theboondork's RV blog

I'm feeling better about my decision

6/15/2021

Don't forget to click the pics. I'm working on being more succinct.

Yet another golden Rose.

I was pretty busy this morning. Not busy by normal people standards, but busy by full-time RVer standards. I had to make an appointment to get my truck emissions tested to get my new tag next month; then, I had to make a bank deposit. And if that wasn't enough to waste my valuable relaxing time, I had to drive to the hardware store to refill one of my propane tanks.

I considered that a week's worth of work crammed into one morning. But by getting all that out of the way, I can now relax until Friday when I have to take my second Bat flu shot. Is it any wonder that I have to relax all winter under the shade of a Saguaro cactus to unwind from my hectic summers.

It seems like I hardly ever hear any good news about what's going on in the world of RVs. All I'm hearing about are crowded commercial campgrounds, even more, crowded State Parks, unbelievably crowded National parks, and the increased popularity of boondocking. I attribute this primarily due to all the factory-built camper vans set up for boondocking and the RV factories building boondocking ready RVs.

I saw evidence of this last summer when I witnessed crowded National Forest campsites that don't have any hookups on my mini-vacations in Colorado. And more people than ever just pulling off the road and boondocking in the National Forest which does not bode well for boondocker's like myself that don't like crowds.

There's not a whole lot I can do about it, nature is going to take its course, and I can either stand my ground and get run over or find a way to deal with it so I can remain as happy with my lifestyle as I am now.

Since I made a decision a long time ago that boondocking made me happier than any other form of RV camping, all I have to do is make sure I can always find a spot to boondock, and having a smaller, more agile RV will enable me to find more boondocking locations which will keep me just as happy as I am now.

So I feel more confident than ever that my efforts to downsize and simplify my life by not towing a trailer makes even more sense than it did before. We RVers all know that there are RVs that are easy to drive but not all that great to camp in, and RVs that are great to camp in but not very easy to drive. So I'm going to modify that old saying just a little bit and make it.... There are RVs that are great to camp in, but there are many places that they can't, or shouldn't, go. And some RVs are a little on the small side to camp in, but they can go anywhere.

In the past, I could never figure out which one of those things was the most important, so I erred on the side of an RV that was big and comfortable. But in the current situation were all in, I feel that I'm willing to give up some space and comfort for the ability to go anywhere.

Theboondork

A bush full of blue flowers.

Sunset Rose.

6 Comments

OFM

6/15/2021 06:55:37 pm

The thing that keeps me most away from van camping is the inability to keep ALL the mosquitoes etc out of the van when boondock camping. in warm to hot weather. A/C would not be available so the windows and maybe the doors would need to open to allow some air flow to help. From my experience a small fan (6") would be enough to let me comfortably sleep up to around 78F. But I do not do well getting bug bitten while trying to sleep. Years ago when I van camped for weekend travel that was the real deal breaker for me.

Tom

6/15/2021 08:44:07 pm

Having spent a large number of my 74 years in Miami Florida I consider myself very knowledgeable on mosquitoes and their personal interaction with a sleeping blood source, and yes depending on how many thousand mosquitoes are buzzing around your van at night more than likely some will find a way in, or in the case of Miami mosquitoes.... Force open a door, and stun you with a flash bang grenade so the whole herd can get a taste.

But now days they do make some screens for vans that cover windows and the sliding door, that can help keep the bugs out, but the only reliable way I've found to keep mosquitoes off of me is to stay away from where they live.

You'll notice when I'm in Corpus I stay on or very near the beach because the prevailing winds keeps the mosquitoes away from me. But if you go over to the other side of Padre island, the Laguna Madre side, mosquitoes are a big problem.

Vans are somewhat problematic when it comes to bugs because a lot of van dwellers leave doors and windows open during the daytime because it gets so hot in a van, so the various biting insects can easily get in during the day and hide out till you go to bed at night.

A slide in truck camper will have no more problems with insects than any other RV has. There are screens on all the windows and some even have a screen door. But when I'm in mosquito country, which is rare in Colorado, but it can still happen, the Sand Dunes National Monument is a good example of that, the mosquitoes are horrendous. I will close up the camper about dark, spray the inside with bug spray, and wait outside until every living thing is dead before I go back in and open up the windows for the night.

But I agree, having mosquitoes humming in your ears at night when you're trying to sleep drives most folks crazy, and reminds me of some pretty miserable nights I've spent in Miami.

Tom

Judith

6/15/2021 08:37:43 pm

The rose has now been glorified by your photo. And by the way, I thought the snapdragon was great. I myself like them! Mostly because they are so rarely do well here, and when they do, they are great.
Glad you are feeling better about your plan. Time will tell, but sounds like to me you are on the right track.
In Texas, records were set on beach attendance this past weekend. I myself do not like the beach except in winter. Especially Gulf beaches. Oh well. We'll see if people get all this out of their systems......Temps are above average here, so couple that with the above average humidity, and you know the beach experience was....well, unspeakable. Lots of beer might have compensated.

6/15/2021 09:15:28 pm

Well thank you so much Judith, I believe that's the nicest complement I've ever received.

Beach and beer go together, like sand and surf, there's no way around it.

Being a full-timer, winter is the only time I get to the beach in Texas. And since I don't care about swimming in the Gulf nor do I have a desire to lay around on the beach and expose my snow white skin to the cancer-causing rays of the sun, winter suits me just fine.

There does seem to be a lot of pent up desire to go do something, anything, since a lot of folks have been cooped up for so long. And with Denver setting a new high temperature record of 101° for this time of year a lot of folks are heading for the mountains. But fortunately for us Colorado folk even though it's 101 outside, the humidity's been in the teens so it's fairly tolerable.

Tom

Linda

6/16/2021 03:10:39 pm

We bought a screen designed to fit a patio door and put it in the slider door of a van. That worked well. All our windows that opened had screens so my little fan was enough on most days.

6/16/2021 07:14:09 pm

I think we boondocker are, if nothing else, adaptable. We like to take responsibility for our own lives. We enjoy a challenge, And we find ways of solving a problem because we may be the only ones there to solve it.

But having said that, I had rather sleep in the middle of a herd of buffalo than sleep with mosquitoes buzzing around.

Tom

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I'm feeling better about my decision

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