Van life adventures, honest reviews, and travel tips from the road
Colorado gave The Lemon Route exactly what we needed: cooler mountain air, Royal Gorge views, Rocky Mountain National Park, hot springs, free camping, a Noovo reset, and one very real Mr. Lemon roof leak.
Texas tested The Lemon Route fast with Austin heat, barbecue, Barton Springs, a pricey RV park, and a scary inverter problem that nearly ended State #2 before it really began.
The Lemon Route officially started in New Mexico. After years of saying “someday,” we quit our jobs and finally hit the road in Mr. Lemon (our class b van) to start our 50-state vanlife-ish adventure. Start Date: August 2025. End Date? When we run out of money.
We are sleeping in a freezing airport parking lot tonight because our van window broke right before our flight. We fly to Arizona tomorrow for our son wedding and today was a total disaster but we finally got the van taped up. I had to stuff a towel inside the door just to keep the glass from falling down while we are gone. We got our gas and propane and dumped the tanks but Mr Lemon really tested my patience today with the freezing wind and snow. Read more to see how we survived the cold in Florida and let us know where we should go in Georgia when we get back.
We took our van to the oldest city in America and we drove in circles forever just to park. The old stone fort was really big and we climbed two hundred and nineteen stairs up a lighthouse in the freezing wind. Hillary forgot to actually book our campsite so we ended up eating egg salad sandwiches on the beach in the cold. This is state eleven and we are just making it work.
We took the van down to Florida and we ended up at The Villages. We met some new friends and they let us borrow a golf cart so we just drove everywhere and it felt like Mario Kart. This place is incredibly huge and we even saw a real alligator swimming right by us. People say it is just for old boring folks but they are totally wrong and they actually know how to party. We debunked some crazy urban myths and went to the town squares for live music before the whole town shuts down at exactly nine at night. Read all about our wild van life adventure in the biggest retirement community in America.
Want to see Florida manatees up close without getting in the water? We explore Three Sisters Springs, Silver Springs, and clear kayaking to bring you the top ways to spot these incredible animals.
Discover what it's like to camp at Disney World's Fort Wilderness as a total beginner. We cover everything from van setup and amenity costs to golf cart rentals and navigating the parks using Lightning Passes.
We made it to Key West and it is the southernmost point in the US and it rained so much but we are finally kicking off our 2026 trip to all 50 states in our van. We booked the most expensive RV park ever at the Key West KOA and it had a pool and a beach and we pulled a lemon challenge for a self care reset. Bob looked for military history in the pouring rain at Fort Zachary Taylor and then the sun finally came out and Bob jumped in the ocean.
Black Friday is here, and we rounded up all our favorite finds, the items we use, love, or are grabbing ourselves this season. Most of these are on Amazon or from trusted RV partners like etrailer, and the savings are GOOD this year. Whether you're upgrading your home, stocking the RV, or grabbing gifts, here are our must-see deals 👇
