On the fateful day of January 23rd, 2021….we jumped onto the tiny-home bandwagon of our generation and bought an RV! She is named Arla [Our – Love] and is a cute 1978 Itasca Winnebago Class C beauty.
The Beginning
Alright, so we didn’t actually start living in Arla until March 31st, 2021. It was a wild transition but surprisingly not that huge of an adjustment from living in our micro-suite in Vancouver, BC. We actually find that we have MORE SPACE in our 25ft RV than we felt we had living in Vancouver! Kinda funny, isn’t it?
Anyhow, for the first two weeks of adjustment, we stayed at a sweet little farm between Qualicum Bay and Qualicum Beach on Vancouver Island. It felt amazing to be back on the island where I grew up and to be closer to our families. The farm that we stayed at was just a hop skip and jump away from the ocean, and was home to a lovely young family.
There were many ducks, chickens, and roosters roaming the property which gave it a true ‘country’ feeling. You wouldn’t believe it, but the roosters did not bother us at the break of dawn with loud wake-up calls. We felt grateful for all the little things.
One of the simplest pleasures that we enjoy is having a 3-way fridge. “3-way” refers to the three different options the fridge has to source its power. It is able to run off of our 12-volt batteries, our electrical plugin (if available), or off of our propane tank. Pretty nifty! On our very first night in Arla, we were concerned about the fridge working because we had just sunk considerable money into purchasing groceries. Thankfully we were able to figure it out with a little persistence and not lose any perishables in the process! Sweet success ^_^
Our first couple of nights were spent with NO HEAT because we hadn’t quite figured out how our furnace functioned. We had completely forgotten what the staff member(s) at the RV Dealership had told us when we bought Arla months earlier. Oops! Early April in BC is not that bad temperature-wise, however, we were still pretty chilly in the mornings.
Not having heat also greatly decreases any motivation to be productive in the evenings, so we mostly spent our evenings building fires, reading books, talking, or watching a DVD on one of our outdated laptops. It was a simple and relaxing existence! We were able to turn on our heat after a few days which we were beyond grateful for. When you live in a house you sometimes fail to realize the impact of something so seemingly ordinary and staple as having heat.
The things we take for granted growing up become the things we cherish in adulthood because more often than not we have fully earned and worked hard for them.
We also were living with no electricity for a little while because our batteries had become drained after Arla sat at a storage site for so long over the course of February and March. We have since been able to remedy this though, and are thankful for our journey! The family who lived on the farm generously offered to supply us with an electrical plugin for their house which fixed all of our problems. We were very fortunate to stay with such kind people!
We also had a completely burnt-out water pump which needed to be replaced. The water pump was our only legitimate cost other than gas since purchasing the RV. It could have been a lot worse! And now we have a brand new pump that we will continue to take great care of. The water pump only needs to be utilized if we are not connected to a water supply. If you are planning on purchasing an RV, we advise that you remember to TURN OFF your water pump when you are not using it! This will prolong its lifespan and save you money in the long run.
We suggest taking advantage of Thrift stores in your area whenever possible when making purchases for your RV. For example; we were able to snag 6 meters of beautiful turquoise fabric to redo our curtains for a mere $15.00. Maybe I’m wrong, but I feel like that is a steal of a deal for fabric that fits so well with our vision of how we want the interior of our RV to look! Of course, fabric is just the beginning, but it is a massive leap forward to making an individualized upgrade to your home.
First Adventures
We still have so many adventures left to be had with Arla, and feel that we have not even scratched the surface of possibilities! However, while on Vancouver Island we were able to do some sightseeing thanks to the availability and kindness of family.
Lower Myra Falls was an absolutely stunning sight to see and experience. It is located in the interior of Vancouver Island and is only accessible via car, biking, or for any extreme hikers out there; walking! In other words there is no bus that will take you there, and it is a little difficult to find if you’re not with someone who is already familiar with its location.
But once you have found it, DAMN. SO MUCH BEAUTY!! It feels like you’re walking into a Canadian postcard. Once you finish the short hike from the parking lot, you are immediately surrounded by natural BC landscape. The falls are framed with luscious trees, vibrant rock formations, Buttle lake below, and a breathtaking mountain skyline.
Call me biased, but Lower Myra Falls should be on everyone’s bucket list for places to visit on Vancouver Island.
Bowser is a sweet little town just North of Qualicum Bay on Vancouver Island. On this adventure, we decided to take Arla! It was fun getting more and more comfortable in the driver’s seat of such a hefty vehicle. We started driving one day and decided to stop spontaneously in Bowser by the ocean. While there we were able to find a nice café known as Footless Rooster Coffee.
Don’t let the name deceive you! This place had comfortable outdoor seating as per Covid19 protocols at the time, as well as some delicious food and beverages! I enjoyed some of the best spanakopita I’ve ever had in my life, not to mention a generous serving size. I was expecting it to be similar to the little triangular shapes you get when you buy from the typical grocery store, but no. This was 10X better, 3X bigger, so flavourful, and obviously well made. The Footless Rooster cafe also offers a wide assortment of teas that include but go beyond the typical Earl Grey and Orange Peco.
We were able to later park Arla on the edge of the beach for a fun photoshoot and time of reflection.
What a privilege it is to be able to drive our apartment around the province with us and never have to leave the comfort of home. We still sometimes forget that we can do that! We’re so used to city living, that we’re constantly in awe of our new freedom on wheels.
Have questions for me? Feel free to shoot me a message via the contact page! I would love to hear from you.
Stay tuned for the next post to find out where we take Arla next!
Holly
Thoughts to Writings 