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Taking life on the Road

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We began our journey of mobile motorized adventure before our retirement. In 2009, we made the decision to hire a motorhome from Brisbane, Queensland Australia to the far northern tropical city of Cairns. The trip took us along the major coastal highway over a week. We hadn’t anticipated how this experience would quickly build our love of these ‘home on wheels’ and the adventures that would open up to us. In a sense our love affair with living fully contained on the road would mirror our retirement journey. One of testing the waters and then embracing this way of life.

Dabbling in the Experience

Our search began online for a potential hire for our Queensland holiday. We chose a motorhome in our budget for a seven day hire and began to plan the various towns and attractions we wanted to visit along the way. When we arrived at the hire business in Brisbane we were pleasantly surprised to find we had been upgraded to a brand new four berth model Apollo. First stop for us was to visit friends on the Sunshine Coast and nothing seemed to compare to the spectacular vantage point from the cabin as we motored along the highway.

We realized that there was a ‘motorhome community’. The obligatory wave and smile as you greeted another motorhome coming the other way. A knowing between like minded souls. The camaraderie that was shared at caravan parks at the end of the days drive. Shared ‘cocktail hours’ and conversations.

Our landscape slowly changed from densely populated areas to large country towns. From country to coastal strips. The beauty of reversing up to the edge of the Pacific Ocean and preparing a lunch in our vehicle was not lost on us. Self contained for each hour of the day. A home away from home.

When we finally arrived in Cairns we were reluctant to drop off our hire. Such a wonderful experience of our taster now remembered through a photo book we created.

Queensland Hire
Motorhome Owners
USA Hire
Downsized Weekender

Motorhome Owners

Now convinced of the benefits of a motorhome we began researching our options to purchase one. We visited a variety of companies and investigated their display vehicles. One particularly took our interest, the Winnebago Esperance. It had a roomy interior, great bathroom configuration and an electric drop down bed at the rear above the dining table. We were sold.

When we took ownership we started with some short trips venturing an hour or two for several days. It was a good opportunity to learn the intricacies of the vehicle and to fine tune any minor issues such as successful storage in the kitchen to avoid movement while travelling.

With more confidence we ventured further. Traversing back up the Queensland coast several times. We travelled regional parts of the country, across the Nullabor for an extended trip in Western Australia and across on the Spirit of Tasmania to circumnavigate this small island state of Australia. Each experience opened up something new and an awareness of the diverse beauty of our country.

The motorhome was also used for our son’s bridal party transport and as accommodation on site at home when our children and grandchildren visited. Later in our time of ownership we hired it out on the Camplify platform to others who also experienced the joy of this type of holidaying.

” I haven’t been everywhere yet, but it’s on my list”

Susan Sontag

Overseas Adventure

In 2013 we took an extended holiday to Canada and the United States of America. Part of our time we wanted to incorporate motorhome travel. We picked up our hire near Washington and took it through Virginia, North and South Carolina and finally into Florida.

What a wonderful way to see the beautiful National Parks and coastline of these states. Our final destination was a week at Disney World, Orlando Florida staying at their large 750 acre campground, Fort Wilderness Resort. This provided easy access to all theme parks and had amazing onsite amenities.

We noticed a few issues with the battery system to the motorhome on a day we were headed to one of the theme parks, which also happened to be our wedding anniversary. We notified the hire company and they gave us a local truck dealership to seek advice. The dealership planned to check out the issue while we were out for the day.

On our return late that afternoon we were confronted with no motorhome on our campsite. It had been towed away with all our belongings to the dealership in Orlando, thirty minutes drive away. Ever resourceful, we quickly organized a night’s accommodation at another Disney resort, arriving at their reception with only the clothes on our back. An unexpected, yet fun, memory of this trip. We left the motorhome to be repaired over the coming days, sorting a cabin and our next vehicle, an open top red Mustang, just a bit earlier than expected ready to drive down to Key West.

Down Sized Weekender

We are now onto our next evolution in our motorhome journey. 2022 we take ownership of an Adria Twin 600. What we love about this particular vehicle is the compactness and room to transport extra passengers. It has a roomy area in the rear for storing supplies for day trips. The bedding is surprisingly comfortable and folds away when rear access is required. The bathroom area is particularly cleverly designed. Half the excitement for us right now is dreaming of the possibilities of trips and daily uses for this vehicle.

