We are driving around the world. Right now.

[Hourless Life]

We thoroughly enjoyed Lake Atitlan, Guatemala and Brittany jumped off a cliff!


This would end up being our last video in Guatemala. Next was El Salvador. Central America felt like it was getting real now.

~ Eric

 

[Hourless Life]

EL SALVADOR!

This was the first country that even other overlanders suggested we go around and avoid, or if we were going to go through the country, that we basically just drive through and not stop. They said it was too risky and dangerous.

Here are our thoughts on the matter and what we decided to do.


Happy to field questions. ~ Eric

 

[Autism Family Travels]

Awesome. Enjoy the ride! Just making sure you guys are safe...take care!

 

[Hourless Life]

HONDURAS has been our most challenging border crossing to date. I did my best in this video to capture the border crossing from El Salvador to Honduras and give you a first person perspective of the process.

For what it is worth, every overland traveler we have spoken to that has gone further south says our next crossing, Nicaragua is by far the hardest border to cross in all of Latin America. That is our next border crossing so I can't comment on it yet. I don't plan to film that crossing, but I will share my thoughts on it once we've crossed it.

For now, please enjoy this video. Keeping in mind that it is hard to get footage at the borders, the officials don't normally like you filming. I did my best and hope you enjoy it. Feel free to ask questions, I'm happy to field them. ~ Eric

 

[Autism Family Travels]

Yes, do NOT piss off the border guards. That's a big mistake. Stay safe out there!

 

[Hourless Life]

RISK Vs REWARD

Lately my wife and I have been having discussions about risk vs reward.

What do I mean by this?

Well, imagine there is an off-road route that supposedly leads to what looks like a lake for some wild camping. Would you take it?

What if you don’t have any information on the safety and crime statistics of the area? Would you still?

What if it was in an extremely impoverished country where you are essentially driving a vehicle through that regularly garners attention and is worth more than many of the homes in the area? Would you still take it?

What if it was rainy season and you weren’t sure what the conditions would be on that road if heavy rains came and maybe washed it away? Would you still do it?

What if it was just you by yourself, you and your significant other, or you with your significant other and your young child? Would these different scenarios have any impact on your decision to take that road?

What if you were only going to be in the area once in your lifetime? Then would you take it?

What if you were with another overlanding vehicle? Would this make a difference in your decision?

What if something tragic were to happen to one of your family members, yourself, or your home? What would you have to live with because of the decision you ultimately made?

What if you have an incredible time because you took a risk that went beyond that which you normally allow yourself?

What level of risk is the right level of risk?

How to balance risk vs reward and have a journey where you have no regrets that you left something undone is a very hard thing to navigate on a global journey like this. There are so many what ifs. So many decisions to make and ultimately YOU are responsible for the consequences of your decisions and actions.

I don’t have answers at this point. I wish I did. I wish I could impart wisdom at this point, but I’m far from it. I have only questions and the day to day experience that we are earning on this drive around the world.

What is your take? And is it easier to give your take because you aren’t actively doing it? Or have you?

I’m really curious as to your thoughts. ~ Eric

 

[Autism Family Travels]

RISK Vs REWARD

Lately my wife and I have been having discussions about risk vs reward.

What do I mean by this?

Well, imagine there is an off-road route that supposedly leads to what looks like a lake for some wild camping. Would you take it?

What if you don’t have any information on the safety and crime statistics of the area? Would you still?

What if it was in an extremely impoverished country where you are essentially driving a vehicle through that regularly garners attention and is worth more than many of the homes in the area? Would you still take it?

What if it was rainy season and you weren’t sure what the conditions would be on that road if heavy rains came and maybe washed it away? Would you still do it?

What if it was just you by yourself, you and your significant other, or you with your significant other and your young child? Would these different scenarios have any impact on your decision to take that road?

What if you were only going to be in the area once in your lifetime? Then would you take it?

What if you were with another overlanding vehicle? Would this make a difference in your decision?

What if something tragic were to happen to one of your family members, yourself, or your home? What would you have to live with because of the decision you ultimately made?

What if you have an incredible time because you took a risk that went beyond that which you normally allow yourself?

