Hello there, I apologize if these questions have been asked and answered - I assure you I searched a lot of terms and have found a lot of answers to my own questions, but may have some more specific questions that I hope some of you could help answer!
My love and I are both in are mid-20's and have a ferocious case of wanderlust. We've lived in the same lovely city (Ann Arbor area) for the last several years, and after gathering our degrees and living with crazy awesome people, we are looking forward to some nature and alternative living. Although we both like the idea of backpacking and being nomadic, I have two animals (a small dog and a cat) that I refuse to shovel off to my mother's. Animals are commitments, and I refuse to be that person who doesn't take their responsibilities seriously. So, we have decided on a trailer in order to accommodate them. I recently bought a 2000 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited (4.7 V8 all time 4 wheel drive) in preparation for pulling a small (~19ft) trailer. My first question is about this - should I get a trailer to pull behind or a small RV that could tow my jeep? My grandparents are retired full-timers in their RV and said that I should get a trailer because if my car dies, I don't want my house to die with it. Good advice? We are recent graduates, and although we do not have any student loans to pay off, we are also not in possession of large amounts of money.
We plan to do the workamping bit in places we like initially, I am also in the search of a decent part-time online job (any leads? that I could do on the road. He would like to be a conservation officer (DNR, park ranger, etc.) and I would like to be happy whatever it is I am doing. I would like to follow the good weather, but since a lot of family is in Michigan I am curious about what are the best, budget-friendly ways to winterize a mobile home so our animals don't freeze and we don't all end up hating each other?
We are going for the minimal approach, but I know we will need lighting, the refrigerator running, stove/oven, perhaps A/C or heat running. Maybe watch a movie now and then. What is the most cost-effective way to run power? I am a bit overwhelmed with the information on propane, electricity, generators, batteries, and solar-power. Do generators charge and last for a long time? I would like to do solar power when I can, but I do not want to be at the whim of mother nature in a rainy season. Where do you find to plug in at when you want electricity for just a few days? Will we have to go to a RV park? Also, what kind of plug do we need for our trailer to plug in to? Could I run an extension cord for a family's house? Also-what kind of solar power set-up should we initially invest in? We love people, but I do not necessarily want to live on top of them in a park, I would much rather do dispersed camping here and there. How do you power your trailer when you are attempting to live off of the grid?
Another pressing question of mine is insurance and cost of travel. I do not want to be driving the trailer and then suddenly my Jeep dies and needs tons of work, or something happens to the trailer that we need some electrical work done. Is there any comprehensive plans that cover mechanical/electrical work? We are planning on staying in/around MI and our family for the first year while we become accustomed to RV-living, so fixing things then would not be a problem, but I am worried about us getting stranded hundreds of miles away from family and no idea what to do about it. Are there some travel trailers or small motor homes that are easy to work on or more reliable than others? Any brands we should steer away from?
I am so looking forward to a chance to explore our big country and save money (we spend about $7k a year on rent), but is trailer living really that much cheaper than an apartment?** We like live music (mostly local), craft beer, organic food, we are good at entertaining ourselves but have not necessarily lived the most frugal lives, although we are only servers so it is not like we have tons of money we spend usually anyways. The reason we want to do this is to reconnect with nature, so instead of a Netflix date, we can wander through trails, go kayaking, read books in a hammock, learn new skills, and remember to appreciate the Earth. Any tips or advice for us would be appreciated, whether it is mundane or something you think would be easy for a 25 year old to look over.
Thank you so much - I have a million more questions so if anyone has time and patience to answer it, I would send all of the good vibes in the world your way.
Submitted September 12, 2015 at 02:46AM by Wanderlust420 http://ift.tt/1NupVdF GoRVing
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