Not Your Usual Bingo Playing RVers!

In front of the Natchez Trace Parkway Bridge, outside of Nashville, TN

A strange look goes hand in hand with filling up at the gas station now. Each time Cory hops out of Cricket, the other patrons do a double take – they were expecting someone over twice his age to emerge!

Bison on the road in Caprock Canyons State Park, Texas.

More often than not, we’ll also get a comment or two:

“How old are you?”

“How can you do this, now, at your age?”

“Where are your parents?”

Or Cory’s personal favorite: “Young guy like you, in a big old RV like that? Something doesn’t add up!”

It’s true, we’re definitely not the average demographic of the RV community. We’re packing yoga mats and mountain bikes. Our fridge is stocked with kale, tofu, and craft beers, and we plan out routes to hit the (now few and far between) Trader Joe’s.

“Swamp” biking at Sam Houston Jones State Park in Moss Bluff, LA

Acting even younger than our age while thrift store hunting in Paducah, KY!

Not a fan of the bourbon mash mix at Maker’s Mark Distillery.

Even our “senior citizen” activities take a modern twist. Most craft projects I undertake are pulled from Pinterest (I’ve failed at knitting, but done well with embroidery), and our route planning can be an intricate mix of iPhone apps, websites, and personal recommendations. (A few of our favorites: Wikitravel, OnTheWay, our trusty Garmin navigation app).

A rare shot of me driving!!

Displaying our best camel faces at Ohio’s The Wilds

We’re adamant about mixing fun into everyday – whether we’re sightseeing or staying in the RV. I’ll give you this – we play more dominoes than your average twenty-something! But we’re still more likely to play online bingo than stop in at the local church.

Dominoes after floating the Guadalupe River in Texas.

So does this age difference put up a barrier between Cory and our fellow RV travelers? Not at all.

Official Junior Ranger – I guess I’m on the senior side of this crew!

Actually, after getting out a joke or two, most of the older RV folks we’ve met have been so excited for our adventure. “It’s great to do it now, at your age,” we hear. “You won’t regret it!”

Taking advantage of warm weather & open waters…

…and jet-skiing on Possum Kingdom Lake in Texas!

We’re fit and energetic enough to take the longer, more strenuous hikes, to reach the better views. We pack more into each day, and are up for visiting museums and monuments, as well as checking out the local nightlife.

Climbing to the top of Emory Peak in Big Bend Natl Park – 7,825 ft elevation!

Tent camping right on the Rio Grande.

Catching a Red Hot Chili Peppers concert in Cleveland, OH.

And we’re not alone on the road! We’ve had the pleasure of meeting up with Ayo and Yair of Our Take on Freedom, and following their own journey as young RVers.

Yair setting up my rock climbing gear.

Rockclimbing in the Barton Creek Greenbelt, outside of Austin, TX.

It’s a growing community – young twenty and thirty-somethings, figuring out how to work while traveling, or taking a mini-retirement.

A typical workday for us – just a little bit better of a view!

Overall, the average age of fulltimers is dropping from the 65+ retired community.

Our neighbors on the road? Not quite! These two are locals at Eunice, Louisiana’s Rendezvous de Cajuns.

This is more than a sightseeing adventure – we’re learning how we, as Americans, fit into this great country.

Visiting Old Friends in Lexington, KY – a retirement farm for racehorses!

Kicking off our 444 mile adventure on the Natchez Trace Parkway!

Dipping my own bottle at Maker’s Mark Distillery.

We can take what we’ve seen and learned, and actually apply it to our own lives going forward. After only four months on the road, I have a better sense of what I want from the city where I eventually settle. I suppose I’ve also learned that I do want to settle down, and not constantly travel!

Catching a double feature at Lynn Drive In, the oldest drive-in theatre in Ohio!

So excited to tour the Tabasco Factory on Avery Island, LA!

Our bingo playing days may still be ahead of us, but we’re perfectly content to be a part of this RV community, however we fit into it!

And don’t worry, I’ll always be a crazy cat lady – that applies to any age range, right?

Our cat for the weekend, in Cedars of Lebanon State Park – just outside Nashville, TN.

xo,

Linds