That day I rode just shy of 100 miles round trip and it was beautiful. I found an old highway that had been abandoned years ago, an epic view point, and even a few Pronghorn Antelope.

If you’d like to check out some of the photos I took during this little weekend adventure be sure and swing by my Google Plus page. 

Photo Gallery!

Equipment Used

• Sony NEX F3
• GoPro Hero3 Silver
• Gorillapod Flexible Tripod
• Fly Racing Patrol Men’s Motorcycle Jacket

The post Millican Oregon Desert Ride appeared first on Vagabond Guide.

I’m tryin’ to start to do just what you do…living a minimalist lifestyle and start to travel on a minimalist budget…staying in hostels, carrying my stuff etc.

I’d love to see a list of the sorts of clothing you pack, how you deal with food and stuff.

I don’t see a recent post…I hope all is well!

As I said earlier this email got me thinking. You all know that I LOVE travel. The problem has been that since I’ve gotten back from Japan I haven’t been able to travel much. I made a few short trips including a trip to San Diego, CA but I still crave travel on a daily basis.

First Sharon, let me just say that ditching most of my stuff and booking a ticket to Thailand was probably one of the best choices I’ve made in my life. The feeling I got from having very few belongings and very few obligations was awesome. Seeing a totally new place that was so backwards from what I was used to seeing was inspiring. Staying in hostels, eating street food, and meeting awesome people was like nothing else.

Second, I haven’t done a pack list in a while but my old pack list still stands pretty true. There are few things that I would change about and I’ll list them below. As for dealing with food, at least in Thailand was simple. Street food, street food, and more street food. The cost of eating out is so low that you can eat on just a handful of dollars.

When it comes to packing less is more. The lighter you go, the better off you’ll be. I started out pretty heavy and ended up either giving away some things or sending stuff home. I originally brought my DSLR camera and a small tripod. This was a mistake. I’ve since went to a Sony NEX F3 and love it. The quality of photos isn’t as good as the DSLR but they are a hell of a lot better than an iPhone or cheap point and shoot.

Before I left I let friends and family infect my brain with the thought of malaria and to be honest, it worried me. Once I got to Bangkok I found a pharmacy and picked up some medication. This was not necessary. I can’t remember the name of the stuff I got but it messed with my head. Once I talked to a few other travelers my worries were squelched and I stopped the medication and things got MUCH better.

Something else to think about is the amount of time you spend there. ALWAYS budget for more time than you think you’ll need. When my time came I wasn’t ready to come home. I had spent much less money than I had originally thought I would which meant I could have spent more time there. I DID NOT WANT TO LEAVE! But, my visa was up and my ticket was non-refundable. To date, that is the biggest mistake I made with my whole trip.

MY LIFE NOW

My life now has changed significantly. I’m not an extreme minimalist like I once was. I’ve bought a vehicle, got a “regular” job, and even managed to find myself a partner in crime. Going from having WAY too much stuff and excess of everything to extreme carry-everything-on-your-back minimalist, I’ve finally found a nice balance. I know what I NEED to get by and I know what I DON’T need. The term “everything in moderation” comes to mind when I think about my life now.

My advice for anyone thinking about trying this lifestyle is try it. I won’t hurt anything and you will more than likely learn a lot about yourself and who you are. Stuff is just that, stuff. It can be acquired again. Minimalism and travel changed my life in a way I never thought possible. I wouldn’t trade my experiences for the world. If I could, I may go back and change a few things but that’s questionable. If things were different I wouldn’t be where I am today and I wouldn’t be with the person I’m with and I don’t want to change that.

Hopefully I answered most of your questions Sharon. I know I kind of skipped out on the pack list question but I’m not sure it would be relevant. Just remember, less is more and you can always follow the BIT rule.

B.I.T. =  Buy It There

I hope you figure out what you’re doing and if you do end up travelling, LET ME KNOW! I’d love to hear about your travels and adventures.

Cheers!

The post Traveling to Thailand? | Reader Question appeared first on Vagabond Guide.

