Nesting, Harvesting & A Bend, OR Meet-Up?
We’re currently “nesting” for a bit here in Bend, OR. It’s not exactly a long-term thing, but it feels very different from the rest of our usual RV life. We’re staying for a few weeks at the property of some buddies we met through the blog last year. In return for a spacious, wooded spot complete with hot tub & garden (that just happens to be bursting with candy-ripe tomatoes & fresh basil) we will do some light “chicken-sitting” & garden duties while the owners are traveling. It’s a pretty darn sweet exchange and we feel very fortunate to have met these fine folks (who happen to be really nice peeps too!).
So, for the next two weeks instead of RV neighbors we have chickens, instead of an RV park we have pine trees and instead of farmers markets we have an actual garden. It feels very “settled”, very relaxed and it prompts me to remember some of the things I miss about living in a “stix & brix” house.
Now, it’s not often that I wax poetic about houses. After all, I’m pretty much a hard-core nomad at heart and even when I’ve been “settled” (in the past) I’ve always been scheming up the next big adventure. Our RV is our home with a view that changes anytime we want it, and I’m extremely, supremely, unconditionally happy with that. Who wouldn’t be?
But every now and then I do remember things I miss about being in one spot.
Picking fresh produce that you’ve grown yourself…having your own land around you…having a hot tub and bath tub {oh, the insane luxury}…having a library with real books…having a big garage with lots of tools {drool}. We’ve already completed three or four projects since we’ve been here, simply because we have access to the space and tools to do so. There’s something to be said for all that.
However don’t go panicking that we’re about to ditch the RV.
We’re definitely not ready to settle down yet and if/when we do settle we want it to be in a way that keeps us flexible, both in budget and lifestyle. Our preference would be to buy some property, build a tiny house (ideally) and then switch to seasonal travel. Lots of RV folks end up “part-timing” this way and I can totally see why. You get to spend part of the year cultivating your “nesting genes’ and part of the year expanding your “travel genes”. Plus by keeping things small (building small) we won’t fall back into the accumulation of stuff that we were soooo happy to leave behind when we went on the road. It’s a decent plan, is it not?
But I’m getting waaaay ahead of myself. The real reason I wrote today was to announce a little meet-up. It’s not often we do these. In fact the only other one we’ve ever done in 5 years was in Quartzsite, AZ last year. But it seems we have quite a lot of faithful readers in the area, plus several Instagram buddies and a few bloggers coming this way, many of whom have asked to meet.
Soooo we’ve decided to hold a very casual meet & greet this coming SAT 9th May at 3PM at Crux Fermentation Project (Brewery). These guys have a lovely outdoor sitting area + field that is both dog & kid friendly, so you can bring your entire family. They’re centrally located downtown, their food is good and their beer is AWESOME! The late afternoon time should hopefully be late enough to accommodate most folks & hopefully also early enough avoid the crowds (Crux gets crowded at sunset, for their fabulous view). So, if you’re in the area and you fancy a meet, come on by and say “hi’!
That’s it for today. Those of you out there on the road…do YOU think about settling down? What does your future look like? I’d love to hear your comments and thoughts below.
We lived in Bend for 14 years on 4 acres. Sold it last May and all inside to join the nomadic lifestyle… A lot influenced by your blog. Now in Texas establishing our residency. We REALLY miss the good beer in Bend. If you visit 10 Barrel in the evening and you see John Weber, bar manager (dark short hair and beard), tell him Mike. and Katherine said hi. We loved their IPAs.
I have to admit the beer here is amazing. The only other place that’s come close (for us) has been San Diego. I’ll definitely say “hi” to the manager if we go into 10 Barrel. We went there last year and certainly enjoyed their brews.
Nina
I had to read the title several times before I understood it. LOL! A Bend, OR Meet Up.
Why not a bend AND meet up? And what are we bending?
😉
It sure sounds like you have a sweet spot for a while! I am at an RV Resort right now, and I am really enjoying the amenities. FHU, pools, showers and hot tubs! Not to mention WiFi and cable TV! I know I wouldn’t enjoy these items near as much if I had them every day.
