Meet Rita (short for Chaparrita) - 2000 Ford E450 Skoolie
I (Jenn) adopted Rita from her creator, Craig, in June of 2024, in Sausalito, CA. She's been converted for full time off-grid living. Craig put a lot of love, thought, effort and countless hours into building her. She's 22 feet long, so she's considered a shorty - like me (5'1").
This blog will document our time together...for however long it is and wherever we roam. The good, the awesome, the bad, the ugly and the hysterical.
Rita and I were built for adventures, risk-taking, saying YES to the unknown and spreading smiles wherever we go.
That's just how we roll.
Latest News
The Border – and Beyond
In all of my anxious imaginings of what could possibly happen at the border crossing, with my entire house, I never in a million years could've dreamed up how it actually went... I spent the night about 15 miles from the border and was on the road at first light (past experiences were always that super early on a Sunday were best) and got to the border with no problem. There were only about 5 cars ahead of me. A woman officer came walking out directly to me and said (in Spanish) "You have to back up and turn around...
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New Mexico to Arizona
When I arrived in Silver City, I was immediately enamored with it. It was adorable, filled with cute historic buildings and funky shops. I couldn’t wait to check it out. I had hoped to get there several hours before my massage appointment, but… that is not how Rita rolls…between the stops to walk around, and buying a bag of rocks at a trading post, and the fact we just go so damn slow…I had barely an hour and I was starving. I got some food that was so-so, from a diner where the waitress was super friendly. Afterwards, I stopped...
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Texas, Texas and More Texas
I left Mission, TX and headed north in search of the 'free for as long as you want' campground. Ifound it easily enough, and it was as advertised. It wasn’t exactly a beautiful area, but it was right next to a state park, which was probably more interesting. It was chilly and grey and the rain was catching up to me, so I was not exploring much. I found a nice level spot to call my own and settled in a bit. I went out for a walkabout to be sure I had the best spot, and see the area. ...
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Louisiana Beaches and Into Texas
It was only a couple hours’ drive to Rutherford Beach – as Pearly recommended. It really was way out in the middle of nowhere – long, empty roads and not really towns. All the houses are up on stilts. I passed by some nature preserves and the road out to the beach was one lane and through a wetlands area, with alligators (I saw one on the side of the road!) and all kinds of birds. The beach is hardpacked sand and no problem to drive out on it. It is almost like a road on the inland side. There...
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