Posted July 18, 2023 – Narrated by Jim
“The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.”
Hi, this is Jim with the annual report.
I will be brief and to the point.
Today, we wrap up our 7th year of full-time travel.
Tomorrow we enter our 8th year on the road.
It’s been an amazing 7 years.
We started out on July 18, 2016 with a dream to unburden ourselves of property and simply travel in a 180 square-foot rig named Beauty & the Beast.
The road has been good to us.
Our quest for a radical life-change opened up a treasure trove of pure happiness – more than we ever imagined experiencing in our average American lives.
You, our 8,535 followers, guide us, discover and rediscover with us. So, we want to say thank you for being a part of this journey.
Our Gear
We’re delighted that most of the gear we started out with from Year One is still in great working order. We even have the same hiking poles.
Our well-used kayaks remain seaworthy.
And, we’re proud to continue into Year Eight with Beauty, the same 30′ Airstream we launched with in Year One.
As always, Beauty is escorted by our original 2014 Ram truck, the gallant Beast who makes the magic happen.
Pico de Gallo, Great Explorer of The Universe, our Security Specialist, is still on board.
He turned 15 in May (old enough for a learner’s permit in most states) and when he’s not napping, he’s still raring for adventure.
Damage Control
In seven years, we’ve had a few bumps and scrapes which our technicians recently repaired. Our sincerest thanks to the experts at Vinnie’s Northbay Airstream Repair.
Without Vinnie Lamica and his team, we wouldn’t have made it past our first year.
Everyday, we are grateful to be spared the worst – namely, no collisions with semi’s, pedestrians, wildlife, or domestic animals. ✊🏻🪵
In the interest of economy and ecology: Our 4-3-2 slow-travel philosophy combined with deploying our Dolphin e-bikes for exercise and grocery runs, insures that our mileage is comparable to the average American commuter.
Furthermore – thanks to new tech and our increasing experience – our extremely low carbon footprint is always reducing.
One thing will change.
According to schedule, we arrived to Year 8 seven years older. Now, in our late 60’s, the next chapter of Living in Beauty will be to find a new pace for old bones.
Presumably, we will travel shorter distances and stay longer in fewer locations.
We are exploring several new strategies. With mandatory two-week maximum stays at almost every public campground, it remains to be seen how a moderate deceleration will play out.
It all depends on our experience, creativity and level of energy, but we’re excited about sharing the adventure which Carmen calls our “Less is More Phase.”
The Details
Now, to honor my promise of brevity, I leave the details open to your inspection. Below, you will see a list of graphics showing statistics.
At the top is a color-coded animated map celebrating every step of our first seven (glorious) years of Living in Beauty.
If you like the infographics above, click here for even more! 😊
Again, thank you for your interest, encouragement and prayers over these past seven years.
We hope you continue following Living in Beauty.
From Carmen, Pico and me: stay safe out there and happy travels!
We welcome your comments, questions and suggestions!
If you want to see more statistics, and exactly where we have stayed click here.
*photos in this post (unless otherwise noted) were taken and copyrighted by Living In Beauty
Here are all our “On-the-Road” Anniversary blogs posts.
- Saying Goodbye
- Published on the day we started – July 18, 2016
- Facts of LIB
- Published on our One Year Anniversary – July 19, 2017
- Canadian LIB Moment
- Published on our Two Year Anniversary – July 19, 2018
- Counting Moments: 3 Years
- Published on our Three Year Anniversary – July 19, 2019
- Four Years and Counting
- Published on our Four Year Anniversary – July 18, 2020
- Captain’s Log: Stardate 2021.0718 – Five-Year Mission Update
- Published on our Five Year Anniversary – July 18, 2021
- RVer’s Bag o’ Tricks
- Published on our Six Year Anniversary – July 18, 2022
- Launching Year 8
- Published on our Seven Year Anniversary – July 18, 2023
Love to read the annual stats. As always so inspiring. Take care of yourselves!
