VAN LIFE AT 19 & WHY SHE'S LEAVING EUROPE | FT. ABIGAIL MARTIN
My Solo Road: S2 Ep 12 | Van Life at 19 & Why She's Leaving Europe | ft. Abigail Martin
Today I’m talking with Abigail Martin about what van life is like when you start at 19 and why she’s leaving Europe! We get into the details on her relationship, her experience base jumping, and why it’s important to gain back your independence when you lose it!
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INTRODUCTION
Building out a van at 19? Moving to Europe to live in a van with her dog and partner? Jumping off mountains? Our guest today, Abigail Martin, is here to talk about all of these things and more! We’re diving into why she decided to do something different and start van life at a younger age, how base jumping is both scary and meditative, and why she’s decided to leave Europe with her dog Archie and build out her third van!
WHERE SHE'S CURRENTLY AT
- She is currently in Portugal which is the van life hub of Europe.
- Portugal has been her favorite country that she has visited so far. She loves the beaches, the people, and the food.
- In San Diego, the beaches are nice but they are always crowded. In Portugal, since it’s the winter, there are amazing beaches that are empty.
THE START OF HER VAN LIFE EXPERIENCE
She is from Chelan Washington and when she graduated high school, she wanted to buy a van.
She’s always wanted to do something different than everyone else but she decided she would go to college and then do van life later in life.
She moved to Arizona to take a gap year and then planned to go to college there but moved back home 6 months later.
She told everyone she was saving for college but she was working 4 jobs to save for her van.
She bought a van and took 5 months to build it out. She had originally planned to go to all of the national parks and travel fast but once she got down to San Diego, she stayed there for 2 months. She lived in that van for a year!
SKYDIVING, BASE JUMPING, AND HOW SHE MET HER BOYFRIEND
- When you are jumping off of high things, being scared doesn’t go away. With skydiving, she has 25 jumps and she’s still nervous every time.
- But once you jump out of the plane it’s a very meditative thing. You have nothing to focus on
- She met her boyfriend Dante skydiving. She saw him and said to her friend “that’s my type”.
- They started hanging out and eventually went on a trip to Washington and started dating.
- He had a minivan that he drove separately but they would stay in her van. But it was nice because they still both had their freedom.
SELLING HER VAN AND MOVING TO EUROPE
- When she and Dante met, he told her he had plans to live in Europe. Hearing that didn’t phase her at all but she had to ask herself what she wanted to do. She had no interest in moving to Europe, she just wanted to travel there. But she loves him so much so she decided she would do it.
- It took 6 months of planning before they left for Europe.
- They bought a van that was already built out in the UK 4 months before they moved.
WHEN SHE GOT HER DOG ARCHIE & PET TRAVEL TO EUROPE
She got Archie after hanging out with some friends and falling in love with their dogs.
She had plans to get a service dog in the future for her anxiety and panic disorder but not in the van. But she ended up going to the shelter to get Archie. She has been training him as a service dog since she got him.
It’s scary having a dog on the road because you care so much about them and you’re still learning what it’s like to have them and keep them alive.
He was only a year and a half old when they planned on moving to Europe and she didn’t feel like he was ready for a plane ride.
She had him booked for “cargo” which means they put your dog in a crate under the plane with their food and water. But she realized that having him under the plane would have caused more anxiety and panic.
Instead they took him to the airport a few weeks before the flight and they practiced all the steps for 4 hours. Then he was good to go and sat with her the entire time!
HOW SHE PLANNED HER TRIP
- Europe is very dog friendly with all of the beaches and parks, but you have to watch out for unleashed and unneutered dogs!
- They started with the UK. It was a great place to start since it’s similar to the United States, they speak english, and they had friends there. Vans are also very common so it’s easy to buy one!
- Instead of iOverlander they use an app called park4night. And instead of planet fitness for a shower, they got a pure gym membership in the UK.
- Through France, Spain and Portugal, the access to showers is a lot more scarce. Having a shower in your van is very useful!
- She used to have a nature’s head toilet but in this van she has an OGO toilet which she doesn’t like too much.
- I am putting a Laveo Dry Flush toilet in my new van! And this is different from the composting ones that vans usually have.
- A lot of the public toilets are also closed so it’s good to have a toilet in your van!
WHY SHE’S MOVING BACK TO THE UNITED STATES
- Her plan to move back to the United States was very unexpected. They planned to stay in Europe for 2 years and then come back to the United States and buy property.
- She had a lot of back and forth with herself on whether she wanted to leave Europe.
- Not having the freedom to do whatever they want at all points is difficult.
- They don’t have any relationship issues so she was nervous to bring it up to Dante but he took it so well. He understood this isn’t working for her and they brainstormed ways that they can make it work.
- They are going to focus on themselves and gain some of their independence back since you tend to build some codependency when you’re traveling together.
HER PLANS FOR THE FUTURE
- She plans on buying a van and taking 6 weeks to convert it in Joshua Tree in a few weeks. She will be documenting the build so make sure to follow along!
- She rented an Airbnb in the desert and then plans to travel on the west coast until the summer when she will be moving back to Europe for a few months to go to Italy and Switzerland.
- Now they will have one van in Europe and one in the US!
- She’s excited to bond with herself and Archie, hangout with friends, and go on backpacking trips.
SUMMARY
Trusting your gut on what feels right for you is important. Understanding when something isn’t working and making the change to adjust it. It’s also important to have a partner that can be emotionally mature enough to work on things and help you through them! This was also a reminder that we’re all trying to figure things out. So if there’s something that you’ve been wanting to do, there IS a way that you can do it! You just have to make the first step!
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