When Sasha Bezer and Scott Gregson met in 2014, they discovered that they had a shared passion for travel that couldn’t be satisfied with short vacations to foreign countries. After they married in August 2016, the couple decided to trade in their bricks-and-mortar abode for a home on wheels and since 2019, they’ve been full-timers in their Cirrus 920.
We caught up with them, virtually speaking, to find out where they have been, what they’ve been doing, and why they chose the Cirrus 920 for their travels around North America, and the result is a two-part post. In this segment, they share the backstory about their lifestyle transition.
You can also check out their website at https://www.stonyboot.com/.
How long have the two of you been campers?
Scott: “I’ve been tent camping since I was a baby and continued to camp in one form or another throughout my life. I tried a little bit of everything, like backpacking in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, car camping in my SUV, and even had a 32-foot 5th wheel for a couple of years. When Sasha and I met, I introduced her to camping and she really enjoyed it.”
What is it about the RV lifestyle most appeals to you?
Scott: “I love to drive, and I have always wanted to road trip around North America. The ability to have our little house with us is far more appealing than having to stay at hotels or camp in a tent. RV life gives us the best balance between mobility and comfort. We also really enjoy meeting other people in the RV community. We have met so many great friends along the way!”
Scott: “For me, the desire to travel in an RV has been a lifelong desire and I sometimes feel like I’m living out my childhood dreams. As a kid, I used to love to play in the car during rainstorms and use it as a fort. Now, I get to live in my fort all the time.”
You two went from being part-time to full-time campers. How did you manage the adjustment?
Sasha: “There are definitely a lot of adjustments. The biggest one for me is balancing everything out and creating your own schedule. We had to learn to balance working and having fun. When we first hit the road, we had to cope with a lot of unknowns; we were really excited and wanted to explore everything, but then we realized that we have to be productive. That pushed us toward spending too much time working without any fun. Now we have established a work/play routine, which has made our life much more enjoyable!”
Scott: “Like many life transitions, it can be pretty stressful! We had to learn an entirely new way of living. Our source of water and food change on an almost daily basis. We usually don’t know where we will be sleeping (aside from inside our Cirrus) The daily hustle to make everything work out the way we want can be pretty hard at times. We also had to find a work/life balance that suited our own individual personalities. Luckily, we get along very well, but we still need our alone time and the opportunity to do different things that the other person isn’t interested in. These relationship dynamics become a little more noticeable and pressured when you’re with someone 24/7 in a small living space.”
Sasha: “It’s important to take time apart and enjoy time on your own. Scott and I have a lot in common, but we also have our own interests. It’s important to focus on them from time to time.”
How do you decide on your itinerary?
Scott: “We usually have a direction and sometimes a destination, but we have learned that things pop up and change your plans. We have learned to go with the flow and see what happens. That has opened us up to meeting more people and having great experiences that we wouldn’t have if we had stuck to the plan. There are times that we have to set a strict schedule to reach a certain destination by a certain date, but these times are infrequent.”
Sasha: “Our itinerary is mostly dictated by weather. Our goal is to be in warmer climates in the winter and stay in cooler areas during the summers. We also have a list of places that we want to see and activities that we want to do, but we don’t have a strict schedule.”
Scott: “Our overall plans have been put on hold due to travel restrictions. We wanted to go through Canada, Alaska, and Mexico as part of our “North American Tour” however, we have had to adapt and focus on domestic locations for now.”
Do you generally stay at campgrounds or are you more of a boondocker?
Sasha: “We boondock as much as we can. Some regions of the country are challenging to find boondocking, but out west, there’s a ton of dispersed camping and BLM land. We really enjoy great views and privacy, especially when it’s free! However, we still stay at campgrounds every once in a while to charge batteries, dump our tanks, or to be in close proximity to an attraction.”
Scott: “Sometimes a campground becomes the best option depending on what we are doing. I tend to put a lot of effort into finding free places to camp. There is a certain pleasure in finding a great boondock spot, I enjoy the thrill of the hunt! We also try to pick up trash and leave locations better than we found them.”
What are your professions?
Sasha: “I teach ESL privately and also work for VIPKID. I love the fact that I can have my own schedule and I can connect with my students while traveling. Our bigger goal is to have our own business and replace our previous careers; it’s a work in progress.”
Scott: “I was in the IT profession for 23 years—I started really young—and eventually needed a change. I’m mostly focusing on our core business, but still pick up odd jobs and side work when I can. Our goal is to continue working on the business, in an attempt to maintain a life of travel freedom in the years to come. Another aspect of my reasons for this lifestyle has to do with the freedom to try other jobs/professions. I did the same kind of work for most of my life; now, I have the chance to try new things without having to commit to anything until I find what makes me happy.”
What’s the most useful skill you had to develop to be an RVer?
Sasha: “Being patient! You need a lot of patience as a full-timer. There are so many circumstances that you can not control, like weather conditions, noisy neighbors, etc., which makes being patient a great skill to have.”
Scott: “The ability to adapt and improvise in constantly changing situations. Every day brings new problems and opportunities and you have to learn to work with those changes. It is far easier to go with the changes rather than trying to fight against them.”
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