After flying back from Cancun to Phoenix, it was neat to be home as soon as we got to the parking lot of the airport. We had left our Quest Overland insulated window covers installed, the heating thermostat set to our usual 68F, and the MaxxAir roof fan set to automatically open and turn on at temperatures over 78F. We left the Xantrex Freedom X 3kW inverter off since we wouldn't be using any AC power while we were away. The fridge remained on although it was mostly empty save for a few items like condiments and whatnot that would last. The only other thing that was on was the fan venting the toilet I believe. All those items run on DC power. When we returned, the batteries were sitting at 13.0V, and there was no evidence of our chocolates having melted in the dining room. So, it didn't get super hot inside and there was tons of battery capacity left, probably enough for a few weeks at least. We power our house side electronics in our van with 510Ah of lithium batteries from Renogy.

We weren't actually truly home until we picked up the dog, though. He was ecstatic, Of course. We were pretty much out of water from our last shower before flying to Mexico, we were super low on groceries and dog food, and we had a mountain of dirty laundry. So we went to Walmart to get a couple bottles of water so we could at least have some to drink and brush our teeth. And we got some breakfast for Loki. Then we drove back to the middle of the desert in Wickenburg for free camping. We really like that spot. It's "free", but you have to purchase a permit which allows you to camp on state trust land for up to two weeks per year. It's on the honor system, so we make a note of which dates we use it.

​When we woke up, we skipped showering and cooking since we wouldn't be able to wash dishes. Mandy drove us back to Prescott where we filled and emptied our water tanks at Affinity RV. We had reserved a spot starting Monday at White Spar Campground again, but we decided to head there Sunday, for simplicity. We got some groceries on the way to stock back up. When we arrived, Mandy made us some delicious burgers. After we ate, we set out on a hike and we FINALLY made it all the way to Goldwater Lake. It only took a few tries, perhaps the key to motivating Loki was that we were both there with him.

Since we had initially only reserved a site for Monday through Thursday of this week, we weren't able to go to that site a day early; it was occupied. No big deal, we just took the one next door for a night and planned to move over once it was vacated. We noted when we arrived Sunday, though, that the site was kind of a mess. There was trash on the ground and the tent was partially caved in, and the door appeared open. We thought that kind of odd.

I dropped Mandy off for work Monday morning and Loki and I went back to our Sunday site to finish and post our YouTube video a day late (we usually like to post on Sundays). We had the site until 11, so I was within limits for a time. Eventually, checkout passed, and there had been no change at the site we had reserved for the week. Not long after, the campground host came by and knocked on the van. I explained the situation and why we were in a site we hadn't paid for. She said if the equipment had truly been abandoned that it has to remain untouched for two weeks. We would play it by the ear, but we were okay to stay put unless someone showed up who had paid for that site, in which case the host would relocate us. Sounds totally reasonable.

So, eventually we had to go get Mandy at the end of her shift. All we'd really done was some laptop work, laying and reading, and a couple short hikes around the campground. Nothing too exciting. We went straight to the laundromat after work. Mandy handled the laundry, and I set to work making chicken tikka masala and rice. The tag team approach works really well for us. She got to eat while the dryer was running. The chicken was wicked good, but full disclosure, I used a sauce from a jar. It's not feasible to make sauces from scratch in a van; it requires storing way too many ingredients. She folded everything in the laundromat while I cleaned up the kitchen. Tag team.

​We went back to the campground. "Our" site was still a mess. No surprise there. We went to the host site around 7:30 and knocked. Their dogs went crazy, but after five full minutes, no one came out. Mandy noted that the golf cart was not there. So, she drove us all around the campground to try and track down the host. No luck. But we did get to see our first javelina. It was in the road illuminated by the headlights and Loki was A N G R Y. He immediately started barking, which he almost never does, and trying to get out to go see it. It scurried off into the woods and he calmed down.

So, we decided to just take the site next door again. We parked and I put the window covers in while Mandy walked Loki to the dumpster to throw away our trash. She was back almost immediately, as someone had arrived who had paid for the site and we had to move. Again. Unclear where to go because the host was MIA, we just parked in the abandoned gear site. The one we had paid for. The newcomers walked over shortly thereafter, and Mandy explained the whole situation to them as they were rightly confused on arrival. They were nice, and we weren't mad. We actually got lucky that they hadn't shown up right after we got in bed, you know? Just an overall weird situation. We went to bed and hoped we wouldn't hear any knocking in the night. We didn't.