Lori, glad you enjoy my annual reports. I love details and statistics, so creating this yearly update and keeping “Travel Maps and Facts” current is somethings I enjoy. Thank you for being a long time follower. I can see your 1st comment was back in July 2017. Wow! Jim
Have so enjoyed reading what you write as you go along. I’d love to hear in more detail why these seven years have been so terrific for you.
Teri, I’m happy to hear you have enjoyed reading along with us as we write about this amazing lifestyle. You want details.😊 Not sure what I can add that we haven’t already said, but I can say having the freedom to go where we want, stay as long as we wish, and experience all the beauty that North America has to offer are some of the main reasons these seven years have been so terrific. One of the greatest joys has been to meet people from every state and discover we all have the same dreams, hopes, and aspirations, and that our common values and goals in life far our out way our differences. Traveling has been the great equalizer that has taught us there is more than one place to call home and that there are good people wherever we go. Thank you for following Living in Beauty. Jim
Congratulations on reaching year 8. I’ve been following you for the last 4 or 5 years and have enjoyed your travels. Although not full-timers, we are entering our 15th year of Traveling in Winnie. We have covered 163,000 miles in the US and Maritime Canada staying in all the lower 48 and 4 Canadian Provinces. RV life is awesome, but not without problems. It’s life. Safe travels in Beauty and the Beast.
Vincent, thank you for being a long time follower. 15 years of traveling and 163,000 miles. All I can say is WOW! Yes, it is true, RV life is awesome, but not with problems. It is life, we agree, but what a life!!!!! Stay safe out there! Jim
Congratulations! Such an inspiration!
Denise, thank you! We are thinking about Colorado next summer. Hope we can connect and hang out together. ❤️ Jim
Congratulations!
David, Thank you! Jim
So awesome! We enjoy following you!! Continue safe travels.
Donna, thank you for following LIB. Jim
I’ll be turning 70 this month (July 2023) and next month will be the start of my second year on the road. My FC25RBQ, Tiny Tin, and I are currently sidelined for the summer while I care for my mother. She is enjoying her home on the lake with me and will return to my sister’s home for the winter while TT and I begin our second year as Snowbirds. I have learned so much from following your adventures, especially the wisdom of your 4-3-2 travel plan. Thanks and good luck with year 8 ! George
George, congratulations on your second year on the road. We love the 25 foot Airstreams. Great layout! Hope your mother gets well soon! Glad you have found value in our blog posts. We do love the 4-3-2 lifestyle. Thank you for following LIB. Jim
👍👍👍
😊
There were very few statistics about Pico. And really no thoughts about his situation of confinement in a metal tube.
Also no graphic representation of the various alcoholic beverages consumed—
% of beer (IPA, lager, stout) wine (Pinot, Zinfandel, Merlot) or spirits ( bourbon. Whiskey, moonshine). People have a right to know.
Run-ins with the law (numerous I’m sure owing to Carmen’s “history” ) were totally left out as were stays in state and local “accommodations” as a result. These would make interesting reading.
Lastly, you totally left out lifelines to friends and family—- who you contacted the most and desired to see (or not) throughout the years. I think you know who I mean
Good luck on year 8. You’re not getting any younger
Jim, (FunniestManInSanDiego), what can I say? I am speechless. 🤪. Jim
What an amazing journey, and your photos are always incredible!
Jennifer, thank you! Glad you enjoy the photos. Jim
I’ve followed the journey since before the beginning. I’m more than excited to read each new post and I’m in just plain awe of what you’ve done, where you’ve gone and how you’ve lived.
8 years is a mere milestone in a forever lifestyle. Hope you have many more years to do this as I have many more years to live vicariously through it all.
Doug, thank you for following LIB since before the beginning. 😍 We did write for about 7 months before we hit the road back in 2016. Glad to have you along all these years. Jim
Congratulations on your 7 year milestone! We celebrated our 4th full time year on July 3rd and have been following you since you launched. We enjoy your posts so much. You have been an inspiration and a source of so much information.
