Good Morning Steemians,

A few weeks ago I wrote about living Tiny, and featured someone who was pursuing a dream which is out of the norm for many people, yet a system that seems to work perfectly.

The adventures continue, when instead of living small in one place mainly, how about living small but yet on the road, where your front garden could be The Grand Canyon, or Niagara Falls.

Meet Carolyn.

(credit Carolyns RV Life)

A few years ago, Carolyn led a very different life to the life she leads now. Like every other ordinary family, she had a job, she had a house, paid vacations. But the entire time that she was living her dream, deep down she felt that it was not what she wanted, worried about her uncertainties she turned to alcohol. Carolyn knew that she must make changes to her life for the better so gave up alcohol in December 2008 the start of a big turn around, but things would get much worse before they could get better.

In 2009 in the economic crisis she lost her job and all that changed, she was forced out of her home her marriage broke down and moved to a smaller apartment. She set up her own marketing business and decided to take backpacking back up as a means to escape when she needed to.

In her blog www.carolynsrvlife.com she quotes.

"I had to lose everything to realize that I'd spent decades building a life that didn't suit me. Why then, did I devote my life to chase something that I didn't really want."

For the next few years Carolyn visited several countries, she climbed some mountains, sky dived. And it was because of this that she had begun to get a taste of what true freedom was actually like, and that she felt happiest when she was able to pick up and go where ever she felt that she wanted to go.

And then the hike that would change it all.

Carolyn went on a hike for 26 days covering 256 miles, you can read all about that adventure in the link below.
http://aloneonthejmt.com/

(Credit blog alone on the jmt)

It was during that hike that Carolyn realised that she did not need a lot of money and success to be happy, it was not who she was. She realised that what she saw in front of her was the true calling, and when she returned home after the hike she knew it was not what she wanted any more. Paying a huge sum a month for rent, not being able to walk her dog locally, too much noise it was all too much, after fantasising about making the great escape, she decided to research about seeking true freedom.

So she began googling off grid living, and living tiny and found a community of people who travel and live in their RV's and realised this is what she wanted to do.
Researching whether it was a feasible options, Carolyn realised that she did not need to live in one spot to work as most of her work was remote and taking stock of her savings, she decided that she would sell everything she had and move to an RV.

Welcome the birth of Carolyn's RV Living.

It was only 4 months after making such a dramatic decision that Carolyn had purchased an RV and sold most of what she had and began her adventures in the wide open United States.

Carolyn travels all over with Capone her dog, and she you tubes her adventures, setting up camp in boondocking areas so anything from a lake to a breathtaking mountain view could be her front garden, sharing some of the most incredible places I have ever seen. In my opinion Carolyn is an analytical thinker, she considers things and questions them, to help learn from her experiences. I also have admiration because she is doing this completely solo, so of course she will make mistakes, but she talks about them and what she has learned.

The RV.

Carolyn lives in an 1993, Class C, Jamboree Rallye, with a ford engine. She paid $8000 dollars for, it came with low mileage for the year and had some modifications done eg laminate flooring laid inside of it. Again she did not buy it on a whim but considered her options carefully when it came to buying the right RV for her and her dog, taking into account things like living and cooking and working also, as she would be working on the road.

(Credit Carolyn's RV Life)

She lives in the RV all year and that an mean all weathers which she talks about things like how to stay warm in winter and keep cool in summer time.

What does she talk about on her videos

This is why I love her you tube videos so much, Carolyn explains very well to people who are thinking about travelling and living in an RV, kind of like a self help pack for newbies. I have heard some wonderful new expressions like Boondocking this is where you will park in a private place but not a campsite as such, so it could be a track off a main road, or someones back yard. Carolyn gives excellent references to where you find this information.

Geocaching
I never heard of this in my life and then Carolyn did this video basically an app on your phone where you are kind of looking for treasure, and this is like a really big thing infact it deserves a post all of its own.

Repairs

Yes if you are considering the RV lifestyle you are going to need repairs doing from time to time, sometimes Carolyn has to go to a garage other times she has done the repairs herself e.g. she fixed a leaking roof on her own.

Where to go to empty and fill tanks.

It has to be done when you want to get your tanks emptied, no one like sewer talk but Carolyn gets right down to it and tells you what to look out for regarding cost to dump and fill and how easy it actually is.

Money

I really like this because many people will ask how can you afford to go around the country and earn Money? Carolyn did a great video about this and was very honest about what she did to earn a living, which she also provides great ideas to people who might also think of people who are thinking of doing something like this, the other great thing about having an RV is only having to earn enough money month to month, you have no mortgage or rent to pay.

RV overheads.

• Gas
• Propane
• Food
• Insurance
• Breakdown cover (maybe)
• Internet (telephone)

When you look at the overheads in comparison to your typical brick and mortar, I would imagine you could live on a quarter of the average salary.

I am really grateful to Carolyn to give me food for thought that this could be something I want to do in the future but maybe many years ahead right now. If you are looking for an alternative lifestyle then I would suggest to look at her you tube channel, watch her videos and see if this might be what you are looking for.

Friendlies with benefits.

Carolyn has her own Patreon for her supporters which she calls friendlies with benefits, she has no time for trolls and has has her fair share of them to deal with in the past. You can check out her patreon if you would like to support her doing her videos and in return you will get a little something in return, she will not accept donations and believes very much in working for her money.

So in the words of Carolyn I hope you enjoyed reading this post and remember to be kind to one another.

I would personally like to thank Carolyn for giving me permission to write this post, sending lots of good wishes to her on her journeys.

Links (references)

Carolyns RV Life Blog
http://www.carolynsrvlife.com/

Carolyns RV You Tube Channel
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfqr5I-0RKK8Ha1PeKi0_ig

Carolyns Patreon Page
https://www.patreon.com/CarolynsRVLife