I've been lurking for the last 2 weeks.  I've read the journal from beginning to current....I know I'm alittle slow, but Howard can be long winded at times!!!   Retiring in June and planning on taking our new to us 25 foot mh on an 8 month adventure.  That will be our deciding factor how this may or may not be a great thing for us.  We bought it as a "go machine" not a livable one for any length of time.  I love reading about others and what they do and enjoy, sure opens my eyes to what is out there.  Now whether we get a toad or just go with the mh from place to place is the latest decision to go through.  Having fun ordering "necessary" things to take.  We have very little space to carry much, thus the question about a toad.....golf clubs along would be REALLY NICE!!!  Otherwise, sniff, sniff, they will be home all alone.  Glad to beable to read all your views and opinions.  You are a great bunch of people.    Karebear

Hi Karebare,

Welcome to this great community!  We hope it helps make your RV experiences great.  June will be here before you know it!!!

I thought I would put my two cents in on the decision to get a toad or not.  I truly believe that your 8 month trial period would not give a true representation of "Fulltiming" if you do not have a toad.  Fulltimers don't have the hassels of packing up the home everyday.  Our RV's are our homes not our vehicles.  I think that I would start to dread every morning knowing that I would have to disconnect all the hook ups and pack up everything just so I could go to the store or do a little site seeing. 

I would highly recommend a toad!!!!!!!

I second the recommendation to get a toad. Otherwise you will always be in "vacation mode" and not truly enjoying the laid back lifestyle of fulltiming.

Note: If you have a toad you can stuff the golf clubs in the trunk!  Just another reason for a toad.

Steve

Hello from Spokane, WA

I, too am looking forward to being on the road in the not too far distant future....maybe we will catch up to each other sometime somewhere.

Jenny

Hi Karebare:

There are several really good reasons for having a toad.  First of all, parking a motorhome in many parking lots is really an unfriendly adventure and when you need gorceries or any thing else or just want to go out for a milk shake, taking the motorhome is a drag.
Second, if the drive train in the motorhome goes down on you for any reason you can unhitch the toad and drive to where ever you can get assistance.  Cell phones are great but they just don't work everywhere as yet.  It is pretty comforting to know there is an alternative to walking or hitching a ride.

Thank you for the warm welcome.  I never thought about the "fulltime mode" idea and you are all right about "vacation mode" without a toad.  I think you just made up my wishywashy mind. I've PM'd some people on RV.Net and asking their opinions, they mostly concur with yours about convience, and yes a safety net too. Now looking at light weight, but some room, thinking a Toyota Corolla as we've had Toyotas for years, would need a 5-speed.  Thought about taking our 1997 Camry and following dh, but then again it takes two to watch the sides and traffic and pulling over.  At least when I drove our 400 mile salmon trip last year and through those 4 lanes in Seattle I was glad for that second set of eyes.  I just ordered 2 LaFuma recliners and am looking forward to other purchases. 

I could sell the house and get a bigger rig right now, it's the dh that is having a hard time with leaving.  We are lucky to have a smaller home we own and taxes only $800 a year, insurance only $500 a year and it is paid for.  But leaving a home for 8 months in the hard winters is worrisome, we left a week in the Fall and had a mouse!!!  My but he made a mess. And JennyJ I live in Chewelah, just 50 miles north of you!!!  We have a nice 27 hole golf course and a small RV park there, so a great place to come "HOME" for the summer if we fulltimed.   Thank you for all your warmth.....Karebear

Just a thought about your comment about 'a great place to come "HOME" for the summer if we fulltimed'. There is a couple here at the campground in Arizona who go back to Ohio every summer and work while visiting relatives. They need to work about 3 to 4 months a year to supplement the pension. Next year they are going to work in winter so they can go somewhere else for the summer, like Alaska, the Pacific Northwest or the Maritimes. If you fulltime a while you might want to do the same, be somewhere else at least one summer. Just a thought.