I just found this forum in my Bookmarks. I think I was directed to it by a couple in a Sprinter I met in Montana, who are now in Mexico (I think). They're living in a Sprinter full-time, and have been for a few years. I met them at an independent Mercedes mechanic. (If you read this, please contact Bruce, in Florida, in the Mercedes RV.)
So......... I'm 81, male, divorced, and getting ready to travel, again. I've driven solo to Alaska, from Florida, twice in the last 5 years, taking two months each time, in a Mercedes RV. (Currently a 2010 BMW X5 diesel.) I folded the rear seats down, and put a Thermarest solo air mattress diagonally back there, sleeping bag on top. In the triangular area by my feet went the cooking equipment - two small pans, Coleman single-burner stove, coffee cup, instant coffee, plate, utensils, wine de-corker. in the similar area by my head went the folded clean clothes, and a mesh bag with dirty clothes, Tide pods, my toiletries bag, towel, heavy blanket, and fishing equipment. Right front (passenger) seat holds the cooler (get one with good insulating properties) for the eggs, butter, milk for the coffee, fruits and vegetables, salad dressing. Front footwell is the library - magazines that have accumulated, maps, books, camera, iPad, and computer.
Daily routines: Engine is a diesel, so I have a Flying J preferred customer card, which gets me a free shower at a Flying J truck stop for every 50 gallons of diesel. (Trucker's lounge and showers are marvelous!). I sit around the trucker's lounge in the evening (comfortable lounge chairs, free wifi, TV, soft music) to download the day's photos from my iPad to my c[font=Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]omputer, thence to Facebook, so my fans can keep up with me. Then I park among the semis, to sleep. Other sleeping locations include Super Walmarts, which welcome overnight campers, rest areas along the Interstates, and almost anywhere in Alaska. In 4 months on the road, I didn't spend a penny on campg[size=small][font=Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]rounds or motels, except in the Southwest when it was too hot to sleep in the RV. ([/font][/font][/size]Motel 6 was cheap.). Traveling mostly in northern states in the summer, solo, a shower every other day was adequate.
[font=Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]Obviously, traveling solo, this lifestyle was adequate. If I had a lady friend who liked to travel, the RV would be too small. If the reader is a couple, a VW-based Rialto ($25k) or Mercedes Sprinter-based motorhome ($50-100k) would be required. But it needn't be much more expensive on a day-to-day basis. Incidentally, I don't carry a gun, and never had an opportunity to miss it. But, I avoided the big cities and questionable areas. Most Walmarts had a dozen or more over-nighters, fairly close together.[/font]
[font=Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]This is 3/1/2021. I hope to leave again, in about a month. Go for it - YOU ONLY GO AROUND, ONCE![/font]
So......... I'm 81, male, divorced, and getting ready to travel, again. I've driven solo to Alaska, from Florida, twice in the last 5 years, taking two months each time, in a Mercedes RV. (Currently a 2010 BMW X5 diesel.) I folded the rear seats down, and put a Thermarest solo air mattress diagonally back there, sleeping bag on top. In the triangular area by my feet went the cooking equipment - two small pans, Coleman single-burner stove, coffee cup, instant coffee, plate, utensils, wine de-corker. in the similar area by my head went the folded clean clothes, and a mesh bag with dirty clothes, Tide pods, my toiletries bag, towel, heavy blanket, and fishing equipment. Right front (passenger) seat holds the cooler (get one with good insulating properties) for the eggs, butter, milk for the coffee, fruits and vegetables, salad dressing. Front footwell is the library - magazines that have accumulated, maps, books, camera, iPad, and computer.
Daily routines: Engine is a diesel, so I have a Flying J preferred customer card, which gets me a free shower at a Flying J truck stop for every 50 gallons of diesel. (Trucker's lounge and showers are marvelous!). I sit around the trucker's lounge in the evening (comfortable lounge chairs, free wifi, TV, soft music) to download the day's photos from my iPad to my c[font=Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]omputer, thence to Facebook, so my fans can keep up with me. Then I park among the semis, to sleep. Other sleeping locations include Super Walmarts, which welcome overnight campers, rest areas along the Interstates, and almost anywhere in Alaska. In 4 months on the road, I didn't spend a penny on campg[size=small][font=Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]rounds or motels, except in the Southwest when it was too hot to sleep in the RV. ([/font][/font][/size]Motel 6 was cheap.). Traveling mostly in northern states in the summer, solo, a shower every other day was adequate.
[font=Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]Obviously, traveling solo, this lifestyle was adequate. If I had a lady friend who liked to travel, the RV would be too small. If the reader is a couple, a VW-based Rialto ($25k) or Mercedes Sprinter-based motorhome ($50-100k) would be required. But it needn't be much more expensive on a day-to-day basis. Incidentally, I don't carry a gun, and never had an opportunity to miss it. But, I avoided the big cities and questionable areas. Most Walmarts had a dozen or more over-nighters, fairly close together.[/font]
[font=Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]This is 3/1/2021. I hope to leave again, in about a month. Go for it - YOU ONLY GO AROUND, ONCE![/font]
