Not committed to full-timing yet. But planning for it.

[bluegoatwoods]

We're a recently retired couple. Me, late 50s. And my wife is in her early 50s. We have a home that's modest, but likable to us. One bonus is that it's among some gorgeous trees and rather wooded ground with plenty of elevation changes and some pretty cool wildlife. One could say we live in the woods. But we're not alone. There are plenty of houses around us. Urban conveniences within easy reach. It's just a little more crowded than I'd really like. But pleasant. 

We still have one child at home. But she's a grown up young lady who is capable of living on her own and has done so before. Her long term plan is to set herself up someplace a bit more cosmopolitan than this (one coast or the other) in a few years. She's living at home to build up her resources and won't stay forever.

I made my living on the road for at least half of my career. My wife always envied me my ability to get out and look over a good chunk of this nation. I always told her, "It has ups and downs, believe me". Still, on balance, I call it more good than bad.

I took the family travelling with me a couple of times. Once it was for two solid months in the summer. And I'll give my family some credit; they handled two months straight tent camping, plus multiple setups and tear-downs, quite well. There are even a few amusing stories I could tell about their mishaps and adventures. But I'm starting to ramble off topic. In a nutshell, it was great for the family. The only downside is that they were something like a weight around my own neck and making money was slowed down badly enough that that time was not profitable. That summer cost me more than it earned.

If you go back twenty years and more now, then you'd have found us doing some recreational camping. Even fairly often. But you can also picture the typical situation; with small children we had no money for good equipment. We managed on cheap tents from the Beast of Bentonville. We probably bought a few cheap sleeping bags. Certainly some cheap air mattresses. A few single burner camp stoves that used disposable propane tanks. The rest of our equipment was cooking gear and such that we used at home.
Even that was plenty enjoyable. But keeping up a home and making a living were so exhausting that we let camping go. We were lacking the time and strength. The kids were getting older and it was no longer a thrill for them. And there is something a bit daunting about it when you're using equipment that might turn into an awful mess in bad weather. Heck, I've got a few amusing stories in that vein, too. But....once again....off topic.

Along the way I got some experience with living out of a truck when on the road. After I got sick of Super 8s and Days Inns I built a little bunk in the 'king cab' space of my pickup truck. It was cramped and crowded. But I still loved it and never missed those motels.

The last ten years of my career did not involve travel. So we've been pretty stationary during this time. I've even been pretty reluctant and uncooperative about travel during this time. I'd had enough.

But it's different now. I'm more willing to travel if I can do it more leisurely than I was able to until now. 

But it's not quite that easy. Our house still needs looking after. In fact, there's more for me to do now since I actually do have some time to do it. 

So I had a talk with my wife. We agreed that we'd rather stay here as long as life here is quiet and not stressful. That would mean little travelling, as your home really does require quite a bit of attention.

But we can't really even be sure that the quiet life we're enjoying now is guaranteed to continue. We have two older children who live quite close. They've been less successful about providing their own living. They are on thin ice right now and could be destitute at any time. I'll give them a home if needed here. But I couldn't stand to live with them. I plan on leaving this house to them anyway. The only question is when.

Plus our community over the last 40 or 50 years was built up to 'upper blue collar' standards on good union jobs. Those are gone now. What's going to become of this community? Will some of these homes around here start becoming meth houses and such? That's already a bit of a problem in the county seat not far away. And the commercial sector here has been shrinking. The future here is not certain.

So we agreed that it's time to prepare just in case things 'go south' on us. We want to be ready to pull up stakes and be gone in almost a moment's notice. I suppose my kids will be pleasantly surprised to find that they suddenly have my house, the one they grew up in, plus those belongings of ours which they'd like to keep. It'll probably be quite a happy day for them. But it'll be up to them to keep it and maintain it. I won't be able to afford to subsidize their living.

But, anyway.......we could just rent an apartment and downsize. But getting one in a place that we'd actully like will cost more than I'd want to pay. 

So we're preparing for the day, which could even come abruptly, that we go full-time on the road, RVing, van dwelling, something like that. I can have the basic equipment......very, very basic......immediately. The plan that's hatching will have me a bit better prepared when spring comes. And that should be plenty since I really don't expect to hit the road in a few weeks or a month or anything like that. 

