Ocala, Florida- Sunny- 83 Degrees
What does it mean when someone says they workcamp? That’s a loaded question. There are about as
many definitions of workcamping as there are colors of the spectrum. I tend to
refer to Champ and I as full time RV Volunteers. Full time as in we live in our
RV full time, no more brick and mortar home or property taxes or phone calls from
someone telling us the roof blew off in a storm or a tree fell on the garage.
Volunteers, as in we spend most of the year trading 20 or so volunteer hours of
work in a federal or state park for a full hook up site and sometimes laundry
facilities. That is Plan A.
When we went into this, the challenge was replacing my income,
since I left the workforce about 15 years before normal retirement age. One of
the ways is to volunteer for our site. Plan B of workcamping for us is the
scenario we are living this winter. We left the NPS job in Georgia and came to Florida
to flock with the other snowbirds in a park where we are paying around $650 a
month including the metered electric. The “work’ part comes in the form of me
taking a part time job in town to offset the expense. This winter we got lucky,
we are in a good market with higher than average part time wages. I’m making
far more than we need to pay for the site in my 25 hours a week. That has left
room to make more upgrades to the RV and replace some furniture that we have
wanted to replace. This is the first time in our first three years that we have
implemented Plan B. It’s a decidedly different pace and atmosphere but it’s
fine. I have to admit, I am anxious to get home to Iowa and Saylorville Lakes
Volunteer Village and be fully immersed in Plan A again.
The "Crew" with Seth summer intern. 
C.C. and I with the Sage 
Champ & Beth taking a break 
Hunter helping me plant at the Butterfly Garden 
Freeing a Goldfinch from the net 
Taking a break on a glorious day. 
9am bundled up ready for the trip across the dam in an ATV 
Over 3500 of these Prairie Plugs have been planted this spring. 
Lonn, Champ and I at Reenactment
In our three years we have met people doing all kinds of things that fall into the broad definition of workcamping. We met several journeyman electricians at one park who were on long term jobs building a big Facebook data storage facility. We met people who train horses and live in their RV’s in parks near the horse race tracks and follow the racing circuit around the country. One of the couples we work with at Saylorville in the summer, works for a company in the winter time selling gift boxed candy in mall kiosks during the winter months in southern locations. People work for and live on or near the grounds of amusement parks, private RV resorts, Amazon fulfillment centers, county, state and federal parks. You name it. I’ve met lecturers, free lance writers and photographers and even a hair dresser, who chucked the whole conventional way of life and set up shop in a toy hauler and travels where ever the wind takes her and cuts hair in the parks where she stays.
Where there’s a will there’s a way, it is said. Such is the case for the full time workcamp lifestyle. Workcamping is simply whatever you do to support yourself on the road. Full time RV living doesn’t just mean retired and living on pension while you roam the country anymore. Its not something reserved for the wealthy priveleged few, nor is it people living hand to mouth trying to survive like the stereotype of the carnival workers aka 'Carnies". A growing number of full-time RVers are like me. Still at the age when earning on some level is required weather it be earning a site and utilities or earning wages. We are fortunate to have Champ's retirement income to support our needs. Our 13 year age difference is both a curse and an advantage. While we don't have two retirement income sources to draw from, I am at an age where I am quite capable and willing to go work for wages when we want extra income.
The motives are just as varied. In our case we both like to
stay busy. Lose or use, as it were. I realized this winter, that is especially
true for me. Even if we did not need some extra income to offset our change of
plans, I was going crazy sitting around the RV park with no purpose in my day
other than to sit in the lawn chair and go for repeated walks.
Many people, including us, are working the parks and wildlife areas nurturing their passions. In my case it is the gardening work and anything conservation related. Working in a Visitors Center sharing my love of the outdoors and helping visitors find the special areas of the park and maybe experience the same sense of grounding and feel-good spiritual centeredness that nature brings to humans, gives me great satisfaction. I have met retired teachers who work in Environmental Education leading bird walks, nature walks or other types of activities at the park the educate people about the wonders of nature. Even in their retirement they nurture their passion for sharing knowledge and planting seeds in the hearts of young and old who are maybe experiencing a natural area like a refuge for the first time.
When it comes to the brand of workcamping that we do for the parks, we work with couples and individuals of widely diverse financial means. For us the benefit of trading the accommodations for the work is a huge benefit. The real reward is in getting to know the people we work with each season and doing work we love, which not everyone gets to do during their earning years. As form me, anytime I get to spend with my hands in the dirt making things grow feeds my spirit. Along the way we are both learning new things and are growing as individuals and as a couple, through our different tasks and those we get to know in the process.
Workcamping is what you make it, pure and simple. There is
no right or wrong way to do it as long as it makes you happy and you are living
your life the way you want to.
Until next time…
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