We Made A Mistake | Van Life Overland
welcome back [Music] last week we took you on a heart racing adventure in our 4x4 sprinter van through moab utah this week our overland adventures to alaska continue as we find the most unique boondocking opportunities we can find just outside of utah's famous national parks and we make the biggest mistake we've made in van life to date a few short miles from the north rim of the grand canyon we are jim amber and cynthia thank you for being here with us today as we enjoy sunshine and sand before we are covered in snow and ice for another seven long months in alaska [Music] good morning this is where we woke up on this blm land just outside of moab have a couple of neighbors over there but we pretty much have this place all to ourselves [Music] looks like jim and ember are on their morning walk good morning hi oh did you forget something this quiet little spot beside a stack of ancient rocks was perfect we had been exploring for a few days and had a newfound appreciation for utah and its diversity and beauty its dusty desert beneath our feet and never ending visual creations as we look into the horizon in the various colors and rock formations it's no wonder this area is referred to as goblin valley [Music] my [Music] i long for you so much i can find my way we got everything here at least to stay alive and the time that we share makes it all worth the displays on do you feel that we got something strong [Music] and i saw you walking the line [Music] you'll be the last one to think about [Music] i want you to know that every time you're away [Music] and i saw you walking the line and the truth may come as a surprise scenic views next 14 miles that's what the sign said i think we should believe it i don't think i could have uh realized that without the sun you see anything soon not really no moments yet not at all the whole thing is a big oh my god look at that [Music] [Music] as we drove across this beautiful landscape laying rooted in the backcountry we saw some of the most awe-inspiring landscapes we've ever seen capitol reef the million-dollar road and zion national park all of which we knew lie ahead but we had made quite a few stops along the way to take pictures for our instagram page and simply take in the beauty and before we knew it it was three o'clock in the afternoon and we wanted to take in as much of this as we possibly could so before heating capital reef national park we found a quiet river spot to snuggle ourselves into sit back and relax and recognize that nature is a master sculptor [Music] well we just got level so now we're gonna go in and put up our shades to keep us cool oh wow amber is gonna be in heaven [Music] hey hey where'd you go oh she just climbed that rock yes it's my own big river hi hi see over here this side there you go good girl good girl this way come on yay [Applause] i guess if there was ever a time for the earth to appear old and rusty it would be now while we're slowly emerging from this pandemic we have each come out uniquely changed like the sand in this river smoother softer [Music] [Applause] and feeling somewhat strange and unfamiliar [Applause] it was here that my heart started to have a sudden longing for the crystal clear rivers of alaska and i could blame it on the sudden fly infestation that occurred while we were in moab but instead i recognized that this was an intense feeling of homesick and as grateful as we were for the beauty that was around us it was here that we started to get ready to pick up the pace and explore even further [Applause] [Applause] [Music] good morning we're not doing our usual coffee shower routine and we're literally getting ready to bug out of here because the flies got to us last night and we are covered in flies they're all over the place so we're not hanging out outside just packed everything up i'm getting ready to go so we're going to travel through central and southwest utah see a couple national parks well do i buy them i guess okay here we go so [Music] capitol reef is filled with geology that takes shape color and dimension to a level beyond comparison where these cracks in the earth's surface are over 65 million years old making you feel as though you're stepping foot on the edge of another world it's here where mormon settlers were driven to this part of utah in the late 1800s looking to create new and self-sufficient communities and families such as this one built this tiny little one-room cabin in an attempt to tame the land but with unpredictable weather flash floods and the fremont river washing out the crops less than a year later this family moved to higher ground and more forgiving climates while the stories told by this land's ancient peoples remains told on the canyon walls in the form of ancient petroglyphs [Music] hmm [Music] [Music] um [Music] so what'd you think it's pretty awesome kind of cool seeing the history on the walls over there first thing he said was he drew his whole family which is true there's part of it that fell off um during a rock slide but that was really cool super old what 300. yeah and then the mormon settlers came in and everything changed [Music] [Music] [Music] after a quick stop at subway