December 14, 2017

Some of you have asked questions about what living on the road is like and how we manage certain aspects of every day living. Here goes an explanation-
How is this lifestyle different? First, we are not “on vacation”, we are living this way, every day, with many of the “gotta do’s” that we had before. Somethings are easier, some are harder. Somethings are more complicated, some are less. For sure, the difficulties and disadvantages do NOT outweigh the advantages of living on the road.
Some things are constantly changing- finding a new grocery store every time we shop, even Walmarts are laid out differently and carry different items, finding a new gas station every 350 miles and we need diesel- no just popping over to your favorite local grocery or gas station. Hunting down propane refill stations and places to get our hair cut and Rhylee groomed, and laundromats. We have phone apps, gps and internet, however occassionally those just don’t help us, or we don’t have service. We meet lots of new people, and find new foods and options. Most of the time these things are no big deal, but every now and again…
Mail- our mail goes to Livingston, Texas to Escapees Rv Club and we get an email when we have mail. On line, we then choose to have items deleted or have sent- we find a UPS store near where we are going to be for 3-4 days and have our mail sent. We get very little mail!! YAY! Less than 10 pieces a month.
Where are we parking each night?- we use about 5 different websites and apps to find the next location. When there is a holiday or long weekend, we need to make reservations in advance, which means thinking about where we want to be. We avoid RV parks unless we really need to be near somewhere specific- like a Camping World to have work done or buy something specific for the trailer. We look for BLM and Forest Service land mostly, then state and national parks, and sometimes it is a picnic area (if that state allows overnighting), or a Walmart or truck stop parking lot. Sometimes we want or need water and electric hookups for a few days, and some state parks have hookups; we can be off grid for 6-7 days. And then we have to find RV dump stations- got an app for that too!
We’re not on vacation. We still have to pay bills, keep the cupboards and fuel tanks full- just like the many “gottas” we had when we lived in a house attached to the ground. However, the adventure, joy and fun we have every day seeing new sights, exploring new areas and living very simply are well worth the “complications” of being on the road- and of course lots of laughs as we live and learn 🙂
We don’t miss the snow….yet (and we have been in snow three times already). We are getting weary of the dust in the southwest, but it beats shoveling snow. We have seen enough High Desert, but every few hours the details of the desert change- slightly different plants, rocks, colors. We love wearing shorts most every day. We love the incredible quiet and dark skies we see many nights.
This new trailer has made living on the road tons easier than our beloved Eagle Cap truck camper- just enough more space and storage to make life comfortable, and double the fresh water, black and grey tanks. Our solar panels and lithium batteries generally keep everything running- including the coffee maker and Magic Bullet!