High class Dirtbagging

Thought I'd throw this out to you all on the interweb.

I'll be retiring in 3.5-5 years and wanting to make climbing a priority. We will probably be living anywhere from Northern Cali to Seattle and possibly even Alaska. My wife will have the summers off as she will be teaching. I would probably do more than just the summer and my wife would return to teaching while i continued to climb for a couple months.

My question is: What are our opinions on these choices?

1. Buying a motorhome and living in it traveling the climbing spots.
2. Buying a small travel trailer and doing the same.
3. Buying a condo in a particular area and road tripping from there.
4. The typical living out of a vehicle (pick-up, car)

I guess the problems with the first two are cost and how close I would be able to get them to the actual climbing areas. The problem with the third is I'm stuck in that one place, but could rent it out when were not there. And the last one I'm not sure how the wife would enjoy living that lifestyle for very long.

Thanks in advance for all your comments.

SPRINTER VAN.

Deisel, 28 mpg, goes 80 up Colorado passes, more than twice the cubic interior space of an euro van, high road clearance (easily make my way to Black Velvet Canyon, the old way), if your shorter than 5'9 you can stand up on the inside.

Keep an eye on ebay.

Prod.

yup. get a vansion (sprinter). you could even get one thats been converted to a expensive looking RV, and still do really well on gas milage and getting places

It's nice to have a place called "home" that isn't a vehicle.

Where would your wife live when you were on the road in a travel trailer or motorhome?

Frank,

We would definitely have a permanent residence, either a house or apartment somewhere between N Cali to Alaska (I'm hoping AK!!). Depending where she decides to teach and can get a job. We would start the summer together but school is usually starting when the climbing is getting good so I would stay on the road a little longer then head back at a later date.

We looked at the sprinters today. Very nice!! The one we looked at even had a slideout.

I might consider living somewhere like Southern California or (even better, IMO) Southern Arizona for the 9 months that your wife is working. You will be able to climb full time there when you are home, then head north for the Summer.

i would vote for a trailer. that way you can have base camp for weeks at a time and take your vehicle on excursions.

Consider renting or leasing rather than buying a residence. Don't get tied down by real estate.

If I had to retire in 5 years, I'd consider Reno area condo renting. Good weather and superb access to the high Sierra.

The trailer option is good for having a "base" parked somewhere while you use the towing vehicle for excursions, and that towing vehicle can be a high-clearance 4x4 truck if you want access to more remote areas. The downside is lower fuel economy, extra equipment to maintain/repair, more trouble handling the rig in bad weather and harder to back up and park. Not having to stow every little thing when you want to take a day trip is nice, though...

The Sprinter is also potentially more dangerous in crosswinds, but nothing like a full size motor home or trailer, and the fuel mileage tends to be pretty good. There are some interesting forums on here about converting/equipping various vehicles for your purposes, with some good photos- you might want to hunt around for some of them.

Though not perfect for every situation, for me a van (of any type) has turned out to be the best overall setup for climbing trips- they're the most weatherproof over time (important if you're buying used), easier to handle and park, and better when you don't make as many miles as you were planning and have to sleep somewhere on the road. Sprinters come tall from the factory, but there are also American vans around that have raised tops and pop-tops, and they often sell for less- some of those have 4 wheel drive, but the fuel mileage is usually lousy.

Why don't you guys consider volunteering in a national park?

I would guess your wife at least (as a teacher) might enjoy working with the public. You will get to live hassle free in some pretty cool places. Might be true that only one of you has to volunteer for the both of you to have privileges.

You can either get a cheapo camp trailer to park all summer or you may be able to get a cabin.

It's kinda nice to be able to live there fulltime. You'd just need your car, but if you want to go off the deep end like a lot of folks, yeah go spend a ton of $$ on a live-in vehicle.

I'd say just get if you don't got A SMALL truck, put a cap on it and then you can use that while you are solo.

I would think strongly about the frequency you will be moving around or the different areas you plan on climbing at over the year. This might help you narrow your focus. The benefit of a trailer is the increased comfort level, however don't forget about the size needed for a trailer and a truck at campsites.

Based on your description I would choose a decked out sprinter or van conversion.

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This is how i spent from June last year until November in the ADK's...

If you'll have to make payments on the RV, I'd suggest just spending the money on a motel room for trips. The little towns near where we climb prolly average $45-80 a night; whereas an RV or 5th whell/truck combo is at least $500.00/month in payments plus gas, insurance, storage; and then you have the issue of getting about like to the store for provisions.
The Sprinter sounds great (my path soon as I need it for work) but I doubt your old lady would be thrilled living that cramped.

Why don't you guys consider volunteering in a national park?...

...Might be true that only one of you has to volunteer for the both of you to have privileges.

Volunteer doing what? The national parks are run by private companies who are profiting off of our public lands. They don't need your labor. They've got plenty of poorly paid young girls from Eastern Europe to choose from.

I guess they might still let you "volunteer" to do trail maintenance but I don't consider packing a pick ax up and down trashed back country trails to be much of a privilege.

I think your situation calls for a truck and trailer or 5th wheel. You can find a cheap place to park the trailer or 5th wheel and use the truck to travel to different climbing spots and have a nice "base camp" to come back to. If you went the sprinter route there may be some areas that are out of reach for that vehicle.

The other advantages are driving to town for supplies or to hang out on your rest days and not taking everything including the "kitchen sink" with you.

Either way congrats on the retirement and I hope you have a great time whatever you end up doing!

Yarp wrote:Volunteer doing what? The national parks are run by private companies who are profiting off of our public lands. They don't need your labor. They've got plenty of poorly paid young girls from Eastern Europe to choose from. I guess they might still let you "volunteer" to do trail maintenance but I don't consider packing a pick ax up and down trashed back country trails to be much of a privilege.

WTF are you talking about?

Why the hostility, you get caught shoplifting at Degnan's or Dornan's? Those eastern european girls, derka derr, take ur jerb?

Dealing with folks like you can be one of the more entertaining parts of my day....

Yarp wrote:Volunteer doing what? The national parks are run by private companies who are profiting off of our public lands. They don't need your labor.

That's not entirely true... I've been in several parks where there are volunteer rangers who specialize in education, including guided hikes and evening slide shows. If you have a skill or knowledge of some kind suited to a particular park you might fit in well.

Happy to see Yarp's negative knonw-it-alling failed by two speaks o da truth.

The Bobby wrote:I might consider living somewhere like Southern California or (even better, IMO) Southern Arizona for the 9 months that your wife is working. You will be able to climb full time there when you are home, then head north for the Summer.

+1. This is the best advice in this thread. Property is cheap in Joshua Tree, Vegas, and SoAz, the weather is primo during the school year, and there is TONS of first class climbing in easy striking distance. When it's 105+ outside in the summer, you're wife is off and you're on the road to cooler locations, so you don't cares if it's hot.

Having lived in AK for several years, the summers are the time to be there, just hanging around during the school year would be ass backwards IMO.

I would second the home in SoCal/Az and then travel in summer idea, since your wife will probably not want to live out of any vehicle, no matter how swank, when she has to work. It just takes a lot longer to get things done(make breakfast, clean up dishes, find things in storage bins) when you are living out of a vehicle. That region allows for nice small driving trips during the school year vacations as well.

If you haven't done much vehicle travel/living, then may be you should think about renting some rigs and trying it out before committing. Everyone is different. Some people would be disgusted by one of those behemoth bus RV's, others would need one to feel they weren't living on the lam.

This website - rvnetwork.com/ - has a LOT of information about the RV lifestyle. It is useful for just about anyone new to vehicle living.