Driving a campervan changes everything about how you experience the road. The views are better from up high, the adventures feel closer, and the freedom is real. But there’s a catch that every van lifer discovers within the first week: you essentially cannot see what’s directly behind you. The rearview mirror that worked fine in … Read more
I used to be a chronic over-packer. Two checked bags for a four-day trip. A carry-on stuffed so full the zipper screamed for mercy. A personal item bursting with “just in case” items I never touched. Then, on a flight home from Phoenix last summer, the airline lost both my checked bags for 36 hours, … Read more
My dog Moose has logged more miles than most people I know. Three national parks, fourteen state forests, and enough dirt roads to fill an atlas. He turned seven this spring, and somewhere around our third breakdown on a fire road in the Ozarks last fall, I promised myself I’d stop treating his comfort as … Read more
There’s a specific moment when a cabin weekend clicks into place. For me, it happens on the first evening — cooler full of food, fire going, porch chair creaking underneath me, and the kind of silence you forget exists when you live in a city. But getting to that moment? That requires gear. And not … Read more
I’ve been driving the same crossover for five years. It’s fine. It gets me to the grocery store and back, handles the occasional weekend hike, and the cargo area has swallowed enough camping gear to justify its existence. But last month, halfway through a 14-hour drive to Utah, I realized something: my car wasn’t built … Read more
There is a particular kind of dread that settles in when you notice water dripping inside your campervan. You spent weeks measuring, cutting, and installing windows. You checked the weatherstripping. You tightened every screw. And still, after the first real rainstorm, there it is — a small trail of water working its way down the … Read more
Why Your Van’s Electrical System Matters More Than You Think There’s a moment every van builder hits: standing in an empty cargo van, staring at bare metal walls, trying to imagine where the wires will go. It’s equal parts exciting and terrifying. The electrical system is the nervous system of your camper van. Get it … Read more
I’ve been doing this travel thing long enough to know that the difference between a trip that sings and one that sputters usually comes down to what’s rattling around in your trunk. Not the destination, not the playlist — the gear. And with Amazon Prime Day rolling in June 23rd through the 26th, I’ve been … Read more
It was 103 degrees in Rome, and I was standing in line at the Colosseum wondering if I’d made a terrible mistake. My shirt was soaked through, my energy was tanking, and the couple next to me looked remarkably comfortable — each wearing a sleek device around their neck that was quietly blowing cool air. … Read more
There’s a specific kind of freedom that comes with turning on a faucet in the middle of nowhere and watching clean water flow out. No hookups, no campground fee, no ranger telling you to move along. Just you, your van, and enough water to cook dinner, wash the dishes, and maybe take a quick shower … Read more