Trip 0, Day 1

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The not-so-risk-free trial begins! With everything packed, we begin the shakedown adventure and prepare ourselves for our lives ahead.

The first thing we figured out, with an attached trailer, is that gas mileage goes out the window. When we say "out the window", we mean that the efficiency was nearly cut in half, down to about 10 miles to the gallon. It's not that surprising because we're carrying more, but the realization of fuel costs has arisen, so it would seem all the more reason to take advantage of monthly and even seasonal rates, and to mosey our way to different parts of the country instead of making cross-country trips.

Settling in was the next challenge. The shakedown is being done at a location that isn't exactly the most truck-friendly, not in terms of allowances and permissions since our host has been more than accommodating, but in terms of turn radius. It's good practice for when we have to back into a campsite or a truck stop, since "pull-through" spots are more expensive or sometimes plainly not available. The two of us seem to have a good system down, having picked it up almost immediately. Setup took some figuring out, but we have ourselves in a good spot.

As with any couple, we're not going to agree on everything. The argument count has already reached two, barely 24 hours into the adventure. Surprisingly enough, parking the trailer wasn't one of them. Details won't be disclosed on the arguments themselves unless we somehow landed a reality TV show contract, though the best "ratings" would come from the first 30 days of the adventure. For any aspiring producers out there, although it doesn't "push the envelope" as much as some of the offerings out there, it may help to promote the RV lifestyle.

With Day 1 complete, we leave you with some lessons learned that we hope will help you on your upcoming RV adventure:

• Give yourself more than one day to pack, if you can help it. Though we had given ourselves three days and were hoping to document the process, extenuating circumstances resulted in us taking ownership of the travel trailer the day before leaving for the shakedown. And even if you make extensive lists, you're bound to forget something. This is why a shakedown is good to work out the kinks, so even if you did miss something, you can always go back to add it before a long journey.
• When you have new items with "some assembly required", put it together before you leave. Travel and setup is going to take its toll, and the last thing you want is more setup steps piled onto what would normally need to be done. Not to mention, if something is defective, you have the chance to make an exchange. Even if you're planning to live in the RV full time, you'll want to put stuff together near where it was purchased.
• Be as flexible as possible. Any time you make plans, even if you stick to them to a tee, there's going to be some sort of a curve ball, or worse, the plan completely goes out the window and you have to improvise. You can read this and similar blogs until you're blue in the face, but you'll more than likely end up with a challenge of your own that you didn't consider. Be ready to handle it.

Happy travels to all, and remember to follow your internal compass.

WRITTEN May 16, 2021 at 07:00 PM

TAGS: trip 0, rv living

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