I am behind with my blog posts. A lot. Blame this crazy life of ours.
I want to write about all the improvements we performed on Thirsty Bella and the heaps of preparations we went through to ship her abroad. And what it all cost. But those stories feel boring to me at the moment (and, until recently, also irrelevant and obsolete – right!).
I hoped to have this particular blog ready by Thanksgiving Day in the US – a more appropriate timing – but, on that day, we had bigger fish to fry in a once-again turned-upside-down-world. I promise an update soon, but I am not ready for it; I can’t handle reliving it all (without a happy ending so far).
Ever since we returned to the US from Baja California, Mexico, last spring, our friends from the western states have played a key role – offering us a driveway to park and camp or a room to stay, allowing us access to their bathroom, kitchen, and laundry facilities, showing us support (mentally, logistically, and physically), and providing advice, help, knowledge, or their skills.
These have been amazing experiences and the highlights of our many months of work, effort, focus, stress, and investments to get ready for the next big adventure: traveling throughout South America in our truck camper, Thirsty Bella.
California
It’s been a tough road this year, with nothing going according to plan. We entered the country in California for a quick visit to friends Janis, Paul, and Amy in San Diego. This was followed by a pit stop on our friend Diana’s property in Julian, to clean and photograph our previous truck camper, Temp, before heading to British Colombia to pick up a Lance 830 truck camper we’d paid a deposit for. Diana is someone we house and pet sat for in San Diego twice, years ago. We became friends, stayed in touch, and she’d asked in the past if we were interested in property sitting this place. Now was the time!
Unfortunately, the Canadian owner of our prospective camper backed out of the deal and we were back to square zero, in a state with extremely high fuel prices. We frantically looked for, researched, and inquired about another Lance 830 and left the Julian property sooner than planned to pursue one in Northern California.
Idaho
Our next set of friends to help out were Katherine and Brandon, whom we met two short months earlier in Loreto, Baja California Sur. She bought a paperback of my memoir Plunge, we got along really well, and they even invited us to their condo in Loreto. They also offered up their small house in Boise, Idaho, if we needed a place to crash or change gears. And that’s what we did…
For two weeks in May, we happily slept in their one-bedroom home while switching truck campers. This sounds easier than it was! We had to make the well-used and rough-around-the-edges Lance 830 we just bought and picked up in Auburn, California, livable before our friends returned, and… we had to sell Temp and ideally our e-bikes as well. All within three weeks. The pressure was on!
Of course, another twist was thrown our way when a serious accident occurred in Mark’s family and he had to fly back to Massachusetts a week sooner than planned to help out. The pressure was on even more. We were in panic mode and worked 12 hours a day to be able to leave Boise quicker than expected and with only one camper.
Oregon
St. Helens
Our next base – for over two months! – became St. Helens, Oregon, about an hour north of Portland. Our camping friends Ellen and Scott hosted us in our camper in their front yard, while our truck was parked outside the fence. During this time, we frequented the facilities inside their small house, as filling up our grey (sinks and shower water) and black tank (toilet contents) would be inconvenient. We used Mark’s electric bike (I had sold mine by then) to shop for groceries and hardware and left the state for three weeks each – Mark flew to Massachusetts and I to Belgium and MA.
Summer progressed fast, hot, and in a rollercoaster manner as we discovered serious issues with our “new” Lance 830 and almost gave up on it. In between projects, we managed to have some fun in a national park and with our friends on the porch.
Hayden Island
A quick visit to our South African friend Margie (whom we met in 2008 while sailing in the Dominican Republic, where she still lives most of the year) and husband Terry provided a wonderful distraction from camper stress. This adorable and hospitable couple treated us to a boat ride on the Columbia River, a scrumptious dinner and breakfast, and a comfortable night on their houseboat near Portland.
Newport
And then, we were off to the Oregon coast, where Katherine and Brandon (from Boise, Idaho) were renovating a fixer-upper they recently bought. This was a short and fun visit, with a few projects – to help them and for ourselves – and loads of seafood and camaraderie. We hope to see the couple again on their BMW touring motorcycles in South America one of these years.
