Maybe I’ll be back out on the road again soon. On the road again. The open road. Desert nights reaching out in front of me. Star filled skies while crickets sing. Red dust entering each crack in my skin, becoming a part of me. Rock beneath my bare feet and a horizon endless in every direction. Mountains that rise out of the landscape to meet the sunrise. Each new day the same sun on the same mountains. At least they will all still be here, even when I am long gone. My mountains and rivers, the sun will remain. Not moving, not changing. The desert, the high desert is adapted for extremes. That is where we thrive. In the extreme. In the balance between what is seemingly unbelievable. In the high winds, heat, blizzards, drought our skin grows thicker and more resilient, our bodies adapt to what we are provided. To what we have been gifted with, in the new day. It's not easy and no it's not simple, not comfortable but that's where I thrive. On the edge of extremes. Carefully balanced on a precipice, the place between danger and compliance. Thrill and boredom. The waves lapping at the shores and the ridgelines that carve the clouds. Balanced between what once was and what is soon to be.
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A year ago, I built out my Subaru. I had no idea what I was doing, never did I think that my journeys would take me as far as they did. My Subaru became my house, my home, my constant. A year ago this journey began.
You know the rest.
And now it’s probably stuck in your head as well, you are welcome! Anyway, now that I am settled down back at college I have had multiple people ask about my adventures; so here's a brief recap of everything for y’all! November 2020 - Build out of the Subaru and move to Montana! I ended the fall semester of online classes and jumped into my car eager to travel and get away from the computer screen. I moved to Montana and into a bus with a friend, I worked as an Activities Guide at Paws Up in Greenough, MT. I worked everything from kids camp to hot air balloon crew, and guided activities like skiing, ice-skating, curling, hatchet throwing, shooting, and electric fat bike tours. February 2021 - Move to Moab I left MT in February to start my job in Moab on March 1. My contract with Paws Up was ending and I was itching to travel to someplace sunny and warm. In Moab, I worked at Moab Gear Trader as a Sales Associate. I enjoyed getting to know the community and expanding my knowledge of recreational gear for the outdoors, not to mention how much I loved the location. With my background in geology and a passion for cool rocks, this was the perfect place. My days off were full of climbing, canyoneering, river trips, hiking, and exploring the national parks. While living and travelling in my Subie in Moab I had decided that vehicle dwelling was something that I wanted to do for an extended time - like, years. June 2021 - Move back to Oregon and Van In June I left Moab to drive back to my hometown. The lifestyle on the road of minimizing, simplifying, constant movement, and endless exploration had me completely enthralled. Not to mention that it fulfills my desire to be extremely independent and mobile. At this point in time, I had been looking to upgrade to a bigger vehicle for months and I finally found the van that spoke to me - my 2011 Ford Transit Connect. Mid-June 2021 - Keck Geology Shenandoah Valley, VA I flew to Virginia in June after purchasing my van and leaving it at home. At Washington and Lee University I worked on a team with 8 other researchers and 2 professors to look at Manganese and other trace contaminants in the Shenandoah Valley. I specifically was looking at the geochemical characteristics in legacy sediments; which I will be continuing to study and eventually present for my thesis project. Mid-July 2021 - Van build and Road Trip I flew home in late July to finish building my van and move everything in. It took me about two weeks of working all day to get it to where it is now. I only did two weeks of work because in early August I left to do one last road trip before the semester started. I drove to the Redwoods in California to meet two of my friends who were on motorcycles. We worked our way up 101 all the way to the Olympic Peninsula in a 3 week journey. Today (August 31) is my first day of classes back at college! whew! . . . OF THOUSANDS OF JOURNAL ENTRIES
wake up early, watch the sunrise. take care of your body. love unconditionally. be kind. always. bring light, and joy, and energy. forgive. claim your spot on this earth. stand strong and be loud. fight, endlessly - for what you love. love hard. never forget. never forget why you are alive. leave your mark. watch the sunset, welcome the stars. dance under the light of the moon and never forget to live. celebrate. How I built my Subaru Impreza for off-grid adventures!
