21 Years in a 1973 Dodge Van

i really enjoyed your thread. just finished reading all 26 pages. i also checked out your web site. nice photos. I have a house that i'm living in, but i plan to start living out of a van for 3 or 4 months out of the year. i wanted to head out this november but decided for various reasons, one of them being my first gandbaby being born on dec, 6, to start next nov.. i have some damaged legs so i have to walk with a cane, and i can't walk too far, which really sucks for a guy whose hobbies were backpacking and hiking all his life. My plans are to head to the slabs or slab city as it's sometimes called.

http://www.desertdutch.org/slabcity.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slab_City

The problem with my legs makes it more convenient if i have a travel companion. An old girlfriend talked like she wanted to go, but when it came down to it she couldn't let go of the security of her 9 to 5. So next year traveling buddy or not, i'll be heading out. As you point out in your thread, fate usually provides what you need when you need it. Don't know if i'll stay at the slabs or just knock around the southern part of the country.

I'll be driving a 3/4 ton 1983 dodge van that has had a bed/storage compartment built into by a previous owner. This summer i plan to pick up a truck bed trailer, to pull behind for extra storage for fuel and water and a large tent that i have and some tarps. I also have a full size blow up air mattress bed with an electric 12 volt air pump. I have already checked out where i can get free water close to slab city.

Have you ever been to slab city? Thanks again for the posts and the picts, makes me miss my the old days when i had a good set of legs under me. Looking forward to more of your posts.
peace

 

Nice looking work. I know its a bitch, but your going to love it when it's back in and your rolling again. Good luck with the rest of the job.
DH

 

Happy New Years Dog.

 

just got my van and im goin gypsy soon too. Twodogs your amazing and a complete inspiration to us all. good luck

 

After that engine rebuild you'll probably be good for another 22 years. you have definitely inspired me to stop just thinking about it and get mobile.
peace
brax

 

Happy New Year to you and the pups...

 

Very nice thread, JC. For someone who didn't pay much attention in school, you sure don't make many grammatical or spelling errors. Thanks for the vicarious thrill you've given here. I had my chance when I was a youngster, but my naivete and lack of knowledge ended my short lived life on the road. When I had everything I owned in a back pack, I was too tied to the city life and when I finally started enjoying being out in nature, I had kids to take care of.

Now that I'm totally ready again to hit the road and live my dream life, my wife doesn't share the same dream and I know it would hurt her horribly if I were to take off on my own, even though she says she would let me go. She wants us to live in a large trailer or mobile home on the road, but I much prefer isolation and nature to paved roads, trailer parks, and campgrounds. I want the feeling of being able to go anywhere at anytime. I just can't see doing that towing a 30' trailer. We've been married for over 25 years now and it would be tough on either one of us to give that up. With no compromise on the horizon, it seems I'm destined to no fulfillment of this desire in the near future.

My brother and sister live in Cottonwood. They're the same age as you and have probably seen you around if they don't know you already. I'm going to send them your URL. He has his own landscaping and remodeling business and may be able to throw some work your way once in awhile. In any case, it probably can't hurt to have another friend or two in the area. They are good people and I know you would probably get along well. My brother is a stone cold hippy and has done a lot of finding his own way through life. He took off hitchhiking crosscountry with a buddy and their dogs way back in the early seventies. I accompanied them on the first leg down to Big Sur. Unfortunately, his sojourn didn't last too long either.

Hope you got that engine stabbed back in and fired up for another 20 or so years of dragging you guys all over the desert. Enjoy!

 

I got a compromise for you! Get a volkswagen westfalia camper. 77-79 would be your best bet. You can sleep 4. 5 with a childs cot! My girlfriend, her kid, and I are taking off this summer for an indefinite amount of time on the road!

 

Hey Twodogs, first of all.. awesome post. Just read it all, and it's truly amazing.

We have a man that comes down here to Texas every few years to repaint our sign infornt of the business. He travels from florida to California and back again, painting. I believe he's been doing this for 20 years or more. He also lives in a van. He has a pretty cool setup with a bed and shelves. He also has shelves only accessable from the rear for all his painting materials/supplies. He is one of the most interesting and nicest people I have ever met. I always look forward to his visit as I love hearing his stories from the road.

I think this lifestyle that you have choosen to live is amazing. It is truly being free. I hope one day I have the guts to do the same. Your an inspiration and I wish you the best.

 

anyone know where you can get good used camper vans?

 

Right around $900. The tranny's a New Process 4 speed truck floor shift with granny. They're pretty much bullet proof. No electrical parts at this time.

 

I've heard of Slab City and even seen a TV show that featured the place. Never been there though. Good luck with the van and your wanderings.

 

Thanks dude. I took a month of R&R to heal so that's why it's taken me so long to get back here to post. A month with just the dogs in the boonies is good for the body and soul.

I'm sort of surprised that I'm getting 15% better gas mileage with the partial rebuild. It's better than right after I completely rebuilt the thing in 1999. Bored the block and everything that time.

 

Thanks sonik. A late Happy New Years to you too.

 

Good luck with your van. Make it a Home and the sun will always shine on you.

 

Thanks lilbear. Right back at you.

 

Plebe, the reason my grammar and spelling are passable is that my father was a high school English teacher until I was born and he realized that he couldn't afford two kids on a teacher's salary in those days. He would slap me upside the head with a two by four if I said things like, "slap me upside the head."

As far as a compromise with the wife? The wonderful thing about this world is that it is filled with endless possibilities. Who knows? Don't read the eulegy for that particular dream yet. OK? Promise.

Brother and sister in C-town? It really is a small world isn't it?

 

Thanks. It doesn't really take guts, it's just got to be in the blood, I guess. I'm not sure it's the right lifestyle for everyone but for some of us there's no other way. I've been a vagabond since 1967 and there's no other way for me to find peace.

 

The voices were once again whispering. At first I ignored them 'cause usually they are attempting to prod me into doing something, or saying something stupid. Not this time, however, they were laying out the details of a plan born of genius.

Here it is:

As you all probably know, I'm getting close to my 23rd anniversary of living in my 1973 Dodge Van. Yep...23 years of living in a beat up, run down rolling hovel. I share these digs with two dogs and sometimes in the Winter I share them with field mice looking for a warm place to hang out and munch pilfered dogfood. The idea is...that if I could get enough people to donate money to my cause...say 100 people each donating $10,000 or 10,000 people each donating $100, I could film a documentary telling the story of my rise from rags and squalor to riches and opulence. It would be a heart-warming story about the kindness that is so much a part of the human condition and how a group of good Samaritans can really change a person's life for the better. This documentary film would be entitled:








































SlumDodge Millionaire

I think we're talking Oscar here!!!

 

Damn, You'd just go out and blow the money on something foolish like maybe new tires or a little extra dog food. Hang kewl man, I'm only up to 7 years in my van, but I'm trying to catcg you. :cheers2:
D.Hair