A glimpse into our overlanding adventure as we embark on the unknowns and get comfortable with being uncomfortable. Originally we planned to leave the lake house on February 28, 2020 but our rig was not ready for departure. We needed a few more supplies so we could finish installing 1000 W solar panels on top of our camper, plus one 100 W solar panel on the truck (to charge the dual battery that Jacob already installed in the truck, which will in turn keep our truck refrigerator running).

After further install and wiring, plus getting a 1000 W inverter (converts DC power to AC power) to power higher wattage appliances, we realized our refrigerator in our camper could only run off AC power or propane. Not ideal as we want our solar panels to charge all appliances. Jacob ended up tapping into the existing refrigerator wire, which was relatively easy, but these additional “little” projects (this one for instance) really pushed our departure date back a bit.

**Jacob calculating cumulative weight for truck & camper**

We decided March 4 was going to be the day we head south. Stasia worked while Jacob prepared our camper and truck for our big journey. Most of the day was spent weighing everything we planned to bring with us to make sure we didn’t exceed the weight capacity in both our camper and truck. With only having one axel under our camper we were limited on weight capacity (after adding 6 solar panels to the roof and who knows how many wires to accompany the install, plus 2 golf cart batteries, 2 full 20lb propane tanks). Needless to say we left quite a bit at the lake house. Towards the end of loading our belongings, we got to a point where we just bit the bullet and piled it into the truck because it needed to come with us. We may or may not be over our weight capacity but hopefully we can lighten the load after eating through 6 cans of chicken, 10 cans of mushrooms, 8 cans of green beans, you know, all the safety stock just in case.

Truthfully, tensions were high at the lake house as we were both overwhelmed and tired of moving. It seems like we had been moving our belongings for the past 2 months and ready to finally begin our journey. From having to unload the camper to weigh stuff, to reloading and continue to load the truck, it was an intense game of adult Tetris. The Larisons won. Furthermore, we accumulated quite the pile of cardboard boxes throughout our 2.5 weeks at the lake house; we planned to burn it while we were there but with all our other projects, we never made time to burn the cardboard (sorry Flip & Jody). We stashed it nicely in a secure location so that we can have a massive bonfire upon our return.

We both took one last normal shower before departing to Northwest Arkansas; we will miss having that luxury. Speaking of luxuries, it’ll be a massive adjustment as we embark on this journey without any freezers, oven, nor dishwasher, and limited water supply in the desert.

We left the lake and headed south. Driving out of Golden, MO was rough cause we had too much weight in the bed of the truck and truck basket, as well as in the front of our camper. Our heads bobbed with every bump we hit and we figured we’d take it slow and keep pushing. 10 minutes later, George called to make sure our weight distribution was allocated evenly for safety purposes. Fortunately Eagle Rock Marina was up ahead and we pulled off to rearrange and redistribute the weight. It was a much smoother ride through the Ozark Mountains.

We arrived at our friends Andy and McKenzie’s house and caught up with them, their daughter, and finally met their newborn son. It was a great evening with the Powells and we are thankful they offered to let us stay. The next morning Jacob woke up early to go get the oil changed in the truck and Stasia worked. Jacob then worked on installing the solar panel to the truck racks but ran into some difficulties. Apparently the tight spaces and the hardware for the aluminum bars he purchased to hold the solar panel wouldn’t allow him to tighten any nuts, and we didn’t want any loose nuts. So we decided to press on and travel with one solar panel on the floor of our camper. We ordered more hardware and plan to pick it up in Havasu to hopefully finish the solar install.

Jacob started out driving and unfortunately it was raining. 4 hours of driving for Jacob, roughly 3 hours in the rain. Jacob drove us through the Boston Mountains on our way to Fort Smith to catch I40 West through Oklahoma. Meanwhile, Stasia held on for dear life. Being pushed around by our camper is not a comfortable feeling, but we got used to it. However, it’s pretty embarrassing being passed by a bunch of semi trucks, as we’re the ones who usually complete the passes.

**Stasia’s first time pulling a camper**

Stasia drove the second leg of the day to Amarillo, TX. First time pulling a camper, and it looked as you’d expect: hands glued to the steering wheel at 10 & 2, stiff arms, sitting in an upright position, eyes glued to the road. It also happened to be during rush hour in Oklahoma City. The traffic thinned out and Stasia became more comfortable as we got closer to Amarillo.

Our first campsite was at a Wal-Mart off the highway in Amarillo, TX. Wal-Mart allows people to vehicle camp in their parking lots so we took advantage of the free campsite and public restrooms. The parking lot slept a lot of long-haul truckers as well as a few overlanders like us, plus some recreational vehicles. As we adjusted into our camper for the night and rearranged some things, we realized our camper door would not lock. We don’t know if it was the rough roads through Oklahoma but something threw our door hinge out of whack. It was about 10pm after a solid 8 hours of driving and this was the last thing we wanted to deal with. Jacob filed the strike plate for about 5 minutes before trying to lower the strike plate on the doorframe. Neither were successful. Finally he just took the strike plate off and viola. Success!

Amarillo had a chilly evening with lows in the 30s. Fortunately our propane heater worked well and kept us warm throughout the night. We were sandwiched between two semi trucks that both had refrigerated cargo that required a generator to constantly run. The noise of the generator sort of replaced the noise of a bedroom fan, except fans don’t rumble and guzzle.

It was the first time we slept in our new camper and bed. The previous owners swapped the original camper bed for a full queen memory foam mattress. It was such a comfortable mattress, although we are now in the market for a 4” mattress pad after sleeping in the Powell’s guest bed. After a decent night of sleep in the Wal-Mart parking lot, we casually woke up and brewed coffee in our camper. First cup of joe and I’m sure you can guess how it was brewed: French press method. Never fails. We were parked by a Whataburger and McDonalds and badly wanted to go get breakfast. Stasia reminded us that we are not on vacation, and that this is our lifestyle. We are fully equipped to prepare meals inside our camper. So we settled for a protein bar and hit the road.

Stasia drove the first 4 hours into Albuquerque, NM; she felt (and looked) more comfortable pulling our camper. We listened to 4 hours of Pitbull radio on Pandora, with the occasional rap song here and there. Anything to keep that left foot tapping to help stay awake.

**Jacob cooking in the Sam’s Club parking lot**

We didn’t stop until we reached Albuquerque NM and strategically pulled into Sam’s Club. Gas prices in NM are around $2.79/gal, but Sam’s Club gas only cost us $2.49/gal. We sure looked silly pulling into the Sam’s Club gas pumps with a camper, but we weren’t the only ones. Food trucks and even a UPS truck decided to capitalize on the lower gas price. While there we parked the truck and camper and headed inside Sam’s Club to look for that mattress pad; no luck. But Jacob did whip up some bomb quesadillas from inside our camper. Breakfast sausage patties, cheese, and canned mushrooms. We were starving and those quesadillas didn’t stand a chance. Having the ability to cook anywhere on the road is such a game changer.

We hope you find joy in hearing about our new adventures and encourage you keep following as we post more details and stories of our journey! Don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel, as we plan to post weekly videos of our journey - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTSvhmypoqkua4OTNauYO5A

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