Starting the Adventure

The first nights in our new RV home were spent at Babler State Park in suburban St. Louis.

April, 2021

3 1/2 months. That’s how long it took, beginning with the decision to retire early, then quickly selling the house, buying an RV, and hitting the road. Saying it was a whirlwind is the understatement of the year. It has been exhausting! One of the first things we did after making the decision to retire was to join Escapees RV club to help us figure out how to go about becoming full-time RVers. Then we researched RV’s to determine which brand and model would best meet our needs. We chose a 2017 Jayco Greyhawk Class C motorhome, because as full-timers, we wanted a fiberglass roof that was strong and less prone to leaking. Also, we could tow our car. If we had gone with a fifth-wheel, we would have also had to buy a truck to tow it. After closing on our house, we headed to Florida to declare our legal domicile. We chose Florida because it’s friendly to full-time RVers, offering nationwide in-network health insurance through the affordable health care act. We got our vehicle VIN inspections, registered our vehicles, got our driver’s licenses, registered to vote, and also got our declaration of intent to establish domicile notarized, all within about 1-1/2 hours, and all within the same block in town. Easy peasy!

We joined Harvest Hosts, so we can stay at working farms for free or nominal cost. We stayed at a farm south of Atlanta on our way to Florida. We bought yummy bacon and sausage from them, and enjoyed the animals and quiet setting.