Hi, we are Richard & Jackie. Join us as we take our first tentative steps of early retirement at the age of 51. After a series of life changing traumas in 2021, we made the scary decision to pack in our careers and take time to explore what the world has to offer.
We hope to share with you our travel and adventures in our VW Campervan, our new house renovations and all the highs and lows of early retirement.
We would love it if you would subscribe to our channel and join us as we move into early retirement adventures.
Check out our blog at www.earlyretirementwanderlust.com for more about what we do and why we do it.
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Lovely views on the campsite I think we would have preferred to be higher up too. Going back to the toilet set up.... These are common in Asia but didn't realize it would be like in Europe. Loving your vlogs thanks for sharing
When ever I go up to the Lake District that is the only campsite I use, I must add I have been hiking the fells as well as the Coast to Coast since I left the Army in 1979, but now I am retired I only get the views of the Lake District via other Peoples RU-vid Videos, so a big Thank You from a retired Hiker. Tony in Essex.
Thanks Tony - Glad it helps you enjoy such a beautiful place - we have been back to Seathwaite several times as it is in such a great location to do so many hikes without having to move the van all weekend. Love the farmer too!!
Fabulous, that must have been a Grade 1 scramble, well done 🙂❤️🐾🚐 Slovenia looks amazing, thank you for sharing your travels, we're just back from a campervan trip to Lymington, a bit tame compared to your adventures, nevertheless we love it just as much as you do. Cheers xxx
It was certainly a little tricky in places! But so worth the view at the top by the waterfall! I quite enjoy scrambling but I am glad there was the wire rope to help come back down 😬 I'm glad you enjoyed your trip to Lymington - a place we have never been. We just love getting away into the wilds in the van - both in the UK and Europe. Have a great week x
Great to see you exploring that side of the dolomites. We’ve only been on the western side for skiing around Selva - fantastic walks there in summer too - maybe you’d like the Seceda ridge area? I definitely think it was worth paying for that overnight park up in the mountain - just epic 🥰 We’ll hopefully try that in the Autumn. 😊
It was absolutely stunning in the Tre Cime with the huge rock towers everywhere. We loved the hiking there. We moved across to the Plose Ski area for a couple of days hiking and a visit to Lag di Braies next which were both also very beautiful. We will definitely return to the Dolomites as there is still so much to explore 🚐 ⛰️ 🥾
Wow isn't it stunning 😍, have to say Jackie you are like a mountain goat just out on a daily walk 😂❤..you're an inspiration... The skiing there is incredible too. Thank you for the fab videos
We have absolutely loved exploring the Dolomites and have found another happy place we will return to time and again. I do love a bit of a scramble - I did outdoor Ed as part of my degree and loved getting away on the school outdoor ed residential every year!! We are looking at different areas to ski when we get our slightly bigger van that is more self sufficient with onboard facilities. Glad you are enjoying our videos 😊
It really was lush (are you possibly welsh?), and as novice wild swimmers we loved it, but it was soooooo cold! We couldn't last very long!!!! Thanks for the comment. 👍
Thanks for this excellent video, my wife and I are heading to the area in the summer holidays armed with our Cicerone guide books! Lets hope it's not too busy...
En-route from Scotland to the Dolomites right now in our wee microcamper. Should be there in a couple of days. Hoping to get some Via Ferrata done if the weather allows. If you haven't tried it, you should! 🧗😁 Looking forward to watching your adventures.
Have a great trip - I hope the weather holds up for you. We haven’t done any via Ferratas yet but it is something we want to have a go at. I did a lot of indoor climbing at uni and as a teacher on residentials so know I would enjoy it!
Wow lovely scenery.. we’re a step closer to these beautiful trips. We brought our van today, it’s a small fiat doblo- we’re excited to convert it, and take it on to the continent. 😊 thanks for sharing your trips 😊
It certainly was another great place to base ourselves for a few days - the hikes were phenomenal and being able to sleep at 2300m right under the peak was epic! 🥾🤣🚐
The more of your videos I watch, the more I'm convinced that you have stolen my 'to-do list'! 😉The Dolomites looked spectacular - I just hope that I make it there one day to experience it for myself.
I am sure you will get to some of these places one day - lots of little mountain B and B’s in the area for hikers and refuge huts. Richard fancies a multi day hike from hut to hut in the Dolomites 🥾🏔️ our to do list just gets longer because we only really scratch the surface in each place!
Loved the video guys. The drive over the passes from Slovenia into Italy looked amazing and the walk around the Tre Cime looked spectacular. You don’t get to park up in locations like that very often so we would say it’s definitely worth the money. Looking forward to the next video. Keep safe. Irvine & Karen.
They were real google specials that took us over the Slovenian mountain passes but so pretty. The Italian border that was the middle of a river! We really enjoyed the night up at Tre Cime - a definite experience we would have regretted not doing 🚐🥾🏔️
Did you do a video on the house renovations? I’m enjoying watching your videos and can see how you’re both loving this new phase of your life. Many thanks
Hi - yes we did a video in November to show how we had renovated the cottage and what it was like a year on from getting the keys 🏡 thanks for watching 😊
We have absolutely loved it in Slovenia and we had a week in the Dolomites aswell which was fantastic getting out hiking 🥾 just starting to think about next years ski trip too 🚠 hope you are enjoying getting out and about and retirement is treating you well 😊
Fantastic content - love watching your videos. Delighted you are in Slovenia. As a keen kayaker, the Soca (pronounced Socha) valley is my fave place on the planet. Truly stunning.
As I said on the video I really think it is the most beautiful river in the world - those colours of the water that change depending on the depth and width ♥️ we spent 10 days in Slovenia in the end 🚐
What a cracking film, and a stunning locations. We are also struggling with the European weather as we are in France in our van. I'm sure we will see it through.
Hope the weather improves for you! We are in Austria now - it has forecast rain for the last 3 days but we have actually had blue skies and hot weather! We quite like the odd wet day as it gives us time to do admin type stuff and clothes washing 🤣
We always travel on a budget, rarely eat out in restaurants, love to take a picnic on our walks, and of course it saves money, you seem to think like us, we have just been to Dorset on a budget, stayed at a temporary site. We must get down to Cornwall, the biggest cost is the fuel, we live in Derbyshire, always enjoy your vlogs, 😊
Yes it is amazing how much the diesel costs add up travelling from Yorkshire - we had not really been to Dorset apart from to catch a ferry - it was lovely. We just keep thinking - the more we can do things on a budget the longer we can stay out travelling but we have noticed campsite fees have gone up considerably since we started out with the van 7 summers ago. Cornwall Is beautiful 🚐
