Boon Docking - Phase Two

First week living in the fifth wheel has been a success! The weather out here hasn't been the best. We live in the southwest, so we are caught between the winter cold and the spring monsoons. That hasn't stopped us from enjoying our new life! For those who are just new to this thread of boon docking stories, we live in (and around) Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. It's a great little town in Sierra county. We are famous for our hotsprings, and not only have the Rio Grande river but also Elephant Butte and Caballo lakes! If you're ever looking for a great place to take a vacation, or just looking to get out on the water look us up!

You can't do this without thinking about the financial aspect of it first. Being the responsible adults we are, we know just how hard it can be to make it month to month, which was also one of the reasons we decided to go boon docking. Aside from the many adventures that come with it. We have gone over all the current bills from living in an in-town home, plus the amount of water and electric we use every month. We have figured out that we will be saving nearly half the amount we currently pay. That's including: camping fees (it's only $120 for a year round camping pass here), propane, and gas to move around. Boo-ya to that! Save money and live an adventure? Not to mention all the fishing! Who wouldn't want to do that, right?

There has been a big boom of people wanting to try out tiny house living. You've seen the shows. You can't say you aren't the least big jealous, it looks pretty awesome, right? We went for the more practical approach since our budget was a littler more tight than the people on those shows. We found a great deal, though, and maybe we will upgrade eventually, seeing how much we will be saving.

First off, most travel trailers were meant for just that, traveling. Not so much living. Manufacturers did start making more that were suitable for living in. However, when you are buying an older 90s model, you aren't going to have as many amenities. So we have decided to make up for that ourselves. A girl's got to be comfortable after all! The first thing we are going to do is use some of the left over money to buy a washer/dryer combo. There's a closet with the hook-ups already installed, perfect! The second thing is going to be a wall heater. The trailer has its own heater but if any of you have ever lived outside of city limits (in a smaller town) you'll know just how expensive that can get. The next best thing is a wall heater that still runs off of propane, but uses a lot less gas. After that we are pretty much set! Of course there will be other things as time goes by. We eventually plan on buying solar panels, and a charging dock. Throw a new coat of elastomeric on the roof. At some point we will need new tires, you know the usual stuff. I will keep you updated as we go through all of that. For those of you that are considering boon docking yourself, I will include the total prices, amounts, and extras we have came up with. For now, I'll leave you with the details.

Did I mention we have three dogs? Two pit bulls and a red heeler, they are the best dogs! Of course we can't keep them tied up outside. I can't stand when people do that. So, we have figured out a way to keep them moving with us, without leaving them inside to go insane and tear everything up. I am only half joking about that. they are great dogs, but they have a lot of energy. Not one of them weighs under 50 lbs. In fact the two big dogs probably weigh close to 100lbs each. You get the picture. We currently have cattle panels, that were previously used for a pig. We humanely butchered him and ate him. Best pork I have ever ate—you really don't know what they do to the pork you buy at the store. If you think those pigs had a good life, think again. Not to mention the things they give them. That's a whole other topic I might touch on later. Anyways, we are going to strap those panels to the side of the fifth wheel and carry them with us. When we get where we're going, just set it up and the dogs have a huge run while we are at work. We have them secured with pallets to keep anything from getting in there with them, or them getting out. We of course will test this theory before going through with it, but I don't see why it wouldn't work.

Aside from that, one of my many hobbies is growing plants. It has become a love of mine. At the beginning of the year I had 18 plants in our bedroom alone. So logically I have started to downsize. There just is not enough room in any fifth wheel for that many plants. However, I have managed to find at least six places I can put them, without fear of them smashing into something while we move. This was a big deal to me. I have become attached to my plants. They're almost like pets; you water them every day, you take care of them, repot them every year. It takes a lot of work to grow healthy, happy plants. Naturally I'm going to have to keep my favorite ones at the very least! Some people might call me crazy, but when you plan on living in a fifth wheel it needs to feel home-y. Plants change the energy of a room, not to mention the fact that they filter the air too. It's just an all around win-win, if you ask me. I have also always been one to put my touch on things, I love making things my own. It never hurts to put some flair into something! So, with that, I will wrap this up. Come back next time, I'll have plenty more to talk about, and I'll get those prices on my next post!

Thanks for reading!