Hourless Life: Documenting Our Global Overland Adventure

[jpmatchbox]

Have you decided on what stove to bring for your travels? I have heard conflicting messages on the availability of propane. Seems like along the pan american bottles can be refilled at any major city. But for other more remote places it seems like it would be more difficult and there is the questionable legality of having it (even empty) in a shipping container.

 

[Hourless Life]

Have you decided on what stove to bring for your travels? I have heard conflicting messages on the availability of propane. Seems like along the pan american bottles can be refilled at any major city. But for other more remote places it seems like it would be more difficult and there is the questionable legality of having it (even empty) in a shipping container.

That's a great question @jpmatchbox . So you are correct...kind of. It isn't that propane itself isn't available, it is that many countries have proprietary fittings that allow the bottles to attach to existing equipment and for refilling. Our friend Dan Grec of The Road Chose Me told us a story about a French couple he was helping who were looking for an attachment so that they could use their propane in Argentina that took them TWO WEEKS to find!? WTH?

With that said, we've been exploring multi-fuel stoves. We've looked at the MSR Whisperlite International as well as the MSR XGK. However, after doing even more research we just picked up an Optimus Polaris optifuel stove. It has great reviews and to be honest we haven't tried it yet. So we're not sure we're taking it just yet, but we'll at least give this one a go. ~ Eric

 

[Hourless Life]

Finally some photos of our build in progress! Let me know if you have any questions. ~ Eric


Uncrating the Alu-Cab Canopy Camper


After the fitment kit was installed, the top of the Canopy Camper was married to the bottom.


This is our son Caspian a.k.a. "Little Nomad" who has been a full-time traveler since birth waiting more patiently than us on the build.


The 13 gallon Alu-Cab water tank was installed.


This is our Webasto high-altitude gas heater. No we aren't installing it sideways. We were just looking at size and placement in this image.


This is the Goose Gear Solo fridge slide on top of our Goose Gear 60% high seat delete. The passenger side rear door had to be modified to open a little wider, but it works!


The fridge mounted onto the slide.


As seen from the driver's side of the vehicle.


This is an 80 Watt solar panel that utilizes the empty real estate on the hood. It is called the VSS by Cascadia 4x4.


And this last photo is just an in progress photo looking into the back of the unit. Notice that our main entry door has been flipped. We wanted it to open from right to left. It will all make much more sense when we do a full walk around video after the build is complete.

~ Eric

 

[Hourless Life]

We are wrapping up the build process at the first of four shops today. It feels surreal to take our global build out of the shop, When we brought it to Juniper Overland on June 7th, it was bone stock. It has completely transformed and it isn't even remotely close to being done. But today we get to drive it out of the shop for the first time.

Pretty much everything went well overall. Of course there is no build process without a few hiccups. Some of the Rigid Industries lights we were waiting on and hardware didn't come in. But they are forwarding the ones we missed here to our fourth shop in Austin. Eventually that will be taken care of. The COTEK Inverter that we purchased needs a special R12 data cord in order to be connected to the RedVision system. We don't have that cord and we're having a difficult time sourcing it. The team at RedArc is working on a solution for us as is Juniper. I'm sure we'll get that resolved. I will update when we do.

In better news, the vast majority of what needed to happen here at Juniper is done, and done extremely well. We even have a few extra things we did not expect that will help us on our journey.

What I really appreciated the most about Juniper was their attention to detail, and the understanding when we asked them to find a solution to things that we weren't sure if there was a solution.

We haven't got the bill yet though... not gonna lie... a little nervous.

I'll get it here in a few moments before I get the keys. ~ E

 

[Hourless Life]

Update:

We got the bill from Juniper Overland, and they were very gracious to us in their sponsorship, but suffice it to say we still paid 5 figures before they'd hand us the keys. ?But it is all good, after all this is our home. So we expected that the price tag would reflect that. Needless to say, after they gave me CPR on the floor, they picked me up and handed me the keys and we were off.