My plan is to live in my Airstream until a) I hit all of the lower 48 or b) I decide to settle down someplace. I kind of like to close out one chapter and then start another, so I don’t think I’ll be RVing once I settle down again.
HA! I didn’t even think about how that title read. Now that you mention it, it’s completely obvious. Cheers for sharing you other thoughts too.
Nina
So if you are in Bend and there are ripe tomatoes – you must be talking an indoor garden or greenhouse? Enjoy Bend – it is our absolute favorite! And we understand there is still skiing available on the mountain 😉
Indeed we are. GOOOOD catch! I can see it’s not your first time in the garden 🙂 Yes, these guys have a big greenhouse. That’s where all the loot is coming from.
Nina
Part timing sounds like a pretty good mix. I just wonder if in practice it will be as good as it sounds. Would your garden survive part timing? Would maintenance pile up while you are traveling? Things to consider.
What about some sort of more permanent relationship with people who are nesting? Such as, you spend summers with the “Jones’s” every year. Maybe that gives them a break where they can travel each summer? It could be a good relationship for both parties. It might work good with college professors. Or with retired folks.
Enjoy your time nesting!
All are possibilities…and yes, there are definite downsides to being in one place too. Maintenance, house duties, weeds (weeeeds!!!). It’s always easy to romanticize the “other side”, so to speak.
We’ve thought about the sharing idea quite a few times too. In fact we’ve even talked to RV friends about going in on a piece of land together and just building a few pads for our seasonal needs. If we ever find the “right” piece of land (with the right zoning…another major issue) then that dream might become a reality.
In the end I really don’t know when we’ll settle down. It could be a loooooing way in the future. We often look at property while we’re traveling, but whenever we’ve seen a place we’ve liked, we’ve always turned to each other and said “not yet, we’re not ready yet”.
Nina
Oh how timely. There’s an article in today’s Wall Street Journal, that may be helpful to your “chicken-sitting” adventure. It appears there is now a way to listen in on chicken talk (privacy laws don’t apply to birds I guess) and tell if they are cool with their digs or dissatisfied about something. Maybe this is something you would like to pass on to your hosts to show them just how “pluck” (get it?) you are with your chicken assignment.
Good luck and enjoy the stay.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/squawk-talk-researchers-try-to-decipher-chicken-speech-1430689549
HA!!! I LOVE it!!! Just the kind of insane science I enjoy.
Nina
What I wouldn’t give for a crux brew right now…and some of those tomatoes! Enjoy the nesting, it sounds lovely.
We’ve tried many other breweries, but we always come back to Crux. Just discovered their barrel-aged imperial stout the other day…oh my, oh my.
Nina
This is exactly the way I/we have been feeling. Next year is a serious look at places that have meaning for us. Your current nest sounds ideal!
I think every fulltime RVer, even the most hard-core ones, eventually think of settling down. That said, I’ve known folks who’ve RV’d for 20 years! Not sure we’ll last quite that long, but you never know.
Nina
So loved our short stay in Bend last year.. definitely a place we want to return to get to know better. Enjoy the change of pace!
Hmm… settling down? Definitely get the urge to mix it up with some longer term stays measured in months, maybe even in cottages or lofts or some such. But longer than that? Think I’d get the itch after a while.
By the way, love your new blog design.. great job!
I think you bring up an excellent point. The idea of “settling down” can mean so many things. A few months in one place? Or years in one place? For everyone the length of time is different. We usually itch to do something a little different every 5 years or so. I’m not clear it’s time to settle down for us, but maybe it’s time to spend longer in the places we love? All interesting thoughts!
Nina
We are currently on the road home, most would not consider a resort home, but we do. It’s a small resort in Edinburg TX. And we have a little garden, she’d with tools, art supplies and quilting bits and pieces. So Bill and I believe we have the best of both worlds. Go when we can, come back the lawns are mowed the palm trees tried and in November we have ruby red grapefruits, tamgerines, lemons, oranges, and pecans. It is a joy going in the front gate, we we are surrounded by good friends and neighbors. Bliss the contented Hazletts. Oh by the way thanks for info on scenic rte 395, every turn a work of art. Thanks safe travels
I know so many folks who part-time just like you and find it the absolute best of both worlds. I can see the draw, for sure.
