Living in a 4x4 Van | Adapting from Snowy City Life to Off-Grid Barren Desert

How's it going everybody? I'm Nikki Delventhal and this is my dog Camper Delventhal. We lived in a Prius full-time for three years but now we're in a 4x4 Sprinter and we're here to take you along on the wild ride. So fasten up your seat belts and let's have some fun. Don't forget if you like what you see, like, subscribe, comment, share with your friends and turn on notifications. Camper and I would be so thankful. On last week's episode, we had a ton of fun but it was also one disaster after another. Long story short, our car battery went bad, we got that replaced and our heat broke. So with two prior failed attempts to fix it, we headed to Phoenix in hopes that the third time was the charm. Which it wasn't but at least he was able to work some magic. Then after some family time, we were back on the road but this time headed north. So last night we tried to sleep off-grid but uh Flagstaff got like three feet of snow so the road was closed. So we ended up at a truck stop. That's just what happens, right? It must have been cold out last night. Those are some frozen windows. You guys, I can't believe I'm saying this but I only drink like coffee once or twice a weekend. We're at a truck stop. The place we wanted to sleep, all the forest roads are closed because Flagstaff got three feet of snow. But this is my favorite truck stop of all time and I think there's some hiking trails in the back here. Hopefully they're not completely snowed out but let's go romp around in the snow before we hit the road. I'm the most handsome boy in the world. I love playing dress up with my mom. That's a lie. You giving me that side eye? Oh it frosted last night. You guys, it's so cold out here. I know our heat has been a little finicky but you know what they say. No such thing as bad weather, just bad clothes and bad preparation. We are prepared. You guys, it's deep. We're knee deep here. I should not have done that but now that I'm in it, I might as well just commit. Where'd it go? Where'd it go? That was so much fun. All right, back in the van and we're headed to Utah, baby. All right, you ready to go? Thanks guys. Thank you. Have a good day. Okay, so we lied. We ended up getting coffee anyways. Cheers. So really fun fact, the beginning of our journey today starts on historic Route 66. It is one of America's first highways. I believe it was established in 1926 as a route to get people from Chicago to Los Angeles and vice versa. So one of my favorite things about traveling by vehicle is that you don't have a flight to catch. You don't have to be anywhere at any specific time. So it's really fun to just stop on the side of the road when you see something. A lot of times that's when I find the coolest things. We just came by a sign that says dinosaur tracks and we're going to go check it out. All right, let's go see some tracks. We just got out of the car here and we met Michael here. Hello. And he was just starting to tell us about the area and offered to tell you guys as well. He's from the local town over here called Monavi and it's fascinating. Michael was saying that as you walk through here, if you see little pockets in the stone like this, it's most likely from a dinosaur egg. All right, the moment you've all been waiting for Tyrannosaurus Rex footprint. So they did a measurement on the T-Rex footprints and they are estimating that the T-Rex was two stories tall. Could you imagine? Whoa, look at this dinosaur. I'm just kidding. It's Camper's footprints. This is dinosaur poop. Get out of here. Camper, check this out. Right over there, that's the highest peak in Arizona, Humphreys Peak. I hiked that. If you want to watch what that's like and the nice view from the top, you can watch that right here. We have the South Rim and the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. Wow. Camper and his new buddy. These are the Jasper Red Coral. These are the Waldron Nuggets right here. And they're semi-precious stone. The Navajo, the Big Two, we have the real small, pure Red Coral. We made it to the spot where they found the T-Rex in 1942. This is so cool. We gotta look this up, but I'm gonna believe it. Oh god, you are dirty. Thank you so much, Michael. Yep, all right. Have a good day. Safe trip. Come back again. We'll see ya. Excellent. You guys, that was so much fun. You know, no matter who you are or what you believe, it's really stops like this that make the adventure. You know, you can just use your imagination and have fun with it. And that was awesome. All right, let's keep going to Utah. Oh my, you