Our first month without a house (but not on the road just yet)

The last five weeks have been nuts.  At the end of September we packed up all our worldly possessions and said goodbye to our home for the last 7 years.  It felt good, the time was right to move on and do something different but preparing to set off for a life on the road is entirely different than moving from one home to another.  Since we purchased our Casita travel trailer a mere two weeks before moving out of our house, we had no idea how much we could fit in it and where everything would go.  So we focused on getting moved out of our house, deciding to worry about efficiently packing the Casita later.  After-all, we had five weeks that we had to remain in Colorado to finish jobs.  Plenty of time to get organized, we thought.

We did the trash, donate, storage dance and everything that was left over, that we thought we would want to take with us, got scattered around our hangar for sorting.  I’m not going to lie, it looked as though we were messily living out of our hangar and Mark & I weren’t thrilled about it but we knew it was all part of the process of turning our life upside down and completely restructuring it.

We ended up living at an RV Park for the month which is conveniently located across the street from the airport.  It proved to be a valuable month of having the opportunity to figure out what we really needed and wanted to bring with us on the road.  Countless trips were made to storage “we want this”  “ we don’t want this” and we began settling nicely in to our new digs.

In that time we were reminded how much work it is to outfit a new RV.  Most of Mark’s time was spent researching and purchasing items for our power needs and comfort.  Lighting, solar power, stabilizing jacks, hitch receiver for our bike rack, the list goes on.  It’s expensive and time-consuming to setup your rig to be as safe, efficient and comfortable as possible.

Overall, the weather treated us pretty well with highs in the low 60s and lows in the 20s.  We had a few snowy days and a handful of nights in the teens but nothing we couldn’t handle in the comfort of our Casita and Four Wheel Camper.  We were liking our new combo no matter how odd our RV Park neighbors thought we might be.  With giant fifth wheels surrounding us, we were definitely the odd man out.

Come mid-October we reached a fateful day that we knew was upon us.  Saying goodbye to our almost 14 year old Cozmo was heartbreaking and a relief all the same.  A pain we’d never before experienced and one that left us in an emotional fog for the following two weeks.  Our productivity of packing for life on the road came to a halt and before we knew it, November 3rd had arrived, our checkout date at the RV Park.  We had one photography job and two nights left in Colorado before we could hit the road.

We hadn’t even gone to our hangar for the last two weeks.  When we pulled up with the Casita, ready to finish packing, we were daunted by just how much of a mess there still was to deal with.  Where had the month gone?  Mark went for one last flight before tucking the airplane in for the winter and then the hustle began.  Two long days of sorting, cleaning and packing ensued.  It was starting to feel like 1) there was no way it would all fit and 2) there was no way we’d be ready to leave on Sunday.  But on Sunday at 1:30pm, the last items were loaded in to the camper and trailer.  The hangar finally looked respectable again.  We were ready.  And we could not have been more excited to begin our winter of perpetual travel.

As we drove away from our favorite little sleepy mountain town, I told Mark “I’m so excited to leave and I’m so excited to come back next summer”.  He agreed.  And that’s how we knew we were on the right track to a very exciting year ahead.

4 Comments

We'd love to hear from you. Leave a comment...

  • Yay! Excited for you guys! What type of camp chairs do you have? Lindsey and I are thinking about buying some and yours look pretty comfortable 🙂 Thanks for the post!

  • SO thankful to have found this blog! Your “journal” entries are very insightful, truthful, and helpful for someone who has long had the dream of living on the road (now, if only I can convince my hubby to go along with my crazy idea!). Thank you for your fresh & raw insight, and not sugar-coating things. Way to go for taking the dare and pursuing your dreams, however they may change…you are an inspiration!

    • Thank you so much for reading and for your kind words Tammy! We just returned to full-time RV living last week and are excited to share this new round of adventures!

By michele

About

Hi!  We’re Mark & Michele, a couple of modern-day nomads perfecting the art of slow, perpetual travel.  Our tiny home on wheels and slow-paced travel style allows us maximum freedom at minimal expense.  This blog is where we share our travels as well as our insights in to this lifestyle that we absolutely love.  Thanks so much for being here.

Subscribe

Subscribe to receive new posts in your inbox.

Follow us on social:

Recent Posts

Categories

Contact