Walk with us through spontaneous and unapologetic adventures. Join us in budget minded Sprinter DIY successes and failures: Sleeping 4 in a Sprinter 144.
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CD’s PCT thru hike trail journals are interesting. The common themes are food, water, dust, heat, sleeping, walking, and people. It all seems pretty basic really.
Meadow track to Warner Springs. #PCT
Warner Springs offered CD an introduction to the thru hiking community. He left town with a group of 15 or so hikers and they stayed together through a hot springs North of Lost Valley Road, I think.
Looks like Truffula Trees. #PCTHot Springs North of Warner Springs. #PCT#PCT
They rinsed clothes and soaked their joints. Local characters gathered there as well included a local stripper and a guy that carried his pipe, which he preferred to light with a magnifying glass, on a string around his neck.
CD and the pipe guy went to town and returned with watermelon. Apparently watermelon is not common on thru hikes and it was a big hit!
Phlox in the burn. #PCT
That time that CD left me on the road in order to give some thru-hikers a lift to town.
I have had only one experience on the PCT in southern California. CD and I were driving from Palm Dessert to San Diego. As we approached the PCT, I could feel CD’s excitement. I could tell that he really wanted to be a trail angel for someone.
We rolled over a hill in our Honda Civic hatchback and saw two hikers waiting for a ride to town. CD pulled over before he could even tell me his plan. Next thing you know, the two hikers, their packs, and CD were out of view and I was standing on the edge of the road.
It was me, tumbleweed, and the hundreds of rattlesnakes that obviously lived there.
I was out of place in clean clothes, sandals, and with my purse over my shoulder. Another set of hikers showed up from the South. They stopped to chat. They had met on the trail in 2004, did not complete their hikes that year, but went on to get married. On the trail again, they were hoping to complete it this time. I was new to the secret code of “trail names” but we were able to figure out that they had been on the trail with CD in 2004. They had crossed paths in approximately the same section of the trail that we were on then. I thought of this today while reading their names in CD’s trail journal.
A short time later, they got picked up by a passing car. I reached back to the old fashioned communication means of my youth and asked the hikers to send CD my way if they happened to see him hanging around town. I stood there, without a cell signal, waiting for CD.
More than an hour later he came back for me. It was fine. I was fine but I like to remind how about how he deserted me on the edge of the road during a hot day in the desert and didn’t pick me up until dusk.
This came out beautifully by accident. I love the frame of the moon. #PCT
4/28/2004 was the first day of CD’s Pacific Crest Trail thru hike. April 28 is also my birthday, so we celebrate.
He kept a trail journal and has offered it to me. This is just the beginning.
#pct #pacificcresttrail
Transition to life on the trail
I know very little about his time on the PCT. The first few weeks were a time of transition and learning. He went from hiking with a friend to hiking alone. He re-organized his pack and overhauled his food plan.
Prior to being on the trail, he imagined walking and walking just to see what was over the next hill. The people and relationships that make up the trail were not really part of the plan.
Human connection
Walking over 2500 miles by yourself in order to better appreciate human relationships seems counter-intuitive. In 2020, it is also an interesting topic in light of physical distancing in the face of pandemic.
CD tells me that he experienced his first trail magic just a few days into his hike.
#pct #pacificcresttrail
Trail Magic, Pacific Crest Trail Style
I was hiking through the hundred-plus degree desert sun and contemplating how much water I didn’t have. As I was reluctant to hike too far off trail for water and was pretty sure I could make it to the next source, I laid down on the side of a dirt road and put my feet up on an embankment trying to make my own shade.
Despite the heat, a family was settling in for a picnic up the road. Within a short time, the father came up and asked me where I was hiking. He was quite excited to learn that I was, indeed, on my way to becoming a PCT through-hiker He gave me water, fruit, and Gatorade. It was just the sign that I needed to let me know that I was on the right path.
With this, CD had his first glimpse of how much larger the thru hike was than just the trail alone.
He went on to Warner Springs, feeling lonely but not as thirsty as he may have otherwise been. Fellow hikers offered him a room to share. Being early in the trail, there were more questions than answers.
