What would you take on a 2 year road trip? |
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P&M
Senior Member Joined: 13 Aug 2012 Location: Spokane, WA Online Status: Offline Posts: 454 |
Topic: What would you take on a 2 year road trip? Posted: 29 Oct 2013 at 10:21am |
Our goal in 5-6 years is to sell the house and take off for a couple of years to see the country, using that as a basis to figure out what area we want to settle down and retire in. So far we are on-track to do so and have started trying to look at exactly what it will entail. I know many of you have had other sizes of TT's and RV's and also that many of you have taken extended trips, so given your experiences I thought I'd ask here first to see what you would use on a trip of this magnitude. |
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P & M ... and Comet too!
2012 171 -- The Monkey Pod 2018 Ram 2500 |
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Camper Bob
podders Helping podders - pHp Joined: 26 Sep 2011 Location: Portland Oregon Online Status: Offline Posts: 913 |
Posted: 29 Oct 2013 at 1:03pm |
Lots of money. I would suggest that just about anything you need can be purchased wherever you are. I remember many years ago riding my then new Honda 750 4 cylinder motorcycle from Los Angeles to Pentictan Canada one summer. Came upon another rider that had about 50 lbs of canned goods in his saddle bags. Really slowed him down. Whenever you hit the larger cities I would suggest buying your perishables then. You may find at some of the smaller towns or villages, the selection may not be to your liking. Also might bring a Woodall's or other directory of campgrounds. Certainly a cell phone and charger. A laptop with a good mapping program would also be very helpful. WiFi is almost universal in most small towns and campgrounds. There are also some applications for your smartphone which may make travel easier. We use GasBuddy to find local fuel at the most competitive prices. I'm sure many others will also have suggestions. Have a great trip. Safe Travels. |
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Camper Bob and Camper Sue
Gracie the Wonder Dog (12 LB. Mini Dachshund) 2013 Rpod 171HRE(ORPod) 2016 Lance 1685 2015 Nissan Pathfinder |
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techntrek
Admin Group - pHp Joined: 29 Jul 2009 Location: MD Online Status: Offline Posts: 9059 |
Posted: 29 Oct 2013 at 1:21pm |
Start making lists of all the stuff you use on a daily basis - toiletries, clothes, utensils, cleaning supplies, food... if you touch it, write it down. Then make sure you have a reasonable amount of each item in your camper.
Go big, most full-timer blogs I've read say having room to hang out and not get in each other's way is essential. This is now your home and not a camping trip. They also usually spend days and weeks in one spot to check out the local area, so you won't be blowing $100 a day in gas. Often this also means finding places to boondock (easier in the west) to cut costs and improve the scenery.
Start searching online for fulltimer forums and blogs. From what I've seen the full timer community is very helpful to newbies. We hope to be there once we retire, too! I just did a mid-career checkup of our retirement outlook and things are looking very good at this point. Barring any more major economic downturns.
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Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ Pod instruction manual
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hogone
Senior Member Joined: 09 Apr 2013 Location: St. Louis Online Status: Offline Posts: 1043 |
Posted: 29 Oct 2013 at 1:34pm |
love my pod, but two years in it might be a little much; especially if you were going to enjoy some beautiful winter weather camping and activities (ice fishing, some good sled riding, etc) which would have to be a must if i was out for that long of a period; would not be looking for a 40 footer, but something a little more substantial. just my thoughts. hogone
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Jon & Pam
2013 RP177 2010 F150 2017 HD Streetglide 2009 HD Lowrider CHEESEHEAD |
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Thinker
Senior Member Joined: 25 Feb 2013 Location: S. Mississippi Online Status: Offline Posts: 171 |
Posted: 29 Oct 2013 at 4:36pm |
I would bring:
1) a tablet or slate with Wifi AND Data (Verizon/Sprint) to use for navigation, communication with family, and management of your banking. On this tablet, I would have my Amazon Kindle account. I already have a library of 1500 free and paid books. 2) I would convert as much as possible to lightweight multifunction clothing -- camper pants that unzip to become shorts. Take all necessary linens, towels, etc.. but plan on frequent regular stops to wash clothes. 3)Food is easy and can be purchased at WalMart while you overnight in the parking lot. 4)If I planned to boondock, I would bring my generator. I also have a locking cable to secure the generator a bit, should it desire to take a walk in the night. 5) I would make sure I had a good basic set of tools, get as many multifunction tools, include a good digital multimeter. I use a power drill for my jacks, so I would include a set of bits to fit this drill. Include a tire inflation pump and tire patch canister. Make sure you have a lug wrench to fit your trailer lug nuts. I know the jack crank fits them, but I bought an 18" breaker bar with the correct socket. 5) Trim down the galley. Use collapsible bowls, kettles, coffee makers when possible. You know your cooking style, but forget specialty things like a waffle maker. A pancake tastes just as good and can be done in the same skillet used for scrambling eggs or frying bacon. I would include a hotplate. We never cook in our pod, except for that first cup of coffee on a brisk or rainy day. 6)Get a good first aid kit, make sure you have the basics covered - perhaps take a Red Cross first aid course. Remember the order: Bleeding, Breathing, Poisoning... 