Van life with Scout: November 2023 recap
A high level of what we’ve been up to in November! (More detailed daily sharing usually happens on our Instagram stories.)
We started the month off in New York City and enjoyed a few more stops out east—including the country’s capital and a new national park—before heading back to the midwest for a holiday season with family and friends.
TLDR: Top November highlights
We fell in love with New York City. My favorite part was a three-way tie between meeting up with several fellow dog lovers, eating so much good food, and finding an overnight parking spot where we could see the Statue of Liberty from our kitchen.
The Smithsonian Natural History Museum and National Mall area of Washington DC, followed by a brief forest reprieve, were a relaxing break after NYC’s crowded chaos.
We quickly made our way back to Wisconsin for an eye doctor appointment… where I found out I can have corrective vision surgery! I’d previously been told this wasn’t an option for my corneas, so it’s hard to overstate my excitement. I’ll have the procedure in just over a week.
We’ve since been bouncing around our home state getting to see family and friends. I’m thrilled with how we’ve balanced our time between humans-only activities, Scout-focused fulfillment, and relaxation for everyone.
Our first real taste of winter van life was incredible up in a snowy national forest. So. Cozy.
I also finalized some Paws and Reflect apparel!
Van life: Goodbye parking lots, hello family homes!
We loved our New England adventures this fall—but we definitely got a little fatigued of overnighting in parking lots and driving to new spots every day. After successfully visiting our biggest city yet, we’re excited to slow things down for several weeks here in the midwest.
I do still prefer to sleep in Hermes even when we’re at a friend or family member’s house. It’s my own home with my own bed! But parking on private property (and most of all, having unlimited access to hot water for showers) is incredibly relaxing.
Some favorite November destinations included:
Sleeping in three of NYC’s five boroughs (and realizing having a van was surprisingly easy in many places?)
Helping Scout conquer a bunch of distracting, scary, and otherwise intense stimuli in busy areas of Brooklyn and Queens—and getting to meet up with multiple Instagram friends for the first time!
Obsessing over the Natural History Museum in Washington DC and playing tug with our heeler on the capitol lawn
Getting a final taste of autumn leaves in Shenandoah National Park
Boondocking in the George Washington National Forest for an incredibly relaxing two days after spending the bulk of our recent weeks in parking lots overnight
Seeing a few friends in Indiana and Illinois
Finally making our way back to Wisconsin, where both of our families and several of our friends live, to split time between Wausau, Madison, and Milwaukee for the next while
Taking a little introvert break in a northwoods national forest to end the month
A full roundup of where we slept:
15 nights in parking lots (Walmarts, rest areas, other spots without overnight restrictions) or street parking
8 nights on private property visiting family and friends
6 nights on public land (national forests in Virginia and Wisconsin)
1 nights at a campground in Shenandoah National Park (traditional loop)
Van logistics in November:
Drove about 1,700 miles in total (a few hundred of these just around Wisconsin)
Went through our freshwater tank less than four times (thanks to being able to rinse off at family and friends’ places!)
Dumped our gray tank 10 times (it wasn’t always completely full when we emptied it)
Dumped our pee jug 14 times (again, not always completely full, and largely thanks to using friends’ facilities)
Visited a laundromat once (washed everything for a deep clean after leaving NYC, then got to use our families’ resources as we visit for holidays)
Rotated our tires
Replaced our water pump
What’s new with Scout specifically this month
A little “by the numbers” / high level recap
Met up and coexisted neutrally with 6 new dogs while in NYC!
~12 suburban neighborhood walks
~10 urban leashed walks
8 off-leash hikes and runs on public land
2 nail trims
Left alone in the van for some longer stretches than usual… but also had several days where we didn’t leave her behind at all (more on including vs not including her in family and friend visits in the last section)
As usual… too many rounds of tug and fetch to count! 😉
A secret city dog?!
Scout blew me away in New York City. She’s absolutely still a sensitive dog… but she handled new environments without much help at all and needed way less social management from me & Sean than I was prepared for. Do I think she’d enjoy living in a city long term? Nope. But did she prove that we can totally do it when needed? Hell yes.
More coexisting without interacting around our family and friends
I’m more likely than ever to leave Scout in our comfy home on wheels if I’m not sure she’ll benefit from a situation. As she’s gotten older and a bit less social—wants to just chill instead of receive a bunch of affection—this arrangement has worked really well. Sometimes we involve her… she gets plenty of play time and family snuggles with us… and she also rests deeply in her van by herself without any distractions.
