The Naysayers

There are so many people who go through life just “following the rules” and can’t imagine a life other than what society has taught them. They don’t really think for themselves or seem to have any bit of imagination. They can’t relate to you at all when you tell them of your upcoming adventure. They actually panic on your behalf and they think you are crazy. They are the naysayers. They tell you what you are planning is too dangerous and come up with ridiculous examples of what could go wrong. They think you are ruining your life. Some of them actually calculate the dollar value you will be missing out on by taking this adventure. Here’s the funny thing, it doesn’t matter what kind of adventure you are talking about. Five years ago when I was planning an Appalachian thruhike I received comments like “you will be eaten by bears,” or “ you will lose your job,” or “your boyfriend will leave you.” My manager at work actually told me how much income I would be missing out on. When we went to Spain to hike the Camino de Santiago and travel a bit of Europe, I was asked “why would you want to leave Canada? There’s so much to explore here,” and “why are you wasting so much money on travelling?” Since those adventure I have sold my possessions and moved onto a short bus. Again, I was told “it won’t work out, don’t do it,” and “you are throwing away your future,” and “you are going to be homeless.” Right now I am in the midst of planning a Pacific Crest trail thruhike and even though most of my friends know that I have already successfully thruhiked the Appalachian Trail and drastically changed my lifestyle, I have still received a few negative comments. When I talk to others who have chosen a different path than what society expects I am saddened to hear all of the horrible things that have been said to them. It seems that most people are afraid to try anything new and go to lengths to dissuade anybody around them from trying anything even slightly different than what they are accustomed to. I have had an amazing past four years living out my dreams. I wish I had started following my intuition years ago, I would have raised my children so differently. I would have taught them to think for themselves. I would have taught them to do their own thing even if it didn’t look like you could make an income from it. My son wanted to be a rock star and sadly even though he is exceptionally talented I always told him he needed a back up plan. Had I been true to myself, I may have been more receptive to my kids unconventional ideas. I used to allow society to dictate what I thought normal was. For me, that was a terrible mistake! I have missed out on so much! If there is something you have always wanted to try or a goal you have wanted to achieve then go for it! Don’t let our culture or society tell you what you can or cannot do! Don’t let the naysayers ruin this for you! Live your dream! ..... and teach your kids to do the same!

Where to park for the night!

Someone always asks where we stay or how we find places to park for the night or how do we stay safe (which is really the same question). To be honest, we do follow our own little set of rules about where we park. We generally never park in the same place two nights in a row. People may notice we have parked somewhere but rarely will they complain unless we have overstayed our welcome. To avoid this we always park somewhere different every night. While we are travelling we try to get into a town before dark to scope out our options and then come back to our chosen spot as it’s getting dark. This way we can find the best spot as opposed to any old spot and by not arriving too soon we get less attention. If we have to stay in an area for an extended time we chose five or six spots and rotate spending each night at a different location. We easily stayed within a 3km range of where Michael was working last winter just by finding several good spots and changing it up every night. There have been a few occasions where we think we have found the perfect spot to stay but when we are setting up for the night or are out walking the dogs we realize that something just doesn’t seem right, in those rare cases we always move to another locations. We use our intuition. In general we prefer scenic places like overlooks, Parks, beachfronts, trailheads and sometimes dead end roads. It feels really good to have that million dollar view and not be paying a cent for the real estate! If we arrive at a new place too late at night or are unsure of where to stay we settle for Walmart, Cabella’s, tourist information places, Costco, Movie theatres or shopping malls. We aren’t really settling for these spots as there is nothing wrong with any of these places and often they have the advantage of having public washrooms. Even in a commercial parking lot we try to park so that the door of our bus opens up to grass rather than pavement. We prefer to have an amazing 360 view but there is nothing wrong with staying somewhere with amenities. We avoid staying at truck stops only because we know that trucks will be coming and going all night long, some running generators while they are there. Even a Walmart parking lot can be loud with night deliveries and RV’s with generators. We try to park out of the way and away from all the noise.