The Value of Just Getting Away – Even When Your Trip Could be Considered a Bust By “Normal” People

If you already own an RV, I’m probably preaching to the choir.  If you’re just thinking about one, maybe these thoughts will push you toward a purchase.  One of the best things about owning an RV is the ability to pick up and go at fairly short notice.  Even if the trip is an apparent bust, there’s value in just getting away.  This is a tale of one such trip and it’s benefits.

It was during the middle of our current pandemic.  Both my husband and I were working from home … in the same office … (10’x10’).  It’s also just us in the house.  Our nest is empty.  For just the two of us, it’s a LOT of togetherness!  In fact, because we already know how each other’s day has been, we’ve given up having dinner together at the kitchen table and have moved to eating in front of the television with the Reagan’s (you know, the family from the show “Blue Bloods”).  As much as we love our house and what we can see out of our windows, we were in dire need of a change of scenery.  

Of course, during the COVID-19 pandemic, “they” decided that all outdoor fun should be stopped including camping.  Many RVers, including us, have been scratching our heads wondering why.  We are self-contained.  They can close off their restrooms, laundry, showers, etc. and just let us in!  As it turns out, many of the fun places didn’t want people from other places bringing germs.  Well, fine then!  We found one RV park open in McMinnville, Oregon which is about 4 hours away.  My husband was delighted because there is an In-N-Out Burger 40 minutes from the RV park and it was open.  It would be the highlight of his trip.  For me, just looking out a different window was going to help.

Pretty much everything in McMinnville was closed.  We could get wine from a winery if we ordered ahead.  There is what appears to be a fantastic air museum right next door to the RV park – closed.  Oregon was pretty much closed!  So what?!  

The RV Park was lovely.  It was beautifully landscaped and a really nice place to walk the dogs.  It was adjacent to the nicest mobile home park I have ever seen.  It was nice to walk around in there.  I am sure it’s home to some master gardeners.  Their yards were well maintained and gardens were gorgeous.  One thing I discovered on my dog walks was a path that led to the air museum.  Even though the air museum was closed, we were able to see plenty of planes they had outside and peek in the windows.  It was like a re-con mission for the next time we come.  The air museum is definitely on our list!

We made our trek to In N Out.  When we arrived, there was about a million cars.  (OK, maybe that’s an exaggeration, but not by much!  There were a LOT of cars!).  They were into the street and then, lined up into the sports arena parking lot near-by.  There were some In-N-Out employees directing traffic like the Disneyland parking lot.  It was an impressive operation!  That is, until we stopped moving.  We scrolled through our phones for a while and then realized it had been about ten minutes without moving at all.  My husband got out of the car and asked one of the In N Out kids how long it takes to get to the front of the line.  The kid told him it would be about three hours before we had burgers in our hands.  Not even my In N Out mongering husband thought a Double Double was worth a three hour wait!  We left and found our lunch someplace else.

That was pretty much the entire excitement of our trip.  A four hour drive for seemingly nothing!  But, wait! There’s really more!  Here are some things we found beneficial.

A beautiful drive – The Willamette Valley is beautiful!  It was nice to look at some different scenery.  

Together time – Yes, we’ve had way too much of that lately, but it was together time someplace else.  That changes things.  We end up talking about other things.  We see different things out the windows.  We look at different walls.  

Great food – We’ve been cooking a lot at home.  Trailer food is different.  We choose things that are easy to clean up and delicious.  Trailer food tastes like vacation!  

No computers – We rarely bring computers with us when we travel.  We are usually trying to get away from work.  This was no exception.  We each have ipads and can check email if necessary, but we avoid it.  It makes a nice mental break from work.

Nothing=Relaxing – Doing nothing can be quite relaxing!  We caught up on some reading and just enjoyed some down time.  It was nice to turn our brains off for a while.

When we returned from our trip, people asked how our trip was, and we said, “great!”  They asked what we did, and we answered, “pretty much nothing.”  Of course, we could have done nothing from home, but where’s the fun in that?  When you do nothing at home, you’re still looking at the same walls, the same windows, etc. and probably feeling guilty about not doing something like the laundry.

It doesn’t take a pandemic to get these sort of benefits from getting away.   In fact, during normal non-pandemic times, the benefits are even greater, in my opinion.  Getting away means getting away from even more than just working from home.  It means getting away from busy-ness, routines, and maybe a hectic lifestyle.  During non-pandemic times, here are some added benefits.

Outdoor recreation – I’m a huge fan of hiking, kayaking, and exploring the outdoors.  For me, all of the fresh air and exercise helps clear my mind and melts stress!  

Retail therapy – Some of the places we go are cute towns with cute shops.  I love poking around in these shops.  In fact, in one of our regular get away places, I actually put money aside and bring a list of things to shop for.  They have great shoes, my favorite jeans brand, a spice place, and a wine shop.  They also have fun art galleries to look in.

Local cuisine – You might eat out near home frequently, but if you’re like us, you have familiar places you go to eat.  We love checking out a restaurant near where we camp.  When we camped near Glacier National Park, we found an awesome burrito place.  In one of our favorite places, we have so many places we like to eat, we pretty much quit packing groceries except for coffee and some breakfast things because we like so many of the local restaurants.  

Time in the truck – Most of the time, when there’s not a pandemic where we are home alone … together …. all the time, we have been busy with our jobs, house and yard projects, and other obligations. The time in the truck allows us some time to catch up with each other on the way to our destination. Sometimes we just listen to music and make fun of signs and sights out the window. Sometimes, when we’re busy, and we know we have a trip coming up, we’ll table a discussion item and say, “we should talk about that in the truck.” Note: this would be for non-urgent items but things that need discussion such as, “should we fix the fence this summer, or do you think we can get another summer out of it.” The time in the truck is a great buffer between the stresses of home and the hustle and bustle of getting ready for a trip and the destination. It makes the destination that much more relaxing.

For me, a trailer trip is an attitude adjustment.  My stress begins to melt as soon as we’re driving out of our neighborhood.  (Of course, my husband is the driver.  I would guess his stress doesn’t begin to melt until the trailer is set up at our campsite).  I come back from trips more relaxed, well rested (because most of the time, I’ve gotten so much fresh air and exercise), and more ready to take on the challenges of day to day life.  I also come back ready to take my next trip.

Can you get the same benefits from say, a trip to Hawaii? Of course! And, you can get a tan to go with it!  But, can you take off to Hawaii once a month?  Can you get there in just a few hours?  I love a good “normal person’s” vacation just as much as the next person, but I always miss my trailer!  I miss all of my creature comforts, the easy access to the fridge and snacks, my coffee pot, etc.  I’m a trailer girl.  It’s how I roll!  You’ll have to make your own decisions about how you like to get away.  But, do get away!  You’ll be glad you did! As my good friend and neighbor once told me, “You never regret the trips you take. Only the ones you don’t.”

Next Trailer Girl Blog – Traveling with Dogs.  They love trailers too!