Nina
Great post and I was wondering about tomatoes in Bend, Oregon in May–greenhouse, huh! We are still planning to put our Montana place on the market this summer and perhaps use the Arizona house as our base from which to travel more. We’ve been gone from Montana five months this winter, longer than we have ever been gone. We are currently boondocking south of Moab, Utah, using our solar and LOVING it but heading north soon–those WEEDS are calling!
Ah yes, the ONE thing I remember *less* fondly about having a house is WEEDS. We had a summer house in Denmark when I was young and I think I spent every single summer as a kid pulling weeds. The garden looked GREAT by the end of it, but the whole cycle started again the next summer LOL. I love your new plan, by the way. You guys have found the perfect little spot in AZ and if you manage to off-load the house in MT you’ll have quite a bit of new-found freedom to travel.
Nina
I wasn’t aware of any boondocking anywhere near Moab, although I do know there are several Forest Service campgrounds where there is dry camping. I’m planning a trip to that part of Utah and would love to know about any free boondocking opportunities, if they exist.
Hiya Walt,
There is limited free boondocking near Moab depending on your size, plus more boondocking north of Moab on State Trust Land. See the bottom and read the comments listed in this post:
https://www.wheelingit.us/2013/04/28/blm-campground-review-big-bend-blm-moab-ut/
Nina
I will check those out. I have a trip coming up in early June, so the more option I have, the better.
So the inevitable question.. of course totally hypothetically, as we realize you’re years away from thinking about it, but based on all you’re seen so far, where would you think you’d head for if you had to choose now? It seems you have quite a sweet spot for Oregon… Or, would it be a Snowbirds place like Arizona to just hang out through the winter?!
Since we’re Californians it was the lazy way out (but far from the cheapest!) to stay in California (we have been putting anti-weeds black plastic and stones everywhere!); it’s nice to have a ‘base’ and as you said, somewhere to get work done, we even laid a concrete pad for the RV and have room for visitors. But of course we still wish we dd more RVing. You were lucky to start out young!
If we were to chose this instant there’s no doubt it would be Oregon, possibly Bend or somewhere along the coast. Finding somewhere to spend the crazy summer months would be the goal since in winter we can knock about and boondock all over the SW….and of course spring & fall are easy travel months too. It’s only the summers where we really yearn to settle down and get out of the vacation madness.
Nina
Because of the nature of our work, we need a “place” somewhere to do wood working type stuff a couple months a year. Right now the hubby’s workshop is in Utah, not a good part of Utah either. We are on the hunt for the perfect spot to relocate his workshop, put in an RV pad, and down the line build a small home. Eventually we will be too old to travel like we do, so we want to find a great place that will suit us for the future.
We are picking up a new travel trailer this month. Our teardrop is just too small to do the six months a year we want to travel. Looking forward to having a bathroom/shower on board. You blog has been an inspiration and a font of useful information. Hope to meet up some time down the road. We love the road but it’s always nice to get back to the neighborhood and garden.
Switching from a teardrop to a trailer…awesome! That should be perfect for 6 months a year. Happy travels to you!
Nina
Oh, how I wish we were up near Bend. Unfortunately, we are still working on getting the house cleaned out. I know we will miss some of the things about our S&B, but are excited for a new adventure to start.
New beginnings are always exciting and I’ve no doubt you guys are going to have a blast. May the road be everything you hoped and dreamed of!
Nina
While you’re in Bend, please visit the Animal Shelter. It’s run by my niece’s son, Steven, and his wife. His mom told me recently they’re operating it quite differently than most public shelters. Particularly, they have a unique foster care set up and they have a special program for rescuing troubled doggies. Could be an interesting visit and I suspect the grounds are Polly-friendly.
