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My husband and I are loving the full time RV life and traveling through the U.S.A. Join us as we share our experiences and emotions from our preparation period to traveling around the country in our fifth wheel trailer home. To follow us easily, sign up to receive an email notification of new blog posts. Click to subscribe or go to the Contact page via the menu link above.
Travel
After our stops in Deadwood and Sturgis, we headed to Hart Ranch Camping Resort in Rapid City, SD for a 4 day stay. I picked this spot because it was part of our RPI membership and it appeared to be centrally located to the places we wanted to visit in South Dakota. It turned out to be the perfect place to stay in this amazing area and the price through RPI was fantastic - only $30 a night. There is so much to see near Rapid City and it was a perfect location for our bucket list stop: Mount Rushmore.
We had a great time visiting Deadwood and Sturgis over the Memorial Day weekend. Deadwood was very busy when we arrived early Saturday afternoon; filled with a mix of families, gamblers and many who just wanted to party. Definitely a great place to people watch.
As we prepared to leave Scotts Bluff, we had a decision to make, i.e. where to go??? I think that I had mentioned that the only reservation that I made in advance was for 4 nights at a campground in Rapid City, SD so that we could visit Mount Rushmore, which was our main destination for this trip. I didn’t want to go there over a holiday so we planned to get there on the Tuesday after Memorial Day. Well, it was only Friday, the start of the holiday weekend and we had no plans.
As we left the bison ranch in Cheyenne, we headed across the plains towards Nebraska. I expected a flat grassy expanse of the prairie and a boring drive. I have to say that we were pleasantly surprised by landscape along the way.
Initially, as we headed north out of Colorado towards Wyoming, the snow capped Rocky Mountains provided beautiful scenery until all of a sudden we were surrounded by the High Plains. It is hard to describe the beauty in the pastel greens and yellows of the rolling hills and large flat grazing lands of the plains. I know others who have said driving across the plains can get boring but I thought there was tremendous beauty all around us.
After the winds blew us out of Kansas, we headed further west to Colorado. Our first stop was Pueblo where we planned a night at a Cracker Barrel.
When we arrive at a Crackle Barrel, we always check with the manager to confirm we can spend the night. This is the first time that the manager said no. He explained that they had too many people stay for days and wouldn’t leave. It was near other businesses including a Walmart and he said none of them allowed overnight parking.
We drove out of Branson and the Ozarks and headed into Kansas and the Great Plains. Yes, this is truly flat land with the wind constantly blowing. On that first day in Kansas, we really felt the winds. It was blowing at us pretty hard for most of the drive and with higher profile vehicles, we could really feel it. I guess I should be happy that the van isn’t any taller. It would have been more of an impact with a higher van.
We have been through Missouri a couple of times but never stopped in Branson. I noticed on the map that Branson wasn’t too far from Hot Springs and not too far off of our route to Kansas so I suggested we head that way. Definitely a benefit of not having plans or reservations; you can wing it and just explore where ever you want!
As we entered May, Florida was starting to get pretty hot and we were ready to head north for the summer. So the question was, where to go to? When we started our RV life journey, our goal was to see the lower 48 states. At this point, we had visited 33 states, with only 2 missed in the south - Louisiana and Arkansas. We thought we could visit those states and then head north to visit a few Mid-West states with a goal to get to one of our bucket list items - Mount Rushmore.
Planning
Some people approach the RV lifestyle without making plans and just going with the flow, letting the road take them wherever it leads. There are risks with not planning in advance, especially finding places to stay. For us, that would be too stressful and nerve wracking. I like having a plan and knowing we have RV sites scheduled in areas that we want to visit and Tim wants to know he has a definite place to stop after 3-4 hours of driving. So instead of last minute planning, I tend to plan about six months in advance so most of our nights are booked. I leave a few nights open for travel days for a little flexibility on those days.
We have now been in Zephyrhills for a month and it has started to feel like home and less like we are tourists. To be honest, we haven’t been touring much at all the last 3 weeks. First I was down with a head cold, then when I was getting better, Tim came down with it. For him, it has now lingered for over 2 weeks and his cough was not getting better. We finally decided to contact his doctor and he is now on antibiotics. I am hoping that does the trick and he will be feeling better very soon.
Campgrounds in Pennsylvania typically close mid to late October and most are not busy after the middle of the month. So we thought traveling from mid October through November would be easy to find places to stay. Wrong! I had to call multiple campgrounds to find one with availability at our first stop in Kentucky. My assumption was that it was because it was early October and later in the month it would be easier to find places to stay. Wrong again!
