florida Archives - RV Wanderlust

19 Favorite Moments of 2019, Our Sixth Year as Full-time RVers

December 31, 2019 by BrittanyHighland Leave a Comment

It’s been an incredible year-our sixth as full-time RVers. We’ve traveled so quickly that between work and family commitments, microblogging on Instagram has been most manageable! I’m excited to finally share these experiences with you here.

This is the companion piece to “2019 in Review: Stats and Camping Costs.” Make sure you read that article for a big picture view of our year.

And now, you’re in for a treat! We’re counting down from #19 to #1, with #1 being our top highlight of 2019. How many of these places have you visited?

[Read more…]

New Smyrna Beach: Launch Point for Exploring Florida’s North Coast

February 12, 2018 by BrittanyHighland Leave a Comment

Getting blown around on Crabby Joe’s pier in Daytona Beach, just north of New Smyrna Beach

My high school English teacher always said a book’s setting-its time and place-should be treated like another character in the book. In our travels, I love settings that exude life. It’s why I’m equally happy at a bustling city street festival and the Sonoran Desert of Arizona.

It took me a while to understand why I didn’t love New Smyrna Beach, FL. Why being in the area unsettled something inside me. Picture a region where it seems all the buildings were erected, coated in pastel pink paint, then left to bleach in the sun for a few decades. New Smyrna Beach feels tired.

I suppose that’s the appeal for some who have earned their repose and want to find rest that meets their needs. While it isn’t a setting where I thrive, the wonderful thing about fulltime travel is that each of us can understand ourselves better as our context changes. And even when we find ourselves in a place we don’t prefer [Read more…]

2017 in Review: Stats, Photos, Adventures

January 11, 2018 by BrittanyHighland 4 Comments

This coming February will mark our four-year anniversary of full-time RVing! These stats describe our travels from January through December 2017, as we camped out in Austin for Baby Nomad’s first doctor appointments, then did a six-month loop of the southeastern United States.

Number of States: 9 where we stayed overnight, 11 total that we traveled through. [Read more…]

Captain’s Log: RV Wanderlust 06-01-15

June 2, 2015 by Eric Highland Leave a Comment

Date: 06-01-2015

Current City: St. Louis, MO
Current Location: St. Louis RV Park
Site Number: 13
Wi-fi Signal: Verizon – Good / AT&T – Medium / Campground Wi-fi – Slow and Free
Cell Signal: AT&T – Good 4/5 bars
Mission: Work / Explore

Compliment: 2 Officers, 2 Crew, 0 Guests
Captain: Eric Highland
Navigator: Brittany Highland
1st Mate: Trogdor the Burninator
Deckhand: Rhythm Jasmine
Guests: None

Weather: Cloudy / 60°
Precipitation: 0%
Humidity: 80%
Wind: 6 mph

Fuel: 75 Gallons of Diesel – 3/4 tank
Odometer: 112,161
Generator Hours: 4621.8

Estimated Date of Departure: Saturday, June 13th
Next Destination: Lawrence, KS (tentative)

Special Orders: Return to the log! It’s been far too long.

Captain’s Remarks

11:27 – Work like a captain, play like a pirate! Argghhh I can’t believe that my last Captain’s Log entry was in October of 2014. We’ve been making other blog posts, but the Captain’s log has taken a walk off the proverbial plank. [Read more…]

Captain’s Log: RV Wanderlust 07-21-2014

July 22, 2014 by Eric Highland Leave a Comment

Meriwether Navigator Brittany Highland and Captain Eric Highland of RV Wanderlust

Date: 07-21-2014

Current City: Charleston, SC
Current Location: Joint Air Force Base Charleston FAMCAMP
Site Number: 9
Wi-fi Signal: Verizon - Good / AT&T - Good / Campground Wi-fi - Medium
Mission: Work / Explore

Compliment: 2 Officers, 1 Crew, 0 Guests
Captain: Eric Highland
Navigator: Brittany Highland
1st Mate: Trogdor the Burninator
Guests: None

Weather: Scattered Clouds / 85°
Precipitation: 70%
Humidity: 74%
Wind: 4 mph

Fuel: 45 Gallons of Diesel - just under 1/2 of a tank
Odometer: 103,866
Generator Hours: 4613.6

Estimated Date of Departure: Saturday, August 2nd.
Next Destination: Unknown

Special Orders: Get back into our regular routine.

Captain’s Remarks

12:45 - If you’ve been following along, you know we had a pretty scary breakdown at our stop in Orlando/Kissimmee. No Captain’s Log has been written since June, though several attempts at one had been started. The week in Orlando with the kids and grandma, the breakdown, and clients proved to be too much for us to work on the Captain’s Log as well. Without a doubt it was the most hectic week we’ve ever had yet since full-timing. [Read more…]

Fulltime RV Breakdown: What Happened and How It Was Resolved

July 3, 2014 by Eric Highland 28 Comments

As a full-time RVer, one of the most unsettling things that can happen is a breakdown. I mean, let’s face it, we’re not talking about a car. We can’t just get a rental while our rig is in the shop. We’re talking about our home!

