Boondocking in Mexico

Trackrig wrote:
I've never owned a TT that small, can you get a full sized queen bed in one that you don't have to fold up every day? Shower will be small and very limited closet / storage space.

Difference between 20ft and 23ft trailer: a COACH.

In 20ft TT you have: queen bed, bathroom with shower, tiny kitchen counter and dinette. No need to fold the bed daily, except for some models where they have a sofa bed.

In 23ft you have all the above, plus a Coach. Makes a world of difference. You can't seat on the bed to read or relax with a coffee or cold drink. You can't relax on dinette benches either - those are torture devices.

Cabinet space will be about the same in both 20ft and 23ft.

Instead of shower some >22ft TT have a tiny shallow bathtub with shower - BAD IDEA. Too small for anything but a cat, and stepping in/out is more difficult than in a shower stall.

Also, if you're taller than 5ft 5", consider a bed placed crosswise rather than lengthwise. Beds in trailers are a bit shorter than normal residential bed. I'm 5ft 7" and my lengthwise bed is barely long enough for me, feet are in the air if I stretch.

When bed is placed crosswise, you have to step over one another, but the length is generous 7.5ft (unless they've squeezed some cabinet or night stand at one end). Standard TT has 8ft outside width, 7.5ft inside.

I hope the OP knows that trailer length in specs normally includes 3.5ft hitch. So 20ft trailer is a 16.5ft box, 16*7.5= 123 sq.ft inside area.

Flies to your ointment, wannabe boondocker. Love doing this ;)

Mex is right. Rent some cheap casita with water "nearby" and solar. See how it works for you in the off-season, i.e. spring and summer (I'm 90% positive that it won't work well).

Drive around and see other offgrid camps/casitas, talk to gringos that stay there all year round (there will be some, not too many). Check those camps in the evening when most of them are running generators. Yes, with +300W solar on the roof (with panels NOT shaded by trees etc) and when weather doesn't require A/C, many will run generators to watch TV - don't ask me why.

At some point you will realize that - unless you are a Mexican - you won't enjoy, and hardly will be able to live, in summer without A/C.

Then you'll start thinking generator, fuel, costs, break-downs (it does this). Portable "quiet" ones not meant for 24-hr use (not really quiet either, but this is what manufacturers call them). Stationary diesel monsters - easy on fuel, require a GOOD enclosure like cement blocks, if you want to be able to sleep and don't want turn you neighbors into your enemies.

Your generator always sounds less noisy to you than it does to your neighbor. I'm not kidding - even if age-related loss of hearing is at the same level for both you and the neighbor, you are placing it where it bothers you less. The neighbor is placing it where it bothers "him" less.

Then you'll start thinking on-grid camps - quiet, a lot more expensive than offrid ones, and where trailers are packed next to one another so that you can listen to evening news when your neighbor is watching his TV.

Some disclaimer - I'm a desert rat, like it dry, never been to Yucatan. Though it's not like Yucalandia is on the Mars and totally different from where I've been. Most likely the "off season" when it's too hot and humid to live without A/C lasts longer in Yucalandia.

20ft trailer for a long-term living - say, more than a month - is too small for 2 retirees. Works for some, not for majority. Think 23ft and longer, preferably with slides.

Half-ton truck - well, yes, it will pull TT up to 23-26ft, unless you are going to climb the mountains every day. Didn't have problems with my Chevy Suburban 1500 (same as F150 only with SUV vagon body). Though I added a separate transmission radiator (and didn't stray off paved or good gravel roads since it's a 2WD). Btw, really loved the "vagon" body - you should consider getting a canopy.

WD Hitch and anti-sway bar is a must, with trailer over 20ft.

We have spent the last 30 winters in Mexico, until 3 years ago, in a 22 foot Class C, with two weimaraners and an indoor cat. We only upgraded because of the age of the rig.
We now travel in a 27 foot Class A Trek, (bed in the ceiling of the living room) and do beautifully for 6 months at a time. However, our Southern California beach house seems big when we are there at 500 square feet, including the garage.
It's all relative. Life is good wherever!

