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Midterm-Update of
RV Living Experiment
-Advantages-

Gwen and I started this full time RV living experiment in April, 2005. We hoped to learn if this would be the lifestyle we would enjoy after retirement. As I pointed out, there were some parts of this recreational vehicle lifestyle that we would not learn because we were not moving but were stationary for the entire experiment. Both of us still working would also affect the experiment. But there are many positive lessons we have learned. I lived at Lake Tahoe, California for thirteen years and have always said to friends, "there was never a day I did not like even in the winter months". Gwen and I can say that about our experiment, there has never been a day we did not like even during the cold spells. We still enjoy every moment and try to squeeze in recreation every chance we get. We still enjoy being with each other
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and enjoy every part of our fifth wheel. We have learned the "King of the Road" brand of fifth wheel it truly a quality unit. We've been living in it since April 14 (four months) and nothing has failed. The bathroom shower is still plenty big enough and we have nearly always had enough hot water. We've had voltage problems but that is a problem of the source voltage and we have fixed that with the autoformer I purchased at the Great American RV Rally. We still love everything about the trailer and enjoy being in it.

The park itself has been a huge positive. Jim and

Judy are the owners of the park and we have learned they are wonderful people to work for. They offer many benefits in addition to an RV space, utilities, wage, food and use of park equipment . Gwen still enjoys working with the crew even though she often returns to the RV dead tired.

I have returned to a sport that I loved for many years, mountain biking. I have found it just as enjoyable as I did 15 years ago. Gwen and I have also found time to hike some of the many trails and realize that it will take several seasons to actually find and hike all those trails which are available. We also enjoy the visits of many friends and gained new friends plus played with the toys they brought with them. We've met many new friends who are

Gwen and Morgan Strolling along the lake

staff members here at the resort and learned why they continue to return. We are all treated so well by Jim and Judy we feel as if this is our resort and the quality of our work and loyalty shows the good way we are treated.

As it turns out, we are in a relatively quiet part of the resort. Although we get new neighbors virtually every day all but one have been quiet and the one was only a barking dog not obnoxious behavior.

When we moved here in April, we had to deal with colder weather when setting up our fifth wheel. In fact we began to wonder if we would ever be able to turn off the furnace and open the windows. Those open-window days began in June and we have been enjoying the summer weather ever since. Neither Gwen nor I like to live in the hot weather and it can get pretty warm in the valley where our home is. So far, the valley has had at least two dozen days over 100 and most of the rest in the 90's yet we have been comfortable at our mountain resort. Yes, we could live in an air conditioned home but that eliminates all the outdoor activities we like and we seem to be outdoor people.

Morgan and Annie also like the experiment. Both have lost weight because we do more

outdoor activities with them ... well ... with Morgan. Annie does her own thing but it is outdoors rather than on the couch at home. Morgan's favorite activity is swimming and she gets to do that nearly every day. Of course, she loves to go mountain biking with me too.

How is what-we-are-doing different from living in a "trailer court" in the middle of downtown Medford or any other town? We make a big deal out of full time RV living in the mountains but aside from the location, what's the big deal? Staying in a "mobil-home park" does not sound attractive to me at all. We have a lot of space around us at the resort. Morgan has a 50 foot overhead cable where we can connect her when we must leave her. We can walk out our "back-door" and go directly into the woods riding or hiking. The neighbors around us are all on "vacation" (which is a positive and negative since people seem to leave their "common-sense" at home when on vacation). If we get a neighbor with a barking dog, we just have to be patient and they are gone. No one hassles us when I wash our vehicles in their parking space. We are surrounded by trees and mountain air. There is no traffic noise. We don't have to run our air conditioner at night. We feel safe. We can have a campfire. Gwen can walk to work. We have no television and have not missed it (of course we could have a satellite dish like everyone else, we just don't).

There is no yard work at the resort! I hate yard work.

Finally, cooking has not been a problem. Gwen still fixes the same wonderful meals in the trailer as she did at home. We still enjoy eating out especially at the resort cafe where we get a large discount on the meal prices since Gwen is part of the staff.

   
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