This is a LONG post, and it was a LONG few days. But we promised to be transparent, and if you really want to know about us and how we handled our breakdown…it is quite a story.

First Signs of the Breakdown

We were headed from Florida Caverns State Park to Kissimmee, FL. We had just wrapped up a week of fun in swimming holes, caverns and on trails as we headed down I-75. Brittany was driving Meriwether (our 40′ diesel pusher Tiffin Phaeton) and I was driving Smaug (our trusty Jeep). The boys were with me and Arianna had decided to ride with Brittany.

We pulled off the interstate to get some fuel at a Pilot Travel Center in Ocala, FL when Meriwether started making some strange noises. I wasn’t there obviously, but Brittany described it as a “rough idling that sounded like Meriwether wanted to lurch forward, and it kind of went like, ‘ruuum ca-chunk-ca-chunk.'” [Read more…]

Captain’s Log: RV Wanderlust 06-25-2014

June 25, 2014 by Eric Highland 1 Comment

Meriwether Navigator Brittany Highland and Captain Eric Highland of RV Wanderlust

Date: 06-25-2014

Current City: Marianna, FL
Current Location: Florida Caverns State Park
Site Number: 19
Wi-fi Signal: Verizon - Average / AT&T - Weak / Campground Wi-fi - None
Mission: Summer 2014 with the kids!

Compliment: 2 Officers, 5 Crew, 0 Guests
Captain: Eric Highland
Navigator: Brittany Highland
1st Mate: Trogdor the Burninator
Crew: Darius 17, Arianna 15, Javen 13, Silas 10
Guests: None

Weather: Clear / 83°
Precipitation: 70%
Humidity: 72%
Wind: 7 mph

Fuel: 50 Gallons of Diesel - 1/2 of a tank
Odometer: 102,687
Generator Hours: 4612.1

Estimated Date of Departure: Friday, June 27th
Next Destination: Orlando, FL

Special Orders: Repair Issues To Be Addressed. Enjoy Summer, Repairs Later.

Captain’s Remarks

11:39 - As usual, our lives are filled with adventure at every turn. This week we canoed right past a 5-6 ft alligator and then went swimming in a natural spring-fed pool. We’ve been so busy, again, I’ve had to force myself to sit down and write a Captain’s Log so we are able to look back and reflect on our adventures someday. [Read more…]

Captain’s Log: RV Wanderlust 06-18-2014

June 18, 2014 by Eric Highland Leave a Comment

Meriwether Navigator Brittany Highland and Captain Eric Highland of RV Wanderlust

Date: 06-18-2014

Current City: Milton, FL
Current Location: Clear Creek RV Park
Site Number: 2
Wi-fi Signal: Verizon - Low / AT&T - Medium / Campground Wi-fi - None
Mission: Work week before the kids come for summer

Compliment: 2 Officers, 1 Crew, 0 Guests
Captain: Eric Highland
Navigator: Brittany Highland
1st Mate: Trogdor the Burninator
Guests: None

Weather: Scattered Clouds / 94°
Precipitation: 50%
Humidity: 34%
Wind: 0 mph

Fuel: 75 Gallons of Diesel - 3/4 of a tank
Odometer: 102,485
Generator Hours: 4612.1

Estimated Date of Departure: Sunday, June 22nd
Next Destination: Florida Caverns State Park

Special Orders: None.

Captain’s Remarks

13:50 - I had mentioned earlier how full-time RV life and working from the rig reduces the amount of exercise you get. As a full-time RVer who works from the rig, you’d be surprised how much less exercise you get unless you make a point to do so. For those who full-time without working, the story is probably vastly different because they are going out and about more often. [Read more…]

Captain’s Log: RV Wanderlust 06-16-2014

June 16, 2014 by Eric Highland Leave a Comment

Meriwether Navigator Brittany Highland and Captain Eric Highland of RV Wanderlust

Date: 06-16-2014

Current City: Milton, FL
Current Location: Clear Creek RV Park
Site Number: 2
Wi-fi Signal: Verizon - Low / AT&T - Medium / Campground Wi-fi - None
Mission: Work week before the kids come for summer

Compliment: 2 Officers, 1 Crew, 0 Guests
Captain: Eric Highland
Navigator: Brittany Highland
1st Mate: Trogdor the Burninator
Guests: None

Weather: Mostly Cloudy / 90°
Precipitation: 30%
Humidity: 65%
Wind: 0 mph

Fuel: 75 Gallons of Diesel - 3/4 of a tank
Odometer: 102,485
Generator Hours: 4612.1

Estimated Date of Departure: Sunday, June 22nd
Next Destination: Florida Caverns State Park

Special Orders: None.

Captain’s Remarks

14:04 - We made it to Florida!!! [Read more…]

Special Orders: Return to the log! It’s been far too long.

Captain’s Remarks

Special Orders: Get back into our regular routine.

Captain’s Remarks

First Signs of the Breakdown

Special Orders: Repair Issues To Be Addressed. Enjoy Summer, Repairs Later.

Captain’s Remarks

Special Orders: None.

Captain’s Remarks

Special Orders: None.

Captain’s Remarks

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