Hi Planet Muncher
Apologies for not responding sooner, I got your PM, started a reply and then realised that I wanted to think about my answer a bit as I know sometimes people are quick to judge and pass comments. And then couldn't find this thread again! Here goes...
When you look more closely you will find that there are a lot of people managing to travel for long periods of time on little money. I think we all have different stories for how we have managed to do it.
Basically I'm cheap!!
There is no-one financing me, it is all my own money which has been hard earned cash and carefully saved over long periods of time. I also pick up jobs when I'm travelling. I have a pretty normal job when I'm in England- I'm a youth and community worker, but in the past I have had other jobs.
So to begin with I prioritise my saving - I live pretty cheaply at home, I have no vehicle except my motorbike, Thelma. I bought her second-hand 15 years ago for £3000 (quite a bargain when you think how much travel I've done with her since) and in fact I had to only pay half the cost then as I was sharing all costs with my best friend Becky and we were two up on the bike. Again, that's another way to travel more economically is if there are two of you.
When I'm on the road I live cheaply as well- it's a question of priorities again, some people feel more comfortable in nice hotels with parking etc, I'm more likely to be in my tent halfway up a mountain somewhere, but that's mainly because I love camping and being outdoors.
Fuel is always the biggest expense for me when I am on the road- though one of the "benefits" of being from Britain is that almost everywhere you go, you can say
"oooh, the fuel is cheaper here"
Living in Europe means that shipping is minimal as we can get to every continent except the Americas and Australia/New Zealand without having to ship.
My travels have taken place over quite a number of years, which may give the impression I'm always away travelling (I wish!), when actually I've been at home a lot saving up in between these journeys. And yes, although people have at times helped me out on my trips, for example with some help on bike repairs (it's always an on-going effort as my bike is not a new one) I actually pay full for most things- those people just don't necessarily get a mention.
Free hospitality is something that is given as well as received, I host a lot of people when I'm at home- and sometimes send people to stay even when I'm not at home!
There is no magic secret to how to travel on little money- it's the passion to travel and explore that drives me, and I've found that the slower I travel the cheaper it is per day.
But I'm not a strict budget type person who has worked out exactly how much they can spend each day. I head off
with a finite amount of money, a clutch of travel dreams and come home when the money runs out....or sometimes a bit after that point has been reached and have a big credit card debt to pay off!!
It's always been worth it
I hope that might answer your questions a bit.