Jerry
Oh FUN! I volunteered in dog rescue for 7 years before we went on the road, so I’ve got a special place in my heart for shelters. If we get some spare time I will definitely do this!
Nina
In 2006 Steven and I bought 3.25 acres of land in the Teton Valley of Idaho. Our little slice of heaven has a 360 degree view, including a four-peak view of the Grand Tetons, the Big Hole Mountains and the gorgeous Teton Valley surrounding the wonderful communities of Tetonia, Driggs and Victor. We are 32 miles from Jackson Hole, and can reach Yellowstone or Grand Teton NP in less than a couple of hours. Though we’ve been on the road less than a year, someday, this is our exit plan.
We will not be in Bend, but we do have reservations for a couple of days at Cape Disappointment when you are there. We’ll certainly stop by and say hello!
Sounds like you’ve found the perfect spot! Looking forward to seeing you in Cape D!
Nina
I’m new to reading about your adventures in full-time RVing. I so love reading what you write and seeing your great photos. Your blog and website is just awesome and has such great information. What kind camera do you use?
Most of my shots are done with my pocket camera, an older Canon S100, but my more elaborate shots are done with my bigger SLR, a Nikon D7000. I probably need a gear update soon, but my cameras have been good to me. Glad to have you as a new reader!
Nina
This winter, we did what you are talking about. We bought a small (719 sq ft) house in Arizona, where we will spend the winters and have now set out for our summer of travel in our Mobile Suites 5th wheel. A great way to slow down after 6 years of full-timing while not giving up travel.
Ah yes…a 719 sq.ft house. Just about the perfect size. Good for you!
Nina
So sorry to miss the meet up! Enjoy your time in Bend. We will be ‘home’ for a few weeks later this month. Still kicking around Arizona. You failed to mention the Crux taco cart. Is he still there? Yummy!
Taco truck??? We didn’t see one? Granted we’ve only been 3 times since we got here, but either we missed it, or it’s no longer there. Bummer!
Nina
Nina, I missed this earlier – it’s been a couple of months since I’ve been to Crux (there are so many here to enjoy!) so it might be gone. But the Taco “stand” was situated behind their building in a corner of the grassy area. At times they’ve had an ice cream vendor back there as well.
I think I found the answer! Apparently the taco stand is only there on the weekend and we’ve only been during the week so far. We’re going on Sat so I will look out for it.
Nina
After 6 1/2 years full timing, I missed the things you just talked about and more, a hot tub, garden, and able to have more kitchen space to do more cooking and baking, and hopefully canning someday. Also a dishwasher, a full size washer and dryer. My husband could be the nomad forever, but I missed the life of staying put for a while. We bought our next dream, a lakefront property in Northern Michigan. Of course we will leave in the winter for the south. You should really see the UP of Northern Michigan ( especially Lake Superior and Picture Rocks) and the lakes below Mackinac Island Bridge. If you have not seen Mackinac Island that is really fun too ( Ride rented bikes around the car free island). Walloon Lake, Torch Lake, and Elk Lake are all spectacular. We live on Lake Charlevoix which is really nice too. And if in the area, Sleeping Bear Dunes, and Sleeping Bear National Lakeshore is a must.
The UP is a MAJOR gap in our travel maps. I’ve wanted to go there for a long time, especially for the lighthouses (so many!). Sounds like you’ve found the perfect spot for you. Maybe we’ll drive that way sometime soon.
Nina
Very much enjoying your blog. This life style is inspiring my husband and I to give up the rat race and simplify. After 36 yr in service careers (sp ed and kids therapy) we are beginning to disconnect 1 yr goal to hit the road. We also consider resetteling eventually and going part time. Its definately a process to let go. interested to hear other responses regarding how long on road, alternative and combination options. The opening is big and yet to be defined. Thanx for sharing an inviting the topic. Roll on…
Letting go is definitely a process. It can be both terrifying and incredibly liberating at the same time. The biggest issue for us was all our STUFF. We agonized over some of it, and to be honest we’ve not missed ANY of it one iota. I really wish we hadn’t paid for a storage.
