We’re only 3 months into this adventure/experiment, but so far so good. We’ve not missed having a “home” (aka brick-and-stick in RV parlance) and greatly enjoy the freedom of going wherever we want. Well, we can go wherever we want to a point. It turns out the RV industry has delivered a record number of units the past 2 years, and 2017 is breaking all previous records. Back in 2012, when we started RVing, we would drive somewhere in the morning for a few hours and, at lunchtime, call a campground and book for that night. That is no longer the case. Now we have trouble booking places even months in advance.
The view from our campsite outside of Glacier National Park, which we booked three months in advance
I suspect like most everything, this upturn in the RV industry is cyclical, in this case being buoyed by low interest rate loans and low fuel prices. As we continue full-timing over the coming years I’m guessing we’ll live through another downturn and can go back to winging it. I hear if you want to custom order a Newmar there is currently a 9 month wait! A few years ago it was 1 month. I foresee some very attractive used motorhome prices in the future.
We saw mountain goats along the Needles Highway near Custer, South Dakota
I guess I do miss the custom home theater in our old house, but the sound system in this motorhome is not exactly shabby. We watched the entire X-Men canon in 5.1 sound and the bass was stronger and tighter than I expected. I didn’t know this when we bought it, but Newmar installed this fairly large subwoofer: Bose Acoustimass 300.
One thing I don’t miss is all the stuff we jettisoned in order to downsize into an RV. I’ve always thought it healthy to move every few years for no other reason than to get rid of all the detritus that accumulates over time. Moving into a ~400 sq ft motorhome accelerates that effort.
View from a hiking trail in Lake Como Recreation Area near Darby, Montana
We’ve enjoyed the constant change of places to visit and hike. We are more active while on the road. So far we’ve enjoyed hiking in the Black Hills of South Dakota, Wyoming’s Bighorn Mountains, and the Selway Bitterroot Mountains of Montana. We’ve spent time in Missoula, Montana and Salt Lake City, Utah. We spent two weeks touring in Colorado and Utah with my parents, visiting Dinosaur National Monument, Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area, Colorado National Monument, Grand Mesa, 4X4 driving the Alpine Loop near Ouray, and Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. We have most recently been hiking in Glacier and Waterton National Parks.
Mike and his parents along the Alpine Loop
View in Colorado National Monument
Dinosaur Fossils at the Dinosaur National Monument
The Black Canyon of the Gunnison
Flaming Gorge
We’re looking forward to getting solar installed in early October, which will allow us to spend more time camping off the grid. We’ve been keeping a list of areas with dispersed camping locations that we find while visiting new areas. We have been tracking our per night camping fee, which is averaging about $50/night. Our goal is to lower that number.