2006 Subaru Impreza Outback - Named Lolo I bought my used car from an independent seller who was on Facebook Marketplace. I am lucky because I was able to bring a friend with me. He looked at the car and was able to check everything out and make sure the car was sound mechanically. It has been an amazing car and with a manual transmission and snow tires (Blizzak) it handles amazingly, even in Montana in the winter. I have taken this thing on dirt roads, 4X4 roads, and driven it across many states. My only complaints are about the low clearance and minimal space in the car. I have bottomed out a few times trying to reach the best boondocking destinations - I quickly learned how to pick the right lines! The other difficulty I have faced is just the minimal living space on the inside, I can't even sit up in my bed. This is great for short journeys, and logging highway miles (you can't beat 30 MPG!) but not for me for the long term. Yakima Rocketbox This has been my favorite addition to the crew. This Yakima rocket box fits perfectly on top of Lolo. I bought it used, from someone on craigslist. It's about 3x5 feet and has so much great space for storage. I have had no problems with it rattling around, it actually helped so the crossbars don’t make a whistling sound anymore when I am on the highway. Right now I store all of my outdoor gear up there - helmets, winter gear, climbing gear, backpacking gear, slackline, and more. My skis are kept in my car next to my bed. If I were to be doing this again I would definitely buy a longer box that could fit my skis. I have spent many nights cuddling with ski bindings. The Bed The mattress I got for the back of the car I bought at Joann Fabrics. It's 2 inches of high density foam that I cut to fit around the wheel well. This is nice because the bed is 24 inches wide in most places and therefore not too incredibly narrow for one small person. Under the bed I have a piece of plywood that acts as support over the seats that I folded down, creating a flat surface. Storage There are two main types of storage units that I have in the car. I have some plastic store bought boxes that I have had for years that just happen to fit perfectly in the car and stack nicely. They are also waterproof which is nice for when I leave them outside in the rain. One is for all of my food, and the other two have all my clothes. I also built three 14”x14”x14” boxes to stack in the back which form my kitchen, library, and art supplies storage. These took me three or four days to finish I made them from ⅜ inch birch ply because I knew I wanted them to be light and look nice. I used nails and wood glue to put these together and coated them in a water based polycrylic finish. Water For water, I carry a 6 gallon jerrycan and a 2.5 gallon collapsible square container with a spigot for everyday use. The larger 6 gallon fits behind my passenger seat perfectly on the floor and I use that to refill the smaller container. The smaller container I place on a tripod chair to have easy access to “running” water. Kitchen I use a piece of birch plywood cut to fit over the box in the back that also extends over my bed. I sealed this piece of plywood with the polycrylic protective finish. To cook, I have a mini coleman 2-burner stove. I also have a small cutting board, coffee press, cast iron, and pot. Cooler I gave up on a cooler. I don't want to buy ice and I do not have enough space to fit one inside the car. Lights I have fairy lights tacked up inside my car that run on batteries. I also bought a Luci light that is solar powered that I like to hang outside the car for when I am cooking or just hanging out. Oh, how I love to be on the road...
I drove away from my home in Oregon 8 months ago and now I realize that I have gotten to the point where I think of the road as my home, my one constant. Travelling solo has taught me so much about myself and about the world. Some days were really difficult, I struggled or hit low points - my car (aka my home) broke down one night spraying coolant everywhere, and another time the alternator decided it was time to go. Other times I spent evenings feeling all alone or was unable to sleep because of a feeling of fear or discomfort. But the road is where I feel alive - where I feel most true to myself. Driving long dirt roads in the desert, singing songs and the wind whipping my hair, dancing under the stars, hiking, running, climbing, 500 ft high on an exposed cliff face, soaking up the sun, dirt... everywhere, and meeting new incredible people, hearing their unique story, the beauty of community, building a community. My life shifted course one evening while I was sitting alone on a ridge overlooking an arid desert lansdcape. This was day 3 in the backcountry, no phone service, no man made structures, no water sources, and nobody else. This is where I belong. On the road. I have been living full time in my Subaru Impreza now for almost three months!
I can not believe how quickly the time has flown by here in my new home. The fun, fast-paced lifestyle is incredible, it also sweeps me away at times. In the last three months I have started at least five different blog posts but never had the chance to finish and post them. The lack of connection to wifi and the challenge of sitting down in front of a screen has prevented me from this. There are constantly incredible adventures calling me to the outdoors. I am always exploring and learning, growing and pushing boundaries. Soon I will be ending my full-time work at Moab Gear Trader and beginning travels back to Oregon. Hopefully, I will have more time to post some reflections on my time in Utah and the beginning of my journey as a dirtbag and car-dweller. The desert has been kind to me. My last few weeks here will be a beautiful bittersweet concoction. Today, the sunshine sparkled in the snow and my nose froze.
I saw the most beautiful woodpecker and wanted to ski forever. A solo adventure always feeds my soul. “The birds still remember what we have forgotten, that the world is meant to be celebrated.” -Terry Tempest Williams When Women Were Birds |
AUTHOR: MiaCategories
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"Live in the sunshine,
swim in the sea, drink the wild air." -Ralph Waldo Emerson |