Four Years and Counting

Four years ago today we began living on the road full-time. We love this lifestyle and don’t see coming off the road for years to come. We enjoy going new places and changing the view out our front window frequently.

We had already been RVing for 11 years and had spent the equivalent of over 4 years traveling and camping in our first 3 RVs. We had spent as long as 8 months on the road at a time. So we knew what we were doing. Since January 29, 2009, we have traveled in and explored 26 states including Alaska and 3 Canadian provinces. What a life!

We also enjoy the simplicity and freedom of living in less than 350 square feet and not having very much “stuff” to worry about or deal with. We enjoy the freedom of going where we want, when we want. We enjoy being able to avoid the summer heat in Arizona and the winter cold and snow in Colorado by traveling to where the weather is comfortable (or almost comfortable) most of the time.

We do enjoy our long winter stay here in Mesa and think we will be coming here for the foreseeable future. We have been coming to this resort for 5 years. We are beginning to build community with the other snowbirds that return year after year to the same street. And we are beginning to build community at Epiphany Episcopal Church in Temper, where we have been worshipping for 3 years. This winter, John has been asked to serve as an assisting priest by the rector and I have begun serving as a lector. We also enjoy the many activities available in the resort, including a pottery shop, a wood shop, exercise room, and numerous sports we could participate in if we chose.

There are always park model homes for sale in the resort and this winter, for the first time, we have been checking out the prices and thinking about buying one. We have seen prices everywhere from $10,000 to $150,000 for these homes that start at 350 square feet of living space. Obviously, the one priced at $150,000, as well as many others, have an addition called an Arizona room to provide more square footage.

Since we know we won’t be buying one this year, we haven’t been going inside the units that are for sale. But we have checked out the flyers and the yards. The more we look the more certain we are that it is not time to come off the road, even for a few months of the year. Just the idea of unpacking the RV and moving clothing, food and computers into a park model, then reversing that action in the spring makes me cringe. So does the prospect of buying dishes, linens, furniture and other necessities for another living space. It is so nice to sleep in our own bed—the same one—every night and never have to move our belongings. We had to move in and out of the RV for years when we only traveled one to eight months a year. I’m not ready to do it again and neither is John.

We are content to live in this resort for several months of the winter—in our RV. And we still enjoy pulling up the landing gear and hitching the truck to the trailer so we can move our home somewhere new. We have the best of both worlds.