INTERIOR TOUR

August 20, 2014August 20, 2014 / Lindsey&Steven / Leave a comment

To help answer some questions we have been getting we decided it was time to take you on a little tour of our bus interior. I hope the photos show enough detail, feel free to post a comment if you have more questions.

We start up front with the captains chair and giant steering wheel. The air ride seat is fairly comfortable, and having the little fan actually helps quite a bit. The little handmade Bluebird is a gift from our friends in Michigan. All the gauges work except the speedometer, but I have gotten pretty good at judging our speed from the sound of the engine. Sitting right next to the engine is hot and loud, having a rear engine bus would sure be more comfortable! There is also a control panel for the old Scott Air AC setup, which is powered by a 17HP Yanmar 3 cylinder diesel. I still haven’t figured out what to do with that yet.

Next up is the box next to the front door. This was built over the wheel well as a storage area for shoes and spare parts and tools. It also allows quick access to two fire extinguishers. Across the isle there is a small bench built over the other wheel well, this is the only passenger seat available (besides the dinette).

Moving back we have the dinette, each bench has a small storage area underneath. The table was an old kitchen table we got for free. It was pretty beat up and didn’t look very nice, but after removing the side wings and some strategic sanding and staining it works out well and is very comfy to sit at. On the other side is a little bookshelf we installed to hold various supplies, and our secure bike storage area. Ratchet straps sure are useful!

We built a very simple but effective kitchen area, using a small Camp Chef propane camping stove/oven, a portable Edge Star fridge/freezer, and a foot pump sink. The stove is nice to use, and the oven works surprisingly well. Lindsey has successfully made many delicious biscuits and even a berry cobbler. We also made some amazing bus pizza while we were camping in Michigan. The little fridge works great, we are very happy with it. We have plans to add a small chest freezer converted into a fridge so we have some more food storage space. Our sink is run by a foot pump and two jerry cans, one for the drain and one for fresh water. The setup is very easy to use, and really teaches us about water conservation! When we are cooking and eating in the bus regularly we have to empty the grey water and refill the fresh at least once a day. We have separate containers for drinking water. The “faucet” is some copper pipe stuck together. It looks neat but I think we will need to come up with a more permanent solution. We also store two propane tanks under the sink, with a 10 foot hose running to the stove. Under the counter there are a couple shelves for food and cookware storage. It all works well while traveling, but I am excited to redo this area to be a little more user friendly.We want to be able to open up a more traditional cabinet and have a little more organization for the utensils. Across the aisle is another counter top and a storage shelf underneath. It is really nice to have all the counter space, especially when we start cooking up some bigger meals.

Behind the kitchen is the tiny bathroom with our dry-flush toilet. We are still coming up with some different ideas on how to build a bigger bathroom with a shower, there is a lot to learn about tiny home/RV plumbing! Across from the bathroom is my tool box. There wasn’t room for it anywhere else so we built it into the interior. Once we find a place to call home I will move the tool box outside the bus and free up that space for more storage.

In the back is the bedroom and closet area. We each have our own clothes storage, built over the rear wheel wells. The tops are built out of old pallet boards sanded down and pieced together. The plastic totes hold smaller clothing items, we put down rubber grip mats underneath so they don’t move around while driving. We attached a couple of antique cigar boxes to the tops to hold small personal things. You can also see our New Oregon Trail sign, a handmade gift from our friends in New Hampshire. The bed is built up on a tall platform to allow for lots of storage underneath. We also have our small inverter/charger under the bed, with heavy cables running through the back wall into the storage compartment where the battery bank is.

SAN FRANCISCO, CA

August 18, 2014August 20, 2014 / Lindsey&Steven / 2 Comments

We’d been looking forward to San Francisco for a very long time. We have both visited the city in the past, but never together. And this time we had some very good friends to see! The first hurdle in getting to the bay area was figuring out what to do with the bus. I ruled out SF completely. Just the thought of those hills and the density of people scared away any idea of trying to park the bus there. So we took to the Boondockers website for help and found it in Stockton! A couple weeks ahead of time (one of the most pre-planned parts of the trip), we secured a safe parking spot at a private residence a little over an hour away from the city. We looked into getting train tickets, but our friend was gracious enough to pick us up and take us back into town.