What level of risk is the right level of risk?

How to balance risk vs reward and have a journey where you have no regrets that you left something undone is a very hard thing to navigate on a global journey like this. There are so many what ifs. So many decisions to make and ultimately YOU are responsible for the consequences of your decisions and actions.

I don’t have answers at this point. I wish I did. I wish I could impart wisdom at this point, but I’m far from it. I have only questions and the day to day experience that we are earning on this drive around the world.

What is your take? And is it easier to give your take because you aren’t actively doing it? Or have you?

I’m really curious as to your thoughts. ~ Eric

I have never traveled internationally myself. I have hosted many others who have in the 2 wheeled world. These are the questions I always ask them. What are the people like in these places, where there any issues crossing borders etc. I am truly curious about the world. Great list of questions there.

 

[Hourless Life]

We had an insane night in Honduras. Here is the story of what happened to us:


It is all part of the journey and now part of our story.

#hourlesslife #overlanding #Honduras

 

[Autism Family Travels]

That could have been much worse. As for your awning, I think if you got some big vice grips, and some self taping metal screws you could Noodle it up to be useful until you can replace it. Squeeze together the areas that are pulled apart, pop some self tappers in the two sections and at least keep it usable. Even put some thin re-inforcements along the sides where it's bent. Keep the videos coming we are enjoying them ALOT!

 

[John and Mandi]

RISK Vs REWARD

Lately my wife and I have been having discussions about risk vs reward.

What do I mean by this?

Well, imagine there is an off-road route that supposedly leads to what looks like a lake for some wild camping. Would you take it?

What if you don’t have any information on the safety and crime statistics of the area? Would you still?

What if it was in an extremely impoverished country where you are essentially driving a vehicle through that regularly garners attention and is worth more than many of the homes in the area? Would you still take it?

What if it was rainy season and you weren’t sure what the conditions would be on that road if heavy rains came and maybe washed it away? Would you still do it?

What if it was just you by yourself, you and your significant other, or you with your significant other and your young child? Would these different scenarios have any impact on your decision to take that road?

What if you were only going to be in the area once in your lifetime? Then would you take it?

What if you were with another overlanding vehicle? Would this make a difference in your decision?

What if something tragic were to happen to one of your family members, yourself, or your home? What would you have to live with because of the decision you ultimately made?

What if you have an incredible time because you took a risk that went beyond that which you normally allow yourself?

What level of risk is the right level of risk?

How to balance risk vs reward and have a journey where you have no regrets that you left something undone is a very hard thing to navigate on a global journey like this. There are so many what ifs. So many decisions to make and ultimately YOU are responsible for the consequences of your decisions and actions.

I don’t have answers at this point. I wish I did. I wish I could impart wisdom at this point, but I’m far from it. I have only questions and the day to day experience that we are earning on this drive around the world.

What is your take? And is it easier to give your take because you aren’t actively doing it? Or have you?

I’m really curious as to your thoughts. ~ Eric

You have to trust your gut, all of your guts. If anyone isn’t feeling it then it’s a no go. No questions, no convincing or second guessing, it’s a no and time to move on. That being said there are times you will hook up with others to run particular routes or to just have big dinners and camaraderie. The most underestimated part of long term overlanding is the need to be around other people. We would go months on our own then scrap all remaining plans to drive hundreds of miles to see road friends, missing those places we drove by that we thought were important. It waxes and wanes, much like this bout of uncertainty. Maybe you don’t enjoy the difficult remote tracks as much as you thought, no worries. There are plenty of places to visit that aren’t as tough, difficult, remote, or questionable. Everyone’s trip is different. There is no such thing as street cred when it comes to multi-country overland travel. Trust your instinct, keep your family happy, and you’ll have one helluva time. For those other, not so great, times...there are a ton of us that are just a message, email, or phone call away. Feel free to reach out anytime.

PS - great to see you gave both El Sal and Honduras a chance. We spent a month in each and feel we short changed them. The stupid CA-4 puts undue stress on us gypsies. One day we will have to go back.

