RV-Dreams
Has It Really Been Two Years?
By Howard Payne
May 9, 2007 - 6:15:47 AM

The First Few Months

We moved into our Keystone Cambridge fifth wheel on May 9, 2005.  In January 2005, I had given six months notice at my job to give them time to find a suitable replacement.

From January through March of that year, we had second thoughts every single day.  What are we doing?!  What have we done?!

But soon things started falling into place.  We sold the house furnished.  The timing of the sale coincided with the arrival of our new pick-up truck and fifth wheel.  We were going to have just enough time to move in.  And though we financed the truck and RV, we were able to use the equity from our house to pay off both loans before a single payment was due.

At the time, my parents still owned a small farm outside Louisville, KY - the place where I grew up.   So we pulled the fifth wheel onto their property where we sat until the end of July.

Now lots of people start full-timing just like we did.  They sell their house and move into their RV while they are still working a traditional job.  And though we are technically full-timing at that point, we just can't judge the experience while the closets are still full of work clothes and we have to commute to work every weekday.

It did allow us to get to know our rig during those three months and it did allow us to REALLY live in it.  That was the good part.  We got to see how everything worked and how to best utilize the living space.  We could make modifications and repair minor issues while we were still stationary and while the steady income was still there.

But, many folks start having apprehensions when they move into their rigs and are still working.  We have counseled numerous new full-timers to be careful about judging life in the RV until "work" is no longer a factor in their heads and hearts.

Finally!  We're Off!

The jobs ended, we had a big going away bash, and we finally hit the road on August 3, 2005.  We had lived in our condo on wheels for three months, but we still had no real experience towing and traveling with it.

But I can't emphasize this enough.  As we were getting ready to pull out of that driveway for the last time, we stopped, took each others hand and savored the moment.  This was it, this was a new chapter in our lives.  Grinning and misty-eyed, we let the feeling of freedom and liberation sink in.  It was a moment we will never forget and one we recall often.

Our First Campgrounds

Our very first campground was in a state park in Kentucky.  It was our very first experience without full hook-ups.

And it was our first experience meeting the wonderful people of the RVing community.  Walter and Mary Lou were our neighbors and they had been full-timing for nine years.  They were so nice and Walter even rode his bike to the dump station to assist us with that first time job.  We will never forget them.

Our second campground was in the Cherokee National Forest in Tennessee.  We stayed in the town of Tellico Plains for nine days and met Jerry and Annette.  They are insurance adjusters that travel the country helping to sort out claims after natural disasters.  They took us under their wing and we still communicate with them today.  Amazing folks.

Hurricane Katrina

As me moved south into Alabama, we ended up in a state park south of Birmingham.  Two couples that keep up with our website came to visit us while we were there.

Then Hurricane Katrina boiled up.  We were trying to determine which way to go to avoid her path.  But just as we were hitched up and about to pull away, our hydraulic front jacks failed.  We were stuck.

Our readers, Joe and Carolyn, took us in for the night and we had to leave the rig behind.  Returning to our campsite through downed trees and powerlines, we were relieved to see our fifth wheel in one piece.  Whew!

We had to wait for repairs of our jacks, but while we did we met a couple in a motorhome, Barbara and Harvey.  The next day they just handed us the keys to their car and said "Go get whatever supplies you need and run any errands you want."  It was not "C'mon we'll take you".  It was not "You're welcome to go with us."  They gave us their car!

We were a month into full-timing and we could not believe the quality of the people we had met.  We had heard stories, but they didn't compare to the kindness and generosity we experienced ... just in our first month.

As it turned out, while we were waiting for our jacks to be fixed,  several evacuees and refugees from the hurricane started showing up at the campground.  Soon, the campers were setting up a shelter and donating food and clothes to those in need.

With our satellite internet, we opened up our rig as an internet cafe and allowed people to send emails, check their bank accounts, register with FEMA, and see satellite photos of their homes.  We became involved in making life better for these unfortunate people.

Linda even made the local news and newspaper as the media allowed her to request donations.  I took offers of job openings and posted them.  We made schedules so the community donating food didn't all come at the same time.  The experience was amazing and we knew we were meant to be there.

Winter In The Southeast

We spent the month of October in Gulf Shores, AL where we spent two weeks assisting in bird banding.  That's also where we determined that we needed bicycles along on our journey - so we bought a pair.