So we came to land in Trevor and Julie’s apartment on a Friday night, and as soon as we had arrived there a near-week of fun ensued. When Julie had asked me previously about what we’d like to do while in town, I replied with “Eat and drink.” By this point in the trip, Steven and I are more interested in enjoying our company than anything else. Especially now that we’ve reached the West coast, any thing that we’ve missed can easily be remedied with a couple days off work and a car to get us there quickly. I think Julie and Trevor were very glad to hear that, and we were all able to relax and go out without a plan, enjoying time spent together and whatever trouble we could stir up by the seat of our pants.

Some highlights of the weekend included lots of delicious food, both out and at home, two picnics at two different sunny parks, and rooftop shenanigans. There was a dancing robot, late night jenga, shipping container storefronts, and watermelon in my beer. And folks, that was just the weekend.

Things continued going well as my cousin Benjamin returned from out of town on Tuesday morning. It’d been too long since we’d seen him, and it was great to catch up. He’s been living in SF for a few years now and knows his way around town pretty well. While talking about Steven’s need for a haircut and the top dollar demanded from the local barbers, Ben volunteered to do the job himself since he does his own hair all the time anyway. We thought that sounded like a good deal so we made our way to his apartment. He also has a nice rooftop for hanging so we sunned ourselves before breaking out the clippers. I think he did a great job, and we ended the night at Julie and Trevor’s with homemade pizza.

All in all, SF was everything we’d hoped for and more. We hated to leave it and our friends behind but we feel good that we won’t be too far away. We ended the trip with one last meal out, then J&T drove us back out to Stockton, where our bus patiently awaited us and the journey north ahead.

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

August 11, 2014 / Lindsey&Steven / 2 Comments

After our adventures in Utah we were headed toward Southern California. Our plans had included some more camping and exploring in the deserts of Utah, but we decided to re-route and head towards the ocean after looking at the weather forecast. We have already spent enough time in hot weather in our bus without AC, so we told ourselves that we would just have to come back in the spring.

Leaving from Park City, it took twelve long hours for us to reach Riverside, where Lindsey’s Uncle and Aunt live. We rolled into their neighborhood and parked the bus on the curb a little after 11PM, exhausted and fried after driving through the desert all day. Coming into the house for a shower and air-conditioned guest room was a welcome relief.

We spent the weekend enjoying the company of family, and visiting some great breweries and restaurants in the area. It felt so nice to be back on the West Coast! Clair and Heidi were amazing hosts, and we had a great time playing with their dogs and checking out the tortoises they have in the backyard. When we told them about our plans to head down to San Diego to visit friends they quickly offered us the use of their spare car, so we wouldn’t have to find a place to park our bus in the city. We were happy to take them up on the offer! Clair had been using a repair shop close by for many years and had become friends with the owner, so we told him our story and he agreed to let us park the bus in his back lot for a couple nights while we went south.

Cruising down the highway in the old Buick we marveled at how fast we could go up hills and how easy it was to get around traffic! When you drive a giant bus everywhere you forget what driving a car is like. In no time we had reached Escondido, where we met up with Lindsey’s friend Krista. It had been a while since they had seen each other so there was a lot to catch up on. Krista took us over to the Lost Abbey, where we enjoyed a few samples of their delicious beer while we hung out in their brewery/warehouse. After getting some pizza down the street it was time to head further south, where we would meet up with Krista’s boyfriend in San Diego and spend the evening exploring the area.

