2gypsies

If you've dropped your trailer off in March and are still living in a rented mobile home, you really need to light a match under the dealer. He needs to get moving on your repair. You should have definitely told him you were full-time and that's the only place you have to live. He could have let you stay in it on his lot until the repairs were finished and that would have made him fix it faster. In 16 years of full-timing we never had to spend a night elsewhere. When we took it in for maintenance we always spent one night on the lot - usually with electric - and left the next morning. You really need to push that dealer to get it done - now.

For battery & other maintenance you can slip on a pair of coveralls or keep a separate pair of jeans/shirt just for that purpose. Neither one needs washing all the time.

I know from your RV that you have huge closets, shelves, drawers. So what do you put in them that you couldn't put 2 weeks of clothing in them? When we went full-timing we didn't have a storage unit so we left nothing behind. We gave away a LOT of clothes but definitely took a lot along instead of tossing good ones. Over the years if we bought a t-shirt, etc. we then tossed one. We didn't keep adding. You definitely only need a pair or two of jeans and dress pants. The same for shorts. You don't need 14 pr. of each. T-shirts can be folded and put on one of your big shelves. Perhaps a couple dressier casual shirts and a few long sleeve warmer shirts. A good fleece jacket and do layering under it. It can be done. Really!

The OP already knows they 'need' to be off the grid. It's important to them. I completely understand as that is how we felt before taking off for full-timing. Some people really know what they need. OP: I think you'll do just fine out there. You, alone, know what you can live with and what you can't. You've proven you don't have to do laundry every day or two. You've gone long times without doing it. You're experienced in that respect. I would suggest that you pack more than your planned one week of clothes; especially underwear. When the same people don't see you every day you can certainly go days wearing the same outer wear. You don't need a new bath towel for every shower. Each has their own. It's certainly reusable. Again, you'll be o.k.!!

If nature and quiet are important to you then get solar. That's why we ran solar. We are not energy hogs. We had 300w which was plenty for us. However, we had a propane/electric refrigerator so we ran on propane. We used a catalytic heater so we didn't have to use the power hog furnace. We used a stovetop coffee pot instead of an electric. Toast? We buttered bread & plopped it in a fry pan. We didn't watch t.v.; we listened to XM radio in the evening and read. We absolutely loved sitting by a stream or lake in quiet surroundings on public lands. We could last 10-14 days on our tanks without having to dump them. By that time we were ready to move on anyway. You're correct that if you find a place of solitude a generator or having someone pull in next to you using a generator would ruin it.

I found I couldn't be a martyr and not take pain meds before physical therapy in the beginning. If you're pain-free you can do the requirements better. You're not going to get hooked on pain meds by using them for a few weeks, when really needed; especially if you're one not liking to take any kind of meds to start with.

Here are some photos/videos of the happening. https://ru-clip.net/rev/rubber+tramp+rendezvous/

We also stayed at Washburne. We went across the highway at the overlook to use our phone. We don't do t.v. so that wasn't an issue. Rumor was that someone spotted a cougar in the tunnel from the c.g. leading to the beach. Don't know if true as everyone continued to use it.

Since you mentioned Georgia, I just took a quick glance at High Falls State Park. There are many 50' and 25'. They only give those two dimensions which is strange but looking at pictures of the 25' sites they appear to be a lot longer than 25'. The 25' sites appear to be backin and the 50' sites are both backin and pull-through. For this park with your Class B I'd be drawn to the 25' ones which appear to be very nice and roomy. Then the 50' backins and finally the 50' pull-throughs. I think you would look and perhaps feel tiny in the pull-throughs as they are usually even much longer with the curves and they are typically along the roadside. Being tucked into the backins would afford more privacy and you would feel more comfortable in them. However, in that park the tent sites wouldn't be suitable because they are back in the woods and are designed to haul all tenting equipment back there by foot. They are called walk-in sites. You'd be parking in the vehicle parking space along the road probably with other vehicles next to you that the tenters brought and you wouldn't have a table, sitting space, campfire ring. Each park will be different and if you have any concerns about using the tent spaces, call the park for their take on it. Some just aren't designed for RV camping. In your future searches you may see designations of trailer sites and RV sites and sometimes they'll state trailer length and RV length. We never did figure out the difference in these so don't try to choose one over the other because you have a Class B. You can definitely use any one. We did. Unfortunately, you'll soon realize as you travel that there is no uniformity in descriptions of campsites and site measurements. Sometimes I wonder if the campground designers ever camped in their life!

Lucky you!!! You'll love it. We gave lighthouse tours at Heceta Head at Florence. Loved the whole coast! There's nothing like being able to 'live' in those beautiful surroundings.

That's a good suggestion. Have an alternative just in case of threats and nonsense.

I agree that you have now driven one of the highways that we dislike.... not because of steepness but because of the constant turns. That's not fun. 101 is a very good drive. Perhaps you've been hearing or reading of Hwy 1 along the coast. 101 is not at all like that. It's a nice wide highway and not constant turns. There are many, many services - food, fuel and camp spots that are easy to get into. The state parks are awesome. Don't hesitate taking 101 north to wherever you're going. It's even a lot more pleasant than I-5!! Depending where you're going, I'd suggest 101 north to Winchester Bay/Reedsport and taking 38 to I-5 north or if you want to take I-5 south take 38 and 138 to I-5. If you want to do more of Oregon take 101 all the way you would even continue on 101 into Washington and take it all around the Olympic Peninsula - a beautiful easy drive. Have fun on your adventure and remember that everyone probably starts off apprehensive about different roads and driving. Just don't stay on interstates all the time because you won't see this beautiful country. How are you doing your navigation? By GPS? By maps? When you want to move on the next day, plan out your route by doing some research on the roads or what to see. You can Google a road number in a state and sometimes that helps. Also, try youtube.com and type in your road and state. Especially for the scenic drives there are now a lot of those roads with videos so you can do your drive beforehand. However, keep in mind that they speed up those videos so it's looks more scary than it really is. Also, a lot of them are done by motorcyclists who take those curves differently than you would. After you have your route you might want to write it out in big lettering, especially the tricky exits, etc. Then you can always pull over to regroup your plan. If you have a lot of time and not on a fixed schedule then it can be a lot nervewracking, also. Plan for shorter driving days. Start around 8-9am and end your day around 2-3pm - even earlier if you get tired. Try not to make umpteen reservations which also puts pressure on you to get there. There are plenty of campgrounds along the way. If you end your day early it's a lot easier to get a non-reserved site. Try not to move on a weekend. Secure your weekend spot on Wed or Thurs. It'll get easier for you. Enjoy your travels!

