Overland Expo West 2015

I overheard someone describe the Overland Expo as the Woodstock of overlanding. It truly is. The Overland Expo is probably the largest gathering of overlanding enthusiasts in North America. People come from all over the world get connected and get inspired.

What is overlanding? I think at its most base definition, overlanding refers to traveling over land which encompases every form of traveling ranging from walking to driving. Often, overlanding is associated with off roading. The reason for this is because the majority of the landmasses in the world can only be explored "off road". Wikipedia defines overlanding as:

“Overlanding is self-reliant overland travel to remote destinations where the journey is the principal goal. Typically, but not exclusively, it is accomplished with mechanized off-road capable transport (from bicycles to trucks) where the principal form of lodging is camping, often lasting for extended lengths of time (months to years) and spanning international boundaries.”

— Wikipedia

At the expo, you may browse the exhibitor booths, attend various classes and presentations, and meet some of the most fascinating people I've had the chance to meet. This year, I got to meet Danell Lynn in person. She is a solo female motorcyclist who has already traveled some 30,000 miles of dirt road traveling around the United States and Canada. I attended her presentation about her travels and I have nothing but complete admiration for what she is doing. Currently, she has authored Philanthropic Wanderlust which talks about her philanthropic work. She said she will eventually write a book about her current travels and I'm definitely looking forward to reading it as well.

Danell Lynn

This year, I also mustered up the courage to talk to the people from Expedition Overland, the people who were in the Expedition Overland: Alaska/Yukon Youtube video series. I definitely had a huge moment of fangirl gushing as I shook hands with Jeff Downer, mechanic on the X Overland Crew. Jeff was super friendly and gave me some tips for my own Alaska/Yukon adventure. He even showed me how to repair a punctured tire using the ARB Tire Repair Kit and how their ARB air compressor was rigged up under the hood of their Toyota 4 Runner. Regretably, I forgot to take a picture as I was completely overwhelmed by the experience of getting to meet my overlanding idols. I'm extremely excited for their new video series from their South America trip which should be released July 2015.

Other random things I did include going to classes on how to read topographic maps and what the US governement can do for you when you go to jail in a foreign country. The class on map reading was taught by a man who had worked for the US governement as a map maker for 30 years. The class on getting arrested was taught by a man who works for the US Consulate. I also attended a couple presentations on traveling to Alaska/Canada, how to create a travel budget, and how to both plan a trip and what happens when your trip ends. Lastly, I spent a good chunk of time volunteering which gave my weekend a bit of structure.

The funny thing about the Overland Expo is that at the expo the idea of longterm travel isn't "crazy" or "out there". The kind of travel that I'm undertaking is not unique. There are oodles of people at the expo just dying to tell you about their own experiences exploring the world. I once saw a motorcycle with a small sticker of the flag of each country the couple riding the motorcycle had visited at Overland Expo East 2014. 

All the flags!

The best part is that the overlanding community's "celebrities" haven't done anything you or I couldn't do. The only difference is that they dared to do it. None of the reasons people say it can't be done hold any water because I'm sure you can find an example of someone who has done it with any number of constraints. Are you a single woman? married with kids? poor? inexperienced? mechanically illiterate? too young? too old? It's been done.

One of the most interesting things I've noticed at the expo is the recurring theme of people saying "I just trust" or "I have faith". I don't think that everyone who expresses these sentiments believes that a divine force is at hand. But, I do believe it is a testament of human's desire to help each other out and how sometimes things in life fall so perfectly into place that you wonder whether there was something divine at play.

Overall, I had a great time at the expo despite the record setting amount of rain, snow, and mud. I'm definitely planning on going to the Overland Expo East 2015. Hope to see you there!

What are your travel dreams? What's holding you back?

Here are some pictures of rigs I saw.

I love the fold-down on the swingout

Sometimes it takes 4 vehicles to pull an RV out of a mud field

First Leg

Where should I start? So much has happened since I've left and it's only been one week.

Today was a glorious day! Namely, I was able to take a shower! The shower was a whole $2 in quarters. Those eight quarters got me a spankin' five minutes of shower water to wash off four days worth of silt and all its dusty cousins. On top of feeling so clean (I sparkle), I purchased a new sleeping mat from REI which is a full 2.5 inches thick! You too would find the prospect of sleeping on this mat something rivaling the concept of heaven if you'd literally been sleeping on a slab of 3/4"  plywood for the last four days. Sleeping on plywood is bad news for those of you side sleepers. I'm pretty sure my hips are bruised every which way. Lastly, I'm happy to be out of the mud pits (aka. Mormon Lake, AZ) and sitting at this quaint coffee shop called Campus Coffee which someone from the Overland Expo recomended to me. For those of you unfamiliar with the outcome of mixing desert with torrential rains and even some percepitation in the form of snow (SNOW!), you get MUD, lots. Add thousands of monster 4x4 rigs tearing up the sparse vegetation covering the lake bed and you get a muddy mess. As much as I love the outdoors, there are two things I have a really hard time with: mosquitos and mud. 

Anyway, I'm sure you'd like to know what I've been up to.

St Paul, MN to Denver, CO

Apparently, a lot of people who embark on these kinds of travel journeys have big sendoffs replete with tears and film coverage. For me, it was rather uneventful as was the first leg of the trip to Denver. Fortunately, I was joined by my friend, Mara, for this first portion. It worked out perfectly that she needed to be in Denver for work the same weekend I needed to at the Overland Expo. Big shoutout to all those who came to see my rig and let me show it off a little!

Camping in Kearny, NE

There's a night and day difference between the flat plains of Nebraska and the rolling hills of Colorado. As soon as you cross the border, the hills get bigger and bigger until BOOM! You're in the Rockies!

