Elderly couple spent 5 years creating a mobile home to travel across Canada: 'Make the most of living'

There are people who dream and then there are people who achieve those dreams. Clayton Balabanov and his wife prove that they definitely belong to the latter category after they took the responsibility of completing their dream of traveling around Canada in their own hands, as reported by Insider. It was always a dream for the couple to lead a nomadic lifestyle after their retirement.

However, as the day approached their research revealed that there was no mobile home that could fulfill their requirements during the journey. Therefore, Balabanov went ahead and decided to build his own dream home and spent $180,000 towards that endeavor.

Balabanov explained his reasoning behind not liking the mobile homes in the market was, "They just didn't seem like they would stand up to the year-round use, rather than just vacation use." The couple planned to utilize a used semi truck and refurbish it in accordance with their standards. They had many requirements but the biggest one was sustainability. "We needed solar, recycling water and things like that, which would leave a smaller carbon footprint, making up for the amount of fuel that the truck uses," Balabanov reflected.

The couple could not afford to buy a new truck therefore they decided to make do with an old one, and had to spend a year rebuilding it. They worked on the brakes and engine of the vehicle. Along with this the couple also invested in a used trailer from eBay. In terms of the trailer, they were able to treat it as a blank canvas as there were no existing elements in the vehicle that they had to take care of.

After five years of constant hard work from the couple, the semitrailer became a space worthy of habitation for a long period of time. They did not want to involve anyone else because their demand was so unique and one of a kind, that it would have taken more effort to explain everything rather than doing it themselves. The couple early on divided their responsibilities, while Clayton did the installation his wife Theresa was responsible for procuring the required materials. The task of procurement was also not easy by any means as it was during the pandemic that the bulk of the process took place.

The couple's mobile home now has a kitchen with a microwave oven and fridge. It also has a seating area with a bed. They have inserted space-saving measures like a spiral staircase. Their kitchen has all the modern appliances running on Solar Power. This was done because in their 70s the couple wanted proper food for their survival and did not want to go on things like beans on toast.

For their entertainment, they have also installed a 75-inch 4K TV and a surround-sound system. Starlink allows them to use their TV to access programs of Netflix and Amazon Prime no matter where they are. They also have a library as Theresa likes reading and considers it her favorite entertainment activity.

Their bathroom has a jetted tub installed in a sunken section. They have started living in the mobile home and have had people over for tea. They plan to do more of such get-togethers to garner more nomad friends. For their first journey, they chose Nebraska in which they faced quite a few hiccups.

On their YouTube channel Nomad Monster, the couple explained how they faced leaks in their roof and issues with their solar battery. Clayton was not worried about it though and said, "This is our maiden voyage, where everything breaks, So we'll change things that didn't work and enhance things that did work and polish up."

The couple have sold their home and taxi business and are now looking forward to spending their golden years on voyages all across Canada. "You only live so long," Clayton said. "It's absolutely guaranteed you're going to die, so make the most of living between now and then. That's what we're doing."