Good luck w/ all your plans!
Nina
Sounds like a real nice spot to spend some time. All the luxury one needs. A bathtub…something I do miss:) Your own garden!! Enjoy your time there.
We don’t see ourselves settling anytime soon. There is still too much to see and we haven’t found any place that we want to settle, even part time. So we’ll continue on the road for a while longer.
Have a fun meet up:)
Yeah a real bath tub is one of my big “misses”. I used to take a long bubbly soak at least once a week in our old house. I think some RVs do actually have bath tubs (or at least I’ve seen some mods to install them), but they are usually small.
Nina
Bend is out of my area for the meetup, unfortunately. It sounds like Crux would be a great and fun place with good food and great brew. Enjoy!
I like your idea of a tiny, or small, house. Would you try to set it up with solar and buy an off grid property? Would sure be interesting, wouldn’t it?
Whatever the plans, or lack thereof, enjoy the journeys.
Oh yeah, I would love to be off-grid. That would be my ideal scenario.
Nina
Loved Bend the one time I visited (though I will go back someday). Just sorry it isn’t closer to Boise. I’ll have to remember to try Crux the next time I visit.
I could hit the road tomorrow. Unfortunately, my wife wants to work another eight years in order to qualify for her company’s pension plan. In the meantime, I may have to find ways to work in some trips. Otherwise, I’m likely to go crazy. We’ve lived in Boise 12 years, and that’s the longest continuous stretch I’ve lived in any one place.
It’s tough when one of you is ready to “go” and the other is not. Hopefully you can find the means to do some part-time travel while your other half continues to work towards the pension. A small rig/van? Some short 2-3 week trips? I know quite a few folks who operate this way.
Nina
What I’d really love to do but would never convince my wife of is to get a cargo trailer and convert it and use it until she is ready. The plan currently is for us to buy our first (last?) motorhome in late 2016 or early 2017. Since we also have a young adult special-needs child, I don’t know that I’ll be able to take many extended trips, but I sure hope to do so.
Boy do we think alike. You quoted me on what I miss about a house………..the land, the garden, the library, my bookshelves, the workshop. Hmmm seems like most of these are not the house at all. We’ve still got the house, we’re just never there, except right now LOL, and afraid to sell it given the situation. Sounds like a great gig you’ve got there. What we wouldn’t have given in years past to have had such fine farm sitters to do the chickens, the horses, the burros, the garden, the dogs and the cat. Hmmmm maybe a little more than you’ve got on your plate. Wish I were close enough to attend the gathering even though the taste of beer makes me grimace. 🙂
The house sitting brings me back to my younger years and the garden stuff we used to do then. No weeds this time around…just all the gravy. We have horses next-door too and just got recruited to go pet them while the owners are gone. Horses used to be my passion as a teenager, so I’m wildly excited!
Nina
If we were not 1900 miles from Bend, we would be there for the meet up! Hope to be in that area later this year. Twin granddaughters due any day, so we are here in central Texas for a few months. My dream after work was always to have two simple properties, a couple of acres, one for winter and one for summer. Covered RV parking barn, attached simple bedroom, living, kitchenette. And workshop. Travel when we wanted, nest when we wanted. Is Bend cool enough in the summer? Have a greet meet up and maybe we will cross paths in the future. Ron and Rebecca.
Your perfect solution sounds pretty perfect to me 🙂 The summer weather in Bend is definitely a consideration. It can get into the 90’s which is somewhat above what we like and what keeps pushing us back to the idea of the coast (which stays moderate pretty much all summer). The high mountains of CO would be nice in summer too. Soooo many choices!
Nina
Sounds like a perfect spot for a couple weeks of nesting – bathtubs and beer are a pretty big draw 🙂 We hit the road in 30 days so aren’t focused on the exit quite yet. Still, we tell people we know what our landing place looks like, we just don’t know where it is. I do know we’ll go small, never, ever accumulating all that stuff again! Enjoy the meet up!!
