An idea I have been considering

[Scottowl]

I'm not getting any younger. While I'm not 62, it's getting closer every year.
I have made about every money mistake there is, some more than twice!
I figured I would have to work until they carried me out feet first, but lately I have been kicking around the idea of getting a motorhome and living on the road.
I would focus on following the nice weather around,and would like to go to areas that detecting would be better than average.
Does anyone do this?
Now it's mostly pujblic gathering places for me, but I would like to explore other opportunities, such as nugget shooting, old gathering areas, beach and water hunting, and maybe even meterorite hunting.
What are some areas you can think of?
I don't expect anyone to give up their honey hole, just wondered about general areas, especially out here in the West.

 

[Elton]

Some do this Scott............. But you better have a substantial income.You will not survive off the land so to say," unless you get very lucky".

Make it a hobby trip as many do here.. Most I know have a home base they trip out from..and do not stay on the road year round.. Using their motor home recreationally while detecting the areas they go to.

I'm sure they will post here and tell you the Good and the bad of Motor Home detecting...

 

[Scottowl]

I dont expect to syrvive off detecting finds! I dont have that delusion.
I would not maintain a house, but live in the motor home here and there, a few months at a time.
Obviously couldnt afford to do this until social security came thru.
I wouldnt mind working month or two here and there.
Its just that I have been tied to a job since I can remember, with not a great deal to show for it.
Im just looking for a simpler way until its 'quittin time'!

 

[Dancer]

In many areas (off season) it can be cheaper to stay in a small condo. Versus a motorhome with camping and fuel fees. Plus insurance. So, much research needs done on the $ aspect. In other words "And way in the back, you gotta have money in the sack"! Could be quite an Adventure. Good luck.

 

[Mega]

My personal opinion its not a good idea unless you have some financial funds to fall back on if anything should happen,as you have mentioned yourself you dont have those funds.Its great to have some dreams like this and please note i am not knocking them but if you have invested what funds you did have into a Motorhome and it goes wrong mechanically say a engine blow up on Highway No68 or what ever you folks drive on then you are looking at a possible another massive bill or if you cannot find the funds to repair it then thats the end of your dreams and you still have a massive millstone around your neck.

I would tend to take a step back and look at why all your money problems over the years have not turned into a safe haven in retirement,of course its not for me to judge someone because they have had money misfortunes,but it does seem to be a regular occurance so something must be underlying wrong,once you find out what the past problem was/is then you can address the problem so that it give you some peace of mind in retirement.

Another thing as you have mentioned you are not getting any younger so the possibilty of major health issues have to be addressed or certainly looked at,what if you had a major heart attack while on a detecting jolly which could happen,so then you are in a scenario of a Motorhome and bad health and all for the sake of detecting in the latter years of ones life.Is this a good scenario of course not but its a possible reality as life does not always prioduce the winning cards as we would like.

Good luck in what ever option you choose and of course i hope you dream becomes a reality but it needs to be looked at without 'Rose Tinted Glasses' on which is only human the way that we look at things sometime.

 

[mudpuppy]

lots of people our age are thinking about this very thing...what with property taxes and all...theres some good websites/magazines about RV Living...

interestingly, the youth have taken an alternative method called 'couch surfing' which has merits/drawbacks....I suspect if all a fellow had was what he could carry, some skills and a bit of health, was a good all around person, a fellow could get off a bus in a strange town and have a place to stay and something to do to make a little money in a day or two...Id probably head to the nearest church and introduce myself to the Pastor, and explain my situation...generally theres a church member that needs a house fixed up or some sort of work done...of course a guy would have to be all alone in this endeavor, and not afraid of sleeping in a shed or under a bridge...or falling in with some carneys and working the Fair circuit...people advertise on CL for rides too.....to get by without a car would surely save some money..a good scooter or bicycle bought at your destination and sold when you leave may be viable...

I'm trying to think of a way a guy could go on the ultra light side of things...with little to Zero expenses except for daily needs...thats what clad is for..

This idea could almost evolve into a business plan of sorts...like 'Angies List' only for old guys who want to travel someplace and fix something for a place to stay for a while...the dream would be to become a 'house sitter' in a rich neighborhood for a few months, then on to the next...it would be an adventure alright! sort of like a 'Big Year', where you leave with nothing, and see how much you can make and how little you spend along the way.......Who knows where a fellow would wind up?
That rich young Widow in Wyomings fences aint gonna fix themselves!
Mud

 

[airscapes]

Bad Idea. You yourself said it " have made about every money mistake there is, some more than twice!"
I have not made any financial mistakes and could afford it but it would be a BAD IDEA without a steady income that would allow for all bills, (fuel, maintenance/repairs, location cost, food, etc etc etc) and still have a large surplus of funds in case of health care emergency, vehicle wreck etc etc etc..