We took the Gladiator "DAUNTLESS" back to my brother-in-law's place and began the process of moving things over from "GUARDIAN" our Jeep Wrangler over to our new home.

It is amazing how much more space we have to work with. This build is really coming together. We aren't fully done just yet. We actually drove up to Frisco, CO for the week where we are enjoying a family reunion with Brittany's side of the family.

I'll have to drive back into Denver to get the R12 data cord installed sometime this coming week. While there, I also hope to stop by the decal shop doing our branding on our rig and get that done.

All that to say, we still have a busy week, but it will be punctuated with love from family and final touches. On June 25th we begin making our way down to Tucson for the second shop in our build.

Any questions, don't hesitate to ask. This is quite an experience. ~ Eric

 

[beanmachine]

I'm tuned in and looking forward to hearing more. We are about 2ish years behind what you are doing and just in the planning stages. Finding it awfully difficult to fit all we want into the small size of a Jeep, but really wanting to experience what a smaller vehicle allows.

Sent from my SM-G781U1 using Tapatalk

 

[Hourless Life]

I'm tuned in and looking forward to hearing more. We are about 2ish years behind what you are doing and just in the planning stages. Finding it awfully difficult to fit all we want into the small size of a Jeep, but really wanting to experience what a smaller vehicle allows.

Sent from my SM-G781U1 using Tapatalk

Awesome @beanmachine let us know if we can be a resource for you as you plan things out. Are you going with a Gladiator as well?

Any Jeep as a platform for overlanding has challenges which must be overcome to make it functional and sustainable. Primarily there are three limitations.

1. Payload Capacity (Protip: Not all Jeeps are created equal. Make sure you do your homework here and go for the highest payload trim you can get on whatever model Jeep you are looking at.)

2. Cargo Space (Protip: Stop buying camping gear and start buying backpacking gear. Yes, it is more expensive but it is also lighter, has a smaller footprint, and is usually much more durable. Figure it this way, if people can carry it on their backs up a mountain and survive, your Jeep can definitely carry it.)

3. Gas Mileage (Protip: If you are staying in North America don't go crazy on the Rotopax or other external fuel tanks. There are very few places in North America that you won't be able to refill on a single stock tank. Yeah they look cool and give you that "overlander" look, but let's be real. They cost money, take up space, add weight, and generally aren't used regularly. My advice is go for the practical, not the visual. Having said that, you should at least have one external fuel canister of some sort and keep it empty until you know you are going to possibly need it.)

But other than those three things, the Jeep is a fantastic platform. If we can be of any assistance, like I said earlier, don't hesitate to ask. ~ Eric

 

[Hourless Life]

Here's our next update. We're still in Frisco, CO wrapping up our family reunion.

Yesterday I drove back into Denver, and got a few things done:
1. Picked up the inverter cable that connects to our RedVision system and got that installed.
2. Picked up my package from 67 designs for mounting our electronics on the dash and got that installed.
3. Got a car cover put on GUARDIAN (our North American overland Jeep Wrangler build)
4. Picked up a potable water hose and some inline filters.
5. Got our Hourless Life decals and branding put on DAUNTLESS.
6. Stopped by a hardware store and picked up a few Dewalt Screwdrivers I needed.

All this stuff is pretty boring to most I'm sure, but it's these little things that make the big dream possible.

Tomorrow we head back down to Denver to pack the last remaining things we have, then we say goodbye to family and on Friday morning we start making our way towards Tucson, AZ the second shop in our Jeep Gladiator build, Sonoran Expedition Collective.

On the way we'll stop in Albuquerque to have a friend who is a really experienced overland build person take a look at what we've done so far and give us some feedback. (He's an award winning builder and a very private individual so I won't be mentioning his name or his shop.)

Also I wrapped up our Goose Gear interior storage system video which goes live tomorrow (Thursday) and I've started outlining our electrical system video which hopefully will go up a week from tomorrow.