Currently, we are visiting the Canadian Maritimes, then Florida for the winter and back to Oregon for summer of 2024. We are in our late 60’s and have also been thinking about our next chapter.
Someday, we hope our paths will cross.
Take care.
Dan & Sandy Van Noppen
Dan and Sandy, congratulations on your 4th year of full-time travel. Isn’t it an amazing life! Glad to hear you find value in our posts. We sure do enjoy writing about our travels. Hope our paths do cross someday on the road. Stay safe out there! Jim
Y’all are awesome. Stay safe
Adrien, thank you! Jim
Congrats!
Terry, thanks! Jim
WOW!
Love the details kept.
Rusty, yep I LOVE statistics! Glad you do too! I just can’t leave my past as a CFO and dealing with numbers. 🤪
We are right behind you. In September it will be the beginning of our 7th year. Hard to believe.
Debbie, Congratulations! Miss you two! I think it has been years since we saw each other. Hope our paths cross again! Jim
Thanks for all you’ve shared. I’ve learned a lot and admire the way you’re doing things.
Glen, glad you feel what we write is valuable to you. We sure do enjoy living this lifestyle and sharing with our followers. Jim
Congratulations
Michael, thank you! Jim
Congrats and thanks for bring us along.
Patti, thank you! Jim
Thanks for taking all of us along. We truly enjoy seeing the places you travel. Hope to see you out there someday.
Kathy and Steve, thank you for being long time LIB followers for all these years. We do hope our paths cross some day on the road. Jim
Congratulations!
Debbie, thank you! Jim
Asheville is calling you back!
Debbie, we do hope we can swing back to Asheville at some point soon. Not sure yet what we have planned in the coming months. Sending love to you and Frank. Jim
Congratulations! You are an inspiration for all of us. Thanks for the beautiful photos and all the information you provide. We’ll continue to look forward to more posts of your continued adventures.
Melinda, so glad you have found value in what we write. Carmen loves taking photos and sharing them. Thank you for following LIB. Jim
Amazing! Love you both
Sam, ❤️😍. Jim
Wow, you guys are rocking it
Patrice, 👍🏻 Yep!! Jim
Enjoy #8 – must start planning our annual “hook-up.” Suggest eclipse or Juke Joint….
Joe, we have reservations for the eclipse with our super secret friends from the group that’s name shall not be spoken. 🤪😎🤫 Hope you two plan on being there also! Jim
Wow, Jim. That’s incredible. Has it been seven years!? Here’s to what’s next! 🍻
Chris, thank you! I sure miss working with you on various committees. I am still on the board of Alliance Healthcare Foundation, so I still have a connection to the San Diego healthcare community. Hope to see you again someday. Jim
That would be great! At this point, I need to get myself a giant Airstream, or you’ll need to make a pitstop in San Diego! Ha! Give my best to Carmen and travel well my friend!
That’s awesome! Congratulations!
Vicki, thank you! Jim
Happy Trails
Tony, thanks! Jim
Congratulations you three (Hi Pico). I’ve only met you once, Jim, in San Diego. But through your posts over the years I feel like we’re fast friends. You’ve inspired Connie and me to travel in our 30′ Classic on caravans, so we finished Springtime in the Rockies (our 4th caravan in 2 years), the International in Rock Springs, and are slowly working our way home to So Cal from currently Sandpoint, ID. All the best. I hope you all get some much needed rest after Alaska.
Mark
Mark and Connie, we do remember you both. I believe it was in Chula Vista, wasn’t it? We wanted to be at the International in Rock Springs, but it was not meant to be. We are getting that much needed rest, thanks! Stay safe out there! Jim
What a wonderful 7 years! It has been awesome to follow your adventures!
Dawn, it has been a wonderful 7 years so far. Miss you and Chris! Jim
Nice, read the timeline impressive
Walter, glad you enjoyed reading about our travels! Jim
That’s awesome! Congratulations!
Bill and Karen, thank you! Jim
Best life ever, isn’t it? We miss it so much.