After we dropped off Mandy on Tuesday morning, Loki and I hit up Petco to get him a few things, but mainly his after-dinner toothbrush sticks. He's got pretty clean teeth for his age. Other than the one he had to have removed (he cracked it in half eating a bone!!), they're in really great shape. Then, we came back to the site and walked around a bit. I picked up the garbage that was left on the ground by the previous occupants, put it into a torn cardboard box that was also left, and stuffed it into the tent door. I didn't want it to blow away, but if it belongs to someone out there, I don't want it to seem like I stole it.

We took out some beef I had marinated the night before. Yes, of course Loki "helped" at this part. I laid everything out in our oven, set it to dehydrate for 5 hours, and waited for jerky. This is where all that battery power really comes in handy. I mostly read while the oven was on. I didn't want to wander too far, because I assume the van will burst into flames the moment the oven is left unattended. Of course, everything was fine, but you know. That killed most of the day until we had to pick up Mandy from work.

From there, we headed over to Thumb Butte. Finally. It's like the most popular landmark in Prescott, I think. It's definitely the most scenic hike around. The views, not just of the town, but all the way to Flagstaff, are awesome. The hike was not terrible, although it looks daunting from the start. It took us just over an hour. When we got back to the campsite, there was still a busted tent pitched on it. We weren't starving, so Mandy made some ramen, and we had a few cheese and crackers and meat-banana. That's what we call salame/pepperoni/etc. We cleaned a bit and then went to bed.

​We got up and took a brisk walk through a short trail around the campground before heading to work. We dropped off Mandy and then checked the mail. Then we went back to the campsite. I packed a bag with some jerky, trail mix, water, and dog treats, and we set off. I was determined to complete the loop around Goldwater Lake. It was slightly chilly but forecast to be mid-50s and sunny. So, I started off with gloves and a hat, but they didn't last long. No jacket.

​We took periodic breaks about each half hour. Just after our first stop, though, there was an intersection with no sign. Since I'd technically seen the lake on a previous trip by a different route, I took the way that seemed to head in that direction. There was another junction a few minutes later. Again, no sign. I took my best guess. Another 20 minutes or so, and we were on a trail we've hiked a few times with Mandy. Familiar ground. Normally, we hike to the summit of this trail, then turn back. I decided to see where it went. I followed it to the end.

Before the end, it cut through a beautiful meadow. I didn't think to get a picture, but I should have. I was just zoned out. Sorry. It came out onto pavement by a bible camp. Lots of people screaming in the middle of the woods was a weird vibe. It sounded cheerful, though, at least. By this point, we'd completely overshot the lake according to my GPS, without having actually seen it. There was a neighborhood nearby that I thought might have lake access so we walked through there. No luck. I figured it best to turn back as it had been a couple hours and we still had close to that ahead of us, and Loki was getting kinda droopy.

When we got back, I noticed the previous occupant's tent was bundled into a pile at the front of the site. Dog and I both flopped into bed for a while until we had to get Mandy from work. While we laid there, I noticed at least 3 deer snacking in the woods nearby our site. Maybe 10 feet from the van. That was neat. I took a picture but their camouflage is so good it's wicked hard to see them.

​We picked up Mandy and came back to the site again to make dinner. New potatoes, Brussels sprouts with caramelized onion, and a big ol' steak. The steak was good, but I felt like the vegetables weren't my best work. As we were cleaning up, I noticed water in the shower drain, a couple inches below the floor level. We took an emergency run to dump the grey water tank. It seems we can get about 4 full days of water in the tank. Full days meaning we both shower each day. What's great is that with the addition of the check valve we recently installed, the water doesn't run out onto the floor anymore, even if the tank is full. We topped up the fresh water too, while we were there, since no one else was waiting. While the tanks were filling, Mandy whipped up a fresh batch of granola which made the van smell amazing. Since we were taking our time at the water station, by the time we got back to our site it was about 9:30pm so we went straight to bed.

Friday morning we took a hike. After failing yesterday, I was DETERMINED to do the loop around Goldwater Lake. We set out in slightly chilly weather but walked into warmth over an hour or so. We found the way to Lower Goldwater Lake, which was easy because we've been there, then we followed the shoreline trail. Eventually, that took us to the upper lake. I know we're really close to civilization, but for some reason these trails seem really remote. It's quite nice.

