Arizona

Best thing about RVing

by Ingrid

What’s the best thing about living in a RV full-time? Ah, that list is long, but if I had to choose one thing, that thing might come as a surprise. I know it came as an unexpected surprise to me; a pleasant one at that, I might add.

Lighthouses of Lake Havasu

One of the most popular questions about full-time RVing, seems to revolve around location(s); what’s your favorite place, a must see spot, most memorable scenery? Somewhere toward the bottom of that list of questions might be, “Do you miss family or friends?”

daughter
fun with my daughter

Of course we do! We always miss our children, which is why you’ll find us traveling in and out of Phoenix, Arizona on a regular basis. And although we keep in contact with our non-RVing friends, the biggest surprise, and most fun, has been all the new friendships we’ve forged along this journey.

So back to that question …. What’s the best thing about living in a RV full-time? It’s the community of like minded people and the forging of new friendships that makes this RVing lifestyle so special and so much fun.

Sure, the discovery of beautiful places is always a delight, especially to anyway who enjoys photography as much as I do, but the making of new friends, genuine friends, still tops my list of one of the best things about the RVing lifestyle.

I’ve discovered, the mobile life can turn even the most extreme introvert into a social butterfly. That’s not to say, there isn’t an abundance of solitude. RVing is whatever you want it to be, but know, that you’re never alone and there’s always someone willing to lend a helping hand or share a smile.

White Mountains
The White Mountains in eastern Arizona

Over the past several years of RVing, we’ve developed a core of friends; the kind of friends that would drop what they’re doing and travel miles to come lend a helping hand. We treasure that kind of friendship and do not take it for granted.

While staying at a RV Park in Prescott Valley this past June, we developed an amazing friendship with a couple from Lake Havasu City, Arizona. They had just purchased a new to them Motorhome and were having problems with their television. We offered to take a look and help these folks trouble shoot the issue. To make a long story short, this was just the beginning of our ensuing friendship.

Pinetop Arizona
Friends Park Model in Pinetop, AZ

These new friends were on a quest to find a small summer home to escape the extreme summer heat at their home in Lake Havasu City. Once the Prescott area was ruled out, they moved on, much to our chagrin. However, we stayed in touch regularly as their search continued throughout Arizona.

In early August, we received a phone call from them informing us that they had found their perfect summer get away and they couldn’t wait for us to see it. They urged us to come visit, which I assure you didn’t necessitate any arm twisting.

We left the RV behind for the first time in four years, and took a four-hour drive to the White Mountains in eastern Arizona. It felt like we were on vacation. Our friends purchased an absolutely adorable Park Model in Pinetop, Arizona, and refer to it as their little cabin in the woods. It’s so cute and perfect for their needs.

Corgi
our wonderful host and hostess – Kate and Duke

 

After our two night visit, they insisted encouraged us to come visit them at their home when they returned to Lake Havasu City. The mere mention of the word boating, quickly got my attention. Sure, twist my arm some more!

Lake Havasu City
Our friends had plenty of room for us to park our RV next to their motorhome and pontoon boat

In mid September, we pulled into their place in Lake Havasu City and were quickly directed into a parking spot. Al and I incorrectly assumed we’d be staying in our RV while parked on the property. Instead, they had the Casita in their backyard all set up and ready for us.

Casita living
Friends backyard. The main house is on the right and the Casita (studio apartment) is on the left

So not only did we have a free place to park the RV, we were given a free studio apartment for our extended stay … for however long we wanted to stay. Now, that’s some serious friendship!

Lake HavasuKeeping my mom’s saying at the forefront of our thoughts, “Guests and fish begin to smell after three days“, Al and I didn’t make a commitment as to how long we’d stay. We didn’t have anywhere to be until October 1st, but we also didn’t want to over stay our welcome and accidentally damage our friendship.

Well, our two and a half week visit flew by and both couples agreed it felt more like a mere weekend stay and none of us were ready to bid farewell. Fun times!