Self Reflection on the Pacific Crest Trail
How fast should I hike? When and for how long should I rest? How much should I interact with people? What was my larger goal? Was there supposed to be a larger goal?
It sounds like all of these questions were a collective work in progress during the next four months.
So, every April we celebrate CD’s PCT kick-off anniversary.
In 2020, lets walk around the block and see if we find some trail magic. I bet we will.
#pct #pacificcresttrail#pct #pacificcresttrail
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Its 2020 and CD has been working on the van while social distancing. It was half taken apart but still put together enough for a day trip. I decided that today was the day that we would break out of isolation.
I woke up and quickly packed snacks, jackets, and even travel games. CD put the head liner back in the van and used the shop vac to touch up the interior. The kids were buckled in and I was choosing our road music . Then, our battery was dead.
We don’t know why it was dead. The interior lights had been disconnected while CD was working. Does anyone know if the electric step could drain the battery over time? In any case, we don’t know why it was dead. We tried to jump it with our mini van but didn’t have any luck.
We changed our plan, put everything in the Sienna and headed to Mary’s Peak. We were sure it was closed and it was. The road was gated 5 miles or so from the peak. There were 4 or 5 cars parked at the trail head near the gate. We felt good about going for a walk here in terms of social responsibility in the face of the pandemic and opted to avoid the trail and duck the gate.
It was a great choice. The road was empty. We walked for a couple of hours. The kids smiled more than they have in weeks. They kicked rocks, raced imaginary dogs, built pretend fires, and fetched sticks for each other.
social distancing. Mary’s Peak, Oregon
This was a day like I used to have when I was running fifty miles per week. There were endless things to see that I never noticed from my car. Everything was interesting and new. An owl seemed to be hiking with us. We didn’t see it but its calls were unmistakable. The trees were greener, the sun was warmer, and even gun shots from the shooting range sounded nice.
We started our hike on the road at about noon. When we returned at nearly 3:00, the parking area was overflowing with cars. As a health care worker, I immediately felt guilty about going out during these times. Then I remembered that we haven’t gone out since this March 12, 2020 when we went skiing.
Today, we only saw one other family walking on the road and we hugged our respective edges when we passed. We didn’t get near anyone in the parking lot. We ate snacks in our car. I would have felt horrible if we had been on a single track trail walking past all of the people that arrived in all of those cars.
We were lucky. Walking the road was a great choice for us and we were able to enjoy it while still feeling like we were doing the right thing.
social distancing
Back to working on the Van.
Tonight, as I write this, the Sprinter battery is charged and all is well. We had been trying to jump it using 12 gauge cables and we needed more power. When we got home from Mary’s Peak, our neighbor tossed us his jumper cables from a socially responsible distance while standing on his homemade pickle ball court. By the time the kids and I sat down for dinner, CD was busy drilling holes in 80/20.
I look forward to taking the Sprinter the next time time we break out of home isolation.
Do you dream about sleeping among the granite rock walls of the Yosemite valley? Have you heard of Camp 4?
Yosemite is impressive and beautiful.
We arrived in CD’s Honda civic. We had come from Colorado via Utah, Nevada, Southern California, and Highway 101. The mountains were a welcomed site. We were road weary and our legs were begging to hike all day.
We rolled into Camp 4. I can’t remember if we were seeking Camp 4 or if we just needed somewhere interesting to camp.
Welcome to Camp 4, Yosemite
Camp 4 is a campground and a community. It is a lifestyle choice than a housing choice and this is obvious when you are there. It is a famous home base for climbers.
The cost was $6 per person per night. There are 30 some walk – in sites. There are rocks for bouldering, granite mountain sides for climbing, and trail heads for hiking.
We were greeted with a list of rules. You must remove all food from your car and place in designated lockers. Camp 4 is loved by bears almost as much as by climbers.
We followed all of the recommended procedures. I cleaned the car, used the bear lockers, kept a clean campsite, and properly disposed of my dish water.
