Over the Next Hill: An Ethnography of RVing Seniors in North America. 2nd ed.

Christine Hughes is A/Manager, Developmental Services Branch, Ontario
Ministry of Community, Family and Children’s Services.

Over the Next Hill is a fascinating ethnography of the culture of the
two to three million North American seniors who have opted for a nomadic
lifestyle in a “recreational vehicle” (RV) for their retirement
years. With chapter titles such as “Lurking in the Laundromat: Doing
Research with RVers” and “Home Is Where I Park It,” this is a fun
book that will interest not only anthropologists and other social
scientists, but RVers, their families, and friends. Seniors considering
an RV lifestyle will find practical information about how to get
started, and the personal anecdotes, quotes from RVers, and photographs
drawn from the Counts’ three fieldwork stints in North American
trailer parks may help them decide whether this lifestyle is for them.

This second edition, which expands upon the original 1996 version,
includes new information on working RVers and the Continued Assistance
for Retired Escapees (CARE) centre in Livingston, Texas. CARE provides
inexpensive assisted living and adult daycare to RVers who are no longer
able to travel because of age or illness, but who wish to continue to be
a part of the RVing community. An appendix has been added to provide
resources and suggestions to people interested in getting started in
RVing, including a number of useful Web sites for experienced and new
RVers. For Canadians, the edition also includes updated information on
residence rules for provincial medical coverage. There is also a
glossary of common RV terms and an extensive list of references and
Internet resources.

In addition to offering practical tips for RVers, the book is an
ethnography of a particular type of community in which many seniors
live. The nine chapters address three broad themes. In the first two
chapters (as well as in two of the five appendixes), the Counts detail
their research methodology and theory. The next three chapters set forth
the context for their research, and the last four chapters describe how
RVing can lead to a successful retirement.

Prior to their retirement, Dorothy and David Counts were professors in
the Departments of Anthropology at the University of Waterloo and
McMaster University, respectively.