Elizabeth, yep it sure is!!!!!!!! Sending ❤️ to you and Jack. Jim
Congratulations 🎊
Elaine, thanks! Jim
We just began our 3rd year!
Elaine, Congratulations on starting your 3rd year!!!!!!!! Jim
Congratulations🎉
Thank you! Jim
Happy Anniversary
Tina, thank you! Jim
We are on 13 and loving it. Congratulations
Nancy, Wow! 13 year traveling full-time. Wow! Congratulations! Some day we hope to hit that mark! Jim
Congratulations! That’s awesome!
Debbie, thanks! Jim
Happy Anniversary!
Chris, thanks! Jim
Hi Jim: What a joy to read today’s email that you and Carmen have completed seven amazing years on the road. I am beyond impressed and inspired. Your “short and sweet” flyover was perfect and thorough, despite the brevity. I’ve been ruminating over whether I know any other couple who is compatible enough on so many make-or-break levels that they could accomplish this adventure. My hearty congratulations. Thanks for staying in touch and give my best to Carmen. As always, vaya con Dios!
Leah, so great to hear from you! I miss our times working together at Lamb’s Players Theatre. Fond memories. Thank you for your kinds words. I know what we do sounds like we are unique in our adventure, but over these past 7 years we have come across many folks, younger and older than us, who are doing the same thing. What IS unique about us is we write about it.😉 With technology allowing anyone to travel and stay connected, either for work or fun, the nomadic lifestyle has attracted tens of thousands of folks to abandon the 9 to 5 “go-to-the-office” routine in exchange of the adventure of full-time travel. What a delight to meet them on the road. We consider ourselves fortunate that we are able to continue our travels while being retired. A lot of financial planning went into making it happen for us. Thank you for your years of friendship. Your are a dear friend. ❤️ Jim
I feel like I’ve been on the road with you by all the amazing photos you’ve shared. Onward and Upward!!!
Cynthia, your friendship for more than 50 years means a lot to Carmen and me. ❤️ Glad you are enjoying the photos. And yes…. Onward and Upward! Jim
Love your spreadsheets!
Stephanie, Me too!!! 😉 Jim
Dear Jim, Carmen, and Pico,
Your vast collection of info and your sharing have guided my husband and I in our research and decision- making. We are truck campers, and appreciate your dedication and adventurous spirits!
The mountains are calling, and deserts, beaches, keep it coming. Your computer work is a blessing to many of us travelers out there.
Thank- you,
Cindy, from CO
Cindy, so good to hear from you, and thank you for following LIB. Your comments brought a smile to our faces and we thank you for that. YES!!!! The mountains, deserts and beaches are calling. Even after 7 years, there is still so much of this beautiful continent to see and experience. Stay safe out there and happy travels! Jim
Bon Voyage! Thanks and please continue to share.
Simeon, thank you! That’s the plan. 😊. Jim
Congrats! We are in year 3.
Linda, Congratulations on traveling full-time and being in your 3rd year! Jim
Wow! That’s awesome!
Violet, thank you! Jim
Happy Anniversary ❤️❤️
Marjie, thank you! Jim
Thanks for sharing your adventures. You and your wife are living the dream of many of us.
That’s awesome! Congratulations! Love your travels!! More Happy Trails
Perri, glad to hear you love our travels! We do too. 😉 And we enjoy sharing. Thanks for the comment and following LIB. Jim
Love the map!
Diana, it is one my favorite projects. Lots of fun to create. Jim
That’s the way to see our country
Ruamie, we could not agree with you more!!! It is a wonderful way to see the beauty of North America. Thanks for following LIB. Jim
So does that mean you don’t have any form of home base, just the trailer?
Jamie, yep… we have no bricks and mortar house. In 2016 we sold all our real estate and gave away all our possessions. We have nothing in storage anywhere. If it doesn’t fit in our truck or trailer, we do not own it. And there isn’t a lot of storage in either one. So we have very few possessions. We love the simplicity of this amazing lifestyle. Thanks for following LIB. Jim
Sounds ideal! I just retired a few weeks ago….maybe I should consider it 😊
You guys are absolutely amazing, even if you can’t tell time (2 years on the road, huh?)!
