Our first stop was Lake Thunderbird State Park in Norman, Oklahoma, about 400 miles from The Woodlands, Texas, and it turned out to be more than a place to sleep. It wasn’t a sightseeing stop, really. Our adventures didn’t truly begin until Badlands National Park, so the first two stops were all about getting north without wearing ourselves out. But as we find out again and again, even a “just passing through” stop can surprise you.
How We Pack the RV a Week Before a Big Trip
There’s a special kind of excitement and a bit of chaos that comes with leaving for a big RV trip. Even now that we are traveling full-time, there is a scramble to get ready after being stationary for a while. Someone is always frantically looking for something; something inevitably needs fixing, and the dog knows things are happening. At our former home, we were able to get the RV out of storage and park it in front of the house, making prep super easy. However, our Houston home was in a very narrow cul-de-sac, so we were stuck shuttling things to the RV via car to do our loading.
For our summer 2025 road trip, we decided to skip all of that last-minute loading by prepping and loading throughout the week before the trip. The morning of departure, we pulled out of the storage garage a few minutes early, relaxed and happy – rather than sweaty and tired.
We hate scrambling for things at the last moment, so whenever we leave for an extended trip, we start prepping early. Seven days before we left, our kitchen turned into our staging area. The kitchen was huge and had a table nobody ever sat at and a door directly to the driveway – making it a perfect space to collect things. Everything that was packed and ready for the RV went there: clothes, gear, crates of pantry items and kitchen tools.
One of the (many) reasons we prep like this is Claire, the Great Dane. She can tell the difference between staging and “travel day”. Staging doesn’t excite her. She likes to watch from her dog bed. Travel day, on the other hand, she is nutty. Nobody needs a whiny Dane while scrambling to assemble last-minute items.
Three days out, we made our first trip to the RV storage with a truck full of stuff. Mostly items that don’t mind a warm environment like clothes and kitchen utensils. While we were there, we turned on the RV fridge so it would be nice and cold well before we needed it. Our RV tech also met us there that day for a safety inspection, and he re-greased the wheel bearings. It’s not the most exciting part of trip prep, but it’s one of those jobs you’re very glad you didn’t skip.
The day before we left, we made one more run with the pantry restock and the cold food. That left the departure morning wonderfully light: just the overnight things like toiletries, chargers, and Stefan’s “office in a bag.” We left home right on time, hitched up, and were ready to roll out a few minutes early.
RV Travel Day With Pets: Sandwiches, Snacks & Dallas Traffic
When the cats and the dog are riding along in the truck, we don’t stop for meals on travel days. We would never leave them unattended in the car – especially during the summer. So on travel days when we go, we go. No gas breaks (we keep our daily max to 1 full tank), no lunch stops (because of the animals and time lost) – only stopping for driver changes and quick bathroom breaks.
For our long trips, we pack sandwiches and our “snacklebox”, a “tackle box” type container with dividers filled with snacks, like a charcuterie board. Snacking our way down the road saves time and keeps dull highway stretches more interesting.
Once we left The Woodlands, the drive was smooth until we got north of Dallas. We hit stop-and-go traffic twice, and everywhere else around the city, the traffic was fast and, honestly, a bit manic. Lots of aggressive drivers cut in and out of lanes. That’s stressful in any vehicle, but in a fifth wheel, you really need to plan your lane changes well ahead. I drove while Stefan kept an eye on the GPS and for any crazy drivers trying to overtake on exit lanes.
Otherwise, it was smooth sailing through Texas and into Oklahoma, then north on I-35 to our destination.
Where We Stayed: Lake Thunderbird State Park
We arrived just before 5 p.m., right on schedule. The park is pretty much self-serve, and when we found our site, someone was already in it. A quick phone call to the park office later, we had a new spot and were setting up.
And then, just as we finished setting up, we noticed a bulge on one of the RV’s tires. It hadn’t been there during the inspection a few days earlier, which goes to show that tires can surprise you at any time. Since it was past 6 p.m. on a Saturday and tire stores are closed on Sundays, we decided to leave that as a Monday problem for the moment.
Once we settled in, we really liked this park. Read our full campground review here
Night One in Norman: Dinner at Amici Pizzeria
That first evening, we did what we always do and looked to the Internet to crowd-source the best restaurants in Norman, OK. The option that sounded most appetizing to us was Amici Pizzeria, and the reviews were not wrong.
We drove to the pizzeria and didn’t have any trouble parking or finding a seat.
It seemed like a family-run establishment, perhaps with multiple generations working behind the counter. We approached the counter and ordered two 14-inch pizzas (cheese and supreme), a side of ranch, and fountain drinks. The staff was friendly and invited us to take a seat while they made our pizza, which they’d bring to the table.