We're going to start with equipment for tent camping. I've got my Amazon shopping cart filled with most of the needed things. I might order them then shop for the rest or I might put everything into one order. It doesn't matter. Unless something goes really, really wrong we don't have to be ready in a week.

The first item of business will be a good tent. I'm considering these:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NOA1X3...colid=H3F0ECURDPZC&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00TFY8Z5...colid=H3F0ECURDPZC&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

Something to sleep on:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AU6AVL...colid=H3F0ECURDPZC&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

Cooking:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079KXVN6J/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?smid=A3A0ODE1PD3YHA&psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0009PURJA/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1
plus some baking sheets and pans, pizza stone and so on for the oven

If we needed to go right away, then we could do it in my pickup truck. But it would be better to do it in my wife's car. A later model Chevy Impala. So that means we'd need a trailer.

The truck might seem like the better choice. But it's a standard cab and we'll have a good sized dog with us. Do-able, but only barely. And not desirable.

There's more to my plans. But maybe this post is getting long enough. I suppose I'll go ahead and post it and come back with more plans and info later.

 

[dawnann7]

It was interesting reading about your thought processes and you're a good writer; thanks for sharing. It's so cool to see how different folks figure out how to get where they're going.

 

[ckelly78z]

At our age, I don't know if a tent would be a good idea. I understand it is more about getting out there and camping, but. I think if I were in your shoes, I would get a topper shell for the truck to be able to sleep in/haul the dog in, and then build a "foamie" camper trailer that could have your kitchen, and storage with an awning for shade.

 

[bluegoatwoods]

It was interesting reading about your thought processes and you're a good writer; thanks for sharing. It's so cool to see how different folks figure out how to get where they're going.

Thank you.

 

[bluegoatwoods]

At our age, I don't know if a tent would be a good idea. I understand it is more about getting out there and camping, but. I think if I were in your shoes, I would get a topper shell for the truck to be able to sleep in/haul the dog in, and then build a "foamie" camper trailer that could have your kitchen, and storage with an awning for shade.

Oh, the tent is only for getting started. Though it's likely to remain as a subsidiary shelter after our more permanent, and weather sheltered, home on wheels is established.

I do have a scheme in mind for a 'quick start' on something more substantial than a tent as shelter. I just didn't want that first post to go on and on forever. I'll come back with thoughts on further shelter before very much longer.

 

[bullfrog]

I would highly recommend the Kodiac 10' x 14' tent as my wife and I have used one as a primary shelter and now as added space to our home built trailer. Only complaint I have is the tripping hazard of the door flap that most good tents have and the weight. A 10' x 10' is easier to find a flat spot for and less weight but if full timing with 2 week stays the extra space of the larger tent is needed for us. I also would recommend the top of the line Thermorest matress as well, although we still use a multi layered memory foam matress inside a cheap Walmart sleeping bag to make a sort of pillow top matress. Either of these on top of 4 of the 20" x 30" yellow top totes zip tied together by their sides creates a nice twin bed if jackets are used in the lower part of the lids to make an even surface ( you can put them together to make a 60" x 80" bed also). I would suggest you get a watertight topper for the truck or build a custom one (Tnttt.com foamies will show you how) as well as a good enclosed cargo trailer or a good utility trailer which you can use for a foamy build at a later time. By getting a slider window in your truck as well in the topper you can make a nice bed for your dog in the bed of the truck. All this is assuming you are in good health and plan to boondock. If that is not the case or you plan to stay in RV parks I would then recommend getting a small light weight camper trailer as it will be easier to deal with in a park. We have done almost exactly what you are thinking you may need to do and found at 53 years and 47 years old we were able to semi retire and work really neat seasonal jobs in beautiful Parks while living in an older motorhome (it is then stored as it is not road worthy)6 months of the year and traveling with our truck,trailer and tent the other 6 months of the year. So for the last 14 years life has been good.

 

[highdesertranger]

couple of points,

like bullfrog said finding 17 feet of level ground for the tent will be a challenge in most areas.

that stove looks like a cheap copy of a Camp Chef not that, that means anything bad.