Ted, we did think originally that we might travel full-time for a couple of years. But… this is just too much fun. Now we don’t know if we will ever stop, unless our health gets in the way. Send our love to Marcy! Jim
Your video was great! Ya know, you can get that 50th state for less than $10,000. (Of course, that’s for only the shipping of Beauty…). Keep sharing as we don’t want to miss anything!
Doug, glad you enjoyed our video. Only $10,000 to ship an Airstream to Hawaii? Such a deal.🤪 We might pass on that for now. We do plan to keep sharing. Thanks for following LIB. Jim
Congratulations on 7 years and cheers to #8! There aren’t many folks who fulltime for that long. It’s a true testament to your character and to your ability to not murder one another. These are both things to be proud of. 🙂
I’ll be interested to see how this next chapter unfolds. The longer we were on the road, the more we appreciated the longer stays. I can imagine you are more than ready for that switch now and I’ll be interested to see how your travel practices change.
I’m just happy you’re gonna keep exploring and sharing it all with us. I always enjoy your posts!
Laura, thanks for keeping up with us. As you know, living in a small space for years has its challenges.🤪 When asked, we always tell folks that if your relationship is strained living together in a bricks and mortar house, you might find the challenges living in an RV a bit overwhelming. Lucky for us, we had been married for 41 years before we started full-time travel and had basically worked out most of the relationship issues. Not all of them, but most of them 😉. We too are very interested to see how the new chapter unfolds. Alaska kicked our butts and we still are exhausted from the trip. We are glad we did it, loved the beauty, but it tired us out. Big time. Glad you are still enjoying our posts. We sure miss reading about your travels, but LOVE hearing about your Portugal adventure. Jim
Nice! We are coming up on our five year anniversary.
Marc, congratulations on your upcoming 5 year anniversary. Stay safe out there! Jim
We’ve been RVing 44 years, we are 80. Camping in Amish country this week. Shipshewana In. Life is good
Tina. Wow! Congratulations! 44 years! We hope we can continue this amazing lifestyle into our 80’s. The only thing we think that could get in the way would be our health. So far so good. Stay safe out there! Jim
Congrats on another year! Thanks for all the stats. Interesting as always. We’re planning our travels for next year that I’ve dubbed “the great wandering”. We’ll be on the road for 8 months. Hope our paths cross. Stay healthy. Stay safe. Stay adventurous. And say thirsty!
Steve, so glad to hear from you and Sue. Next year… 8 months! Congratulations! I love the title “The Great Wandering” since that is what we have been doing all these years. We do hope our paths cross some day again. Love your reference to XX beer! 🍺 Stay safe out there! Jim
That’s awesome! Congratulations!
Sharon, thank you! Jim
Through your writings and photographs I’ve vicariously enjoyed your adventures. Thank you for taking the time to share your travels with all of us!
Bob, glad we are helping you live vicariously through our adventure.😊 We hope and plan to keep sharing. Thanks for following LIB. Jim
Congratulations on the next year’s journey.
Sharri, thank you! Jim
Love following you guys. You portray a life being fulfilled & well lived! Question, any interest in traveling abroad?
Kari, thank you for your kinds words. Without being morbid, we need to wait for our little 15 year old chihuahua to graduate to that university in the sky before we consider traveling abroad. He is showing signs of his age and there is no way he would be able to travel outside of the life his lives in our Airstream going down the road. We are in no hurry to lose our little guy, so far far away travel by airplane will have to wait. Thanks for asking. Jim
Your wonderful commentaries and beautiful photographs spark joy! Such fun to follow your adventures. ‘Appreciate your transparency and candid “tell it like it is” reporting. Thanks for allowing so many of us, your fans, the vicarious enjoyment of your travels. Praying for your next chapter.
