In This Issue:
What's New With Us: Getting Ready
Brief Article: Extended RV Travel
Vicki's Recipes: Doctored Up Pancakes
RVing Tip: Sewer Hose Fitting
What's New With Us
For the past week we've been getting ready to go the road. The motorhome is parked in front of our house. It has been serviced, washed and cleaned. Our living room has become a staging area. All the stuff we want to load has been stacked on chairs and couches. As items are moved to the motorhome they are crossed off one of our many lists. E-mails have been exchanged with friends we will visit along the way. Tomorrow, at 5 am, we will pull away from the curb. Anything we have forgotten we will either do without or buy another along the way. We're outa here!
The reason for the obscenely early departure time is because, no matter which direction we want to go, we have about 100 miles of cross-town freeway traffic to deal with before we hit an open road. Leaving at 5 am allows us to miss the really heavy commuter traffic.
We have mixed feelings about leaving right now. The weather here in Huntington Beach, California has been beautiful lately; clear sunny skies, daytime temps in the mid-70's and evening temps in the low 60's. We are headed north through the San Joaquin Valley, into central Oregon and then east to Lewiston, Idaho. Temps along most of our route will be in the 90s. Vicki and I are not hot weather people. But we are looking forward to teaching at the Life On Wheels Conference and visiting with our fellow instructors.
We'll keep you posted.
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Extended RV Travel
Have you considered becoming an extended RV traveler?
Most RVers use their rigs for weekend and vacation camping trips. An RV, after all, provides a relatively inexpensive way to temporarily “get away from it all”. You simply put your everyday life on hold, arrange for someone to pick up the newspaper and then take off for a weekend or a couple of weeks. But when you only have a couple of weeks your travels are limited.
Fulltime RVers are those who shed themselves of their “stuff” by selling it, giving it away, or putting it in storage (only to sell and give it away later). Their house is sold or converted into a rental. They move out of their landlocked home and into an RV. Full-time RVers are free to travel wherever and whenever they desire. They are not concerned about going home. They are home. Fulltimers don’t go on a long vacation, they make a complete change in the way they live. Living year-round in an RV, however, is not for everyone.
Most extended RV travelers, and Vicki and I are among them, have come to the conclusion that, while they love traveling for long periods of time in an RV, they still prefer living in a more conventional dwelling.
Extended RV travelers go out on the road for weeks and months at a time. They travel from place to place; touring big cities, exploring the countryside, visiting friends and relatives along the way. Their travels may have themes such as photographing lighthouses, visiting old Spanish missions or retracing historic trails. Their itinerary may include NASCAR races, balloon festivals or the launching of space ships. Some travel coast to coast. Others simply explore one area of the country at a time. Whatever their travel plans, extended RV travelers move at their own pace. They have time. If an area interests them they stay longer, if it does not, they move on. What they don’t see or do on this trip will be accomplished on the next.
It’s not unusual for RVers to succumb to the lure of the open road during their first extended RV trip. They discover that after a few weeks of RV travel their outlook changes. They slow down. They begin to appreciate their surroundings. Suddenly, two and three- week vacations are no longer enough time. Why, it takes that long just to get to the place where the last trip left off. Real avid extended RV travelers may take three or more extended trips a year. They go out on the road for a couple of months, return home for a while and then go back on the road again. Extended RV travel can be addictive.
Obviously, the key to becoming an extended RV traveler is having the time. Most extended RV travelers are retired. Some retire early just to get a head start on their adventures. Others have managed to adjust their working schedule so they can be absent for four to six weeks at a time. And there are those who simply leave their jobs, climb into their RVs and make their dreams come true.
Another necessary ingredient to extended RV travel is money. Campground costs are a daily event. How much you spend depends on the types of campgrounds you stay in and the facilities you use. Fuel expense is proportionate to the distance you travel. Extended RV travelers typically put a lot of miles on their RVs. Admission fees and other expenses also have to be considered. However you budget, extended RV travel is going to cost you money. But you were going to spend it anyway, were’nt you?
If you are a weekend/vacationer do try to take at least one extended RV trip. If you think you want to become a fulltime RVer, before you do, take a couple of extended trips. All it takes is time and money. And the worse thing that can happen is that you, like Vicki and me, might become addicted.
What's New With Us: Getting Ready
Brief Article: Extended RV Travel
Vicki's Recipes: Doctored Up Pancakes
RVing Tip: Sewer Hose Fitting
What's New With Us
For the past week we've been getting ready to go the road. The motorhome is parked in front of our house. It has been serviced, washed and cleaned. Our living room has become a staging area. All the stuff we want to load has been stacked on chairs and couches. As items are moved to the motorhome they are crossed off one of our many lists. E-mails have been exchanged with friends we will visit along the way. Tomorrow, at 5 am, we will pull away from the curb. Anything we have forgotten we will either do without or buy another along the way. We're outa here!
