Notes From The Road #22: changing seasons, changing spaces

Hello and happy May!

April can be a really unpredictable month for us on the road. It’s when we begin making our way back to Colorado, but the weather largely dictates our route and the speed at which we do so. We tend to take it a day at a time, letting the forecast decide if we need to hang longer in the desert (because it’s still cold in Colorado), haul butt to Colorado (because it’s getting hot in the desert), or if we can mosey our way through Utah (because the weather is ideal).

Rarely are we dealt that last scenario, but this spring we got lucky and were gifted a window of gorgeous weather. We took full advantage, as you’ll soon see below, which left us craving more time to spend in Utah. However, it was time to get back to Colorado to get to work and enjoy some time sitting still at our property before the busy summer work season gets underway. Here’s a look back at a beautiful month perfectly balanced between adventure and domesticity.

Traversing Smoky Mountain Road—Finally

When plotting our way through Utah every spring, we keep a close eye on the weather. Many of Utah’s backcountry roads are impassable when wet, so planning ahead is crucial. For over ten years now, I have wanted to experience Smoky Mountain Road—an 80-mile-long dirt track that bisects Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument—but we have never found ourselves in the area at the right time.

That finally changed in April. For three days, we slowly made our way from Page, AZ, to Escalante, UT, via this remote route. The views were stunning, and the solitude was palpable. In three days, we saw about 6-8 other people. Utah never ceases to amaze us with its one-of-a-kind landscapes.

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Moving Out of the Truck and Back Into Our Trailer

It’s that time of year when we move out of the truck camper and back into our travel trailer. I crave more space when our business gets into its busy season, and the trailer feels like a palace after living out of the truck for months on end. Living in 40 square feet renews my appreciation for the simplest of things. Suddenly, I am thrilled to have:

• Sinks
• Running water (and hot water!)
• Desk space for the two of us
• A COUCH 🤩
• A full indoor kitchen
• A designated bathroom WITH A DOOR 🎉
• An indoor shower
• Four insulated walls that protect us from the elements better than the truck camper can
• Room to do two things at once (like cook AND work) 🤯

I love dividing our year between the two spaces. Come fall, when we haven’t lived in the truck camper for months, I’ll be eager and ready to go on adventures that the trailer can’t take us on. But for this season, when our days are spent primarily working at our computers, it’s a delight to have such a comfortable space to live in.

If the trailer were our living space 100% of the time, it might start to feel small. But the stark contrast of living in the truck camper always reminds me that this 160-square-foot tiny home on wheels has all I could ever want and need. It might not be able to go to all the places the truck can, but it still has wheels and allows us to call many beautiful places home. It’s two totally different ways of experiencing the nomad lifestyle, and I love that we get to do both.

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Volunteering With Underdog Rescue & Rehab

Is it selfish to volunteer just so I can get my dog fix? Photographing shelter dogs to help them find their forever homes is such a simple service to offer and one we’re so happy to provide. We got to meet the most gorgeous litter of brindle pups in April, as well as several other cuties. Underdog Animal Rescue & Rehab, based out of Moab, is doing incredible work to combat the stray dog population on the Native American reservations in the Four Corners region. If you ever find yourself looking for a new canine companion, we highly recommend checking them out.

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What We’ve Been Working on Behind the Scenes

In April, we began tackling a massive project that we’ve been wanting to do for a while: a complete overhaul and redesign of this website. For the first time ever, the massive amounts of content here—whether it be about full-time RVing, camping in Baja, or our personal stories about life on the road—will be so much easier to find. We’re also working on setting up email campaigns so that if you missed any of our “Day in the Life” series, you will be able to sign up and enjoy receiving those daily, straight to your inbox.

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What’s Happening Over on Our Patreon Page

Our Patreon page is the place to be if you want a backstage pass to our life on the road. Joining our Patreon community unlocks access to our members-only podcast, weekly updates you won’t find anywhere else, and coordinates to our favorite campsites (like the ones we just found on Smoky Mountain Road).

The paywall allows us to get more personal and make real connections with like-minded folks rather than feeding social media algorithms and chasing “likes.” We want the barrier to entry to be low, so for a limited time, we’re offering a $2/mo option to join our little digital sanctuary. You can also join for free if you’re not ready to commit but would like to get a preview of what we’re sharing. We would love to see you there!

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In case you missed it, these are the posts we shared in April:

• Easy Off-Grid Meals for Truck Camper Living
• 11 Colorado scenic drives that will take your breath away
• How we use terrain and elevation to find the best campsites
• On pain and trusting the process

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That’s all for April! If there’s anything you’d like to see on the new website, let us know in the comments below. We’d love to hear from you!

Don’t forget to get outside this month and enjoy the freshness and new beginnings that are synonymous with Spring.

Cheers,
Michele & Mark