For as long as I can remember, I’ve hated not knowing. That could be not knowing a surprise is going to happen or no knowing something in a conversation. Regardless, not knowing really irritates me. So, when embarking on a road trip where the whole point is to embrace the unknown, you would think I would constantly be annoyed. Well, the contrary is true. Not knowing what is going to happen brings me joy, excitement, and that feeling of wonder that only comes when loosening the reins on life a little bit.

I have to be frank, I didn’t think Idaho was going to be very fun and begrudgingly agreed to this section of the road trip. It isn’t on Instagram, magazines don’t write about Idaho, and, well, I just think of potatoes when I think about Idaho. Asking a few long time locals if this is by design, they shook their heads agreeing and disagreeing. The best response I have gotten so far, “Idaho is out of the way. No major trucking routes that force you to pass through regardless. You go to Idaho by choice and most people would pick a different place in the US to go on vacation.” The response was spot on, but, I would say Highway 75 should be on somebodies road trip list because you can do just about anything an outdoorsy person would like to do during the day, then relax in a hot spring. Don’t believe me, read what we did today.

We all have those days when the alarm goes off at 5AM and you hit snooze. The alarm goes off a second time and you hit snooze, again. Well, 5AM came and went for us this morning, finally crawling out from under the covers around 6:50-something. I missed sunrise. A trade-off I assumed was going to happen when going to be at 11:30PM the night before. Why? Getting distracted hanging in the hot spring, editing images, stretching since we have a campsite with an area perfect to put the yoga mat, and tapping away on the keyboard. Those are my excuses, the real reason, though, are the endless daylight hours of summer that are making so much room for activity, I just can’t bring myself to embrace the FOMO on daytime activities. So, I wait for the sun to set, roughly 9:30PM, right now, to start the editing and writing process. But, today is a little different.

Picking up my watch, 4:51 AM. Nine minutes before my alarm is going to go off, so I crawl out of bed without waking Kristin, grab my camera, pet Chestnut who’s greeting me with a sleepy smile, and head outside under the cloudy, blue-yellow sky. In about 20 minutes sunrise will change the color of the clouds, but for now, Chestnut and I, walk around our campsite as the birds chase bugs. It’s quiet, but there is an audible noise from the river close-by.

The morning light warmed my face through the open door. Blinking my eyes open, I found Chestnut staring at me, panting, and the van’s surfaces to have a layer of fine dust coating every surface. This must be what it was like to live in the Dust Bowl, I thought to myself as I grabbed my camera in hopes of capturing something in this golden light. Kristin was up as well, so all three of us wandered down to the water’s edge, without caffeine in our systems, not really saying a word. Chestnut wanted to play. I wanted to photograph. Kristin just looked out at the nature with a smile on her face.

Clothing, kitchen, coffee, SUPs, rock climbing gear, dog necessities all needs to fit into 72 square feet as well as Kristin, Chestnut (our 60 pound dog), and myself. It’s tight, our cabinets are often full, and adventure awaits us. Packing the van is a given when you go on a vanlife road trip like we are doing around Nevada, Idaho, and Utah, but there are so many little things you forget about until it is time to leave like finding someone to water your plants, cleaning the house so you can come home to a cleanish house, putting the mail on hold, and all that “adult” stuff we didn’t think about as kids. Growing up, road trips were a staple. Every holiday, besides Christmas, that I wasn’t swimming, the family packed up our “toys” and went somewhere in an RV. None of these RVs were fancy, but they got the job done. So, maybe that is why I love to road trip as much as I do, or, maybe it’s the freedom of the open road. I don’t really know, however this morning made it clear packing always takes longer than expected.