Happy Valentine’s Day everyone! Today is the perfect day to reflect on the full-timing dream in your heart. Take time to celebrate your vagabond soul with books that celebrate life on the road!
As my Valentine’s Day gift to you, here is a short list of great books by full-time RVers with well-established track records of living life on wheels.
So, You Want to be an RVer?: Celebrating the RV Lifestyle
by John Huggins, Kathy Huggins, Nick Russell
Destined to be the newest almanac to the full-time RVing lifestyle, the Huggins and Russell’s book is a whopping 372-page guide to all-things full-timing. This experienced full-timing trio covers everything they’ve learned in over a decade on the road, from choosing the best rig and how to camp, to earning money.
You should know that Russel is the well-regarded creator of the long-published Gypsy Journal Newspaper and the Huggins are the force behind Living the RV Dream, an informative blog and podcast about RVing.
For Women Only: Traveling Solo In Your RV
If anyone knows about solo RVing, Armstrong does. As a full-time RVer since 1995 and solo since 2010, she travels in her 1999 28-foot Safari Tek 2830 class A. She enjoys spending her “senior years” (as she refers to them) sharing what she’s learned about the lifestyle. Armstrong is the author of nine different e-books about RVing and is most notably known for her book about full-timing without a co-poilot, For Women Only.
She explained the gist of her most well-received book on the blog WomenRVers:
“This book just wrote itself when I started solo RVing,” recalled Margo. “It examines the RV lifestyle from a woman’s point of view. There are a few things about RVing that traditionally are handled by the male partner, such as the water and dump tanks. Women need to know the basic routine and why it is important.”
Amazon readers agree who have shared feedback on Margo’s book:
“This short little book contained an amazing amount of useful information. I’m in the beginning phase of learning about solo RV travel (I’m planning to hit the road in about three years), and I’m sure I’ll be referring back to this book regularly. I feel much more confident about being able to handle the lifestyle on my own, and am so glad I ran across this great book.”
Live Your Road Trip Dream: Travel for a Year for the Cost of Staying Home
by Phil & Carol White
This five-star rated book is what got my husband and I to take road trip planning seriously and make our dream happen. I can’t recommend it enough to anyone who is thinking about hitting the road. Phil and Carol were two baby boomers living the good life who decided to travel for an entire year in a Roadtrek and share what they learned along the way.
Although it was published in 2007, it still has plenty of useful information for working-age and retired people who are wrestling with the transition from a sticks-and-bricks home to a life on wheels. From budgeting and road schooling to technicalities of making a living on the road, the Whites cover everything you need to help kick off your own brainstorm sessions.
Full-time RVing: How to Make It Happen
by Sharlene “Charlie” Minshall
This classic full-timing book was written back in 2000 but remains as useful as ever. Marshall wrote it for folks in or near retirement years but includes valuable information for everyone in the planning stages. “Full-time RVing” isn’t so much a technical manual as a way for you to start pondering issues that will come up on the road, like:
- The ins and outs of solo RVing
- How to maintain friendships with people back home
- Getting part-time or volunteer work to help lower your costs
- What to do when you want to cross the Canadian or US border.
At the time the book was published in 2000, this “Gutsy Grandma” (as one reviewer called her), had already been on the road as a solo traveler for 13 years. In her book synopsis she shares her love of the lifestyle:
“I’ve met interesting people, made wonderful friends, and opened my arms to adventures I still can’t believe I participated in. I did this all with less mechanical knowledge than would fit on the head of a pin. I feel this book will be an encouragement to anyone who wants to experience the RVing lifestyle but is hesitant because of a lack of mechanical ability.”
Search Amazon for books about full-time RVing and you’ll find tons to winnow through. The above reads are my favorites from well-established full-timers and I hope their ideas fill your heart with dreams and motivation to get you on the road for good. Have a great Valentine’s Day!
Rene Agredano and her husband, Jim Nelson, became full-time RVers in 2007 and have been touring the country ever since. In her blog, Rene chronicles the ins and outs of the full-timing life and brings readers along to meet the fascinating people and amazing places they visit on the road. Her road trip adventures are chronicled in her blog at LiveWorkDream.com.
Leave a Reply