The Month That Was September 2021
The Queen at sunset in the beautiful and other worldly Salt Flats of Utah.
Our first month of living full time in our Airstream is complete! It was full of adventure, learning lessons and thankfully family to reconnect with.
We visited four states this month: Wyoming, Utah, Idaho, and Nevada and stayed in some amazing places.
Little Lake Payette in McCall Idaho was probably the most scenic of the spots and would have been more enjoyable minus the damages. 😊
Being in this area allowed us to spend time with family which was extra special.
During our travels and thanks to Harvest Host, we spent one night at Holeinsky Winery in Buhl, ID, another night at Pioneer Farms in Nampa, ID and one night at the Idaho Heritage Museum outside Twin Falls, ID.
Our longest stay in one spot was for 7 days at Silver Island Mountain Dry Lake outside of Wendover, Utah.
This spot felt like being on another planet. It was mountainous, yet high desert and was once a giant lakebed. The best part is that was totally free to stay here for up to 14 days and let us recoup some of the cost of gas while staying on budget.
Panoramic view from our campsite of the Silver Island Mountain Dry Lake area.
Our spot was in a quiet, dry lakebed a few miles up the road from the Bonneville Salt Flats where vehicles of all kinds come to try and set land speed records.
We did not attend the races and instead focused more on the history of the area.
Wendover Air Force Base and the towns of Wendover, UT and West Wendover, NV were about 10 minutes from us. This area played a large role in our nation’s security during in WWII.
It was home to a top-secret base where they trained the crews for the Enola Gay mission, which ended the war with Japan. Walking into their restored buildings was like stepping back in time.
If you are more pop culture and less history, this base is also where they filmed Con Air and Independence Day. T
here are still some “Area 51” signs around the flight line left over from Will Smith and the team.
The base is worth a visit!
Staying in one area this long allowed us to get to know our neighbor, James, and to enjoy his stories.
James is a retired car hauler who traveled the country with semi’s full of new and used cars but never got to stop and really experiences the places he was.
Now he travels the country in his renovated flatbed semi that he puts his Jeep on while pulling his camper behind.
James had been here about a week longer than us and had made friends with the nearby ranchers, off gridders and anyone else that came through the canyon.
We had a great time learning about the rocks he collected (a family trait of ours as well), where he was headed next, and the life he left behind for the road.
Jerrod and James hanging out in the desert.
Meeting new people and having the time to really get to know them is one of our favorite parts of this journey.
Unfortunately, Andrea did not feel well during our time here, so she used the fresh mountain air and quiet space to rest and recover, thus missing out on some amazing hikes and views.
Volcano Peak was probably my favorite hike of the week, with a close second going to the hike to find the abandoned WWII gunnery range where they used to train the tail gunners.
There is something about learning and experiencing history that helps you to better appreciate your todays!
In the month of September, we drove 52 hours and 24 minutes, covering 2115.1 miles at an average of 12.9 miles per gallon.
We went a bit over budget <$300 but I believe the extra expenses went to creating awesome memoires with family in Idaho and a new French press!
Our goal is to live this lifestyle on a monthly budget of $3000.
This requires us to be smart with our travel plans, slow down when needed, and insures we are purposeful with all of our purchases.
Living in such a small space everything we have needs to serve multiple roles or it had to go.
Now it’s time to head east!