November 23, 2015 by Lee and Tracy

First Time in the Redwood Groves

All throughout Humboldt State Park there are groves that were bought and protected by different groups. It is a testament to how much of a difference a small group can make if properly motivated. The signage on the groves is not the greatest, so I definitely recommend stopping at the visitors center and getting a map, and each one requires a walk into the woods to get to. The first one we looked at was sponsored by the Women’s Federation League. These are very magical places and walking through them was a very spiritual experience for me. This particular grove is a Day Use area in season, but the gate was closed in November. No problem, we simply parked the truck (being careful not to block the entrance) and walked through. The pavement was in excellent condition and we had the entire place to ourselves. At the end there is a beautiful hearth which was designed by on of the few female architects in the 1950’s. The hearth has four fireplaces with the most beautiful inscriptions in the stone above. There is also a very nice picnic area and seating by the river. The walk was very pleasant and totally accessible to anyone.

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The hearth

Loved the fireplaces

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Even the water fountain had an inscription

This burl on a tree reminded me of a jaguar face

Also along the Avenue of the Giants there are some places to stop where large trees have fallen. The size of these fallen trees is so huge it is hard to believe which is why all the pictures have a person inside to give you some scale.

This tree was as large as a cave

I am near the back and at 5’4″ can still stand upright

On another day we went to Founders Grove which was absolutely amazing. It is a half-mile stroll along a flat wide path and there are the most amazing trees there. They have gone to great trouble in this grove to let nature take its course and some of the best parts are the huge trees that have fallen. They also have the absolutely best pamphlet (50 cent donation requested or return after use) that I personally have ever seen that gives information about what you are seeing. If you visit here and do nothing else, see Founders Grove. It was really amazing.

Stats for the Founders tree

No way to get a complete shot of this . Hopefully it gives you an idea though

No way to get a complete shot of Founders Tree . Hopefully it gives you an idea though

Lee loves the walk in trees and there are several of these

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It’s amazing that these can have such large holes in them and still be alive

Beautiful walk through the path

The trees are so tall they have three different climates and the needles at the top are different than the bottom because the air is much dryer

The trees are so tall they have three different climates and the needles at the top are different from the bottom because the air is much drier. There are plants an animal that spend their entire life in the canopy in particular the Marbeled Murrelet bird which flies to the ocean during the day and nests in the trees at night. The only downside is because they are protected no drones are allowed anywhere in the Redwood Forest by state law. Lee was really bummed when he discovered this was a drone free area.

When the trees fall over 4000 species can live on or near a downed log. that is why they let them fall and then decay naturally. the younger trees nearby are dormant until a big tree falls and then they get their chance to grow in the sun. The process is called plant succession.

This is the Dyerville Giant which fell in 1991. It was 362 feet tall, weighed about a million pounds, and is comparable to a 30 story building

I tried to take a picture from the end, see if you can see Lee way down at the other end. when this fell the noise could be heard a mile away and it fell because one tree knocked another which knocked it over.

Some of the pictures have burl sprouts growing on them. A seed can germinat in one of these sprouts and if the tree falls can use the mature root system of th tree for nutrients and stability

Some of the pictures have burl sprouts growing on them. A seed can germinate in one of these sprouts and if the tree falls can use the mature root system of th tree for nutrients and stability

Sometimes a burl forms at the base and so many sprouts occur that a “fairy ring” is created

In addition to the groves there are a few places sprinkled throughout where for a few dollars you can see a tree tourist attraction. These sites are old and pretty cheesy but for a few dollars we just had to try them out. The first advertised itself as “the famous drive through tree” and although this isn’t the same drive through tree you see in all the pictures it was still pretty cool. The truck could make it through so we parked outside and walked in, but luckily I caught a car driving through so I could get some pictures. This attraction also had a couple of redwood tree playhouses, which Lee and I went into. One even had a tight set of stairs and a second floor, which was very fun. Again super cheesy, but for $6 total we had fun with it.

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The tree was kept in place by numerous iron cables

The view up from inside

Another view

I thought this burl looked like a reclining angel

Really cute tree houses

This one has two stories inside

Lee climbing up

My face in the window

We also stopped at the Immortal Tree which was free to view and next to an amazing wood shop called Burl N Drift. I liked the tree because it shows clearly how the tree survived the woodsman’s axe, fire, and the 1964 flood. Many of the trees have fire damage but continue to live and in 1964 there was a huge flood in this area and you can see water marks on many of the trees. The flood waters were at least 20 feet high in some areas, which is amazing when you look at the Eel River now, which because of the drought is barely a trickle. Anyways, I loved the gift shop, really unique redwood products made right there (which I wanted but the budget didn’t allow for) and I got a great T-Shirt for only $13.95. They also had some leftover pieces of wood for a few dollars and I picked a great one for $2.

The stats on the Immortal Tree

Lee in front twith the Axe showing where the tried to cut it and could not and the fish shows the water line in 1964

Lee in front with the Axe showing where the tried to cut it and could not and the fish shows the water line in 1964

Beautiful Burl sculpture outside the shop

Inside the shop

These bowls were amazing but out of my price range

My very cool piece of wood

And along the route there are breaks in the trees with some places you can see the surrounding hills. It’s been a great couple of days and more to come. Are you tired of tree pictures yet 🙂 Oh and after numerous tries I found a really good recipe for flank steak (often on sale for $2.99 a pound) which I have listed below.

The Eel River

This is also the Eel river and all this dirt is usually water

Recipes

Coffee-Rubbed Flank Steak

1-1/4 lb flank steak
1 TBL finely ground coffee
1 TBL light brown sugar, packed
1-1/2 tsp chili powder
1-1/2 tsp dried ginger
1-1/2 tsp paprika
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

Combine all ingredients (except state) in a small bowl and blend well
Rub coffee and spice mixture onto one side shaking off excess when complete, turn over and repeat
Preheat gas grill to high, oil grill grates
Cook for 3-1/2 minutes then turn over and cook for another 3-1/2 minutes
Let steak REST for 5 full minutes before slicing
Cut in thin strips at a diagonal

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Camper Chronicles is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. Search Amazon.com here

November 21, 2015 by Lee and Tracy

Re-establishing the Work/Life Balance

These thoughts have been rattling around in my head for a couple of days, and since it’s another early morning I am going to try to write them out. You would think that now that I don’t have a corporate job and a Monday-Friday schedule establishing work/life balance would be easy. I certainly envisioned that a life without that schedule would be much easier to manage. In some respects it certainly is; the travel days are so much easier, I don’t have the constant pressure of needing a cell connection absolutely all the time, and we don’t have to cram all the fun stuff we want to do into just the weekends. But, as someone who is used to a rigorous schedule it is a bit of an adjustment, because here we are in this beautiful place and there is still work to do. So we have to figure out when. And it is complicated by having another person to work through it with. It’s no surprise that I like a more formal schedule than Lee does. I want to look at every day and say “Let’s work until X time and then go see things” and Lee would rather work until he is ready to stop and then decide what to do. I understand rationally that his approach makes perfect sense, but it offends my Midwestern sensibilities somehow. But I am not the boss of him and although sometimes I get itchy with the desire to project manage his day, it’s incredibly important that I don’t. The reasons for that one should be obvious.

I need to take my own advice here and sort myself out first, so here is what I have been doing with my time. Finding work is work as anyone who has ever looked for a job knows, and a few hours every day need to be applied to that task. First, I spent a considerable amount of time working on foundation items to start our three businesses (business cards, resumes, websites, etc) and now I am working on marketing and job searching. Since I haven’t done a ton of job research over the years this has required some education on my part. For example Career.com was the place to go the last time I seriously was looking and now it’s Indeed.com, which didn’t even exist the last time I job searched. Unfortunately, these job sites’ search engines aren’t very helpful when looking for contract, temporary, or freelance work. Finally, after some research, I broke down and paid $50 for a yearly subscription to FlexJobs.com. Basically for $50 a year they sort through all the ads and weed out any company that is not reputable plus provide a search engine specifically designed for folks looking for short-term work. If you are a master of internet searching, you certainly won’t need this site, but I breathed a sigh of relief when I found it, because it is saving me a ton of time.

Simultaneously I am researching consulting firms and sending out my resume. Many companies hire contract workers though larger firms and they have databases of resumes and will search for skill set matches to meet their clients’ needs. Many specialize in certain types of work so finding reputable ones that need skills sets like yours can be a little tricky. I reached out to my professional network for these companies and also looked for jobs that were interesting, and then backtracked to the firms managing those positions and put my resume on their site. In the notes section, I made it clear I was looking for short term assignments and completely mobile because they will use my Florida address and think I am only available for jobs in Florida, which is obviously not the case. I also have set up my consulting business and Lee’s video business on two freelance sites, Guru.com and Upworks.com. These sites are particularly designed for freelancers who bid on smaller projects and initially seem like a great way to get “filler” work. It takes a significant amount of time to build a portfolio on these site, however, and since I was doing it for two businesses the work was double. Once that is done you have to look very carefully at what folks want, the descriptions are often vague, and then put together a proposal. In Lee’s case in particular I need to be extremely careful when writing bids to not inadvertently commit his time for too little money as the time it takes to edit can vary greatly based on the amount of raw footage. So, I am proceeding VERY cautiously with these two sites, but I do think they are an important part of our overall strategy. Finally, I read the Work Kamper news bulletins religiously. Combining outside work with a work kamping job is absolutely the most cost effective strategy, but it requires some luck and major coordination. Thus far we have let the work kamping jobs and family commitments drive where we have stayed, but going forward that will probably flip and the work opportunities will drive the itinerary with work kamping jobs being picked up wherever possible to reduce costs.

Sound unpleasant? Well, it can be, especially when you are trying to figure out a website that is not particularly user friendly and to add to that I have never been great at marketing, and it’s been a bit of a struggle. Also, don’t forget we have regular life as well. Meals to cook, dishes to wash, and Lee has been working on several home projects that simply need to be done before we hit Quartzsite. (He added several new outlets yesterday, including a 12 volt outlet for my fan in the bedroom so I can get to sleep when we’re boondocking). We need to plan travel days and research travel day campgrounds. Although we have gotten better at managing those tasks, they still can take a chunk of time, in particular when we are driving through challenging terrain. Along with regular life stuff, I’ve also been working on this website, trying to clean up some of the pages.