Camp 4, Yosemite
I convinced CD to use our largest tent. Who knows why we packed this way but we had CD’s sleeping tarp from the PCT, a new backpacking tent, and my old six person tent. It seemed logical that I would be less likely to be mauled by a bear in a six person tent than in a two person tent. CD didn’t agree but was kind enough to go a long, however.
camp 4, Yosemite. It is quiet in the afternoon.
Bears and Messy Campsites
The bears showed up at dusk, right on schedule. You could hear the classic: “hey bear” and “get out of here, bear”. Neither the bears nor the campers were particularly concerned.
The campground was relatively rowdy and a bit messy. Chip bags and beer cans were rolling around. Nobody really cared. Everyone was happy. I admit feeling a bit judgmental of the other campers food storage habits.
We passed by tons of climbers on our way to the trail.
A few hours later, the climbers from Camp 4 were below us and this was the view we found.
The view is spectacular, as you can see
Ultimately, I slept with one eye open but still felt rested. I reaped the benefits of being surrounded by free-spirits. They were having fun and it showed.
It is unlikely that I will stay at Camp 4 again since they don’t allow sleeping in the parking lot and the sites are not accessible to our van. If we sell the van, I will likely be too old and spoiled to sleep on the ground in Camp 4. I guess you never know.
As John Muir said: “And into the forest I go, to lose my mind and find my soul”.
Please check out our blogs for other National Park adventures.
It is spring in Utah when the rivers are running high, the sun is shining, and the roads are full of Colorado license plates. There is no better way to celebrate the end of ski resort employment than to leave the high country in favor of the red rocks of Utah.
I started this tradition prior to meeting CD and we continued it together every May until we moved from Colorado. Utah has so much to offer that I don’t even know where to begin. While the order is irrelevant, I will start southwest, go roughly northeast but stay south of I-70 and then end southeast near the four corners.
Zion National Park is my favorite, hands down. We have been there over and over. We have hiked end to end, climbed its peaks, and waded through its slot canyons. Its red rock is made more brilliant by the Virgin river and green trees. The proximity to the town of Springdale with its cold drinks and hot breakfast doesn’t hurt either.
The Desert Pearl, in Springdale. If you are looking for a break from camping, this place is unlikely to disappoint.
Angel’s Landing is its most well known hike. It starts with switchbacks called Walter’s Wiggles. It is well known that I love switch backs for the exercise alone. There is no better way to start the day.
It isn’t until after the switchbacks that this hike really separates itself from the rest. Angel’s landing is no joke in terms of exposure and drop offs.
The trail narrows to one way. There is a chain link railing. You are exposed to the depths of the valley floor, more so in some places than in others.
My first time up Angel’s Landing was with my brother. Making it to the top was a rush. Making it back down alive was even better. The next time was with CD. The rush was not as great but the feeling of relief after was even greater. The third time was with CD again. The steps felt more narrow and the valley floor seemed a bit further than before. With that, I decided that three times up Angel’s Landing is likely enough for me.
We looked for other routes with bigger and better views. Observation Point hit the mark. It is a more physically challenging and longer hike. It climbs 2100 feet and rises 700 feet above Angel’s Landing.
Zion, UtahAngel’s Landing
Zion, Backcountry
Back country sites are accessible from the main entrance. Below is the view from our camp site along the West Rim Trail. It is worth noting that we started the hike with a crowd headed to Angel’s Landing. As soon as we turned away from that route, we were on our own. It was super windy and we were surrounded by dead trees. We woke up in the morning to distance runners coming down the rim trail.
Zion, Kolob Canyon
Kolob Canyon is Zion’s less known North entrance. It offers day hikes and backpacking trips with few other people around. Our back country site was in an old river bottom. Much of the hiking was in loose sand. Snakes loved it.
If you have seen the wide open spaces of Zion and are ready for a change, the Narrows may be your next stop. Do your research. Be informed. Watch the weather. These slot canyons are beautiful and it is good to pay attention if you plan to do much exploring. CD met a friend there for his fortieth birthday and they didn’t end up finishing their chosen route because of flash floods.
