(Podcast) Visiting Bryce Canyon & Zion National Parks + Kanab, UT’s Movie History

Season 1 Episode 14 finds us in Kanab, Utah, with plans to visit Bryce Canyon National Park and then Zion National Park — but along the way we discover so much more!

We find ourselves on the doorstep of the Grand Staircase-Escalante! Of course, Cristen has to go on a gravel biking mission to explore this amazing part of America’s public lands.

We also find ourselves digging for treasure and exploring the rich movie history around and in Kanab, Utah.

This is our longest episode yet, and for good reason: there’s so much to cover that we just couldn’t stop! We really hope you get the bug to explore this American treasure for yourself.

Referenced in this episode: Willow Canyon Outdoors, The Rock Stop, and Patagonia Activism.

(Podcast) The RV Adventure Begins!

Travel Podcast, Season 1, Episode 1. The time has come!

Travel preparation for a three-month family RV trip in the American West can be daunting. So let’s start with the logistics we used to get comfortable with our rig and setup — it might help you in your planning, too.

We share some tips and tricks about how we prepared for the trip, as well as some stumbling blocks we discovered along the way.

Have you ever dreamed about taking that great extended adventure? You can do it, and we’re here to share the experience with you (while entertaining a bit)! This is a kid-, adult-, and pet-friendly episode.

This is our very first podcast, so bear with us while we learn as we go! We also hope to have a video up in the near future — stay tuned here and at Keyword Adventure on YouTube.

Feel free to send us comments and stories. We’ll be posting weekly, so please rate us, subscribe, and share! It boosts our confidence and our audience — the people we envision having these conversations with each week. Thank you!

(Podcast) Rock Springs, Wyoming: Mountains on the Horizon

Season 1 Episode 4 — In this episode we have a pretty day on the road and sight the Rocky Mountains for the first time on the trip. That inspires Matt to go over the truck and travel trailer to see if anything needs fixing. Cristen works her magic and finds a fantastic place to eat that the whole family loves! If you’re in Rock Springs, Wyoming, be sure to check out the Bitter Creek Brewery.

We hope you love Episode 4, and we’re looking forward to really getting this adventure started as we get into the mountains!

(Podcast) The Loneliest Highway in America Across Nevada’s Great Basin - Don’t Miss This!

Season 1 Episode 12: We’re diving into and across Nevada on “America’s Loneliest Road.” AAA was once quoted as saying, “we warn all motorists not to drive there, unless they’re confident of their survival skills.” So, let’s go! We find long stretches, lots of mountain passes, great camping, history, petroglyphs, incredible stars, and even some ties back to our home state of Missouri.

In this episode we definitely geek out on the history, and we find a wonderful reprieve camping at Hickison Petroglyph Recreation Area (BLM) after the busy bustle of Lake Tahoe. Taking time and soaking in the frontier of US-50, “The Backbone of America,” lets a visitor come away with much more than a badge of “I drove that”: there’s a whole other way of life and rootedness to the people, places, and wildness that exists along the way.

We hope you enjoy this episode. Please share it and comment if you do! We’ve also been updating and adding to our website — come check it out. Thank you again; we really appreciate you listening!

(Podcast) The Amazing Oregon Coast and Mountain Biking the McKenzie River

Season 1 Episode 8 takes us to the Oregon Coast and back to mountain bike along the McKenzie River.

In light of everyone being socially distanced during the Covid-19 pandemic, we talk about something that can happen when you spend lots of time together in a smaller space: overwhelm. When we’re traveling together each day, homeschooling, sharing meals, and so on — what do we do when we need some healthy solo time? We’ll give our simplistic answer.

Highlights this episode: ocean, sand dunes, huckleberries, Cape Perpetua, mountain biking, and looking forward to a little movement south toward the northern coast of California and the Redwood Forests!

(Podcast) Into the Storm: Driving Across Nebraska in Summer

On this episode (Season 1, Episode 2) we talk about comfort for you and your pets, how to stay sane by making and using some simple checklists, and some of our favorite smartphone apps for finding camping and checking the weather along the way.

Of course, on our first day out — crossing the Great Plains on I-80 across Nebraska — we encounter a dangerous line of thunderstorms.

Summer in the Great Plains is always a prime place to run into some fierce resistance from Mother Nature. While that can be beautiful, it can also be dangerous and intimidating, so it’s best to have a plan in place!

