I have a confession to make. I have a new obsession - RV travel blogs! Like many others before me, when dreaming of switching to the full-time RV lifestyle, I thought I would do a little research by hitting up GOOGLE. Wozzers! There was a virtual gold mine of information, mostly in the form of blogs. I began collecting blogs. With each new blog I discovered, I would look for their very first entry and follow along their journey through to the present.
I mostly was reading on my Nexus 7 tablet and was using Google Chrome's "add to desktop" feature. But, soon I had filled up an entire page on my tablet with icons linking to individual blogs. Then I discovered you could group icons into a folder by dragging one on top of the other. Yes! Now I can fit 36 blogs in each folder. I am on my fourth folder and counting.
The variety of blogs out there is amazing.
- Young, fulltimers who balance working and living on the road.
- Retired part-timers and full-timers
- Canadian snow birds following the weather but returning to Canada for their six plus months to maintain their health benefits
- People like us who have x years to retire and are dreaming of the day they can full-time
- Families who want a different life for their kids filled with adventure and home schooling
But, the most excellent thing about the plethora of blogs is that you are inspired, informed and entertained. For example, I was amazed to learn how many women are out there living on the road on their own or with beloved pets. We have discovered lots of new campsites, boondocking sites, recipes, and helpful hints about the full-time rving lifestyle. There are also a number of techie full-time rvers who share their expertise and many who teach classes. Another great feature is the pictures and videos. Apparently if you like to write blogs - you also like to take pictures.
We have some experience with blogs as Greg had a popular blog in our hometown about local issues. So, when we got turned on to this whole community of RV bloggers, we had to jump in!
So, pull up a chair and gather with us 'round the campfire while we chat about all our blogger buddies. You too will discover the amazing blogosphere of RVers.
Weekly Blog Highlights
I am currently reading about 70 blogs. Remember, I said I was obsessed. Not everyone posts every day or even every week, so it is easier than it sounds. Also, there are a number of forum and social sites devoted to RVing. I often discover new blogs while reading a blog or comments to a blog post. You can also use a site called hitchitch which lists "RV Travel Adventures and Journals."
I have had fun reading multiple accounts from different bloggers of joint happy hours, lunches and group hikes.
We discovered a great boondocking and hiking spot in California called Alabama Hills. Three bloggers happened to all be camping over Halloween in Alabama Hills. Wheeling It, Watsons Wander and Gone with the Wynns came together for a pumpkin carving contest among the rocks and wilds of Alabama Hills near Highway 395. Wheeling It and Watsons Wander both gave excellent descriptions of their boondocking and hook up and provided awesome pictures. Gone with the Wynns shared a video. The Wynns are well known for their well-produced yet quirky videos.
The funniest and scariest blog post this last week dealt with the adventures of The Crowded Camper and their snake spotting pooch Arco. Camper Mom's walking club includes her two kids, retired bomb dog (Arco) and a duck retrieval dog. During the summer Camper Mom pushed her kids in a "running" stroller with the two dogs in tow for 5 miles a day and lost 30 pounds! Way to go Becky! BTW - always read the cutlines below the pictures - you get a lot of extra tidbits. So, back to Arco, the bomb-sniffing snake spotting pooch. While Military Man was on deployment over the summer, Camper Mom would walk with the kiddos and the dogs. Arco would alert when he spotted snakes or other living creatures. I don't know where they spent the summer, but Arco alerted to a rattlesnake and actually killed a water moccasin. You have to click on the link above to read and laugh about what happens when Arco alerts to the top of their 5th wheel and Camper Mom and Military Man have to investigate. LOVED this post!
I hesitate to say I have favorites, but I will say there are two blogs that no matter what - I read every day - ok everyday that they post. These two blogs are Wheeling It and RV Sue and Her Canine Crew. Nina and Paul of Wheeling It travel with two cats and a dog. RV Sue travels with her two doggie pals. Both blogging teams are expert boondockers, true inspirations and very entertaining.
RV Sue is a blogosphere fan favorite. Her readers battle to be the very first to post a comment and she gets triple digit responses to most of her blog entries. Her blog tag line is how I want to spend my retirement "living on less and and enjoying life more."
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