Meet the Travelers

Hailing from small towns on the West Coast of the U.S., Brian (Marysville, CA) and Andi (Ashland, OR) were both exposed to the excitement of travel at early ages. As adults they continued taking advantage of opportunities to see different places, primarily overseas. Their paths crossed in Seattle, WA where they were married in January, 2000.

Together they enjoyed camping, cycling and music making, but they also had a desire to visit some of the many enticing US destinations they had never seen. Yellowstone, Key West, Mesa Verde, Cooperstown and a hundred other places beckoned them irresistibly. Having known people whose hopes and plans had fallen by the wayside through no fault of their own, Brian and Andi decided to take the plunge and pursue their dream.

In many ways they had already been preparing for such an adventure. They had purchased a 1974 VW passenger bus and immediately exchanged the rear seats for a fold-out bed and two-door storage cabinet. (The bus acquired the name Herb in homage to Northwest photographer and outdoorsman, Herb Crisler.) Camping had equipped them with a useful assortment of lanterns, stoves, nylon bags and even a porta-potty. What remained to be done were some further modifications to the interior of the bus. In many a Seattle coffee shop they sketched and refined plans for a combination clothes closet, storage shelf and bookcase for the rear of the vehicle, plus another unit next to the side door for water, stove, kitchen supplies and toiletries. With a "measure twice, cut once" approach, they constructed these pieces primarily from salvage lumber in the second bedroom of their apartment.

The apartment also sprouted a U.S. map on the living room wall, and on it they began marking all the places that piqued their curiosity. By connecting the dots, a general route began to emerge in the form of a wavy circle around the outer states. They decided to drive clockwise from the West, following the seasons for about a year. Summer would be in the North for cooler temperatures and New England foliage would be enjoyed in the fall. As the mercury in the thermometer dropped, so would they - all the way to Key West in the winter. Then they would travel along the southern states and explore the Southwest in springtime. By the summer of 2003 they plan to be in California for a class reunion in Marysville.

All that remained was to train replacements at the jobs from which they had resigned, store away 99 percent of their possessions, make sure the cats had rabies shots, outfit Herb with a top carrier and awning, prepare the electronic gizmos for Internet on the road, learn to live in a five- by fourteen-foot space, and send out invitations for a bon voyage bash in Ashland!