In the final leg of our 2,500-mile camper van road trip across the country,
we have a few border crossings, some delicious food,
and a new Russo.
Thank you to Storyteller Overland for sponsoring this video.
We started today off at good old camp Walmart,
had a very restful night's sleep.
I think we were so tired last night that we just passed out.
Today's drive, we're trying to get from Odessa, Texas to Glendale, Arizona.
- First stop is going to be lunch. - Yeah. We found this little spot in-- what is it?
Sierra Blanca and I got this thing called Chilaquiles which I've never had before. Absolutely delicious.
We are gonna stop there. I'm going to get that dish. We might get a couple other things to share,
and then we will continue our trek across the country.
This trek started in Southern Indiana, went down to Birmingham.
From Birmingham to Jackson, Mississippi, Jackson, Mississippi to Odessa.
That was our drive yesterday and then today, to Glendale,
and then to finish it off Los Angeles.
There it is.
- Who's excited? - This guy.
Nice thing is they have a giant lot, so it's easy to pull in with a trailer.
I love Menudo.
That's probably the best Chiliquiles I've ever had,
and it's one of the reasons why we always stop here when we're crossing the country via the 10.
We've got a barbecue spot off the 40 that we always stop at, some places off the 80,
so it really depends on when and where we're driving cross country
as to where and when we're gonna stop for food.
Now, it's my turn to drive.
Joe doesn't like to drive across the border checkpoint, so I've got this leg of the drive.
So the checkpoint that we're gonna be crossing onto 10 in Texas is the US Border Patrol checkpoint.
What they'll do is when you pull up, they'll ask you how many US citizens you have in the vehicle.
They also have drug-sniffing dogs, so those will walk around your vehicle,
and we've gone through there a number of times
and seen people pulled aside for, you know, whatever.
You'll see the dog go up and start barking at their car and their car gets pulled off to the side.
It's always a interesting matter. That's why I let Kait handle it. She's better at that stuff.
Uh, we were wrong.
You only go through the checkpoint on your way eastbound, not westbound.
- Look at that line. - Yeah, that's quite the line.
Just got done making a cup of coffee in the parking lot
and then I am gonna get back in the driver's seat.
We are fueled up. I've got my coffee, so I'll be fueled up.
And then next stop is gonna be New Mexico.
- I will say-- - Hold on.
You gotta warn me before you start filming so I can suck the gut in.
Otherwise, it's like this, and it's like that.
- I'm filming. - Okay. Thank you.
Everyone in Texas is so courteous.
If we're ever pulled off on the side of the road,
people will come and just check to see if you're okay, do you need help.
Utah is extremely conscientious of things like that.
We broke down once on the side of the highway.
In Salt Lake City area,
I think we had five or six people stop on the freeway to ask us if we needed help.
When we had the little mishap with this van that was in the previous video we're in Mississippi.
People drove by and looked, but not a single person stopped to ask if we needed a hand.
There's Mexico, that's Ciudad Juárez.
There's the big X.
If you've never stopped in El Paso, I would recommend it.
It's quite the foodie town and we've had some amazing meals here.
If we didn't stop at the last place, we would've stopped at Lucy's West for some crunchy tacos.
So those colorful buildings right there are Mexico.
We're so close to Mexico that we've been driving through here a few times,
and our cell phones actually picked up the Mexican cell tower
and we got welcomed to Mexico.
- Recording. - Okay, got it.
I just looked up the distance from where we crossed from Louisiana to Texas
to the point we just passed from Texas into New Mexico.
825 miles across the Great State of Texas.
I forgot that there is a border patrol checkpoint in New Mexico.
I guess they're not stopping people today.
That was easy.
Filming.
It gives me something to work on. 'Cuz every time we edit these videos
and I see this, like, man, I gotta-- I'm gonna take a break and go to the gym.
Of all the states and country's borders
that we've crossed in the last eight years, would you say?
- Yeah. - We've only had our camper searched twice.
Once in Baja, Mexico and once in Canada.
Crossing from Maine into New Brunswick.
And not only did we get searched, but they ran our credit,
wanted to know how much money we had in our bank accounts.
And when I asked why, they said, "Because if you hurt yourself here,
how else are you gonna pay for it?"
Well once all of that came back fine,
they were super nice. Up until then, they were all business.
- Welcome to Arizona. - Thank you.
We are making good progress. Joe's a driving champ today.
I've got some dinner cooking.
We have
black beans, tomato, and spicy Conecuh sausage.
Well, that ended up being a well-timed dinner.
This just went off.
Joe's gonna get some fuel for Nacho van
and then we can fuel our bellies.
Ooh, it's chilly.
Are you gonna take it outside?
There we go. I was keeping my hand away from the vent.
All right.
- You gonna tell everybody what it is? - Oh, I already did.
Oh, let's eat that. Enough with the videoing.