Apps we mention: for camping spots, Campendium and Park Advisor; for navigation, Waze, Apple Maps, and Google Earth; for weather, MyRadar (great for forecasts), NOAA, and Hi-Def Radar. And don’t forget a pet medical kit.

You can also follow us on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook!

(Podcast) Hunkered in Nebraska: Riding Out the Storm

In this episode (Season 1, Episode 3), we make a decision: charge ahead to see just how good our timing is with the storm ahead, or hang back and spend the night in a Walmart parking lot with dozens of truckers.

We cover weather resources and safety, and touch on a bit of human safety in everyday scenarios.

And finally, we introduce ourselves! You gave us some great feedback and we realized we hadn’t given a proper introduction yet. Get to know who we are, how we travel, what we’re doing and why, and the mission that inspired the creation of Keyword Adventure.

(Podcast) Eugene, Oregon, and Beyond: Exploring Trails, Lakes and Waterfalls

Season 1 Episode 7 took us a while to finish: turns out traveling and working remotely takes a bit of extra planning…

In this episode, we start exploring around the town of Eugene, Oregon. It’s way too much fun, with gear shops, greenway trails, and breweries. We explore waterfalls and talk a bit about gear… of course.

From biking on the local trails to sailing and paddle boarding, this Oregon adventure gets off to a fantastic start. Let’s dive in!

Brewery: Plank Town Brewery, Springfield, OR.

Watery places we love: Sahalie Falls, the McKenzie River, the Willamette River and Willamette River Greenway, and Waldo Lake.

Apps we use: AllTrails and Trailforks.

Gear shops and outfitters: Backcountry Gear, REI, and Horse Creek Lodge (mountain bikes and much more).

Gear we mention: BOTE and NRS inflatable SUP boards and the Werner Zen SUP paddle; Black Diamond Distance Z and Trail Back trekking poles; Arc’teryx Beta AR rain jackets and Outdoor Research Helium pants; REI Rainwall kids’ jacket and pants; Outdoor Research Ferrosi pants; and Osprey packs.

Thanks for listening!

(Podcast) Covid Interrupted: Adaptability is Essential

Season 1 Episode 9.

We’ve all been thrown for a loop. It’s not that we’ve never experienced something in life that completely threw us off course, but we definitely haven’t experienced something that changed the world as we know it on such a broad scale for such an extended period.

We’ve been sitting with this experience for a couple of weeks, reevaluating how travel and adventure currently look and how they’ll look going forward. We’re examining the tools we’ve found ourselves using during our return journey and our time staying home.

It turns out there are many things about travel and adventure — whether with a partner, solo, or as a family — that are coming in handy: tools that help us stay a little more sane, communicate better with one another, and use our time effectively, while also honoring that things are weird and we need to be good to ourselves.

In this episode we talk about two of the most important aspects of spending so much time together while maintaining a healthy personal existence: adaptability, and discovering and making room for our fundamental needs. We share how this works in our life, both on the road and staying home during a pandemic. We hope it helps you and your family now — and definitely when the road trips start up again.

Don’t stop that dreaming and scheming! We’ll see each other having adventures very soon.

On an important note: Cristen recently lost a high school friend to a silent struggle, and she’s noticed it’s been a devastatingly frequent occurrence over the last few years — particularly with men. Tending our mental health is something all of us need to spend time on. For some of us it’s hard to imagine a mental and emotional landscape that could lead a person to take their life. But for others — many more than we ever recognize — it’s a fight they contend with every day.

In our view, tending your mental and emotional health is like going to the gym for physical health, and — if the everyday choices we’re making aren’t addressing our bigger concerns — like going to the doctor for a check-in. Our society doesn’t talk about it enough, because getting a mental-health check-up IS normal, it IS acceptable, and it may save a life. If you’re questioning your own need to check in with someone, please talk to a trusted friend, call your doctor, or reach out to one of the resources below.

Resources: 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline — call or text 988. Crisis Text Line — text HOME to 741741. Trevor Lifeline (for LGBTQ young people under 25) — 1-866-488-7386, or text START to 678678; TrevorSpace community at trevorspace.org. Veterans Crisis Line — dial 988 then press 1, or text 838255. Online therapy — TalkSpace (talkspace.com) or BetterHelp (betterhelp.com). Find a local therapist at psychologytoday.com. Postpartum support — postpartum.net or supportingmamas.org; moms can also connect through The Adventure Mamas Initiative (adventuremamas.org). Support for new dads and partners — postpartum.net/get-help/resources-for-fathers.

