Finally got a video up for you guys. It is NOT the van walkthrough yet. I'm having some trouble with getting that edited so I went ahead and put out the next vlog video. Please watch, like comment, and subscribe. Thank you!
The next one is coming out soon. We're catching up.
Please purchase an art piece to help me clear out some room in my gallery. The ones down below are ones that are back at home with dad so he will be shipping them out on his end. Help us out and lets get it movinnnng.
Shine Bright 12*12 $50
Sparks of the Galaxy $72.50 11*14
One of the many things I do wish this van had was a central heating system of some kind. We're heading into cold weather and over the last five days, it has definitely become a little colder at night. Luckily I have Lylah to help keep me warm (even though I have a thing against dogs being in bed I am making an exception for this kind of cold weather) and she is literally a furnace. Throughout the night she will move but she mostly keeps her butt against my legs or side which keeps the warmth under the blanket.
I am also looking at getting a battery-operated blanket for those chilly nights so that it helps some with getting us warm and keeping us warm. Most only last five hours but I think that's more than enough considering that I'm also in 30 minutes or less when I get in bed. I can then charge it while I drive around and have it set up for the next night. really I think it's the best option for a long-term solution.
So far the coldest we have reached is 20 and in the van, it's a little warmer (around 30 to 40 depending on where I am) and it's surprising that none of the water in my van has frozen yet. I am hoping that won't happen as I need that to drink and stay hydrated but only time will tell as we progress on our trip. I'm interested to see how things go and see how we handle this type of cold. I am looking to get some thermals to help with those cold winter hikes as I have noticed I get cold very easily. Of course, I'm hoping to break up staying in the van some by staying at a client's place in Salt Lake city (I'm dog-sitting out there) and also staying with a friend in Vegas for Christmas time and will be ready to enjoy free hot showers and more room to move in with hot air all around. With that being said I don't miss Florida's hot air (screw you Florida) but I do miss the warmer side of temperatures for more of the purposes of showering without freezing my ass to oblivion.
Once a week I go find a real hot shower somewhere and pay up some money to do that but I cut back expenses by putting up with the freezing cold water my portable shower provides.
Were going to be moving North West today and make our way into Idaho for a few days to do some climbing and hopefully see some scenery. I was hoping to go back to Stanley for a few days to hike some trails but they already have feet of snow coming in and I don't think Gimli would do well in those conditions so were gonna pass on that opportunity.
Wish us luck.
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Purchase a piece to help with my travels. More artwork is coming soon but I always appreciate any purchases made
Castle of Glass 12*12 $62.50
Hello, one and all! Hope you guys are doing well and that things are dandy.
We are a month in on this trip. A whole freaking month and I can't believe it. It's wild to think about how long we have been out here exploring, driving, and just living life. We have done so many trials, Been through many states and we have only just begun. Right now we are parked outside Crazy Horse and that experience was a wonder to see. Who would have thought we would be carving into stone giant monuments for future generations to see? Of course, at the rate they are going, it may not be done for another 50 years or more. With it being a private foundation they don't get much coming in to actually carve into the stone. sad to think ill never see it completed because it will be Magnificent when it is but also interesting to think about if it will survive long enough to get to completion. Only time will really tell of course.
I also visited Mount Rushmore and that was quite a view in itself. I do think it's a marvel to think about all the people who helped make it a reality and the amount of time and effort that went into the process. The details in the carving and the ingenuity that went behind that process are a lot to wrap around for the time it was built. It makes me feel a spark of creativity as an artist. Of course, I can't do realism like that but one can dream of doing something of that scale and detail.
We will be going out to spearfish canyon and then to Devil's tower. I'm excited to see more of these amazing places and I am ready to explore them. We are in no rush so we have taken out time getting around. Luckily out here there are plenty of places to camp for free so I have been using that to my advantage and people don't bother me whenever I park in these places. I will be saving these locations for future use which will be helpful and can also share locations that I have stayed at with others if people need it. I'm sure I will have plenty of locations as time goes on.
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Will make a separate post about the Badlands for you guys and I also have three videos dropping here in the next few days. I dropped one the other day and they are vlogs about my thoughts, feelings, and events happening on the road. I'll make a separate post for that as well.
Love you guys.
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Art for sale, purchase to help support my travels!
Read between the lines 9*12 $62.50
Right now we're in Pierre South Dakota and let me just say that this little town is such a cute place. There's not much here but it is extremely fascinating to know that there is history in this little town. In 1808 Lewis and Clark first visited here as part of the Luisnanna purchase to try and explore this vast land and see what the U.S was really like since (as it turned out) all the books that they read were incorrect. After Lewis and Clark first came here it was then established in 1817 as a fur trading post. After that, it was founded in 1880 and slowly grew when more people came in with plans to expand the railroad and made it the center of industry for Cattle, Mining, and farming.
The town today has a little over 13,000 people and it's still got some original buildings from the 1800s around. They have the very, very small jail which is the size of an outhouse with a much smaller roof, and they even have the original school there which is the size of two outhouses put together. My favorite place around here though is the La Frambroise Island. The island itself is wonderful to explore. It's got 9 miles of trail and is 580 acres. None of it is inhabited except for the trails themselves and they do their best around here to make sure it stays that way. Personally, I think it's wonderful that they have such a wonderful place to explore. From October until May dogs are allowed to run off leash so for Lylah that means the island is fully hers to run around on and enjoy.
I can only imagine what it was like for Lewis and Clark to come here. Besides this little town, there isn't much of anything to the east, and to the west, there are the badlands. I can only imagine the cold winters and the terrain is difficult to follow. It's not flat and your eyes definitely play tricks on you but nonetheless...it is beautiful.
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Next, we move on to the Badlands
