A few honest answers.

Yep. It’s our bedroom, kitchen, living room, garage, office, and occasionally the source of confusion about where we put something.

We’ve already traveled almost a year, on and off, in the Field Notes. But this trip? About a year continuously. After that, we’ll probably come up with another bad idea.

Warsaw, Kentucky to Jenner, California. Jenner to Key West, Florida. Key West to Deadhorse, Alaska. And Deadhorse back to Jenner.

Absolutely. Several of them. They tend to become obsolete shortly after we leave.

We expect the Transcontinental Odyssey to last 52 weeks and about 50,000 miles.

We like being small enough to get almost anywhere, but large enough to carry a refrigerator and make questionable decisions comfortably. Oh, and the 4x4 helps a lot.

A Winnebago Revel built on a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter 4x4. Basically a tiny apartment wearing hiking boots.

In the van. Preferably somewhere beautiful, quiet, legal, and free—in roughly that order.

Nope. We love dispersed camping on public land. Sometimes we use campgrounds. Occasionally we even pay for one.

Maps, apps, public-land resources, recommendations, satellite imagery, road signs, and occasionally blind optimism.

Yes. This question usually comes surprisingly early in conversations.

Yep. We also have rivers, lakes, campground showers and an evolving definition of “clean.”

Campgrounds, parks, RV fills, friends, businesses and other legitimate sources. Water becomes much more interesting when you have to carry all of it.

Batteries, solar, and occasionally shore power. The house systems are remarkably efficient, and generally the solar gets the work done.

Cellular service when we can get it and Starlink when we can’t. There are very few places left where David can successfully claim he “couldn’t get the email.”

Usually campgrounds, occasionally laundromats, and whenever possible, a friend’s house. Good friends have washers and dryers.

Surprisingly normal food. We cook in the van, eat locally when something looks interesting, and have learned that almost anything tastes better after being outside all day.

Weather, scenery, wildlife, national parks, recommendations and whatever catches our attention. The itinerary gets a vote, but not a veto.

We have a few favorites, but we’re hoping the list keeps changing. In fact, if we come home from Alaska with the same favorites we left with, we probably did something wrong.

Waking up every day with your best friend, knowing you don’t have to leave—and when you do, it’s because another adventure is waiting.

Once we’re rolling and find our groove, life on the road is surprisingly easy. The hardest part may be deciding which adventure comes next. Of course, Mother Nature gets a vote—and occasionally, so does the van.

Of course not. Next question.

It can be. Then you add diesel, restaurants, national parks, repairs, gear and the occasional “we may never be here again” purchase.

Because the name followed us from our old life into this one. The house got smaller. The life got bigger.