What is Full-time RVing Anyhow?

Full-timing” comes in many guises. Over 10 years of giving Life on Wheels seminars and 20 years of meeting traveling RVers, I’ve heard many discussions of what “full-time RVing” really means. But I can’t see that it matters a whit how it is categorized, just enjoy whatever way you are doing it.

The purists feel that a full-time RVer is one who has severed all landbound ties and is “en route” all of the time, filling the miles with exciting activities and never slowing down. No problem with that from this cat. I did that for 16 of my 20 years as a solo RVer, but who says it has to be that way?

Others feel that vendors who travel from venue to venue in RVs aren’t the same as full-timers who travel for the fun of traveling. So?

Snowbirds with RV homes in both cold country and warm country and who drive a car or fly between points still live in an RV full time. For four years I lived in a 40-foot fifth wheel on my RV lot and traveled in a motorhome from six to eight months a year. I was the ultimate RVer with two of them! And does it matter how I did it? Absolutely not.

Gas Price Impact
With gas prices continuing to rise, we have lots of full-time RVers stopping in at North Ranch Escapee campground in Arizona. Sometimes they stay for several months, taking advantage of a three-weeks-pay/one-week-free situation. Most campgrounds offer not only many activities within their parks, but also in the surrounding areas. RVers use their tow vehicles to seek the unique locally, whether it is something to see, something to do, or just learning the area’s history.

Newbies may not have thought about the effort it takes to keep a constantly rolling abode in good condition. Maintenance takes time and it is a necessity. Sometimes as a full-timer, it is nice to take a few weeks breather and clean up the rig, fix the stuff that jiggles loose or falls apart driving the highways and byways. Maybe it’s time to add solar panels, extra batteries or put in that reverse osmosis system.

Inside, cluttered cupboards await cleaning and rearranging according to your newest whim. Get rid of “stuff” that you haven’t actually used for a year. Drapes and carpeting require occasional cleaning, the same as when you were permanently curbed.

Sharing Solutions
It takes time on the road to discover what isn’t working “just quite right” and how to fix it—many times through discussion with someone else with the same problem. At North Ranch, we are in a particularly dead cell-phone area. Did you think those commercials featuring phone users in unbelievable positions trying to get a call through were hyperbole? They are typical around here. Cell phones work if you are on the rise above the campground or if you are at least 14 feet tall. Outside antennas make all the difference in the world.

RVers who stay for a while take time to rediscover old talents or get involved in new activities like line dancing, woodcarving, painting, gold panning, or joining in a jam session.

Another benefit of staying in one place for longer than a couple of days is that you make friends. Before you know it, you are going out for breakfast, exploring, attending a play, and maybe even making plans for a future gathering.

I have shared this thought with you a number of times since I have become an “extended-timer.” Full-time RVing is easier. You back into wherever you have decided to park for whatever period of time, and you don’t have to pack or unpack. It’s truly, “Hi Honey; We’re home!”

Don’t Hurry
Full-timing is convenient. You can stop for lunch, reading, napping, or recreation. I remember pulling off into a wonderful spot (I wasn’t pulling a car) along a Yukon Territory river on my way back from Inuvik. First, the flowing water lulled me into a late morning nap as the sunshine poured through the open window and warmed my body. I ate lunch and read for a couple more hours.

My mistake was thinking I needed to get moving toward my ultimate destination. It got dark before I reached that next ideal spot. The result was parking in a far less-than-perfect place.

In an RV, your immediate needs are met—bathroom, kitchen, bed. Everything you need is with you for all occasions and all seasons. This requires planning. It seems that when you’ve discovered a charming campground or boondocking spot, you are out of milk and you’re 75 miles from the next town. This is also the moment when you will likely experience an incredible craving for pizza or your water pump gasps at the bottom of the tank.

Full-time RVing with all the amenities inside gives you private quarters when you are visiting friends or relatives. Once you convince them you already have a “real bedroom” inside your own space and don’t have a desperate need to use theirs, it is an absolute blessing to sleep in your own bed. You can always share meals or outings with them.

I’m not a Wal-Mart camper except on rare occasions when I don’t have a choice. I find the view from my morning window much more palatable on a lake or stream or in the woods, compared with asphalt. Either is preferable to the coldness of a motel.

Having become a landowner again, I realize that though full-time RVing is not without cost and occasional headaches, it is without land taxes, property and building maintenance, and ownership bills. Enjoy your full-time RVing status, wherever you pigeonhole it. Costs have risen drastically since my 1986 leap into faith, but it is still the Ultimate Freedom.

Anyone want to buy an RV lot? God Bless.

Autographed copies of Revised RVing Alaska and Canada ($16.95); Adventures with the Silver Gypsy ($14.95); Full-Time RVing: How to Make it Happen $14.95); In Pursuit of a Dream ($8), and Freedom Unlimited, The Fun and Facts of Full-timing ($9) are available through author Sharlene Minshall, Box 1040, Congress, AZ 85332-1040, www.full-time-rver.com or Amazon.com. Postage and handling are $4 for one book and $1 for each additional book.