And I've got homemade salsa from friends of ours.
I'm gonna be putting that on mine.
Mm.
- In case you haven't noticed, Joe loves salsa. - I do. - Especially homemade salsa.
- Bon appétit. - Thank you.
If you can't tell, that salsa has some heat to it.
We just dropped the trailer off and grabbed a couple of showers at our buddy's place.
He's just moving in, so it was nice to hang out for a couple of minutes.
But we're gonna get back on the road and try to grab some more miles.
- There is a rest area about an hour from here, maybe a little bit more. - Mm-hmm.
So we're gonna try to make it there tonight and see how we feel.
- And the best part is... - What's the best part? - Uh-oh.
- I got Chipotle slippers. - They're upside down. Well, yeah. "CHIPS" and "GUAC",
but they're upside down.
I can't wait to wear these in Chipotle the next time we eat there.
So athletic.
Hey, when you live in a tiny space, you have to be very flexible,
literally and figuratively.
Got my new slippers on.
I'm gonna get the van packed up and we can get on the road.
Today, we have to cross into California.
So a few things to
check and make sure we're not carrying for the agriculture checkpoint.
Kait did forget that I need to make coffee. We're not going anywhere without me making coffee.
Plus, I need to get dressed.
If there is one thing I account for: every morning, before we can get going,
it's time for Joe to make coffee.
Currently in the middle of the van life shuffle.
Everything that was up front now needs to come to the back
so we can get on the road and get to our final destination.
Okay.
So being the California native you are,
I feel like you should give people some tips on traveling into the state of California.
We, motorcycle riders, are everywhere in California and we're allowed to split lanes,
so be cautious of that when you're changing lane and things like that.
If you are towing a trailer, you can only go up to 55 miles an hour,
regardless of how big or small the trailer is.
When you do cross into California, you're not allowed to bring certain fruits and vegetables.
There are checkpoints along the border of California to make sure
that you're not bringing in any pests and things like that.
California has some of the highest gas prices in the nation.
Fill up before you go in the state, top off,
be very cognizant of where you're going to get gas.
You could find a station that's $5.50 and down the street, it's $4.
There's that big of a difference sometimes.
- Last fuel up under $4. - Yeah. $3.45.
I think the best we saw on this trip was $2.93 in Texas.
CHP does not mess around with the 55-mile an hour speed limit
for trucks and trailers and cars towing trailers.
So to be classified under that 55-mile an hour speed limit,
it's-- as I mentioned, trucks with trailers, cars with trailers,
and trucks with more than two axles.
So if you have three axles, you have to go 55 miles an hour.
Time for a-- Ooh, I can't see. Time for a quick bathroom break.
The fuel at this place was over $5.
Yeah, we did see something a little disturbing though a minute ago.
We were driving along and there was a bad wreck with a car charred,
and I saw them wheeling the body into the coroner's truck.
Gotta be safe out there when you're driving. Be careful.
So we are pretty much at the end of our 2,500-mile journey
across the country from Southern Indiana.
We are in Los Angeles,
and our end destination is my mother's house
where we will be leaving this van for about a month and a half
before we fly back out to California to start doing some trips on the West Coast.
But before we go to my mom's house, we have one last stop
and that's to go get Wiggle Butts.
So that's Wiggle Butts - that's my mom's dog.
Good job, Charlie.
Up. Good girl.
Yeah. You remember the van?
You spent the whole summer in here. Well, not this one, but similar.
Okay. Sit. Stay.
All right, Wiggle Butts.
For those of you who might be looking forward to seeing my mom,
she and my aunt are still in Cairo. So they're getting home in a few days
and the reason I'm out here in California is to go with them to get a new puppy.
Not for us, for them.
What? You happy to be home, huh?
Yeah, we made it,
and we're going in in a second.
2,500 miles from Southern Indiana to Southern California. We've made it.
And that is really it for this video.
Sorry, my brain has stopped working after all that driving all those miles.
Um, you know, we knocked most of it out over the course of three days.
We are gonna get the van kind of unpacked,
get it ready to sit here for a month and a half.
My sister and brother-in-law may take it out for a trip. Who knows?
And then we'll fly back out and hopefully head down to Baja
or somewhere else on the West Coast.
That is it. Thank you guys so much for watching.
If you enjoyed this and you understood what was coming out of my mouth,
please give this thing a thumbs up,
subscribe if you haven't already, and a big thank you to all of our subscribers
and we will see you next time once I've had a cup of coffee and a good night's sleep. Bye.
My second book -
Tales from the Open Road: The Adventures and Misadventures of RV Living
is now available for sale on Amazon.
Read all about the ups and downs of our first year and a half living on the road full-time.
I want them all.
- Well, you've got the new puppy. - Yep, I do.
Or he's got me. I don't know which it is.
He's a rambunctious little fella.
Oh, look who got a stick. Look who got a stick.