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Road Tripping vs. Vanlife

Road Tripping vs. Vanlife

The subtle differences between the two.

Josh Cadorette
October 20, 2022

Howdy from San Francisco, CA,

Welcome to the 3 new subscribers from this past week!

I spent last weekend in Lakeport, CA with Kift, a community of vanlifers.

This experience gave me a unique perspective on the differences between road tripping and vanlife.

If you haven't already, please consider joining 173 others and subscribing below!

We are so dang close to my goal of reaching 250 subscribers before the end of 2022.

The road is calling.

The great American road trip has been portrayed countless times in movies and tv shows.

You hop in the car, roll the windows down, blast music as the wind rushes past your hair, and see as much of the country as you can.

I completed 2 of these cross country road trips prior to purchasing my van, so I figured my experiences would give me a decent idea of what vanlife was about.

Spoiler: I was wrong. I've lived in a van for 6.5 months, but I had been road tripping. I only began vanlife within the past month.

I now know that road tripping and vanlife are 2 different things.

Vanlife includes road tripping, but road tripping isn't vanlife.

The back of my '06 Prius, Pegasus, during my road trip from PA to Montana in summer 2018. I sometimes stare into the abyss and reflect on all of those mpgs she had.

What I mean by road tripping.

Road tripping = constant movement + temporary reprieve from a traditional lifestyle.

Road tripping is about covering ground through brief experiences. You're focussed on moving from place to place and trying to see as much as you can, never staying in one spot for too long.

You're likely reconnecting with old friends and family along the way as opposed to making new, long-lasting connections.

There is more time in the car and more time spent in solitude.

You're constantly keeping your head on a swivel, asking yourself: where am I staying tonight? Is this place safe? How much drinking water do I have? What am I eating tonight? Where am I showering? How do I navigate this new place?

Pro: you become incredibly self-reliant.

Con: decision fatigue sets in from keeping your head on a swivel at all times.

In a sentence: you gain breadth over depth, improve your survival skills, and no day is the same.

The Prius headed to Colorado for my 2021 road trip. 45mpgs, folks. This thing was a lean machine.

What I mean by vanlife.

Vanlife = sporadic meandering + commitment to living nomadically w/ community.

You live in a vehicle not to keep things constantly moving, but to park, find stillness, and build community with other nomads. It's about creating depth through meaningful connections.

Vanlifers often stay together in one place for weeks or months at a time. When it's time to move, they will even move together in caravans.

There is more time spent with other nomads, less time behind a wheel.

Vanlifers still make time to do solo road tripping, but they know they'll see their fellow vanlifers again at festivals or meet-ups down the road.

If a road trip is about independence, then vanlife is about healthy dependence.

You're cooking with one another, cleaning with one another, building fires together, and sharing resources. You have less decision fatigue because vanlifers look out for one another.

Pro: you gain a community of people who carry their weight because they're self-reliant.

Con: you're not pushing as many geographic boundaries.

In a sentence: you gain depth over breadth, have space to thrive, and room to build routine.

Me and my van the day I bought her/before I made renovations. That's the smile of a man who didn't know what he didn't know about van building or vanlife, but he was excited as heck.

Caveats about the differences between road tripping and vanlife.

Vanlife doesn't require an actual van. I'm using the phrase to depict nomadic life, but I know folks I consider vanlifers who live in a bus, compact vehicle, truck camper, etc.
Vanlifers still road trip when traveling between caravans, meet-ups, festivals, by going to visit family/friends and doing adventures on their own for extended periods of time.
It can be difficult for road trippers to engage in vanlife due to the word of mouth marketing of vanlife caravans, communities, and events. You gotta know folks and stay on the road long enough to engage in the community.

Case in point on #3 above.

I've lived in a van for 6.5 months, but I had been road tripping the entire time and only truly began vanlife within the past month.

For most of my travels, I moved every few days, mostly seeing old friends and family along the way with long stretches of solitude.

I'm proud that I stood tall through the highs and the lows of the road on my own, but the decision fatigue from constant solo travel is exhausting.

It was a necessary precursor to the community that was to come because it caused me to seek deeper connection and community with nomads who could empathize with this lifestyle.

Drone shot of Kift's Lakeport location that I stayed at this past week with other vanlifers. Peep my van bottom left in the photo. I'll have to do an entire piece on Kift itself down the line.

What this means for my travels moving forward.

I found two communities: 1. The Good Vibe Collective. 2. Kift.

Both groups opened my eyes to the beauty of vanlife - community to ground you when you need it paired with the ability to spread your wings and road trip at any time.

What does this mean for me in the future?

The next season of my nomadic life will include less rapid movement.

I'm grateful for the ground I've covered, but I'll be leaning into healthy dependence and depth, not breadth, down the road.

Serendipity's Sweet Spot | The Build

Building the future of business, tech, & society (+ a van too.)

https://thebuild.beehiiv.com/p/serendipitys-sweet-spot

Previous newsletter that I wrote on finding vanlife community for the first time. Ultimately, The Good Vibe Collective folks I detailed in this piece led me to Kift.

What I'm paying attention to:

Rachel Morris reminds us that smooth seas don't make good sailors. Read her piece here.
Steven Kotler is a best-selling author. He spends the first four hours of his day (4am-8am) writing. No phone. No emails. Strictly flow state. Read about his tactics here.
Danny Miranda is a podcaster, writer, and former Building Out Loud podcast guest. He recently launched a newsletter, In The DMs. I became a paid subscriber because he provides such an absurd amount of value. Check out one of his newsletters on validation here. My favorite line from the piece: "You can’t be beaten when the source of your validation is the thing you can control."