The reason for the obscenely early departure time is because, no matter which direction we want to go, we have about 100 miles of cross-town freeway traffic to deal with before we hit an open road. Leaving at 5 am allows us to miss the really heavy commuter traffic.
We have mixed feelings about leaving right now. The weather here in Huntington Beach, California has been beautiful lately; clear sunny skies, daytime temps in the mid-70's and evening temps in the low 60's. We are headed north through the San Joaquin Valley, into central Oregon and then east to Lewiston, Idaho. Temps along most of our route will be in the 90s. Vicki and I are not hot weather people. But we are looking forward to teaching at the Life On Wheels Conference and visiting with our fellow instructors.
We'll keep you posted.
======================================
Extended RV Travel
Have you considered becoming an extended RV traveler?
Most RVers use their rigs for weekend and vacation camping trips. An RV, after all, provides a relatively inexpensive way to temporarily “get away from it all”. You simply put your everyday life on hold, arrange for someone to pick up the newspaper and then take off for a weekend or a couple of weeks. But when you only have a couple of weeks your travels are limited.
Fulltime RVers are those who shed themselves of their “stuff” by selling it, giving it away, or putting it in storage (only to sell and give it away later). Their house is sold or converted into a rental. They move out of their landlocked home and into an RV. Full-time RVers are free to travel wherever and whenever they desire. They are not concerned about going home. They are home. Fulltimers don’t go on a long vacation, they make a complete change in the way they live. Living year-round in an RV, however, is not for everyone.
Most extended RV travelers, and Vicki and I are among them, have come to the conclusion that, while they love traveling for long periods of time in an RV, they still prefer living in a more conventional dwelling.
Extended RV travelers go out on the road for weeks and months at a time. They travel from place to place; touring big cities, exploring the countryside, visiting friends and relatives along the way. Their travels may have themes such as photographing lighthouses, visiting old Spanish missions or retracing historic trails. Their itinerary may include NASCAR races, balloon festivals or the launching of space ships. Some travel coast to coast. Others simply explore one area of the country at a time. Whatever their travel plans, extended RV travelers move at their own pace. They have time. If an area interests them they stay longer, if it does not, they move on. What they don’t see or do on this trip will be accomplished on the next.
It’s not unusual for RVers to succumb to the lure of the open road during their first extended RV trip. They discover that after a few weeks of RV travel their outlook changes. They slow down. They begin to appreciate their surroundings. Suddenly, two and three- week vacations are no longer enough time. Why, it takes that long just to get to the place where the last trip left off. Real avid extended RV travelers may take three or more extended trips a year. They go out on the road for a couple of months, return home for a while and then go back on the road again. Extended RV travel can be addictive.
Obviously, the key to becoming an extended RV traveler is having the time. Most extended RV travelers are retired. Some retire early just to get a head start on their adventures. Others have managed to adjust their working schedule so they can be absent for four to six weeks at a time. And there are those who simply leave their jobs, climb into their RVs and make their dreams come true.
Another necessary ingredient to extended RV travel is money. Campground costs are a daily event. How much you spend depends on the types of campgrounds you stay in and the facilities you use. Fuel expense is proportionate to the distance you travel. Extended RV travelers typically put a lot of miles on their RVs. Admission fees and other expenses also have to be considered. However you budget, extended RV travel is going to cost you money. But you were going to spend it anyway, were’nt you?
If you are a weekend/vacationer do try to take at least one extended RV trip. If you think you want to become a fulltime RVer, before you do, take a couple of extended trips. All it takes is time and money. And the worse thing that can happen is that you, like Vicki and me, might become addicted.
Read about our book: Extended RV Travel
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Vicki's Recipes:
Doctored Up Pancakes
(Quick and Easy)
It is so easy to make delicious pancakes nowadays. There are a lot of very good pancake mixes on the market. I like to improve on the mix by adding a few ingredients.
2 cups Bisquick
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vegetable oil or bacon drippings (for frying pancakes)
1. Stir all ingredients until blended.
2. Cook on a hot griddle until bubbles form. Turn and cook until golden.
Makes about 14 pancakes
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RVing Tip:
When adding a sewer-hose fitting or coupler to a sewer hose, dip the end of the hose in hot water first. This will soften the hose and make it wasier to slip in the fitting.
Return to RV Know How
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Vicki's Recipes:
Doctored Up Pancakes
(Quick and Easy)
It is so easy to make delicious pancakes nowadays. There are a lot of very good pancake mixes on the market. I like to improve on the mix by adding a few ingredients.
2 cups Bisquick
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vegetable oil or bacon drippings (for frying pancakes)
1. Stir all ingredients until blended.
2. Cook on a hot griddle until bubbles form. Turn and cook until golden.
Makes about 14 pancakes
=======================================
RVing Tip:
When adding a sewer-hose fitting or coupler to a sewer hose, dip the end of the hose in hot water first. This will soften the hose and make it wasier to slip in the fitting.
Return to RV Know How
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