First Trip In The Van

First Trip In The Van
The van has really come together in the last two weeks which has largely been down to Hilary, Richard's mum and her amazing sewing skills. When a couple of months back I mentioned that foam covers would have cost more than the foam itself (which isn't cheap you know) Hilary kindly volunteered to sew something together. If only she knew what she was getting herself in for! She also managed to locate me some old sheets for the covers - some red and white bedsheets and as we were measuring up she jokingly mentioned that we could make the Canadian flag with these colours. Well I thought that sounded

Van Progressing Nicely

Van Progressing Nicely
I have been back in Comox a few days now and as well as catching up with a few friends I have also made some good progress on the van. I picked up the custom foam sections I had ordered which really transforms the van into a cozy camper (I am currently writing this while sitting on the now foam covered bench in the van) and I have sorted the blinds, which I thought were going to be a lot more complicated than they were. The bench, now with foam (foam covers to follow!) I knew I would need a covering for the windows in the van to keep light out and night and to provide some privacy. After

HelpXing on Saltspring

The last three weeks have flown past and my time on Saltspring Island has been unforgettable. It has been as much of a retreat as it has been work - aided by having my own getaway cabin and gourmet food served down at the house! I have been working 3-4 hours a day on the farm 5 days a week. This has consisted of odd jobs (ranging from fixing sheep feeders to building large greenhouse walls), feeding the sheep and chickens as well as chopping, cutting and stacking wood.... a lot of wood! During my time off I have been exploring the island on foot and in the van, relaxing in the cabin and also

My two weeks in Victoria

I have been in Victoria for just under two weeks and have really enjoyed my time there. For the first 10 days I was house sitting for Richard's parents Hilary and JP when they went to Florida, my time was both productive and relaxing. I had fun working on the van and also did some work on various websites - some my own and some for others. I also did lots of running with no shortage of stunning trails and Taz the dog joined me for all but the longest of these. I managed to get a nice combination of work and play and enjoyed doing some work on the computer looking out of the window and then going

Minivan Camper Conversion – Stage One Complete!

Minivan Camper Conversion – Stage One Complete!
This last week I have been housesitting for Richard's parents in Victoria and have used the time (and access to tools) to work on the first stage of my van conversion for my road trip. As soon as I bought the van it was clear to me that the seats had to go to make room for a bed. But what kind of bed? With plenty of room I decided to aim for a bed large for one and big enough to accommodate two people. After getting some inspiration from this page I went and sat in the back of the van and tried to visualise a design... and stayed there until I had. This is the concept I came up with: Getting

Road trip plans coming together

It has been an expensive week. Amongst other things I have finally bought the van that I am planning on driving across Canada! It's a 1996 Plymouth Grand Voyager with just under 300,000km on the clock and is in surprisingly good condition for it's age/milage. This is the first car I have ever owned and to be honest buying a used car in another country was a bit daunting. Thankfully the first few vans I test drove I was helped out by my friends Richard and JR who gave me a few pointers. This time the van was 111km away in Port Alberni and I went alone. I liked the look of the van and it