I think that's it for now. More to come. As always, any questions let us know. ~ Eric

A lot of folks have been stopping us in parking lots, asking a ton of questions. It is awesome to see how many people are interested in this lifestyle. We love meeting people and sharing our love for overlanding with them so it's always fun to meet people with similar passions.

 

[pkripper]

Here's our next update. We're still in Frisco, CO wrapping up our family reunion.

Yesterday I drove back into Denver, and got a few things done:
1. Picked up the inverter cable that connects to our RedVision system and got that installed.
2. Picked up my package from 67 designs for mounting our electronics on the dash and got that installed.
3. Got a car cover put on GUARDIAN (our North American overland Jeep Wrangler build)
4. Picked up a potable water hose and some inline filters.
5. Got our Hourless Life decals and branding put on DAUNTLESS.
6. Stopped by a hardware store and picked up a few Dewalt Screwdrivers I needed.

All this stuff is pretty boring to most I'm sure, but it's these little things that make the big dream possible.

Tomorrow we head back down to Denver to pack the last remaining things we have, then we say goodbye to family and on Friday morning we start making our way towards Tucson, AZ the second shop in our Jeep Gladiator build, Sonoran Expedition Collective.

On the way we'll stop in Albuquerque to have a friend who is a really experienced overland build person take a look at what we've done so far and give us some feedback. (He's an award winning builder and a very private individual so I won't be mentioning his name or his shop.)

Also I wrapped up our Goose Gear interior storage system video which goes live tomorrow (Thursday) and I've started outlining our electrical system video which hopefully will go up a week from tomorrow.

I think that's it for now. More to come. As always, any questions let us know. ~ Eric

A lot of folks have been stopping us in parking lots, asking a ton of questions. It is awesome to see how many people are interested in this lifestyle. We love meeting people and sharing our love for overlanding with them so it's always fun to meet people with similar passions.

Have you decided what suspension you are going to run on the global and what do you run on the North American unit?

 

[Hourless Life]

Have you decided what suspension you are going to run on the global and what do you run on the North American unit?

The easy one to answer is our North American build. We have a Stage 1 Rock Krawler 2.5" lift, TeraFlex Outback coil springs front and rear, and TeraFlex Falcon 3.3 shocks on GUARDIAN.

The more difficult one to answer is DAUNTLESS our global build. To be honest we aren't sure yet. We know we want to do suspension essentially last after we've fully loaded it with everything including water, food, fuel, our gear, and ourselves. Then we'll get exact weights based on the actual load out and we want to base our suspension on the actual load out.

Having said that, there don't seem to be a lot of options for the Gladiator (at least not by comparison to the Wrangler) so we're still scratching our heads a little bit, and definitely open to suggestions. We're also thinking airbags in the rear.

Make sense? Got any ideas? ~ Eric

 

[beanmachine314]

Awesome @beanmachine let us know if we can be a resource for you as you plan things out. Are you going with a Gladiator as well?

Any Jeep as a platform for overlanding has challenges which must be overcome to make it functional and sustainable. Primarily there are three limitations.

1. Payload Capacity (Protip: Not all Jeeps are created equal. Make sure you do your homework here and go for the highest payload trim you can get on whatever model Jeep you are looking at.)

2. Cargo Space (Protip: Stop buying camping gear and start buying backpacking gear. Yes, it is more expensive but it is also lighter, has a smaller footprint, and is usually much more durable. Figure it this way, if people can carry it on their backs up a mountain and survive, your Jeep can definitely carry it.)

3. Gas Mileage (Protip: If you are staying in North America don't go crazy on the Rotopax or other external fuel tanks. There are very few places in North America that you won't be able to refill on a single stock tank. Yeah they look cool and give you that "overlander" look, but let's be real. They cost money, take up space, add weight, and generally aren't used regularly. My advice is go for the practical, not the visual. Having said that, you should at least have one external fuel canister of some sort and keep it empty until you know you are going to possibly need it.)

