. long and 360 square feet. The Redwood
is about 42- foot long and 430 square feet. There is a lot more storage
and the storage under the 5th wheel is heated--so we avoid frozen pipes in the
future!
The 12-inch I-Beam frame allows us to again tow our Jeep. Having the Jeep with us has become a big part
of making our adventures the best they can be.
I love having a Residential refrigerator, we have plenty of
refrigerator and freezer space. We did
not think we were interested in having a dishwasher, but now that we have one I
LOVE it. Great pantry storage in the kitchen.
The Livingroom has plenty of space—with seating for at least 5
people. The dining room chairs are
comfortable enough, we often use them to add seating in the Livingroom.
Before the Redwood, George has not had a closet. Our
Redwood is set up for side to side washer/dryer. Because we have chosen to not have
washer/dryer—he has a nice closet. Lisa,
not surprisingly, gets the front large closet.
The Redwood has proven to be a good choice. We have celebrated
holidays and birthdays in our RV home.
We continue to make the RV feel homey.