A stand-out feature of the pizzeria is their large pizza oven with a rotating stone. I have seen many pizza ovens like this one – but never with a rotating stone! It’s kinda genius, really!
Inside the restaurant was very clean and they were routinely cleaning up the dining space and wiping down tables.
A steady stream of folks was coming and going to pick up their take-out orders, and we started to feel really confident in our decision. And it smelled wonderful inside.
The pizzas came out quickly and were really good, with a lovely crust and fresh ingredients. Oddly enough, we thought the plain cheese pizza was tastier than the supreme.
But we ate a healthy portion out of each before grabbing a to-go box for the rest.
We were pretty tired after the long day, so we headed back, watched some TV, and called it a night.
Things to Do in Norman, OK (Even on a Rainy Day)
Sunday was Stefan’s birthday, and the one thing he didn’t want to do was spend the day driving. That’s why we turned what would usually be a pass-through stop into a weekend getaway. We had planned to start the day with breakfast downtown, but the rain had other ideas. So we got a slow start and waited for it to ease up.
Norman’s History: The Self-Guided Audio Tour
To better understand the area and because it was still a bit gloomy, we took a self-guided audio tour of Norman’s history from the car. The city of Norman, OK, offers two self-guided audio tours available through the STQRY app. We selected the Historic Norman Mobile Tour, which focuses on 23 historic structures in central Norman. We really enjoyed learning how this town came to be.
In the early 1870s, a survey crew working under Abner E. Norman carved “NORMAN’S CAMP” into an elm tree near a watering hole. The name stuck around long enough that settlers adopted it when the town sprang up as a cluster of tents during the Land Run of 1889.
What really defined Norman, though, came just a year later. In 1890, the territorial legislature chose the town as the home of the University of Oklahoma, provided that residents donated 40 acres and passed bonds to fund construction. They pulled it off, and the university actually predates Oklahoma statehood by 17 years.
Norman Today: A College Town With a Football Heart
That university still shapes Norman today. You can feel the college-town energy even in summer, when most students are gone. For most visitors, though, the real draw is football. On a fall Saturday, the whole town turns crimson and cream for the Oklahoma Sooners. Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium has hosted games since 1923 and seats more than 80,000 fans.
If you’re traveling by RV during football season, check the OU schedule before you book. Campgrounds and hotels fill up quickly on home-game weekends, and I-35 traffic gets even livelier than usual.
Exploring Downtown Norman
Once the rain let up, we parked and walked Main Street. Downtown Norman is super cute, with lots of restaurants, bars, vintage stores, and other independent businesses to support while you’re there.
The Sooner Theatre
The building we kept stopping to photograph was the Sooner Theatre. It opened in 1929 as a Spanish-style movie palace, designed and built by Harold Gimeno. His father, OU art professor Patricio Gimeno, helped paint the interior details. It’s believed to be the oldest Spanish-style movie theater in Oklahoma.
The theater stopped showing movies in 1974 and was close to being torn down. In 1979, the city bought the building and leased it to a nonprofit, which still runs it as a community venue for concerts, stage shows, and acting classes. It’s been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1977. If you’re in town on a show night, it could be a fun way to spend an evening.
Guestroom Records
One of our favorite stores was Guestroom Records Norman, an old-school vinyl record store with a really nice collection.
Saving “Stormy Norman”
We also came across this beautiful mural, painted more than a decade ago on an aging historic building. At the time, a QR code asked about community interest in a raffle to raise money for it, but we’re not sure if that went anywhere. If you happen to pass by, let us know in the comments.
A Birthday Sunset at Lake Thunderbird
We ate dinner at home in the RV, then finished the day with some sunset photography at Lake Thunderbird. Not a bad way to celebrate a birthday on the road.
Planning Your Own Weekend in Norman
One rainy afternoon wasn’t nearly enough time in Norman. If you’re thinking about a stop of your own, here’s what we’d plan around, and what’s on our list for next time.
Norman’s Best Annual Events
Norman calls itself a festival town, and the calendar backs it up. If you can plan your stop around one of these, do it:
- Medieval Fair of Norman (April): Jousting, artisan markets, food, and performers in costume. It’s one of the town’s best-loved spring traditions.
- Norman Music Festival (April): One of the largest free music festivals in the country, with stages all over downtown, food trucks, and art vendors.
- Jazz in June: An outdoor jazz and blues concert series held over several summer evenings.
- Second Friday Art Walk (monthly): Downtown galleries and studios stay open late on the second Friday of every month.
- National Weather Festival (November): Norman is home to the National Weather Center, and this free festival has hands-on science and storm-chasing demos. It’s a great one for kids.
- Christmas Holiday Parade (December): A longtime Main Street tradition with floats and marching bands.
Dates change from year to year, so check Visit Norman’s events calendar before you go.
