Hi Everyone. Well, after 15 years the RV-Dreams Community Forum is coming to an end. Since it began in August 2005, we've had 58 Million page views, 124,000 posts, and we've spent about $15,000 to keep this valuable resource for RVers free and open. But since we are now off the road and have settled down for the next chapter of our lives, we are taking the Forum down effective June 30, 2021. It has been a tough decision, but it is now time.
We want to thank all of our members for their participation and input over the years, and we want to especially thank those that have acted as Moderators for us during our amazing journey living and traveling in our RV and growing the RV-Dreams Family. We will be forever proud to have been founders of this Forum and to have been supported by such a wonderful community. Thank you all!!
I've been lurking for the last 2 weeks. I've read the journal from beginning to current....I know I'm alittle slow, but Howard can be long winded at times!!! Retiring in June and planning on taking our new to us 25 foot mh on an 8 month adventure. That will be our deciding factor how this may or may not be a great thing for us. We bought it as a "go machine" not a livable one for any length of time. I love reading about others and what they do and enjoy, sure opens my eyes to what is out there. Now whether we get a toad or just go with the mh from place to place is the latest decision to go through. Having fun ordering "necessary" things to take. We have very little space to carry much, thus the question about a toad.....golf clubs along would be REALLY NICE!!! Otherwise, sniff, sniff, they will be home all alone. Glad to beable to read all your views and opinions. You are a great bunch of people. Karebear
Welcome to this great community! We hope it helps make your RV experiences great. June will be here before you know it!!!
I thought I would put my two cents in on the decision to get a toad or not. I truly believe that your 8 month trial period would not give a true representation of "Fulltiming" if you do not have a toad. Fulltimers don't have the hassels of packing up the home everyday. Our RV's are our homes not our vehicles. I think that I would start to dread every morning knowing that I would have to disconnect all the hook ups and pack up everything just so I could go to the store or do a little site seeing.
I second the recommendation to get a toad. Otherwise you will always be in "vacation mode" and not truly enjoying the laid back lifestyle of fulltiming.
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Jo Wishnie
http://www.mytripjournal.com/wanderingwishnies
If you're not getting older...........you're dead!
There are several really good reasons for having a toad. First of all, parking a motorhome in many parking lots is really an unfriendly adventure and when you need gorceries or any thing else or just want to go out for a milk shake, taking the motorhome is a drag. Second, if the drive train in the motorhome goes down on you for any reason you can unhitch the toad and drive to where ever you can get assistance. Cell phones are great but they just don't work everywhere as yet. It is pretty comforting to know there is an alternative to walking or hitching a ride.
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Full timing since 1/1/2005 American Tradition & Jeep Wrangler www.howethsjournal.blogspot.com
We stayed in a RV park that we have been going to for years. Left our Toad at home, planning on staying for only 3 days, just relaxing and watching the wave roll in. To make a long story short, we never walked so much in our lifes to places to far to walk. Even if you plan on not using your Toad, TAKE IT WITH YOU. Our RV will never leave without his buddy the Toad again.
Thank you for the warm welcome. I never thought about the "fulltime mode" idea and you are all right about "vacation mode" without a toad. I think you just made up my wishywashy mind. I've PM'd some people on RV.Net and asking their opinions, they mostly concur with yours about convience, and yes a safety net too. Now looking at light weight, but some room, thinking a Toyota Corolla as we've had Toyotas for years, would need a 5-speed. Thought about taking our 1997 Camry and following dh, but then again it takes two to watch the sides and traffic and pulling over. At least when I drove our 400 mile salmon trip last year and through those 4 lanes in Seattle I was glad for that second set of eyes. I just ordered 2 LaFuma recliners and am looking forward to other purchases.
I could sell the house and get a bigger rig right now, it's the dh that is having a hard time with leaving. We are lucky to have a smaller home we own and taxes only $800 a year, insurance only $500 a year and it is paid for. But leaving a home for 8 months in the hard winters is worrisome, we left a week in the Fall and had a mouse!!! My but he made a mess. And JennyJ I live in Chewelah, just 50 miles north of you!!! We have a nice 27 hole golf course and a small RV park there, so a great place to come "HOME" for the summer if we fulltimed. Thank you for all your warmth.....Karebear
Just a thought about your comment about 'a great place to come "HOME" for the summer if we fulltimed'. There is a couple here at the campground in Arizona who go back to Ohio every summer and work while visiting relatives. They need to work about 3 to 4 months a year to supplement the pension. Next year they are going to work in winter so they can go somewhere else for the summer, like Alaska, the Pacific Northwest or the Maritimes. If you fulltime a while you might want to do the same, be somewhere else at least one summer. Just a thought.
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Bill Joyce, 40' 2004 Dutch Star DP towing an AWD 2020 Ford Escape Hybrid Journal at http://www.sacnoth.com Full-timing since July 2003