Saddle Mountain 2/28/2018

When I arrived at Saddle Mountain, the sun was shining. I think this is one of the most beautiful places I have camped so far!  I drove up the road of the BLM campground and found a spot near the mountains. Upon looking at Google Maps, the road dead ends at another road that goes in both directions up ahead. If I had 4 wheel drive, I might go further, and today I’ll take a walk to explore.

I got set up just in time, because the clouds quickly rolled in and it began raining. I snugged up in the van and finished reading The Grapes of Wrath and slept with the sound of rain on the roof.

What a life!

Now this is more like it!  I counted only about 8 rigs out here. This must be a well-kept secret. Or maybe it’s just because it’s mid-week. Whatever… I’ll be back here next season for sure!  It’s so quiet out here, and the beauty is just stunning.

This morning, after the rain, there was that wonderful desert-smell of creosote in the air. One of the things I love about van-dwelling is how close I live to the earth. I’m just one step away from the ground, and when I open my side door each morning, I have a beautiful view of a backyard that constantly changes.

I feel healthier and happier out here in nature.  And though I’m sure there will be times I’ll want to be back in 4 walls, for now, this is a slice of heaven for me.

What a life!

Looking out my van door 

Cooking dinner and tomorrow's food, before the rain starts!

Those clouds rolled in FAST!

Bundled up in the van, listening to the rain

A beautiful morning!

You can see the fog in the valley

Thank you, Mr. Sun

Foods For Van Dwelling

There are a few products I use that make my van life easier, 

and I'd like to share those with you.

I do not use a cooler regularly.

I use my cooler to hold tools, and do take it along, 

just in case.

But generally, I carry no food that needs refrigeration.

The only thing I use that COULD use a refrigerator

is yogurt,

and that seems to do just fine for 4 to 5 days 

without refrigeration.

After all, yogurt is fermented milk, 

and all it does is get stronger.

So far I've had no problems carrying it and using it,

although one container over a week old 

did manifest some mold

and had to be tossed.

I use the yogurt in my cereal

instead of milk.

I add a few big spoons of yogurt,

then add water and stir.

It's just like using kefir or milk

and works great!

I always carry boxed tofu.

I like Silken Tofu and I like the Firm texture.

I use this for curries, as well as for "scrambled eggs"

and "egg salad."

This particular tofu can be purchased in stores,

and also on Amazon by the case.

I love Curry and other East Indian foods,

and I particularly love these Curry pastes.

These come in a variety of types. 

Some are hot, some are medium, some are mild.

I prefer the mild, so this is the one I keep on stock.

It's perfect for whipping up a quick dinner,

using the vegetables you have at  hand.

I generally use it with potatoes, yams, and canned chicken.

I've also added celery, carrots, an zucchini.

It's awesome when you are pot-lucking too,

and has been a great hit!

I like coconut milk in my curry

and so I keep these on hand.

These are small single serving coconut milk boxes.

Since I have no way to refrigerate leftover milk,

these work great.

I pour one entire box into my curry.

It's about 1 cup.

I also love these Tasty Bite packages.

Single servings for less than $3 each,

they make a great quick meal when you really 

don't feel like cooking,

and they need no refrigeration.

They come in a great variety of flavors.

All of these items can be ordered on Amazon.com

and if you have PRIME,

shipping is free.

Ready to eat rice

makes dinner easy

those times you can't cook.

There is this Basmati Rice,

and Uncle Ben's makes another version

that is less costly.

As long as the weather is cool,

I can put leftovers in a tight-lidded container

and it holds over for a second night.

Another item I buy is bagged salad.

I particularly love the Asian salad.

I also like the kale salad,

and I have actually STIR FRIED this

and used it as a "wilted salad"

when the weather is cold.

I've held these salads up to 5 days 

in a cool space in my van

with no refrigeration and no problem.

Instead of bread, I carry crackers.

I like cracker bread like Lahvosh or WASA.

Or just organic crackers.

I hope some of these lightweight, easy foods

will give you ideas

of what might work for you.

Many can be ordered on Amazon 

and it's worth looking through

their Prime Pantry to see what's available.

Good luck and Bon Provecho!

Annie

Test Night #2 - What I Learned

What I learned Night #2 sleeping in my van.

1. I revved up my Buddy Heater. That thing gets REALLY hot fast. I probably don't need to run it more than 5 minutes. For safety, I need to leave a window open. 1/2 inch is enough.

2. Got my curtains temporarily rehung. I need to secure both bottom and top of the curtains because the cold air comes DOWN onto my bed. 

3. Kleenex makes a LOT more sense than toilet paper for toileting in the van. Only takes 1 hand instead of two. Tried this out last night and I'm switching to a box of Kleenex.

4. I'm going to try making my coffee the night before and putting it in the thermos so it's ready in the morning. I wake up before light so in order to make the coffee, I need light. I'd rather not have to deal with that at 5 am.

5. It got VERY cold last night; down in the 30's. I used my down sleeping bag until around 3 am, then got cold, so pulled my down comforter over onto me. I learned that the full sized down comforter is awkward and heavy to handle. I'm going to measure about 5 inches over each side of my cot/bed and cut the comforter down to size. It is not only too wide, it's too long. It drove me batty folding up over my face.

6. I had purchased several pillow covers at Goodwill. I use them for storage of my pajamas, sleeping bag, and extra clothes. I am switching my sleeping bag to the more sturdy cover since I'll be taking it in and out every day.