 

[John and Mandi]

We haven’t watched your videos, we just joined this forum today, but we wanted to add... If you have any reservations about your rig or if you have a growing wish list it’s much easier to turn around now and sort them before continuing on. We drove the America’s in a pop top 4x4 E350 and were happy to have an inside space. Doing over we’d be in a full time high top. Out of everything we drove, we would have only been turned around twice, both times there was local transport for hire. While sitting on a remote beach, having dinner with Swiss friends, he asked about why we chose a pop top. Besides loving the tent feeling, we preferred to be able to stuff our rig in a container. In his laid back manner and broken English he said, why sacrifice the comfort of years over a couple weeks of shipping. Doh, those Swiss (whom we love).

Obviously you could swap rigs, rent places, or ship back at any time. We just wanted to say that you’re still really close to the US so if some of your safety concerns could be alleviated by switching rigs, now might be the most opportune moment. There is a tremendous amount of road ahead of you, don’t sacrifice the comfort of years.

 

[Hourless Life]

We haven’t watched your videos, we just joined this forum today, but we wanted to add... If you have any reservations about your rig or if you have a growing wish list it’s much easier to turn around now and sort them before continuing on. We drove the America’s in a pop top 4x4 E350 and were happy to have an inside space. Doing over we’d be in a full time high top. Out of everything we drove, we would have only been turned around twice, both times there was local transport for hire. While sitting on a remote beach, having dinner with Swiss friends, he asked about why we chose a pop top. Besides loving the tent feeling, we preferred to be able to stuff our rig in a container. In his laid back manner and broken English he said, why sacrifice the comfort of years over a couple weeks of shipping. Doh, those Swiss (whom we love).

Obviously you could swap rigs, rent places, or ship back at any time. We just wanted to say that you’re still really close to the US so if some of your safety concerns could be alleviated by switching rigs, now might be the most opportune moment. There is a tremendous amount of road ahead of you, don’t sacrifice the comfort of years.

Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts with us. Right now we love our rig. While no rig will ever be perfect, for the type of travel we enjoy it is working well for us. Many of the places we've already been on this trip we'd never take with a taller, wider, heavier, or larger rig. We have many friends who have huge expedition rigs and we have seen their limitations as well as experienced the limitations of our own. My post was really more of a philosophical question to my peers and not a second guess at our own travels.
Having said all of that, we are not beyond correction. It is quite possible that at some point our rig needs will change, or our priorities will change. At the end of the day, the rig is just "stuff" and not the key to our journey. It is just the current means. Hope that makes sense! ~ Eric

 

[Hourless Life]

You have to trust your gut, all of your guts. If anyone isn’t feeling it then it’s a no go. No questions, no convincing or second guessing, it’s a no and time to move on. That being said there are times you will hook up with others to run particular routes or to just have big dinners and camaraderie. The most underestimated part of long term overlanding is the need to be around other people. We would go months on our own then scrap all remaining plans to drive hundreds of miles to see road friends, missing those places we drove by that we thought were important. It waxes and wanes, much like this bout of uncertainty. Maybe you don’t enjoy the difficult remote tracks as much as you thought, no worries. There are plenty of places to visit that aren’t as tough, difficult, remote, or questionable. Everyone’s trip is different. There is no such thing as street cred when it comes to multi-country overland travel. Trust your instinct, keep your family happy, and you’ll have one helluva time. For those other, not so great, times...there are a ton of us that are just a message, email, or phone call away. Feel free to reach out anytime.

PS - great to see you gave both El Sal and Honduras a chance. We spent a month in each and feel we short changed them. The stupid CA-4 puts undue stress on us gypsies. One day we will have to go back.

Again, appreciate your thoughts and experience. "The most underestimated part of long term overlanding is the need to be around other people." Love this and I echo this statement. Whenever I'm asked what the hardest part of our journey is, I respond with "The lack of consistent community."

Appreciate the offer to reach out. We're really enjoying our journey so far. We're also really glad we gave El Salvador and Honduras a go as well. Completely agreed on the CA-4 limitations. We have about 19 days left before we need to enter Costa Rica and Nicaragua is pretty amazing. Today is my birthday and we got to walk on the top of the Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (the beautiful white cathedral in Leon) it was pretty spectacular. ~ Eric

 

[Kent R]

This is really good stuff Eric, thanks for sharing.