I have never had any luck with an air mattress. always struggle with keeping the firmness consistent throughout the night. as the temp drops so does the firmness of the mattress. plus they tend to be very cold in cold temps.

those Coleman ovens are worthless in any type of breeze/wind. they are very small, any cookie sheet or pan you use must be super small I don't think they make a pizza stone that small. when they say you can bake in it well maybe in a test lab.

sorry about all the negative waves but I speak from experience. highdesertranger

 

[bluegoatwoods]

couple of points,........


........sorry about all the negative waves but I speak from experience.   highdesertranger

That's okay, highdesertranger. 

That Coleman oven, for instance. I had a notion that it might be pretty worthless. But I couldn't turn it away based on that. Now I've got a plausible third party view on the matter and that oven is going off my list. Maybe I'll get a dutch oven and learn how to use that.

These aren't negative waves, they're valuable info.

 

[AnFear]

+1 on the Coleman oven. I have one and use it on occasion but don't think it will work like an actual oven. It won't. That said it's light, folds small and is fairly inexpensive. Sometimes it's the right tool for the job.
Good luck

 

[bluegoatwoods]

........... A 10' x 10' is easier to find a flat spot for and less weight but if full timing with 2 week stays the extra space of the larger tent is needed for us.  I also would recommend the top of the line Thermorest matress as well, .............

Good points. And they will enter into further calculations. Thanks.

 

[bluegoatwoods]

I'm also beginning to like the idea of mounting a fairly small box behind the rear window of my truck and using that as a place for the dog to ride. Plus using the rest of the bed for cargo, of course.

This will modify some of my plans for a more weather-tight living and sleeping arrangement, descriptions of which I've not even gotten to in this thread. But that'll come soon.

One reason I'd avoided the truck to start with is that it's simply getting old. It would be right at home on a farm, for instance. It won't last forever. But the first rig I build will only be meant to last a couple of years or even less. The truck can probably go that long with care. Then we'll work on getting something more polished and comfortable.

This just might work well. Add in a cheap cargo trailer and we'd be able to carry everything needed and more.

 

[closeanuf]

You can find camper shells on craigslist and you can keep things dry.  I found 1 on craigslist several years ago and used it on 3 different pickups and can't imagine not having 1.

 

[SoCaliVanner]

I modified my camper shell by installing wire shelving over the slide windows (from the inside). That way, I could leave the doggos in the back with both long windows all the way open and not worry about them squeezing out or some idiot getting bitten. A couple of battery powered fans in the wide open windows kept the inside from getting too hot. That setup worked for years of weekending in Cali with 2 large dogs.

 

[bluegoatwoods]

This thinking about boxes and shells on the truck has, sort of, distracted me. That's okay, though, since it's good to ponder options a bit on the slow side. I'm re-thinking some of the equipment I listed above.

I did go ahead and order some of the equipment that will be useful in a power outage, though. That was part of the plan which I never got around to mentioning; some of the road-living equipment might be useful at home in emergencies. I ordered a 2000 W generator plus a few power inverters. We also have a frail and aging relative right near by. (That's where my older daughters plus grandchildren live, as a matter of fact) In a power outage, he'll get the generator in order to give him some heat. Might have to set up a tent in his room, cause even that generator won't give a lot of heat. My wife and I have motor scooters. If I pulled the head and tail-lights I think those tiny engines and stators could power our electricity needs through inverters. No heat, of course. But lights? Yes.

Next I'll get two deep cycle batteries. Probably 100 AH each. Each one will be an 'electron sink' for the generators during emergencies. And they'll be a fine camp set-up for our needs in the future. (Don't forget that one of the reasons I'm writing this down here is that I don't necessarily know what I'm doing. I'm inviting you all to correct me if I've got anything wrong or I'm mis-estimating needs.)

Now.....I doubt if I'll ever get a camper shell. I do recognize their usefulness. But I despise trying to manage the cargo underneath while crawling around under the thing or reaching through the tail and side windows. That's just not for me. But I do like the idea of a smaller box, accessible through the truck rear window. I'll come back to that.

As far as shelter and sleeping arrangements more weather proof than a tent is concerned, my wife and I both find ourselves quite attracted to the tiny teardrop trailers. In the future we'll probably want something bigger. But to get started, a teardrop plus a tent as auxiliary shelter sounds pretty good.

The troubles is that if you want a good tiny teardrop, you're going to have to spend in the neighborhood of $20,000. If we were really living on the road I'd call that a price worth paying. But I'm not making a purchase like that right now. And I'll only make it very, very carefully even in the future.