Too much STUFF is definitely something I was very, very happy to leave behind. It felt like a huge relief when we get rid of most of it and we still feel like we have too much stuff (our storage hangs over my head constantly). We never want to go there again either.
Nina
The thought of full-timing is attractive; however, we can’t bring ourselves to give up our house so we expect to be permanent part-timers. Most people can’t understand why we leave our dream house – log cabin on 30 acres with bayou, but I also love the mountains , rivers, ocean, and desert. So a couple of 2-3 month road trips each year have been satisfying our wanderlust… We’re very blessed to have this choice.
Being able to have the “mix” of home and travel is wonderful. I can totally see us going that way in the future.
Nina
HI guys! We were communicating last year but somehow fell off your radar/subscription list. Remember the gal you exchanged notes with from Mt. Shasta? I’ve written a note or two this year but somehow you’ve missed me. Love your travels and sorry we missed you when we tried to see you last year on the Oregon coast. We have room for you if you ever come down I-5. Still trying to find the right haul for our 18ft Aljo! Bend is a fun spot we enjoy, but unfortch, we already have a 90th b-day party for a friend this weekend. Enjoy the rest—we want a life half travel and half home on our woody spot with a creek and two cats! I’m i. Y 5th year volunteering with our local no-kill shelter: love it!! Cheers to you guys, Kathi and Michael
Hi Kathi,
I think (hope) I’ve responded to your other comments on the blog site, but maybe you missed them? I don’t correspond too much via e-mail (call it a phobia from my many years being tied/chained to e-mail almost 24 hours/day at work), so I try to keep most of my comments here on the blog. We won’t be passing your way this year, but maybe in the future!
Nina
Thanks, Nina! I think I’ve only posted here since you got going again, but missed anything from you–prob. didn’t hit the lemme-know button. Seems like your readership has blossomed and you must spend hours answering all your fans!!! I’m very sorry we can’t host you here this trip! Are you stopping near or in Portland, my glorious hometown? I’ll be in NE Portland May 15-22 and then for the month of July. House and pet sitting where one wants to be is another option! I have more work than I can do–great for this retiree. Besides some of the best eats on the planet, I can’t wait to see the newish cluster of tiny homes up there! Will enjoy following you as always. These comments about all the variations of living was fascinating. Xox, -Kathi
I have similar feelings about nesting VS nomadics. Being a nomad in the inspiring landscape feeds you in so many ways and yet having a place to grow food is equally important especially if that were Permaculture based.
I always liked the Escapee model of Cooperative RV parks built largely by the members of the club. I am an advocate of starting a string of RV parks that are more Eco based and founded around the idea of Permaculture Food Forest building.
Like the Escapees WE would “own” the land cooperatively and rent out the spaces when WE travel. Though WE could come and go, there would always be a group of people on the land improving the onsite Food Forests and one would have a home base part of the year.
I know that I cannot give up the RV/Nomadic lifestyle nor would I ever want to live in a conventional house, but I also don’t want to give up Food Forest development of the entire Earth ideally. Marrying these two Lifestyles together is the ideal…
See my YouTube station for some ideas.
Funny you should mention Escapees. I was just reading yesterday about the SKP park in WA (Evergreen COHO) where they cultivate a community herb garden for the owners. I love the idea of community gardens like that.
Nina
After being sailing/RVing nomads for 10 years, I often feel the gentle tug of a sticks and bricks home for all the reasons you and others have stated. I would love a garden, and I even like weeding. Weird, huh? I would also love a full size kitchen, even though the house itself can be small. Our number one most important requirement is to have a deck with a beautiful view. I need that more than anything else. We also plan to continue RVing in something smaller so we can go to the places that we can’t fit in right now with our 40′ RV. It’s fun to dream about all the options that the future holds, while at the same time continuing to LIVE the dream!
I totally feel you. A small house, BIG kitchen and a view. Definitely hits all my “wants”. Aaaaand the idea of downsizing the rig too. Can’t tell you how many times I’ve wished “the beast” was just a little smaller in size.
