Katie and Josh
Photo by Katie and JoshFrom High School Sweethearts to Van Life Nomads: Katie and Josh's Journey of Freedom
At the age of 15, high school sweethearts Katie and Josh ditched the traditional path for the freedom of van life. Their story chronicles their journey from saving every penny to building their dream van and hitting the road. They share the highs and lows of life on the road, offering practical advice and encouragement for aspiring van lifers. With a 9-month road trip underway, Katie and Josh are already planning their next adventure, hinting at exciting travels beyond the van.
Can you tell us a little about your background pre-van life?
Katie - We met in high school
Josh - We always say fate must have played a part in our lives because I came from a big City in the South, and Katie lived in the North.
Katie - For unfortunate reasons, Josh had to move up north, and he ended up joining my high school. I liked him straight away, but he took no notice of me 😂😂
Josh - After a couple of years, we started dating and ever since then we've just been working towards travelling full time!
What inspired you to buy a van and travel? Was there a specific event or realization that solidified your decision?
Katie - There was a bit of an epiphany moment wasn't there.
Josh - Yes, definitely. After playing around with all the ideas around travelling, we came across a van lifer on YouTube.
Katie - We watched their entire conversion and decided right then, we were going to do this.
Josh - I think our need to travel came from the uncertainty of living through covid as a teenager. We didn't know if we would have the chance to live out our dreams.
Katie - And being cooped up made us go crazy 😂
Photo by Katie and JoshWhat steps did you take to help make this dream come true?
Katie - We both got jobs as soon as we legally could, working any chance we could.
Josh - We lived quite frugally, not going out partying and wasting our money on alcohol was definitely the biggest help in saving money.
Katie - We kept experimenting on side hustles too, always trying to make money.
Did you ever feel at any time that your dream may not come true? If so, how did you push through this concern?
Katie - We had such a strong focus and had each other to keep pushing that we didn't really have any moments like this.
Josh - I think the best thing was definitely having each other, it made us stronger as a team.
Katie - Yeah, whenever we had any doubts, we spoke through them and came out better, and even more focused on fulfilling our dreams
Tell us about the process of designing and building your van. Did you have any support from family or friends along the way?
Katie - we had input from both of our families, with Josh's uncle helping us to build cupboards too!!
Josh - we did everything mainly ourselves, but we were so grateful to have the support and help of our families too
Tell us about the feeling of finally hitting the road in your van for the first time. What was that moment like? Where did your first adventure take you, and how did you mark the occasion?
Katie- We were planning on going to Wales for our first adventure.
Josh - We set off and everything was fine, but the Katie wasn't very well so we had a change of plans
Katie - We ended Up in the Lake District, spending all our time in the van, watching the stars and taking it all in
Josh - It was definitely a ‘we did this’ moment.
Photo by Katie and JoshWhat are some of the things you love and hate about van life?
Katie - There are so many good things about van life
Josh - You get to travel freely, it’s cheaper, your home moves with you…
Katie - If you don't like the spot, you are in, just drive away!
both - But there are a few downsides
Katie - It can be draining at times, but there are so many ways to reset
Josh - Its compact, and can be noisy at times
Katie - Lastly, things will break! But it doesn’t matter!!
How do you manage to travel at such a young age and financially support yourselves? Do you often stop in one spot and work for a month or so?
Katie- We spent 3 years saving up every penny we possibly could, so we didn't have to worry as much.
Josh - BUT we are slowly learning just how much everything costs, one of the downsides of being so young 😂😂
What advice would you give to someone who is thinking about starting van life? Do you have any essential tips for making it a successful experience?
Katie - Read all the entry requirements of each country you are going to!!
Josh - Get a pre-paid travel card, you can transfer between currencies wherever you are, it's great!
Katie - Just go for it! We still don’t feel ready to this day but sometimes you just have to take a leap!
Travel plans for the future?
Katie - Currently we have big plans in the works regarding the future…
Josh - One thing we know for certain is we are selling the van after our 9-month road trip
Katie - We have a few options after that
Josh - Backpacking around Asia or South- America are a couple of options!!
How long do you intend on travelling with your van?
Both - 9 months!
Photo by Katie and JoshWhat's the most interesting or exciting thing that's happened to you on the road so far? Tell us about a moment that you'll never forget.
Katie - This is probably one of the funniest and scariest moments we have had so far…
Josh - We were about the park up at one of the highest points in the Lake District, turned off the van, just for it not to turn back on again.
Katie - I was so angry 😂😂, it was late, going dark very quickly and cold AND we were in the middle of nowhere.
Josh - We waited for a car to drive past, and Katie jumped out and waved them down
Katie - Luckily, I managed to flag down the perfect car, they knew exactly what the issue was and fixed it for us within minutes.
Josh - We were so grateful!! As soon as they left, we packed up and left, we ended up parking up next to a few other campers to make ourselves feel better hahah.
To continue following our explorer Kaite and Josh’s journey or simply want to reach out and say Hi, you can connect with our Explorers on the following accounts:
Instagram: @wildwondererss