We came to Indian Creek on a week-long climbing trip, but mother nature had other plans. It was our third day of the trip and we awoke to a full-blown snow storm. We went to bed watching the sunset over the red landscape, only to open the van doors to a winter wonderland.

Is there anything better than holding a warm beverage and watching the sun dip behind the horizon as the clouds and sky change colors? If so, I want to know what! Sunsets are a daily light display that makes my jaw drop when all of the ingredients align; slightly cloudy, something interesting on the horizon, and a nice jacket to keep you warm after the sun disappears. Over the past seven years of vanlife, I have prioritized watching sunsets, often stopping everything I am doing to enjoy this daily gift. In doing so, I have had many evening where my mind is blown by the beauty while living on the road. So, here are a few of my favorite sunsets, with the locations, so you can go watch them for yourself!

After a three day digital detox in Joshua Tree National Park, void of vibrations and pings, penning a note felt like the perfect way to continue the slowed down lifestyle and show some gratitude for time well spent with good friends. Pulling a pen from the drawer, tearing out a blank sheet from his notebook, and sitting down with a fresh cup of coffee, Dalton Johnson shares the story of a weekend adventure.

In this episode, we chat with Ryan Lynch, the founder and head shaper at Timber Surf Co. Throughout this interview we chat about a wide variety of topics, but there is a theme; pursue your dreams. I know, this is cliche, but Ryan has embodied this mantra as he quit his corporate job working at Tesla, road tripped through Central America as a honeymoon—for several months—, and started his own sustainable surf board shaping business. Over the past few years, his shaping bay has transformed, as his goal of moving the shaping industry towards a scalable and sustainable endeavor. Check out his boards, give this a listen, and enjoy the video at the bottom!

No matter where you are in the United States, the West has captured our attention as a symbol of freedom, exploration, and awe. While the symbolism remains, the reality is vastly different. With the modern highway system, road trips can take you to almost anywhere. If you are planning a road trip to the west and want to see jaw-dropping landscapes, below is a list of seven landscape worthy to visit.

From the outside looking in, travel photography is a dream. As a travel photographer, you get to hang out in cool places, do all the adventurous things, and see the world… for free. Right? Well, not exactly. The reality is, if something is happening, you have your camera to your face photographing. If nothing is happening, you are jocking for position to get the next shot, or, you are importing content, cleaning gear, etc. Yes, you get to be in the places, but you rarely have the opportunity to do the activities. For example, this was a 40(ish) day shoot. In the end, I got to play (surf, rock climb, snorkel, etc.) for six of them. That is less than if I worked a 9-5 job!

I am super excited to announce that I will be co-hosting season three of the Occupation Wild Podcast with Courtney Condy. The season has already kicked off with a question and answer session around photography, van life, how to make money while living on the road, and so much more! Below is the link to the first episode.

Sucking it up, I put my big boy pants on— mainly to avoid being left behind by Kristin—and head to the hot spring. It was my first time here, I didn’t know what to expect and I was blown away. The landscape was cloaked in a orange glow as the light danced down the mountains and across the fields in the distance. Staring out from the warmths of the hot spring, I was proud that we persevered.

The time has come to pack your backpack, hit the trail, and sleep in the dirt. Backpacking is an adventure combining hiking with backcountry camping, so be ready for a deep thigh burn and dirt under your fingernails. Living out of a backpack combined with the lack of conveniences makes backpacking an enjoyable type two activity. In the moment, as you labor up a steep grade, you might question your decision to go on this trip, but as you roast a marshmallow for s’mores and stare out at the Milky Way you’ll cherish those steep grades like a badge of honor. If this is your first backpacking trip, or your 10,000th trip, I promise there will be a nugget of goodness in this article.

Rewinding one calendar year, to September 2020, I was slouched and red-eyed, staring at google earth dreaming up ideas, such as climbing notable peaks in a single season in three different mountain ranges like the High Sierra, the Tetons, and the Cascades. All of these ranges have a lifetime of climbing within them, so I knew I would be a guest, cherry-picking the classics, but I still wanted to give this a try. So, I started training. As the plans for the trip developed and I connected with past climbing partners, like Luan, Beau, and Kristin. I started to get psyched, but felt a void.

