Historically, nomads have been considered a little...suspicious...by settled people. In "The Tao of the Horse" whatsername makes a case that this is cultural conditioning. "Civilized" nations (the Greeks for example) would use up the resources in an area and then set out to conquer a new area - often one dominated by nomads. Like every other political power in the universe, they demonize the people they would like to conquer - "the enemy" - which makes it much easier to persuade what might normally be perfectly reasonable and peaceable citizens to go kill them.

Nomads, on the other hand, do not use up resources in an area but live lightly on the land. To do so they wander vast areas and do not settle down for more than short periods. They tend to feel like the land belongs to everyone and everyone should share. They don't get it when "civilized" people start erecting fences and shooting "wandering" livestock.

All those arguments aside, living lightly on the land is an ideal that many people aspire to these days. Taking up a nomadic life can allow you to tread lightly upon the earth, and live very frugally at the same time. At least here in the United States.

Of course, settled people will consider you a little...suspicious.

We voluntarily took on a nomadic life for some months this year - and may or may not continue our travels in the spring. One of the most interesting things that we discovered was that there is an entire subculture drifting around the southwest (some of them drift a lot further - like Indonesia and China and other exotic locales).

They are all unique individuals with their own reasons for becoming nomads. They range from grandma and grandpa Smith, who worked hard all their lives to find their retirement nest egg barely reached to buying a self-contained RV, to "old hippies" who are still living in that converted VW van. I would venture to say that the majority of them are older people, either retired, or near retirement. Others dropped out from society a long time ago, and have never looked back.

Once you start finding the out of the way places, the inexpensive campsites, you begin meeting them. Once they realize that you, too, are living frugally and light upon the earth, be it by choice or necessity, they will guide you with their wisdom to the best - and cheapest - camping and places to stay.

On BLM land you can camp up to 14 days, after which you have to move at least twenty-five miles to a new location. You can camp on almost all BLM land for free, but also often for a minimal fee or a yearly fee as low as fifty dollars, you can move from one developed recreation area (with bathrooms and showers) to another. This is nice if you do not have a self-contained RV. If you do have a self-contained, often even more areas are available to you.

There are literally thousands of RV campgrounds of varying levels of cost and snobbishness. Some are as low as five hundred dollars for a year, others are quite a bit higher. Some of them are very low cost - ten or twenty dollars a night - and offer every kind of amenity from on site laundry to pools and saunas and more. However, some of them will regulate what kind of RV you have - not allowing tents at all - and even how old your RV can be!

So - there you are thinking Gramps is trashing your inheritance by buying a new monster RV when, in fact, he is now paying far less rent for his space than you pay in rent and utilities - and he can move any time he wants, anywhere he wants, and he doesn't even have to pack. He's got a sauna, a workout room, a pool, and he lives in a place where the winter temperature never goes below thirty degrees. And you are paying how much for your apartment?

Camping in State Parks can be even less expensive - some as low as five dollars a night for primitive camping (no hookups) although others are quite a bit higher but also offer more amenities like electric and sewer hookups, showers, even Wifi Internet.

The U.S. Forest Service also has quite a few campsites, many of which are very low cost or even free. However, not all of them are accessible in any vehicle and many have no amenities at all.

If you are interested in other countries, I understand you can stay in Mexico for up to six months without a visa, and many of their beaches are completely free to camp on.

The world travelers have many methods of financing and arranging their travels. I cannot speak from experience here, but from what I have been told there are definitely countries where travel can be as inexpensive as it is here. Some countries offer hostels - inexpensive housing for travelers. Some of these travelers are involved in the TEFL program - "Teaching English As a Foreign Language" - and are actually paid to travel. There are other programs and certain professions, of course, are more welcome in certain places.

It hardly seems you are living light on the earth when you are driving everywhere in a gas gulper RV (although we traveled in a small economy car and tent camped). Yet consider that once you are in a campsite, you will probably stay for a week or more. Many people carry a bicycle, motorcycle, or pull an economy car for those short trips to town for groceries. Or, of course, you can stock up (if you have the space) on the days when you are driving from one campsite to the next anyway.

It is easy and common to purchase a solar powered generator that can run anything inside your RV. For us - we cooked outside on a grill (charcoal or downed wood) and kept cold items in an ice chest - and many who live in a van do the same. How much you need simply depends on what you think you need. When it comes down to packing everything into a van, RV, or - in our case - an economy car - you will be surprised at how little of all that "schtuff" in your home you really need.

In my case, I do need a computer and Internet - my business is here on the Internet. I have an inexpensive ThinkPad, purchased used, and a wifi card and with those two items have kept this business going for three months. Once a week, at least, I find a Wifi connection and check the email and upload pages, articles, art or whatever I need to do. This is usually a fun little outing to a new coffee shop, or a local library. Many campsites now offer Wifi as an amenity. I am currently looking into a possible Broadband card that will give me connectivity almost anywhere I go. You can also get an electrical converter that will plug into your car lighter to run a small item like a laptop - or coffee pot (which for me - is also a necessity).

It isn't for everyone - but we loved it - and we discovered we are not alone. There are many modern day nomads traveling from campsite to campsite, enjoying some of the most beautiful places in the nation and living well on next to nothing.

Of course, the settled folks think you are a bit suspicious.

By: Summer Fey Foovay
Summer Fey Foovay is an author, artist, and webdesigner - as well as a nomad. Her travel articles are featured at http://thriftyworldtravel.com or you can find out more about the author at and a full list of her websites at http://demented-pixie.com.

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