Which brings me to monetizing this website. All along folks have talked to me about the possibility of monetizing the website. I steadfastly said I wouldn’t even think about it until my first year was done. Well, here we are at the end of the first year and I had to keep that promise to myself. First of all I don’t generate the type of traffic that could make this site a significant revenue stream (over 500 unique visitors a month or 10,000 hits) and even if I did, I am not sure how I would feel about it. As I have said in the past, I write this blog to help people. I write the blog I wish I could have read when I started. I am in no way an expert in this lifestyle, actually the opposite, which is kind of the whole point, so if anything I think of myself as a story teller. I tell my story and if it helps, great, if not, well at least it helps me just by writing it. So I thought about adding a “Tip Jar” thinking I could put one out there just like I was playing guitar on the street and folks could “virtually” throw in a dollar or two. Before doing something like that though I wanted to get the VOC (Voice of the Customer, or reader, in this case) and asked a close friend, Lee, and a reader who doesn’t know me personally at all for their feedback. It was very negative from all three and all three said it could “turn people off.” Since that is absolutely last thing I would want to do, I started to look into banner ads. It turns out that since I use WordPress, which I like very much because of the ease of formatting and excellent Spam filter, the only banner advertising they allow is their own. I would only consider banner advertising if it was a product I personally approved and a reputable company, so that was completely out. I do own my website domain and if I wanted to I could leave Word Press but that would be a ton of work and again I really am comfortable with the Word Press format. So that leaves me with being an Amazon Associate. Camper Chronicles is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. Search Amazon.com here

As a side note I also found a few recipes and Lessons Learned I never put on their respective pages along the way and fixed that and made sure the campground reviews and major milestones pages were completely up to date. Hey if you are going to re-look at every single post, might as well double check everything!! It took a day and a half, but I am glad it is all done!!)

So at this point you are probably thinking “why is she writing about all of this?” First and foremost I write about my life and this decision was a big deal to me. Many things in my life are different now and this blog and writing about my experiences helps keep me grounded. Plus it does take a chunk of my time. I spent hours on the yearly updates and updating all the links took over 8 hours. Since time is a precious commodity I needed to think about whether this time was well spent. I never want to be a person that just writes about life and doesn’t live it, so I need to balance this time with revenue generating time and living life time. Finally, I think many people feel they will write a blog and make enough money to supplement the lifestyle. There are lots of blogs out there and the ones that generate money in the RVing world are a small subset of the total. From what I am seeing the people that make some income from a blog also have something special and unique to offer. Technomadia has their internet and cell phone expertise, Paul and Nina from Wheeling It offer financial management support and detailed campground reviews, Kyle Hensen offers RVer insurance information, and Howard and Linda from RV-Dreams offer budgets and all around support for people who are interested in the lifestyle. All of them have spent years on the road and massive amounts of time building the knowledge and materials required for their particular expertise. They provide a valuable service and deserve to be compensated for it. If you want to read a great blog post on the pros and cons of blogging check out Nina’s post on the subject here When I look at myself I think, I am new at the lifestyle, have no particular area of expertise, and really, I am just telling a story as truthfully as I can. I hope its a good story and who knows where it will ultimately lead, but for right now I am thrilled that people read at all and are so wonderfully supportive in their comments. Don’t get me wrong, I’ll be happy if people click on a link and buy something we recommended, but if that never happens that’s ok too. Alright back to the important stuff.

I have listed all the things I am working on mainly to show it’s a lot of stuff for someone who isn’t working a full time job anymore. Add into that our work kamper hours, and hours spent actually working on jobs, and if we weren’t careful we could fill every day. But the whole point of this is to see and experience things. That’s why we travel and stay in beautiful places. So on the other side of the equation is the amazing nature we are surrounded by. It’s tough to stay inside and work when it’s all right outside the door. It is a constant balancing act and one we are still trying to get good at. And you may be thinking “boohoo, you have it so tough”. And that would be fair. The me from a year ago may have thought the same thing. But let me show you in pictures what is a few miles down the road so you maybe you can understand why establishing a balance is a struggle. With

views like these it can be hard to strike a balance! Y114 Y125 Y124 Y168 Y133 Y123 Y074

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November 18, 2015 by Lee and Tracy

First Time Volunteering in a State Park

There are some differences between volunteering on BLM land and in a state park, but although I know my sample size is small with only 2 work kamping jobs, there are definitely patterns emerging. I know folks are curious about what an average day looks like (I certainly was) and now that we are settled I will walk you through our day, but please keep in mind that every one of these jobs is different and to some extent what you make of it. Because you are volunteering for the site, most people are hesitant about asking a lot of you. Plus I don’t know what type of people they have been getting, but more than once Lee and I had been described as “mellow people”, which if you have met us will crack you up. It’s not so much that we are mellow as professional and I have to wonder who they are comparing us to. We are polite and friendly to customers and full time staff alike, always keeping in mind that we are visitors, but they have to live here. It’s a pretty simple formula really.

So, details about this job. We found it on the State of California volunteers webpage. There were tons of opportunities out there, although the website can be outdated a bit so it took some legwork on Lee’s part. First, he emailed all the ones we were interested then and it took weeks in some cases to hear back. Then we had to get a background check (cost to us: $10 each) and fingerprinted, and send 20+ pages of application to the state. California may be worse than others on the paperwork, but again this all took some time so some pre-planning is called for. Also, the back and forth communication was a bit vague. Despite all of the pages of paperwork, we walked into this not knowing exactly what we were going to be doing. That was partly our fault because we didn’t ask the right questions, but the communication was not great. Once we go here, the people have been very friendly. Keep in mind they don’t know what they are getting into either and there is a bit of a period where everyone is checking each other out. Once they figure out that you’re going to help, and not make their lives more difficult, things go much smoother.

We have been told at both jobs that “we want you to have a good time and explore the area” and the schedules allow for this. This camp host job has us checking the overnight box in the morning for people who came in late and paid. I then take the information and write it on a clipboard. While I am doing this Lee puts the flags up (weather permitting) which he really likes to do. Brings back his ROTC days. Once he’s done, we walk the campground loop making sure no one slipped in without paying, and everyone is in the site they stated on the paperwork. It’s dark at night and sometimes people move around, which is fine, we just need to change the sheet. If there are any reservations for the upcoming day, we put a little sign out so people know those sites are not available. The “worst” of it is that if anyone did not pay, we am supposed to wake them up and have them pay. Apparently this is pot harvesting season (yeah, who knew?) and lots of folks with tons of cash are traveling through. But according to the staff they don’t want to pay. Now, this is where it gets interesting. We can’t make anyone do anything and the amount of pressure we apply is totally up to me. So I feel about this the way I felt about people smoking pot in the BLM day use area in Susanville. I am just not getting into all that. Ask people politely once to do the right thing and if they refuse, document it and move on. First of all, I think the state of California can afford the $35 if someone refuses to pay, and secondly we don’t escalate with people. Lee taught me that. It never leads anywhere good and that’s where being a volunteer comes in handy. Since I am not getting paid, it’s ultimately not my responsibility. When I explain my philosophy the full time employees and rangers seem relieved. We are not trained to deal with these situations and they would much rather we left it to them.

Oh, one more thing. There always seem to be some locals that you need to be a little wary of. Either they are big shots in the community or activists who like to push the envelope. In both places we have been we have been given detailed descriptions of folks we needed to “be careful with.” I get it. We lived in a small town and some people like to throw their weight around, but thus far our professional and courteous stance works just fine for those folks too. Actually Lee is awesome at dealing with those people. All those years of running the local public access station in the small town of Keene have made him eminently qualified for dealing with these situations. I, coming from a corporate environment, had more trouble with it at first, but there are always people in every corporation who have power beyond their title and require special handling. I just put these folks in the same category. And thankfully I have had minimal dealings with the “crazies.” My general stance in life with folks living on the fringe is to speak softly and respectfully and give them as wide a berth as possible. The first morning we didn’t have any walk-ins who didn’t pay, but the second morning we had three cars on two sites that hadn’t filled out the little envelope and put money in it and dropped it in the iron ranger. It is a little unsettling to knock on a car window at 7am, but my experience as a mother getting children out of bed to go to school definitely comes in handy here! It’s all about unrelenting cheerfulness, which is particularly obnoxious at 7am. Hey, if they don’t pay the fee, fine, they are going to be inconvenienced. I was definitely glad Lee was with me on these wake ups as he just stood there and looked official and I gently got people to pay. The first car was full of 20 somethings from France and I told them how sorry I was about what happened in their country. They paid, but needed some help with the paperwork which I gladly did. The second car only had 30 dollars and I am pretty sure the name “Jones” was a fake one, but I took their money cheerfully and said “OK” when they said they would return with the other five. I resisted the urge to tell them to make sure they left their campsite clean, again, years of experience with kids and mornings, and we went on our way. It was kind of fun actually, except for that initial contact, and definitely woke me up for the morning.

Regular staff is here every day from 10-6 so we have the day to ourselves to work from the rig or explore. We try to be back by 4pm to help with the walk ins and we are then “On Duty” until we go to bed. They have an Iron Ranger station (drop box with envelopes where people register) so we are available to answer questions and sell firewood or make change for people. Two days in we have had no one see us at night, but we will see how the weekend goes. We do have two days off, not sure when those are yet, but the expectation is 20-25 hours per couple. Mainly though we are here as a presence. As Ranger Thomas stated, folks might rethink mischief if they know there is a Camp Host on duty. And again, since this is off season, so far we are only getting 5-6 campers per night. Oh and no restroom cleaning here. They have a maintenance staff that cleans the restrooms and showers and empties trash, so that’s cool.

So after hearing all that you might be thinking, “Well, why bother?”. You might have income coming in, and you don’t need to supplement your income. Well, it turns out there are numerous perks that might make it worth your while, the financial benefit aside. Some of these we have experienced, and please don’t expect these because I am sure they won’t be everywhere, are:

An “All Access Pass” – We get keys, and so far, in both of the places we’ve been, the keys have allowed us access to areas where the general public can’t go. This allows us to drive our truck on roads less traveled and really absorb an area.
Having the place all to yourself – We love the shoulder season. Yes, the weather isn’t optimal, but the places are largely deserted which lessens the work load and gives you tons of opportunities to be the only people experiencing a place. Totally worth the trade off in our mind.
Getting a full hookup site in a place you couldn’t normally stay – This is a big one. This campground for example has only one site we could squeeze into and at $35 a night for no services at all it is unlikely we would have ever stayed here. Thus far our two sites have been big with great views and the water, electric, etc have all worked great.
Getting to really know people in the area – Folks have gone out of their way to get to know us and spent time educating us about the area. They want you to like it, because they want you to come back. The free education has been wonderful, plus when people are super passionate about where they work, it’s infectious. Really enhances the experience.
Access to extra services – Here they have a full kitchen, small library full of books about the area, free wi-fi, a giant maintenance area with tons of tools that we can borrow, a woodworking shop, and one of our favorites: free firewood. Since these jobs don’t pay they often offer extra little perks to sweeten the deal, because again, they would like for you to come back. And why not? Repeat volunteers make their life easier, plus give them some continuity of volunteer staff.
Being part of a community – Part of how we travel is to go to an area and learn how the people live. This is much easier when volunteering because people go to a lot of trouble to introduce you to the locals, give insights on the best businesses in the area, and basically make you feel more like part of the community. You can pass through an area and see it, but our goal is to experience it which is different. Experiencing an area involves getting to know the people a little bit as well. So volunteering is a short cut to meeting people.
Giving a little back – Even though we are getting something for volunteering, we are giving something back to our wonderful parks system. Volunteering was something I rarely had time for when I was working, going to school, and raising kids and it’s a nice feeling to contribute, even in a small way. Being thanked by people for picking up trash or giving information goes a long way towards making it feel less like a chore and more like something of value.