So I had been thinking about building one of my own on the cheap using a Harbor Freight trailer. My aim would be two-fold; having something that I could quickly hop into and get some sleep while on the road, yet not actually camping, plus having something to retreat to in really bad weather. This camper wouldn't have to be very fancy at all. Maybe windows are not even necessary if it's to be a strictly utilitarian item. I could make such a thing weather-tight and warm/cool enough at low cost.

But now maybe I'll make that 'step two'. Step one just might be a sleeping bunk mounted just behind the cab of the truck, accessible through the truck rear window. Probably access through the bed as well, if only for cleaning it. But that's a small matter. The dog, plus weather sensitive cargo, could ride in there while driving. Propane tank plus batteries could ride underneath. If we were willing to load the rest of our cargo fairly high, perhaps on racks, then we could get along without a cargo trailer. I'd still tend toward a cargo trailer anyway. We want to be able to carry enough stuff to be comfortable. Plus we'd travel in a way that makes a trailer no big burden. I'll gladly follow the advice from (I think) Bob Wells; stay off the interstates. Take state routes and US highways and relax. If I'm able to stop and cop a quick two or three hour sleep without it being a big production, then I'll travel in a very relaxed fashion. 50 mph when the sailing is smooth, less when not. If a string of cars piles up behind me, then I'll pull over and let them by. (Actually, I think it might have been 'theblondecoyote' who stressed the two-lane relaxed approach to travel. Whether her or Bob, it's good advice.)

So it might be that I start with a rudimentary sleeping bunk on the truck. Followed one day by a tiny teardrop, either purchased or home-made. And I suppose that depends on whether or not we have a stationary home at that time. One day my truck will be about finished and we'll finish up those last years with a more stout truck plus larger RV. We'll probably always keep a tent for auxiliary living space, too.

So I've also been pondering just how to keep a tent comfortable in hot, humid weather. I'm the type who just hates the sun and heat. My calculations show that A/C is just barely possible even off-grid. But I can also see that it'll use much more fuel than I'd care to use. So I've got a set-up like this in mind. The tent is to be setup under one of those 10 x 20 feet white 'carports' that you can get for about $120. I'd buttress it with guy ropes leading down from the roof angle to the ground. These would also allow me to attach tarps running down these ropes to give the sides some low-angle sun shade.

I'm already pretty good at keeping tents and awnings standing in rough weather, even after I've added sides and such that were never intended. One trick is to use bungee type rope at anchor points, allowing structural flexibility in the wind. Gotta keep water and snow from collecting on the roof as well. I've worked out attachments that keep that roof a bit more peaked than it would be otherwise. But even then they need to be baby-sat in precip events. I've had a few blow-downs and I'll have more in the future, no doubt. But on average I do rather well.

I can picture campgrounds that might object to a camp that's too elaborate. If I run into that, I'll start by trying to negotiate some sort of surcharge perhaps. If I must right then and there I'll offer to simply rent another space. Then I'll start figuring out just which campgrounds will negotiate my being able to live as I wish at some reasonable price in return for some repeat business. I'll guess that at least some will see the wisdom of working with me and I'll make it worth their while.

I'll have to finish this post quickly; I've got to get my day started soon. Anyway.........the tent and awning ought to keep the worst of the sun at bay during the day. Then there's the question of a warm and muggy tent at night.

In my bathroom here at home I've got a few small de-humidifiers. They're roughly the size of a drip coffee maker. I've not yet measured their power consumption, but I can see that it's not very high. I'm thinking that a camp with 200 AH of battery plus the ability to re-charge could probably handle one of those in each corner of a tent or a sleeping bunk. Does anyone have any experience with this?

I can sleep in some fairly warm air if the relative humidity is down around 50% or so. Lower would be better. I suspect that's possible.

 

[SoCaliVanner]

On the teardrop front, you might wat to check out the foamie thread, located here:
https://vanlivingforum.com/showthread.php?tid=33769

Foamies are super light, and you would be able to design almost everything about it to suit your needs.

 

[ckelly78z]

If I were going to build a small trailer on a budget, a "foamie" would be on the top of my list. I was just cutting polystyrene insulation last night for my house bathroom walls to be placed between the firring strips...very easy to work with, and strong, and waterproof when properly supported.

