When Van Life Comes to an End

Towards the end of 2020, Andrew and I began pivoting a bit, and with that pivot came the decision to sell the van. So on December 4th, we handed the keys to the next owners in hopes that the adventure of the van would continue.

But now that we’ve parted ways with the van, a flood of memories come rushing back. When we first bought the van, we had big dreams of the life it would give us and after nearly 3 years living the nomadic lifestyle, we can recall that it took us to more places and gave us more memories than we could have ever dreamed.

Some of our highlights of Vanlife:

• 80k total miles traveled
• 30 National Parks – our top 5 being Zion, Mount Rainer, Tetons, Glacier and Mesa Verde
• 43 states
• Who knows how many stops at mechanic shops
• Countless friends made from every part of the country
• Countless puppy friends for Ziggy
• Andrew learning to fly fish
• Swam in all 5 Great Lakes
• Andrew signing me up for a rock skipping contest in a town of 1500 in Northern Michigan that we randomly we stumbled into and ended up taking 2nd place! – obviously STILL an achievement I’m proud of 😉
• Jumped into both the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans
• The Gulf of Mexico
• The Sea of Cortez
• Stayed in and explored 70+ National Forests
• The Albuquerque Balloon Festival
• Rented a side-by-side for 1/2 a day and ripped around South Dakota
• Experiencing the changing colors of the Northeast
• Paddle-boarded through a deserted Antalope Canyon
• Saw Horseshoe Bend with only a handful of other people rather than the typical 1000+
• So many hikes, bike rides and paddles in numerous places
• Niagara Falls
• Spent our 1st Wedding Anniversary paddle-boarding Lake Tahoe, our 2nd exploring Canada and our 3rd riding around on the moped in Anacortes, WA
• Completed a driveway transmission swap
• Ziggy learning and loving to swim
• Driving all the way up HWY 101
• Seeing the history of our country including Plymouth Rock and The Liberty Bell
• Put the van on a ferry
• Went to Salem, MA during Halloween
• Spent 2 months in Baja, Mexico where the sunsets were amazing, the friendships were life changing, the tacos fantastic and I got a selfie with a whale
• Spent 1 month in Eastern Canada, exploring Toronto, Quebec, Montreal and Nova Scotia
• Spent 4 days exploring New York, parking right next to Central Park and in Brooklyn
• Drove through Time Square at night
• Experienced The Silos in Waco, TX
• Bought a moped
• Had 2 photos of mine printed in a Vanlife Calendar
• Was part of a commercial campaign for a highly respected GPS company
• Only paid for 2 campsites within 2.5 years of traveling (one being optional and one was not)
• And if it wasn’t for the pandemic happening last year, we would have shipped the van to Germany and traveled to all the European countries.

While I’m sad the van isn’t a tangible part of our life anymore, I know that these once-in-a-lifetime memories are ones Andrew, Ziggy and I will always hold close to our hearts.

This van did so much for us and we are so grateful to have been able to call it HOME for all of these adventures. We are excited to share what the next chapter of our lives bring, promising that the adventure certainly continues!!

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