While we were in the area I also wanted to visit my friend from school that is in the Navy now, and stationed at North Island out on Coronado. I called Cody up and let him know our plans to go out and visit breweries and get food and he was excited to come join in the fun. We all piled in the car and went out to Ballast Point, a popular local spot, to have a couple pints. Their most popular beer is Sculpin, a tasty IPA that isn’t too hop forward. They also do two variations on Sculpin; one with grapefruit and one with habanero. We tried the grapefruit and it’s a nice fruity addition to the already citrusy flavor. Ballast Point also offers many other great beers, as well as some nicely designed merchandise. We had to use a lot of self-restraint to keep from buying up several shirts and hats in the store. Our next stop was Urge, a trendy Gastropub with a large beer selection and fried cheese curds to die for.

The next morning while Krista and Paul were at work we wanted to meet up with another friend of ours from back home who just happened to be in San Diego on a work trip the same time we were there. We haven’t seen Ruben for a long time, and we were excited to spend the day hanging out at the beach. We picked Cody up at the base in the morning and drove up to Del Mar, where we met Ruben at his hotel. It was so nice to spend the whole day with friends from back home, relaxing on the beach and playing in the ocean. We found an interesting little bar in a lush garden area and enjoyed a slew of happy hour drinks and fresh tacos.

Sadly our time in San Diego came to an end, and we made our way back to Riverside where we picked up the bus and spent one more evening visiting with Heidi and Clair. The next morning we continued our drive north, around LA and along highway 101 up the coast. Once we got out of the city traffic the drive along the coast was so enjoyable, it is amazing to be back on our familiar Pacific ocean. We stopped in Santa Barbara for lunch at an awesome authentic taco joint, with a line down the block. We had just finished our lunch and were starting to walk through town toward the beach when I got a call from a strange phone number, with an LA area code. It turned out to be the Santa Barbra police, they had been getting complaints about where our bus was parked and asked us to move it. We were parked legally along the curb so they didn’t give us a ticket, but we were taking up a large section of the street so we were happy to move out of the way. I am just curious about how they got my phone number, as it isn’t anywhere on the bus, and it is licensed and registered in Lindsey’s name. Feels a little weird, but I guess that is what the police do. It would be a lot easier to get around in these small towns in a little VW Westfalia!

We pressed on up the coast, our stopping goal for the night was Pismo Beach. Arriving in the early evening, we drove down to the beach access road in Oceano looking for a place to camp. Of course all the state parks where filled up, and the only area available for camping was out on the sand. I really wanted to drive out on the beach, but after standing at the top of the hill and watching several other trucks with campers and RV’s get tuck in the soft sand I decided it wasn’t worth the risk. Instead we found a quiet street a few blocks from the beach to park along for the evening.

A strange coincidence occurred that night; just after we drove up and parked at the beach we got an instagram message from a guy I knew in Portland, he said he had just happened to open his curtains and look out the window as we drove by his house. He said his jaw dropped in disbelief, and he immediately sent us a message. Jay and I exchanged a couple quick messages and he came out to check out the bus. It was so awesome to see another familiar face, and none of us could believe the random chance that we decided last minute to go to Pismo and he just happened to look out the window at the right time. Jay invited us back to his house to have dinner with his family, so instead of eating leaftovers for dinner we enjoyed delicious local beer and pizza with friends. Funny how the world works sometimes.

That night we slept soundly in our big cozy bed, with the cool ocean breeze drifting in the windows. This is what bus life is all about; having the freedom to park most anywhere and have your own little home with you is a very liberating feeling.

PARK CITY, UT

August 6, 2014 / Lindsey&Steven / Leave a comment

From the great state of Colorado, we made our way to Park City, Utah in one long and uneventful drive. We left Fort Collins in the morning and drove over the plains through Wyoming and down into Utah to Steven’s sister’s house. Heidie and Trent actually live just outside Park City, where there’s a bit more breathing room. We had a good time with them and their Alaskan husky Pascha while we were there. We couldn’t get our bus up their driveway, so upon arriving they helped us find a spot to park off the road at the bottom of the hill. That led to an interesting time trying to leave, as we already mentioned. So our time there will now always be recalled at that time we got stuck in the mud. Fine with us, it all turned out well and makes a good story.

