List needed of campgrounds with clear line-of-sight to satellites
I've got an idea that should be of value to many RVers; that is, knowing exact sites in specific campgrounds with clear line-of-sight vision of TV satellites, i.e.., Direct TV.
This is a primary criteria my wife and I use when locating a campground and specific sites and we collect such information each time we visit a new campground/park/resort. By the looks of the amount of satellite dish antennas I see at campgrounds/parks/resorts, a huge percentage of your readers also would find this information helpful.
Where I live in the Pacific Northwest west of the Cascade mountain range, the majority of State parks are very wooded. However, I've learned that specific sites even in these wooded campgrounds have openings for a good line-of-sight to satellites.
Sometimes Park Rangers and other employees have the knowledge of specific sites and that's great once you've arrived. But, in planning trips to parks one has yet to explore no information like this is readily available.
By comparison, private parks/resorts generally have fewer trees and therefore problems "seeing" satellites from most sites. However, another related problem more unique to private facilities is the closely spaced sites where other RVs become obstacles to the line-of-sight need. A solution in this situation is to "mount" the antenna in a higher position overlooking neighboring RVs. I have a simple, inexpensive, portable and aesthetic solution to this common problem. But, let's leave that for the subject of another email.
The Internet and newsletters like yours provide a great way to collect such information. You could create a contest or such to collect this information from your readers. Also, you could make a telephone survey of each State Park in the Pacific Northwest for a beginning. Then ask your readers to confirm the sites on their next outing at those locations. The interactive nature of this process would help build reader loyalty for you, too. Given that the enemy of line-of-sight is vegetation growing in directions competing with the line-of-sight needs of RVers, you should consider a simple rating system, say a 1-5 scale you'd define with date-marked photos of examples for each rating.
Incidentally, you might be able to sell this information to the various State parks departments. It would be great if they would appropriately color code those sites with this feature. And, they might be able to get another couple of dollars in rent for such sites.
I encourage you to take the lead in developing this source of information. It would be good for your business and of value to your readers. Good luck and have fun doing it!
Dick Kuykendall
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