Our Downtown Wish List
Coffee at Main Street Trading Post
This newer spot at 424 E. Main St. serves espresso, lattes, and lemonades. With its dimmable lights and shelves of books for sale, it’s the kind of place you settle into instead of just grabbing a cup and leaving. It would have been perfect for our rainy morning.
Vintage Shopping at Crimson Vintage
Crimson Vintage (406 E. Main St.) is Norman’s curated vintage clothing shop. The owners started out selling online before opening the storefront in 2023. They carry pieces from the 1950s through the early 2000s, including graphic tees, jackets, and sweatshirts, plus a whole wall of vintage OU gear. They restock every Saturday, so a weekend visit is good timing.
Art at the Uncanny Art House
The Uncanny Art House (106 E. Main St.) is a community art space with rotating exhibits, interactive installations, film screenings, live music, and workshops. Its exhibits have a playful, slightly offbeat streak, and it’s one of the busiest stops during Second Friday Art Walk.
Learn to Scuba at Sea Shanty Scuba & Swim
This one surprised us: a PADI dive shop in landlocked Oklahoma, right on Main Street at 116 E. Main St. Sea Shanty Scuba & Swim offers PADI courses that lead to open-water certification, runs a swim school for kids, and organizes local and international dive trips for certified divers. If getting certified is on your someday list, a slow weekend in Norman could be the place to start.
Where We’d Eat Next Time
We loved our pizza night at Amici, but downtown Norman has a lot of restaurants we didn’t get to. These are the two at the top of our list:
- The Lokal (110 W. Main St.): The restaurant calls itself “a fresh take on modern Okie cuisine,” using local ingredients and serving craft cocktails. Fried deviled eggs, bison meatloaf, and chicken-fried steak are the dishes people mention most. This is where we’d go for a birthday dinner next time.
- The Moon Sushi & Asian Bistro (326 E. Main St.): A cozy, longtime Main Street sushi spot with a long list of creative house rolls alongside classic nigiri and sashimi.
If you’re craving Indian food, The Magic Masala on Main Street also gets great reviews for its chicken tikka masala.
Dealing With an RV Tire Bulge on the Road
Monday morning, we hitched up and headed north toward Nebraska, with one quick stop on the agenda. Over the weekend, we considered what to do about the tire bulge. We had two options: Option 1: mount the spare and drive on, but we’d have no spare for two remote weeks. Option 2: keep the tire on and stop at Discount Tire on the way out.
There was a Discount Tire, our go-to tire store, about 15 minutes away. Option 2 it was. We determined that the bulge looked “ok” and decided to head to the store as is.
We pulled into a Discount Tire location about ten minutes before they opened, trying to beat the Monday morning rush. To our surprise, a few of their employees were preparing to open the store. When they saw us, they immediately waved us to a convenient location.
Within two minutes, they had diagnosed the problem and got busy working on a replacement tire. Thankfully, we had Discount Tire’s Certificates for Repair, Refund or Replacement from earlier tire events. If you haven’t heard of them, they’re protection plans you can add when you buy tires. If a covered tire is damaged by a road hazard or has a manufacturer defect, they’ll repair it, refund it, or replace it.
The team ran the new tire through our coverage, swapped it out, and had us rolling out of the lot by 8:20 a.m. Truly top-notch service, and we were back on our way north before most people had finished their morning coffee.
Lessons Learned on this Leg
- Packing Ahead: We started gathering everything in one room a week out, made our first RV run (and turned on the fridge) three days out, and brought the cold food the day before. Departure morning was just our overnight bags.
- Pre-Trip Maintenance: A safety inspection and fresh bearing grease before a long haul is well worth it. But do your own walk-around before every travel day, too. Our tire looked fine a few days earlier.
- Traveling With Pets: If your pets ride in the truck, pack road food so you don’t have to stop for meals. Our snacklebox is a family favorite.
- Towing Through Dallas: Expect fast, aggressive traffic. Plan lane changes early and have a passenger watch for upcoming exits.
- Tire Protection: If you buy tires at Discount Tire, consider adding Certificates. They can be added up to 30 days after purchase, and they saved us time and money on the road.
Final Thoughts
Unless you’re a hardcore college football fan, a trip to Norman, Oklahoma isn’t the first location that comes to mind when thinking of travel destinations. In our case, Norman was exactly what we were looking for: A convenient and beautiful place to rest for two nights while traveling north. As a bonus, the downtown is charming (and we already have a list of places to try next time), and the history is more interesting than you’d expect in a college town.
More than anything, this leg reminded us how much smoother a trip starts when the hard work is done before departure day. And when something does go wrong (as it always eventually does), it helps to have a little buffer time and a really good tire shop nearby.
Do you have a system for prepping before a big trip? Or a travel-day snack you can’t live without? Share your tips in the comments below!