Love you more than fresh squeezed orange juice, Eva
Eva, our dear dear friend. Thank you for your kind words about our commentary and photos. Your final sentence brought a smile to Carmen and my face. Thank you! 🙏🏻. Jim
Eva, that last line made us smile because the day you posted we had shared a glass of fresh squeezed orange juice for the first time since … well it’s been years. Thank you for staying connected and keep that good energizing juice coming! xoxo Carmen@LIB
Happy Anniversary!💕can’t wait to see more of your adventures!!!
Holly, thank you! You can expect more to come soon! We still have two more chapters on our trip to Alaska, and all that has happened since then. Jim
I’m new to the RV way of life – 1st year. I started a journal and after reading about your adventures I can’t wait to see where our travels lead. Keep on living the dream….I’m just beginning!!
Renee, we are glad we were able to inspire you to keep a journal. Congratulations on your first year. Maybe our travels will cross paths some day. Stay safe out there! Jim
Congratulations!!!!
Darlene, thank you! Jim
A wonderful milestone! Congratulations and happy trails. I got off the road this summer after 5 years of solo full-time travel. I loved it, but am ready for something different. I got a lump in my throat seeing your pics of places I’ve also been. There’s nothing like this lifestyle. So happy you share yours!
Robyne, congratulations on your 5 years of full-time solo travel. The challenges of solo travel are similar to ours, but of course compounded by one person, you, having to know and do everything. Carmen and I share all tasks, including hitching and unhitching, laundry, cooking, cleaning, driving and maintenance. I admire your conviction and talent to have done what you did. You are one of a special group. Hope you find joy in what you call ‘something different.’ Someday we will face the same decision. What ever you ultimately find, stay safe out there! Jim
Bravo 👏🏻 👏🏻👏🏻
Thank you Barbara! Jim
Congrats!
Molly, thanks! Jim
Wow, 7 years done. I remember when…. Congrats on the awesome travels and making your dreams come true.
Nancy, yes I remember when we ‘back in the day’ worked together to make San Diego a healthier place to live. You continue to do so at United Way of San Diego and I, as a board member of Alliance Healthcare Foundation. Next time I am in San Diego, Carmen and I would love to catch up with you. Jim
Maybe your next adventure. The Canadian Rockies
Been there, done that, wrote about it, loved it ❤️, plan to go back. Jim
Congratulations on your 7th anniversary!
Quinn, thank you! Jim
Congratulations ❤️❤️
Thank you! We LOVE our Dolphin eBikes
Congratulations! What fantastic memories you have. We full timed two years then settled on the NC Coast. Airstreaming is truly Living the Dream.
John, thank you! Congratulations on your two years traveling full-time. We love the coast of North Carolina and one of our favorite places in the USA is Ocracoke Island. And yes, Airstreaming is truly living the dream. 👍🏻. Jim
Thanks for sharing all your adventures and cheers to living your best life!
Kim, thank you for your kind words. Jim
That’s awesome! Congratulations!
Melinda, thank you! It is an awesome lifestyle. Hard to believe we have been doing it this long. Send our love to Jim.
Congratulations. Happy Trails
Patsy, thanks! Jim
Congratulations! You two are an inspiration to us full timers!
Jen, thanks! Glad we can be an inspiration to folks who are also traveling full-time. We sure love living on the road, even after 7 years. Stay safe out there! Jim
Thanks! We also FT in an Airstream; ours is a 30’ International CCD and we started our 6th year last Spring. We can’t think of a better way to live
Happy 7th Nomadiversary, you two!!
Erik, thank you! Love this new word you shared “Nomadiversary.” I like it! We will have to figure out how to use it in our blog. 😉 Jim
Congratulations and may you have many more years of amazing adventures!!
Theresa, thank you! We also hope we have many more years of full-time travel. It was so great to see you at the 50th Sweetwater High School
Reunion. Jim
Congrats! Love all the stats you share!
Thank you! Jim
Congrats!
