The First Sunset of our Second Year!

 

It was last night. So that means that one year ago Friday we drove away from our life in Phoenix to drive into America. On that day, other than wanting to be in Portland for Labor Day, we really didn’t have much of a plan.  

 

 

 

 

All my attention had been on selling my house, putting stuff in storage, leaving my job, getting last medical appointments for me AND the dogs, etc. etc. So many balls in the air.

 

When asked where we were going, I remember saying, “Good question. How about Idaho”? “I’ve never been to Idaho and I want to find out about it”.

We got to Idaho. And there’s a lot to it. In fact, I am writing this from one of our favorite spots from last year, Sandpoint, Idaho.

I’ve been asked a lot of questions about this lifestyle choice – to leave my cute home that I loved, my job, my friends, and a fairly stable life in Arizona — to live in a van.

In fact, this lifestyle choice is just weird enough that lots of people have questions. To celebrate our first year anniversary, I’ll answer some here.

Aren’t you scared?

This is typically asked in the context of me being a woman traveling alone. Short answer: Nope

I belong to several RV’ing groups, some specifically for women. And I am always saddened when I see questions from women who let the fear of traveling alone keep them from pursuing their dream. Some helpful souls suggest that they always put out two chairs at the campsite. Others, and this is an oldy, get a pair of size 14 men’s workboots from Goodwill and leave them outside the camper every night.

The extra chair and the workboot ideas are good ones, I guess. I don’t do any of them. To me, the answer is simple. Don’t be stupid.  And trust your gut.  If a place makes you feel uncomfortable, leave. If someone starts asking too many personal questions, walk away. Both have happened to me, and I step away without regret – I don’t owe anyone my time or attention. I also believe that my chances of encountering a bad guy were exponentially greater when I left work every night at 7:00 pm in Phoenix than they are walking my dogs in the night in a forest campground.

NOTE: of course, lots of solo travelers keep a firearm for personal protection. I am not going to engage in a discussion of that topic in this forum.

How do the dogs like it?

Sally and Trax seem to like being with me every day. All day.  And they love all the interesting smells when we get to a new place. Trax would rather avoid the actual riding in the RV part, but he never hesitates to hop up in his spot when it’s time to hit the road. I love the doggie part of this life.

Do you have a bathroom in there?

That’s one of the common questions I’m asked about my van. Answer: Yes. And a shower, and a stovetop, and a refrigerator. We have everything we need. I generally use campground showers when I can – it’s just easier. But they can be a trip – maybe one day I’ll do a blog post about campground showers. The title will be easy — “The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly.

What does “boondocking” mean?

That term means living without electric or water hookups to the camper van – generally in a remote area. For instance, right now, we are in a semi-primitive, U.S. Forest Service campground – there are a couple shower stalls for use by the entire campground, but no electricity or water to the campsites. I have a solar panel and generator that I can use to keep the camper battery charged to power our lights/refrigerator/fan/computers/phones etc. It’s perfectly adequate.

How do you shower every day if there are only two showers for everyone to use?

I don’t always.  If you  have any questions, do a Google search on “birdbaths”, aka “sponge baths”, aka “PTA baths”. It’s the lifestyle. But I will tell you this — when you get a group of full-time RVers together and the conversation turns to personal hygiene, hilarity is apt to ensue.

I did take a shower this morning.

How long can you stay in one place without moving the camper van?

We usually are on the move every couple days. If we stay in the same campground, I get restless and either go sightseeing or do errands. Yesterday I drove to Yoke’s, the local grocery store, and then stopped at a bakery for a trail mix cookie and a cup of coffee. And about once a week we have to go dump our holding tanks and take on fresh water.

What has been your favorite thing?

Easy. The Oregon coast. I haven’t been to a whole lot of places, but it’s the most beautiful area I’ve ever seen.

But we have seen beauty in almost every place we’ve visited. Montana was pretty special – next year I might have to spend more time there. And speaking of Idaho —   I have yet to have an Idaho potato in Idaho. Got to get on that.

What has been your biggest disappointment?

Easy. Eastern Washington, south of Spokane. I knew that area was flat and arid, so my expectations were already low. But it was a hard multi-hour ride to get through it. I apologize in advance if that’s your beloved home town area.

Any regrets?
Not really. I have heard others who live this life say, “I wish I had done this sooner”. But for me, this has been the perfect time. I was ready to take a break from going to an office every day, and all the other factors seemed to align.

 

I have a few more FAQ’s that I want to address, including, “Don’t you get lonely”, and “What’s next”?. I’ll do that in a later post .

Thanks for reading!