Take it from me, a not-so-young-anymore plump woman with arthritis who spends a good deal of time living out of the back of a truck in the wilds with Mr. Mark (another child who’s grown old) and two very spoiled dogs: while I wouldn’t trade what we do for all the tea in China, rambling down empty dirt roads through the vastness of the big wide empty of the west isn’t always easy or even particularly romantic. At least not as romantic as many of the YouTube videos out there can make it seem anyway.

From safety considerations and developing skills to increase your self-reliance to basic creature comforts and making do (comfortably) with less, the information and resources in this section will help you get started on your amazing journey on the right foot and, hopefully, learn to thrive rather than just survive in the outbacks.