So that’s my summary thus far. Again, it’s a small sample size but I feel pretty confident about what I am seeing. I’ve shared some pictures from our tour below.

forgot to share a picture of this delicious chinese buffet we ate at. first decent Chinese food in a year and the sushi boats were awesome

Forgot to share a picture of this delicious Chinese buffet we ate at our first night in. First decent Chinese food in a year and the sushi boats were awesome and only $12.99 for dinner

Me and Ranger Tom in front of a Burl that was stolen and recovered. These are used to make clocks and the street value is $1K the retail is $5K. The rangers protect the forests from people poaching them

Lee admiring the crazy big chain saws

There are lots of these little houses that summer workers stay in

This tree was at the visitors center with tags on what was happening at the different rings

The center was 912 AD so I had to touch it. Crazy old

Here’s our site

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November 16, 2015 by Lee and Tracy

First Time in the Redwoods

It’s been a very busy week and sorry I didn’t write sooner, but I think you will see why once you read this. Wednesday we started to button things up in preparation for leaving, but Lee made time to watch the Veteran’s Day parade downtown. It was a small town parade, but Lee enjoyed it and afterwards he ran several errands.

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I stayed back at Hobo Camp and did one more big clean prior to leaving. Emptied all the trash, ultra filled the toilet paper, and scrubbed things down one last time, basically left it as I would want to find it. Once we leave Hobo Camp they don’t open the gate at the road again until spring, but folks still walk and horseback or bike ride into the park and the restrooms do get used on occasion. It was a very nice day, so I wanted to take advantage of the good weather and get it done. Thursday was our day to pick up the truck and it wasn’t done until 4:30. We decided to go ahead and keep the rental until the following morning which was a good call because Lee heard a knocking noise in the engine after just a few miles, and the check engine light came on. We decided to take the truck back in the morning and although we were very anxious about it, there was really nothing we could do. Plus, Stan was having us to his house for a goodbye dinner so we did the best we could to put it out of our minds. I hadn’t met Stan’s wife Beverly yet and was looking forward to it, but we were surprised by the number of cars at the house when we pulled up. Stan had invited some of the young people who work at the BLM, and what a great evening we had. It is really great talking to people who are passionate about what they do and they were all really interesting. Plus we had some songs (about trains!) and the food was really great. It was so sweet when Stan stood up and gave a little speech about the work we had done and then gave us a picture of ourselves in a frame. It really meant a lot to both of us, and was a wonderful way to cap off our time at Hobo Camp. Plus one of our readers has signed up to camp host there next fall, so it’s great that Stan will have another nice couple next year!! He was very excited about it.

Listening to Folsom Prison Blues

Really nice group of people

Stan telling a story!!

Stan telling a story about Lee!

Our framed appreciation picture…so sweet

Friday Lee got up first thing and was at the dealer when it opened. Now we were feeling the pressure because the weather was forecasting 2-4 inches of snow on Sunday and we really wanted to leave on Saturday before the snow, to drive through the mountains. We had no idea though what would happen with the truck and again just took some deep breaths and thought good things. At noon Lee drove back and the tech had found the problem. One of the fuel injectors had been mis-programmed and was causing the engine to miss. This would have caused fuel economy problems, a loss of power, and noises so it was a good thing Lee had them look at it and didn’t just ignore it in a hurry to get out of town. John the technician (who has been terrific through the whole process) was very apologetic and Lee drove the truck back so we could take our test drive. We knew we needed to drive at least 200 miles before towing (learned that from when Howard and Linda had their engine replaced) so decided to drive to Reno for dinner and a movie. We saw Spectre which was incredibly disappointing. Lee is a huge James Bond fan and has been waiting for this movie for months and it was really awful. But then we went to Red Lobster (where we had our first real date) and managed to eat dinner for under $40. Lee got the 4 course meal for $17.99 and I ate the add-on crab legs and his soup. Plus we got waters and I used my packet lemonade and we had an appetizer. Their prices have really gone up and I was thrilled at the $39 check before tip. The good news was the truck ran very well and although we still were a little concerned about towing through the mountains with a brand new engine we both felt a lot better. By the way the total bill on this was $16K with our part being the $1K deductible. So please, please put your finger on the word diesel before pumping fuel, assuming you have a diesel vehicle!

Saturday morning we were up and moving by 7:30 because we needed to go to the tire place. We have not been able to get new G rated tires because of our schedule and Lee was determined that we weren’t leaving without them. So he ordered them from SimpleTire.com, and had them delivered to a UPS store and they were sitting in the rental car. The day before we had dropped the tires off right before returning the rental and since it was first come first serve at the tire place we wanted to be first in line. Thankfully we were and they jumped right on it. I do want to mention that when they were done the manager came out and checked it and two tires were under torqued and the pressure was low on all of them. So if you get a tire replaced double check the work and ask for a supervisor to check. That could have been very bad if a tire would have come off. But Lee was on it and again we felt relief at having finally taken care of that problem.

Getting the tire fixed

All Done!!

Immediately after the tires were done we were off. Lee had done extensive research on the best route to the Redwoods and unfortunately both roads going over the mountains were on the scary side. So we decided to go all the way south of the mountains and then back up on the other side, and take two days instead of doing it one. The drive down was good, with some icy roads in the beginning but mostly it was an easy drive. There aren’t many places to stay near San Francisco, where Nick lives, unfortunately, so I ended up picking a KOA in Petaluma. Wow. I had forgotten how crowded those could be. The place was packed, the sites super tight, and the price was the most we have ever spent ($58 for one night water and electric only). They did have some nice features for kids such as a petting zoo and a huge bouncy bag, but for us it was not where we would choose to stay. We were also pretty disappointed that the camp itself wasn’t clean when we pulled in (beer caps in the fire pit, ad cigarette butts and small litter everywhere on the site). For that kind of money the place should have been spotless. Then when we called Nick he was still two hours away and could only meet us halfway in the city. I didn’t have it in me to handle San Francisco on a Saturday night so we took a rain check and went to bed early.

The next morning we were up and out early and looking for a Walmart. We wanted to stock up on food prior to hitting the Redwoods and Lee had found a Walmart neighborhood market close by. I hadn’t seen one of these since Florida and was excited to go there but the parking lot was very tight so we headed about an hour up the road and went to a “Super Center” in Ukiah. It was not a huge Walmart but had a decent selection and some really good deals on meat so we filled the freezer and cabinets and walked out $300 poorer. Since we got killed in Glacier going to the local stores I wanted to buy a months worth of everything I could, but we will see how this impacts the budget overall. I am hoping I can get away until the end of the month with minimal trips to the grocery store. Since we were only a couple hours away from the campground we just put away the freezer and fridge items and left everything else out. In retrospect I don’t think I would do that again, however, because it really made my setup time longer especially because I had to rearrange most of the cabinets to get everything put away.

Also up until that point the scenery wasn’t that great. I had a mental image of the Napa/Sonoma area but the parts we were seeing along 101 looked more like Central Florida. Suddenly though, around Geyserville the scenery was absolutely breathtaking. So many vines it boggled the mind and the rolling hills were beautiful in the background. Unfortunately I don’t have pictures because there were not many places to pull over and it started to rain but the views were amazing. As we got closer to the Redwoods the terrain became more hilly. Lee called the road “relentless” as it was very twisty and turny. There were two 6% grades and a 7% which I am happy to say the truck handled beautifully. Lee was a bit stressed though, new engine, new tires, challenging road, but overall he did great. Finally we left 101 and drove on the Avenue of the Giants. We are staying at Burlington Campground at Humboldt State Park and it is very close to many of the important groves like the Founders Grove. We didn’t really know what to expect, but aahhh the trees!

When I was a little girl my mother scraped together money to buy me the World Book Encyclopedia set which came with a set of Child Craft books. I was an only child until I was 12 and we moved around a lot so I spent a lot of time with my nose in a book. I loved that Child Craft set (still have them, couldn’t give them up in the purge) and each book was on a different subject. One was on Plants and Trees and I loved the pictures of the big redwoods. So as we were driving down the Avenue of the Giants I flashed back to those pictures and how much I wanted to see the trees as a young girl. Here I was 40 years later making that dream come true. And the trees do not disappoint. They are so big, that it’s hard to capture them in a picture, although I have tried and when you touch them they feel soft and almost spongy. Some of them are more than 2,000 years old and they are only still here today because a dedicated group of people in 1913 rallied people to protect certain spots against the loggers. Rockefeller donated $2M during the depression to protect a group of trees and other groups paid money to protect a grove. So it was with wide eyes and an open heart when we pulled into our campground, but my bubble was burst a little when no one there was expecting us. We had spoken to John the Ranger who said it was fine if we came in early to avoid the snowstorm, but he was off until Wednesday and hadn’t told anyone we were coming. Because we are 40 feet they were concerned that we wouldn’t fit in any other site and the current hosts were not leaving until the next day. After the volunteer coordinator called around and tried to find us a spot, we finally took a piece of road in a closed section of the campground and boondocked for the night. It actually worked out ok, we just used the generator and some solar and it was very easy to back into our camphost site the next day once Shane and his husband left.

Shane was great. He spent a chunk of the morning walking us through everything we had to do and was very organized. I am so grateful to him, because without him we would have been a bit lost. It’s not that uncommon when volunteeering at a State campground for responsibilities to be a bit vague. Since the rangers seemed pleased by what Shane had done, we decided we would follow his lead and were lucky enough that he was generous with his time. He and his husband volunteer frequently at State Parks and say the disorganization is pretty common. His advice was to stay busy and people would be happy. There are ranger staff at the kiosk from 8-4 every day so we just handle helping people after hours and in the morning. This will leave us during the day to explore the area and he also gave us all the cool places to see. He loved it here and would have stayed if they needed him, and I felt much better Monday morning about the situation. Plus I took a walk around the campground and, oh my. The whole front section that we are in is closed and there is hardly anyone in the back. So beautiful and since it is off season all ours!! Plus we have keys that work on all the gates throughout the entire park so we can take our truck anywhere, even areas that are closed for the season. Super excited and can’t wait to get settled and start exploring. Will let you know how everything goes. Oh and I hope you like pictures of trees because you are going to be seeing plenty of them 🙂

View from our camper

To give you some scope of the size check out our truck next to that stump that’s behind those three “baby” trees.

the canopy is beautiful . I am going to get a crick in my neck 🙂

Right across the street from us

The Ranger Station we work in

So so pretty

I love the stumps. this one was over 10 feet tall

This was my favorite. Had so many burrels it is like a living sculpture

Huge living tree you can walk inside

The view from inside so cool

This was at least 20 feet tall and you can walk inside it also

Nice campsite!!

