PRVCA Explore Magazine PRVCA Explore PA 2020 | Page 27

V a a n n L # # V L i i f f e e © Nikky Love, @niikkylove Bachows ki, @ourv anquest Van lifers also still need to earn a living while they’re on the road searching for the next adventure. Jake Bachowski works as a sales representative and Gianna works in online marketing. Jacobs still does legal work along with earning money through social media and investment properties. “You really can’t hide in a 26-foot RV,” said Amanda Keshner, a 27-year-old who had been traveling in a class-C motorhome before trading it for a van in September of 2018. “I like the ‘stealthiness’ because it looked like a work truck.” As the amount of people living in vans and their social media presence increases, so too does the community aspect of the subculture. Travelers camping on Bureau of Land Management public land routinely post their global positioning coordinates on van life applications for other nomads to find, only to have a group of two dozen or more eventu- ally arrive. Love recalls a road trip to Colorado that grew into a circle of over 30 van owners cooking, interacting and bonding for a couple of days. Through their new compatriots, the Fosseys have explored rock climbing, sailing and crab fishing. “We’ve met so many people with opportunities that we wouldn’t have been able to do otherwise,” said Jessica Fossey. www.prvca.org The van dweller lifestyle is occasion- ally glamourized on social media, with high resolution photographs of glossy adventures. Jacobs’ Instagram page, Vacayvans, currently has 48,000 followers and a page for the Vanlife App which Love works for is followed by 66,000 people. Although the lifestyle looks carefree and simple, many full-time travelers are quick to point out its not simply a life of leisure. For people who like having their material possessions as well as a comfortable bathroom space, van living may not be the best option for them. With many vehicles coming with smaller water tanks, many travelers belong to gymnasiums and health clubs strictly for showering facilities. Also, bathroom breaks need to be planned out if a vehicle either isn’t equipped with a bathroom or travelers don’t want to be frequently looking for places to dump waste water. “Every step we made had to be © Nikky Love, @niikkylove thought out,” Love said. Van lifers also still need to earn a living while they’re on the road searching for the next adventure. Jake Bachowski works as a sales representative and Gianna works in online marketing. Jacobs still does legal work along with earning money through social media and investment properties. There’s also the reduction of living space, something Jacobs wrapped her head around by taping off the van’s 60-square feet dimensions in her liv- ing room and simply sitting in it. “You just have to have a completely new connection to stuff,” she said. EXPLORE Pennsylvania 2020 | 27