Hello fellow travelers!

[RearViewMirror]

Today, we just purchased a Jayco Terrain with every option available.

I have to say that it's been a strange 5 months. My wife and I took my daughter on a two week trip to the Grand Canyon, Las Vegas, Zion NP, on up into Utah, and back through Colorado for her senior trip back in June of this year. My wife and I have always planned on moving to Colorado. We were married right outside of Durango 22 years ago and have been going back at least 2-3 times each year. While we were on our trip, I kept on seeing these 4wd Sprinter vans out West. At the time, I honestly didn't know what they were. I just knew that they looked really cool. It wasn't until we were in Utah that I got to see one up close and realized that people are living in these things.

A little bit of background. I retired at the age of 48 from the Little Rock Fire Dept. in 2017. I spent over 90% of my career on the busiest Truck Company in the South. We averaged over 3500 runs per year. Roughly calculated, I made close to 40,000 runs during my career. And as you can imagine, I've seen it all. We worked a 24 hr shift and then 48 hrs off. Not once did I ever get a full nights sleep at the station. I finished out my career and retired as soon as I could. Our plan has always been to move to Colorado. My daughter will be attending the University of Colorado Boulder next year. After much research, my wife and I decided that purchasing a custom van that we could live out of would allow us the freedom to go to the places we've always wanted to go without any time constraints. Most importantly, it will allow my wife to retire and we can enjoy our retirement together for as long as possible.

I didn't plan on purchasing a van until we were close to selling our house in the spring of next year. But as most of you know, Mercedes Benz is switching over to an AWD system and a new powertrain. We wanted a 4wd and those are becoming very hard to find. And by the time we put our house up for sale, who knows how hard it would be to find one if we waited that long? So we pulled the trigger today and bought a brand new unit. My parents are in poor health so we have to remain mobile in case something happens. So this seemed like the best option. We originally were going to buy a 144 Sprinter and have it custom built. But time just wasn't on our side. So we decided on the Jayco because it offers the most options out of all the "turn key" options out there. We looked at a Revel but after much research, we chose the Jayco because of the battery system. I felt that nothing could compare with the sheer amount available on board power would suit our needs the best. Obviously there will be many upgrades to come and that list is very long. But for the time being, this will suit us just fine until we sell our house come spring.

I look forward to getting to know the members on here and learning things that I may not have thought of. Until then... I will be consuming as much information as I can.

 

[txmnjim]

welcome, and good luck on your adventures!

 

[rvwandering]

Congratulations and welcome to the forum!
Please read over the Tips, Tricks, and Rules to learn more about how the forum works.

 

[Carla618]

Today, we just purchased a Jayco Terrain with every option available. <snip>

I look forward to getting to know the members on here and learning things that I may not have thought of. Until then... I will be consuming as much information as I can.

Very cool rig. Best of luck on your adventures!

 

[bullfrog]

Welcome! Watch your spending as new found freedom can get expensive, don’t ask me how I know! Lol!!!

 

[RearViewMirror]

Welcome! Watch your spending as new found freedom can get expensive, don’t ask me how I know! Lol!!!

Thank you all for the welcome!

I completely understand about the spending. We didn't plan on purchasing a van "right now". But, as you know... Mercedes is switching to an AWD system and a different engine. So we felt that if we were going to get the one we wanted, we better go ahead and jump on this one. I already have a long list of upgrades listed that I would like to do to the van (over time). Right now? It's basically our daily driver for the time being. That said... When I say "daily driver"? I mean that I'm retired and my wife works remotely from home. Our neighborhood is within a mile or two of every convenience known. There are any number of restaurants close by, Target is less than a mile from our house, Kroger is just across the freeway, etc... So our "daily drives" consist of short trips generally.

The upgrades will really start happening once we sell our house in the spring as or house is almost paid for. Most of that money will go into our investments but some of it will be reserved for upgrades that I would like to do to the van, settling my daughter into college life, etc... But I figure with the upgrades that I have in mind, it should cost around $25,000 and we'll be done. The van came with a 6 year 100,000 bumper to bumper warranty with scheduled maintenance from Mercedes also. So there is a little worry off of our mind. We won't be messing with any of the electronics in the van itself as they are sufficient enough to do everything we need. But things like an Owl Vans spare tire carrier with ladder on the drivers side back door and an Owl Vans Sherpa with boxes for recovery gear on the passenger side back door. A new Forerunner roof rack for maybe a more robust solar system, a Van Compass 4.3 suspension, a Hammerhead bumper with Baha lights, and a 12,000 lb winch with synthetic cable for the front. After that? It's just interior storage solutions. So yes, it's a lot of money but that money will be spent at a later time. Of course things may change and new products might come out that surpass what is out there right now. But that's the jest of what I'm looking at.

 

[peteg59]

Nice looking unit. Congrats on pulling the trigger so to speak, on it.
What is the towing cap. of it?
Perhaps you can tow a small car or side x side to utilize for the short runs to town, etc.?
Good luck...

 

[RearViewMirror]

Nice looking unit. Congrats on pulling the trigger so to speak, on it.
What is the towing cap. of it?
Perhaps you can tow a small car or side x side to utilize for the short runs to town, etc.?
Good luck...

