The author in Joshua Tree, California.
Mekenna Malan
Mekenna Malan and her partner took an 86-day road trip around the US in their 1986 Land Cruiser.
They visited nine states, 13 national parks, and traveled 7,000 miles across the West Coast.
During the trip, they both worked remotely from their van, coffee shops, and public libraries.
In July 2020, I decided to take a 7,000-mile road trip through the western United States with my partner.Malan and her partner in Yosemite National Park, California.
Mekenna Malan
The dream was to live, cook, work, and sleep in our car as much as possible and visit as many national parks as we could along the way. We ended up visiting nine states and 13 national parks over 86 days.Malan somewhere along the Pacific Coast Highway in California.
Mekenna Malan
Attempting this kind of adventure while working remotely as a full-time copywriter and freelance journalist was more challenging than I expected — but also intensely rewarding.Malan in Glacier National Park, Montana.
Mekenna Malan
Prior to leaving, my partner and I worked for six months on our 1986 Land Cruiser to make it our home.
Mekenna Malan
In addition to getting the engine swapped and performing other mechanical repairs, we hand-built and installed a wooden platform bed with drawers underneath to hold our kitchen and camping gear.Malan near her car.
Mekenna Malan
I had already been working remotely for most of the year. As long as I stayed committed to keeping my deadlines, it wasn’t difficult to coordinate my new lifestyle with my employer.Malan at a highway pull-off in California.
Mekenna Malan
The biggest difference was that my work setup now included the passenger seat of our Land Cruiser, which squeaked a bit anytime we drove more than 40 miles per hour, and free WiFi courtesy of coffee shops, public libraries, and visitor’s centers.Malan at a coffee shop in Seattle, Washington.
Mekenna Malan
Sometimes, we got lucky. In Ojai, California, for example, we worked from the patio of a charming market with free WiFi, munching on cherry turnovers and banana-nut muffins from the bakery while completing the day’s tasks.Ojai, California.
Mekenna Malan
Afterward, we drove through acres of orange groves just before sunset, pulled into an overlook during Ojai’s famous “pink moment,” and cooked a skillet dinner on the tailgate.Malan in Ojai, California.
Mekenna Malan
While it fueled me creatively to work from an unfamiliar location each day, relying on fickle public WiFi was the most difficult component of our road trip. Thankfully, while driving or camping in areas without cell service, I was able to write drafts of articles and blog posts in Google Docs offline.Malan at a highway pull-off in California.
Mekenna Malan
Because office hours coincided with the hottest parts of the day, early mornings and evenings were spent hiking around the national parks we visited. I attempted to complete my work projects ahead of time and put in extra hours to submit assignments when WiFi was stable.Malan in Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona.
Mekenna Malan
Things didn’t always go as planned. Just 365 miles into our trip, my partner and I found ourselves trapped just outside Mesa Verde National Park for three days because the Cruiser’s fuel pump started acting up.Malan in Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado.
Mekenna Malan
Luckily for us, the local public library in Delores, Colorado, had everything we needed for a perfect office setup, including chairs and tables in the shade next to a flowing river.Delores, Colorado.
Mekenna Malan
After a productive workday, we headed to the local brewery for wood-fired pizza in an open-air barn structure with vines of wild hops growing up the walls.Malan in Cortez, Colorado.
Mekenna Malan
Other times, we weren’t so lucky — like when we fled the blistering Arizona heat and made it to Palm Springs within a half-day of travel.Just outside of Palm Springs, California.
Mekenna Malan
After cooking an al fresco meal in a park, we posted up outside the closed public library in an attempt to spend a few hours in the office — but we were still sweating profusely and could barely focus on a single Slack message.Malan’s partner at a park in Palm Springs, California.
Mekenna Malan
We stayed at a few hotels or Airbnbs in California towns like Joshua Tree, Los Olivos, and Big Sur when my partner or I had a big work project due.Deejen’s Big Sur Inn in Big Sur, California.
Mekenna Malan
In city stopovers like San Francisco and Seattle, we took advantage of friends’ showers, fast WiFi, and washing machines. There’s nothing like the feeling of hitting the road again with your laundry done, hair washed, and a slew of road-trip snacks from Trader Joe’s.Malan’s partner in San Francisco, California.
Mekenna Malan
Because we had the freedom to plan trips to national parks around off-peak days and hours, it often felt like my partner and I had these exquisite landmarks all to ourselves.Malan and her partner in Olympic National Park, Washington.
Mekenna Malan
My favorite memories include a post-work dip in Lake Crescent near Olympic National Park, an offline brainstorming session among towering redwoods, and a happy hour with a perfect view of Yosemite’s Half Dome.Malan in Yosemite National Park, California.
Mekenna Malan
While social media makes the #vanlife appear glamorous, living on the road is a full-time job.Malan having car troubles somewhere outside Burley, Idaho.
Mekenna Malan
Ordinary daily tasks, like prepping dinner or washing dishes, took at least twice as long to complete when camping in areas without running water.Malan somewhere along the Pacific Coast Highway.
Mekenna Malan
It also took unpredictable amounts of time at each waypoint to find a bathroom, a place to set up our camp stove for cooking, and a flat spot to sleep.Malan somewhere along the Oregon Coast.
Mekenna Malan
What do you do when there’s no Bureau of Land Management land for miles, all nearby campsites are full, and every other dirt lot you find has a sign that says, “No Overnight Parking”?Malan just outside of Delores, Colorado.
Mekenna Malan
My partner and I often found ourselves weighing the options of sleeping in a Walmart parking lot or a noisy highway pull-off — or giving in to the allure of an air-conditioned motel room.Malan in Umpqua National Forest, Oregon.
Mekenna Malan
Luckily, the money we made while working on the road completely offset the cost of our trip.Malan in Moab, Utah.
Mekenna Malan
While my partner and I had saved up a few thousand dollars for living expenses prior to leaving, the ability to work our regular jobs helped us feel like we could enjoy our road trip without too much financial stress.Malan in North Cascades National Park, Washington.
Mekenna Malan
It was also relieving to continue some facet of our normal routine while everything else in our lives was so unknown.Malan in Glacier National Park, Montana.
Mekenna Malan
Though it poses some unique challenges, there’s a sense of ease that comes with life on the road.Malan in Joshua Tree National Park, California.
Mekenna Malan
Hungry? Open the tailgate and make some food.Somewhere outside Olympia, Washington.
Mekenna Malan
Want to change your shirt or socks? Your clothes are in the duffle bag behind your seat. Need floss? It’s next to your toothbrush in the right-hand drawer under the platform bed.Malan’s partner somewhere outside McCall, Idaho.
Mekenna Malan
Want to take a nap? Crawl in the back for a few minutes.Somewhere along the Oregon Coast.
Mekenna Malan
In the end, the experience was worth the atypical work hours and excruciatingly slow internet connection.Malan in Redwood National Park, California.
Mekenna Malan
Our road trip was planned prepandemic and initially set back by it. But following through on our plans — and working remotely along the way — allowed us to visit some of the most beautiful areas of the American West.Malan in Glacier National Park, Montana.
Mekenna Malan
Read the original article on Business Insider