Year: 2023

Winter Van Life Must Haves When winter comes around, we don’t chase the sun, or the warmth… we chase the powder.  And we don’t plan on leaving until it isn’t worth skiing anymore.  Over the past 2 winters that we have spent in our camper van, we have learned A LOT about moisture control, warmth, and must haves for winter van life. This guide is dedicated to the items that we keep on board our campervan because they make our experience in below zero temps for 3+ months easier.  If you are interested in HOW TO DO WINTER VAN LIFE -> head on over here.  Items to Have Onboard for Winter Van Life Merino Wool Base Layers Extra Water Containers Ability to Fill Water in the Winter Extra Blankets Down Slippers Insulated Window Covers Tow Straps HEATER, that works at altitude (!) Traction Boards Ice Scraper / Snow Brush Shovel Merino Wool Base Layers Merino wool base layers are great for keeping you warm on the slopes, backpacking, or any other physical activity.  However, we also wear them as an “everyday” layer for winter van life.  Why?  Because merino wool is the PERFECT van life material.  Hear me out.  It is lightweight, moisture wicking (less sweat on skin = warmer), not itchy, and has antibacterial properties.   Why is merino wool perfect for winter van life? Because of the way merino wool is structured it does two things that are extra great for van life: doesn’t smell easily, and needs washed less.  It doesn’t smell because it is hard for bacteria to lodge in between the structure of the fibers.  And, the huge van life perk: it needs washed less because the protein molecules present in the merino wool fibers, keratin, break down odor forming bacteria that may become present as you sweat. Okay! Enough of the nerd-ing out.  We love merino wool! Some of our favorite Merino Wool Base Layers We recommend having at least one bottom and one top merino wool base layer before venturing into winter van life.  And, honestly, because of the self-cleaning and moisture wicking properties mentioned above, this is probably enough. We personally love KUHL for our base layers, in the pictures we are wearing: Women’s Kaskade Bottoms  Men’s Akkomplice Krew Top Kuhl uses custom merino wool blends that are soft, odor-less, and most important for us, move well.   Extra Water Containers Filling up a fresh water tank in your campervan is difficult in the winter if you are in a cold climate because most spigots are winterized.  The first way we combat this is by extending the length of our 32 gallon fresh water tank.  The longer it lasts… the less we have to stress about filling up.   To extend the life of our tank, we fill up our two 32 oz Nalgene bottles, and a 3 Liter bladder inside a grocery store, ski resort, or rest stop at least once a day. This is a small hack that will make a world of difference! The

How to Van Life: Your Guide from Full Time Van Lifers In this guide, we are stepping away from the technicalities of converting camper vans and focusing on van life logistics. We sourced our community on Instagram for their most common questions about taking the leap into van life! If you have any additional questions, please feel free to leave them in the comments section below this article and we will add them to this guide with answers. We hope this guide can serve as a jumping off point for you journey into VAN LIFE! Van Life Q+A Quick Navigation How do you find places to sleep as a van lifer? Finding a place to sleep as a van lifer can be difficult, especially at the beginning.  However, it becomes second nature after a few months! There are a couple of buckets of “where to sleep” that all have different methods: Boondocking City “Stealth” Camping Quick and Easy Boondocking Boondocking is probably what got you dreaming of van life 😉  It is dispersed (“amenity free”) camping on public land. Think: beautiful views away from buildings, facilities, people, and often down Forest Roads.  You cannot boondock everywhere. To find legal places to boondock, you can use IOverlander (an app).  We use this sometimes, but find that as the years go on, spots get more trashed.  Instead, we opt for finding public land using OnX, or other online maps.  And then, we sleuth around satellite views for places that look accessible, and park-able.  GoogleMaps sleuthing will become your newest party trick.  Just be sure you are on public land, not private land. It is important to note, that boondocking will absolutely not be your life every day, mayyyyybe 50% of the time if you are lucky! The other 50% of the time you will need to do one of the other options listed below. City (“stealth camping”) City days are unavoidable because you need food, gas, and maybe water depending on your system capabilities.  (We fill up from fresh water sources, but most don’t).  When you need, or want, to spend a night in the city, you will “stealth camp”.  This pretty much means not creating any disturbance; simply sleep, and move on.  This can vary greatly depending on what city you are in as some people care more about vans visible from their house than others.   Our process goes like this: The first thing we do is research if sleeping in your car is legal. If so, we do a quick search for if there are any designated “RV overnight spots”. If yes, we tend to head there as we know we won’t get the “knock”. If not, we drive around until we find a spot on a side street that isn’t directly in front of someones house.  We prefer apartment complexes (easy to blend in).  Or, near parks.  If we are sleeping in a small city, we like to buy coffee, or support the local economy in some way.   Long Haul

Can you do Van Life with a Full Time Job? Yes, you can do van life with a full time job! I did it for 2.5 years, and in this guide I am sharing how.  While your experience will not be identical to the “freedom” of  van life that you see on social media – I promise it will be just as rewarding.  In this guide, I will share: What to expect of doing van life with a full time job Reliable WiFi / Internet Solutions for Remote Workers Should you tell your team / boss that you live in a camper van? Camper van work setups Tips for balancing Van Life logistics with your job How to find remote work! Our Experience Why should I be giving you tips to doing van life with a full time job? Well,  I, Colby, had a full time job the entire 3 years that we did “full time” van life! I am remote software engineer.  Throughout our full time van life stint, I worked for two different engineering teams that operated differently.  Needless to say, I have a lot of experience navigating the various challenges of remote work from a camper van. Is van life with a full time job right for you? Pursuing Van Life with a full time job is going to come with challenges.  These challenges will include: Often working a full day and then spending the rest of your “free time” driving Van Life logistic stressors on top of your work stress (where will you sleep, do you need water/power?) Lack of a stable environment and reliable services like internet, bathroom, QUIET, etc Potential FOMO of van lifers you meet who don’t have full time jobs Awkward work spaces (parking lots, rest stops, etc) However, if you can overcome these challenges, working a full time job while living van life will include: Epic lunch break hikes, runs, adventures, etc Extremely close proximity to adventures for your non work time Emphasis and appreciation of what you truly need in to thrive Work environments that often beat out your city desk If this all sounds good to you, read on as I share what I have learned about how to work full time while living van life.   How do you get reliable internet / WiFi as a van lifer? This is absolutely the most common question that I get about working from the road.  It is also probably the question that puzzled me the most when beginning my van life journey.  Luckily for you, I have spent countless time researching and testing options for you. The best option for reliable internet on the road?  A Peplink Dual Modem Router along with a strong roof-mounted MIMO antenna.  I do have Starlink which I use in the desert, but it is not quite reliable elsewhere.  Working full time on the road requires reliable connection, which is different from fast connection.  Right now, cellular signal provides reliable connection, while Starlink delivers fast connection but