Long drives in cars can get boring and tedious, but driving in the coach is a much better experience. Here is snapshot of what a day is like on the road for us. To tell you the truth we aren’t that prepared for these long drives. I don’t have a stack of music or podcast waiting to be played. I don’t make sandwiches before we hit the road. We focus on the two most important things – Do we know where we are going? Does Corbin have everything he needs?

Driving the coach on the highway is pretty easy. You can’t go fast and you spend most of the time in the right lane enjoying the view. With a little radio, some conversation, and the view out of the front window: the miles just melt by. Plus the benefit of having everything with you. Being able to get a snack or a drink whenever really makes travel comfortable.

Bekki looks great behind the wheel. For our long days we would split the mileage halfway through the day. The large captains chairs are very comfortable. Longer then 3-4 hours in the seat though gets tough. One morning we left so early I was still wearing my pajamas.

We put Corbin in the dinette facing backwards. He is in the safest part of the coach. We let him play games and watch videos on the iPad. He also loves coloring and playing with his trucks. One of us usually ends up on the opposite end of the dinette keeping him company. We give him snacks and juice throughout the trips. Most importantly is we make time to stop for wiggles.

The coach with the slides in on the road is very stable. The hand-soap dispensers stay upright! In between the front seats is a large dog bed that the dogs take turn sleeping on.

Our rig has three cameras. The rear is always on and keeps an eye on our Mini toad. You can’t see the Mini in the mirrors and for the most part you don’t even notice its there. I remind Bekki from time to time that “this small blue car has been following us for a long time!”. When you activate the turn signals you get a view of the side of the coach. Its a nice addition to the four mirrors since the right side has a big blind spot.

Bongo takes his place in the passenger captains chair. The chairs have heaters and the best part, the passenger chair has a powered foot rest. Sitting stretched out in front of the road is very comfortable.

We have Jura automatic espresso machine. This thing is the greatest travel companion ever. Its a magic robot that grinds whole beans into amazing espresso with the push of a button. It keeps us out of starbucks and works really well on the road.

You can tell we have fun in our new toy.

During some wiggle time, Corbin draw’s and colors on butcher paper.

The view out the front window is like a giant HD Movie Screen. You can see so wide and high. The visibility as a driver is fantastic but as a passenger it easy to get lost in the scenery.

A wide view of our cockpit. I’m at the wheel. We use an iPad mini with Verizon and an ATT iPhone. Almost exclusively our trip routing is done via google maps. Bekki spends alot of time beforehand making sure the route is safe for the coach.

We check the tow connection on the mini periodically during the drive. We double check each others work connecting it and always double check that its in neutral and the emergency brake is off. I don’t know how people could enjoy RVing in a large coach without a toad. Have it as our dingy is great. We can disconnect it in under a minute if needed. It takes us longer to get Corbin’s carseat in the Mini then it does to connect it for towing. The view is from a Walmart we stayed overnight at in Elko Nevada.

The view of the mountains from our Walmart spot.

The Mini is a fun toad as well. I love dropping the top when I can . Zooming around California just seems right. Corbin loves the open top as well.

Food

After getting used to the tight space and limited cookware I have finally gotten very comfortable with what I can do with our little kitchen. Its perfect for making meals for our little family of three. But I have used it now to entertain larger groups. Our stove has three burners! Only one of the burners has temp control. The other burners are either HIGH or nothing!

We also don’t have space for much so my cooking tools are limited

12″ High side pan with glass cover- my main pan used for everything from boiling Pasta to searing chicken breast.

8″ Frying Pan used almost exclusively for breakfast eggs.

12″ pyrex baking pan with plastic top. Used as roasting pan mostly. I also end up serving food in it since we don’t have any serving goods.

8″ Pyrex baking pan with plastic top. Used often to microwave vegetables.

Immersion wand blender

4 Bowls, Dinner Plates, and small plates.

One small drawer of cooking utensils.

Two cabinets as my pantry

A pretty big 4 door refrigerator.

I essentially have about a two foot square as a prep surface. I often make one pan meals to keep the stovetop clear. The Microwave/Convection oven is amazing. Roasted meats turn out perfectly brown in it. I’m lucky to also have an outdoor kitchen with a small sink and fridge. Cooking on the grill outside is my first choice. We have a coleman camping grill. It is an amazing little grill with a grill side and a skillet side. I’ll post a review soon but I love it. I was worried about having a tiny kitchen on our full time adventure but It actually has been awesome.

Grilled Tri Tip

Coca-Cola baby back ribs. Sauce cooking on my one adjustable burner.

Roasted BBQ pulled pork sandwich with butternut squash soup.

Our Coleman overloaded with steaks, onions, and broccoli. The vegetables are on the skillet side and cooking in the grease left over from some quickly cooked bacon strips. The bacon was chopped and used on top of the broccoli.