Nina
Excellent timing on your blog topic! We’re looking from the other direction, having just listed our large home of 17 years, and moving to our ‘little’ cabin in northeast lower Michigan, about to add a small addition to make it comfortably full-time livable. It may not qualify as the typical tiny house, but going to about 1200 sq. ft. from about 3400 sq. ft. is a major downsizing for us, but gives us enough to live comfortably, when we are not traveling, but still allows us to stay as off-grid as we wish. In recent years, after months of traveling, we’d arrive home to the feeling of, “ugh, now we have so much work to do around here!” So finally, we’re getting rid of it.
Now comes decision time, after following the lives of our many nomadic friends. Do we get a small RV and become part-timers, or do we continue our nomadic ways of renting cottages and staying for weeks or months, where we have a few more creature comforts for us and Pipa (who turned 9 today!)?
So many choices, so many thoughts. But we are happy with our decision to keep our little slice of quiet heaven in northern Michigan, where we can always enjoy and hide, when we feel like it, maybe keep a small veggie garden, maybe someday, when traveling less, have a few chickens, who knows what the future holds.
You continue to give us lots of food for thought. In the meantime, we’ve known for the past year that we must make it out to Bend! Soon!
Karen I would love to hear more about your “nomadic ways of renting cottages…”. I am ready for a change and having wanderlust. I have a s&b that I am considering selling, but keep going back and forth over buying a small travel trailer (just me and my 7 year old dog) or just hitting the road in my car and renting places for a couple weeks at a time. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
Maureen, I don’t want to highjack Nina’s blog post, but in a nutshell, we pick areas were interested in, and then look into VRBO rentals. We’ve had great success 99% of the time. We prefer to fly by the seat of our pants and let serendipity lead us. There are times, during high snowbird season, when we do have to plan ahead and secure rentals months in advance. It’s really not our preference, as we could easily change our minds. Good luck!
I understand your settling in one spot in the summer to avoid the vacationers madness, that makes sense. We on the other hand have thought about a spot to sit 3 or 4 months in the winter which would leave summer months for ravel just because there are so much more country we could visit during the summer and really sort of limited places to go in the winter. There is no wrong way. But we have only been on the road for 3 years and like you, it’s just not time yet.
Have a great time in Bend, we love it over there.
Yup I know many folks who prefer the winter-stop idea and travel in the summer months. Like you said absolutely no wrong way to do it.
Nina
Darn … so sorry we will miss the Meet and Greet in Bend. We left Sisters today for McMinnville. One of these days we’ll meet in person 🙂 In the meantime, we love your blog – just enough detail and amazing photos. We have altered our plans several times to visit areas where you guys have been and it has been so worth it. Dispersed camping has become somewhat of an obsession now!
We are moving into our 6th year of full timing and have no plans to stop. We’d have the “deer in the headlights” look if we were asked where we’d want to live in a sticks and bricks home. We are a) not ready to settle down and b) oh so not ready for the responsibility. We do rent a house for a couple of months in the winter to ski – for the last couple of years (and next year) in Crested Butte. It checks all the boxes if you are into that sort of wintry stuff. Gives us fun skiing, some extra space for awhile, and time for the motorhome to cool it’s heels.
Have fun in Bend and look forward to hearing about your adventures!
Sorry we missed you, but have fun in wine country (I have no doubt you will)!!
Renting a house for a few months every year is actually an excellent idea. We have another set of RV friends who do the same thing in winter, specifically for skiing. I could see the same idea being applied to summer too…in the right spot.
Nina
We may be in the Bend area this weekend and if so will definitely plan to meet up with you guys at CRUX. I have been following your blog for a couple of years and thoroughly enjoy reading about your adventures. We currently live in the Portland area and we too have the explorer and adventurer genes but aren’t quite ready to cut the job ties that bind to become full time nomads yet. It’s in the plans for future, although it might be on our bicycles the way gas prices keep going back up here in Oregon. Oy.
Hope to see you guys Saturday and enjoy some great beer too!
Ronda & Bill
Look forward to meeting you!