I’d say it’s safe to assume, regular visits to Lake Havasu City are in our future.

Adirondack chairs
Friendship is a wonderful thing!


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71 thoughts on “Best thing about RVing”

  1. Thank you for sharing Ingrid! Me, my husband and our two year old are about to start living the full-time motorhome life, and your words are so encouraging! I am so excited about the new relationships we will be making in our travels. It looks like you really know how to enjoy life!

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    1. The RV life can be tons of fun but it isn’t perfect. Congrats on starting your new adventure and if you ever need any recommendations, don’t hesitate to ask. That first year out is a learning curve. Thanks for stopping by and commenting. Happy trails!

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  6. We totally agree with you Ingrid, we’ve met such a wonderful group of people both through chance encounters on the road and through blogs. This social connection is something that never even entered my mind when we started out but now is a treasured part of our lives. Perhaps we can get together in the next couple weeks. We’re trying to escape the cold so will be at Cave Creek for a couple weeks and then Usery til Dec. 5. Wedding?????

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    1. Would love to meet up with you guys. Give me a call when you get settled in at Cave Creek. We’re parked at Pioneer RV Park. Thus, not too far away. We have good friends workamping at Cave Creek Reg Park and we have a res there for the first week of January. Really enjoy that place!

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  7. So nice to catch up with your posts, Ingrid, I love your writing! And such beautiful photos at beautiful places! We are doing okay and find we really miss the RV lifestyle. Some day maybe our life will get straightened around and we can go again. Right now we’re hibernating around the mid-Atlantic coast, sans the RV, taking one week at a time, keeping our chins up! 🙂

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    1. Thank you Donna. Glad to hear you’re keeping your chin up. I know things haven’t turned out as you planned. I’m sure in time things will all work out. In the meantime, sending hugs and well wishes 🙂

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  8. Those new friendships are the cherry on top of all our travels! And, it is so nice to have something in common from the get go – RVing, boating, backpacking. Some of the people we met along our journeys have become best friends and I cherish the fact that we are still in touch and, hopefully, will meet again in the future. When and where is always TBD. 🙂

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    1. The making of friends is definitely the ‘cherry on top’. I’m sure you and Mark have friends across the globe with all your worldly treking. Hope you’re out and about exploring with that new van of yours.

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      1. Just finished a 12-day trip through Utah, which was very enjoyable! Now, a new three-month house and pet sit in San Diego. After that, we hope to hit the road again. Now, we hope to save on diesel… 🙂

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  9. Wonderful to develop such strong friendships. Although we don’t RV I would say that we too have made such good friends while traveling. Such a wonderful and somewhat unexpected delight.

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    1. I think it’s the travel that has a tendency to open our hearts and minds to new experiences and that includes the making of new friends. Or perhaps it’s the gypsy blood running through our veins that brings us together like long lost family 😁

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    1. Thanks – I may have to do an entire post on all the lighthouses around Lake Havasu. Unfortunately, I was only able to capture pics of a few. Obviously, a return trip with the camera is needed 😉

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  11. Pingback: Boondocking at Apple Butter Days | Our Future in an RV

  12. I think you are right, each place that you stop for awhile you are bound to meet a nice group of people that have the same interests.

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  13. They have such a cute place in Pinetop! We had great Elk Burgers in Pinetop. It’s always nice to catch up with you.

    Have you gone dress shopping yet for wedding? I need to start thinking of doing that!

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    1. We really enjoyed Pinetop and hope to revisit again next summer. Yes, it was great seeing you. We’ll need to set up a repeat.
      No dress shopping yet as it still isn’t ‘official’. Maybe you and I need to do a little shopping together for those mother of the groom dresses 😎

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  14. I love their place in White Mts. Of course I love White Mts.!

    We, too, enjoy so much making more and more friends on the road. It could be several years before we see some of them, but we always seem to just pick up where we left off. What fun.

    I just love you last black and white!!!