Theresa, thank you! Jim
Congratulations 🎉🎉🎉
Nancy, thank you! Jim
Thank You for all the info, beautiful pictures, and for always helping when any one needs help and/advice. My grandparents and parents had Airstreams, and now both my sisters and I all have Airstreams- Vintage ones. Have not met an unkind or snobby person ever- fun and friendly- every AS person we meet.
Congratulations & may you have many more adventures along your path
Becky, thank you! We do plan on some very fun locations and adventures in the coming year. Stay tuned! 🤫 Jim
We are loving our full time status but only 2 years have no intention of quitting any time soon
Pat, congratulations on full-timing 2 years, and glad to hear you are enjoying it enough to feel like you have no intention of quitting any time soon. It is an adventurous and fun lifestyle. Hope our paths cross someday on the road. Jim
That’s awesome. We started our journey about 5 months ago. I sure hope to make it 8 years +. So far it’s fantastic.
Robert, congratulations on starting your full-time travel adventure 5 months ago. I can remember in January 2017, 6 months into our travels, saying that it is hard to believe we have been doing this for half a year. 😊 What I now find hard to believe is that I said that 6 ½ years ago, and we are now in our 8th year. 🤪 Glad to hear that so far it has been fantastic for you! We will confess that not every day is “Living the Dream.” Traveling full-time is still “Life” and life presents itself as challenges… such as health issues, broken RV parts, family conflict, flat tires… you know what I mean. BUT… we do so love seeing this amazing country and meeting so many folks along the way. Hope our paths cross someday on the road. Jim
How do you do your base stuff? Drivers license, voting, car registration etc?
Edward, great question. We have used the iPostal1 mail service since we started and still love them. They provide a REAL address. We use this address for IRS, drivers license, vehicle registration, banking, etc. Plus they have more than 2500 addressees to choose from in all States so you can choose where to domicile. We can ‘see’ our mail online and/or have it shipped to us if needed. Hope this answers your question. Jim
Congrats to your success 🌺🙌🏼
Annika, thank you! Jim
God Bless ! You are an inspiration . My hub and I are wanting to do what you have done for the last 7 years abd we are a bit apprehensive but excited ! Finding your site is awesome❣️
Congratulations!!!
Siscily, thank you! Jim
WOW!!! That’s A LOT of driving!!! How many miles have you traveled…so far? Table book, I’m tellin ya!!!!! Ya’ll need to do one, seriously!!!
What are doing up so early in the morning? We are on the east coast, Virginia, and it is almost 6 am, but for you on the west coast, it is not even 3 am. 😉 We have actually only averaged 800 miles traveling per month over 7 years. Since we only travel 200 miles between locations and try to stay at least 2 weeks, we don’t actually ‘travel’ that much. In 7 years, only 66,000 miles. And as for the topic of a Table Book, maybe some day after we quit full-time travel. We are having way too much fun doing what we are doing to stop and create a book right now. Love you! Jim
We are coming up on two years FT , but after our diesel truck blew a turbine last week and the towing and repair bill totaling $9000.00 we are starting to rethink this! We’re in our mid 70’s.
Ginger, we feel your pain. Last April, our Engine Check light came on. Yep, it indicated our Diesel Turbo had failed. $6,600 later, we had a new turbo, what ever that is. The truck made it 140,000 miles before the turbo bit the dust, which the Ram dealer said is common for their experience. By the way, congratulations on your two years full-time traveling. Jim
Congratulations, we started our 8th year earlier this month.
Pat, it is nice to meet some folks who have been traveling full-time as long as we have. I bet if our paths crossed on the road we could tell stories til the wee hours of the evening.😁 Congratulations on starting your 8th year. Jim
Please keep posting your travels and thoughts. Many of us are living vicariously through your posts!