First close view of Rocky snow caps

So many elk!

Double Rainbow!

Due to time constraints and the weather, we were not able to do much hiking. But, we did make it to Rocky Mountain National Park. We made it a whole 11 miles up Trail Ridge, which is the east/west pass across the mountains. The road was closed due to snowfall. I found it quizzical how many people wearing shorts decided to light up at an altitude above 7,000 ft while it was snowing. Since Trail Ridge was closed, we took Hwy 7 back to Denver to wrap up our Rockies sight seeing which was definitely worth the drive.

Denver, CO to Flagstaff, AZ

Having dropped Mara off at work, I took off to Flagstaff, AZ. I still don't understand the whole timezone and daylight savings thing that Arizona practices, but the end effect was that I somehow made it to Flagstaff, AZ by 7pm, which was exactly the latest I could arrive at the Overland Expo per the instructions I'd received.

The drive from Denver to Flagstaff was probably one of the most scenic drives I've ever done. It felt like at every turn there was some wondrous scenery awaiting. I really enjoyed seeing the dramatic change from mountains to canyons and back to mountains. One thing that caught me off guard were the school bus stops along roads with 75 mile speed limits. Seriously, how can you pay attention to children crossing the road when you're goosenecking to see rock formations in places called names like Valley of the Gods.

Colorado

Utah

Arizona

Next up - Overland Expo

Planning A Year of Travel

The birth of an idea

There wasn't one defining moment when I decided to plan a year of travel. I didn't wake up one morning and realize all I'd ever wanted to do in life was travel. Ironically, traveling gives me mild anxiety to the point I become the person who gets ready for a trip at the last moment possible. So, how did this plan come about?

I went back to work back to work in the fall of 2013. The idea of going back to a familiar life routine appealed to me. Inspired by a friend, I implemented a personal spending freeze in January 2014. Basically, all non-essential expenditures were halted. At the time, I just thought it was an intriguing idea and wanted to try it out. In conjunction with the spending freeze, I kept track of all my expenditures, an exercise I hadn't done since 2009. I did know that if I ever wanted to go on another adventure, I'd probably need money to do it.

Sometime during the summer of 2014, I happened upon the tiny house movement and dove into research. I discovered a subset of lifestyles ranging from the transient poor, to minimalists, to boondockers, to overlanders, etc. One thing led to another and I found myself driving over 2,000 miles to attend the Overland Expo in Fletcher, NC inspired by the Expeditions Overland Alaska/Yukon series on Youtube.

Overland Expo, Fletcher, NC

The Overland Expo was an eye-opening experience and motivated me to get serious planning my own adventure. I started reading. I read everything I could find related to extended road trips. Even though there was limited information out there specifically related to the kind of travel I envisioned, I was able to piece together a plan.

The justification

In general, it's hard to convince me of doing something if it makes no sense. So, how does it make sense to leave full-time stable employment to live out of a truck?

Here's how I see it. 

When it comes to travel, it's important to find the balance between where it is you are going and how much time you have to do it to make it worth your while. It makes no sense to plan a one week vacation to Alaska and spend four of those days in transit. If you find yourself short on time, travel can become more stressful than the stress of the regular life you were trying to escape from. Not only is traveling more stressful when you're going at lightning speed, but the faster you travel, the more expensive it will be.

The numbers: It's more efficient. At the rate I was going, I could plan on a solid week vacation once a year or so depending on the other competing demands on my annual leave. So, maybe over the course of my career, I'd be able to travel another 30 times while spending a lot of money on transportation, lodging, eating out, etc. Taking a year to travel would allow me to travel slower and spend less total time in transit since I could see places in a more efficient order than repeatedly returning home. I'd also be able to travel to places which would be both time and cost prohibitive such as going to Alaska or going to the National Field Archery Association Vegas Shoot. I figured that the cost of living out of a truck (including acquisition cost of the truck) would easily amount to the cost of my 30 week long vacations over 30 years.

The other: It's important to do the things that make you feel alive. There came a point where thinking about this adventure consumed my thoughts. I hadn't even realized how consumed I was by the ideas until on random occasions I would talk to someone about it and everything just poured out. The ideas coming to me felt crazy and completely outside of anything I'd ever considered. The only thing different about it and my regular life was that I felt absolutely enlivened thinking about traveling. 

The plan

The plan evolved over the course of ten months and is still evolving. It currently involves exploring North America for as long as it is financial feasible or until I don't want to anymore, whichever one comes first. I don't have an official bucket list, but there have been many places I've wanted to visit. Some places have been on the to-visit list for a very long time. My primary interests are visiting National Parks, UNESCO Heritage Sites, the Smithsonian, Alaska, and as many gay villages I can in every part of the United States. I’m hoping to also do some volunteer work and maybe some odd jobs. Overall, no matter where I go, I intend to travel slowly. If you have any suggestions or things I must see or do, please let me know in the comments below.

During the trip, I will be living primarily out of my truck. In short, it’s been modified so that I can have outlet power in the back of the truck to power an ARB 37qt Fridge Freezer. The reason for running a fridge is that I figured I’d easily spend the cost of the fridge eating out. Having cooling will also allow me to eat a wider selection of fresh food while on the road. You can read more about how the Tacoma was modified in The Build: Research and Research (Part 1), The Build: A Course in Miracles (Part 2), and The Build: Dual Battery System with Isolator and/or Solar Panels (Part 3).

The kinds of places I will likely be staying at include: camp grounds in national/state/local parks, national forests, and Bureau of Land Management land. Other places may include truck stops and parking lots. While in urban areas, I may also do a little couchsurfing or Air BnB. And, with the grace of my friends, I might even stay on their driveways. Know of any good places to stay? Let me know in the comments below.