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Forum
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RE: How much did it cost you to camp last year?
We are fulltimers and our budget is $2500 per month. In the past two years, our camp site fees average about $300 a month. We belong to Escapees, Passport America, and Western Horizons and AOR. But our preferred campgrounds are the National Forests, State and National Parks and Monuments plus COE. We had a great summer in the Bend, Oregon area camping along the Cascade Lakes area where we kayaked, fished, and hiked daily...all for $8 a day at the NAtional Forest Camgrounds with our senior pass. If you want a detailed version of RVing fees, I suggest you check out Howard and Linda's web site: "www.RV-Dreams.com". Howard has done a wonderful job of detailing all of his costs. A great website.
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davidmichael
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12/07/09 12:21pm |
RV Lifestyle
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Alaska Kayaking
We are headed to Alaska this late spring 2010 (May/June) and will bring our two kayaks with us (hard shell Necky 14 and Cayuga 13). We love kayaking lakes, rivers and bays. Any favorite areas or suggestions for Alaska or on the way? Thanks in advance.
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davidmichael
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11/04/09 02:14pm |
General RVing Issues
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RE: What do you do for exercise while on the road?
This is a great question as it's so easy to relax and just enjoy the surroundings either driving or at the new campground.
I am a full timer and I usually start with stretching (yoga with mat), followed by lifting 10 pound weights, and then outside with the skip rope. The skip rope is incredible for getting the heart rate up.
All of that takes about 30 minutes.
The rest of the day, I like to walk for 30-60 minutes in the morning and then again in the evening. On most days we will kayak for several hours or bike ride. So altogether, it keeps us in decent shape. Not as good as a gym for several hours especially adding raquetball or swimming. But...the challenge is just doing it. I find that it's so easy to get hooked into the computer or conversations with fellow campers that the exercise sometimes gets placed on hold.
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davidmichael
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11/04/09 12:15pm |
RV Lifestyle
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RE: How do you stay in shape when RVing?
When at home, I normally belong to a health/fitness club and work out two hours every other day...then, walk or bike for an hour or more on the other days plus play golf once or twice a week.
Now that we are full timing, I notice we are reducing our output depending on weather. I like to stretch (yoga), jump rope, and lift 10 lb weights for 30 minutes before going for a 30-60 minute walk in the morning. During the day we then go biking on our Bike E recumbents for an hour minimum which is always great fun. Now that we have added two kayaks we love that as well. So exercise on the road is not as rigorous as that at a fitness center for us, but a lot more fun...especially the kayaking. We are now gearing many of our trips around the exploration of new lakes and rivers using our kayaks.
This is a great topic, and I think very important as it's so easy to become too relaxed with the RV lifestyle. As a minimum we have been told to walk at least 30 minutes a day, ideally, twice a day...before breakfast and after dinner.
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davidmichael
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10/25/09 10:53pm |
RV Lifestyle
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RE: Affordability of full time RVing
Great discussion of an important topic. The best information on costs for "fulltiming" that I have seen is on the website www.rv-dreams.com by Howard and Linda. Whether a beginner or veteran RVer, this is a great site.
My wife and I have been fulltiming for two years now and love it. THe initial outlay for the RV, tow vehicle, and upgrades (solar, inverter, etc) cost about $50,000 to get started. The key, as others have mentioned, is not to have any debt. We averaged $3000 a month expenses the first two years when we were exploring the USA. Now we have settled down more and remain in the same area for several weeks to a month so we can fully explore,kayak,fish,and bicycle some of the most beautiful country on earth up here in the Northwest. Finally down to $2500 a month average expenses starting our third year. When we plan special events, we work for a month or so in different "call centers" and earn several thousand extra to supplement our income.
I think it's very important to understand that everyone has a different story, different background, different lifestyle, and different financial means. Yes! One can theoretically earn enough to have a grand retirement from working for 30 years but "stuff" can happen along the way. On our RV adventures these past two years, it's amazing how many people we met along the way who have nearly gone bankrupt from medical expenses alone. In our own case, we expected to have $10,000 a month for retirement. Due to a divorce I lost my PERS (State Pension), and my present wife's insurance company that guaranteed her a $6000 a month annuity...went bankrupt a few years before we were to retire. This is happening all over the country and is getting worse. So nothing is as it seems. IMHO America is suffering from a grand case of "extreme capitalism" illusion. Having worked in many different countries, I have found that the Aussies, Kiwis, and Canadians have some of the very best retirement systems out there. Next time you are in the Southwest during the winter, have a chat with our fellow Canadians. We can learn a lot when it comes to having educational, health, and retirement sytems that cover all citizens. There's more to life than being a corporate serf celebrating the making of another "billionaire" when over 50,000,000 Americans cannot afford health insurance.
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davidmichael
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10/22/09 11:23pm |
RV Lifestyle
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RE: Full Timing and Inflation
I suggest your read the website www.rv-dreams.com to get an idea of basic daily and annual costs for fulltiming. I suspect that inflation is going to come on strong in the next ten years with our government deficit spending. Put some money in I-Bonds or TIPS, and buy some gold stocks to offset some inflation.
It's nearly impossible to plan for the unexpected. In our case as an example, we expected a retirement income of about $10,000 a month. But...I lost my CA State Pension in a divorce, and my second wife's insurance company which sold her an annuity that supposedly guaranteed her $6000 a month at 65, went bankrupt. So now we live on $3000 a month as fulltimers and love it. When we need extra money for a special trip (like Alaska this next summer), we work for a month in telephone services and earn a few thousand extra.
Most importantly, we are in good health and enjoy each day as it comes. I don't worry about inflation as we have a stack of I-Bonds. That should cover it for us. If not, we will reduce our expenses and work periodically for a month or so each year. No big deal! Live life to the fullest while you still have it!
If I listened to my broker, I wouldn't have retired until I had over a million dollars in the bank. Balony! Most of the people I meet live on $40,000 or less a year, mostly depending on Social Security. That's the beauty of RV living. It's so flexible and so easy to adjust to current circumstances.
Happy Travels along the way!
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davidmichael
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10/22/09 01:52pm |
Full-time RVing
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RE: Bike rack
We used the Swagman Hitch Rack for two years with our recumbent bicycles (Bike E). It was acceptable but eventually got bent out of shape. Recently, we purchased a heavier, sturdier Thule Hitch Rack, the Double Track at $229 (REI sale). It's fantastic. This is a top quality item and well worth the money. Suggest you look both at the Swagman and Thule and you'll see the differences immediately.
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davidmichael
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10/22/09 12:09pm |
Class C Motorhomes
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RE: Tow or not to tow, that's the ?
I agree that it costs a hefty sum to tow a vehicle. In my latest research it would have cost me $3000 for all of the tow equipment installed for our Subaru Forester 2009 MT. However, since my wife and I prefer short trips of no more than 200 miles a day (as full-timers), we are experimenting with not towing and having her drive the Subaru while I drive the motorhome. So far it has worked great!
We use walkie-talkies, she prefers silence when driving, I prefer satellite radio, and since we are together 24/7, this allows for some space and individual time. Actually it has been great fun and we may not spend the extra money to get hitched up. I know several RVers who do it this way and they seem pleased by the results as well.
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davidmichael
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10/22/09 11:58am |
Class C Motorhomes
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