RV campers staying in good spirits

Harvest Hosts charges RV campers $99 a year in exchange for the opportunity park and spend a night at farms, museums, breweries, wineries and distilleries in its 5,000-host network.

Brady’s Distillery on Pocahontas Avenue Northeast receives about five RV visitors a month at this time of year, but almost one nightly in the peak of the warm months, according to Brian Brady, who is in business with his brothers Tim and Andy.

“The reason we participate is because we’ve been Harvest Hosts members ourselves,” said Brady, who travels with his family in a Forest River Forester.

Another reason businesses participate is that Harvest Hosts encourages the RV guests to buy the host’s products or services, putting a few extra dollars in the till for those who provide the space. Brady’s Distillery supplies electricity and a spigot. RVers pay no extra money for the stay.

Fables & Feathers Winery welcomes about four RVs a month in the winter and four a week in the spring-summer-fall, co-owner Genny Luedtke said. “It’s actually worked out very well for us. It’s very easy on our end,” she said. RV campers “register online and show up. We get people from all over. We actually just had a couple from Ontario, [Canada]. They stayed for one night. They come down to the tasting room, they try our wine and beer and tell us where they have been.”