 

[John and Mandi]

Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts with us. Right now we love our rig. While no rig will ever be perfect, for the type of travel we enjoy it is working well for us. Many of the places we've already been on this trip we'd never take with a taller, wider, heavier, or larger rig. We have many friends who have huge expedition rigs and we have seen their limitations as well as experienced the limitations of our own. My post was really more of a philosophical question to my peers and not a second guess at our own travels.
Having said all of that, we are not beyond correction. It is quite possible that at some point our rig needs will change, or our priorities will change. At the end of the day, the rig is just "stuff" and not the key to our journey. It is just the current means. Hope that makes sense! ~ Eric

It does and since we haven’t been following you it was a stab in the dark. While we are in a full sized rig we never let that get in the way. Only once did I think I might end up breaking a window but it all went fine. We met others that didn’t want a single blemish on their rig, like you, it’s just a vehicle (we do have an unnatural attachment to it though).

Keep on keepin on and when we are all moved and settled we’ll start watching your videos. It’s fun seeing and remembering the places we’ve been while getting to also add new ones to the list.

 

[John and Mandi]

Again, appreciate your thoughts and experience. "The most underestimated part of long term overlanding is the need to be around other people." Love this and I echo this statement. Whenever I'm asked what the hardest part of our journey is, I respond with "The lack of consistent community."

Appreciate the offer to reach out. We're really enjoying our journey so far. We're also really glad we gave El Salvador and Honduras a go as well. Completely agreed on the CA-4 limitations. We have about 19 days left before we need to enter Costa Rica and Nicaragua is pretty amazing. Today is my birthday and we got to walk on the top of the Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (the beautiful white cathedral in Leon) it was pretty spectacular. ~ Eric

Happy birthday! Nica was sort of a miss for us but we hit it during the dry season. Being from the southeast we prefer the wet season so one day we’ll go back. We did extend our CA-4 in Guatemala, we spent almost 6 months there with a month long break in the middle back in Belize, but friends of our extended in Managua. It’s always an option if you haven’t extended already. Next time we’ll push down to Nica/CR then slow walk back, or ship to SA and hit the countries we skipped and run CA northbound.

If you ever need us, we’ll be here.

 

[Autism Family Travels]

It does and since we haven’t been following you it was a stab in the dark. While we are in a full sized rig we never let that get in the way. Only once did I think I might end up breaking a window but it all went fine. We met others that didn’t want a single blemish on their rig, like you, it’s just a vehicle (we do have an unnatural attachment to it though).

Keep on keepin on and when we are all moved and settled we’ll start watching your videos. It’s fun seeing and remembering the places we’ve been while getting to also add new ones to the list.

I am going to go off track here for a second. Do you think you could make it all around with say a 1/2 truck and lance camper in the back?

 

[John and Mandi]

I am going to go off track here for a second. Do you think you could make it all around with say a 1/2 truck and lance camper in the back?

That's a tricky question. I try to keep our weight at or under the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) of our van (which is 9,500). We have seen and heard of broken frames on many of the smaller trucks but also know of an F250 that cracked its frame twice. The best advice is to do the best you can calculating what the realistic weight of the camper and truck combo is going to be and work from there. 95% of all rigs are at or overweight, even some of the MANs, MOGs etc exceed their carrying capacity. If you prefer off pavement, the constant jarring from all the weight takes its toll. If you prefer pavement, it's better, but some of the worst roads were deteriorated pavement and not the rocky single tracks.

It's not an easy cat to skin. Simple things like moving up to E rated tires = more weight. 10 extra gallons of fuel and/or water, more weight. Spare parts this and extra fluid that, more weight. All those nightly cocktails and tacos, more weight. Ok, maybe that last one isn't necessarily true. I usually tell people to gather every item they want to take into an empty room or the middle of the living room, then sit with it and imagine living with all of that crap for years. We all need to lose weight, plain and simple. The only way most of us deal with it, because we're too stubborn to drop all the useless stuff, is to move up in vehicle class...or buy a diesel because that's what we wanted.

