Sid and Sandie Whiting watched a caravan rattle past on its Indian Pacific railway bed: someone was heading east, across Australia’s iconic Nullarbor Plain. “That should be us,” the couple lamented.
Tired of the city and ready to be unsettled, they decided to sell their house and hit the road. Just like any long-term traveler, the Whiting’s sold off possessions, packed a few small bags and left goodbye messages with friends.
But unlike the stereotypical backpacker, Sid and Sandie weren’t taking advantage of a gap year. They’re taking advantage of retirement. Joining a subculture of ‘Grey Nomads’, the over-50-year-olds are living out of a caravan and exploring Australia on an indefinite calendar.
The term ‘Grey Nomad,’ which was first coined on an Australian TV special documenting this new trend in retiree travel, may sound a bit ageist. After all, your birthday (or hair color) shouldn’t matter on the road. But Sid said GN’s rarely take offense at the title’s elderly connotation. Even when the name comes out like a swear word from Aussie truckers, who get stuck behind the slow moving campers and caravans, Grey Nomad has a deeper meaning.
“For me, a true grey nomad has no real agenda when it comes to time or destination,” Sid clarified. “Then, when we stop at a place and are asked, ‘How long are you staying?’, we say ‘Don’t know.’ When we finally decide to move on and get ‘Where are you heading now?’ – you guessed it: ‘Don’t know.’
“It’s the closest thing to free that you ever get,” explained a gypsy couple on a second TV segment, 60 Minutes, which also examined the growing popularity of this lifestyle.
Naturally, there are no rules to becoming a wayfaring retiree. You don’t even need to be retired. Like the so-called snowbirds in North America, you just need a set of wheels or somewhere to sleep at night.
The Whiting’s are on their second caravan, having notched up over five years of travel. At first, it was about the adventures ahead. But learning from their mishaps led to an online business that now helps fund their continued movements. Creating GreyNomad101 to educate and inspire travelers like themselves, they’ve joined a billion-dollar tourism industry that’s seeing Australians roll into the farthest corners of their country.
And it’s not just Australia. Tourism analysts in New Zealand are noting a similar movement among natives. The country may be smaller than Oz, but it has its own population of baby boomers who refuse to sit around saving for a rainy day. Holiday park owners are watching their campsites fill up with more and more long-term visitors – a noticeable percentage of them over the age of 65.
“No point sitting on a house that the kids are going to finish up with,” said Sid. “The old ‘But that’s my inheritance’ argument went out the window a long time ago.”
If these Grey Nomads had a motto, it might be something along those lines: Keep your eyes off the clock and onto the horizon.
“We’re not exactly rich, but we still do what we want. You can’t take it with you, as they say.”
Coming soon: An interview with Sid and Sandie of GreyNomad101, on keeping sanity in a small space, essential packing items, and how to work while you travel long-term.
~ Until the next adventure! ~ Kelli
Photo credits: Adventure before dementia – Tamsin Slater, Flickr; Grey Nomads Burrendong – Ian Sutton, Flickr