We wound around the far side of Upper Goldwater Lake and through the picnic area. The trail gets pretty vague in certain spots, but we managed. When we got to the opposite side of the dam, we hit a roadblock. There's construction ongoing and the road and trail are both closed. I believe they're cutting in a road or installing a parking lot. Perhaps both. We turned around and began the journey back. We took a shot in the dark trying a new trail that I was pretty certain linked to the most direct route back. My legs and feet were getting tired! Luckily, I was right, and we got back to the campground about 4 hours after we'd set out. Just in time for checkout, I think. Or perhaps too late. But we had no issues.

​We hopped in the van and drove off to accomplish some chores. Empty the pee jug. Check. Dump the trash bag. Check. Empty the grey water. Check. Check the fresh water. Full enough. Get groceries. Check. Get Mandy. Check.

And we were off for the weekend!

We spent the weekend in Wickenburg, AZ. Well, that's not entirely true. But we cruised there Friday afternoon from Prescott after Mandy got out of work. We found a sweet spot in the middle of the desert off Vulture Mine Rd. It takes a while to get from Prescott to Wickenburg even though they appear deceptively close as the crow flies. The roads connecting them are very ziggy and zaggy, and there are a couple mountain passes to clear. With a stop for groceries on the way, we arrived somewhat late; right around dusk.

We met some friends, Abe and Mel, through Instagram. They're living a similar life traveling in their own self-built van, too! They hit a bit of a rough patch, but we'll get to that in a future post. This was the first time we'd met them in "real life", and they met us out on the road to lead us into their little campsite in the desert. They were also parked up with Sydney and Albert who live in a converted school bus. First we had to cook some dinner, but then we were introduced, given the tour and spent the evening getting to know our new friends. They were all wonderful people. As the night wore on, we all split up to head to our respective beds to get some sleep in.

We flew from Phoenix because it was the closest cheapest direct flight to Cancun. We'd never been to Mexico before, so this was another country we got to cross off that list. So that was exciting! We felt like typical American tourists because we'd done very little to brush up on our Spanish before entering the country. This didn't really pose any challenges, but we like to be a bit better at the local language when we visit a new place.

Our week there was very relaxing. A far cry from our typical week vacations which you've read about here previously. Normally, we try to cram in as much as we can into one or two crazy week(s) before we have to hustle back home to go to work. Instead, we tried out something we've never done before. We stayed at an all-inclusive resort and just chilled. It was truly wonderful. That's not to say we stayed on the resort the entire week - we did do some adventuring of course! But we definitely spent more time than we normally do in one place, and we didn't hate it!

Hanging out around the resort doesn't make for great story-telling here, however. We spent a day out on a sailboat in the Gulf of Mexico which was awesome. We did some snorkeling off the catamaran as well as plenty of swimming and sunbathing. The boat tour got us thinking and so we talked a lot of what it could be like to live on a sailboat, too. We're definitely interested, though we're not ready to move out of our van just yet. We still have plenty we want to do in the van first. But stay tuned, maybe someday...

But let's try to make it sound interesting. I have the advantage here because Monday was a holiday and so already covered in the previous post. So, I only have four days to spice up. The disadvantage is that I was still in a lot of pain from skiing, so the days were pretty slow-moving, to be safe.

For some backstory, we developed a rock chip in our windshield some time ago. We have also been experiencing the intense radiant heating capabilities of the sun in such arid environment as Arizona offers, and would like to do something about it. 3M manufactures an infrared-blocking thin film product that applies like window tint but doesn't significantly change visible light transmission. In other words, it's nearly clear. We wanted to have the film installed professionally, but we also wanted to ensure the rock chip would not form a crack that would propagate and warrant throwing away the windshield along with the newly-installed film. So step one was to have the chip addressed by Safelite. They chip away at it a little bit further to make it a more uniform bowl-shaped chip, and to remove any loose fragments of glass. Then, it is filled with a clear epoxy and made flat. The whole process took only about twenty minutes. The tiny chip is still visible, but the hope is that it will not get any larger or split. We will monitor it for a few weeks before getting the window film installed, as a precaution.

Another minor issue we've faced is related to our greywater tank and plumbing. In general, the drainpipe is mostly-straight shot all the way to the back of the van. It enters the greywater tank on the driver's side at the rear of the tank, towards the bottom. The point is that if the tank is full, and if we turn towards the right and apply the brakes, the momentum of the water can push it up the shower drain. Twice this has happened. Our interim solution is to dump the greywater more frequently so it doesn't get full, utilizing only about half the capacity. But we also ordered a check valve online to install in the drainpipe so water can't flow back up into our shower. This week, the valve arrived. It looks like this and will be installed this weekend.