For us, a home on wheels has been a wonderful way to explore destinations. It has provided us with memories and experiences that have become part of who we are. The particular vehicles we have chosen have matched our evolving journey. Just as our experience of retirement has evolved. Beginning with a sample ‘taste test’, to investing in a motorhome of our own. Finally downsizing to meet our current needs.

Would love you to share your experiences of taking life on the road in the comments.

7 Attributes of the Wise Woman

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The wise woman has a wealth of life experience to draw on. She has spent decades bringing up a family, contributing to her community through work and volunteering, and nurturing others.

Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash

Now is the time for her to refocus her attention and reassess what is important as she steps into this new part of life. The time of the wise woman brings the opportunity to draw on knowing herself well and living her true essence. There is certainly life to live beyond the age of 50.

What are the characteristic of the Wise Woman?

1. She creates balance in her life

The Wise Woman has the capacity to retain her identity within the relationships in her life. She makes time and allows space for herself and enjoying activities she loves. She takes time for her personal care. She has a strong sense of identity and feeling of self-worth.

Many women enjoy motherhood but may find that they lose a sense of their own identity outside the mother role. When they are emptying their nest, they can no longer hold onto the active role created – nurturing their children. They may lose confidence in their ability to stand confidently and identify themselves outside the role.  Who am I if I am not a mother?

2. She fosters deep, nurturing connections

 The Wise Woman creates support structures around her so she can maintain connection with the outside world, her friends and interests. These nurturing and meaningful connections continue to be important for women later in life.

Motherhood may have led to feelings of isolation and loneliness. New connections based on shared life experience can form at any time of life. These nurture our sense of well-being and provide opportunities to work with others on contributing to the wider community.

3. She enjoys Self-Awareness and Personal Growth

The Wise Woman can rediscover her needs, desires, gifts and talents. Perhaps during motherhood personal focus was put on the backburner as she prioritized the needs of her family. With her children’s independence she may feel a sense of lacking purpose. Sadness, anxiety and depression may emerge. A void appears where a busy family life existed.

See this as an opportunity to grow, evolve and let go of the previous identity. This can be accomplished by a ritual of completion of the role and a time of personal inner growth. It is possible to create a new unique path that reflects this growth.

4. She chooses Adventure and Purpose

The Wise Woman sees each day as precious. She practices gratitude and presence. She is motivated to seek new adventures. This is the time of fun, excitement and following interests and passions. From this, new purpose can evolve.

Life is a journey. We can live with regret for past choices and sacrifices, feeling life no longer holds joy. We can blame others for our life circumstances. Yet with courage, forgiveness and understanding we can move beyond regret to create the life we love living

5. She thrives in Life

The Wise Woman plans and actions daily practices that sustain her life. She balances rest and activity. She is mindful of her thoughts and emotions and creates ways to express and release what does not serve her.

She builds a sense of skill independence so she can take good care of herself. This may be in financial literacy, technical and practical tasks. She is comfortable seeking advice when needed. She builds competence from the courage to make decisions and act on them.

The alternate is to allow life to ‘just happen’. This can lead to fear of the future, lack of direction and dependence on others.

6. She balances ‘Being’ with ‘Doing’

The Wise Woman prioritises her energy level. Through her ability to switch off from the world and recharge she creates a calm state and spaciousness to inform her daily activity. She appreciates herself, others and living within the world.

When she is in ‘doing’ mode she is not filling her day with a treadmill of activity. At times this is done to avoid negative thoughts and emotions. With mindfulness she can observe and process her inner world.

7. She lives Authentically

The Wise Woman has the courage to voice what is important to her and honour her decisions, particularly on what matters. She lives with a vulnerability and faith in the universe to support her.

Living inauthentically can show up as listening more than sharing in conversation and feeling you are ‘taking up space’ in other people’s lives. When we are not voicing our own needs, we may be operating from a fear of abandonment and lack of vulnerability in our relationships.

The Wise Woman is an evolving creature. She has so much lived experience and wisdom to draw upon. Which of these attributes do you think are most important for women to develop as they age? Are there other attributes that could be added to this list?

May 2025
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