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A Life Less Ordinary

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Welcome Aboard Our Home on Wheels, “Thirsty Bella” – Video Tour & Introduction of Our Lance 830/Ford F-350 4X4 Truck Camper

October 1, 2022 / / 59 Comments

Even though Mark and I have been nomads for almost twenty years and traveled in a handful of mobile tiny homes, I have never shown anyone around virtually (except when trying to sell our campers or when Skyping with my family). Yet, witnessing where and how we live provides a better understanding of our lifestyle, our passion, and our challenges.

I planned to post a video of Zesty, our amazing 19ft Sprinter Westfalia campervan, once Bob Wells (yes, of the movie Nomadland fame) – who spent two days filming us, our special van, and our lifestyle in Quartzsite, Arizona, one winter- published his features about us, but he “lost” the footage and none of this exposure (or a movie) happened. We didn’t own our previous truck camper, Temp, a Cirrus 820, long enough to focus on a tour or video.

So here it is, my first tour and full-length, non-edited video, of our current home on wheels. Bear with me these 17 minutes as I don’t find some of my words and forget to mention a bunch of features. 🙂

To that extent, I’d like to point out that our vehicle is a 2016 Ford F-350 pickup truck that is 4WD (4X4), SRW (single rear wheel, not a dually), and has a short bed and gasoline engine. Our truck camper is a Lance 830 model from 2008, which was the first year these were built.

Us and Bella in Austin, Texas

The main reasons we opted for this kind of rig are its affordability, durability, unique and roomier floorplan, and small footprint (compared to most RVs) – because of our shorter wheelbase, making U-turns and parking are easier and we tried to keep an as low as possible profile by not having an air conditioner or rack on the roof (we even cut off the top part of the ladder) and adding thin, flexible solar panels. We don’t own a generator either. Not possessing an AC unit also provides tall Mark with enough headspace inside.

As always, I happily address – and appreciate and encourage – any questions you might have in the comment section. Welcome aboard Thirsty Bella!

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:

Plunge – One Woman’s Pursuit of a Life Less Ordinary

Available on Amazon and elsewhere

eBook: US$ 5.99

Paperback: US$ 13.99

Join Us at the Virtual Vanlife Summit – An Entertaining, Inspiring & Free Event

July 20, 2022 / / 24 Comments

A free three-day event packed with information, talks, and interactions

Tomorrow, the three-day Virtual Vanlife Summit begins and I am one of the speakers and live panelists. My talk takes place on Thursday, July 21st at 12pm PDT (US West Coast time), which is 9pm in Belgium (where I currently am) and focuses on living on a budget while on the road. I will happily answer any questions you have in the chat box.

Talk about living as a nomad on a budget

The next day, on Friday, July 22nd at 11am PDT, I join a live panel in which we will discuss relationships on the road. How do we survive living together 24/7 with our partner in a tiny space without killing each other? Again, ask us any question during the broadcast.

Live panel about relationships in a small camper

This entire event is free, but you have to register to attend. Check it out and sign up here. I hope to “see” you there!

Mark, Liesbet, and Maya pose in front of Thirsty, the truck, and our soon-to-be-named camper

Plunge – One Woman’s Pursuit of a Life Less Ordinary

Available on Amazon and elsewhere

eBook: US$ 5.99

Paperback: US$ 13.99

Introducing Our New Home on Wheels & How Does a Truck Camper Compare to a Campervan?

November 18, 2021 / / 59 Comments

Mark, Maya, and I have been back on the road in this new-to-us camper for two months now. It’s time to properly introduce our new set-up. I haven’t done this earlier, because the post would be on the longer side (and require a lot of time to create), we have been contemplating a name for the two components, and I wanted to get a feel for our home on wheels first. Some of you might have been wondering how our changed living quarters are working out, why we swapped modes of transportation/accommodation, or how a truck camper compares to a campervan.

Meet T&T

Picking names is difficult for me – my book title, our dog, our previous sailboats, the marine product we invented and developed. The decision process takes ages and the label has to be fitting. Mark and I really liked the name of our campervan, Zesty, which we sold in April of this year. Once we finally found the right truck (which we bought after the slide-in camper), more naming was in order.

