Ted,

Plenty of good comments about whether one should borrow from the future to pay for one's dreams now so not much to add there. Have fun with whatever you finally decide.

Having said that, there is a pretty big gap when you mention what you are planning to do when you come back.

If you are serious about starting a new business, unless you are one in a hundred, most new businesses require start up capital, take a while to be profitable, take even longer to be cash flow positive, and take even longer than that to be profitable enough to match the wages you would earn working in a regular job.

The first stage of your plan doesn't mesh with the next stage I am afraid. If you are serious about it, you will need every bit of capital to start and succeed at your new business. If it isn't required to pay for getting things going, then it will be needed to pay for you living expenses while you wait for things to take off, or it will be needed for the never ending list of things required to grow your business to the next level.

There is an opportunity cost of taking on debt now. You are using it for short term consumption as opposed to investment in a longer term income generating asset down the road. Certainly not the end of the world to do so, but be very aware of the pros and cons and include those in your calculation.

Ride safe.