Over the last year I haven’t done much traveling. While travel is a huge part of my life and I crave it every day, not traveling much over the last year isn’t a bad thing. I took a quick trip to San Diego for some business which turned out to be tons of fun! I really enjoyed San Diego and would love to go back and spend some more time there.

I’ll admit I let my minimalism slip a bit and bought a motorcycle. What can I say, I’m a sucker for two wheels. If I can’t travel at the moment at least I can ride…right?! This summer I’ll be going through some more of my stuff and probably ditching some of it. I feel like I’m starting to collect too much crap again.

I met, well…re-met someone special and am now in a happy, fun, exciting, etc, etc relationship and I couldn’t be happier about that. We have plans of moving to an area that is more in line with our lifestyle and have hopes of one day soon taking more trips to amazing places.

Traveling solo is great and I loved it but I continually found myself trying to share my experiences with some close friends back home and it just wasn’t the same. For me, having someone there whom you care about and what to share your life with makes the experience much richer.

We’ve also started a small online business. We hope to supplement our income and build our travel fund. Amanda is into unique alternative jewelry and as many of you know, I can build websites. One night we were hanging around and had a few drinks when the idea came up to build a site and sell this stuff she knew so much about. That’s when Urban Roo LLC was born. Before too long we had a store up and running selling plugs, tunnels, tapers, etc. We launched the site January 1^st 2013 and have been ramping up since.

The last big landmark for 2012 is my creation of my YouTube Vlog. I do my best to make a new video every day. I film everything from going to the store, having a few drinks at the pub, and running our business. I also post various other videos I make. I find it helps keep my video editing skills sharp as it’s become a hobby of mine.

Check it out on YouTube!

 2013 might not be filled with travel to other countries but you can bet we’ll be taking closer trips to cool new spots around the Pacific Northwest. Give me a subscribe on YouTube if you’d be so kind. It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside!

The post Late 2012 Review appeared first on Vagabond Guide.

My first thoughts when pulling the Hoo-Rag out of the package was that it was simply just a piece cloth that had been put together to make a tube. My initial inspection was that the cloth was very thin (almost see though) and the edges were starting to fray since they weren’t hemmed. The cloth however was very stretchy and quite soft. It felt nice against your skin.

I first wanted to get a females take on the Hoo-Rag so I gave it to my special lady to try out for a day. She tried to wear it in different setups but was just having a hard time making it work. She has short hair and it would appear that some of the ways you can wear the Hoo-Rag were really meant for girls with longer hair. She gave up quickly but that’s pretty standard.

After spending a day with the Hoo-Rag I decided to take it for a spin. As I said earlier the material it’s made of feels very nice on your skin. I’m not a small guy and have a big head so some of the ways they suggest you wear the Hoo-Rag just didn’t work for me. For example, the balaclava setup ended up choking me which in turn caused me to pass out, fall out of my chair, and smack my head on my desk. Ok, so that’s not true but that’s what I thought might happen. I did however try other styles. The neck scarf thing works out well along with the over the nose I’m going to rob a bank look. Anyway, you can see what tried below.

The Neck Thing – Hoo-Rag

The Bank Robber – Hoo-Rag

The Survivorman – Hoo-Rag

The Old Russian Woman – Hoo-Rag

As I sit here and write this post I have the Hoo-Rag around my neck and I’ve actually forgot it was there several times. It’s very comfortable now that I’ve gotten used it and over the coming days I’ll continue to try it out. This versitile piece of cloth can be used in many situations. For me, I personally would probably only wear it two or three ways but I can see how it would work nicely while traveling. The Hoo-Rag has much more functionality than a standard hankerchief and in my opinion is much more styleish. My main concerns for the Hoo-Rag is the seam breaking and the edges fraying to a point where it’s not usable.

I like to get serveral years out of the stuff I buy and I’m not sure how this product would hold up to constant use. That being said, I can see many benefits of the Hoo-Rag while on the road. It’s very light weight, packs into a small space, and has multiple uses. That meets the requirments for me to even consider making room in travel backpack

The post The Hoo-Rag | Product Review appeared first on Vagabond Guide.

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