Here’s our sign!!

Lessons Learned

Put you finger on the word diesel before pumping fuel or you could lose your engine
Get higher rated tires.
When getting tires replaced on your rig ask the supervisor to come check the work and double check the pressure and torque yourself!!
Some things in life live up to their press

Campground Review

Petaluma KOA 20 Rainsville Rd 2 out of 5 pine cones

The sites are super tight and only one vehicle could fit. We have a forty foot trailer and it was close that we weren’t in the road. Very expensive at $58 water and electric only. $75 for full hookups pull through. They did have some nice features for kids such as a petting zoo and a huge bouncy bag, along with a pool and they certainly make the most out of the little space they have. We were also pretty disappointed that the camp itself wasn’t clean when we pulled in (beer caps in the fire pit). For that kind of money the place should have been spotless.

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November 10, 2015 by Lee and Tracy

First Year – The Emotional Arc

I went back and forth on how to write about the first year from an emotional perspective. I decided that I needed to be true to my feelings in the moments, but I could also provide some additional perspective a year in and hopefully much wiser. This has been a year of major changes. As an adult I have experienced this level of change only two other times in my life. In 1989, I got married and became a mother in the same year, and in 2001 I moved my entire family to a new state and started a major new job, all at the same time. I mention this to show that I am not a person who turns her life upside down frequently. I admire people who do that, but that was never who I was. I strove for stability and “normalcy” and consequently did not make bold moves or take many risks. (Facts in evidence regarding her marriage to me notwithstanding. – Lee)

So please take my emotional arc in that context. If you are a different type of person, many of the things I struggled with might not even be an issue. Or you may have other challenges that weren’t even on my radar.

For the purposes of this post I am not going to discuss the emotions experienced during the “get-ready” phase, although many of those emotions carried into the year, especially the early months. I recommend that you read my Becoming Full Timers Step-by-Step page for that perspective. Instead I am going to start when we went on the road. One of the outside things we were dealing with was being brand new empty-nesters. This is not an insignificant change for couples, and it was one of the reasons we decided to go on the road in the first place, but it was very difficult dropping our daughter off for basic training and then turning right around and going on the road just three months later. (Reflections on Being an Empty-Nester) Here’s the thing; You would think all of the “new” would be a distraction, and it sort of is, but the underlying feelings still have to be dealt with. So we were going through perfectly normal feelings around our last child leaving, but instead of dealing with them in a routine environment, we were dealing with them while simultaneously dealing with this big life change. Some people are fans of that. They think you should throw as much change as possible in at the same time and deal with it all at once. I understand the idea and maybe for some it even makes sense, but I will say in retrospect I wish we would have had a little more time between when she left and when we went on the road. Lee would vehemently disagree, with me on this one. He hated being in the house once Kay was gone and would say going on the road was the best way to combat that. (That’s true, but in our case, Tracy traveled a lot for work, and that had it’s own kind of continuity for her. For me, the three months between when Kay left home for Basic Training and when we hit the road was brutal. After 25 years of having at least one person in the house who either wanted to kill me to death or hug me to death, walking into a dark, cold, empty house when Trace was out of town was nearly unbearable. – Lee)

Once we were on the road and the initial euphoria died down, we both started grappling with the fact that this lifestyle requires Compromises. (I was actually unfamiliar with the concept, and had to Google it. I’m still not convinced the idea will catch on, so I’m not getting too attached to it. – Lee) We had done a tremendous amount of research and we knew intellectually there would be compromise but it was tough for both of us to actually deal with it. I know we were greedy for everything in the beginning. We try not to be greedy people as a general rule, but the new freedom and finally being out there went to our heads a bit. We wanted what we wanted and we wanted it right now, and those compromises that kept coming up bothered us more than they would under normal circumstances. Lee was never much on compromise to begin with (true) and I think this might be one of the biggest changes I have seen in him. If you read his comments from the linked post, he really did feel that way, but now he seems much more philosophical about things. He should probably jump in here. (You’ve got this. I’ll jump in if you start to go off the rails. – Lee)

I was also dealing with Living Outside of My Comfort Zone. In my experience, which I grant is somewhat limited, most full timer couples have one person who jumps into the life completely, and another who is slower to acclimate. I definitely was the slower of us and although Lee was very patient, after several months I really needed to come to terms with the fact that this was my choice and I had to own it. This was really tough for me. Not because I like holding others accountable, but because it created a bit of a safety net for me emotionally. Once I faced it head on, I had to start really pushing myself to learn all aspects of the full timing lifestyle. I am still not 100% where I want to be on this one, but I am miles ahead of where I was even six months ago.

Simultaneously we were working through maintaining relationships while on the road. I will say that my family relationships have actually improved since we started this lifestyle. My family is spread throughout the U.S. and this has given us the opportunity to spend more concentrated time with some family members than ever before. Friendships are a bit tougher though. First of all, neither one of us was really good at having couple friends. We both had very strong connections with people we worked with but never really hung out with many couples while we were raising kids. So if you are a person who has strong friendships prior to going on the road this may be less of an issue for you. For us it was a whole new skill set we had to learn. In Pondering Friendships on the Road, I talk about how new this was to us and how we often struggled because frankly we weren’t very good at it. The big lesson learned for me, which I still come back to on occasion, is first you have to be OK individually, then as a couple, and finally with a group of people. Everyone has stuff they are dealing with, especially in the early days, and going through it in front of an audience can be tough. That being said, I wouldn’t trade the support system we have built for anything, and I truly don’t know if I could do this without the friends I have made. (I would trade the whole lot of you for cash, or even a decent discount on our data plan. – Lee) They are one of the best parts of this new life for me and although Lee needs the social interaction less than I do, he really values his friendships with Bill and Greg in particular. (Don’t let it go to your head, guys. Our data plan is really expensive. – Lee) And I really want to give Bill some credit here for making that happen. Not many guys will pick up the phone and call each other, but Bill has consistently done that with Lee. Sure, the conversations are often about mechanical stuff, but I know they both really enjoy having someone else in the same situation to bounce ideas off of and those phone calls have deepened their friendship. The Class of 2014 as formed a tight group; we all read each others blogs, are friends on Facebook, and text each other when something big is going on. We keep in touch, we show we care, and when we are close to each other we make sure we get to see each other, which happens more often than you would think. The secret really is going to some trouble for the people you care about. It doesn’t require a ton of effort, but it does require effort, and it is so worth it.

As Lee and I were working on being better friends, we were also dealing with our Changing Relationship. All this change has been tough on us. I have always believed that we would go through these changes whether or not we went on the road, but becoming full timers placed our relationship into a pressure cooker. We have experienced more turmoil and intensity in one year than we had in the prior 10 in aggregate. I know we are not alone in this and if you are thinking about being a full timer please understand that to a greater or lesser extent this WILL happen. You can’t put two people into a 400 foot space, with constant newness and challenges, and not expect some conflict. Conflict is not always a bad thing though. Constructive conflict can lead to growth and positive change which can strengthen a relationship. Destructive conflict can lead to damage; sometimes irreparable. We have experienced both and thankfully much more constructive and destructive, although it didn’t always feel that way at the time. In the last year we have had only two very bad arguments that led me to seriously question our marriage. I am telling you this because I really think its important that you don’t underestimate how tough this can be, and what you might be putting at risk. Again to be extremely clear, I believe those issues would have occurred whether or not we decided to full time, but full-timing brought those issues to a head. They had to be dealt with and not under ideal circumstances. That being said, we made it through and I absolutely know we are stronger on the other side.

One of the positive results of those arguments was me taking a really hard look at Changing the Way I Define Myself. For us, and this is absolutely not always the case, the old rules don’t always apply. We don’t always want them to apply, because choosing this lifestyle was as much about personal freedom and change as it was about geographic location. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not like we completely changed personalities overnight, but this is an opportunity to become different and better, and throw off some of the constraints of our old lives. I will say that Lee has done so much better than me in this area. He has held steadfast to the idea that he doesn’t need to adhere to the old rules anymore. I on the other hand hate leaving my comfort zone and those old rules may be confining but they are comfortable. So this one is absolutely a work in progress and I am curious to see what happens here in Year 2. It’s a major reason I finally decided to leave my job. The job was part of the old life and had the old rules, and I really need to try this without those constraints. In A Very Big Step, I talk about why I came to that decision. I am only a couple of weeks into my new life and it has been pretty intense so far, but I am working through it. I will absolutely say though that in retrospect I am so glad I had the job in Year 1. It really helped me to have that structure and normalcy amidst all the other change. I know many people don’t have that luxury, and I am extremely grateful that I did.

So what do I think overall at the end of Year 1? Well, if courage is defined not as the absence of fear, but continuing in the face of fear, then we showed courage. Do I wish I could have handled certain things with more grace under pressure? Absolutely, but overall I think we did pretty well. We had so many amazing moments and some truly challenging ones, but on balance way more good than bad. I keep thinking about a conversation I had with Howard and Linda at dinner one night about how tough things could sometimes be and Linda asked me what would I do if I went back to that other life. I was truly surprised by the question so my answer was very honest. I said, “I am ruined for anything else.” They just smiled, because they got it. We have done more fun and adventuresome things this year than we had done in the previous 10 years, and I am totally serious about that statement. Once you have lived this life, a more conventional life suffers in comparison. Will it be forever? Well, forever is a long time. For right now, I am trying to live in the moment and do better in Year 2 than I did in Year 1. And since a picture is worth a 1000 words, here is some of my favorites pics of Lee and I from this year. And since I am terrible at faking pictures (and Lee has never bothered to fake anything) this is really how we were feeling in the moment.