(Hover over or click on photos to read their captions in galleries.)

Thirsty without cargo
The tailgate had to be removed (and stored) to fit the camper in the truck bed.

For reasons you might guess, we have decided to call our black Ford F350 short-bed, extended cab, 4X4 gasoline pickup truck Thirsty. If you’ve followed our current expense reports, you would agree this is a suitable name for a vehicle of this caliber. Of course, our truck – like us – is thirsty for adventure and freedom as well.

Temp disconnected & rebuilding the truck camper frame in Newburyport, MA – take 1

It might come as a surprise that our nuCamp Cirrus 820 is not our ideal camper to take to South America. I’ll elaborate on why later, but we have been on the look-out for another truck camper (a Northstar Arrow U) for seven months. Because our current camper is supposed to be a temporary solution, the in-between version, we are calling it Temp. This particular brand and model – modern, streamlined, and fancy – was very tempting to buy and our #2 on the list. Add to that, that all campers can be temperamental… Since irony plays a big role in my life, I wouldn’t be surprised if we eventually end up keeping Temp, needing to explain its name with sarcasm. There is a lot to love about him.

Rebuilding the truck camper frame at a Home Depot in Albuquerque, NM – take 2

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Goodbye, Westy! – Changing Gears

May 13, 2021 / / 84 Comments

Mark and I owned Zesty the Westy, our home on wheels, for almost four years. This 19ft converted Sprinter Westfalia van was imported from Germany into the US by Airstream in 2005. Only a few remain. They are very sought after, because of their unique design, plethora of amenities in a tiny space, facilitating layout, and quality components. They keep their value and, at an average of 22mpg, have decent fuel economy for an RV (recreational vehicle). We loved our set-up and couldn’t have asked for a more versatile, manageable, all-in-one camper to live and travel North America in. You can find an introduction to our Zesty in my post “Welcome, Westy!” here.

Us with our Zesty in California (before Maya)

Summer 2020, New England, USA

“Now that the camper is empty and clean, we might as well take photos in case we want sell it at some point,” I suggest to Mark.

“Good idea,” he responds. “Whenever that might be. But let’s do it up in Maine, where the view is better.”

Front and back seats
Front seats with arm rests down
The cockpit
The spacious dinette area
Lots of storage
The engine

He and I – and Maya – are committed to spending the summer in our “room above the garage” at my in-laws in Massachusetts, because of the pandemic, Mark’s parents needing help, and my goal to finish my travel memoir in 2020. 

For a couple of weeks, we move to Maine to help out family with home renovations. There, we remove (and wash) all the covers and spend a couple of hours turning Zesty inside out, opening cabinets, converting the dinette into a second bed, pulling our main bed out, swiveling chairs, and taking 300 photos of any set-up and conversion possible. I’m sure nobody here has seen the original interior of our van, since we kept every piece of cloth – even the arm rests – hidden and protected since the beginning!

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Encounters of the Human Kind – Making Friends in Baja

April 22, 2021 / / 53 Comments

Something magical happens once nomads venture across the border of the United States. It occurred to us in the past and then again, recently. As van dwellers and RVers for years in the US, we rarely connected with fellow travelers. Campers generally stay to themselves – especially during the pandemic – in familiar areas: RV parks and official campgrounds, which we don’t frequent, or out in the boonies, which we enjoy. Conversations are short and shallow. All this seems to change once we leave the country and are confronted with like-minded, universal travelers.

Bumping into friends – unexpectedly – at our Loreto campground

Kathi and Mary from Missouri, USA

It started with the Facebook group Talk Baja, where Kathi replied to one of my posts and we discovered that we both had entered Mexico on the same day, at the same border crossing. We even thought we’d seen each other’s vans along the eastern highway, Mex 5. Eventually, we shared a campground in San Ignacio and later in Mulegé.

The campground in San Ignacio, where we first met Kathi and Mary

Our acquaintance led to a few (masked) chats, the women buying and reading my travel memoir Plunge, and remaining in touch. They even invited us for a visit to their home in Missouri, which we considered on our journey back to the US East Coast. Due to our schedules, however, we never managed to spend quality time together. Yet.