Wednesday morning we woke under a blanket of snow. It means a few extra minutes before work to get the snow brushed off the van. And it usually means water on the floor from our shoes and Loki's feet each time we get back inside. That's just part of van life. At least the flooring material is waterproof. I went to urgent care this day to get some sort of pain relief more powerful than the ibuprofen we had in the van. After that excursion, Loki and I parked the van and worked on editing video for our YouTube channel. When we got Mandy from work, she cooked us up some delicious comfort food in the form of cheeseburgers. But these were on homemade sourdough bread, with caramelized onion and bacon-pepper jam. And they were SO. GOOD.

Tuesday was not super interesting. Loki and I dropped off Mandy at work, and then we took a couple hour ride down to Phoenix. We spent pretty much the entire day at the Mercedes-Benz dealer in North Scottsdale. It was time for its first oil change and the rest of "Service A" at 20,000 miles. I think the bulk of the work is fluids-checking and other inspection points. But we also had a small stack of recall notices to address. The team there handled everything all in one day, which was fantastic. It was a long day for us, but Loki was pleased to be welcome inside the lobby and found himself a nice cushiony chair to sleep in for most of it.

Thursday we had a little bit of a mishap on the way to drop Mandy off at work. The grey water tank, which we knew was mostly full, backed up into the shower and spilled out onto the floor. It was a result of specific driving conditions, I think a right turn while braking; because of the way the plumbing is arranged. So that was the project of the day. After drop-off, I cleaned up the floor and dumped the grey water tank. I ordered a check valve for the drain pipe immediately after, and we made a note to ensure we don't let the tank get over half full until it's installed.

With the plumbing issue resolved as much as it could be at the time, I set to work figuring out plans for the weekend. This is something of a process which we're still ironing out. But we're definitely improving and getting more efficient. There's a lot of points to consider! First, we have a list of destinations recommended by friends and family, as well as places we want to see. There's a lot of overlap there, which is good. Then, there's weather to consider; will it be too hot or too cold? Any rain or high winds? Some destinations, like lakes, for example, we want to visit when it's hot on purpose. For swimming. The desert spots we want to visit when it's cooler, because the desert can get incredibly, unforgivably hot. Then, we have to consider where exactly we'll stay at a given destination. Is there a place to park for free, or should we get a campsite? Do we need reservations? Is there anything available? Then we have to consider the route. Can we get there in one shot on a Friday after work, or is it better to break it up? Can we pair it with another destination that's on the way, and do a two-for-one deal? All of that stuff is the figuring. Then, there's also prep work. Like ensuring the grey tank is empty, in case we don't see anywhere to dump it. Fill the fresh water tanks, in case we don't pass any fill stations. Make sure the fuel tank is full. Get groceries for the weekend. Even though we're ostensibly "ready to go", there's still a lot to be done.

This took us Thursday and Friday to complete, but we came up with a solid plan we were excited to execute. We'll tell you all about it in the next one!

At least it's back to the grind for one of us. Mandy started her temporary contract position for the VA Medical Center in Prescott, Arizona. During her working days, Loki and Rob will be adventuring in and around the town. On weekends, we'll all be exploring various parts of Arizona. Remember that we have to leave Prescott National Forest lands to satisfy the stay limits within the national forest. Since the adventures will be on a bit smaller scale, it probably makes sense to condense a week into each post here, rather than a day per post. Hopefully that's okay with you all. These posts have fallen quite far behind real time, so this will help to catch you guys back up to present day. Or at least a bit closer.

Day one of work for Mandy, and we already have a pretty well-established morning routine. We get up, take showers, eat breakfast, make the bed and raise it to the ceiling, feed Loki, take him for a walk, then drive Mandy to work. We drove through the security gate which was a little awkward because she didn't have an ID, we didn't have a parking permit, we have a pet which isn't allowed, and so on. We were allowed through, but we decided right then that in the future, we'd just park outside the gate and she could walk in. Mandy put on her brave face and set off to work. Loki and I left to run some errands. We got groceries, opened up a mailbox so we could receive mail and packages. Real exciting stuff. Eventually, we returned to our campsite and set out to hike to Goldwater Lake, which is about 3.5 miles away from the campground. Somewhere around the halfway mark, Loki started dragging behind, so I took it as a sign to turn back so I could avoid having to carry his 85lbs all the way back. Because that was just not going to happen. Back at camp, we relaxed in the sun for a while until it was time to pick up Mandy. Back at camp, we decided to grill a BBQ chicken pizza over our campfire. The gluten-free dough, which was all we could find at the grocery store, was a little difficult to work with, but the pizza came out awesome anyways. We devoured it, and spent the rest of the night cleaning up and relaxing by the dying fire before heading to bed.