Slowly we moved across the Gulf Coast avoiding the hurricane damaged beaches and campgrounds.  After having been in several campgrounds with access to water, we purchased an inflatable kayak/canoe to carry with us - one of the best decisions we have made so far.

We continued through the panhandle of Florida to Jacksonville where Linda's sister lives.  We spent Thanksgiving in a city park campground there before moving farther south.

For the rest of the winter, we spent time moving around Florida.  We even conducted an RVing seminar at the Florida RV Supershow in Tampa.  We learned that it's hard to find campgrounds in south Florida in the winter - at least ones we could afford. 

But via a couple of Escapees RV Club parks and a lucky internet special, we managed to find spots and stay inexpensively through March.  Of course we ended up staying at RV parks rather than the more natural settings of state parks and federal facilities which we prefer.

Still, the snowbirds in the RV parks were welcoming and wonderful.  With the social functions and friendliness, it is no wonder people return to the same places over and over again for the winter.

Spring and Summer 2006

We were given an opportunity to attend and teach at Life On Wheels, sort of RV college, at their conference in Kentucky in May.  So we headed north, spending most of April in Georgia.

Many of those days were spent at Stephen Foster State Park in southeast Georgia in the middle of the Okefenokee Swamp.  It's out in the middle of nowhere, but we absolutely loved the natural beauty and untouched wilderness.  It is one of the top two places we have visited in our first two years.

We really enjoyed the state park system in Georgia hitting four wonderful state parks in our journey north.  Then we sort of blew through Tennessee after a nine day stay in Chattanooga getting our recalled wheels replaced.  But at least we got to visit with Bob and Lynda who we had met earlier in the year in October.

After a successful debut at Life On Wheels, we headed to Louisville to visit with my parents.  We stayed three months as we helped them sell their farm and move into a more manageable situation closer to town.  It was one of those unexpected, but highly necessary extended stays.

After exploring a few Kentucky state parks we headed toward the midwest as we were scheduled to teach more Life On Wheels classes in August outside Des Moines, IA.  We had a nice stay in an Indiana national forest before hustling through Illinois and into Iowa.

After Life On Wheels, we spent a month in Iowa.  Mostly we visited the lovely areas of eastern Iowa along the Mississippi River.  After departing the mighty Mississippi, we stayed at a city campground in Decorah.

That turned out to be our favorite small town so far.  It was quaint and well maintained with quite a few natural attractions around.  We really enjoyed a canoe trip in a stretch of the Upper Iowa River.

A Terrific Fall On The Road

We headed across northern Iowa and dropped down through Nebraska.  While at a state recreation area, we visited the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha.  That was, in our opinion, the best zoo we have ever visited.  We should have taken two days there.

After a brief stay in Nebraska, we made our way through Kansas ending up in Wichita for the 2006 Annual Heavy Duty Truck Rally.  With our heavy RV, we wanted to see what all the fuss was about in pulling fifth wheels with semi-tractors.  We figured it would be a good learning experience for us and our website readers.

And it was.  We learned a lot, but more than anything, towing with a Heavy Duty Truck is about having the biggest safety margin possible in towing and, especially, stopping. 

We met more fine people, including Jack and Danielle.  Jack has been our techinical advisor and full-timing mentor since the beginning.  So it was great to finally meet him.

They followed us into Oklahoma where we stayed at a gorgeous Corps of Engineers Campground on Kaw Lake.  Then we parted ways as we headed a bit east to visit family on northeastern Oklahome.

After that we continued east into Arkansas where we made tracks to the Buffalo National River.  As one of only two or three natural rivers in the United States untouched by damming, we wanted to experience the pristine waters in our canoe.

We stayed in Cotter, Arkansas where the White River, famous for fly-fishing, ran behind our RV site.  While there we canoed nine miles on the Buffalo.  Then we took our inflatable pontoon fishing boat with an electric motor (got that one back in the summer) out for a real adventure.

We floated the 22 miles of the Buffalo River National Forest where there are not takeouts and no people the whole way.  We took along our tent and gear and camped overnight on a rocky bank under a blanket of stars on a clear autumn night.  THAT was definitely our best adventure so far.  And it's pretty hard to choose between the Buffalo National River and the Okefenokee Swamp for pristine natural beauty.

