August 2022
| Su | M | T | W | Th | F | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 | 8/1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
| 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 |
| 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 |
| 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 |
| 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 9/1 | 2 | 3 |
| 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
TL;DR
- Met new people in the nomad community – my first new connections
- Camped off-grid for the first time in the lush Pacific Northwest
- Made it to Seattle!
- Curated my new Photography Portfolio
- Met up with some friends in Seattle
Locations
- Just outside Glacier National Park, Montana
- Missoula, Montana
- Leavenworth, Washington
- Beckler River, Washington
- Seattle, Washington
An Incredibly Social Morning
Phil and Lynn
After briefly meeting Phil and Lynn (a couple in their 60s from England camping in their incredible self-built overlanding truck on their way to drive the Pan-American Highway) rolling into camp on Saturday evening (from Life Update August 7th, 2022), we got to chatting Sunday morning.
This was their first time in the states and they were headed northwest to Alaska to start their Pan-American Highway trip. Phil built the entire box of their overlanding truck. It looked professionally-built.
We chatted about ours and their lives and traveling. I felt incredibly inspired by just how happy and positive they were. Life looked differently from their perspective, surrounded by friends they haven’t met yet, challenges to overcome, and new perspectives to learn from.
Check them out at https://www.ourworldtraveller.com/
Emily and Mike
As we were chatting with Phil and Lynn, Troubadour was out playing with on the beach with another dog. The owners, Emily and Mike, came over, who we also met and started chatting with.
They’re from New Jersey and had been on the road 6 months with their mini-suv (packed with stuff) exploring and camping in their tent on weekends and working remotely from Airbnbs during the week.
I had a great time chatting with them, connecting, and sharing stories. I couldn’t help but feel inspired by them taking action and getting out on the road despite what might be considered “imperfect” conditions.
- No fancy van or RV – just a packed car
- No long savings runway – they were still working full-time
- No small trip – from the east coast on the road for 6 months
And yet, they were out there, exploring new places and taking in new perspectives.
Audrey and Andrew
After Emily and Mike took off, Audrey came over to say hi. We started chatting with her and her partner Andrew. They were from southern California camping out of their converted van. We gave each other van tours, chatted about security, surfing, and life in the van.
Their more minimal setup in the van also contributed to this message I took home of: just getting out there and exploring. People out here on the road appear to lean more towards taking action, which I like.
Heading out
After hours and hours of chatting with seemingly everyone on the shore, we finally headed out.
This was the first time I really met and chatted with anyone else in this nomad community and it was quite refreshing to know that genuine people are out there.
I dropped Colleen off at her car and she headed out. I stopped for some (incredible) tacos and ice cream at the West Glacier Village before doing the same.
Back to Missoula
I stopped back in Missoula for a coffee shop morning to recoup my thoughts and to pick up a package before heading west towards Washington.
Leavenworth, WA
Okay how did I not know this place existed? This did NOT feel like I was in the U.S.
It’s a Bavarian-style (read: German-style; had to look that up 😅) touristy small town in the middle of Washington state.
I stopped for a quick walk around and ice cream. Totally worth.
Camping in the Pacific Northwest
Back off-grid (almost; I had a teeny bit of signal) for a couple days, something I wanted very much. I camped along Beckler River in the Cascades.
There’s something I just can’t quite pinpoint about the Pacific Northwest that I just love. It’s some combination of the greenery and feeling like you’re being hugged by the lush forest.
I stopped to recharge my (mental) batteries (and apparently discharge my electrical batteries because of the thick tree coverage, oof, worth it though)
I spent the evening + next day + next morning:
- Dipping my feet in the cold stream
- Catching up on sleep
- Reading
- The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey
- Journaling and attempting to update my website on the minimal cell signal I had
- But successfully using my new chair and table
The Workstation
Frankly if this isn’t the life – working by a stream in the middle of the forest powering my laptop from solar (not pictured) – I’m not sure what is 🤷♂️
Journal Tidbits
Instagram: As I was driving, I thought through a plan to get myself off of Instagram, which I shared more about here in The Last Straw Holding Me On Instagram.
Gratitude: I wrote down some things I was feeling grateful for in the moment: nature, the sound of the stream, my van, the previous van owner, the internet, my past self.
Time: Lately I’ve felt like I’ve been spending my time how I want to and doing everything because I want to. I don’t really think I’ve been doing any things that I don’t want to do. I feel very fortunate to have this opportunity. It sounds very simple but it feels like a good realization/sign for me.
Seattle!
I made it to Seattle! The last time I was here was the summer of 2019 and wow, if 2019-Peter only knew the journey he’d take before making it back here…
New Photography Portfolio
Spent an absolutely stellar workday (and a half) grinding out my new photography portfolio page on my website. Man, I feel proud of what I’ve created over the years.
Check it out at Photography Portfolio.
Shoutout to Zoka Coffee in Green Lake and Victrola Coffee for the fuel and vibes.
Dinner at Thai Siam
A splurge, but so delicious
Long Walks On The Beach
Checked out Golden Gardens Park and took a nice long sunset walk on the beach. Stunning!
An Evening With Some New Faces
I met up with Courtney (and Nic) and some of their friends here in Seattle. We went to the same high school and ended up working at the same company… Small world!
We grabbed dinner at Rocket Taco – delicious!
Nic made an absolutely stellar 2-tiered Mousse Cake
A Night Not In The Van
Big shoutout to Courtney and Nic for being persistent on offering up their couch – it was incredibly comfortable.
And that’s where I finished out Saturday.