If you knew then what you know now...

[CanadianTraveler]

for those that have ventured out on the road already and are willing to look back at the beginning, what would you say to those that are in the beginning stages of starting out? do you have any advise, tips or hacks you could share or just general information?

Thanks

 

[MrNoodly]

Get the lowest mileage, best condition vehicle you can afford. Every other decision is trivial in comparison.

 

[highdesertranger]

I move this from the Newcomer's Corner. please only use the Newcomer's Corner once for an introduction. highdesertranger

 

[eDJ_]

Welcome to the CRLV Forums    

What I counsel beginners to consider doing is starting out with week end camp outs and day trips where you stealth camp overnight.  (this could be on a Walmart, Lowe's, or Sam's parking lot now where legal to do so)
One of these two trips (camping week end) will acclimate you to living out of your Van/Pickup/RV etc while in camp.  It will allow you to build up your camping skills which would include learning to socialize with like minded folks you meet to sit around a campfire in the evenings and swap stories.  It is a way learn that will encompass
your cooking skills,  rigging skills (like for a rain or bright sun light etc) and all of that Boy Scout/Girl Scout stuff.
Then there is the activities such as hiking, bicycling etc in nature.  And there are the people you'll meet who may be a bit different than what you have been used to.  So you will learn to be a bit more laid back and accepting of others as they all have their story.  These are some of the things you will adjust to.

As for the Day Trips,  they may just be to go see Cities you haven't seen or seen for awhile.  You may want to go visit some historic sites, and just have some "alone time on the road" to just get out and away from everything.  You may be out for as little as 18 hours driving, visiting places and sites,  with no particular objective in mind.  If you get tired, pull into a road side rest stop and find a shady spot (if possible) to nap for a couple of hours.  This may be your first step in Stealth camping.  (not really Stealthy...but for a beginner it is a good simulation).   This is a great way to decompress while feeling exhilarated.

If you can start out doing some of each of these exercises,  you will be on your way to preparing yourself for
living on the road.  It is all built on this foundation.  You will in time gain experience and knowledge here on this Forum and from people's blogs, websites, and from those you meet when camping in campgrounds.   When you are Day Tripping you may want to keep more to yourself and consider "Safety First" (which implies your personal safety)

When I was doing a lot of travel in my Van years ago I was doing it for a different purpose than what we do here.  I was working for a large Corporation.  I was single and agreed to move about the many divisions of the Corporation on short notice.  I had a economy car I could tow behind it.  So I learned to build some Nomadic Furniture that could quickly be set up or knocked down,  pack the car with kitchen, bathroom, bedroom stuff
so when I got to my new digg's I could quickly set up on arrival and be ready for the next day with the empty car to drive to work on a Monday.  After work Monday....I'd go home and unpack the Van so it would be empty should I need it in my work.  Then Tuesday evening begin unpacking and setting up everything else.
I used to check out the RV's in the Road Side Rest Parking lots and dream of a day I could do it.  So the idea came to me that I could begin to use the Van on the week ends like I did back in my days in College.  I towed a small motor boat behind it back then.   I had become so involved Career wise that I was forgetting how to play.  Just Work Work Work....make the Parents Proud....grow more and more hollow....sit with the "business types" I worked with who seemed to live for the expense account funded 3 martini lunches and listen to them talk about Golf....and more drinking.   I felt life had taken a 180 degree turn on me.  I was in a new town all the time with new people who had most likely succumb to alcoholism out of boredom and found a live in addiction.  A lot of these guys lived to go out with the vendor salesrep's who were by each day and drink so they wouldn't have to go home to the family and own up to responsibility for something they just didn't want to face responsibility for that much.   And the free alcohol by this time had it's grip on them.

So, this being a single guy and mobile was my salvation.  from Corporate, from family ties, and from alcohol.
(and I think more and more young men are becoming aware of this reality now).   It has a track record of Divorce and having to wrestle with one's own demons while finding your way back to standing on your own two feet.   Just watch Bob's video,  "Without Bounds". 

If you can embark on this path as a beginner,  you may just be able to find a "sweet spot" in life that will have you whole and happy.  (and capable of making logical well reasoned decisions.....oppose to following the "I should's" and "I ought to's" that are often the realities of others you would be tempted to replicate.

Below are two websites I took the time and trouble to construct for those like yourself.  You are welcome to take any ideas from them that you can use.  The bottom site is a portal of things I have found that would be useful based on my own experiences on the road.  Some are for one's convenience and some for comforts.
It is so much easier today with the internet and a Cell.   I only had an old Rand McNally Campground Atlas my Dad gave me when I started out and a bunch of pointers and mentoring he had invested in me.  The Atlas gave indications of the facilities each campground offered.  Shower/bath houses, Laundry, Beach/Swimming, etc.  There is just so much more available at your fingertips today. 

All the best with your setting up your rig and in your travels !

 

[skyl4rk]

Travel slowly, move short distances, then stay for a while.

Have interests other than driving fom place to place.

A simpler rig means less maintenance stress.

Get rid of stuff you don't use.

Alternate from camps with solitude to camps with friends and social life.

Learn to appreciate natural beauty.

 

[Richard]

for those that have ventured out on the road already and are willing to look back at the beginning, what would you say to those that are in the beginning stages of starting out?
...