Utah offers many outdoor recreational activities, and we tried our best to take advantage of them. But to get the week started off right, we had to try the local beer. After getting settled, we went to Squatters for beers and snacks. Utah has some unique liquor laws, due to the large mormon presence. They have everything you’d want, but draft pours are only available for beers rated at a 3.2% alcohol content or lower. Any more than that, and it must be served in a bottle. The beer culture also seems to poke a bit of fun at the mormon culture with their beer names and labels. Nothing like some good sibling rivalry, I suppose. Bottle or not, the Squatters beer was great! And Steven and I tried fried pickles for the first time at the insistence of our hosts, and we loved them! We followed that up with a nice dinner at the whiskey distillery in Park City, High West.

In the morning we had to work off some of that dinner with a hike. We put the dog in the jeep (her favorite place in the world) and went into the nearby Uinta Mountains to find Shingle Creek. The weather had uncharacteristically turned cold and damp, and we hiked in a fog. The air felt great, all chilly and fresh. We all felt like we had been transported to Oregon. On the way back down, the clouds got thicker and as we neared the car, a light rain began to fall. About as soon as we had all gotten back in the car, the sky really opened up and we drove back in a downpour. Lucky timing! We stopped to get a pizza on the way home and spent a lazy rainy afternoon at the house.

When the rained stopped, we set off to explore Park City a bit more. Trent drove us up to look at the Olympic ski jumps built for the 2002 winter games. The view was great from there, and the ski jumps built into the side of a mountain looked extremely intimidating. We walked around to the pool, where some smaller jumps are set up to train young athletes for aerial jumps. After some gawking we headed into downtown to stroll Main Street. Park City is a fun resort town full of art galleries, nice restaurants and laid back bars. It’s home to the only resort with an in-town ski lift which picks you up right off of Main Street. It’s also home the the Sundance Film Festival, and fills up with celebrities and paparazzi each January. We had to stop for a drink at the No Name Saloon, the most famous bar in town. They have a rooftop patio with a nice view of the street below.

On Wednesday the storms continued, but the internet assured us it was very localized. So we decided to visit some hot springs about an hour south near Provo, Utah. On the way out we stopped down the road at the Gold Creek Creamery, an amazing place that is quickly gaining wide recognition. When we went inside, the only staff member there was the head cheese maker, and fortunately he had time in-between batches to come out and chat with us. They make all kinds of award winning cow cheeses and also have started selling butter due to popular demand. We got a quick peek into the operation before buying some cheese curds for the road.

Since we were in a Jeep, we wanted to try taking the back roads all the way to the springs and see how long it took us. We maybe got a little lost, but we made our way down some single lane dirt roads, dodging the free range cattle and finally made it to our destination. The springs are a 2.5 mile hike from the small parking lot, but they are so worth the trek. The water was beautiful, and we hiked a bit farther beyond the first pools and came to a lesser known smaller area where we found some shade. The pools in the river were constructed by hand twenty years ago, we actually met one of the guys that worked on it. It was amazing the difference in temperature between the river and the pools. I’m not so savvy with geology, so I can’t tell you how it works but I can tell you it’s incredible.

On the way back we stopped at Robert Redford’s Sundance Resort. It’s a beautiful place in the mountains where you can stay and ski in the winter or enjoy a summer evening play at the outdoor amphitheater. We had some food and drink in the Owl Bar, which sports an impressive turn of the century bar made of ornate dark wood and a large mirror. It was fun to walk around the buildings and see old photos of famous actors that have stayed at the resort.