Two days later, I pedaled away from the hostel the man at the airport had suggested. Winding through the city streets of Christchurch, I was eager to make it to the main road that circles New Zealand’s South Island. Upon arriving at the T, I asked myself, “clockwise or counterclockwise?” For the first time, I had a hunch that I knew what I was doing. Feeling confident, I recall thinking, it’s the second half of summer, I should go south now, so I am in the north for the fall. So, I went right and pedaled along the coast, embracing a freedom that I had never known before.

A micro-adventure is a mindset and physical outing directed to exploring. Since these are small, most micro-adventures will happen in your backyard, wherever that be. Now, some people will be luckier than others because of where they live, but even a city-dweller can have micro-adventures. The goal is to change your perspective on your current life situation and push yourself to go. Most of the time a micro-adventure will leave you asking yourself, “why would I ever do that?” The answer is “because it sounds like fun… kind of.”

While six pack abs and bikini season are always around the corner, van life might prevent you from getting to those goals. Yes, you are closer to access the outdoors if you plan your van trips correctly, however you aren’t going to have much space for working out, especially if the weather does not agree with your routine. If you plan on being a weekend warrior in a van, fitness won’t be a point of topic you’ll stress much about. However, if you decide to commit full time and have aspirations of maintaining your gym-centric body, guess again! With that said, below are five tips to maintain your fitness level while crammed in your tiny home on wheels.

In 2016 I took a leap of faith, bought a plane ticket to New Zealand as a graduation gift to myself for finishing college, and cycled around the South Island of NZ. Without a plan of action, all I knew was that I needed some time to sit with my thoughts and process as much as I could during that time. Sixty-two days is a long time without music, internet, social media, etc. but I can say, 62 days went quickly and wasn’t enough time to unpack the 24 years of living I had experienced. Getting caught up in the social conditioning of America is a road map to safety. Well, being safe isn’t living, and I wanted to live. While pedaling through rainstorms, almost sliding off roads, and sharing cookies and tea with strangers, I started to feel alive.

Imagine, it's a Friday night and you want to go hang with your buddies for an afternoon surf, but can't get in the water. This doesn't mean you can't have a good time. Heck, you might even be able to have more fun. Well, this is kinda the situation that I was in, but still wanted to hang out, so what did I do? Well, I grabbed my camera and headed to the beach.

Upon finishing the week long VLOG challenge, I am very excited to say that I completed the challenge and have been continuing with videos. They are fun to make and share with you all. Providing a glimpse into vanlife, a career of photography, and the long term value of living an engaging life.

After a little mix up, @cbeaumartino and I met up in the buttermilks just outside of Bishop, CA for some climbing. While waiting, the morning was quite productive as I worked on a blog about cool camping spots in the Eastern Sierra.

Quite honestly, I would not have guessed when I made my business official (aka got a business license and started paying taxes under the business name "Dalton Johnson Media") roughly three years ago, that I would be photographing a campaign for @fordbronco or @outwardboundusa anytime soon. Realistically, I just wanted to pay my way by shooting odd jobs here and there to fuel my adventures. I really never had a list of dream clients, nor did I care to reach out to clients. While some of that has changed, my focus remains the same. I am here to live my life in accordance to my own view of success.

Over the last year, I have focused on climbing more than ever before. Taking trips from Joshua Tree to the Tetons to the Buttermilks to Yosemite. Throughout that time, I have been able to meet tons of people who've showed me what dedication to a craft truly looks like. For the most part, climbing is a selfish pursuit, but a pursuit that is totally meaningless. Quite honestly, nobody cares who gets to the top of a boulder, crack, mountain. Sure, we may highlight the story within a community, but there really isn't much to be said about playing on rocks.

Vanlife, trucklife, bikelife, tentlife... all of them have their pros and cons, but the most important aspect is understanding why you do it in the first place. From the outside, a simple life can look like the dream, but there is also a reality that living on the road can be mundane, lonely, and scary. On the flip side, the highs are very high.