(As always, hover over or click on the photos in the galleries to read their captions.)

Kathi and Mary bought a copy of Plunge in Mulege
Maya made friends in Mulege as well (see previous post); some of them gathered bones for all to chew on.

You can find Kathi’s Facebook page here and Mary’s here.

Ivan from Spain

One of our first evenings on a (rocky) beach in Baja, Mark, Maya, and I sat in our chairs enjoying the view, when a man purposefully walked towards us, masked. He appeared to be the only other camper at Papa Fernandez and had braved a mile of sinking-in-the-pebbles effort to reach us. We chatted, became friends, and met up several times afterwards, expectedly and unexpectedly. Ivan introduced other seasoned travelers to us in Mulegé, some of whom we ran into again later.

Ivan’s campsite at the opposite end of the Papa Fernandez beach
Early on – sitting on the beach where Ivan initially met us
Ivan joined us on this rocky beach south of Mulege – we are all sheltered from the strong north winds
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Tale of Two Towns – Mulegé & Loreto in Baja California Sur

April 15, 2021 / / 50 Comments

Mark, Maya, and I entered Baja California, Mexico, on February 1st 2021 in Zesty, without much of a plan. No surprise there! The main reason for our decision to cross the border was threefold: we needed a break from the US and its chaos, politics, and atmosphere, we aimed to find warmer weather, and we were both ready for a little “vacation” after all the hard work on my travel memoir Plunge.

Baja California, Mexico
Mulege & Loreto, Baja, Mexico

Other than that, we’d drive until we found 1) warmth or 2) an area that spoke to us. Number two came first in the form of Mulegé, a town off the beaten tourist track about 2/3 down the Baja peninsula on the Sea of Cortez side.

Why Mulegé?

Sometimes, when you find a place that touches your heart, it’s difficult to describe why. Mark and I drove through and stayed in this town – actually in the exact same campground – fifteen years ago on our journey south (which brought us all the way to Panama and back) in a truck camper with our dogs Kali and Darwin. But it didn’t leave an impression. Also, we had different goals of sightseeing and exploring back then, not hanging out and immersing ourselves.

The official name of Mulege is Heroica Mulege
Entrance to the town of Mulege from the highway, Mex 1
Local brewery
Colonial-looking beer store

Here’s what we liked about this little gem on our recent visit:

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Baja Bound (Part Two) – Beach Time!

March 23, 2021 / / 42 Comments

I’m running a little behind with my Baja blogs. Sorry! Blame my lack of internet. Or, just blame me. I haven’t felt like sitting behind my computer lately, or scanning thousands of new photos. I’ll get there. When time and WiFi availability allow. Soon. 😊

Who wants to sit inside, behind a computer, when this view can be had while relaxing outside?

(As always, hover over or click on photos in galleries to read the captions. My images are heavily resized for easier downloading and uploading; I apologize for their inferior quality.)

From West to East

The Baja California peninsula is relatively narrow, so it doesn’t take long to get from one side to the other. Mex 1 is the main “highway” in this part of Mexico. It predominantly runs along the coasts with a few zigzags back and forth. After our stop in Guerrero Negro, where I left off in a previous post, Zesty transported us through the narrow middle, past desolate landscapes, cacti, dry terrain, barren hills, and small settlements.

Many times, we are passed by cars and trucks who cross the solid yellow line. I waited for an incident right at the “no passing” sign…
Heading towards the east coast of Baja again – nobody cares about the “no passing” yellow line…
Approaching one of the military checkpoints, with a volcano in the background

We decided to stop in the oasis of San Ignacio, a lush and tropical reprieve from the desert that is Baja California. The town is exceptionally clean and well taken care of. Highlights are the town square and the mission, Misión San Ignacio Kadakaamán, which was founded by the Jesuit missionary Juan Bautista de Luyando in 1728.

