Sharon Hastie and wife Kathleen Hall have swapped their love of launches and yachts for a bold red nine-metre Mitsubishi Fuso bus. As with all things RV, it hasn’t been smooth sailing 100% of the time, but the couple are wholly committed to their full-time lifestyle.
Since selling their home (and launch) three years ago, Sharon and Kathleen have been exploring New Zealand accompanied by their beloved dogs.
Having started out with three dogs, Poppy (a 17-year-old Jack Russell/foxy cross), Coco (a 15-year-old toy poodle) and Sofia (a three-year-old shitzu/toy poodle cross), sadly the two older dogs passed away within a few months of each other, and now Sofia is the sole constant companion.
As accomplished pet owners and travellers, Sharon and Kathleen have some tried-and-true habits aimed at ensuring comfortable and enjoyable travel for their canines.
“We stop regularly for Sofia to relieve herself and go on walks wherever we are. We try not to travel more than an hour on any trip, for the comfort of both Sofia and ourselves,” says Sharon.
Right: Kathy and Sofia just after getting off the Cook Strait ferry overlooking Picton Harbour
The pair’s top three tips for travelling with pets are:
- 1. Make sure they are secure and comfortable when travelling
- 2. Stop for breaks so they can be comfortable (and please pick up after them)
- 3. Make sure the area/stop/camp is dog-friendly
Having explored New Zealand extensively, their favourite destinations are coastal, due to the stunning views and plenty of places to walk Sofia, who loves the beach.
“Sofia’s really social and loves meeting other people and fur babies. She has only ever known the bus as her home and sees it as her own moving kennel.
“Our favourite pet places are all the cafes and restaurants that welcome both us and Sofia. Many businesses have lost our custom no matter how nice they look if they have a ‘no dog’ stance. Sofia is better behaved in a cafe than most children we have come across,” chuckles Kathleen.
“Also, all the NZMCA parks (except Ardmore) are dog/pet friendly, so this takes any worries about whether we can take Sofia.”
As to the most useful things they own make travelling with pets easier, the pair have a great water bowl that doesn’t slosh while travelling, “so we know she’s always got water handy”.
Both agree that travelling with pets is a great way to meet people.
“Along the way as we travel, we also house and pet sit. We’ve made lifelong friends doing this. People have opened their homes and hearts to both of us, as well as Sofia, and made life such a great place to be.”
When the bus is parked up and Sharon and Kathleen feel like adventuring, they travel on e-scooters – and of course Sofia is included, snugly secure in a backpack, “which she loves”.
Right: Sofia’s favorite spot watching the animals and people go by
Big Red
When it came to choosing their future home, Sharon and Kathleen spent considerable time looking for the right bus.
“We’re both quite tall and didn’t want something we’d be too constricted in. We knew we were going to retire and live in it permanently, so we wanted plenty of space.
“Having previously owned launches and a yacht in Auckland, which we sold when we moved south to Napier then Kapiti, we knew we could live in close quarters as we’d spent a lot of time at sea together.”
When purchased, the eye-catching red Mitsubishi Fuso bus was already set up with a full kitchen, separate shower and toilet, island bed, four seater and two seater couch.
“We’ve added a new compressor fridge that runs from our solar. It means we can even use an air fryer, electric jug and toaster, and still have enough power for everything else we need.
“As part of our refurbishments, we completely redid the gas lines to meet current specs, upgraded our solar and changed our batteries to lithium. All are controlled by Bluetooth.
“We had all the gas fittings renewed as it had the old rubber hosing and had it redone with copper piping and plastic coatings. We felt this was necessary as we’re living in it. We added more 12-volt and USB outlets for our phones and tech gadgets.
“Everything works well, and the bus is big enough for us both to walk through the kitchen at the same time. We can also have our own quiet time at one end or the other. Plus, there’s heaps of room for Sofia to run and play.”
The finishing touch was adding three new Maxxair RV vents/fans for reassurance that the dogs would always be cool and comfortable in the bus.
Another feature the pair particularly rate is having a separate shower and toilet.
“There’s nothing worse than having to dry down an area before using the toilet.”
In terms of sleeping arrangements, “Sofia sleeps up on the bed with us even though she has two of her own beds in the bus”.
While the couple both have their Class 2 licences, Kathy mostly drives while Sharon navigates, with Sofia’s supervision of course.
The trio share their adventures on Facebook (Ladies in red and their travels) where they have created a supportive community.
