Here is where we left you yesterday, remember?! Dixies walls, roof and doors were carefully painted with 2 coats of sealant and left to dry overnight. All the problem areas, the damp and dark wood you saw yesterday drank at least 3-4 coats and some of the cream metalwork on the door got a little… Continue reading Sealing the Ceiling – Day 2
After living and travelling fulltime in the van for almost 7 months now, we have begun to understand what is important for us to own and to have on hand and easily accessible to us everyday. Storage space is at a premium in here and must be considered wisely, that means we often employ a… Continue reading Sealing the Ceiling – Day 1
What is better than Pancakes on Pancake Tuesday? Vanakes on Vancake Tuesday! But what is even better again is weather mild enough to enjoy cooking outdoors. We were lucky this year, on Sandeel Beach on the Hook Peninsula, County Wexford in February the sun cooperated fully and the day was fresh and bright. William whipped… Continue reading The Unconventional Oven: Easy Campfire Bannock Recipe
We had been taking it easy for a few days, parked up safely outside number 109 in Dublin to catch our breaths, a couple of administration details needed to be ironed out and no better place to hang around than the house I grew up in. Some bureaucracy in life is unavoidable; modern humans need… Continue reading Laying low in Curracloe (or, Saving Private Dixie)
Recently, we have both been lucky enough to spend a bit of time with our families. "Going home" always means Mammies house, and whether its in Mayo or Dublin, Mammies house always means noisy kitchens, lots of great food and hours of chatting, catching up long into the night. Its been a lot of fun… Continue reading Thanks for the Tea (Thoughts After 5 Months)
We woke at sunrise in a massive and deserted carpark tucked away up high between the Mourne Mountains in County Down, Northern Ireland. Such a great free place to park up, one of our best finds yet, it had stunning views, picnic tables, bins and various signposted routes to follow through the forrest. We walked… Continue reading The Mountains of Mourne (23-01-18)
Stranger: "So how far are you going to take this thing?" Us: "We don't know...... Greece?" Unfortunately for him, W.E. (William and Elizabeth) misunderstood his question. We've had a lot of visitors to Dixie by now, and we have visited a lot of our friends at their houses, sometimes for a few hours and sometimes… Continue reading Living, Not Surviving (or, This Is Not A Test)
As W.E. (William & Elizabeth) sit on the 11:30pm ferry from Cairnryan, Scotland to Belfast in Northern Ireland, W.E. are reminiscing on our 3 amazing months wildcamping in Wales, England and Scotland, and have broken it all down for you into numbers: -90 sunrises and sunsets -82 different morning views -5000+ miles -2 minor medical… Continue reading 90 Days Across The Irish Sea
There were originally grand plans of updating this blog with every place we stayed, that would be very difficult as we often stay out of telephone and internet signals way, but we do update almost daily on Facebook, if you'd like to "like" and "follow". https://www.facebook.com/TheBackwardsVan/ Thank you to everyone reading our blog and for… Continue reading Follow us on Facebook!
Rolling into a new town / field / site/ situation every day takes a certain amount of planning. We (William & Elizabeth) need to identify an area to park which meets our needs; Dixie prefers a flat surface (no falling out of bed thanks), on public land, a safe, quiet spot preferably not near a… Continue reading Home is where we park it
the backwards van 