Perfect Strangers No More

Jill's Journal: It turns out some of the most interesting people in the world are campers and we have yet to tire of meeting them. And while all are from different backgrounds and locations, few are as radically different from us as Balki and Larry were from each other in the 80s (or was it 90s?).

Our neighbors in this spot alone have included a California couple who spends their time traveling to different wine regions as they pursue their wine collecting passion. An Anchorage couple who has been full-timing for 10 years and shows their Basset Hound all over the country. A family who lives only six miles away, but keeps their RV hooked up here and treats it as their vacation home. And a man whose wife is in the advanced stages of dementia; he’s her sole caretaker and he brings her along. While she doesn’t want to leave their trailer, it gives him a much-needed change of scenery.

Because of the size of our rig, we’re almost always near other larger rigs, so it seems we rarely meet tent campers or the younger crowd except at the pool or playground. In our 13 months of traveling, I can only think of one couple next door who has been younger than us.

Full-timing, like we are, is not an unusual thing. It seems to be our age, the little kids in tow, and the working for a living that makes us a little different. The older guys are generally retired or have a business that runs like a well-oiled machine without them. Their kids are long since grown. But without a doubt, I can’t think of a single one of them who hasn’t told us they wished they’d taken on this lifestyle when they had young kids. They all regale us with stories about trips they did take with their kids and how it made memories that still last decades later. It’s a nice little affirmation that we’re doing the right thing for us, for our little family.