While in Arkansas, we took fly-fishing lessons and caught rainbow trout just behind our campsite.  Eventually, the first of November, we moved on down to Hot Springs and then to Texarkana, TX.

We had accepted a volunteer position driving a nature tram at the Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge in the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas.  It was our first attempt at workamping on the road and it was a four and a half month gig.  We had to be there by December 1 for training.

We continued south through November, stopping to visit more website visitors and spending Thanksgiving with the Texas Boomers RV Club at an RV park north of Houston.

Further south, we hit the Padre Island National Seashore where we boondocked for one night without hook-ups and realized one and for all that we were not properly equipped for boondocking.  We will take care of that problem this summer.

Our First "Job" On The Road

We had heard from so many people how wonderful the Rio Grande Valley is for RVers.  We heard about the friendliness and how the snowbirds are welcomed and referred to as Winter Texans.  We heard about the eco-tourism and all the wonderful things to see and do.

Our expectations were hig.  But I have to be honest.  We arrived in The Valley to strong winds and a highway under construction that just connected one uninspiring town after another.

We thought we would find quaint little communities with a Spanish influence.  Instead, we saw only highways and strip malls and flat land cleared for agriculture.  It is not an exaggeration to say that I was a little panicked.  "It's ugly here and we have committed to four and half months!"

Fortunately, you can't always go by first impressions.  The Valley is not the most attractive place in the world, but it has its own charms and features.  The people are friendly and the RVing community is wanted.  It is certainly easy to find a spot for the winter and the monthly rates are one third to one half of the rates found in South Florida.

Still, we were happy to be staying in a remote volunteer compound on refuge property.  We still insist we had the biggest RV sites with the most space in between in The Valley.

As for our "job" we had two weeks of training and three couples drove the tram two days a week and three days every third week.  On the weeks we drove the tram only two days, we worked with visitors services or in some other capacity.  Linda and I guided canoe trips on the Rio Grande River on our non-tram days.

So we "worked" three consecutive days and had four consecutive days off each week.  And we love guiding tours and intrepretation, so it wasn't like work for us at all.  In return for our time, we got a free full hook-up site all winter, free propane, free local phone service, free reverse osmosis water, and a $10 stipend per person per day that we drove the tram.

Even though the locals told us they had the worst winter weather in several years, the climate was better than in many other places.  And the time, December 1 through April 15, went by much faster than expected.  Our fellow tram drivers were conscientious and capable, and we had a great time with all the other volunteers as well.

It was a great experience, and I think we ended up saving about $4,000 in expenses.  We are not sure if we will return for that particular position next year, but we certainly won't shy away from staying in one place three or four months for the winter to be tour guides or something similar.

Back On The Road

That almost brings us back up to today.  After leaving the Valley, we made our way up through San Antonio and then west to the little town of Concan where we attended a nature festival called Nature Quest.

We enjoyed the festival and the area as we stayed an extra week.  But as I write this we are staying at Seminole Canyon State Park as we make our way to Big Bend National Park.  Then it will be another couple of weeks in Texas before touring New Mexico and Colorado over the next three to four months.

So, What Have We Learned?

We have learned that we absolutely love this lifestyle!!  We are having a ball and can see ourselves doing this for many, many years to come.

We have learned that RVers have to be the most generous, friendliest, most approachable group of people in the United States.  And we are proud to be part of that group.

We have learned that full-timing takes patience, a great attitude, and a free spirit.  But with an open heart and an open mind, the rewards are unbelievable.

We have learned that full-timers spend more money in the first year or two to get their set-up just right.  Hopefully, we are at the end of that cycle.

We have learned that our budget of $2,500 a month (including all insurance and everything) is workable.  And we have learned that we could probably live on about $1,500 a month if we workamped year round.  Good to know.

We have learned that there is no right way to RV, but there are certain safety measures everyone must take.  That has more to do with RV weight and towing issues and knowing our limitations.  But our top three safety accessories are a whole system power protector/surge guard, a NOAA weather alert radio, and scissor-style wheel chocks.

Finally, full-timing is not for everyone.  However, we know it is for us and we know two more things.  Those that try it and give it up rarely regret the experience, and the number one regret of full-timers is that they didn't start sooner.

We are only two years in and we move very slowly.  But we have packed more fun, more adventure, more friends, more heartwarming stories, and more happiness into those two years than in any other five or ten year period prior.  It is truly a wonderful life.