Vicki, Glad you are enjoying our posts. We do plan to keep ’em coming! Jim
Congratulations all three of you with your seven full years of B&B travels! And, happy 15th birthday to Pico. Your infographics are attractive and excellent as always, Jim! One amazing thing about boondocking in many remote places is that there’s no maximum limit. 🙂
Last week, I celebrated my 20 years of being a nomad. Time flies! I’ll have to slow down one day as well, but the world remains big and keeps calling. 🙂
Liesbet, thank you! You have a good point about boondocking, we can stay as long as we like. 😁 Wow! 20 years being a nomad. Liesbet, that is amazing. Between sailing and RVing, I would assume most of you life now has been spent traveling full-time. We do not expect to make it to 20 years at our age, but what a wonderful accomplishment to have spent 20 years traveling and experiencing the many wonders this world has to offer. Thank you for following Living in Beauty. Jim
Fantastic! Time flies when your ‘living in beauty’.
Ken, agreed! 🚀 Jim
Congratulations. Debbie and I are happy that we’ve been following you almost from the beginning!
Frank, yep! We all met each other in April 2016 in Chula Vista California. that was 3 months before we hit the road full-time. Send our love to Debbie. Jim
Congrats on your full-time anniversary Jim and Carmen! Your recent Alaska trip and the information you shared will be the go-to resource when we make that journey ourselves. We’re only in our 5th year of full time, so we have a ways to go before we get there! Thanks for sharing your lives with us! Best wishes on the adventures ahead of you!!
Robert, thank you! Glad our Alaska blogs have been found to be valuable to you as you plan your own adventure to the north. Congratulations on being in your 5th year traveling full-time. Hope one day our paths cross on the road. You two stay safe out there and happy travels! Jim
Congratulations 🎉🎈
Thank you! Jim
This is so inspiring!!! Congrats!!! 😍👏
Alexis, thank you! Jim
Congratulations have fun and be safe. GBYAY
Roger, thanks. I had to lookup GBYAY. God Bless You and Yours. Thank you! Jim
Thank you for sharing your journey.
Alice, so glad you have enjoyed this crazy journey. Jim
We began our 8th year the first week of July! Still loving seeing God’s beautiful creation. We do some volunteer work along the way also, but mostly we play!
Teresa, congratulations on beginning your 8th year traveling full-time. Since you started the first week in July 2016, that makes us newbies. 🤪 Well at least 2 weeks short of your years on the road. We agree, we still love seeing God’s beautiful creation. Maybe our paths will cross someday. Stay safe out there. Jim
Awesome, congratulations!!!
Cheri, thank you! Jim
Congratulations!!!
Maxee, thank you! Say Hi to Howard! Jim
Wow! I admire you! 👍
Sylvie, thank you! Jim
Congratulations on making it to year 8. I continue to look forward to each blog post. Thank you… have a great year 8!
Jim and Sukie, thank you for following Living in Beauty and your well wishes. Carmen and I still have a hard time comprehending we have been traveling full-time for this long. When we first headed out back in July 2016, we kind of thought this might last a few years, maybe like Star Trek’s five year mission. 🚀. When we hit 5 years two years ago, we looked at each other and said, “Not done yet.” Who knows how long we will do this, but as we age, we can tell is have to reevaluate that 470 overnight locations for our first 7 years cannot be repeated the next 7 years. We have to slow down, stay longer at places, and drive shorter distances. Not saying that needs to be everyone’s path, but, for us, we want to keep traveling full-time at a slower pace. Again, thanks for your comment. Jim
Congratulations, we are going on Our 8 the year also
Cindy, congratulations on being in your 8th year traveling full-time. Since you have been doing it as long as us, you two know what a wonderful lifestyle this is. We hope to continue this for many more years. Stay safe out there and happy travels. Jim
We are so honored to be a small part of your journey
Vinnie, you and your team are the best. Jim
7 years, wow ! 🤩 I really enjoy reading and listening to your adventures!
Phyllis, so glad to hear you are enjoying and listening to our adventures as much as we enjoy living this lifestyle and sharing the journey. And yes, it is hard to believe we just finished our 7th year with no plans to stop any time soon. Jim
Just great. Happy anniversary!
Brian, thank you! Hope the next time we are back in San Diego, we can catch up over a beer at Coronado Brewing Company. Jim