Routes
As full-time nomads, we find it helpful to track the “when”, “where”, and “how” of our travels. Therefore, we name each stay and experience by its full place name, including city and state. We then categorize each of these by the season of the year and its geographical region. And finally, we summarize our travels by the route we took to get there.
Seasons are the usual spring, summer, fall, and winter.
For geographic regions, we go by the map above.
For routing, we use RV Trip Wizard.
Becky does most of the planning. In general, we spend the summers up north where it’s cool and the winters down south where it’s warm. And in the spring and fall, we travel back and forth.
Below are the routes we’ve taken most recently. Click here to see all the routes we’ve taken since going full-time.
Route - Winter 2017-18
RATING: ♦♦♦♦
We did something this winter that we had not done since going full-time; we rented a seasonal space and stayed in mostly one spot for the entire season. We arrived at Three Flags RV Park in Wildwood FL on December 20, 2017 and stayed until March 29, 2018.
We only took two short trips away, one in the motorhome to Bradenton to see Jennifer, and another to stay in a hotel at Fort Lauderdale Beach. We really enjoyed Bradenton, especially Coquina Beach with Jennifer, but Fort Lauderdale was a bit disappointing, mostly because the weather was on the cool side and Fort Lauderdale is just too big and noisy.
Most of our winter was spent taking advantage of The Villages. We especially enjoyed the holidays. Christmas, Mardi Gras, and Saint Patrick’s Day are all big celebrations here.
We also had a lot more time to socialize. Our old friends from Ohio, Judy and Jim, came down to escape the cold, and we were able to spend a nice day with them in The Villages.
And we had a couple of nice visits with some of our RVer friends, Doug and Eileen, and Jim and Marge. It’s always nice to meet up with fellow travelers along the way.
Perhaps the strongest connection we’ve made in The Villages is with Live Oaks Community Church. One of the downsides of traveling full-time is the lack of church in our lives. It was good to be part of a Christian community again, if only for a few months.
And finally, one of the most memorable events this winter in The Villages was the March for Our Lives rally. It was a very positive day, with a large crowd coming together to ask our leaders to take constructive action to reduce gun violence, especially mass shootings. We are very glad we added our voices to those throughout the nation.
Route - Fall 2017
RATING: ♦♦♦♦♦
In many ways, our route this fall was one of the best ever. We began the season in New York State. We spent some time in the Finger Lakes Region and then headed over to Massachusetts for a few weeks. We established a home base at the Sturbridge Thousand Trails, and took extended car trips throughout New England, visiting Boston, Portland, and Mystic Seaport, to name just a few.
After a great time in New England, we began our southward journey through the Shenandoah Valley, stopping off at historic Monticello and Williamsburg. We continued on to the Carolinas and Georgia, spending a couple of days in both Charleston and Savannah, before returning to Florida in early December. We plan to spend the winter at Three Flags RV Resort in Wildwood FL near the Villages.
Route - Summer 2017
RATING: ♦♦♦
We started the summer route at Wilmington Thousand Trails just northeast of Cincinnati. We then went through Columbus on our way to Toledo.
We worked as camper hosts at Maumee Bay State Park for four weeks in July, and then stayed another two weeks to visit family. In August we finally headed out for the Finger Lakes Area in Upstate New York, which we enjoyed very much.
The plan is to be in New England for the Fall before heading back to Florida for the Winter. A fairly slow summer for traveling.
Click here to see all the routes we’ve taken since going full-time.