We were due to leave the following day and do some camping down in the canyon lands, but that’s when we discovered that after all the heavy rainfall we were stuck in the mud. We scratched our heads a bit but didn’t get too discouraged since we were in good company and had a place to stay if we couldn’t leave as planned. After some unsuccessful attempts to remove our bus from the side of the road, we let it sit so the sun could dry out the ground. Finally in the afternoon, the ground was more solid and we were able to get out with the help of a good samaritan. By now it was real late to be leaving, and we were also coming to the realization that camping in the desert in our tin can, without AC, might not be so fun anyway. So we were able to get our campsite reservation refunded, and we stayed to enjoy one more night with Heidie and Trent. It turned out for the better I think, and we all sat out in the back yard with glasses of cava and watched the sun set over the valley. It was the perfect ending to an amazing visit in Utah.

HOW WE TOOK THE SUMMER OFF

August 3, 2014 / Lindsey&Steven / 6 Comments

When we decided that we were going to buy a bus, we had a lot of questions. First off was the size. How do you get around in a giant bus? How do we title and insure it? We started reading about buses online and learned quite a bit, but we needed to go look at some in person. It had been years since either of us had set foot in a school bus, and we didn’t know what to expect. We found a dealer in Tampa who carried quite a few retired school buses and went to check them out. After spending a few hours in the lot we found what we thought was the ideal setup. It was a mid 90’s Blue Bird, with a standard truck hood and Navistar 7.3 diesel. This bus was known as a half size, about 28ft long, and it had a wheelchair lift in the back. We thought the large handicap door would prove useful for getting larger items in and out, and the length seemed just right. I even felt comfortable behind the wheel, as it was so similar to other large trucks I have driven. We negotiated the asking price down to $4200 and promised to return the next weekend with cash in hand.

Unfortunately, we were too slow. The bus we had picked out was sold before we could come back with the money. We were sad, but the hunt continued. Our time was running out, the lease on our house was up at the end of May and we needed to be out. I scoured Craigslist and EBay every evening after work, bidding on a few buses only to be outbid at the last minute. Then one night after I should have been in bed I found our bus. It was listed on the Georgia craigslist, hidden deep in the lists without a proper title. I was dubious but I clicked on the link. I was greeted with the glorious sight of a classic Blue Bird; it’s quad headlights winking at me. I studied the grainy photos in the ad, and fired off an email to the seller. I crossed my fingers, and the next morning I found a reply email waiting. The seller was the football coach at the small private school in Damascus, GA, and while being an incredibly nice guy could hardly tell me anything about the bus. I arranged a meeting for the weekend, and Saturday morning Lindsey and I took off on the 6 hour drive north. We met with the coach and had a look around the bus. We were immediately surprised by the size; it looked smaller in the ad! We measured and found it was indeed a full size 40 foot bus, much more than we had anticipated using. But as we explored further we realized the white factory paint was in pretty good condition still, the interior paint was excellent, and it had the large sliding windows, that seal and latch so much better than regular school bus windows. I also discovered it had a really nice 4 cylinder Yanmar diesel factory mounted midship to run the AC system. We took it out on the little country road for a test drive, it was my first time driving a forward control vehicle like this, and it took a little leap of faith to pull out on the road. The bus was surprisingly easy to drive, and felt good going down the road.

After pulling back in to the school we summoned up the courage and agreed to buy it. The school didn’t know much about it and didn’t really know what to ask, so we tossed a few offers back and forth and finally agreed on $2,000. That’s right, we only paid $2,000 for this giant bus, which was running and driving pretty well. Lindsey and I quickly unloaded some supplies we had brought, checked the oil in the engine and transmission and topped up as necessary, cleaned the mildew off the drivers seat and steering wheel, cleaned all the mirrors and windshield, and chased away some spiders and wasps that were hanging around. We set off on our adventure home, a 6+ hour drive back to Mount Dora. Along the way I got to figure out what all the buttons and knobs did, how to open the air powered door, and of course, how the air horn sounded. It was an uneventful drive back down south with Lindsey leading the way in our Jetta. I am so happy that we found our bus, it is perfect for us. Sometimes it would be nice to have a shorter vehicle but having all the space we do can’t be beat. It is an All American body, but it has factory white paint, and doesn’t have any school bus lights on it. That combined with the interesting seating layout and large sliding windows leads me to believe this was some sort of charter bus when it was new. It makes the perfect base for a bus conversion; we absolutely love all the windows and have no plans to remove any of them.