Visiting the Tardis, Rock Hill, SC

Me and Lee in front of Looking Glass Waterfall

Looking Glass Waterfall, Pisgah National Forest, NC

I couldn't resist even though it was pretty chilly

Having fun in Charleston, SC

Jekyl’s Island

At Indian Springs Beach, Largo, FL

I adore this picture of my husband...he loves boats and had such a good time

Lee on a sailboat in Tarpon Springs, FL

I think I look a bit like Kelly in this hat :)

Kayaking in Robinson Preserve, Bradenton, FL

Abram, me, and Lee...can you tell we love our newest nephew

Lee and I with our nephew Abram in Rock Hill, SC

Jockey Hill State Park, Outer Banks, NC

Me working in Outer Banks with the beautiful Mother’s Day flowers my daughter Kat sent me

Adventure Course Outer Banks, NC

RV Dreams Rally Marion, NC

Lee with his mom in Amish country, Ohio

Me and Lex, our nephew in Columbus, Ohio

Lee and I at our daughter Kat and Micah’s wedding

Vermillon Gorge, MN

Lee in front of the backside of the house

Lee in front of the house his mom grew up Dickinson, ND

Lee laughing at the shirt Deb bought him

I loved that Deb wrote on this rock for me...so thoughtful since she knows I love rocks

Celebrating my birthday at Whitefish Lake, MT

Glacier, MT

Going to the sun road Glacier, MT

Lee seeing our youngest daughter Kay for the first time in almost a year

What girl doesn't like an armful of stuffed animals at an arcade

Circus Circus in Reno, NV with the stuffed animals we won

Lee was super brave climbing right up on the big rocks

Lake Tahoe, NV

Here's me and Jack. As bundled up as I was it was still pretty cold on the return trip

Volunteering in Susanville, CA

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November 10, 2015 by Lee and Tracy

First Year – By the Numbers

Although I often post about the emotional aspects of full timing, when it comes to reading blogs, the annual recap posts that I like best are the ones that have lots of data. When I was researching the lifestyle and trying to figure out whether or not this was possible for us, I gathered as much information as I possibly could, and I vowed to pay it forward by posting my own information when the time came. This post will not include a complete financial recap, though, as we are tracking our costs on a calendar year basis, instead of one year from when we hit the road, which was November 4, 2014. I will be including some financial information, but for the full analysis on that you will need to wait until January. The other data is roughly one year starting November 14th.

So here goes, our first year “by the numbers”, but please keep in mind that every single person’s situation is different. Although you can certainly learn from what we have done, ours is only one of the myriad ways to live this lifestyle.

Travel Information

First Year Travel Map with the major stops and general route shown. This map does not have every place we have stayed, but it shows a high level overview of our general route. We started in Keene, NH on November 14, 2014, and our last stop for the year was Susanville, CA. Interestingly, we are scheduled to leave Susanville on November 14, 2015.

Truck Miles – Roughly, we towed for 8,000 miles and we used the truck separately for approximately another 2,000 miles. We also had my company car from Nov 2041- July 2015, and put about 9,800 miles on it. 8,000 of those miles were spent following the truck when we towed, so we used around 1,800 for sight seeing, errands, etc.

Travel Pattern – In general we like to travel to an area and stay for several weeks then move on to another area. For me the benefits are truly getting to know an area, keeping our costs down, and not feeling unsettled all of the time. We prefer a “hub and spoke” approach where we settle in a place, see everything we can within a reasonable distance from it in all directions, and then move on to the next thing. Of course the schedule has also been driven by family, friend, and work commitments, but even if that was not the case, this pattern would be my preference. Below are the longest periods of time listed in chronological order along with the main reasons we visited there.

Rock Hill, SC – 6 weeks with my sister and her family.
Clearwater, FL – 10 weeks while Lee attended mobile RV Tech school.
St Augustine, FL – 3 weeks getting our state residency established.
Outer Banks, NC – 4 weeks with Kelly, Bill, Cori, Greg, Jo, Craig, Sue, Guy, Eileen, and Gene, all from the RV Dreams Graduating Class of 2014.
Columbus, OH – 2 weeks in our hometown with our parents and friends.
Minneapolis, MN/Luck, WI – 4 weeks with our daughter Katy and her husband’s family getting ready for her wedding.
Lake Kabetagoma, MN – 4 weeks with Howard and Linda of RV-Dreams; Lee worked on a video project for them
Glacier, MT – 3 weeks in the Glacier area with Deb, Steve, Ellen, and Mario. Bucket list item of mine!
Susanville, CA – 8 weeks work kamping at a BLM day use park.

Major Expenditures

Although I will be providing a detailed financial accounting at year end I thought it was important to mention the major expenses we have incurred getting ready to go on the road (Year 0) and during Year 1. All of these expenses are “one-time costs”, and most were planned, although some were not. The important thing is to understand that the “getting ready period” and Year 1 is the most expensive. Although you may choose to not invest in some of these items, I am including them so you can get an accurate idea of what your start up costs might be. Note: The costs are rounded up

Kat’s wedding – Roughly $7,000 This is an “all-in” price that included wedding clothing, gifts, and incidentals along with the portion of the wedding itself that we paid for. We had money set aside in savings for such an eventuality, but didn’t expect it to happen this year. Word of advice, if you plan on helping your kids with their wedding have that money set aside before you go on the road. (There is no need for you to worry about this as a line item on your budget, unless you have a daughter, and her name is Kat, and she might be getting married in the near future. – Lee)
RV Tech School – $6,200 This was a 10 week program covering all systems of the RV. We chose to complete the course for two reasons. Lee needed to be able to work on our home, which the school absolutely made possible, and wanting to earn additional revenue as we traveled. The revenue generated in Year 1 in no way covered the cost of the school but this was largely due to our choices around where to stay and for how long. Like solar, this is an investment we expect to pay off over time. Speaking of which…
Solar – $5,400 This included 4 AGM batteries, 4 solar panels, and an inverter, and was completed by RV Solar Solutions. Between the tax write-off and lower campsite costs we fully expect this eventually to pay for itself, but even if that doesn’t happen, it makes camping in the more remote places a possibility.
Rose Bowl HOP – $1,700 This is an Escapees event to attend the Rose Bowl Parade which has been a dream of mine since I was a small child. I consider this our vacation for Year 1 and the money came from our savings account. The cost includes some meals, campsite, tickets to all events, transportation, and the ability to work on a float!
New Tires and Installation – $1659 Although many of our purchases were discretionary, I would definitely put these in the category of necessary and I truly wish we had negotiated them into the price of our new camper. As is often the case we were given cheap, foreign “E rated” tires and after not one but two flats (the second of which was a blow out at highway speed, which could have caused us serious injury) we knew we would have to bite the bullet and replace them. We ordered the tires online, which is way cheaper than any price we could find locally, and with some difficulty found a place that would replace them while we waited. Since the markup is mainly in the tire cost AND not all tire places can replace tires on an RV, this was challenging. Couple that with the logistics of getting our home there and getting it done and this was painful both financially and personally.
Surge Protector and Voltage Regulator – $1100 These items were recommended by our good friend Red when we first started out, actually before we started, when we took our brand-new rig on its maiden voyage to the 2014 RV Dreams Spring Rally, and although we had major sticker shock from the cost, it turns out it was a wise investment. Within the first three months of full timing, while we were staying at a very nice high end snow-bird campground, the inside of the Voltage Regulator was completely fried from a power surge. Not just a little, but totally melted and black. Not only did it save our electrical system (costs to replace can run upwards of $2500) but since it was still covered under its manufacturer’s warranty we got a replacement for free.
Mobile Tech Tools – $1,000 This is a rough estimate as Lee had to spend around $300 on mandatory tools in order to graduate, but then found he needed some additional tools to get started. My only regret here is some of the tools we had and sold at our garage sale before we knew he would be doing this, but most of them were things we did not own before such as a propane gas leak detector. Speaking of the garage sale….
Sea Eagle Inflatable Kayak – $840 We took the money from the garage sale to pay for this, and although we haven’t used it very much I am glad we have had it the few times we had the opportunity to kayak with friends. Plus it is a well made product, and we expect we’ll get a lot more use out of it in the future.
New Couch – $800 I am a couch person and absolutely hated the “couch” that came with the 5th wheel after using it in our seasonal site for the summer. So, we found a regular two person reclining love seat that we could disassemble and fit through the door. It looks a little goofy because it sits about 5 inches higher than it should due to the design of our slideout, but it sure is comfortable.
Camera and accessories – $499 This was my big splurge before we hit the road, and I don’t regret it for one second. I have had so much free entertainment out of that camera, and we are actually going to use some of my last bonus check to buy a second camera body for Lee so we can both have one. We highly recommend investing in a good camera. (When we bought the camera, we chose a kit with two lenses, and we’re constantly switching out the lenses on the fly, “in the field”, which is not a good idea at all. Too much opportunity for dust or other things to get into the camera or lens, and it’s also a pain in the butt, and awkward. There’s only so many times you can do it before one of the lenses (or both) or the camera hit the ground during the lens-changing ballet. So we’re getting a duplicate body, and that way we can both carry a camera, and switching lenses will just be a matter of swapping the cameras back and forth between us. Plus, both cameras can be used to shoot beautiful HD video, which will come in handy when I get video gigs. – Lee)
TPMS – $490 Lee really wanted the tire pressure monitoring system for peace of mind. I don’t know that I am a huge fan, but I don’t do most of the driving. (The system in the link is for 6 tires, we got the one for 10 tires.-Lee)
“Blue Boy” and Waste Pump Kit – $475 This is one of the best purchases we made, for two reasons. First it gives us a ton of flexibility when we want to extend our stay in a site without sewer hookup. We can stretch the black tank two weeks but the grey only four to five days at best, and the Blue Boy allows us to extend our stay beyond those dates. Small price to pay to not have to physically move at those intervals. (Lots of people use these, you often see them pulling them like a smelly wagon behind their truck at campgrounds. the way they’re designed, you are supposed to dump your grey and black tanks into them using gravity, then haul them using a ball hitch to the dump station, and dump them, again using gravity. When researching them, I was concerned about two things with this plan; The max speed they can be safely towed at is 5mph. I can’t even imagine having something go wrong while pulling one of these things through a campground while full. All I could picture was something going wrong, and the contents….spreading across the road. The other problem i was imagining was being out in the middle of the desert on BLM land, and trying to tow this thing to town along the road. At 5mph. So, I decided instead to keep it on the back of the truck, between the tailgate and the 5th wheel hitch. That’s why I bought the macerator pump. I can pump the rig’s tanks into the blue boy, then gravity dump from the bed of the truck at the dump station. I also use a gate valve to have more control over the process. And if ever I need the extra space in my truck when we’re sitting somewhere, I can take the blue boy out and stow it under the camper. A word of caution, though, use straps or bike lock cable, because when you’re travelling at highway speed, the 5th wheel creates a little hurricane between the hitch and the tailgate, and it’s enough to lift the blue boy up, and possibly out.-Lee)
RV Driving School – $455 Not only did this two day class make me more comfortable driving, but it also saved me from a possible accident when I followed what I was taught and hit a tire tread that was in the middle of the road straight on instead of swerving to avoid it. I would recommend at least a four hour class for every driver.
Dyson Slim Vacuum – $400 I love this vacuum. It fits in the closet and works great, plus the attachments cover anything we need to clean. (A sexist word to the wise to all the dudes out there: If you’re wife wants a vacuum, buy it. Duh. – Lee)
Magma Stackable Cookware – $400 Probably the most expensive cookware I have ever owned, and I absolutely love it. The quality is extremely high and it fits neatly in a little bit of space as it is stackable. (A culinary word to the wise to all the slightly chubby or soon-to-be slightly chubby dudes out there: If your wife wants cookware, buy it. Duh. – Lee)
WeBoost – $400 Wifi and cellular booster. This was on our list of things to buy, but we waited until we absolutely had to have it. In retrospect I would have had it from the beginning and saved myself a lot of aggravation. It works great, and is totally worth it.
Signs for Lee’s business – $360 Magnetic truck signs and a realtor style “yard” ‘sign which people have called us from, so they do work. Unfortunately we lost one in South Dakota somewhere so they need to be replaced.
Electric Valves – $300 Early on the grey valve pull handle broke in my hand and Lee bought the electric valves and then used the warranty labor to install these. They are much much easier and you don’t have to worry about the cables breaking.
Stenciling for the camper – $300 This was definitely a vanity purchase as we have some custom lettering on the RV. It makes me happy though and since Lee applied the lettering himself, I consider it a bargain.
Flagpole Buddy – $205 Allows us to extend our antenna which increases the cell signal we are getting, and/or Wi Fi signal, if you have an external Wi fi antenna.
Valve Extenders for Tires – $167 Allows Lee to check the tire pressure on our dually while we are traveling.