guys, this road is muddy. Are we gonna do it? Yeah, we're gonna do it. All right, I think I like the spot, but we have to make sure that we're not gonna get stuck first. Kind of loose, but not too bad. Like this, we'll get stuck over here. So, all right, we're gonna back up right here. You guys, we made it just in time for the sun to set. This is perfect. I accidentally found this place like five or six years ago just aimlessly driving, and I love coming back here at least once a year. It's also very windy today, so we're gonna go inside and make us some food. All right, who is ready for some dinner? You guys hear that? The wind is picking up so much. Can you smell what Nikki B is cooking? You guys, I am so excited to be here. I mean, look at this view. And I'm so excited about North Face. I have been a huge fan of the North Face since I can remember. Actually, one of the first gifts that I ever asked for was their Denali jacket when I was really young. I wore that thing for years. The North Face really has been my go-to for all of my adventures in gear, and I absolutely love them. I'm gonna share with you guys three items that I absolutely love that are great for winter adventures, but just adventures in general. First is the Women's Arctic Parka. You guys have seen this in many of my episodes, but this has quickly become my favorite go-to jacket for any time there is a chill in the air. It has a super flattering fit, but also the weight to warmth ratio is perfect. Highly, highly recommended if you're looking for an all-over jacket like this. Next are the Thermoball Traction Mules 5. Everyone in my family has one of these. These have a Thermoball Eco-Insulation that is incredible and a non-slip outsole. Really, this is an everyday comfort item. Okay, and lastly, this one is so cool. Hang on, let me go get it. The Basecamp Voyager is crazy durable and perfect for any of your adventures. Ladies and gentlemen, you have got yourself a backpack. What was that, camper? What do you want to tell them? Be sure to shop the North Face for all of your gear for your adventures. All right, let's get camper some food and get cozied up for the night. The sun is going down, the wind is picking up, and you know what else is picking up? The fun. Go get it. Good boy. And now for my first magic trick. What is that? Is that a new toy? Please can I have it? I was so good today. Please can I have it? I was so good. I was so good. Okay, oh good boy. We're gonna get outside and get camper to pee before bed. Hopefully we don't get blown away. We're only gonna bundle up here. Oh, it's not as bad as I expected. It is 18 degrees. Maybe this jacket's just really good. Oh yeah, it's just the jacket for sure. Oh my god. Just in case our heat turns off in the middle of the night, we're gonna layer up. I think we could just do a little bit of a scooch. No way, Josie. Have you seen anything cuter in your entire life? Answer's no. Great. It is still crazy windy out there. Hopefully that subsides soon, but you guys, there's not another human for probably like 25-30 miles at least. It is so peaceful out here. Camper, we gotta do some cleaning around here. All right, you watch tv. We'll give it to me as usual. Holy moly, look at those paw prints. Chicken and rice with a little bit of kibble. Don't mind if I do. That's a broth kind of morning. Cozy day. Pretty sure these pajamas are gonna stay on for at least three days. Camper, you want to go for a walk? Oh, you want to explore the wash? I do. Wow, look at all the different colors and the layers of these rocks here. Wow, you guys, it is getting so nice out. We were out there for like three and a half hours. Most of us was trying to learn how to use the new drone that I got. I'm so excited about that, but give me a while to figure it out. So we're just gonna hang out the rest of the day and soak in the sunshine, maybe make some food. This is amazing. Camper, are you gonna come eat? Come on. I guess it's all for me. A lot of you guys ask me about my meals, and truthfully, every single meal that I cook is pretty much the exact same thing. It's whether I'm cooking it in a pan, putting it on lettuce for a salad, or over yogurt, or on the off key when I make eggs or something like that, but I pretty much eat the same stuff. It just has a different base, I feel like. Camper makes me the happiest girl on the planet. You are my favorite thing. I'm so lucky. Crashed my drone. Should have played more video games growing up. That's a lie, I hate video games. Thanks again to the Northeast for helping Camper and I get out and explore wherever our van may take us.