RV LIFE

The Kosher Sherpa Tells Us What It’s Like

Ben Wymore and his family have some serious RV experience. Ben, his wife Trish, and their two children spent three years (yes, you read that right) in an RV in what he calls his “trial retirement” – a period detailed on his blog, Look Before You Live. Ben is now offering his expertise to others, with guided tours and assistance in planning a full trip from beginning to end. His website, Kosher Sherpa, was recently launched and already includes trip details for a Yeshiva Week excursion to southeast Arizona.  

Daunted by the thought of an RV? You’re not alone. Now living in Monsey, Ben took the time to explain the how’s and why’s of an ambitious trip like that. And I must admit, by the time he was done, I could understand the enticement of open expanse and the thrill of freedom that comes with that home on wheels. Read on. Perhaps by the time you’re done, you’ll feel the same.

So Ben, how did the Wymore RV craze begin?

When my wife and I married we lived in an Oregon suburb where I worked for Intel, and the closest shul was in Portland. We looked into housing near the shul, but soon realized the most affordable option was to keep our home in the suburbs and travel to Portland for Shabbos. To make that happen, we purchased an RV trailer which we towed behind us and set up in an alley next to the shul each weekend. After a while, we began taking the RV to the beach and the mountains – and we fell in love with it.

How did that evolve into a three-year trip?

We moved to Monsey in ‘01. We’d left our RV in Portland, but my parents had one they didn’t use and shipped it out to us. We used it for summer trips; I was a computer programmer and hoarded my vacation days so we could go for a couple of weeks at a time. It was on our third trip that my wife said, “Why don’t we try this for a year?” I said, ‘Sign me up!” We left in the summer of ’16. We rented our house and figured we’d be back in a year when our money ran out – but as it turned out, that didn’t happen.

How were you able to sustain a trip like that for so long?

The Western half of the United States is mostly land that’s owned by the federal government. You can do dispersed camping, which means camping outside of a campground, wherever you want on public land as long as it’s not blocking a road. Since we didn’t stay in RV parks, our camping was free. We had also thought that healthcare would be a huge expense, but we were essentially covered under Obamacare. We had income from our home rental, and our only expenses turned out to be food and fuel.

Didn’t you need the amenities of a campground?

No. We had solar panels on our roof, and we were able to carry quite a bit of water. We loved camping in the middle of nowhere. When you stay in an RV park, you get a parking spot and a strip of grass. When we camped, you could see the horizon peeking through the mountains, and there was nothing but expanse in every direction.

What made you return home?

The only thing that brought us home was the fact that my son was starting high school. I was his limudei kodesh teacher on the trip and didn’t think I could teach high school Gemara.

What’s it like living in such close quarters?

We didn’t really have such close quarters. In our first trailer, my wife and I had a bedroom in the front. The kids slept in the back in something like a bunk bed. We eventually purchased a much larger, 40-foot trailer that has three bedrooms and one and a half baths – it’s about 400 square feet.

Monument Rocks, one of the Eight Wonders of Kansas.

That doesn’t actually sound so spacious.

We spent a lot of time outdoors. The thing about RVing is that you can just follow the weather. When it got hot, we went north. When it got cold, we went south. So we pretty much had 68 degree weather all the time. We’d set up a table and chairs under an awning and the kids would do their homework there. We had bicycles with us. The kids would build jumps in middle of the desert and they’d jump their bikes off them.

What was your daily schedule like?

We didn’t have a fixed schedule. The kids had a list of tasks to complete, but even those had flexibility. My son had his bar mitzvah in Las Vegas during that period, and with the gift money he received,  he purchased a small motorcycle. He’d say, “I’ll do my math after breakfast, then I’ll take my motorcycle out, and when I get back, we’ll do Chumash. The kids had their own rooms, each with a bed, desk, seating, and a closet. If any of us wanted to be alone we could go to our rooms.

The way we live now, I go to work and earn a living, so I can pay someone to teach my son. I never really get to see my kids. My son leaves the house at 6:45 a.m. and returns home at 10 p.m.. If not for Shabbos, there would be almost no interaction between us. So if you ask if our life in the RV felt claustrophobic, I’d say no. During that time, I cut out the middleman, so I could spend time with my family.

If I wanted to rent an RV, how would I go about it?

There are three or four major companies that rent RVs. There’s also an airbnb-type of site that connects hopeful renters with owners. Begin by deciding what size you want. Look at the rentals that are available, but beware: if an RV is advertised as sleeping ten that might be because the chairs and table turn into a bed. They might not be traditional beds. We had that problem in our old trailer. The dining room converted into the kids bed (they were very young at the time), and when they went to sleep at 7, my wife and I had a choice of going outside or going to bed.  

