With the end of one year and the beginning of another we think about where we are, where we want to be, and most importantly what we want to do. How will we spend our time this next year? What will we accomplish? Since the new year stimulates reflection and planning we thought it was time to share the back-story of how we came to live this simple roaming existence in Stan the Tan Van. When I sat down to write…
2017 was probably the biggest year of change and travel plans in our lives yet. We got rid of almost everything we owned, moved into a van, and started road tripping around the US. We created this blog and a few of you lovelies actually read it. Tom started working remotely as an eLearning Developer. We met new people, tried new things, and learned so much. Here’s our year by the numbers. 18,545 miles driven 21 national parks explored 29…
After our sandy and snowy time in Colorado we made our way to the last stop on this leg of the journey—South Dakota. While the comforts of family, friends, and (let’s be honest) showering regularly are inviting, we’re sad to end this travel session. We plan to go out with a bang though and have many grand plans for South Dakota. There’s not one, but two caves close in proximity to one-another—Wind Cave and Jewel Cave. If you haven’t noticed,…
The Work Vanlife Balance, Volume 3 You want to travel long-term. Be free from daily commutes and office lighting. Watch sunsets by the ocean, count the stars in the Milky Way, and sleep by mountain streams. But you don’t want to starve. You don’t want a vehicle break down or medical emergency to end all your travel plans. And, admit it, you still want an iPhone with unlimited data. That means you need to find a career conducive to travel….
15 Awesome Things for Living in a Van Down by the River (or really anywhere outside) It’s been a few months since we shared our outdoor and van life gear lists. We’ve recently added some awesome items to our rolling home so it’s time for an update. You don’t need to live in a van down by the river to appreciate these things though. Many of them are perfect for any outdoor adventure. We’ve found that outdoor products aren’t always…
The Work Vanlife Balance, Volume 2 Being a digital nomad has its benefits. Not having to participate in the 9 to 5 grind. Removing yourself from office politics. New experiences while traveling the country or world. However, there are some considerations. The first installment of the Work Vanlife Balance covered 5 Things to Consider if you want to be a Digital Nomad. While taking your career on the road may be an exciting prospect, you must consider you’ll be taking…
The Work Vanlife Balance, Volume 1 Long term travel and a career—the life of the Digital Nomad. To work remotely and leave behind the 9 to 5 grind. To hit the road and travel the continent (or more!). While either one of these accomplishments may be what some employees dream about while sitting in their 6 x 6 cubicle, balancing a life of travel and the responsibilities of work can be tricky. That’s why we’ve started the Work Vanlife Balance…
Great Basin National Park. The name makes us think that the park will be mostly flat, centered around one of the many basins scattered across Nevada. Once again, Nevada had a surprise for us. Great Basin NP is actually centered around the Snake Mountain Range. There’s a huge diversity of landscapes and ecosystems to see in Nevada’s only national park. Lehman Caves Another surprise was finding out that Great Basin NP has a cave system to explore. All explorations are…
First Things First We don’t want the announcement to get eclipsed (see what I did there?) so let’s start with the reveal. No, we didn’t get a dog. Sorry to disappoint. Our announcement is that Tom’s starting e-learning development work again on a contract basis. We’re extremely excited about this because it’s the first big step in making this new lifestyle sustainable for the longer-term. So what does this mean for the blog? Well, I’m going to take over more…
Our first two days back on the road and heading west started well and seemed to help us achieve our balance goals. The first day we made it from Green Bay, WI to central North Dakota. The free campsite we’d picked turned out to be exactly what we needed. Our day ended by watching the sunset over the rolling grassy hills of North Dakota. Enchanted Highway We pushed to cover a lot of ground the first day so that we…