Brr, It’s Cold In Here – Back In The States

After 5 months in Europe it was time to move on. It had been an amazing summer exploring new places like Istanbul, Athens, and Crete, trying out a mountain town in Bulgaria for a week and staying for more than 2 months, hiking the Camino de Santiago with my dad and brother, celebrating my 40th birthday in Britain, a quick trip to Morocco, and finally working at a trade show in Munich. I’d considered jetting off to Southeast Asia after Germany but decided to head home instead.

An international flight over the Atlantic brought me back to Indiana and Terk the Truck Camper. Barely home a week I flew off to work the Spartan Trail Race in San Luis Obispo, California. After another week at home in Indiana and I was on a flight back to California, this time to work the Spartan Trail Race Golden Gate Classic in San Francisco. Returning to Indiana I vowed no more flights until absolutely necessary.

I spent most of December in Indiana so I could join in the family holiday celebrations. While there I also worked on the truck and camper to prepare for our next big adventure. I finally removed the original refrigerator and refit the space as a large storage cabinet with an additional fresh water container and tap. I took everything out of the truck and camper, reorganized it for safety and security, got rid of anything I didn’t need, and prepared to hit the road.

I headed west in search of summer weather, but as seems to always happen when I depart in December I ended up enduring a bit more cold before reaching the warmth. My first stop was Golden, Colorado to my brother’s house to spend Christmas and New Years with him and our friends around Denver. While there Terk got covered in a thick coating of the white stuff.

In an effort to get further south and closer to summer I slid my way down to Prescott, Arizona to visit my dad and step-mom for a few days. I checked over the truck and camper, renewed my international drivers license, and readied my passport for the next adventure. Not to be outdone, on the day of my departure Northern Arizona covered Terk one last time with the powdery white stuff. This really had to stop.

A few hours south I reached my happy place, a free campsite on public land in the Sonoran Desert. I spent a quiet evening watching the light change over the beautiful landscape and then fell asleep nestled snug in my bed while visions of warm Mexican beaches danced in my head. The next day I’d finally do something I’d purchased this Tacoma for way back in 2017, it was time to spend a winter exploring Baja.