Mission San Ignacio
The door was locked, but looked pretty cool!
View of downtown, seen from the mission
Downtown San Ignacio
Around the square
One of the restaurants around the town square
Walking back to the campground, five minutes from downtown, we often met roaming horses.
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Baja Bound (Part One) – A Change of Scenery

February 24, 2021 / / 66 Comments

The Plan

Mark and I had been playing around with the idea of going to Baja California, Mexico, during the winter since the fall of 2020. But as long as I needed reliable internet every day (first to publish my book, then to promote it, on top of other jobs and blogging commitments), crossing the border was not going to happen.

As January approached and we found ourselves in an uninspiring, windy California desert that turned even more chilly from the moment the sun set (before 5pm), the desire to find warmer weather grew. Don’t forget our home measures only 80sq feet, so being able to live outside is a requirement. Whenever my live webinar/presentation for the Seven Seas Cruising Association (SSCA) was delivered, we would leave the US for a chunk of time.

Except, the day after my “performance,” rumor had it that the border officials in Mexicali were cranking down on non-essential travel into their municipality. Would they turn us back if we crossed there, even when only driving through? We didn’t want to lie about our reason for visiting (saying that we were going to Mexico for dental work for example), besides, I’d just been to the dentist.

So we changed our plans, added a few more days to prepping our crossing, which now included an extra drive back east to a different border town after doing laundry, washing Zesty, and stocking up the van in Yuma, AZ, instead of El Centro, CA.

The interior of Baja California seen from the interior of Zesty

(As always, hover over or click on photos in galleries to read the captions. My photos are heavily resized for easier loading of the page.)

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Annual Expense Report 2020

January 27, 2021 / / 34 Comments

Expenses - image

Every month, I post a report of our expenses to show that it is possible to live a comfortable, exciting, and adventurous life without breaking the bank. “The less money you spend, the less you need to make” is my motto. 🙂

Our first yearly expense report (2016) can be found here, the report of 2017 is here, the one for 2018 here, and our 2019 expenses are located here.

These reports include ALL of our expenses, in US$, for two adults and a 60-pound dog. We adopted Maya on June 4th, 2019. Under groceries we incorporate food, produce, and non-alcoholic drinks predominantly bought in supermarkets. Toiletries belong in that category as well. Dining out means eating at a restaurant/event or purchasing take-out food. The health category covers non-prescription medicines and vitamins/supplements; medical contains prescription drugs and doctor’s visits. Because of our income level, Mark and I are eligible for free health care within the state of Massachusetts. For check-ups, we both return to the East Coast. The utility cost refers to phone data plans with AT&T.

In 2020, Mark, Maya, and I lived in our campervan Zesty for six months and in the “room above the garage” the other six months.  We spent about $1,000 less than the previous year. The fact that we sat still for so long during “the summer of Covid” certainly has something to do with this.

Free camping in New Hampshire
Hiking in the White Mountains, NH
Waterfall in the White Mountains, NH

We went on a couple of multiple-week trips in our van during that period, but used less diesel and replaced less parts than in 2019. On the other hand, we needed to buy a few household items to survive – read: cook – in our guest room in Newburyport, MA.

The room above the garage
Our cooking station

The grocery category was relatively high, probably because we pretty much cooked all our meals at home once the pandemic arrived. Our average grocery cost in 2020 was $357 a month.

Falafels in homemade pita bread, served with eggplant, aioli, hummus, tomato, and lettuce
Homemade lobster rolls and French fries
Pad Thai with chicken

Usually, I split the bigger categories up in the table underneath, but WordPress is causing me trouble, so I’ll itemize #2 and #3 here. The camper category is divided among maintenance: $1,511; insurance: $1,118; diesel: $1,110; registration: $136; parking: $14; and tolls: $4.

New tires!
Checking the tire pressure
Mark fixes a few blemishes on Zesty

Writing was a new category last year, and a big one at that. The total sum for publishing my travel memoir Plunge accounts for my editor: $2,024; book cover:$175; ISBN numbers: $295; proof copies: $72; license: $35; software Quicken: $25; font: $15; and postage: $13. I still have a long way recuperating that $2,654 in sales!