From Zion, you can get to Bryce Canyon in a short day. It is higher and cooler. This is great in the hot months and not as great in the early spring. It is smaller and more compact. The Hoo-doos are unique and impressive. I tend to pass through Bryce westbound to Zion or eastbound to Capital Reef but CD is a fan of the views at sunrise. He also has told me good things about a coin operated shower at the general store.
Apparently, he has a great memory of enjoying a post-hike beer from the general store while sitting on the lodge porch at sunset after a hot shower.
I rarely hear people talk about Capital Reef but we have found it to offer great hiking, impressive rock formations, and amazing views. I don’t recommend hiking there if you are hoping to meet people and chit chat over hand fulls of trail mix. The trails are largely empty.
At this point it is worth mentioning the San Rafeal Swell. It offers slot canyons with campsites tucked away on BLM land. My advice: Go there, if you have time. Bring your own shade. Do what I did and go with someone that has been there before – hopefully someone proficient at navigating slot canyons. Goblin Valley State Park is near by and may be a better choice if it is your first time in the area.
The price was right but shade was sparse. This was our route to enter the slot canyon.
Canyonlands is easier to access from Moab than from the Southwest. The views are endless. The hiking is interesting and fun. Regions of the park have names like Needles, Island to Sky, and The Maze. Mountain biking the White Rim Road loop is popular and it is on my to-do list for sure. We have not camped in the back country but we have camped just outside the park and there are beautiful starry skies.
Arches is a straight shot from I-70 and is complimented by it’s close relationship with Moab. The Colorado River provides contrast to the red rock backdrop. The La Salle mountains rise up with snowy peaks and provide further contrast and depth to the scenery.
Moab is like the old west meeting a trendy art gallery. The restaurants and shops are full of personality and there are tour companies to suite everyone’s needs. You can sign up for 4 x 4 tours, mountain biking, hiking, river rafting, paddle boarding, horse back riding, and pretty much anything else you can imagine.
While I cannot speak to the tour companies, I can attest to the hiking and camping. Hikes range from easy to more difficult. Arches is typically one of the more crowded Utah parks but for good reasons. Campsites are dotted along the river banks and range from rustic and isolated to developed and popular. I recommend them all!
Just a bit East and on BLM land, you will find Castleton.
Castleton Tower from above the parking lot
Pretty much everyone was there to climb. CD climbed with friends while I hiked and then read a book at the campsite. It was great. Everyone was happy.
Hiking up to start the climb. It looked taller in person. This is where I turned around and CD went upOur tent – in the shade!
If you don’t climb, it is still beautiful to see but you will likely enjoy camping somewhere else more than camping here. This was packed with climbers and surrounded by wide open desert.
Dropping down to the four corners, you can hop into Mesa Verde. While the cliff dwellings are interesting and worth seeing, you may find a bit of crowd. My favorite feature is its proximity to Durango. Check out the Silverton Narrow Gauge railway and head North to Ouray or East towards Pagosa Springs on your way out of town.
These petroglyphs are at Mesa Verde, Utah. You can see similar markings along I-70 just West of 191.
I could keep going on and on about Utah but will stop myself here for now. Utah is dense with natural wonders. I recommend going there and seeing it first hand.
Red rock dust from ten years ago still stains my hiking boots. Seeing it makes me smile.
Please consider following our blog for more adventures.
Here we were in the middle of an Oregon winter. The sun was shining. It was nearly fifty degrees. We are waist deep in home projects and ready for a stay-cation.
Sunday morning started off lazily but the sun was too tempting to stay home.
McDonald – Dunn Forest is a short drive from our house. Using my mom instincts, I packed a light lunch and spare socks.
Sitting in the van is like a breath of fresh air. There is something comfortable, simple and refreshing about it. I think we all feel it.
The Vineyard Loop: Oregon Winter
It is a well traveled 3.4 mile route with a view from the top. We like to sit and stare off into the distance. The kids made up a game where they were having a Superbowl party for cats and dogs. They walked and talked the whole way.
We spent an hour and half walking and a half an hour in the van.