But other than those three things, the Jeep is a fantastic platform. If we can be of any assistance, like I said earlier, don't hesitate to ask. ~ Eric

Likely no Jeep for us as the payload just isn't there. Just in water and fuel we'll be halfway to max weight and we're looking for something that we can have a bit more interior space as we'll both need to work as needed. Currently torn between trying to fit in something van sized or just deal with the issues of having a bigger truck so we can have more amenities. Whatever we do will have the ability to have at least a makeshift bathroom and that sort of kills the whole lightweight thing. I applaud you on being able to stay under/close to GVWR though as that has to be tough.

 

[Hourless Life]

Likely no Jeep for us as the payload just isn't there. Just in water and fuel we'll be halfway to max weight and we're looking for something that we can have a bit more interior space as we'll both need to work as needed. Currently torn between trying to fit in something van sized or just deal with the issues of having a bigger truck so we can have more amenities. Whatever we do will have the ability to have at least a makeshift bathroom and that sort of kills the whole lightweight thing. I applaud you on being able to stay under/close to GVWR though as that has to be tough.

Everything is a trade off in this lifestyle right? For us there were 7 factors that influenced our decision. @BrittanyHighland wrote an article about how we ended up with our decision. It's a solid take on considerations that might be helpful to your family.

The Vehicle We're Taking Around The World

~ Eric

 

[beanmachine314]

Everything is a trade off in this lifestyle right? For us there were 7 factors that influenced our decision. @BrittanyHighland wrote an article about how we ended up with our decision. It's a solid take on considerations that might be helpful to your family.

The Vehicle We're Taking Around The World

~ Eric

It is actually this article that led me towards trying to find something smaller as we had pretty much settled on something like a Mercedes truck but, like you guys, really want to get into the cities and experience that. We're currently discussing if we want to make that trade off for a few more lifestyle comforts.

 

[Hourless Life]

It is actually this article that led me towards trying to find something smaller as we had pretty much settled on something like a Mercedes truck but, like you guys, really want to get into the cities and experience that. We're currently discussing if we want to make that trade off for a few more lifestyle comforts.

You know, it really is a personal preference and goal focused type decision.

For us, we looked at everything from Unimog builds to EarthRomers and other large trucks, to the small platform vehicles. Ultimately what really helped make our decision for us was our travels into Mexico in 2019 and 2020. We learned a lot about ourselves and how we like to travel. We love going deep into the heart of cities and parking next to the main plaza and exploring the area on foot. We saw many larger overlanding vehicles who could never have gone where we did. We even saw some larger passenger style vehicles that struggled through the narrow cobblestone streets lined with cyclists and pedestrians. For us the Jeep is the right platform. It is the right combination of small enough to visit the areas we want to visit, park where we want to park, off road capable enough to get us to places where many in sprinter vans can't go, and small enough to fit inside a container ship for transoceanic shipping. So it works for what we want to do as a family of three.

However, like I said, it is always a trade off. We envy our friends who have more space, larger tanks, and more creature comforts, and we let them know when we run across them. They envy our nimbleness and speed, and the fact that we don't have to carry a deadmans stick to raise up power wires to be able to get underneath.

Ultimately your platform is arguably the most important decision you'll make when it comes to your build. Take your time with it. If you can, make a quick one month trip into interior Mexico. See how you like it, and HOW your family likes to travel internationally. Decide how far you plan to go. Just Mexico? Central America? South America? Overseas? That will help inform your decision on platform. Hope that helps. ~ E

 

[Hourless Life]

Our journey in our new build "DAUNTLESS" has begun. This image was of our very first night in the new rig. This was taken yesterday June 25, 2021 just west of Santa Fe, NM on our way to Tucson, AZ for the next part of our build.

It was surreal to be in our new rig, but at the same time affirming. Everything we hoped for was there. We are carrying a bunch of pieces and parts right now so it wasn't as streamlined as it will be when we are done. But it was still awesome to finally be inside our rig.

Tonight finds us in Tucson, we'll be in an Airbnb during this portion of our build since our home is in the shop, oh, and it is in the 100s down here. But we're excited to get the next portion of the build done. ~ Eric