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    1. This was our first time visiting the White Mountains and we fell in love with the area. Loved the lakes and tall pines. Totally understand why our friends bought their little cabin. We were almost tempted to buy one ourselves but doesn’t quite fit our needs.

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  16. You truly summed it up. I do believe the best thing about this lifestyle is the friends you make & keep, along the way. Some have even become the family we’ve chosen for ourselves. Many will last a lifetime.

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    1. “Family we’ve chosen” – well said. We can choose our friends, but we can’t choose our family. When those friends seem like family, we know it will be a long lasting friendship.

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  17. Right you are! It is always fun to criss-cross with RV friends and we enjoy meeting new ones along the way! Hope to do some hiking with you when we’re back in AZ over the winter. We’re here now heading for the in-laws for a couple weeks to help out with elder care again.

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    1. We’ve been here since the beginning of October and I still haven’t hit the trails. It’s been so hot that I’ve relegated myself to the clubhouse treadmill. We’re trying out a different park this year just off the 17 and Pioneer Road… so far, so good. Look forward to catching up with you guys.

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  19. There nothing better then hanging or traveling with good friends. Sitting around a campfire sipping a vintage wine and consuming tasty grilled meats with your best buddies can be a very wonderful thing. We feel lucky to be part of a traveling community where meeting interesting people in beautiful places is a way of life.
    We really enjoy following your blog Ingrid

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    1. Thanks Tim. There’s something about the nomadic lifestyle that seems to bring the best out of people. Hope you’re enjoying the Michigan fall colors.

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  20. I knew the answer as soon as I read the title. I remember our conversation last winter about this, just had the drop everything conversation with our friends Alex & Paul yesterday…they’ve become those kind of friends. Friends from our previous lives were concerned we’d be lonely, nope…seems always meeting up with friends. Between Gulf Waters, blogging and our FB owners group we’ve made some very special friends. See you in the next couple days.

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    1. You two have certainly developed a large family and we feel lucky to be a part of it. Welcome back to the valley and once you’re settled, let’s get together.

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  22. I admire your lifestyle. The White Mountains are awesome. We went to Alpine and crossed over the mountain to visit a huge lake for me to kayak and Jim to fish. Pinetop is a popular destination for many in PHX. I’m happy for you.

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    1. We’ve heard so much about the White Mountains that we were thrilled to finally get the chance to visit. I can see why you enjoy going over there and why so many folks choose that area to escape the desert heat. We look forward to returning next summer.

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  23. Even though we are not full timers I have to agree with you about friendships being the best part of RVing. We were recently in an RV park in north Georgia and reconnected with friends we had only met once in person eleven years ago. When I saw their fifth wheel in our row I knocked on their door and we had a wonderful visit. Now we hope to meet again in a campground next year. I’ve also made friends like you through blogging who I’ve never met in person but feel like we would click right away if we got together somewhere.

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    1. I don’t think it matters whether one is full-time or part-time, the camaraderie is shared. We still stay in touch with a couple we met on our very first trip with our new 5th wheel at the time. We were on a six week road trip. That was an enlightening trip that we felt wasn’t long enough and eventually lead to selling the house. Fun times!

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    2. We agree with you! We’ve met so many wonderful people in our 6-8 week spring and fall trips around the country! Love the campground and boondocking life! And it was a treat to find these RV blogs, we often watch to see if we see their camper, feel like we have so much in common, we’d hit it off, too! RVing was a retirement dream!

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      1. 6-8 week road trips are ideal. We did a couple of those before going full-time. It’s great meeting like minded folks and hanging together. Maybe we’ll bump into you guys someday. I was hoping to do a Lake Michigan loop in 2018 but I’ll need to stick around AZ for a late summer wedding and a few other obligations. Flexibility sure comes in handy!

