Back After Pausing for Life, Travel and the Road

 Sometimes, you just need to step back. Writing, reviewing, posting — all of it takes time and focus, and lately mine has been pulled in a hundred directions. Between hitching up the trailer, setting up at new sites, and learning the ropes of camp hosting, my “quiet writing mornings” have turned into coffee-fueled scrambles to find where I last packed the notebook.

Traveling full-time in a trailer sounds dreamy — and honestly, it often is. There’s something freeing about watching the world change outside your window every few weeks. One day it’s the cool mist of the Oregon coast, the next it’s the red dust and wide skies of Eastern Washington. I explored new spots through my Harvest Hosts membership — wineries, farms, even the occasional museum parking lot. It’s such a unique way to travel; you meet real people, not just other campers, and you get a taste (sometimes literally!) of local life.

But it’s not all sunsets and s’mores.

Let’s be honest — living in a travel trailer tests your patience. Things break. Often. The hot water heater will decide it’s on strike right after you’ve worked a long shift hosting. Wi-Fi is a coin toss, and storage? Let’s just say “minimalism” stops being trendy and starts being survival. Gas mileage? Forget about saving money living in a travel trailer. Mileage gets cut in half. Climbing a hill? Decided to fill up your fresh tank before? Yeah, you have milage issues along with other "stuff."

Then there’s the weather — the constant dance with nature. Rain seeps in where you didn’t expect it to, wind shakes the whole rig at 2 a.m., and sometimes, the simple act of dumping tanks becomes a full-body workout.

Cooking brings its own set of adventures. Some days I can feel like a campfire chef extraordinaire; other days inside? The propane decides to sputter out halfway through dinner, humidity rises, power banks need charged up, and space is tight. 

You quickly learn how to juggle a skillet, a cutting board, and a coffee maker all within two square feet. I’ve learned to get creative: one-pot meals, foil packets, and lots of instant rice you can add ingredients to. When the weather’s nice, cooking outside feels like freedom — but when it’s raining sideways, you end up eating sandwiches, and laughing it off.

Yet even with all that, there’s something beautiful about the simplicity of it all. Life gets stripped down to essentials. You learn what really matters: a good cup of coffee, a reliable set of tools, friendly campground neighbors, and a sunset that makes you forget every small frustration.

Taking time off from writing hasn’t been a failure — it’s been a reset. It’s given me fresh eyes and new stories to tell. Every challenge becomes a chapter, every location another page in this rolling adventure.

So if you’ve been wondering where I’ve been — I’ve been out here, unplugging a little, reconnecting a lot, and soaking in this unpredictable, wonderful, sometimes maddening life on wheels. The words will come again soon. For now, I’m just living the stories I’ll someday write.

I will be adding more now that I am settling down again. Welcome back. 

Loretta 

Photo of my stay at the Westport Winery and Museum, Washington