 

[roadapple]

The problem with this idea is those frequently found stinken Lincolns might become necessary to servive !

 

[mudpuppy]

..Do an inventory and assess your skills...research a bit...plan it out as best you can...perhaps you can begin now by offloading stuff and debt and start saving cash?...

If you have any kind of certain skill or even a hobby, you may fall in with another Forum of likeminded people that would put you to work...just thinking here is all...people have left home for ages and headed out with nothing in the past...not saying its easy, just that now a days with communications being what they are, you should be able to get a few hookups for a trip with a 'sponsor' on the other end...

Heck, even on this Forum, theres been a few World wide trips planned with willing hosts to receive the visitor...thinking about MasonJarr's big east run last year, and dmnz's trip to Cali from New Zealand recently where he got to meet with one of the members here...

just saying, look what Beldar Conehead was able to accomplish in a short time after he crash landed here on this Planet with nothing? Of course he could fix things and drive a cab...but hey...living the dream baby!
Mud

 

[Ed Steinhoff]

We have been planning on something similar for a couple of years now. I have social security, a diesel dually pickup, paid for, an older but good shape 5th wheel camper, paid for and we have been supplementing our income for a couple of years now doing a vendor booth at fairs and festivals, selling jewelry, purses and sunglasses. Between the two sources of income we should be alright doing a vendor show every couple of weekends.
Been in the process for a while now of yard selling off all the "stuff" we don't really need or want anymore and deciding what bulky stuff we want to keep. Have converted an old horse trailer into a mouse proof storage unit to park out back at the brother-in-laws until we want to stop wandering and land somewhere until it is time to "quit". Don't give up on your dreams, to quote someone else on these forums "We can choose to live the way we truly want to live, or , spend our final days regretting the choices we didn't make"
HH Ed in co.

 

[Hombre]

He could hit the road and then write a novel and become a member on the best sellers list. A metal detector and a notebook pad and his wordsmith wizardry he could make a million bucks and travel to Europe and look for real treasure. What about it Mud? I think you could be onto something along those lines.

 

[Scottowl]

I just wondered if staying put in one place for 6 months or more would be cheaper than maintaining a home.
I know a lot of folks look on home maintenance and improvement as a hobby. I consider it a royal pain!
Detecting is my main hobby, so naturally it factors in.
I would not be penniless, or flush either. I could be 100x better off if I used my head with $ when I was young.
I would have to work some, which would be much more enjoyable knowing it would be only part time temporary.
I would not even attempt this without owning the portable house outright. If I could move it only 100 miles a month I would make do.
It may be true I have no business doing so, but I have no lasting roots here or anywhere.

 

[oldknifemaker]

Go for it!!! I did it for 5 years and didn't have a motor home, just and old 1984 dodge van extended and an extended roof. I made it into a camper. It's a great life and you can live very nicely for little money. It was like a 5 year camping trip. Find out where all ;the free or very cheap campgrounds are. Most have all the facilities you will need. Look into being a campground host or what is called workers on wheels. Find and buy the book "Don Wrights guide to free campgrounds" , about $20 bucks. I stayed a year in Huntington Beach, CA and hunted the beach every day. Made a fortune. People bring to the beach and lose the most amazing things. I began this oddessy when I was 67 years old. I'm now 78 and would like to do it again. Still have the old van and it has some nice improvements. You will meet an assortment of knowledgeable and entertaining people and find out what America is like and be amazed at all the homeless people who live on the road. Now or never. Best of luck. Keith - oldknifemaker.

 

[Goldstrike]

What works for one will not work for others. It wouldn't work for me because of my status quo which I'm fairly happy with. I've never been homeless i.e. without a permanent abode/address and while a motor home could be called a home on wheels and of course many people do live out of them, I feel like it's a very temporary type of living and just a step away from being homeless...just my opinion by the way. Just one collision or engine fire etc; could destroy it all.
Personally the biggest challenge for me would be the risk of getting injured while being miles from a hospital or a doctor that can prescribe med's or even life saving care. To me that is the biggest issue and while metal detecting is a passion for me, I couldn't risk my health status by being many miles away from being able to receive health care for both my wife and I and not knowing if my health plan will cover most of the medical bills. I personally think if someone has to rely on social security to make something happen, it would feel to me like living on the edge of my finances which would be a worry for me.
Having said all that, you be the judge of your own destiny and whatever you choose, we all wish you well!!