Bend
The end of August approached and stage one of our camper prep was mostly finished. There were only two major upgrades left, which we would tackle in Colorado. This one-week respite at our sailing and camping friend Patti’s house in Bend was therefore less stressful and busy than other stops. We had a pile of packages to pick up, a few smaller projects to finish, and lots of social time. We enjoyed sleeping in a real bedroom with en-suite bathroom, AC, and lots of space.
The five of us (Patti, her two dogs Koozie and Pekoe, Mark, Maya, and I) even managed a bit of sightseeing: an epic hike in Deschutes National Forest, a quick walk to a waterfall, and a stroll in bustling, downtown Bend and relaxed Sisters. It was still incredibly hot out; this never really let up for us.
Utah
Because of the incessant heat – and our need to pick up a new, DC refrigerator – we only stayed one night at the rental house of Mark’s nephew Randall, his wife Rebeccah, and their dog Duke in Salt Lake City. We enjoyed some walks and a lovely dinner together.
The following day, I finally met an old blogging friend of mine, Ryan, his wife Sheryl, and dog Athena in Southern SLC. Again, we were spoiled with good food, drinks, and company. Then, it was time for another serious drive and more projects.
Colorado
We met Christine, daughter Sophie, and boyfriend Danny in Baja, Mexico, this past spring as well. Christine and I hit it off, after she bought a copy of Plunge from me in Loreto. We met up a few times on the peninsula and they gave us an open invitation to stay on their property in Ignacio, Colorado. Danny has a workshop and is a skilled welder and carpenter, so those were the cherries on top!
The three of us spent about two weeks in and near Danny’s workshop, used the kitchen and bathroom inside his empty house, embraced his help and skills building a new fridge cabinet and installing an extra freshwater tank, and joined the family on a camping trip in the mountains, where sweating was finally not an option.
The highlight for me was when we parked at Danny’s ranch and small cabin in Pagosa Springs, CO, for a few nights. The pack of (work) dogs, litter of kittens, free roaming horses and chickens, and view of Chimney Rock made this a magical place!
Christine brought us to Chimney Rock National Monument on her free day and she and Danny took me horse riding on their and their neighbors’ properties one evening. How cool is that?
Texas
Austin
Our next significant stop was Austin, Texas, where our friend Rachel still lives. She and I became friends in 2007, when Mark and I stayed at my ex-boyfriend Karl’s place for three months after finishing our Central American RV adventures (referenced in Plunge).
Unfortunately, we could only stay for one night – just enough time to pick up a mountain of packages, find reprieve in the pool and air-conditioned house, and enjoy a lovely dinner and breakfast together – because our replacement fridge was waiting for us in the Houston area and we needed to install it the following day. The brand-new fridge from SLC had been defective… Otherwise, we would have stayed in Colorado until the temperatures in Texas became manageable.
Houston
John and Harriet were RVing pioneers in the early 2000s, by driving to Panama and back in 99 days. They wrote a travel book about this experience and that’s how we eventually met them. After our own Central American journey using their guide, we visited them and their dog Brindle (who looked like Maya) in Houston. We returned to the same house fifteen years later, but now they have a rescue dog called Creamer.
We caught up with them one evening and camped in their driveway. They invited us to use their condo in Galveston, which would have been perfect if the shipping of our camper from Galveston to Cartagena would have gone smoothly. Of course, it didn’t. But we eventually took them up on their offer, when we couldn’t handle the coastal heat and humidity anymore, after dealing with it in Texas for a month.
Again, the couple became instrumental in early November, when we used their Houston home and driveway to get Thirsty Bella ready for shipment to Colombia. Being able to sleep in the guestroom and use the kitchen, bathroom, and laundry facilities while packing flight baggage and organizing, securing, and wrapping up our home on wheels made this task so much easier.
A negative of being nomads is not having a comfortable home to take a breather, tools for major projects, a driveway to work on camper issues, improvements, and maintenance, an address to receive packages, and a tap to fill up our water tank, clean our vehicle, or give Maya a bath. We are extremely fortunate to have so many friends throughout the US and the world, who are happy to see us and to make our challenging lives a tad more comfortable, convenient, and easy! ¡Muchas gracias!
Curious about a previous ten-year chapter in our nomadic lives, which includes eight years aboard a 35-foot sailboat in the tropics, check out my compelling, inspiring, and refreshingly honest travel memoir:
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