we're now in the dixie national forest [Music] we made it to higher ground ourselves in the lush and beautiful dixie national forest where the road was newly paved and we were cruising at around 9000 feet in elevation as we moved on to the grand staircase escalante [Music] and if you ever plan on taking this route just know that there's a brief moment about right here where we recommend that you stop take a deep breath and hold on tight because the next four miles takes you on a wild and beautiful ride [Music] [Music] 2 am in the car playing my favorite song [Music] turn it up windows down we sing along [Music] the summer night is [Music] this is everything with you right next to me so alive and tonight i'm thinking that i don't wanna go wanna go [Music] call in sick in the morning baby don't leave [Music] and after all that action we once again worked up an appetite and didn't quite feel like cooking ourselves so we stopped in at the thunderbird restaurant home of the world famous homemade pies and we didn't eat pie but we did find a spot to call home for the night after so amber could run free and we could witness another beautiful utah sunset [Music] [Music] yesterday i spent the day down on the lake and enjoyed floating around in my boats and [Music] the next morning we hit the road and although we had no intentions of stopping in zion national park its intensity certainly held our attention the red rock backdrop dazzled us surrounded by fiery peach and coral sandstone canyons carved by rivers and streams [Music] oh [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] we headed from utah to las vegas and las vegas was a blur because we didn't stop but hey did you know that just outside of las vegas in prime nevada is home to the largest solar power plant of its type in the world yeah we didn't know that either and we had to look it up it had been years since we had driven by here and now this section of the mojave desert has been transformed by hundreds of thousands of little mirrors seemingly testing the boundaries between conservation and the need for alternative sources of energy created in 2014 this is a shining example of how america could become a leader in solar energy but nothing really surprises us as we roll into california and at this point in our travels we're going to fast forward through this because we have new upgrades and modifications that have made our van more uniquely ours and we will tell you all about our experience in california at canyon adventure vans and owl vans in our next walk-through review because we have made a lot of changes while being on the road full time and we're excited to share all of them with you but today between gas prices and wildfire smoke we made it in and out of california as quickly as possible making it full circle and once again staying the night just outside of joshua tree national park transitioning between lush green forests and red dirt canyons and from california we headed towards arizona where we found a stop with a unique story [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] during the great depression blanche and her husband bill russell moved to the southwest bill was suffering from tuberculosis and the couple was hoping to take advantage of the health benefits of the dry desert air while driving through marble canyon in 1927 their car broke down near these big rocks after a few failed attempts to fix the car they found themselves camping overnight and after that night blanche and bill drawn by the beauty of the land decided to stay and build their homes right here initially the house was built from tar paper and boards leaning against the largest rock but eventually they built a successful trading post business which expands to a full-scale restaurant and a gas station after spending a little more time exploring here than we had expected it's important to note that this is also a good spot to stop and get fuel because from here you climb in elevation which takes you to some spectacular views but it was getting late and jim had picked as a spot right on the edge of the north rim of the grand canyon and from what we had heard of this particular place it was beautiful enough to stay there for several days and we calculated arriving just after sunset but that didn't happen the road turned out to be a slow-going rutted mess and on top of that it started to rain and then it started to thunder and lightning the darker it became the heavier the rain facing switchbacks and steep curves two and a half hours later 30 minutes and 11 miles away from the rim we saw signs of flash floods and decided it was time to stop there's running waters back up and then it happened what are your thoughts what happened we got into the soft stuff so what have we learned today this series of unfortunate events and miscalculations led to one of our most unfortunate circumstances to date which we'll tell you about in our next video so hit that subscribe button to see what happens next give us a thumbs up to show your support for our channel and tell us what you thought about today's adventure in the comments below and as always stay happy healthy and safe we'll see you again soon foreign
2021-11-04 11:11