 

[doc holiday]

Might want to check on YOUR retirement age for SS--seems that it has changed in the last few years, also if you take the earliest retirement time you will be ahead of SS for 10-13 years,but if you live you start to "lose" what would have been a larger monthly sum had you retired later.
Motor homes can be very expensive houses and having had every type of RV made I would now opt for a pull behind trailer,not 5th wheeler,because you can put a cover on your truck and have another shelter.I have traveled all around the country in rv's and the cheapest way to camp is to overnite in the truck stops on the way to a destination and you can actually spend many days and never go in a campground.
Mud has the correct" survival on your own" attitude and it does take a lot of planning to keep living on the road with limited funds. Good Luck.
Probably the best advice to Anyone is: Don't quit your day job.

 

[zippy4zz]

Mud!..... Rollling on the ground at the Beldar reference. Just wanted to let you know, I appreciated that, if no one else did!
....
Towl boy, just research it thoroughly and do it! You have to have a plan, but then get on the road. I'm on the road right now,
heading through Texas. There's so much cool stuff to do out here and I just found my first eagle button in the deserts
of West Texas. If we all got so consumed with health concerns, breakdowns and lack of cash, we'd never have any fun.
Don't listen to all the Debbie Downers telling you to stay home, sit on your Barcalounger Pegasus II, and listen to Fred
Thompson talk about reverse mortgages all day. Do the work, get a plan, and go to it!

Zip.

 

[Ed Steinhoff]

what nobody has addressed is that half of your original post was a query about general areas to hunt.
Any of the historical gold fields of Colorado are fun to hunt for relics and/ or the possibility of a good nugget or two. Just watch out for currently active claims.Some research will show you which spoil piles were not reprocessed after the financial shut down of 1904. Also nice areas around Sumter and gold hill Oregon.
Of course open field prospecting in western Arizona and around rye patch reservoir in Nevada. Don't forget ghost towns!
Western Kansas wheat field stubble after harvest in June is the hot spot for meteorites. For some reason more fall there than any other place in the u.s.
Get yourself a small sluice and a set of pans for a little prospecting in the water.
All national forest lands in the west and most blm is fair game.
Get off the interstate and travel the small state and county back roads to the small forgotten little towns, lots of opportunity there and the people are still real and helpful.
If you follow this plan you will most likely run into me somewhere along the road.
Try following the pony express trail, they had remount stations every ten or twelve miles. Also the Santa Fe , Oregon and Bozeman trails have accessible portions to hunt.
We would never live long enough to run out of sites to hunt.
HH Ed in co.

 

[Scottowl]

Way kool!
I kinda know about small town people being a lot less jaded than most.
It is a great way to live.
Im sure break downs are going to occur.
Im just in the early stages of getting where I wanna be in 5-7 short years.
A ton of tax debt, ridicously underwater in a house that needs mega repairs, which is also bound by a Medicare lein from my ex wife.
I am seriously considering the ch 13 bankruptcy solutioin.
The good news is I have no heirs or family to worry about.
I am thinking on moving into a rv in a park at less than half the price of an apartment. A year or two of that, while I am still working, will tell me for sure if that is the way.
It isnt for everyone, but it looks good to me right now.
And Beldar had the advantage of intelligence far superior to mine, not to mention access to pleasure rings.

 

[mudpuppy]

Oldknifemaker!

I would love to hear more about your "Van down by the River" 5yr camping trip! What brought the whole adventure about? Boredom or necessity? Please do us a write up about it...truthfully, I am a big fan here!

A true 'Life Adventure' should involve risk..physical, monetary etc.....Work is often a temporary and unprofitable nuisance, Wealth is no respector of intelligence or effort...Timid souls know neither Real fear or Real Excitement...

A guy needs a Reason to live every once in a while, A guy never knows what adventure may await once he leaves the house!...
Mud

 

[Ed Steinhoff]

Yes oldkniefmaker tell us more please!!
And to Scottowl Your questions and idea has stirred me up! I want to encourage you and respond to the nay Sayer's.

Quote Theodore Roosevelt: " Do what you can with what you have, where you are"
"It is not the critic who counts; nor the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better.
The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs; who comes up short again and again; because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms; the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause;who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement; and who at the worst; if he fails at least fails while daring greatly; so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat."
HH Ed in co.