Towing capacity is 3500lbs. Though we won't be towing anything with it. Once we get our daughter settled into college we'll be on the road exploring places we have always wanted to travel to. I grew up in Hawaii and Southern California. The only states that I have not explored out West are Washington and Oregon. I've only been to a very small portion of Idaho so the plan is to start off in Idaho and then travel through Washington and take the PCH down through Oregon on into Northern California. I've never been North of LA so we'd like to see Yosemite and all the Northern part of the state has to offer. I've been all over all the rest of the Western states but we will explore places we haven't visited before. The appealing thing to me is having no timeframe that we have to be at a certain place at a certain time. We'll just go at our own pace and when we find a place that looks interesting we'll stop and explore. I've always been a nomad at heart. So this lifestyle fits my personality perfectly. Luckily my wife is the same way.

 

[Tony's Dream]

welcome to the site. I hope you live your dreams. We too thought about moving to Colorado, south of Fort Carson, but things just never worked out. I will be traveling through the south west next spring.

 

[RearViewMirror]

welcome to the site. I hope you live your dreams. We too thought about moving to Colorado, south of Fort Carson, but things just never worked out. I will be traveling through the south west next spring.

Moving to Colorado has never been a question. No matter what, I was eventually going to move there.

A little bit of a backstory. My biological father (there is a reason I refer to him that way) was in the Marines. I grew up in Hawaii, California, Virginia, and back to California. My parents got a divorce right when I turned 16 and we moved back to this state. I graduated college and only used my degree for about 6 months. A friend of mine talked me into taking the test for the FD and the rest is history. But from that point on I was stuck in this state. 28 years later, I got to retired at the age of 48. If I could have moved to Colorado the day after I retired I would have. But I didn't want to disrupt my daughter from the only life she has known up to this point. She is in the best school district in the state and she is making straight "A's" and has all AP classes. But she is a lot like me when it comes to wanting to move out of this state. She chose the University of Colorado on her own so that is where she will start classes next year.

Luckily, my wife and I share the same passion. She loves to travel as much as I do. And I'll be honest, this entire "van life" thing just kind of came out of nowhere over the last 6 months. I never knew this was an option. But the more my wife and I talked about it and researched it, it became kind of an obsession. Much of the reason we made this purchase is in the first post. And there is risk involved in what we have just done. We just spent a large sum of money on what will essentially be our home on wheels once we sell our house. But I'm willing to take this risk because of what it will allow us to do. The biggest thing is it will allow my wife to retire and we can travel and do the things we've always wanted to do without a timeframe to do them in. The other thing is, I don't want to be laying on my deathbed thinking "I sure wish I would have done this when we actually had the chance". I know we are living outside of the norms of what most would consider a "normal" life. But I sometimes feel sad for those that don't step out of their comfort zone and take that risk. It just might pay off.

No matter what happens. We'll do this for as long as we can or as long as we want to. Then we will eventually settle down and plant roots in Colorado Springs.

 

[bullfrog]

Nothing is for sure or permanent so be sure to be flexible and willing to accept changes that will come your way. Some will be good and some will be bad. Build and keep a large emergency fund and you both should be ready to go back to working but on the road at a place you want, doing what you want. I retired at 53 years old but still enjoy working at 71 years old. My wife enjoys the money! Lol!!! We have worked and lived in National Parks and Recreational Areas for the last 17 years in Southeastern Utah close to the Four Corners area. I highly recommend it. As you get older you may find as we did your body may not like the cold and family may gain importance so leave your options for later life open.

 

[RearViewMirror]

Nothing is for sure or permanent so be sure to be flexible and willing to accept changes that will come your way. Some will be good and some will be bad. Build and keep a large emergency fund and you both should be ready to go back to working but on the road at a place you want, doing what you want. I retired at 53 years old but still enjoy working at 71 years old. My wife enjoys the money! Lol!!! We have worked and lived in National Parks and Recreational Areas for the last 17 years in Southeastern Utah close to the Four Corners area. I highly recommend it.

I agree. Nothing in life is guaranteed. You can always make money but the only commodity you can not buy is time. I graduated with a business administration degree and then only used it for 6 months before joining the FD. I was also afforded the ability to get my paramedic license and chemistry degree while I was on the FD. Though I have no plans on using either one of those degrees because of the limited mobile options, I still have them in my back pocket if needed. My wife has worked her way up in the largest teaching University Hospital in the state. Ironically she is also a licensed barber.

I'm not sure what it was, but while most people on the FD were spending money, I was putting as much money into my pension system and investments as I could. I'll never complain about the pay that they paid us on the FD. We were well compensated. Once we sell our house in the spring, that will just add to the amount of money we have saved up so we can invest that also while keeping some out for general spending or an emergency fund. We can easily make it on my pension. But I've also thought about what you are doing with working for the National Parks and Recreation Areas. And that part of the country you are in? We are very familiar with. And we may end up doing something like what you are doing. Living in a scenic area and getting paid to do so has always sounded like a win win to me.