Van Life: Memories of Summertime
The kids took theirs shoes off and hopped up on the bed. They looked out the window with the door open and the sun shining in. I got the snacks out but they didn’t eat. CD and I ate the cheese and crackers until it was time to go. I am sure that they would have stayed up there looking out all day.
Sprinter life requires a different pace. It is good to be reminded that a slower pace is just fine too.
Our trailThe trail is easy to find. Trees and sky. A scene from a book. Our view was perfect. The end of the trail.The woods were green and wet with rain and it was a great day. The woods are thick and full of lichen, of course.
Some Colorado hikes are so great that it doesn’t seem right to put them out there on the internet for everyone to see.
Most places are already fully accessible online, however. They are all likely more crowded than before the internet existed. The crowds are not because of my little blog. In the interest of sharing some great spots, I will start will a great one.
Mayflower Gulch is the sort of hike that you see in magazines or on television. It is picturesque.
It was a weekday afternoon type of hike for us when we lived in Summit County. According to the internet it is a 5.9 mile loop. It didn’t seem that far. The trail head is less than 10 miles towards Leadville from I-70. The road is well traveled.
As with many hikes in the high country, I recommend it in the winter. With snow it is quiet and light. There will likely be a few other people there but they will all be smiling.
Skis with climbing skins, Nordic skis, snow shoes, or boots will all typically work well for this trek. Old mining cabins mark the end of the trail and offer a good place for lunch with a side of inspiration.
We have tried nearly every backpack child carrier on the market. Each one has pros and cons but mostly cons. My shoulders and back ache. Each one is bulky, awkward, and inconvenient to wear when the kids want to walk.
Then, one day we saw the <a href="http:// “>Piggyback Rider standing child carrier. In that moment our kid’s carrier hiking problems were solved!
All of us can relax! My back and neck feel great. When they are young, there is a safety strap that prevents falling and when they are older, then can just hold onto the straps.
3. It packs small.
The Piggyback Rider stores either on a peg board in our garage or in our car. The size is minimal. It is light to carry and even the kids will carry it when we are not using it.
Take it out of the carrying case and put it on. It is that simple. The safety strap is also easy to attach. Our kids hop on and off often in a single hike; the transition is quick and painless. Nobody cries.
Cons:
1. Price.
While just over $100, the price is in line with other similar hiking products.
It packs small enough that we have occasionally forgotten where we put it. This is really the our fault more than that of the carrier. I assure you that this never happens with a backpack carrier.
3. I sometimes get mud from shoes on my jacket.
This happens with every carrier and it is just part of going outside with kids I guess!
4. It doesn’t have the storage of backpack kids carriers.
I will gladly pack light, carry a shoulder bag, or do just about anything to avoid carrying a heavy backpack carrier, so this doesn’t bother me!
The Piggyback Rider Standing Child Carrier saved our hike many times. I envy their view from up there!
don’t forget your child carrier!
Disclosure: Please note that this post contains affiliate links. This means that we may get a small commission if you click a link and purchase something that we recommend. Clicking these links will not cost you extra money but will help us grow our website. Thank you for your support!
We live in the Willamette Valley and enjoy camping in Oregon.
The coastal range is to the East and the Cascades to the West. It rains; it is wet. Lichen and fungi are prolific.
CD and I met in the high mountains of Colorado. The high desert is a comfortable climate for us. With that being said, we both enjoy the Willamette Valley. It is not typically until I leave the valley that I realize how much more comfortable I am with brown pine needles than with banana slugs and trees chocked by lichen.
Birthday Weekend Camping: Oregon
It was CD’s birthday weekend. We had been home from our summer trip for less than a month. Our Oregon to Oregon odometer reading for the summer was 8528 miles and our trip timer reading was 190 hours and 55 minutes. Even with just having returned home, we missed the Sprinter life. The kids and I suggested an overnight camping trip for CD’s birthday. It needed to be a quick 1 night get-away.
We all agreed to drive East towards Sisters. CD had eyed up a few places and chose Suttle Lake mostly because we were short on time. It wasn’t as far as Sisters or Bend but was still on the dry side of the pass. There were several National Forest campgrounds and had easy access from the highway. Although he is not a fisherman, CD was kind enough to suggest that the kids and I bring our fishing poles and try our luck. We were sold.