There are two basic types of RVs: self-contained, which you drive, and trailers that are towed. The rental companies rent out self-contained, but if you are renting through an owner, you might be able to rent a trailer.

Inside the Wymore’ RV.

If there’s a choice, which do you recommend?

A pull-behind trailer must be pulled by a full-size van or Suburban – that’s something to keep in mind. The advantage is that it’s much less expensive to purchase. You can also unhitch it and go exploring or make a trip to the store without having to first put away all your dishes. When towing, you will need to make very wide turns or the trailer can go over the sidewalk. It can sway or wobble on the highway.

Self-contained is bigger than a car, but it’s not like driving a bus or semi-truck. I’d say most of them are about 10 feet high.

Sounds a little scary to drive.

With any type of RV you have to pay attention to clearance, especially in urban areas. Many of the parkways in the Tristate area have signs that say no vehicles above 9’7. This past summer we were in Kansas and traveled under a bridge that had enough clearance going north, but we discovered on the way back that there was not enough clearance southbound.

How do you prepare the RV for travel?

Assuming that we are talking about self-contained, since that’s typically what you can rent, all you have to do is prepSare food and water. That would mean turning on the refrigerator for food. The refrigerator runs on propane, and there are tanks in the RV. For water, there is a hole on the side of the RV so you can fill the water tank with your garden hose. You won’t really be needing that if you’re hooking up to water at a campground.   

Is it difficult to set up the RV once you are parked?

It’s pretty simple. When you get there you will see what looks like a little pillar coming out of the ground. You “plug” your RV into that much as you would plug any appliance into an outlet. There’s a water connector, so you don’t have to use your own water. The sewage hookup is easy to operate, and though I do keep a box of latex gloves on hand, I’ve never had to deal with anything catastrophic.

That’s all there is to it?

Pretty much. You basically pack your stuff and go. It’s not much different than a car. I’m surprised that RV vacations aren’t more popular with kosher consumers. When you stay at a hotel you have to shlep coolers, make sandwiches in tiny spaces, and worry about where to set up a portable grill. With an RV, you have it all with you – even your bed.

I can’t answer for everyone, but to me an RV trip always sounded like a huge deal.  

We visit Assateague Island off the coast of Maryland twice a year, where we fly kites and watch wild horses. There are companies there who will drive the RV to the campsite and set it up for you. You can stay on the beach, and when you are done, the company dismantles it and drives it away. You won’t get the driving experience. You also won’t get to experience what it’s like to witness a sunset that feel like it’s there just for you, or to be so alone that you can yell and no one can hear you. You will get an idea of what it’s like to live in an RV. There’s nothing better to test your RV patience than having kids run in with sand all over their feet.

Are RV rentals very expensive?

I’d say during off-season, you can expect to pay $100 a day and up. During a busier season, I’d say $200-$300. Remember that busy season will vary by the region. The off-season in Phoenix is during the summer, while in Nova Scotia, it’ll be winter. There are additional fees tacked on by the rental companies such as use of the generator, which is billed by the hour, and mileage.  

What about Shabbos considerations?      

If you’re at a campground, I don’t think there’s much to worry about. If you’re dry camping the way we do, which means you’re not hooked up to a campground, there’s a switch that supplies water pressure that must be modified for Shabbos. You do have to become knowledgeable about techum Shabbos. When we’d go for walks on Shabbos I’d be counting steps in my head because you can’t go past 3,000 – that’s about a 15 minute walk.  We brought eruv poles with us, and after setting them up, we were able to carry books outside so we could read there. We also attached a real estate lockbox to our door so we could store our key there while we went for a walk.

I’m scared to say you’ve sold me on the idea, because my husband will hold me to it. But I have to admit, it sounds intriguing.

There are two kinds of vacations – my wife likes to remind me of this. One is when you try to see as much as possible, and you come home more tired than when you left. Then there’s the type of vacation where you just lay on the beach for two weeks and listen to the waves. With an RV vacation, you can do both. You can place your hotel wherever you want.

Map of the Wymore’s travels.

Can we just revisit the part about how you stayed in an RV with your family for three years without losing your mind?

If you think about the family interactions we have in our daily life, a lot of it is “Do, do, do.” Or  ‘Go, go, go.” We tell the kids, “Get up, get dressed, go to school hurry, we have to make it there on time.” In an RV there’s no pressure. Your only tasks are to get up, daven, eat, and go somewhere. We’d wake up in the RV sometimes and ask each other what day it was; it was hilarious. We’d decide to stay somewhere if we liked it, and we’d leave if we didn’t. I think it was that lack of pressure that made us love it so much. And of course, I do have amazing kids.

What’s your ideal RV trip like?

RVing for me is being in the middle of nowhere and being totally alone. There’s nothing like it.