The reason I mention the truck be is for a 4x4x8 waterproof storage area that the dog could ride in, and you could store a big cooler, tools, camping supplies, or even make a bed for sleeping if desired.

 

[bullfrog]

One of the decisions you will have to make right away is whether you must have AC power for air conditioning, dehumidifiers and ect. as well as if you will be boondocking using a generator or staying in campgrounds with power if you do. I have been slow to decied and it has cost a lot to figure out. The big question is where you need/want to be and are you willing or able to compromise your comfort to do so. We started out in a nice but older class A motor home with a 7,000 kilo watt generator and 2 air conditioners staying in RV parks with hookups. We towed a vehicle for day trips as well. It costs between $350 to $450 on average per month for monthly stays in RV parks for us unless you workamp which we have been doing for several years seasonally. As we are in a very hot area the air conditioning has been a must for us while working summers. We found the upkeep and maintenance for the motor home while stationary to maintain it's road worthiness too costly and since the motor home wasn't very capable at boondocking off road in the off season was therefore not worth keeping road worthy for us. We now use it as a home base for our summer job and store it in the winter which for us is basically free. In our off time we started using a tent and as it was cooler heat and wind were our main problems not warm weather. The tent and huge amount of camping equipment we felt we needed for extended stays in very remote areas such as hot showers, seperating toliet full,kitchen, electric bicycles and a 10' x 14' Kodiac tent out grew our 6' bed 4 x4 Tacoma pickup truck so we bought a utility trailer to pull behind that held 8 yellow topped totes that we use for a platform for our beds and all the camping gear. After a few windy and unusually cold for us winters in the desert we decieded to enclose our utility trailer by building a box to hold our gear and give us a place to shelter (sleep and have standing room) while traveling and in bad weather. Using tnttt.com foamies forum we did so cheaply and made something that allowed us the option of setting up the tent for long stays or not while traveling. With fuel costs, trash and water runs, and moving we still probably spend at least $250 to $450 a month but we get to stay warm in places we enjoy being. Decieding whether RV parks with utilites or remote boondocking without them will determine type of living arrangement or combination will serve your needs. A lot of places you will not want or be able to run a generator 24/7. Sorry for the long post!

 

[bluegoatwoods]

One of the decisions you will have to make right away is whether you must have AC power for air conditioning, dehumidifiers and ect. as well as if you will be boondocking using a generator or staying in campgrounds with power if you do.  I have been slow to decied and it has ........

........  Decieding whether RV parks with utilites or remote boondocking without them will determine type of living arrangement or combination will serve your needs.   A lot of places you will not want or be able to run a generator 24/7.  Sorry for the long post!

"Sorry for the long post!" 

No, no no.........I like long posts. Gimme your thoughts. More and more and more of 'em! 

I'm expecting to do more campgrounds than boondocking. My wife will not look favorably upon boondocking, though she might tolerate some with a very good setup. I could be very happy boondocking for quite some time. Yet even I crave some social contact. People who we know to some extent.

Now, we can also live in our stationary home quite cheap now that it's paid for. So we must be cautious about living on the road at some higher cost. In recent years I've been able to cover all of those basic monthly bills for about $12,000. So that leaves us some room to maneuver.

But some of those basics include stuff that we'll still need to pay out on the road. Auto insurance comes to mind. I'll have to look over those bills and see if there's anything else we'll need to keep on paying even if we're no longer living in this house.

But, anyway, our power requirements will be fairly low. I really don't plan on A/C as a 'must have'. De-humidifiers might be a must. But it doesn't have to be that way if we're following the good weather.

 

[bullfrog]

If you stay in the southwest humidy won't be a problem unless you use a propane heater in an enclosed space. The tnttt.com foamies forum will show you how to build a box or even a whole trailer cheaply, better, and that weighs less than the ones the RV industry sells in most cases. Having a utility or flatbed trailer with a removable box is about as versatile as you can get and carrying a tent allows you in good weather to have a lot of room and gives you access to almost all camping areas although you may have to unhitch to turn around in certain places. By workcamping seasonally and living simply my wife and I have been able to travel 6 months of the year and meet our yearly expenses (her health insurance being one of the most espensive) for almost the last 15 years.