Publication of Plunge – One
Woman’s Pursuit of a Life Less Ordinary

Alcohol and gifts are pretty much in line with last year. The dog category is lower, thanks to Maya needing less drugs for her allergies. The utility category is higher, because AT&T raised their (unavailable now) monthly unlimited data plan from $25 to $35. None of the other categories stand out, except camping. In 2019, we managed to camp for free the entire year. Last January, we paid for a one-week stay at a developed National Forest campground in Florida for me (and Maya), while Mark flew back to Massachusetts.

Developed NF campground in Ocean Pond, Florida
Sunset over Ocean Pond, Florida

Because of Covid, our credit card company, Chase, allowed customers to use their points at 1.5x their value for groceries (usually this rate is only valid when buying plane tickets with points). We greatly took advantage of that, since we couldn’t fly back to Belgium and… 1/3 of our groceries for “free?” We also received some credit ($310) for owning a Chase Sapphire Reserve card. Why do I mention this?  Because all these points (and credits) amounted to $3,084! So, technically, we spent that much less in 2020, which brings our total expenses for last year to $12,052 instead of $15,136.

Our favorite campsite in Arkansas
Sunrise at Big Fir Public Use Area, Arkansas
Free camping near Ajo in the Arizona desert
Sunset in the Arizona desert

2020 Overview:

Groceries:

Camper:

Writing:

Dog (vet/meds: $385; food: $242; supplies: $209):

Gifts:

Alcohol:

Utilities (cell data: $455; propane: $40; dump: $13; Skype: $5):

Household (oven MA, stove MA, speaker):

Health and Fitness (vitamins & haircuts):

Clothing (shoes, shorts, socks):

Drinking out:

Dining Out:

Entertainment (guided tours):

Computer (web hosting):

Camping:

Transportation (shuttle buses BOS):

Medical (drugs):

Laundry:

Postage:

Miscellaneous:

 

TOTAL:

 

$4,278

$3,893

$2,654

$836

$730

$714

$513

$253

$242

$235

$231

$217

$67

$64

$61

$48

$47

$33

$17

$3

———

$ 15,136

(Table might not load correctly on tablets – try turning the screen for better results.)

Maya at Ocean Pond, Florida

Do you keep track of your expenses? How did your budgeting go in 2020? Any categories you’d like to do better with in 2021?

Back on the Road – Our Nomadic Lifestyle Resumes

October 29, 2020 / / 68 Comments

Six months. That’s how long Mark, Maya, and I lived in “our room above the garage” at my in-laws’ condo in Newburyport, Massachusetts. Apart from a one-month stint further up New England in June, when we helped family with home renovations and visited a couple of friends. Six months! It’s the longest Mark and I have ever remained in one place, since becoming a couple in 2004. Impressive… Or not?

The Pros of Room Life

I am the first to admit that I actually enjoyed being in a “stable environment” for a little while. Life on the road is challenging and exhausting. This break was timely and welcome. I savored every shower and good night’s sleep; the unlimited electricity and comfortable desk. Even our noisy, inefficient “easy-bake oven” and unreliable college fridge (that barely held produce without some falling out each time we opened the door) had their charms. The sofa bed displayed two big indents from our bodies and pained my back, but we could sit up in it! Our dishwashing routine in the bathroom became familiar. We just had to remember it or teeth brushing was in jeopardy.

We helped Mark’s parents wherever we could. People, in general, wore masks when out and about. I was productive with my book. Mark had a decent job with the US Census. Maya was comfortable. Our six months here weren’t too bad at all; a nice change from what we are used to. And, we managed to hang out with good friends one more time, before leaving.

(As always, hover over the photos to read captions or click to enlarge.)

Sangria on an Indian Summer day
Kevin, Holly, and cute Ginger
BBQ at our friends’ house
Good friends Ryan and Denise out on a rainy fall hike with us
Maya sniffing something on a fall hike in Massachusetts

The Pros of Vanlife

But travel is in our blood. We are nomads after all! So, albeit with mixed feelings and not much of a plan, the three of us hit the road again in our 19ft camper van the day before my father-in-law turned ninety, on Saturday, October 17th. We’d head south first. Then, turn west.

Back on the road

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