Ford Econoline 350

I am Tiffanie, I’m married to my favorite vanlife buddy, Will. We are based out of Colorado and use our van to travel to all the new places I just have to see. We often combine our travels with our favorite outdoor activities, my favorites being rafting and paddleboarding, but also backpacking and bicycling.

I’ve always loved a good road trip! About 9 years ago I fell in love with a man who had a van. It was always our favorite vehicle for traveling because of the freedom it provides when you are all self contained. We can pull over almost anywhere, get some sleep, and be ready for a day of adventure without having to break down our camp!

A Ford Econoline, which was an easy choice because it was the most common van in America. Also, we bought it for almost nothing off of a government auction, so it was too good of a deal to turn down! It used to be a prison van… I’m sure we have way more fun in it than the old occupants did!

We did it all ourselves! This was the second build we did in it, the first one was much more austere. This time we wanted to go all out and make it feel as homey as possible. I love how it turned out!

Twice as long as we thought it would! It took us about 4 months, and we worked on it often. But, we are amateurs, so that didn’t help speed us up at all.

1. Our Dometic refrigerator- it’s so nice not to deal with cooler ice anymore!
2. A CGear sand-free mat to lay on the ground. I won’t even go to the beach without one anymore, they are life changing!
3. And a cast-iron Dutch Oven- so easy to cook and clean with, and you can get really creative with your campfire recipes!

We both fly for the airlines, which provides a nice schedule for traveling, and allows us to commute by air when we need to get back to our home base!

 Just America so far! But it’s a big country and we still have a lot to see! Our dream is to build another van and leave it in Europe, so we can start basing our travels there out of a van too.

 I would call us part-timers right now, our full-time days are behind us. I’ve been doing it for 9 years, but Will has had a van since his parents gave him the family vehicle when he turned 16.  Most of our adventures between work trips last about 2 weeks, with our longer trips lasting 6 weeks.

We almost always camp in the middle of nowhere. Campgrounds are too loud and crowded for us. We love the solitude you can find when boondocking off the grid.

We have two systems, a basic solar shower bag, and a rechargeable battery powered shower head, which pumps it’s own water out of a bucket. We built a shower curtain that we can hang off the side of the van when necessary, but when you’re camping in the middle of nowhere, a curtain isn’t necessary at all! Also- if we are passing through a town, we will just stop by a gym, because that is really the easiest.

We built an outdoor kitchen that slides out the back of the van and has a propane stove. But we also like to cook on the campfire in our Dutch Oven. When the weather is bad, and we can’t be outside, we might just be stuck having a cup of noodles with some hot water from the coffee maker. Or- my favorite- dining out at a new restaurant!!

 My favorite part is just being outside and enjoying nature everyday. Also, being on the move is so much fun, with new scenery to enjoy every day. We almost never spend two nights in the same place.

Finding your favorite campsite occupied! Camping and vanlife has become so popular that sometimes it can be hard to find some open space to settle down for the night.

Always respect the land you’re staying on, and always leave these places looking better than how you found them! We always do our best to leave no evidence of our stay, and are happy to pick up after people who may not have done the same before us.

Sure! We love talking to new vanlifers and hearing all about their plans and adventures. But lately we’ve actually been doing our best to convert our regular friends, and many of them now own vans too! Vanlife is way more fun with friends!!

Well, the coronavirus crisis cancelled all of our plans to travel through Canada this summer, so hopefully when the snow melts the virus will be gone, the borders will be open, and I can see every bit of British Columbia. A girl can dream, can’t she?!

Follow Tiffanie and Will on Instagram here: @vanimal_instinct