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Some of you may already realize this, especially those patient souls out there who have been following along on our blog since last July—it has been one full year since we set off on our RV adventure. It was late evening on the 9th of July that we said goodbye to loved ones in Tucson and drove to the San Diego area. We (Lance and Erin with our two cats, Bailey and Rookie) left at night for a couple reasons; less traffic and it was cooler. To show you how little faith we had in our old RV (Sol Seeker) we weren’t even sure she would make it all the way to California.

Lance said the most memorable thing that night. As he hugged his sister Heidi goodbye, he said, “You’re the reason we’re leaving.” At which point we all broke up laughing! What he meant, of course, was that we wouldn’t be following our dreams if it hadn’t been for her and many other amazing people along the way. And that seems like such a great place to start this story, with the truly wonderful people that have made a difference on our lives.

Along with our loving family members and our trusted, old friends are the new friends and renewed relationships and even the occasional random stranger that have made an impression on us. Although we are hard-working individuals we wouldn’t be where we are today (living in our RV, traveling the country) if it wasn’t for the love and support of those around us. Hopefully you all know who you are and we thank you.

Backing up just a bit: Lance and I both have travel bugs, and as far as we can tell we were born with ‘em. When we were dating, oh so many years ago (seven years or so), we would dream together of extensive traveling. As you know we were not independently wealthy so our dreams remained dreams. Thankfully, we are able to telecommute from our RV. The technology that makes it possible for us to work and travel now wasn’t readily available even just five years ago.

We work via a satellite Internet system. It looks like a Dish Network satellite receiver, only four times as big. It is faster than dial-up and is pretty reliable, although service can be obstructed by trees, stormy weather, and solar flares. Thankfully, when it really conks out on us, we can usually get ourselves to a location with free WiFi.

We seek out local, independent venues but when they are not available we are thankful for Bruegger’s Bagels, Panera Bread, Whataburger, and McDonald’s for their WiFi offerings (not always free, but usually very handy in a pinch[1]). Some cities, like Corpus Christi, have wireless available throughout, in California lots of the state parks have wireless access, and in Oregon and Texas you can use your laptop at some rest areas.

Another fantastic aspect of the electronic age is the ability to bank and deal with business transactions online. We receive very little “real” mail (although our good friends who have been helping us with our mail this past year can attest that we still get plenty of junk). Our cell phones make it easy for us to keep in touch while on the road. Thankfully, the coverage is getting better and the plans more affordable every year.

So the big issues have all been addressed but what about day to day living? Well, there are some disadvantages. With the way we travel we are always in new surroundings (about every week or so). At each new place we need to sort through the maze of unknown streets to find a grocery store, laundromat, campground, and other necessary locations.

As a result, some of our expenses have gone up; instead of driving around shopping for deals we now specialize in one-stop shopping. Since we are not towing a car, we try to limit our in-town driving. Besides, we would much rather spend our free time exploring our new location, not shopping! As you might expect our grocery bills have increased, although I do sign up for a savings card at each new chain (you should see my collection). What I didn’t expect was the jump in our clothing expenditures as I am no longer able to shop my favorite thrift stores (if you frequent thrift shops you know that some are far better than others).

Since we are not residents of the areas we visit we are unable to take advantage of the local libraries, a huge resource for avid readers like ourselves. We live in a small RV, so out of necessity our traveling library is tiny. We shop at used bookstores when we find them and thankfully, many RV parks have “take one, leave one” bookshelves.

We aren’t much into TV but we do enjoy a good movie now and then. Since we don’t have a local address many places won’t rent to us and we only receive our mail twice a month so we decided Netflix wouldn’t work for us. Thankfully, a relatively new company, Redbox, has been the perfect solution to our non-resident, nomadic existence. Located in various grocery stores and even outside some McDonald’s, Redbox offers the latest movies and some TV series, they only require that you be over 18 and have a credit card (which we are and do).

The thing that affects us every day is recycling, or the lack of it. Apparently we were spoiled in Tucson, where we could recycle many things and it was easy to do. While some places have wonderful programs, overall we have been dismayed at the lack of recycling facilities along our journey. We carry our recyclables with us, often times for days until we find a place to recycle them, even resorting to late night clandestine drops in random barrels or bins in driveways. I can just see the headline now, “Couple arrested for trespassing, trying to recycle!”

And finally, the weather. When you live in one place for years you get accustomed to the weather patterns and make accommodations for whatever hazardous conditions might occur. We have had a few scares this past year—unexpected snow and icy road conditions in Montana, two separate tornado watches (Arkansas and Tennessee), and the repercussions of early hurricanes in Washington D.C. and Rhode Island. Needless to say, NOAA is the first website we check every morning.

So, we have shared some of the obstacles we face. Clearly they are not awful enough to make us quit following our dream—the good far outweighs any bad. Reconnecting with family and friends tops our “Good List.” Unlike generations ago when family and friends lived nearby, our loved ones are scattered all over the country. Our time spent with these special people this past year has been amazing—we feel so blessed. Since we bring our “House on Wheels” with us it is a great way to visit, people don’t have to “put us up.” Of course, they do still have to put up with us!

Another benefit is the education we have received along the way. I think we have learned more in this past year than we learned in all of high school. We have even learned that some of what we learned in high school and college was dead wrong. Never too old…

It hasn’t all been history and geography lessons. Through our travels we have been exposed to many different elements of the natural world. From whales, to frogs, to whooping cranes, to alligators, to moose, to fireflies, to fish, to bald eagles we have been lucky enough to observe them all, in the best way possible—in their natural habitats. I can think of few things more inspiring than watching a mother bobcat lead her babies to safety, or a fox hunting in the moonlight, or a gray whale feeding in the shallow bay. These are memories that we will always cherish.

The question often comes up, “Are we going to travel forever?” The answer is “No, we do not plan on RVing full-time forever.” As the saying goes, absence makes the heart grow fonder. We do miss some of the aspects of having a “normal” living situation. We miss having a house to spread out and entertain in. We miss having a yard, I know it doesn’t sound like that much fun but I love digging in the dirt!

That being said we know that travel will always be a big part of our lives. With an eye to the future we have a short list of places that we’ve visited this past year that we wouldn’t mind living in someday: Port Aransas, TX, Portland, OR, Corvallis, OR, Socorro, NM, Austin, TX, and Carpinteria, CA. We do plan on exploring in our RV for at least another year, who knows what other places will make our list.

As we look back on our first year RVing we are thankful. Our lives have been enriched in innumerable ways. Here’s looking toward the next year and all the adventures it may bring. Cheers!

Photos: See memorable photos of our RV during our first year of full-time RVing.

Notes: [1] Not all locations of these restaurants have free WiFi or WiFi at all. It varies by state and the franchise owner.