NORTH AMERICA
Since 2014 I have been traveling around the United States living in a van, working from coffee shops, and adventuring at every opportunity.
In 2014 I spent 11 weeks on the road, visiting friends and family in Arizona and Indiana, and working full time for a tech startup in Santa Barbara. The experience gave me a taste of #VanLife on the road and I wanted more. In 2015 I transitioned from a W2 employee to a 1099 freelancer, got rid of anything that didn’t fit in the van, and left for the open road. For the next 6 months I drove 20,000 miles, visited 22 states, 3 countries, 11 National Parks, and worked on freelance projects in coffee shops along the way. In 2016 I drove across Canada on the Trans-Canada highway, taking several months and adding another 25,000 miles to the odometer. 2017 was another van tour of the west, and in 2018 I sold the van and replaced it with a Toyota Tacoma for more off road adventures.
ALL NORTH AMERICA ADVENTURES
Living Full Time In A Slide-In Pop-Up Truck Camper
I’ve been living in vehicles since 2014, starting in a Honda Element, upgrading to an ’85 VW Westy, moving into an off-road equipped Toyota Tacoma, and recently adding the luxurious comfort of a truck camper. I spent 5 months [...]
Fall In The Lower 48
After spending the summer wandering the wilderness of Alaska, Las Vegas was a shock to my system, and 10 days working at a trade show in Sin City left me exhausted, in need of a [...]
Alaska Road Trip – Valdez, Haines, & Yukon
Having wrapped up our Arctic Ocean adventures and exploring the Kenai Peninsula, we were excited for the last few Alaskan stops before returning to the Lower 48. Driving out of Anchorage we camped near Palmer [...]
Alaska Road Trip – Anchorage & Kenai
After driving the Dalton Highway to the Arctic Ocean and back, we resupplied in Fairbanks, cleaned the truck, and were ready to move on. Our first stop along the Parks Highway was Healey, where we [...]
Driving The Dalton Highway
The Dalton Highway is one of the most remote roads in the world, connecting Fairbanks, Alaska to the Arctic Ocean at Prudhoe Bay. Often referred to as the "Haul Road", this desolate route is used [...]
Crewing The Western States Endurance Run
After 5 years of qualifying and entering the lottery, my brother was finally selected to run the 2019 Western States 100-Mile Endurance Run. He put together a serious training program and reached out to friends [...]
Driving The Alaska Highway In A Truck Camper
Another Born To Run Extravaganza had concluded and I'd somehow survived. My body needed a detox, and after a week of festivities with my wild dirtbag hippie friends I was looking forward to the peace [...]
Moving Into Terk The Truck Camper
After a several month renovation project in Indiana I was finally moving into my truck camper. I rolled west, making my first stop in Denver to visit my brother. Unfortunately, my dreams of warm sunshine [...]
Driving The White Rim Road
In February of 2019 my brother joined me in Canyonlands National Park with the goal of driving the White Rim Road, a 100 mile, off road track in Utah. I'd also heard that White Crack [...]
Remodeling A Slide-In Pop-Up Truck Camper
In February 2018 I was drinking a bottle of wine in New Zealand when I found a 2002 Toyota Tacoma on Craigslist in Colorado. A few hours later my brother drove across Denver, bought the [...]
Summer In A Truck Camper
It was a whirlwind of a spring, from exploring New Zealand in a campervan, to buying a Toyota Tacoma in Denver, flying back and building my home in it, and selling my VW van, when [...]
Living In A Truck Camper
I spent the summer of 2018 living a truck camper that I custom built in a first generation Toyota Tacoma. Since 2015 I've lived in a Honda Element, an old VW Westy van, and out [...]
Western Ramblin’
The summer kicked off with Born To Run and was quickly followed by Race Across America. I enjoyed both, but was looking forward to hitting the open road with less structure and responsibility. I jumped [...]
Crewing The Bear 100
When my brother registered for The Bear 100 he asked if I'd be willing to crew him. I'd be two weeks past my Plain 100 race and able to drive the truck, but probably not [...]
The Plain 100
Several years ago Luis Escobar said "Hey Tarzan, you should check out the Plain 100, a self supported 100 mile race up in Washington." I thought that was crazy and pushed it to the back [...]
Race Across America 2017
Race Across America is the world's toughest bicycle race, so naturally, I was in. The wheels started turning for RAAM in 2016 when I crewed my friend Rob for his 12 day solo race. I'm [...]
Born To Run 2017
There few certainties in this vagabond life that I've built. Taxes, oil changes, weekly showers, and Born To Run. #KeepItSimple I returned to North America from El Grande Sur in time to grab my van, [...]
Colorado Trail Fail
My goal was to hike the 485 mile Colorado Trial in less than 14 days. Mother Nature had other plans. While contemplating an upcoming 100 mile running race I remembered how well prepared I was [...]
Winter Ramblings
The best way to ring in the New Year is to run a beer mile with your closest friends at midnight! Well, I'm not sure if that's actually the best way to do it, but [...]
Hiking The Wave, Arizona
The Wave sits peacefully in no man's land at the border of Arizona and Utah. This unique sandstone formation displays vivid red desert strata that have been eroded overtime into a wavelike feature. The otherworldly [...]
Westward Westy
I thoroughly enjoyed exploring Canada and driving through New England, but my heart, and Tantor's motor, were both yearning for the place we feel most at home, the Southwest. Before I could drive Tantor west [...]
Nuevo England
I approached a federal border crossing one last time to bring an end to my Great Canadian Road Trip. I'd enjoyed bouncing between the United States and Canada all summer, but was ready to head [...]
The Great Canadian Road Trip – Part 2
After a brief visit to the United States my Great Canadian Road Trip continued in Ontario. I left Chicago, crossed Michigan, and made it through the border crossing with no problems. In Cambrige, just outside [...]
The Great Canadian Road Trip – Part 1
While basking in the February South American sun on a beach in Ecuador I wondered, "What should I do for the summer?" The previous year I spent 6 months driving my van 20,000 miles literally [...]
Crewing RAAM 2016
Crewing RAAM 2016 was the hardest thing I've ever done. Period. Writing a blog post about crewing RAAM was the second hardest thing I've ever done, which explains why this is 6 months overdue. I've [...]