We wanted to make sure that we got together with family and friends before we leave for our life on the road. For some reason, that is always so hard to do. Everyone’s lives are so busy.
We officially moved into the RV last week and completed our first full week living at the campground. It was a fairly uneventful week as I was still working for AHN remotely. I agreed to help transition to the new director and not officially retire until today, 9/20.
Another month has gone by since I found time to create another post. Between working and traveling back and forth between the campground and Pittsburgh, the time just disappears. We are officially living in the camper and staying at Katie’s in Pittsburgh during the week while I work. The Fifth wheel is starting to feel like home and we are getting it set up the way that we want. I have the kitchen and bathroom cabinets organized and found room for everything that I want to take. I wish it always looked as neat as the picture Right now, it is a bit cluttered as we are still working on the bedroom and organizing the closet. Have stuff scattered in the living and dining area as that work is underway. The picture below is the bedroom before we emptied the closet. It is definitely coming along and we should be ready to leave by October 1.
We are so close but yet so far away. That is how I feel right now. We still have way too much work to do to be ready for this full time adventure. It is coming fast so we have to get moving to be ready. Only 2 more months to work and then before you know it, we will be on the road. Read more to see how we are spending our last few months in Pittsburgh.
Spring is here so that means summer is just around the corner. That hit Tim and I pretty hard and I wouldn’t be lying if I said, panic set in. We looked around and realized that we still have a great deal to do in order to be ready to RV full time. So for the past two weeks, we have really focused on downsizing. Each of us approaches the process very differently. Today, I am going to share some tips based on my process.
Tim and I started planning for our retirement about 5 years ago. We spent quite a bit of time researching the lifestyle, types of RVs and trailers, budgets, and places to visit but very little time on what to do with our stuff. I guess we thought that part would be easy and we would have plenty of time to do it. Now that we are only a few months away from living in our RV, I can honestly say that we still have way too much stuff.
Tim’s Turn
Well as any story goes, there are hiccups, or challenges to the main character that must be overcome, which always is resolved before the final credits roll!, As our story begins, Deb was taking Trent last Monday to the groomers at Petco, for a much needed bath, nails, teeth. You know, basically the works as far as dog grooming goes! Then the unexpected happened.
Well chapter two, the second half whatever you want to call it, Deb and I have finished the 24 states east of the Mississippi and are now about to start the remaining 24; those being west of the Mississippi (I know you knew that). Yes, only 48 states instead of 50. Our goal when we started was to visit the lower 48 states. We do not plan to drive this rig to Alaska; that is just too far for us.
Some people may think that living on the road, must be great. Seeing new places, experiencing new adventures is the life of dreams, right?
Well, I had a new adventure the other day that I will share with my four faithful followers. Deb and I have sort of defined roles regarding the upkeep and chores associated with our travels.
“Wah wah”. Is that how you spell the noise a baby makes when crying?…because that is my story, and it’s a doubleheader! On December 23rd, of this now past year, our daughter Katie blessed us with our first grandchild. A healthy granddaughter weighing in at 6 pounds, 8 ounces, and standing at a proud height of 21 inches, if she was standing (won’t be long).
Deb on occasion requests that I write a blog. She knows that I choose to stay away from Facebook and Instagripe, but in an effort to keep that lovely smile on her face, I will take another swing at this social media thing. Star Trek had a five year mission to explore strange new worlds. While they only made it three before the show was canceled, they did give you a new episode every week. I will try to remind the Captain of this vessel that we need to get more episodes out there.
It is amazing how fast the Christmas Season is upon us again! It is very true, “The older you get, the faster time flies”. Seems odd to say after the past year when our lives seem to stand still in this age of covid. Living in a smaller world, well our world for sure. We have been keeping our distance, wearing masks and doing what we should during these challenging times. We set out to explore our great country and instead got to know each other a little better.
Well, life on the road has been a little less exciting since the stay in place order was put in place. While we have been social distancing, my wife thought we could social distance more quickly in a Mustang GT, so we bought one.
Twiddling my thumbs! Yeah, you are right, too hard to do when you are short on thumbs! I told Deb I would write a blog. When your life is in a holding pattern, finding topics is not so easy. We have been spending a considerable amount of time together. Trying to “social distance” ourselves from others, to protect both ourselves and them.