What’s left?

Mor-Ryde suspension – At some point we are definitely going to want to upgrade to the heavy duty suspension but the $3500 price tag is enough to make us wait for awhile.
At some point I would like to get custom furniture made in Indiana but I am pretty happy with what we have now and that truly is a down to road nice to have item because it is expensive.
The unexpected. We have contingency money in place because we know stuff will happen. Hopefully those events will be few and far between, but we need to be prepared. I would recommend a minimum of $10K contingency before going on the road because that should buy you out of any situation that is not totally catastrophic.

Memberships

Which memberships to buy are one of the big questions new full timers ask themselves. Since we never really camped before we relied heavily on the advice of others and ended up buying the memberships below. I don’t regret any of them, and have used them all, but not sure all of them will have value the same value in Year 2.

Good Sam Lifetime – $299 We bought this because it was the only way to get an $ .08 discount on gasoline at all Pilot and Flying J stations. What we didn’t realize is that you also have to get a pilot gas card and use that as well, plus the setup was a real pain in the butt and took months to get the complete discount. The lifetime Camping World discount is nice, and we use it, so over time I am sure we will get the money back. If you have the money, go ahead, but if not, I wouldn’t. I haven’t used their camping discount at all. (I totally disagree. I think the $300 is totally worth it. For one thing, I like having the Pilot/Flying J credit card, and I think the discount on diesel is awesome. We’re saving about $3 every time we fill up, so we will absolutely get that $300 back in diesel alone. It’s just a matter of time. It’s also nice for me to have a record in the form of the credit card statement for exactly where we got fuel, and how much, and how much it cost. I could write all that down, but it’s an added bonus. And the other benefits are basically “free” since you’re getting your money back in fuel discounts. 10% off at Good Sam campgrounds, lower prices at Camping World, and a free annual RV inspection. – Lee)
Good Sam Towing – $179 for two years. We have used this service twice for flat tires since we got it so a tow service was definitely worth it. I was disappointed, however, in the level of service we received and when it expires I may try AAA for RV’s. Need to research.
Mobile Internet Resource Center – $47 We purchased Technomadia’s e-book and annual membership with updates and found it very helpful for the first year as we were researching the various internet solutions. Since Lee is very technically saavy we will not be renewing for Year 2, but would recommend trying this service if internet/tech issues are something you struggle with.
Passport America – $40 We used this several times on the East Coast and saved at least $100 in camping fees if not more. I am a big fan of this program, but find it much less valuable when traveling out west, so won’t renew it until we start heading back east.
Escapees – $40 I bought this membership because I thought we would be using their mail service, but then we changed our minds and decided to be Florida residences and all of their mail service options in Florida have a Texas mailing address which made me very uncomfortable. I did end up signing up for the Rose Bowl HOP which I am excited about, but other than having the option to do that I have not used this service at all. I find their website to be very antiquated and much prefer the RV-Dreams forum. It just seems designed for a less tech saavy crowd, although I think that is changing as more Gen Xers enter the RV full timer world, but I am not planning on renewing the membership at this time. I may in the future.
Work Kamper News Silver Membership – $40 I am a huge fan of this membership and have used it the most. I receive daily work kamper emails (one of which we used to get our current work kamper position) and I have set up a free resume online with them and even written a free situation wanted ad for Alaska next summer. I think their website is very user friendly and informative. Even if you are only researching and not actively searching for work, I recommend this site. It has some terrific information on it.

Truck and RV Repairs

When your home is on wheels, things will break. It does catch people by surprise though, especially in Year 1, because if you bought something new you have an expectation things will last a little longer. The sticks and bricks rules do not apply to an RV though so just expect it, and buy a good extended warranty. The items that broke are listed below in roughly chronological order.

Washing Machine – During our walk-through when we picked up our rig we noticed that we had not received a Splendide Washer/Dryer combo as ordered. According to our dealer they were on back order and the replacement brand was just as good. Faced with a delay in getting our rig and needing to use it at the RV-Dreams rally immediately, we accepted the replacement with some reservations. It broke after a couple of uses and by broke I mean clothes were stuck in it and it was full of water. It took a month to get a manufacturer certified tech out and then after three months it broke again. This time we demanded the Splendide we had ordered and have not had any problems since. No cost, other other than massive inconvenience. (You don’t even want to know what month-old water coming out of a washing machine smells like. Not detergent, I can tell you that. – Lee)
Grey Tank Valve Stem – Early on I pulled on the handle for the grey tank and it broke off in my hand. This left the grey tank stuck in an open position, which was OK for a short time because we were on full hookups. Lee decided to replace the valves with electric ones and used the dealer warranty labor hours to install the electric valves, which thankfully the tech was happy to do. Parts cost us $300, but that was our choice. An exact replacement would have been free, and would likely have broken after a while.
Fantastic Fan – This started squeaking not long after we got it and was acting as if it wasn’t balanced correctly. The dealer was very surprised as these “never” break and they replaced it. They said it was only the second time they had seen it and since Fantastic Fan has a lifetime warranty was no cost to either us or them. They replaced it when they fixed the grey tank handle.
Trim coming off – We have had two pieces of trim come off. One from me bringing the slide in without the bedroom TV being flush against the wall and the other just shook off with time. Lee fixed it with wood glue and clamps so there was no cost, but it did take me several weeks to get him to do it. It apparently bugged me a lot more than him and I had to pull out the “it’s making my home look cheap” speech.
Gear box on both front living room slides – in both cases this was my fault because I was putting these stuffed animals up in the slides area when they were out and not once but twice sucked an animal into the gear and chain mechanism while closing the slide and stripped the gears. Yes I am a complete idiot. Lee was great about it and Open Range sent us the replacement parts and let Lee do the work which not all manufacturers will do. No cost to us except serious stress because you can’t physically move if the slides won’t go in.
Burners lighter doesn’t work – We have had this problem since very early on. Our solution was to get a plastic wall hanger and put a butane lighter next to the stove so I manually light them. Honestly I don’t even think about it anymore since it never worked right from the beginning. Cost was a couple of dollars for the hangar. Something like this might drive someone else crazy, but for me no big deal.
Light switch cover in bedroom – This got knocked off because a picture that was hanging above it shook loose and fell on it, and snapped the little clips that hold it in. Lee had to replace it. For some reason this really upset Lee and he had a couple of rants about poor manufacturing. I countered with the “our home is on wheels” speech and eventually he settled down about it. I am sure that since he is primarily responsible for the maintenance, it represented something bigger for him, but for me it was just a light switch cover. Cost to us couple of dollars to replace. (This was just me getting used to the idea that the overall quality of such things is lower in a rig than in a S&B house. In a house, you can have a light switch cover take massive amounts of abuse for 50 years, but in a rig, you have to be a little more gentle. Also some things are just not fun or interesting to fix. Like light switch covers. A cat could do it, if it had thumbs, and cats are just plain stupid. – Lee)
Slide wood getting wet – There is a design flaw in our rig where the “gutter” drops rain water right down the side of the rear slideouts, and the corner bead seals also break loose because one of the two materials flexes too much. that allows a teeny little bit of water to seep in, which then causes the wood underneath to swell, which makes the crack in the seal bigger, which lets in more water, which sort of snowballs. Lee became concerned about possible rotting and on a very very hot sunny, dry day pulled back the siding to expose the wood to the sun. Once everything was dry he put it all back together with a more flexible sealant. He also rigged a new spout that would put the water much farther way from the rig. Cost to us was about $20 for parts, but without him addressing this it could have been much worse. There is plywood in these slides and it will rot given enough water saturation, and time.
Replace bathroom door hinges – Because we are shaking as we travel the nylon spacers between the two halves of the bathroom door hinges break and then the door is super squeaky. Lee fixed it the first time by replacing the hinges, but now it is happening again. The problem is there are limits to how many new holes you can put in the wood, so we really are going to need a better solution. Cost to us is minimal for new hinges, irritation from squeaking is very high. No clue how costly a permanent fix (if there is one) will be.
Truck alignment and two new front tires –We believe the truck’s alignment came from the factory wrong as both front tires wore out quickly and the same. One of the few items not covered by our warranty, this one stung as we were unprepared for it. We covered it with extra money we had saved from our monthly budget but it was pricey at $560.
Truck Insurance Deductible – $1,000 Lee accidentally put regular fuel in the diesel truck causing a significant amount of damage. (Significant is a rather gentle word. This shockingly easy to make mistake completely destroyed the engine, requiring an entire new engine, at a cost of $15,000. Repeat after me, people, because it can happen to anyone: “PUT YOUR FINGER ON THE WORD DIESEL BEFORE YOU PUMP IT.” – Lee) Luckily accidental fuel contamination was covered by our comprehensive policy and we only had to pay a deductible.

Top 10 Things We Have Seen

The close up encounter with grizzly bears and trip to Kintla Lake- Related Post
Going to the Sun Road and the mountain horn sheep- Related Post
Avalanche Lake in Glacier National Park- Related Post
Dolphins swimming along side our sailboat cruise in Tarpon Springs- Related Post
Vermilion Falls and my first Bald Eagle Sighting- Related Post
Charleston S.C. – Related Post
Jekyll Island – Related Post
The house in Dickinson, ND where Lee’s mom grew up and the Enchanted Highway- Related Post
Kitty Hawk- Related Post
The Nolichucky River Gorge- Related Post

Top 5 Lessons Learned

If you would like to review all my Lessons Learned please click this link, but I wanted to try to pull out the ten most important things. I have put my choices in chronological order. Some reflect good decisions and others were learned after poor decisions, but they all have had a large amount of impact on us.

