Table of contents for Twenty-Two: December/January 2020/2021 in ROVA

Rise and shine There’s nothing better than waking up to sound of nature—but even with all of that beauty on the other side of the tent, some of us just aren’t morning people. If it takes a little more than the thought of the day’s adventure to drag you out of bed, invest in a quality coffee set up to really get your day going! Stanley’s Perfect-Brew Pour Over Set is great for on the go, so you can start your day right. stanley1913.com, $35 Rest easy We’re all for roughing it, but there are some creature comforts that are harder to give up than others. If a quality pillow is on your must-bring list, look no further than Klymit’s Drift Camp Pillow. With its durable fold-away shell, heavenly inner…

My mother, on the phone from Los Angeles, said no. “You are not driving across the country by yourself. You will be a target.” I could hear her stop whatever she was doing so she could say “No” again, with even more emphasis. “Rachel Hannah. You are not doing this. No.” I always knew it was serious the minute my middle name came into play. “I’ll buy pepper spray, and I can share my location with you throughout the whole trip via my phone.” I replied, trying not to sound as flabbergasted as I felt. “Oh, good. Because I was going to put a tracker on your car.” “You live 3,000 miles away. “ “Doesn’t matter.” I was calling it my “eat, pray, love” road trip—a cross-country journey from New…

We had finally made it to Anchor Point, Alaska. Fat raindrops hammered on the roof of our rented SUV, the mist clouded our view of the volcanic peaks opposite and the faded sign read, “North America’s Most Westerly Highway Point.” Our well-thumbed copy of The Milepost—an extensive guide to each of Alaska’s main highways—indicated that we were 14 miles away from the end of the road: Homer. Arriving here would mean that we had finally completed our road trip from Coronado Island, in San Diego, all the way up the west coast of North America. Our journey had been a combination of various trips over the last decade, in cars ranging from a convertible Mustang to an impractical minibus—an unwanted upgrade from our desired Jeep. This leg of our road…

There is a point in every traveler’s life when they are changed. These changes vary; it could be be visiting a spiritual location, diving deep into a new culture, traveling solo for the first time, or making connections with the right people. My change happened in the summer of 2017 when I decided to take a spontaneous road trip from my hometown in Florida to Philadelphia, and met a German stranger at a hostel in Philly. The stranger’s name was Daniel, and after only a few days of knowing him, I made the questionable decision to invite him to be my road-trip buddy as I made my way back to Florida. When he agreed, I had a slight panic attack because I quickly realized that this is how people end…

My husband and I have been reading ROVA for years, and even though we don't even own an RV or van, we've been taking more little trips in our Subaru to explore the state parks near where we live in Wisconsin. We never knew there was so much to see so close to us! Thanks for the encouragement to get us off our butts and go outside. Annette G I thought that I couldn't be part of #vanlife because I didn't have the money, but Rachel Levy's article about traveling in her family's old SUV [ROVA Adventure Twenty-One] was an eye-opener. I've been making some tweaks to my 4x4, and I think I might be able to do this thing sooner than I thought! Can't wait! Rosanna R I usually…

Jenny I actually made the decision to hit the road full-time with a guy I was dating. We wanted a way to spend more time enjoying our favorite outdoor hobbies and traveling. Then he backed out and broke up with me. I bought myself a van, built it out, and was on the road solo a few months later. I knew that if I didn’t still go for it, I’d always wonder what would have happened if I had just been brave enough to try. Two years later, I’m still out here doing it. Instagram: @adventuresfromthevan Allyson and Lance When choices in the world started to seem less and less available, we took hold of a new life. We no longer wanted to be owned by our jobs or peers.…

The week before we were chased by a moose, we were busily stocking up on bear bells and spray. We researched how to tell different kinds of bears apart, and what response each type warranted. We checked trail updates every morning for known bear activity. My family stumbled into hiking through national parks. As we grew up, we amassed a litany of slapstick-esque comedic camping stories. These included, but were not limited to: the time our tent was flooded when we set it up in a ditch; the time we made burgers for the drunk couple next door and then drove to a hotel when our tent was flooded; the time our kayak flooded and we had to take shelter in the house of a couple who sustained themselves solely…