If you have even driven Highway 20 from I-5 to Sisters, you may remember that there is a tipping point were the lichen stops and the high desert begins. I can’t tell you at exactly which mile marker this happens. This time, I didn’t think much of it until we pulled in to the campground. The ground and the air was dry.
The campgrounds were only a few miles from the highway. We drove through Blue Bay campground. It was nice but we kept going and settled on Link Creek.
Link Creek Campground
There were plenty of sites available. We chose a central site so that the kids could fish from the dock and we could see them from the van. There was a dirt boat launch, fish cleaning stations, and pit toilets. The sites were plenty large and it was generally clean.
It was CD’s birthday so he was calling the shots. CD was happy to sit on the picnic table, strum his guitar, and enjoy the air. The view wasn’t anything spectacular.
Sprinter DIY. #vanlifeSprinter DIY. #vanlife
I set up the kids fishing poles and started dinner. There were a few boats on the lake. From where we stood, it was shallow and not very inviting for swimming. It may be noted, however, that I was born and raised in Michigan and have high fresh water standards.
The Boats, Oregon Camping at Suttle Lake
In any case, it wasn’t long before we heard a motor revving. Some sort of race boat with two exhaust pipes sticking up launched at the adjacent dock and was driving around the lake. This lake isn’t huge, by the way. The boat would speed around the lake two or three times, then idle for a bit. When it was driving it was so loud that we could barely talk to each other. I am sure other campers were irritated but I was more amazed, interested, and surprised. The whole thing went on for an hour or so and then they loaded the boat on the trailer and drove away.
The second most interesting thing we saw was a good sized cabin cruiser. It was anchored off shore a bit. Again, this is not a huge lake. I assumed they would sleep there but rather than doing so, they pulled into the dock at the campground and slept in a tent.
I guess people really love boating on this lake. Based on our lack of success fishing and the fishing equipment on their boat, it occurred to me that you may need a boat to get to the fish.
Several campers had kayaks pulled up on shore and easily accessed by walking paths from their campsites. This seemed like a nice idea to me.
The Great Awning Experiment
By the time the kids and I got back, CD was fully immersed in his much anticipated awning experiment. Years ago he made an awning for our minivan. He had been wanting to try it out on the Sprinter. Rain was expected over night and I guess he decided this was his chance.
Here it is. Don’t trip over the guylines. Sprinter DIY. Oregon camping oregon camping
Well, he did it. It was set up and surprisingly solid. I was curious about the sag in the middle but it sounded like he had a plan. The guylines were a bit of a hazard but I was willing to humor him and give the thing a try. It was his birthday after all.
He told me to walk around the van to see how he secured the awning.
This is what I found:
oregon camping
He seemed to know it was ridiculous and not any sort of ground breaking invention. Since we couldn’t open the driver’s side door, it was barely even a short term solution but he was so happy.
HB woke up around dawn. We found a bridge that we had failed to see the night before. There were fish rising and jumping all over the place. We tried every fishing trick I knew but they just didn’t bite. We watched the sun come up, saw trail runners and walked some of the trail. It may be worth mentioning that you can see and hear highway 20 while standing on the shore but we didn’t notice this from our campsite.
Shortly after CD and Grace woke up, the skies opened up. The awning held. We ate oatmeal in the van and broke camp.
The Suttle Lodge
CD was curious about the Suttle Lake Lodge. It was near Highway 20 and not far off the road. We walked into the main lodge and were greeted by a crowded room of happy lodge guests. There was shelf after shelf of board games. The dining area was community style with big long tables next to sofas and coffee tables. Dogs were welcome and everyone was smiling. Big windows and glass doors offered a lake view. A large patio and lawn were beyond. There were docks with row boats and fishing boats for rent.
I am quite sure that CD didn’t intend to spend time or money here but it was just too tempting. I ordered fresh squeezed orange juice, grapefruit juice, and an egg sandwich with aged cheddar.