Having volunteered in various types of public parks campgrounds they don't usually have all big sites. There's a mix. If both are available general etiquette would be to take a smaller site. There normally are more small sites than large and long RVs can't fit in the small ones but you could fit in either. Many times the smaller sites are better as far as view or more quiet. We've passed by many driving our 40' motorhome saying "wish we could fit there". What parks are you looking at where you think they're all big sites? You mentioned state parks. The ones we've been in across the country have a mix usually. A few prime state parks have mostly big sites for the most part. A couple I can think of offhand are Cape Blanco State Park in Oregon and Gulf State Park in Alabama. If you run across something like that you're only option is to park on a big site and don't feel bad about it. That's what those sites are for - everyone. You won't be the only ones. Normally, if a campground is signed for 'tent only' then that's what it's for. The tenters wouldn't appreciate a RV parked there and definitely not a generator at any time of the day. If it's a first come/no reservation campground first look for a regular site. If they're all filled but there are openings in the 'tent only' campground then ask the office or host if you could park there. Usually they'd have no problem doing so for one night and then moving to a regular site the next day. We had to do that one time and we felt awful with our big motorhome. We used solar so no generator was necessary but still..... we apologized to our immediate neighbors & said we'd be quiet. They were fine with it but we got stares & dirty looks from others and we totally understood. We moved into a regular site the next morning. Regarding your qualms about boondocking..... I don't know where you'd have in mind …. but you easily could do so for one or two nights on your holding tank capacity if that's your concern. Just use water & electric sparingly and you'll be just fine. Keep in mind that the term 'boondocking' typically means camping on public lands..... national forest or BLM lands …. out in the boonies. Dry camping is staying in a campground that has no hookups. Most national parks have dry camping. There may be a central water faucet and sometimes a dump station. Pavement parking is just that.... parking for a night at a WalMart or other facility. It's not called camping or boondocking. Just thought I'd throw some terms out there! Best of luck with your new adventure. You'll soon get the hang of it!

Friz: We used electric minimally.... a short burst of microwave, turn lights off when not needed, catalytic heater instead of a inefficient furnace, propane hot water but only turned on once a day & it stayed hot enough all day, no television; radio only. We had 300 w and 4 golf cart batteries. We traveled using elevation in the summer so no AC.

It would be a big impact when selling. not to have a generator especially in a Class B where you'd really not have the room to carry a portable generator. If not using the generator it should at least be 'exercised' under load once a month for an hour or two. We had a generator but rarely used it because we loved solar instead and used solar 95% of our 16 years of traveling. Therefore, we 'exercised' it consistently so that it was workable when sold. We rarely had hookups. Everyone RVs differently.

Your senior card won't give a electric discount at any campground; not just this one. It's only for a basic campsite. An extra car fee is very commonplace - even at state parks. They try to discourage a 'parking lot look'.

We didn't put any separating material between our stoneware dishes. We went to Goodwill or similar and bought wine & drinking glasses. We found that looking for a heavier type rather than thin crystal held up very good just by turning them upside down. Of course, the cabinet can't have empty space so that things can move. Full-timers rarely have empty space though! If you do, fill it up with rolls of paper towels. We traveled bumpy gravel roads all the time without breakage. Another hint: after a travel day open your refrigerator very slowly. Lesson learned.

Carlsbad should give you access.

Wow! A French mastiff can weight between 120-140 lb.!! That, along with a pitbull? Good luck!! I'd really be uneasy about them being around a 3-year-old but that's just me.

Since you're an Escapee why not try one of the Escapee parks for a reasonable price? The Benson, AZ one - Saguaro - has a $65/week special. Try it for a week and see if you'd like to stay there monthly for about $340/month +electric. Benson is about 40 mi. east of Tucson and home of a big gem show in Feb., I believe. It might be of a help for your jewelry-making. Escapees has many other parks - both co-op and Rainbow parks. Check out the website: https://www.escapees.com/benefits/rv-parking/skp-co-op-parks/

- What's the reasoning of buying another house before taking off? Are you going to rent it out? You may find a completely different area to settle down after seeing various places. - Wondering why you're putting a 1-2 year timeframe on full-timing. If it's to test if you'll like it or not, the first year is a learning process and you're sure to have various issues until things go smoothly. Also, years 1 & 2 tend to be 'rushed' years because folks tend to go too fast trying to see a lot. Just something to think about...…

We had a VERY bad experience selling a car.

Does your area use NextDoor.com? It's a neighborhood area site for happenings, alerts and selling things. It could be very helpful for you. I'd use a local newspaper or small community one before Craigs List (which can bring in a lot of wierdos).

Techno, if you click on the iRV2 link that Zulu posted and then go t #129, 130, you'll see what their replies are.

Technomadia: I wish you would do a reply to Neal's post on that forum to clarify things - without any links. (Hope you're out of bug range with your boat!! Those were horrible)