Written By: Lisa and Anthony Petrarca
Let’s touch on an aspect of vanlife that isn’t talked about much but leaves a lasting impact.
Traveling has many benefits, and the allure of an unconventional lifestyle is one of them. Dreams of a home-away-from-home in front of white sandy beaches, crystal blue water, lush green forests with pine-scent permeating the air, colorful deserts, endless slot canyons, and golden sunsets are just a few of the many things that encourage people to step outside the box. There’s something special about the endless freedom to explore any direction your heart desires.
Of course, all of the above reasons are why we bought our Pleasure-Way Lexor and hit the road. BUT…we had no idea something unexpected was waiting for us…
People!
We’ve met some of the most amazing people out on the road—friendships that have formed out of a love of adventure, beauty, and seeking more.
Like-minded people we never would’ve had the opportunity to meet if we hadn’t stepped outside our comfort zones.
Now, to be honest, finding campgrounds on public land has always been our favorite way to avoid being right next to people. But just when you think you’re searching for one thing, your eyes are opened to so much more.
And that’s the beauty of this lifestyle—always learning, growing, and changing.
Now, we’re not saying we love crowds and crowded places, but even in the mix of it…you can find “your people.”
Here’s a prime example.
We’d been wanting to see the famous Yosemite N.P. Firefall for years. We went online and found a last-minute campsite during the approximate days it “could happen” in February. There’s never a guarantee, as it’s a rare occurrence. Everything has to line up perfectly: winter has to be a wet, snowy one, creating a rare waterfall, called Horsetail Falls on the east side of El Capitan; there has to be a clear, cloudless sky; and the sun has to perfectly light up the waterfall, casting a fiery glow for a few brief minutes.
We knew it would get crazy crowded, but we were willing to jump right in, prepared for chaos and the chance to be among the few hundred (thousand?) people who get to see this in person.
We spent the day exploring short trails, not wanting to risk missing the main event. We made it back to the campground in time, loaded up the blankets, snacks, and chairs, and drove to the closest parking lot by the lodge. We then joined the excited masses walking a few miles up the road to the viewing areas.
We found our spot directly in front of the rock face on the side of the road, set down the chairs and blankets, and waited for the sun to set. We struck up conversations with several people around us, all trying to figure out if the spot we picked was truly the best one. Not certain, one of the younger girls went off to scout another area. She came back and said she had found a perfect spot! That’s all we needed to hear. A group of us gathered up our things and followed each other to a secret meadow.
It was a magical, without crowds and a perfect view of Firefall (if it was going to happen.)
While sitting there, some rock climbers who’d just finished a route came walking by and asked what we were doing. After explaining how we ended up there, they also joined us. One of our new friends had a guitar and began playing a melodic tune as we sat in the shadow of El Capitan.
I know you’re probably wondering if we saw Firefall on our first attempt. Let’s just say there was only a trickle of water…but the rocks sure lit up!
We all made plans to meet up again next year and kept in touch to try again.
And guess what?
It happened the second year!
Here’s a side note on the friendships we’ve developed from our love of nature and chasing beauty: the youngest girl in the group (who found the secret viewing spot for us) told us one day she wanted to climb El Capitan.
We’ve been able to follow her journey, watching her achieve her dream not once, but twice!
How amazing is that?
It sure had us feeling amazed and inspired by her. There aren’t many people who can charge after and conquer their mountains.
These are the extra-special moments scattered along the way that fill our lives with more—getting to be a part of people’s lives we never would’ve met sitting at home.
We’ll end this blog with one final short road trip story to show you the kindness we find in the travel community.
During a trip to Utah, we planned on camping at a first-come, first-serve spot where the entrance to a long-awaited hike started. The campground was small, and we were arriving late on a Friday night, so we knew the odds of getting a spot were slim to none (we had several backup public land spots farther down the road just in case).
We circled around the campground only to find it completely full. As we were backing up to pull out, a young woman came walking up from the river and waved us down. She asked if we were looking for a spot. We answered, “Yes, but everything’s full.”
She smiled and said, “You’re welcome to join us—we have plenty of room.”
We were shocked at the kindness.
We refused at first, not wanting to intrude, but she insisted and told us it was no problem at all.
So we camped with the most gracious couple you’ll ever meet and we were able to get on the trail bright and early the next morning after saying our goodbyes and exchanging info.
We’ve kept in touch with this wonderful couple, who are not just kind, generous, and giving with the people they meet camping, but also traveling the world to help in orphanages and many other communities in need.
This right here!
How can you not feel blessed to be able to meet wonderful people like this?
There are so many benefits and reasons to break free and see the world. It has enriched our lives, but we truly can say that the people we’ve met along the way have been some of our favorite moments.
If you’re already on your own vanlife journey, you can probably relate. We love hearing travel stories and hope you do too.
If you’ve been on the fence or are thinking about vanlife…we hope these special moments we shared are one more reason to take a leap of faith.
We know it will be one of the best decisions you’ll ever make!
Hope to meet you out on the open road one day!✨🚐💨💨💨