We already had breakfast at camp but the opportunity to drink fresh squeezed juice while playing board games by a hot fire with tons of happy people just seemed like the right thing to do. The kitchen was slow but for good reason. The place was packed and they were obviously making every order one by one. We didn’t mind the wait.
In Summary,Oregon Camping Review:
Would I camp at Suttle Lake again? Probably not.
What would I do differently if camped there again? Walk, boat, or bike to breakfast at the Suttle Lake Lodge. Spend time playing corn hole and drinking fresh juice. I may consider happy hour at the lodge too. I may consider just staying at the lodge if I need an easy to get to lodging location for a few people that like that kind of thing.
I could write dozens of blogs about products we use and love in our Sprinter. Each time we change the layout of the van or try a new design, we end up with new products. Some last the test of time; others are quickly proven ineffective and re-purposed or passed on to the next person. The most important products are best discussed in detail with friends on a Friday afternoon. In any case, here is a minimalist’s Sprinter shopping list.
Disclosure: Please note that this post contains affiliate links. This means that we may get a small commission if you click a link and purchase something that we recommend. Clicking these links will not cost you extra money but will help us grow our website. Thank you for your support!
Light My Fire Titanium Spork
Light My Fire Titanium Spork: We stand by the titanium model but please beware that if you pair stainless steel plates with a titanium spork, you may have to tolerate the metal on metal scraping noise.
For those of you that are not quite ready to commit to titanium, there is a plastic model as well.
3 mm Accessory Cord
3 mm accessory cord: CD’s exact words are: “3 mm cord is handy“. It may be because CD knows every knot and when exactly to use every knot but I actually am starting to believe that string is an important travel accessory. Regarding everyday use, we have a piece approximately 6 inches off the floor of the van, extending from one end of the kids seat to the other. This cord keeps the storage boxes under each seat from sliding across the floor and it is quite effective!
Plastic Soap Dish
Plastic Soap Dish: When CD recommended this, I laughed. It reminded me of going to the community pool in 1985. That led me to consider going to garage sales looking for one. I don’t really like shopping, however.
I soon admitted that the best option was to just spend a few dollars, sacrifice a little plastic, and buy a soap dish. Wow, what a game changer. Our Sprinter has a hand washing station and now our bar of soap stays nicely in its soap dish.
CD has commented that he is glad we didn’t have one of these before we had kids or else we may have doubled the length of all of our trips by just driving around to get our stamps.
Hydroflask
Hydroflask: We live in Oregon. This is standard equipment. It really keeps hot drinks hot and cold drinks cold. It doesn’t leak. Try it!
Dustpan and Brush
Dustpan and Brush: This is another one that I thought I would never use. CD had this in his Honda Civic when we met. I never used it and was actually against using it. I just thought it was crazy and the car would be sandy anyway.
My opinion has since changed. Last summer CD caught me brushing out the van floor, step, and seats. Once I started, I just couldn’t stop. I keep this next to the sliding door, secured by 3 mm climbing cord, of course.
A quick brush of sand or dirt off the step or floor is super satisfying. It may be the mom in me speaking but I just can’t see traveling without it!
All The World by Liz Garton Scanlon
All the World by Liz Garton Scanlon.
We travel with the smallest version of this book. We love it. It inspires us. The full size edition is great for a baby shower, grandparents gifts, or just anyone that appreciates a pick me up.
“Hope and Peace and Love and Trust, All the World is All of US”.
Headlamp
Head Lamp: The kids and CD love their headlamps. I prefer to use my “night vision”. Ha! I am sure we couldn’t travel without these!
Notebook
Notebook: An old fashioned lined notebook . There is just something great about it!
Portable Charger
Portable Charger: We charge this each day using our portable solar panel. Then we charge our cell phones or whatever else. It has saved us tons of times. We have the Jackery Bolt 6000 mAh
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Portable Solar Panel
Portable Solar Panel: We have the Biolite Solar Panel 5 and we like it. It even works on cloudy days.
Small Wooden Cutting Board
When you eat cheese and crackers everyday you need a good cutting board!
Have fun out there!
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Rambling Footsteps 