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  24. Great reading about your recent visit to your friends. I tried to comment but I ended up back on the blog. Keep making great memories..💕

    Sent from my iPad

    >

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  25. Oh Ingrid, you are so right!!! The friendships are totally amazing!! When we full-timed the first time, about 8 years ago, we met so many wonderful people. We are still quite close to about 4 of those couples after all these years!! How do you say….lasting!!!!!
    This time around we have not been as mobile due to doctor’s visits but we are now getting our wheels rolling and it feels great but we are truly looking forward to those wonderful friendships!!!

    Your friends sure have a beautiful place!!!

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    1. Yes, we loved our friends little cabin in the woods. We were almost tempted to purchase the neighboring unit but ultimately it just wasn’t a good fit for us. Glad to see you back out rolling and exploring. Hopefully the medical issues are behind you and you can continue to travel.

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    1. We loved Pinetop and actually considered purchasing a neighboring Park Model, but the situation wouldn’t work for us. I was a bit surprised how much traffic there seems to be. Guess with only one road, that makes sense. We’ve always enjoyed our visits to Havasu and look forward to returning regularly.

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    1. It’s a great lifestyle, especially to do part-time. I’m at a point where I’m really starting to miss a home base but not ready to make a commitment 😵

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  28. What a great post! We have made some friendships that we know will be lifelong! And the friends in the blogosphere have been amazing! When we’ve had a question or needed advice from someone we “follow” the response time is always so fast! Love it!
    A wedding???? Can’t wait to hear more…..

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    1. For those of us that have been RVing for a while, we understand this wonderful group of traveling nomads and the camaraderie shared. Yes, our son will be tying the knot. Should be an interesting year for us.

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  30. Agree totally about camping friendships. Within our T@B/T@DA community we’ve made some fast friendships. We’ve had two T@DA pals camp in our driveway this year, and are headed to VA to do the same this weekend. I’m still bummed about the fact that you and I missed connections earlier this winter, but there’s always another shot, right?

    This post hit the heart, Ingrid. Spot on.

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    1. Oh, one of these days we’ll bump into each other. I was actually in the beginning stages of a 2018 Michigan Lake loop trip – mid August into September in hopes of catching some of Michigan’s amazing fall colors until my son informed me that we’ll be needed in AZ for a wedding 😲Sometimes I don’t know where the time goes, but I am certainly not complaining ☺

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  32. I find it exciting when landing in a new spot…It’s always fun getting new neighbors and meeting new people. I do miss that..but hope to re-discover that aspect this Winter…

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    1. Hope you two have all your health issues behind you and you’ll be able to hook up the fiver and head to warmer weather. We’ll be staying in AZ this winter and exploring some new areas.

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  33. My answer was the same as yours even before I knew your answer! We have met many great and lasting friendships on the road and some (like you two) we have not even actually met yet. People who live this lifestyle seem to have a special kind of mind set and rarely do we meet someone we would not look forward to meeting down the road again. Then there is a subset of that group that you really seem to click with and like you said ” drop what they’re doing and drive miles to lend a helping hand”.
    We are certainly blessed to be able to live this lifestyle and meet so many great people!

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    1. I forgot to mention the many friendships we’ve made via the blogosphere, but still centered around RVing. Such a fun and unexpected aspect of this lifestyle.
      Well, it’s official …. we won’t be heading to TX this winter. Although the birds are slowly returning, the boys decided to go in another direction.
      One of these days, we’ll finally meet you guys face to face.

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  34. Quite interesting, Ingrid. I would have imagined that you make a lot of friend when you are full-time rv-ing, but I would have thought they’d be short lived, as you trek on. Well, I was mistaken And that is a happy surprise with me, that even long-lasting friendships can develop.
    Enjoy your nomadic life,
    Pit

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    1. Some folks we click with more with than others and have developed deep lasting friendships. We try and rendezvous from time to time with new friends. It isn’t always possible with plans taking us in different directions, but thanks to social media, we stay in touch.
      We won’t be make our usual Texas trek this winter ☹ We’ll aim for next season!

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