Big news! Deb drove the truck, towing our 5th wheel trailer…and I have to say “She did a fine job”. I was surprised when she asked me if she could get some driving time in before we arrived for our three month stay in Zephyrhills.
Off to see the world…or the lower 48 States, sounds like a plan. A good one! Like Deb, I am interested in seeing the country and traveling to new places. I, however, am finding that the greatest most memorable part of our travels are the people we encounter.
Diary
As we entered May, Florida was starting to get pretty hot and we were ready to head north for the summer. So the question was, where to go to? When we started our RV life journey, our goal was to see the lower 48 states. At this point, we had visited 33 states, with only 2 missed in the south - Louisiana and Arkansas. We thought we could visit those states and then head north to visit a few Mid-West states with a goal to get to one of our bucket list items - Mount Rushmore.
I left off the last blog promising plans of travel to the 2 southern states we hadn’t yet visited: Arkansas and Louisiana. Well, best laid plans had to be changed again! I saw my doctor on March 6 and got the go ahead for travel. We were already packed and ready to go. Can you tell we were anxious to head south again and warm up?
We arrived back in Pennsylvania early January, just in time for the deep freeze. We haven’t had to deal with cold winter temperatures for a few years, so waking up to -20 degree below zero wind chills was a shock to our bodies. I have to say having the condo to stay in was quite comfortable so it was a good thing that we had purchased it in the fall. Definitely good to have a home base in Pittsburgh.
I mentioned in the last blog post that we had big changes coming soon. At the end of October, we purchased a one bedroom “co-op” apartment in Avalon, PA. I would call it a condo but it is a co-op which is slightly different. We own a share of the building instead of a deed to a specific condo. We weren’t sure of the difference at first and have learned that the biggest benefit is that taxes are included in our HOA fee. So we don’t pay taxes separately since the building is taxed as the entire building. The HOA fee also includes gas and water. The furnace, air conditioner and water heater is all maintained by the building - another big benefit.
When we first discussed living full time in the RV, we thought that we would travel for 5 years and then settle down with a place both north and south. We started working towards that long term plan 2 years ago with the purchase of the motorhome. At that time, our thoughts were to leave the fifth wheel in Pennsylvania to be our summer home and then stay south in the winter with the motorhome and still travel in it spring and fall. The travel part worked well for two years, but leaving the fifth wheel did not.
I looked back at my posts this year and see that I have really slowed down on writing these. For that I apologize and I certainly hope to get better at it in the coming year. So what is my excuse? I could say that it has been a very busy summer but that would not really be accurate. We certainly were quite busy early on with working on the fifth wheel, but since we shipped it off for repairs, things definitely slowed down a bit. So if we weren’t busy, why haven’t I posted much?
After the fifth wheel was shipped out for repair work, we finally had some free time to relax and enjoy ourselves. We went into Pittsburgh for a few days and some more doctors appointments and then headed out for a family vacation on July 4th to Baker Run Hunting and Fishing Club. This is the camp that Tim has belonged to for years located in Potter County, PA. We try to get there at least once a year. This time, Katie, Rosie, Kim, Greg and our niece Jenny and her boyfriend Dan, all joined us at the camp.
What a stormy and rainy Spring we have had this year in Pennsylvania which has made it difficult to get out and do much or to get any work done on the RV. Yes ,we need to get work done on the Fifth Wheel again this Spring. When we arrived back at Shady Acres Campground where we left the Fifth Wheel for the winter, we discovered signs of rodent infestation again.
During the last couple of months in Florida, we really didn’t play tourist very much. We spent most of our time just enjoying life at the RV park and participating in many of their weekly activities. We enjoyed the daily exercise with the Walk Fit program on most weekday mornings and spent time walking Trent around the park so he got some exercise too. We also joined in on game nights a few times a week and enjoyed many of the potluck meals as well as Taco Tuesdays. Participation was a great way to get to know our neighbors and make friends at our winter home.
After 2 days of touring near Rapid City, SD, Tim needed a break. He decided to stay at the campground for a day with Trent and relax. Well, he did catch up on our laundry so it wasn’t total relaxation for him. While he did that, I decided to drive Needles Highway through Custer State Park. I knew that Tim would not like this drive with the tight hairpin turns, rock tunnels and lots of steep drop offs. I told him afterwards that the drive through Badlands National Park was kiddie land compared to this drive. Needles Highway is not for the faint of heart!