Take your time when selecting your perfect rig. Visit an RV show. Know your criteria. Be honest with yourself and your partner. We did all of these things and absolutely love our rig to this day. Your rig can make or break the full-timing experience, so take all the time you need in the selection process. Also, learn from our mistake and get new, American made tires when you buy your RV. Replacing them later is expensive and painful, but living with the fear of having a tire related accident is much worse. Related Post
Attend an RV-Dreams Rally. If nothing else you will have a fun and informative vacation and it might give you so much more. I walked away from that rally with so much information, a true belief this lifestyle was possible for me, and most importantly some of the best friends of my life. (Not to mention Sue’s recipe for the greatest dip ever in the history of all things in any way related to any variety of chip. – Lee) Related Post
Finding the right campground isn’t always easy and it takes awhile to work out your methodology. What works for some will definitely not work for you and vice versa so the best thing to do is stay in different places and see how you feel. Don’t panic if you stink at this at first because it gets much easier with time and practice. Related Post
The first six months is a time of great change which can cause a great deal of stress. Being outside of your comfort zone in so many ways can put pressure on both you and your relationship. Take a deep breath and realize this is perfectly normal and as time passes it should get better. The answer is to communicate honestly and give yourself a break when the inevitable mistakes happen. Even if you have camped before, you are new at full timing and all newbies make mistakes. Related Post
Buy all of the warranties, seriously, every single one. Things break, accidents happen, and if you have a warranty you will hopefully be partly covered. Having a problem with your home on wheels is seriously complicated. You are generally in a strange place, your travel plans are interrupted, and finding qualified repair personnel isn’t always easy. Don’t add money concerns to all of that. Spend the money, for the piece of mind if nothing else, and if you are anything like us you will more than get back your initial investment. Related Post

So that’s my “by-the-numbers” report. Next, I have another post that deals more with the emotional aspects of things as well and look for my annual full budget accounting in December. Hope you find all of this helpful, and please remember your mileage will definitely vary literally and figuratively.

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November 7, 2015 by Lee and Tracy

Working on The New Businesses and Volunteering

Well, if I was worried about being bored after leaving my job, this week certainly proved that would not be the case! The bulk of the week was spent finalizing numerous aspects of our businesses, culminating in Lee publishing his website for Open Road Video and our ordering business cards and signs. Lee’s videos are his resume, so it was a much larger venture pulling together everything he would need for the website. If you have been curious about his work, take a look. One of the things that has been difficult for us in all of our businesses is finding a way to communicate that we are a truly mobile workforce,without coming across as less professional in any way. It really adds a layer of difficulty to marketing our services as most people look for a company in the area the business is located. That is changing as people are more mobile, but the bias is still to hire locally. So we understand this could be an uphill climb, but we are hoping that between the three businesses, Open Road Video, Open Road RV Repair, and TSPerkins Consulting we will be able to make enough to cover our relatively low budget. I know we have a lot of support out there, so I would ask if you know of anyone who you think could benefit from our services, please pass our information along. Since you understand the lifestyle, you could explain that we are mobile workers, which is actually a benefit, because we can take our skill sets to where they are needed.

Along with working on the businesses I spent quite a bit of time on my blog this week. We are coming up on our one year full timing anniversary (!) and I wanted to do the milestone some justice. I ended up completing two posts, one strictly about the facts and figures, and another about the emotions. In addition, I will be adding a financial review at the end of the calendar year which will slice and dice our costs in detail. I also have been reviewing all of my recipes, adding small pictures on the page and removing the ones that at second glance I felt did not make the cut. This work is still in progress as I will need to remake some of the dishes to get better pictures for the site. Lee was pretty excited to hear that! I’ve also been trying out many new recipes, almost all of which Lee liked but I am so-so about. The dish has to be delicious and worth the effort to make my cut and I have pretty high standards. Lee’s been very happy to be my guinea pig though, and even if a recipe doesn’t hit a home run I am learning some new cooking techniques which has been a lot of fun. I will say that on occasion I have been missing having a dishwasher. New recipes often require extra pans on the first go round and my hands are getting a little “pruney” from all that washing. Yes, Lee does dishes, actually better than me, (Better than pretty much anyone. – Lee) but since I am often making a huge mess I feel I should at least clean up some of the cooking dishes. Oh, and I forgot to mention that they had a local library sale and for $25 I bought a HUGE box of cookbooks. I can’t tell you how happy that makes me as I had gone through all of my other ones. Although I am not generally a fan of cutting up books, storage is of course an issue, so I look at the recipes and cut out the ones I am interested in, and put them in a file folder. (I don’t think she should feel guilty. In almost every case, the cookbooks she’s going through are old, and have had a good long life, and probably been passed from person to person. She ends up getting them at garage sales, flea markets, and library sales. So she’s giving them their last big hurrah, and plus, they get to see the country before they’re slaughtered. – Lee) In general these recipes can’t be found online as they are often family recipes from non-profit fund raisers or local restaurants. I was thrilled that I saw so many different ones since I was in California and when I paid for them the librarian said how great it was to see someone so happy about books at the library. So when you are in an area, check out the local library and see if they are having a sale. Not only does the money go to a good cause, but these are some of the cheapest books you will ever find!

My awesome box of recipe books!!

The small file folder I put my recipes in

Along with all of that we also got to do something really rewarding. Each fall, Stan does senior tours of the Bizz Johnson trail and we both volunteered to help. Stan gets golf carts from the local city golf course and then works with two different nursing homes to take seniors on an 8 mile ride up the trail. We did this on Thursday and it was a great example of something I would not have been able to do if I was still working my corporate job. Although it was very chilly, it was a clear day and we took one group up the Bizz, and at Devil’s Corral we dropped them off and brought another group down. My first passenger, Inez, was a very sweet lady who was a fellow rock lover and my second passenger Jack seemed to enjoy all the beautiful color still on the trees. They were very bundled up and really seemed to enjoy themselves and I certainly enjoyed getting an opportunity to share nature with them. Lee’s first passenger was Ray, a 96 year old WWII Navy veteran who retired from being a principle at the local high school. His second passenger, Dave, was a chatty octogenarian who really kept Lee on his toes through the whole trip. We stopped at several places along the way and Stan talked about the history of the trail which was very informative and even though I was super cold by the time it was done I am so glad we went. I always wanted to volunteer more in my old life and I am so glad to have this experience be a part of my new one.

Dropping off the golf carts that the local golf course generously donated

Lee and Stan dropping the gate

Check out my guy !!

Here is Inez my first passenger getting out of the van. Loading and unloading these folks was no small task

Lee with 96 year old Ray who was still pretty sharp

Getting lined up and ready to go

And we are off

Everyone liked the many beaver dams we saw

Stan would stop at some places and give some history which Jack my second passenger really liked

Here’s me and Jack. As bundled up as I was it was still pretty cold on the return trip

Everyone really liked the tunnels

And the 8 wooden bridges that we went over

Stan sharing some history

So glad there was still so much color

Y083 Y073

Y060 Y059

It was a very beautiful day and a lovely experience. When Jack, who had difficulty speaking because he had suffered a stroke, thanked me for driving him, it really touched me. Lee had a wonderful time as well and we were both so glad to be able to give back a little. Our time here at Susanville is coming to an end, and it really has been a great experience. Look for my yearly recap posts which should be coming out later this week and as always, thanks for reading!

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November 4, 2015 by Lee and Tracy

First Time at a Coffin Race

I know, weird title right? But it was more fun than it sounds. Susanville sponsors a “safe and sane” Halloween where they close off a large portion of their Main Street and little kids walk around to all of the downtown stores and get candy. In the middle of the street they have push cart races (no steering wheel allowed), which were quite entertaining to watch. It reminded me a bit of Keene’s pumpkin festival costume parade, although on a much smaller scale of course, and we really enjoyed it. Actually I have no complaints about the town at all. The people are pretty nice and I love the small town feel. This was the perfect first time work kamping assignment and on that note I did want to mention that Stan (our BLM coordinator) is looking for volunteers for next year. He is willing to break up the season if you want a shorter time commitment and you seriously cannot beat the full hookup site we have. So if you have an interest send me an email at camperchronicles@gmail.com and I will send you Stan’s contact information. That being said, here’s some pictures of the Susanville festival to give you a feel for the town.

I am a sucker for little kid costumes

The line stretched around both sides of the downtown for candy

Love the pigtails

They had a dog costume contest also

My absolute favorite dog costume…he was just “lion” around

A hot dog!! Who doesn’t love a good pun

Some adults got into the action as well

Lee’s favorite was the blind ref

Loved the Sherlock!!

This dog looked super!!

I am a big fan of homemade costumes

Very serious about the candy!!

One of my favorites. Future CEO. Oh yes I can be spider man but I am throwing in a tutu…awesome!!

This bloodhound was so creeepy. Amazing costume though

This bloodhound was so creeepy as a spider. Amazing costume though

A lion trying to eat a sucker

A lion taking a snooze

Best family costume was a circus family

And they had their little lion walk through the hoop for candy was adorable

There was a parade of the coffins first

My personal favorite for costume

The races started at one end of the street

Police and fire versus local Ag

Local track team was awesome. They ultimately won. Loved the costumes.

I loved how much fun the teens were having

Look how much fun the teens were having

NEver sen this before. Bulldozer for candy

Never sen this before. Bulldoze had candy in it, but the kids loved it

Someone is pooped out

Really nice event and a good way to support the downtown

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November 1, 2015 by Lee and Tracy

October 2015 Budget

We finally lived a month really focusing on controlling all of our spending and, Wow! We spent only $2893.59 which is $1,000 less than the best month we have had to date. We reduced spending in almost every category. For details on how we did it please see below.

Campground Fees – We are volunteer work kamping so no fees this month. We have a beautiful site and there is minimal work that needs done in the off season so it has been more than a fair bargain.

Groceries – We have struggled in this category but this month we put a new plan in place. (I would just like to point out that in the entire month, I didn’t buy a single pie. Clearly the overage is due to Tracy’s reckless purchasing of salad components. She’s the Ron Swanson of salad.-Lee) We have regular meal plans and have eliminated waste down to the minimum. Towards the end of the month we did struggle. Meat continues to be a problem as we don’t have a large freezer and are somewhat at the mercy of that week’s prices. What we are doing now is buying whatever meat is on sale and menu planning around it which takes some creativity on my part. We also just ate whatever was in the cupboards the last couple of days to avoid making a store run until the first of the month. I am in no way prepared to declare victory in this category, but it’s a huge step forward.

Dining Out – We went over because we celebrated my last day of work. We could have skipped those meals but in my mind certain things deserve a celebration.

Entertainment – Very happy with this category because we managed to do several things this month, yet didn’t spend a lot on them.

Cell Phones /Internet – This category has a new baseline with the minimum Verizon phone plan we bought. Since that will now be my work phone this may actually go up, but for now we are holding the line. This includes 80GB data (and we use every bit of it, every month), an AT&T phone, a Verizon phone with 1GB of data (mainly use the AT&T wireless), and an AT&T Ipad.