Nina
I may have mentioned Ms. Karen Bandy, jeweler and artist. Her work with precious stones in settings of her own design is wearable art. And her non-representational paintings are beautiful too. But she is the true gem; her graciousness makes you feel welcome and at ease while imbuing the meeting with an elegance rarely encountered. Her studio is in the center of downtown near the end of a hallway lined with shops. Please say hello for me.
I’ll try to look out for her. Thanks for the tip!
Nina
What a sweet gig! It’s similar to what we have when we return to Ashland and stay with friends on their small farmstead/vineyard just outside of town. We tried living the part time nomad life for about 10 years, and found that we still weren’t getting enough time on the road. So we switched to full-timing two years ago, but kept our home in Ashland and rented it. (At about 1300 square feet, it qualifies as a pretty small home.) We’ll likely go back to living there when we grow tired of full timing, but I don’t see that happening for at least a few years. My ideal would be to have parallel lives, so that I could be at home gardening, creating art, and playing music with my friends—and in my other life, be on the road!
Parallel lives would be ideal, wouldn’t it? Or perhaps just the option to tele-transport back and forth as wished. “Beam me home, Scotty!”
Nina
Also in Bend – actually, just outside Bend, boondocking in the Nat’l Forest. May be there Saturday. Met you folks the last two years while at Borrego Spgs.
Excellent. Love the National Forest here. We’ve not boondocked in the area, but I scouted out a few spots last year while we were here. Lots of possibilities, also over by Sisters.
Nina
Bill, without giving away any secret spots are you able to point me in the right direction to some boondocking spots in the Bend area? Like “South on 97 about 15 miles,” etc. I can do the map research on USFS and BLM but it would be nice to narrow the search. 🙂
Mike,
First of all thanks for coming yesterday. We had a blast!! We haven’t done too much boondocking scoping around Bend, but Campendium has 4-5 sites you can look at on their website.
Nina
We downsized to a tiny cottage and set off on the road with firm plans to return to the lake and enjoy next summer there. Now that we’re away, those plans don’t look quite as firm……too many places to see,too many things to do! Perhaps it was the almost 11 months in a sticks and bricks, but we’re ready for less responsibility again, ready to do exactly as we please when we please…..be careful what you wish for!
sue and dave
You guys made a HUGE downsizing, and I can certainly see you being on the road almost fulltime for a while (after all, you’ve made it out WEST…why would you want to leave?). Don’t sell that cottage too soon though…we might want to make a trip to the East Coast someday tee hee.
Nina
Nina looks beautiful. Enjoy your “nesting, egg gathering & garden picking for a few, and we will waiting patiently for the beast to be back on the trail again. Wish we could join you but we are still holding down the ranch here in East TX, so if y’all come this way holler and you can park in our pasture.
Wish we were in the area for your meet-up, as we are planning to visit Bend. As for the place where you are nesting, it looks pretty sweet, something we would love to stumble upon someday. Have a great little rest. 🙂
Paul and Nina and All,
What a great idea, and what a great gathering! I very much enjoyed meeting some of our fellow like-thinking people. Please feel free to peruse my blog to see if there’s anything of interest there.
And hope to see you again at Borrego Springs (CA) next mid-winter solstice.
– Bill –
Thanks so much for coming Bill. I really enjoyed our get together!
Nina
What a SWEET deal and spot to stay for a while! Your waxing poetic is indeed what I intend to do when I finally can remove myself from my job (which right now I love) and sell my acreage/house. Travel and find the spot I want to put down roots, tiny house, place for the trailer and yeehaw! I get that!
Thanks! Yes, Campendium was perfect for the Bend area. Pointed me in the right direction. 🙂 Hope to see you the next time you roll through Bend again. Maybe we can recruit you to stay.
Nina, It was so great to meet you and Paul at Crux! We certainly had a lot in common (and we didn’t even talk about Stanford). I hope we can meet up someday, somewhere camping when we can have some more time around the campfire. Cheers, Rick
Thank you SO much for coming Rick! We had a total blast of an afternoon.
Nina