Loki made sure we were awake around 4:00am or so. He heard coyotes, and he just wanted to verify that we heard them, too. We appreciate him keeping us safe, though. The coyotes don't have a key, so they can't get to us in the van. He was very alert, so it took some coaxing to get him to go back to sleep so we could do the same.

The sunrise in Sedona was b-e-a-YOU-tiful! Right in front of where we parked was the most scenic U-haul location we've ever seen. Which isn't saying anything at all. Usually they're not much to look at. But Sedona U-haul has got it going on. We finally had a little time to kill, so we just walked around the town a bit with Loki. It's just so pretty! Even though it was pretty chilly, we didn't even care. It was awesome to be outside walking around in the fresh air and sunshine.

Eventually, the cold did start to gnaw at us a little, so we circled back home. Once there, we made a couple breakfast sandwiches and ate them. After we ate and cleaned up, we made a big climb out of Sedona, through a zillion switchbacks, towards Flagstaff. Once we were in Flagstaff, we continued climbing even more. "You're going to drive all the way up the mountain and there will be none left to ski," Mandy said. Well, she was wrong. At Snowbowl, the driveway is a long climb uphill, but there's plenty of mountain left to ski at the top. The thing about skiing is that you need snow to do it, and the snow only likes to hang out at the top. She doesn't ski, so she just doesn't know.

From about 9:30am, when I started, until about 10:30am, the mountain was solid ice. As soon as the sun started to shine on the surface, everything softened up and it was perfect. It's a steep hill, pretty much all over, so it was a little dicey in the beginning there. Once the crust broke up, I was a lot more comfortable, and pushed myself to make a few passes through the moguls. I had a wicked good time playing all over the mountain until mid-afternoon when my legs started to get a little crampy. I forgot to stretch them out in the morning, so it's my own fault. I called it a day sometime after 2:00, and I was fine with that. It was a solid day of non-stop riding.

The base had fantastic weather. We almost called it "hot". It was deep into the "warm" territory, to be sure. I took my time cleaning off all my gear as I put everything away. And we didn't freeze during it. We even had the doors of the van wide open. You just can't do that in New England. Loki hung out on the ground outside the van, which is one of his favorite activities. It was awesome. Once everything was packed up, we headed back into Flagstaff. Although the mountain is technically IN Flagstaff, it's pretty remote. We took the van for another wash, this time doing a much better job than in Tennessee. Then, we went to REI.

We had some gift cards from Christmas to spend, and we had a need for some chairs that we could use outside the van. We had chairs, for years, actually. But when we moved into the van, we drew the line, and they ended up on the wrong side thereof. We never loved those chairs. We just accepted them, because we'd had them for so long. But it was finally time to shop for replacements, which was exciting. We trialed pretty much every chair they had available in the store. A lot of them we had to assemble first, but the store doesn't mind. And Loki got to come in, too, so we could take our time, and not worry about if he was okay outside in the van. Big shoutout to REI for being awesome. We decided to get one Nemo Stargaze chair, because Rob really liked it, and Mandy wasn't sure. She wants to use it for a time before deciding.

Leaving Flagstaff and heading towards our temporary-final destination of Prescott takes you along highway 17S. The surface of the highway is terrible, so we stopped to adjust the shocks a bit softer. Along the way, Mandy rerouted us towards Camp Verde, because the overnight temperature was forecast to be about 11 degrees warmer. And we didn't have to be in Prescott the next day. We were finally beginning to understand just how much impact we would allow weather to have on our travels. It's not that we have to avoid the cold and snow and rain and misery, but if we're this mobile, why not be comfortable? We stopped at Clear Creek Campground, and found the perfect site nestled in a corner. We paid for the night, and then we cooked chicken tacos for dinner. After dinner, we used our new chair for its intended purpose, and we stared at the night sky for a while. It was very clear here, with almost no light pollution from nearby towns. It was a perfect way to end an awesome day.