News from around the campfire.

– York, PA: The York Campers World RV Show was held in York, Pa., the second weekend of March, as has been done for the past 36 years. The 14 RV dealers present reported brisk sales, and a total of 180 units were shown on over 130,000 square feet of indoor space and 38 units were outside on the York Expo Center ground, said Beverly Gruber, executive director of the Pennsylvania Campground Owners Association. “Fifty campgrounds showcased their facilities and talked with the customers about the advantages of coming to their park,” she explained.

-Timmins, Ontario: When city officials in Timmins, Ontario, agreed to help operate cash-strapped Ivanhoe Lake Provincial Park two years ago, they thought the park would be a paying proposition. Now the city says they may close the gates at the park if they can’t fill 10 more seasonal RV sites. With 53 sites filled, the city set Friday as the deadline for purchases; if not sold, the park will be listed as “non-operational.”

Indiana: Indiana’s state parks and reservoirs are looking for volunteers to serve as campground hosts in exchange for free camping. Hosts work a minimum of 20 hours per week. Sites looking for hosts to volunteer in April are Turkey Run, Indiana Dunes, Potato Creek and Spring Mill state parks. Raccoon State Recreation Area needs a host June 29 through August 3, the entire length, or in two-week periods. A complete list of sites and information on hosting duties is here. If interested, contact the site directly.

Elkhart, Indiana: Thor Industries Inc. plans to auction off remaining towable inventory, work-in-progress units and assorted components Tuesday (Mar. 25) at a former Monaco RV tow-able manufacturing plant on Indiana 19 (2700 S. Nappanee St.) on the south side of Elkhart, Ind., a facility that Thor purchased in February from Ocala, Fla.-based Allied Specialty Vehicles Inc. Auctioneers indicate that a big crowd is expected for the liquidation sale at the 220,000-square-foot plant in which Thor plans on expanding its Thor Motor Coach Inc. division’s motorhome production. The auction, according to a sale flier, will include “enough inventory to run production for weeks.”

Nationwide: RV dealers are expecting big things this year, according to results from a Recreation Vehicle Dealers Association (RVDA) survey conducted in late January to early February. In the March issue of RV Executive Today, RVDA reported that after a good 2013, the majority of survey respondents are expecting 2014 to be even better. Specifically, 68% of dealers who participated in the survey feel the outlook for the retail market this year will be better than it was in 2013. Another 32% believe the market will be about the same as it was last year.

– Manlius, NY: The Great Outdoors RV Superstore in Fulton, N.Y., is proposing to build a satellite recreational vehicle/trailer sales office on the site of the former Fremont Lanes Bowling Alley in the town of Manlius, according to the Syracuse Post-Standard.The Post-Standard reports that a small sales office would be built on the now-vacant 2.5-acre site, with 12 parking spaces and room to park 23 RVs/trailers. The site would open this spring, as soon as the proper permits are secured, Doug Miller, engineer for the town of Manlius told the Post-Standard. The bowling alley was demolished several years ago.

~News From The Weird~

– Three people were badly burned after an RV burst into flames at a Delta, British Columbia, gas station March 15. According to police, the occupants were siphoning fuel through a trap door in the vehicle, which they parked above the underground holding tank. Investigators haven’t confirmed where the stolen gas was intended to be sold, but said it sometimes is advertised on Craigslist.

– Alexandria, LA: Tips about odd smells led to the arrest of a Deville man who allegedly was operating a meth lab in a small camper, according to The Town Talk.
Deputies went to the camper Wednesday in Deville to follow-up on the tips about the smells and suspicions that meth was being made. John Loyd Paul Jr. answered the door, and deputies smelled “a distinct chemical odor,” according to The Town Talk. A deputy who entered the camper to get a gun saw a pan with suspected meth drying on a heating blanket, The Town Talk reports. Paul was arrested and charged with possession of a controlled dangerous substance II, creation/operation of a clandestine lab, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number, illegal carrying of weapons with drugs and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Special thanks to CampingPA.com for supplying these great tidbits of RVing news…

Safe Travels and Happy RVing!