7) Talk to your doc about any needed prescriptions and how to manage medical needs, including insurance, on the road. 8) Connect your tablet to a cloud. I use Microsoft Sky Drive, it is free to start and super cheap to expand. I do not store any important or sensitive information on my tablet. It is all on my SkyDrive. I store all passwords there, but have coding system. For Example if my password is Hippopotamus1234 I record it as Animal1234. Only I know that Animal is Hippo... If you lose your tablet, they get nothing. You can go to any public library and downlosd these lists from your skydrive. Make sure you include all your contacts, family addresses etc. on the Skydrive. I also put all photos on the Skydrive.... I had a laptop stolen years ago and lost valuable digital photos. Never again. 9)Depending on where you plan to go, I would probably pack my Glock. Just don't go to New York. I don't want to become a victim changing a tire on a lonely road. 10) I have two batteries on my pod. I also carry three flashlights with LED bulbs. 11) Get some kind of campground polarity electrical pole polarity checker. Mine has some led lights that show a pattern with the correct voltage and grounding is in place. I have the service cord for the pod and I carry an extension 30A cord. 12) For a trip like this, please do some sort of Journal. We did the Lewis and Clark trail and still have that journal. While driving the trail, we listened to the Audio Book Version of Undaunted Courage by Stephen Ambrose -- it is a narrative of the Lewis and Clark journal. 13) Of course you will have your telephone, but get Skype on your tablet, learn to use it, and teach your relatives how to use it. Even if phone goes out, if you have WiFi you can call anyone. 14) Bring a bucket (and a bucket list ) can be used for emergency dumping when you cannot move the pod. |
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Tow Vehicle: 2013 Pathfinder 4WD R-POD Model 171
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hogone
Senior Member Joined: 09 Apr 2013 Location: St. Louis Online Status: Offline Posts: 1043 |
Posted: 29 Oct 2013 at 4:46pm |
Thinker, would you do it in your pod?
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Jon & Pam
2013 RP177 2010 F150 2017 HD Streetglide 2009 HD Lowrider CHEESEHEAD |
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geelse
Groupie Joined: 10 Jan 2013 Location: California Online Status: Offline Posts: 65 |
Posted: 29 Oct 2013 at 10:30pm |
Lots of good info already offered, but here's some additional thoughts.
Be sure your health insurance will cover anything that happens to you, wherever you are, whenever you are there. Be sure your auto/rv insurance will cover anything that can happen, anywhere, any time. Try a 2 or 3 month trip in whatever you buy and see how you do, then, plan from there. GOOD LUCK AND SMOOTH ROADS!
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See America First
2013 R-POD 177 HRE 2005 Dodge Dakota Quad Cab George and Linda |
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dsmiths
Senior Member Joined: 10 Oct 2011 Location: Southern Ind Online Status: Offline Posts: 866 |
Posted: 29 Oct 2013 at 10:42pm |
you have to think about outside air temps. the pod is not designed to function in very cold temps as the water tank and plumbing under the pod will freeze. you may have to limit your travels to warmer areas unless you spend the mega bucks for heated systems. In a perfect world it would be nice to have a functional unit that you could park and then take the t.v. around to look at properties, using the camper as a mobile motel room.
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Dane and Donna Smith
2011 RP-172 2008 Chevrolet Trailblazer 4X4 lift kit prodigy wireless brake controller |
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TerryM
Admin Group - pHp Joined: 16 Nov 2009 Location: Saint Augustine Online Status: Offline Posts: 1950 |
Posted: 30 Oct 2013 at 3:57am |
I would forget the Glock idea. You will need a way to have your mail forwarded to you. Either a relative or a mail forwarding service. Two people for 2 years in an R-Pod is asking for trouble. It could be done I guess, but if there is something the other person does that bugs you a little it will become bigger.
My wife and I sold our house in PA and hit the road for 6 years in a 38' motor home. The storage space of the motor home came in handy for living full time on the road. Don't be in a hurry to get anywhere. We would leave about 9 in the morning, or later, and stop around 4PM. Don't travel at night! Campgrounds, in the summer, fill up fast after 4. For holidays be sure to make a reservation way ahead of time. In the winter months you will be pretty much forced to camp in the southern states. Remember, there are about 1 million full time RV's looking for a spot to spend the winter. Some place fill up fast. Terry |
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RP-175 W/Lift Kit 2011 Ford F-150 4X4
Saint Augustine, FL: The first permanent European settlement in the USA: 1565 |
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hogone
Senior Member Joined: 09 Apr 2013 Location: St. Louis Online Status: Offline Posts: 1043 |
Posted: 30 Oct 2013 at 6:55am |
Terry: Just curious. Did you guys spend time in the northern states during the winter months during your 6 years, or hang south? You also mentioned the number of RV's wintering, does it get pretty chaotic finding spots in the southern states? I guess it just takes alot of planning ahead with wanted locations. As I mentioned in an earlier post, if I was venturing out for this length of time, I would definitely want to spend some time north during the winter. Also, did you find it difficult finding good available spots with a 38 footer. Thanks, hogone
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Jon & Pam
2013 RP177 2010 F150 2017 HD Streetglide 2009 HD Lowrider CHEESEHEAD |
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