Home Improvement – Look at who is getting serious about the budget!! Lee spent $25 and that was on a new outlet in the kitchen. Major improvement!! (I wouldn’t even have had to do that, but it’s getting pretty cold at night, routinely down to the low 30’s. We have a space heater in the bedroom that’s plugged directly into the power pedestal, so it doesn’t go through the inverter, which doesn’t have enough amp pass through to handle it. There’s also a built in electric fireplace in the living room, which also bypasses the inverter. So we had a toasty bedroom, a toasty living room, and a freezing kitchen, which is exacerbated by the constant opening and closing of the outside door. So, I put in a dedicated outlet that bypasses the inverter, and the cost was for the outlet box, a new outlet (I don’t like to reuse old outlets) and a special thin saw to cut through the very thin wall veneer. I didn’t want to risk using something bigger and tearing the paneling. So now it’s toasty warm everywhere, and as long as we are on electric hookups, we won’t need to use our propane furnace. – Lee)

Cigarettes – We stocked up in Reno in anticipation of moving to the Redwoods and that is the cost of a 15 week supply of tobacco and tubes. For the year we have spent half of what we anticipated and that budget amount was $4300 less than we were spending while in a sticks and bricks. As usual, I know smoking is bad, but if you are on a budget and want to smoke, rolling your own is absolutely the way to go. (I know not many people smoke anymore, but if you do, seriously consider doing this. Before we hit the road, we were spending $130 a week, $6700 a year on smoking, which is a truly ridiculous price to kill yourself slowly. The same amount of tobacco and the tubes to stuff it in is $25 per week, or $1300, and it takes about 90 minutes a week to roll two cartons. That’s over 80% savings. And the machine is only $75. – Lee)

So there we are. In order to prove this is not an anomaly we need to see what happens over the next few months. It does prove it can be done though, at least short term, which is very comforting.

(I am currently hard at work preparing a truly epic “I told you so” speech. – Lee)

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October 30, 2015 by Lee and Tracy

First Time at Lake Tahoe

It was a busy week. Monday was my last official day of work and I needed to drive to Reno to drop off my computer, phone, etc to the office there. Since Jo and Ben are in Reno we made arrangements to eat dinner with them after they finished work. That left Lee and I with some time to kill. Luckily, I got an eye appointment at the Lenscrafters in town so we were able to fill the day. We dropped off the work stuff around 11:30 (which was surreal) and then headed over to the Atlantis Casino for lunch. They have a Manhattan style deli that Jo and Ben gave high marks and I felt the need to treat myself. Lee got a HUGE Reuben (not as good as Katz Deli but very good) and I got egg salad (a go-to comfort food for me) and some yummy cheesecake. The lunch was on the pricey side at $40, but you don’t leave your job every day. The service was outstanding, though, and afterwards we both played $5 worth of slots each which culminated in Lee winning $17.25, so at least my cheesecake was paid for! I will say that although I liked the interior of the casino, the slots were disappointing (I like the old style where the wheels turns not the new computer ones) and it was very smoky.

Manhattan Deli

Lee’s Rueben

Watching him try to bite into it was fun!!

Big ole piece of cheesecake

Afterwards Lee dropped me off at Lenscrafters and I had a good time picking out a new pair of sunglasses for my prescription. Five years ago I had a PRK eye surgery (like Lasik but more intense) and my vision has been amazingly wonderful every since. But I have noticed some distance fuzziness so decided it was time to get an eye exam. The entire experience was terrific. The doctor was great and people who worked in the glasses area very helpful. Plus the prices were reasonable ($125 for Ray Ban frames) and best of all they were able to complete the glasses the same day so no return trip required!! After I was done, we went to meet Jo and Ben for dinner at a local Mexican restaurant. I love Mexican, but Lee is not a huge fan, but on this occasion I got my pick. And they had raspberry margaritas my favorite which were totally yummy. It was so nice celebrating the start of my new life with RV friends and I really appreciated their being with us.

Jo and I with big margarita

Unfortunately Tuesday and Wednesday were not so great. It rained both days and Lee and I were both a little cooped up, plus the enormity of the change was really hitting home with me and there still was no definitive word on the truck. It turns out our claims agent went out on a sick leave and the claim wasn’t transferred properly. Lee got it back on track by Wednesday, but we lost several days to that. We were also hearing some things from the dealer about used engines that didn’t sound right to Lee. Thankfully he took the bull by the horns and called Ford (who said absolutely our warranty would be voided by a used engine) and the dealer we bought the truck from (who stated there were 12 new engines in stock in Memphis. Lee, armed with this information, took control of the situation and stopped us from being pushed in a direction that could have had disastrous consequences. The old adage “trust but verify” really came into play here. I don’t think the service manager was deliberately misleading us (he said a used engine would be fine with the extended warranty), but it doesn’t really matter. We knew we might have to pay some money in the difference, “betterment” the insurance agent called it, but we didn’t want to lose the money we had spent on the warranty. So, it was a frustrating couple of days for a variety of reasons so I decided to cook a couple of new recipes. Thankfully they were both home runs (which rarely happens) and Lee loved them both. Plus he was hovering while I was trying to make spring rolls for the first time, so I put him to work. He did an excellent job wrapping them and they tasted delicious, plus he said the Spicy Korean BBQ was “restaurant quality” so I will definitely be making both again. See the end of the post for full recipes if you are interested. The yummy Spicy Korean BBQ was incredibly easy, relatively inexpensive, and heated up well later. That’s the trifecta for us!

Lee rolling some spring rolls for me

Thankfully the sun came out on Thursday and we could finally make our trip to Tahoe. We have been wanting to go since we got here, but one thing or another kept getting in the way. Lee worked there years ago and has always wanted to show me and I of course wanted to see it. We were just getting ready to leave when Lee got a phone call from the claims adjuster. It turns out a brand new engine is actually cheaper than a used one so amazingly we are getting a new engine and only have to pay our $1,000 deductible. I have never been so happy to pay $1,000 in my life. And, wow, did I feel a weight lifted from me. Feelings about the job have been all mixed up with worry about the truck, and I had no idea how much that was getting to me until we got the good news. So feeling 100 times lighter we jumped in the rental and headed to Tahoe.

The drive was beautiful and although we hit some pretty ominous clouds when going over the mountains between Reno and Tahoe, Tahoe itself was beautifully clear. We drove the loop and I absolutely loved the area. Seriously, I could spend an entire summer here there is so much to do and the drive just whetted our appetites for more. The very best parts were Inspiration Point (the quintessential Tahoe view you have probably seen), Squaw Valley (where Lee worked and stayed many years ago, and Sand Harbor. That being said there was a lot more that we didn’t have time to explore including numerous hiking trails. Definitely putting it on our list of work kamping places, but as usual let’s let the pictures tell the story.

The top of the road we drove in

The first view of the lake

The cloud was rolling in at eye level

Very cool cloud

The water was so clear and beautiful

Although the lake was very low I actually liked it because you could see so many rocks. We spent the most time at Sand Harbor which was practically deserted walking around on the rocks. You know how much I love my rocks!!

The setting was so nice we came across a catalog photo shoot

Lee was super brave climbing right up on the big rocks

The water was so clear and see the little minnow

I was in rock heaven!!

I loved these formations

After Sand Harbor we kept driving, stopping at several beautiful scenic spots along the way. Part of the lake is in California and the other part is in Nevada and whole sections of it are National Park. What I particularly loved was that it was beautiful on both the lake side and the hills side. It was the kind of place where you couldn’t take a bad picture and everywhere you looked was just beautiful. When we hit Inspiration Point though that was something special. As a general rule, you always know when something is worth seeing when there are lots of people speaking in foreign languages. My only complaint was the bathrooms were an absolute mess. As someone who has been responsible for public land bathrooms I was a bit horrified, but besides that the view was spectacular. Plus, the lone paddleboat on the water came into view right when we were there and I was thrilled to get a shot with the boat.

This stretch of beach is all National Park

This Jay posed for us. He was begging treats

This Jay posed for us. He was begging for treats

Emerald Bay

I know right!!

At this point we were starving and stopped at a local BBQ place for lunch. The price was reasonable, the view was of the water, and I got to put my new drink plan in action. Paying $3 plus for drinks has been driving me crazy, so I bought a box of Country Time Lemonade On The Go packets and stuck a couple in my purse. One packet worked beautifully with a glass of ice water, it was really really good and cost about 10 cents per pack. I didn’t feel embarrassed at all mixing my lemonade. As far as I am concerned restaurants should be embarrassed about the 90% markup on their beverages. Anyway, it was yummy and the little bit of a sugar kick I sometimes want when we are out exploring. After lunch we drove to Squaw Valley, where the Olympics were held and many famous people ski in the winter, and Lee showed me the resort where he worked and stayed many years ago. Absolutely beautiful, I can totally see why people like to stay there.

Our lunch spot

My only complaint was the rather loud music inside. I think I am getting old lol

Here’s my yummy lemonade

The pier outside the restaurant

This pic shows you how low the water level was. That’s a pier in the background.

Squaw Valley Resort

The patio and ski lift area

The pool/hottubs area was amazing

The previous Olympic village now condos

It was an absolutely perfect day and exactly what I needed.

Recipes

Spicy Korean Pork

2 lbs country-style boneless pork ribs; cut into 1 inch cubes
2 TBL chili garlic sauce (if you would like less spice use 1 TBL)
1/2 cup soy sauce
2 tsp ginger
2 TBL sesame oil
3 TBL brown sugar
Brown Rice (P.F. Chang brand was yummy)

Add all ingredients except pork and whisk into a blended marinade
Add cubed pork to the mix and let sit for at least 20 minutes
Grilled marinated pork (you can place on skewers if that is easier), uncovered for 10 minutes turning every 2-3 minutes
Service on brown rice

Spicy Korean Pork

Baked Chicken Spring Rolls

1/4 cup vegetable oil
1-1/2 cups boneless, shredded chicken or pork
1-16oz bag coleslaw mix with carrots
4 scallions, thinly sliced
1/4 tsp ginger
1 tsp sesame oil
1 TBL soy sauce
20 spring roll wrappers (16oz package)
Dipping sauce of your choice

Preheat oven to 400 degrees
Brush baking sheet with 1 TBL vegetable oil
Combine meat, coleslaw mix, scallions, ginger, sesame oil, and soy sauce in large bowl
Place water in a small bowl
Place one spring roll wrappers in front of you and keep others covered with a damp cloth
Brush edges of wrapper with water
Place a TBL of mixture on top of wrapper then roll towards you
Tuck in sides and complete roll
Place on baking sheet seam side down
Repeat with remaining filling and wrappers
Brush tops of rolls with remaining vegetable oil
Bake for 15 minutes; turn over and bake for 10 more minutes
Serve with dipping sauce

Spring roll mix

Brush wrapper with water

Add one tablespoon of mix

Roll towards you and tuck in ends

Brush tops with vegetable oil and bake

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