I stumbled through my first year mostly due to finances. I was rich in enthusiasm and low on money when I started. That was fine until an unexpected emergency expense arose and I found myself suddenly without enough money to make it through my first month. Fortunately a friend allowed me to stay with them until my next month's check and I repeated this dynamic about every 2-3 months over the course of a year.

The stress of living this way is too much for me to handle right now so I'm taking a break from van living. I rented an apartment and I'm going to lick my wounds, do my best to learn the lessons from my experience, and save as much as I can as a financial buffer for my next attempt at living on the road.

Enthusiasm will take a person very far but, when a matter arises where another must be paid to do something on our behalf (e.g., medical matters not covered by insurance, or repairs that one isn't equipped or skilled enough to make on one's own), there's no substitute for money in reserve (well, I suppose credit cards would do for some but I don't use them).

My tip, as obvious as it may be to others, is one that I failed to give its proper consideration: have a sizable nest-egg in anticipation of an unexpected 'oops!' Looking back at the things I encountered, I think if I'd have had about $3,000 in reserve, I'd have been able to weather the 'oopsies' in my experience.

 

[TrainChaser]

As eDJ said, do it in small increments first.  The old saying that "you have to crawl before you can walk" is an old saying for a good reason:  it's true.  You're going to fall down occasionally, but you'll learn from the experiences.

You'll learn what you need and what you don't need.  You'll learn what works and what doesn't.  Theory and Real Life aren't the same thing.

Go slow and test the waters.  If something nudges you and says what you're planning to do isn't a good idea, pay attention.  

Stay on good roads (paved or good gravel/dirt).  Ask other travelers if they've ever been stuck out in the boondocks, and how they got out.  They will enjoy telling you, and if something like it ever happens to you, you will have a backup of ideas to help you get out.  Getting stuck in deep sand, rocks or water isn't a learning experience if you have NO IDEA on how to get out of it.  And I guarantee that you will be out of range of a cell tower. 

NEVER try to cross moving water -- it takes a lot less depth than you think to turn a bad idea into disaster.

Like the alkies preach, just take it one day at a time.  Like when you started the first grade, you weren't reading Shakespeare at the end of the year.

 

[Suanne]

For me, I needed to recognize that the first few weeks on the road is a transition and to just be patient, keep working it, because it gets better. This was true of my experience taking test runs, and every time I changed from living in my sticks-and-bricks to living out of my vehicle as a part-timer, from 09 through 16. Now, as a full-timer, the same was true when I recently switched vehicles, even though they were very similar. It's a matter of learning where everything is, making sure what you use on a daily basis is stored where it's handy, becoming comfortable waking in a different location with its unique sounds and surroundings, and establishing stable routines dispite the ever-changing locales. I love this lifestyle; it suits me ... and there's still a learning curve when making the transition.

Suanne ... now at home in her "new" Prius

 

[mpruet]

My tip, as obvious as it may be to others, is one that I failed to give its proper consideration: have a sizable nest-egg in anticipation of an unexpected 'oops!' Looking back at the things I encountered, I think if I'd have had about $3,000 in reserve, I'd have been able to weather the 'oopsies' in my experience.

That's fundamental advise for anyone - nomad or not.  As granny often said "Save for a rainy day 'cause it's gonna rain ..."

 

[Blanch]

Two things I learned the hard way:
Chain down your generator as people steal them. Mine was stolen while I was sitting in my travel trailer and the generator was under the trailer, basically right under my butt.

Have all your important equipment ( for me medical equipment) be 12 volt based. That way if you have to you can use your cigarette lighter in your vehicle to operate it.

And a third piece of advice, if a road looks iffy get out and walk it before you drive it.


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[CautionToTheWind]

What I'm taking with me when the time is right: If you don't use an item twice in one week, you don't need it; unless safety related.

 

[lenny flank]

Go into this with your eyes open. The starry-eyed romantic Jack Kerouac thingie is not reality.

 

[pamerica]

Traveling in the summer from Florida through the South to Arizona, for example, has very real heat challenges.  Not a good idea to travel 70 miles an hour, for 10 hours, in 100 degree heat during the day. 

1. You probably do not have to ask me how I know this.

 Better idea is to travel from 3 a.m. to 11 a.m., with stopping under a tree, in the shade or an RV park along the way the other hours.

Georgia has surprisingly tall mountains that are difficult to traverse in 100-degree heat, with two lanes of big rigs to your right and you cannot pull over.  When your engine thermometer is in the red.

New Mexico is the most beautiful and biggest thing you have ever seen.  This needs a statement by itself.

That being said, make sure you have cell phone service and a good vehicle and lots of gas traveling in New Mexico and Arizona.  If you are from the East, this is simply amazing and you need to be a little prepared.

Don't be scared and be happy if you have the opportunity to do this. If your head's on right, you will meet such amazing friendly people along the way, whether it's at gas stations, restaurants, wherever.  They will like you and will help you if you need it.

If you have connections to this forum and use it while traveling, you can be by yourself and never be alone.

Whatever you decide to do after experiencing this, it will have been totally worth it.

 

[Gypsy Jane]

If at all possible, have a stash sufficient to replace an engine and/or tranny. Or both.
Anything removed from a rig will grow. The longer it's out, the harder it will be to fit it back in.
Thou shalt not ignore thine intuition.


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