Am I going to tell you to buy a different truck, of course not, but I'm also not going to tell you that you'll be fine either. There are way too many variables but I will share what I've experienced. We know of full sized vans that break 11,000 lbs without issue, we have severals friends in 3500 trucks that are pushing 14,500 lbs. We know of Tundras with non pop-top truck campers and we've been around every truck pop-top truck camper combo conceivable. Everyone one those were conscious of their weight, rig capability, and travel preferences. And, as mentioned above, we have seen many broken frames, failed shocks, snapped camper mounts, and busted axles. We also ran into many off the shelf US and European RVs, mostly Class-Cs. Most of the surfers rarely left the coast, the climbers and hikers stayed in the mountains, the multi-sports travelers and those of us that drive in erratic circles did a lot of both. The coast is mostly paved with short spurs to the ocean. The mountains are a mixed bag and many of the cut over roads, especially the ones that were always the closest and most convenient, were a hot mess...or we just had bad luck when picking them.

I'm not sure this actually answers your question but I have no problem discussing in more detail on another thread or via email or PM.

-John

 

[Hourless Life]

We got stuck in Nicaragua. Brittany shoved a camera in my face and this is our story:


Our journey around the world continues...

#hourlesslife #overlanding #Nicaragua

 

[Hourless Life]

The reality of this global overland journey is rarely talked about. Here is some of the hard stuff. Don't get me wrong, this trip is amazing and what we are experiencing is incredible. But there are hardships and challenges too, and this is what I want to share about today...

Ready? Here we go...

1. Rainy season in Central America is no joke. We're just at the beginning of it and we've already narrowly escaped a tornado in Honduras where our awning was destroyed, and we recently had to do a really sticky self-recovery in Nicaragua we weren't sure we were going to get out of.

2. The rain is non-stop sometimes and at times has made me second guess my life choices. But then we'll get a brief break, a small glimmer of sunshine, and everything is right with the world again.

3. Overall the Gladiator has been great and our overlanding kit/setup has done everything we've needed it to. There are a few things that I am underwhelmed with. The mozzie nets on the Alu-Cab Canopy Camper are already showing significant wear. Granted we are full-time overlanders and we use them all every day, multiple times a day. I think for weekenders they would be fine but for full-time they need to be a bit more robust. The velcro/glue combo that holds them sealed to the rig is also starting to fail. As far as the Jeep Gladiator itself, in hindsight, lockers would have been a smart addition for this journey. We were trying to save ounces, and that was the wrong call when it came to lockers. Also I'm underwhelmed in the Gladiator's ability to reverse in 4lo onto MAXTRAX. Good thing to have learned though for future situations. I know, I know. I should be heading forward, but you'd have to be in the situations that I've been in to fully understand the situation. Suffice it to say that recoveries that require reverse with an automatic transmission are not your friend.

4. Sickness is going to happen. When you live in a Jeep with a 5 year old, and it is raining outside all the time, that can be no bueno. Yesterday Caspian threw up 3 times. Twice inside the Canopy Camper. Yuk! Gotta roll with it. Part of the journey, but the stuff that never makes Instagram. (Though the story did make our Patreon where we share a bit more of our intimate moments like this)

5. The swarm of flying insects down here can be relentless. Last night, a low budget movie director could have filmed a really bad b-movie about what we went through. Thousands upon thousands of flying ant looking things with fragile wings swarmed us. They were all over our mozzie nets on the outside. Even though everything was as buttoned up as we could get it, they were still finding a way to get inside the rig. I killed bugs until 11:30 at night, woke up at 2AM and went for round two, then back to sleep at 4:30AM and up at 7:00AM. Not a fun night.

6. I've said this many times, but the lack of consistency in community is by far the HARDEST part of this journey. In our world, the ability to simply call up a friend and go have wings, or share a glass of wine doesn't exist. We are constantly meeting really amazing people, and then saying goodbye. If you are ever thinking of this type of journey, don't underestimate this. For us our Patreon community fills that gap as we are very transparent with them, and they have been incredibly kind and supportive during our most difficult times that we've shared. That's what friends are for right?

So there you have it. Just some random thoughts I thought I'd share to help keep this as real as it gets.

~ Eric