Freedom in a Can: Adventures with Hamlet

Over the past 12 years of off-grid living, we’ve encountered some significant weather extremes during our travels across the continent.  Believe it or not, we’re writing this blog during an ice storm that has knocked out grid power all over the High Country of North Carolina, so our timing could not be more poignant!  While our system has been fine, we’ve needed to rely on just about every trick we have to stay powered up in the cold. Last winter, North America saw some pretty weird weather; snow on the ground for days in New Orleans, Louisiana, icy blizzards across the mid-Atlantic states.  As severe storms become stronger and more difficult to predict, the obvious questions arise:  Will the solar panels keep up, will the batteries get too cold, what if the system goes down?   With just a few strategies and the right equipment, you can be prepared for whatever Mother Nature throws at you.  Winter’s Impact on Solar Systems Solar powered systems don't really...

Since we’ve been traveling in our solar powered vintage camper full-time since the fall of 2012, we’ve chosen a different region in which to basecamp each winter. We typically try to stay in warmer climates so we can spend more time outside. Some winters we’ve enjoyed the California coast, others we’ve explored the deserts of the southwest, and we spent one holiday season on the beach of Padre Island National Seashore in Texas. Even with our attempts to avoid cold temperatures, we’ve always encountered some unexpected winter weather events along the way – the southwestern deserts in 2019, the two-week Texas “deep freeze” in 2021, and this past winter we were hit with snowstorms, ice storms, and several weeks of below freezing temps in the southeast!  Being able to roll with these changes is part of living life on the road, but it can be hard on both you and your deep cycle batteries.   We first learned this lesson the hard way a couple of years ago when we woke up to 6 in...

Don’t have much space on your RV roof for solar, but have big power needs? It’s not about how many solar panels you can fit up top, it’s about building in flexibility to charge up your off-grid batteries in multiple ways.  We’ve lived with nearly 100% off-grid power as we’ve traveled full-time for over 13 years in our vintage camper – from California to Newfoundland and Alaska to Florida!  It’s a wonderful life where we can live, work, and play, from anywhere we want to be.  We’ve traveled throughout all 49 US states connected by road and, as of this summer, we finally made it to our final Canadian province (Newfoundland & Labrador) to which you can tow your home on wheels.  Sixty-one states, provinces, and territories in total, all in a 1957 solar powered travel trailer.  Follow us on social media to join in the fun…we aren’t stopping anytime yet! Here are the 3 ways we keep our off-grid batteries charged up: Solar Power (while camping / driving) Engine ...

A Canadian Thanksgiving Worth Remembering... Let's start this one off with a big "Thank You" for being here, for opening this email and simply giving us a chance to share our story.  Your responses and comments are heartwarming and we love it when something we say sparks an idea or inspiration!  So keep on writing us back, we love hearing from you... This newsletter now goes out to nearly 2000 people "almost" every month and we know that over half of you read it regularly.  We started this newsletter just a few years ago and we're excited to see it grow beyond our wildest dreams.  Please share it with someone you think might enjoy it too! This holiday is so important, we just have to celebrate it...twice!  Camping along the shores of the Bay of Fundy in Nova Scotia, we're getting into the Canadian version, taking stock of our good fortune and looking back with gratitude.  We'll be only too happy to do it again next month in more familiar surrounding...