The wife, cat and I have lived the last 12 years in a 24 foot C class RV, a tad small but livable, a 28 foot trailer would be a bit more comfortable, get one that has a decent bathroom and enough counter space in the galley, and make sure that you have a Dometic A/C not a Coleman, the they do not work after 96 and humidity.

Main land in Yucatan is very hot and humid, Mexicowanderer is correct on the climate, you will need to have a good reliable gen set with plenty of fuel to last the nights, as for the truck, make it useless for the narcos to want, a small fifth wheel will be a better choice, and equip the bed with a permanent hitch and a spare gas tank, and side lockers, and stuff, in other words useless for carrying bulk cargo.

Viviendo la vida loca in Mexico

navegator

tetepapoopan

I live in Mexico not gringolandia like you. Read my other post the one that describes a name caller.

I write English I do not speak it for months at a time. if you are so unhappy down here go home. One thing I do not do is lie or cheat. I also do not make myself look like cuernos. YOU are the perfect example why I do not live anywhere near gringos. it only takes one of you to make me nauseated.

Having led several RV caravans into Mexico with all types of rigs, I can tell you smaller is better. Truck Campers are not necessarily best due to height issues, a lower shorter travel trailer, class C or class B are the easiest. Large rigs like 5th wheels & Class A's are pretty much restricted to toll highways or highways that the dirver already knows are OK. 13.5 & up BTU A/C's are not practical as most RV parks are 15 amp only. I would not personally boondock in Mexico unless in a group. If you are looking at diesel you alos need something pre-mid 2007 as thr eis no ULSD. Not a big issue for one trip, but if you plan on continuous ones you will evntually have issues. You might want to look at Amigos Rodantes caravans one way, which run into the Yucatan for a first trip to learn the route & ropes if you have a larger RV.

Talleyho69 wrote:
Listen to him, he knows. Start small, a month or two in each of the two main seasons, renting something. We are in Mexico 6 months a year, and will ultimately be full time, but you have to experience it. We LOVE it, year around.

yeah, and Mark Twain wrote a mean piece also.Except back in those days everyone knew it was fiction.

MEXICOWANDERER wrote:
The real lure of Mexico for most successful transplantees is NOT the pyramids or beaches or quaint colonial cobblestones.
It's the PEOPLE the society that transforms a huge diorama into real feelings for real people. When I walk a hundred meters down a sidewalk in this burg of 2000 souls I do not exaggerate when I state I will shake hands a half dozen times, wave and say "hello" a dozen times -each time I will hear my name called out. When you get to this stage boredom is scarce. I love to see Americans come and become mesmerized for life by becoming part of the community. I feel a closeness down here that I never could really find in the USA.

Great post, Mex :).

Boondocking means isolation in the off-season. There are ZERO beaches left for boondocking that are conveniently close to market. Utter boredom leads too many ex-pats to soothe boredom with ****tails. You know what that leads to and it ain't speculation. Many folks limp back to civilization with a monkey on their back. It's not funny. For fifty or so dollars a month SKY offers programs in English unless you like to stare at CNN. After a year and 300 ruins that gets old fast. So do 3AM ocean dips to rinse the sweat that drove you out of bed.

Successful transplants live in Gringolandia colonies or "They Go Native". Learn Spanish gain Mexican friends, learn to relish tacos, empanadas, and tamales. When I encounter a gringoized restaurant I run like hell. Everthing will be awash in sour cream or melted cheese. The real lure of Mexico for most successful transplantees is NOT the pyramids or beaches or quaint colonial cobblestones.
It's the PEOPLE the society that transforms a huge diorama into real feelings for real people. When I walk a hundred meters down a sidewalk in this burg of 2000 souls I do not exaggerate when I state I will shake hands a half dozen times, wave and say "hello" a dozen times -each time I will hear my name called out. When you get to this stage boredom is scarce. I love to see Americans come and become mesmerized for life by becoming part of the community. I feel a closeness down here that I never could really find in the USA.

Listen to him, he knows. Start small, a month or two in each of the two main seasons, renting something. We are in Mexico 6 months a year, and will ultimately be full time, but you have to experience it. We LOVE it, year around.