Wednesday, October 28, 2020

10/28/2020, Eighteen Thousand Miles Later


    I decided to start this blog about our travel experiences to motivate others. Or just simply letting you know about our progress, as we sometimes forget to keep in touch with our family and friends. Please don't be judgemental. I'm not a storyteller and I have minimal writing skills. So this is just a trial and the time will tell.
    My husband has been blogging for years, but his blog is in Czech, so I  decided to start an English narrative. First I had an idea just to translate his version but he is more detail oriented and it would take me at least a year to catch up.
    As many of you know, we planned to relocate to the Czech Republic in May 2020, but unfortunately the Covid-19 pandemic totally changed our plans. Our plane tickets got canceled and we had to come up with a new idea. Early this year, we purchased a new RV, this time a more compact "Winnebago Travato" campervan so we can join the booming van-life pack. I'm not saying it is always easy, because the travel during Covid-19 is definitely different. A lot more people on the roads nowadays than ever before, so it is sometimes challenging to find a place to camp.
    We started our journey in April 2020 and the first trip was to the western US. I have to admit we have an attachment  to the Wild West, the desert and cacti. I suppose this is why we keep going back there. On the attached map you can see the area we have covered in the last six months.

   Travel time: 6 months
   Travel distance: 18,350 miles


    Our preference is boondocking (camping off-the-grid). There is a lot of public land west of the Rockies and we are well equipped to stay away from populated places for weeks at a time. Sadly, some BLM (Bureau of Land Management) public lands are starting to close due to people who do not adhere to the "Leave No Trace" principles.
    After our first successful test drive through the western US we have decided to continue and explore the South (Texas, Luisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, etc...). It's the region we know very little about and that makes it more fascinating.
    We prefer to move from place to place constantly. So even if we find a beautiful area to stay and camp for a few days, next morning we decide to move on and sometimes we regret not staying longer. I believe it's the excitement to discover and see new places that doesn't allow us to settle down. This is something we still have to work on because it can be very exhausting.
    Here is a little photo snapshot of the first six months on the road.