7. My merino wool skullcap was not comfortable for sleeping. I have a "snood" like cap somewhere - it's looser and has space in the top for warm air to gather.

Not comfortable. Too tight and close to my head.

Softer, looser, warmer. Much more comfortable.

8. I do not like sleeping with gloves.

9. My arm kept going to sleep, but that's a common problem even in my big bed. I think the extra couple of inches the new mattress gives will make a difference. I may move the bed a couple of inches away from the side of the van. I'd still have plenty of room by the entrance and wouldn't be sleeping up against the cold side.

That's it. 

A pretty good night's sleep and again, 

I learned a lot!

Have a great day, VanDwellers!

Love,

Annie

Test Night in the Van - What I Learned

Last night I spent a test night in my van.

I put my keys and flashlight where I could find them. I hung my nighttime curtains and was cozy and warm. I thought I had everything figured out.

I didn't.

Here is what I learned last night:

1) Have all your mid-night pee gear together and in place. As usual, at about 3 am, my bladder woke me up. The suggested procedure is to have something like a yogurt or cottage cheese container as a pee pot, then you pour the urine into a laundry bottle 

and discard it later. 

For those not van-camping, sorry to be so graphic, 

but it's just the fact. 

So first I was hunting the pee-pot in the cold 3 am air. Then when I finished using it, 

I couldn't find my laundry bottle. 

Then couldn't find a place 

the yogurt container wouldn't tip over 

so ended up tossing the urine out the door 

onto my lawn rather than having it spill inside. (Luckily, it's raining!)

2) Learn to use the danged key fob! 

I've never had a car with a key fob. 

Opening the door was a comedy of errors. 

I thought I was locked in forever!

 No matter how many combinations I tried, 

that damned door wouldn't open! 

Then I got my flashlight and realized 

I'd been holding the fob upside down. 

Doh!

3) Find a pee pot that is shorter and won't tip over!

4) Move toilet. 

Put the toilet to the BACK of the van, 

so I do not have to trip over it in the morning 

to turn on the heat.

5) Better viewing. 

Make a tiny place on all 3 sides of the back of the van where I can peek out if I hear a suspicious noise. Maybe I don't need that, but for now, 

it would make me feel better.

6) Buy a small trashcan or trash bag for the van.

7) Organize sleepwear. 

Thought I slept warm enough, 

it's COLD in the mornings! 

Have a packet (one of those zippered pillows) with nighttime gear in it. 

Pajamas, hat, gloves, socks.

8) Hook up the Buddy Heater the night before. 

The heater was right in front of me 

but the propane was in the back of the van 

where I couldn't get to it.

9) Check fuses.

 Figure out how to get the heat on 

in the BACK of the van. 

When I turned on the van heater, 

there was heat coming out of the front vents, 

but not into the back.

10) Shorter curtains are better. 

Cut the curtains between the cab/back shorter. 

I thought it was a good idea to leave them long 

so I could fold them under 

(to keep cold air from the cab 

out of the back of the van.) 

It's not. 

I need to be able to easily flip them into the cab 

in the morning so I can get to my 

back-of-passenger-seat storage.

11) Buy a better mattress. 

My old foam mattress that I thought would work... won't. 

I woke up with my back hurting. 

Since I'll be sleeping on it every night, 

I will invest in a good mattress 

to go on top of the foam. 

I am looking at this mattress from Amazon, 

because it is the right size, 

it has a removable cover I can wash, 

has sheets that fit it, 

and it has great reviews:

So that's what I learned.

Advice and suggestions will be appreciated! 

It was fun, and for the most part, comfortable. 

I felt snug as a bug in a rug, perfectly safe, and happy. Just a few minor adjustments, I think, 

and this will be a great adventure!

She Has a Nice Rack!

Figuring out "what works for me" is part of the process of deciding to live in a van.  Until you try things, hopefully in your own driveway to begin with, you just don't know. Until you sleep in the space, cook in the space, live in the space, you have no idea of what you really need.  The next few posts show me trying out various ideas, some which worked and some which did not.

*******

Ok.. sorry to be politically incorrect, but I couldn't help myself.

I went to Goodwill last night, looking for a set of curtains to block the view from the cab to the back of the van, and look what I found!  This VERY cool, VERY lightweight rack with 6 sliding drawers.  The drawers slide in both directions, which make it an excellent storage space for food. If I'm cooking off the tailgate, it's perfect.  If I'm cooking inside, it's perfect.

Also, there is a space of probably 7 inches next to it where I can store a thin water container or some other needful thing.

My van is coming along. Joe helped me put in a plywood floor yesterday and I found this rug in my camping gear.

Here's a peek at where what I've been doing:

Today I'm looking for another curtain and a bedskirt to hide the storage bins under the bed. I'm also going to start on the reflectix window inserts.

She's coming along!

Isn't She Lovely? 2003 Toyota Sienna.

Isn't She Lovely?

After sleeping in the Mercury for a bit, I decided that I needed more space for a long road adventure. So I went shopping for the perfect van. I decided to begin with a minivan, just in case this didn't work out, so I'd have something I could drive every day.  If the lifestyle suits me, then I'll upgrade to something larger. I looked and looked and looked and finally found this wonderful 2002 Toyota Sienna.

*******

Picked up my new (for me) van today!
She needs a name,
but so far,
I haven't come up with one.

Got all the seats out and Joe started building my bed.

Wow!  Lots of room in there!

I saw this meme (below) and felt 'it was me."

Can't wait to hit the road in November!