The horizon burned with the intensity you only feel on Big Days—capital B, capital D. Brazen sunlight gilded the tops of the tallest trees, but the houses lining my parents’ street were still in shades of predawn blue. I stood outside their house, on the pavement where I learned how to both ride a bike and drive a car, and smelled the dew and defiance of summer. Today was the day I was moving 1,600 miles to Virginia from Colorado, my first time moving away from family and my first time away from home. The swallows began their morning chorus from the now-lit roof of the house, and I stood by the car and cried. Before that day in August 2018, the longest period I had ever been away from…

One by one, I watch our group descend the yellow lifeline. Brenda, my girlfriend, is the last one to disappear into the void between the umber rocks. There’s a sudden silence. I look around at the weird oblong towers and a feeling of being totally encapsulated in this alien landscape bubbles up in me. I peer down into the entrance. The drop is something like 80 feet. I can see one ledge below me, and beyond that, just air. Brenda hollers that she’s on the ground, and I start hooking my belay device onto the rope to rappel. We’re “caving” in the desert of Utah’s San Rafael Swell, about an hour west of the town of Green River. This hole in the ground, formed by the drainage of rainwater through…

Love has a way of sneaking up on you. Blindsiding you. Pulling you into orbits that you never intended to travel. And why do we go? Because of chemistry, because of attraction, because of mystery. Because. Even though said romances can often be swift and fiery, I’ve never been one to turn away from the promise of something fun, exciting, and meaningful. Love, you say? Where do I sign? In this case, my heart had settled on a 1976 Toyota Chinook. We’d been searching earnestly for an adventure vehicle for several months. We owned a 1998 Toyota 4Runner and, while it was fun to weekend in, waking up in tents made us cranky. Several deep dives into the internet researching appropriate types of vintage vehicles turned up some cool-looking options—among…

Sometimes it feels like the southern states of the United States should sink a few inches during the winter months under the weight of thousands of RVers and van lifers—travelers hightailing it away from icy roads, snow banks and the possibility of being caught in a blizzard. But for some intrepid roadsters, the mountains’ call is strongest when winter descends. Skiers and boarders stock their rigs with extra blankets and propane heaters, park as close as they can to the slopes and settle in for a season of chasing pow. “It’s like living in a ski-in, ski-out condo, but the condo’s six by 12 feet, and the mountains are always changing,” says Cedric Yves Denis, freeskier and innovator behind Bigfoot the Trailer—a cargo trailer turned into a stealth camper. For…

Jenny Leveille had a date. It wasn’t a rare occasion—she’d been on plenty since moving into her camper van nearly two years ago—but this guy was a helicopter paramedic and an avid kayaker, so she was excited, nonetheless. “I was dressed to go on a date, which is a big deal when you live in a van. Like, I think I put makeup on, which never happens,” she says. “But he kept blowing it off and getting caught up. So, I was like, ‘Well I’m going to take myself on a date.’” Disappointed but refusing to give up on a night out, Jenny re-opened Tinder to a new match. “I asked him for bar recommendations,” she says. “He was like, ‘Well, do you want company?’ And I was like, ‘Sure!…

It’s three o’clock in the morning. My pillow is frozen to the side of the camper. Moonlight pours through the vent above the bed, illuminating slow puffs of frozen breath that rise like small clouds above our heads. “Damn it, the propane is out…” I think to myself. Just as I prepare myself to get up and investigate, a slow rumbling sound from the floor below turns to heaving. Our pup, Sequoia, is obviously sick, and is about to explode. In two moves, I blast out of bed and practically cartwheel across our small table and on top of the dog. I move shoes and her bed just in time for her to dispatch last night’s dinner and a small helping of sticks that she decided to gobble up. Shivering…

The 77-foot waterfall at Turner Falls Park, Oklahoma, is a wild thing to see during the summer while it’s raging, cascading frantically over a rock wall. In winter, it’s calm and majestic, like an ice sculpture resting as the centerpiece of the park in Chickasaw Nation. Right next to the Arbuckle Mountains, Turner Falls are the largest falls in all of Oklahoma, and they’re well worth the trip, regardless of the season! Turner Falls was named after Mazeppa Thomas Turner, a man who owned the area back in the late 19th century. The waterfall was the property of the Turner family until it was purchased by the city of Davis—the city right next to the falls—for $17,000 in 1925. Since then, it has been a beautiful site for travelers to…