At the time, I was working for a company that ran a couple of farms in the area (the reason we moved to FL) and my boss kindly agreed to let us park the bus on one of the properties. That is where we dropped it after bringing it down from Georgia, fortunately it was only a 5 minute drive from our house, so it was quick to get back and forth while working on it. There it sat for the next 7 weeks while we worked on stripping the old interior and building it back up. I was fortunate enough to have an understanding boss who let us do the conversion on the property, which really solved a lot of problems for us as our house had a little driveway on a tiny residential street.

One of the main questions we are asked when people hear our story is ”how do you afford it?” and when we explain that we bought the bus for so little, and didn’t spend much more on the conversion then they begin to understand. We built our interior out of mostly second hand lumber and supplies I got from work for free so that really helped cut down on the expenses. We dismantled an old horse corral which provided us with a ton of lumber, and we also collected a few pallets which we broke down into individual pieces. There was a store down the road from our house that sold overstocked building supplies, so we got our slightly beat up laminate flooring and old stainless sink from them at blowout prices. We also had a free place to park it while we worked on the project, which is a huge help.

Once we decided that we wanted to move back to Oregon we knew that we wanted to spend the summer traveling the country. We were already good about saving money, and we were (and still are) living debt free so there wasn’t anything to eat into our savings. We increased our savings in preparation for the trip, and started selling off anything we didn’t need. Furniture and household things were sold until the house was empty. Our cars and my dirt bikes got sold off to add to the savings pot. Now our only vehicle is this giant antique bus and our little dual sport. We sat down together and worked out a budget, which is mostly for fuel. We included a large allowance for brewery and restaurant visits, as that is one of the things that make us happy in life. What is the point of living if you aren’t happy? Our biggest expense is obviously fuel, our bus will get anywhere from 7 – 10 MPG depending on speed, terrain, and wind so it isn’t the most economical vehicle, but it isn’t bad for a house on wheels. While we were working out our budget I estimated that we would be driving about 10,000 miles on this trip, so we planned accordingly.

Finding free camping and parking has been another huge asset to this trip. Beyond the standard free overnight Wal-Mart parking, we have been using a couple websites to find free places to stay with great success. The first is www.boondockerswelcome.com, which is a great website that links fellow RV travelers together who offer free parking on their properties, and the other is www.harvesthosts.com, where agricultural businesses offer free parking at their farm, winery, produce store, etc. These sites have helped us stay on budget, and have introduced us to some really amazing people and places. If you are traveling by any sort of RV or bus I highly recommend checking these sites out.

I also get asked frequently about needing a special license to drive the bus, the short answer is no. If it was still a commercial vehicle I would be required by law to have a class B license but we were able to change the title in Florida to a motor home title, so anyone with a standard drivers license can operate it. It does take a lot of getting used to, remembering how much room is between the axles and how far the back hangs out. We are also able to insure it as a motor home, although it can be a struggle to find a cooperative insurance agency.

Bottom line is, if you have a crazy idea to do something like move into an old bus, it isn’t hard. There are a few difficulties to overcome but nothing worth getting worked up about. We have seen families online with 3-4 kids who still manage to live comfortably in a bus the same size as ours. If you have the motivation, saving money is pretty simple. Cutting back on expenses in order to save for a trip is easy to get the hang of. We plan on keeping our bus for a long time to come. We have big plans to remodel the interior into a more permanent living space, including a large solar array, real plumbing, and a wood burning stove. Home is where we park it!

New Oregon Trail

Taking The Long Way Home

Month: August 2014