We want to keep seeing you out there dreaming, planning, and doing your adventures, too.

(Podcast) Boise, Idaho, Bound! An Outdoor Family Playground

Season 1 Episode 5. Our family keeps the journey going and heads to Boise, Idaho — one of the greatest outdoor towns of the West.

In this episode, we test a new presentation of our podcast with a more conversational format. Please let us know what you think!

Boise captivates us with the variety of outdoor adventure it offers and the friendly people we encounter.

If you’re interested in some of the guides or recipes we mention, we include them below. Thanks for checking us out and, as always, we are super stoked to share our adventures with you in the hope that you’ll get out and search for your own!

Helpful links mentioned in Episode 5: an Instant Pot Pulled Pork recipe (The Salty Marshmallow); Malad Gorge / Thousand Springs State Park, Idaho; the USDA Forest Service national fire reports; the Boise Greenbelt; and our Keyword Adventure trailer video on YouTube.

Books and gear we mention: The Hiker’s Guide: Greater Boise (Scott Marchant); A Kid’s Guide to Boise (Rick Just); the Arkansas Waterfalls Guidebook, Buffalo River Hiking Trails, and Arkansas Dayhikes for Kids & Families (all by Tim Ernst); the Sena SPH10 outdoor sports Bluetooth headset; and the “Sorry for what I said” camping pillow.

(Podcast) Around the Bend: Driving from Boise, Idaho to Vida, Oregon

Season 1 Episode 6 finds us on the final leg of our drive to Oregon, past the beautiful mountain town of Bend, Oregon.

We get into some of the details around our motivations for loading up the family and heading west: visiting family, and pursuing Cristen’s Adventure Mamas project of 1000 Miles of Adventure.

We’re in awe of the landscape from Boise to Vida, OR, and give some pin drops for Rail Trails in Nebraska, South Dakota, and Wyoming. We twist our tongues around the topic of self-efficacy and sweat over squeezing our rig into tight spaces.

The Adventure Mamas Initiative is a 501©(3) non-profit organization that supports maternal wellness. Their vision is redefining motherhood by creating a world where women feel empowered to prioritize their own wellness. Check them out at adventuremamas.com, as well as on Facebook and Instagram.

The training group Cristen mentioned is Magnetic North, founded by Brittany Aäe. Their purpose is the journey. It’s a values-based business; those values encompass self-sufficiency, durability, creativity, audacity, abundance, dignity, resilience, and commitment. Learn about this and so much more on their website, magneticnorth.us (make sure to check out the blog), and on Instagram.

Finally, our under-tended YouTube channel — where you can find the interview about Cristen’s 1000 Miles of Adventure — is Keyword Adventure. Please subscribe, like, share, and comment! We love hearing from you. It makes us feel good.

(Podcast) Northern California Redwood Forests, Crescent City, Redding, and Beyond!

Season 1 Episode 10.

The Redwoods.

If you took dinosaur habitat and combined it with a fairy realm, you might get close to what these ancient forests embody.

Today, we visit the giants and are just as blown away as everyone says we would be.

However, our “plan” was given several twists and we didn’t end up where we thought we would, which led us to the glorious Stout Grove, around Crescent City, and over to Trinidad to explore, discover eateries, and another brewery.

Sometimes things go awry and it turns out really well anyway! Sometimes you end up having to back down a one-lane mountain road with an audience. We can laugh at that now, right?

Then we drive across northern California to check out Redding. This area is well-known for its community, hiking, mountain biking, and (unfortunately at that time) for a couple of raging wildfires happening way too close to people’s homes.

We had a WHOLE lot more on our agenda for the Redding area, but the smoke from these fires was so dense we decided to move on — not to mention wanting to give a grieving community some space and humility. We did visit a couple of great gear shops, though, and made some fun acquaintances for future visits!

Sometimes when you keep running into unexpected obstacles, you decide the time is right to just move along. We set our sights on Tahoe via a winding path through agricultural land and beautiful foothills.

The town of Grass Valley, CA, was an unexpected and wonderful surprise — especially when we discovered the Empire Mine State Historic Park. Whoa!! Following that unplanned detour was a highlight of this trip leg as we make our way to Lake Tahoe for the next episode.

Links for the episode: Redwood National and State Parks (nps.gov/redw); Stout Memorial Grove Trail, Crescent City; USDA Forest Service Active Fire Mapping Program; Jefferson State Adventure Hub, Redding (jsahub.com); SeaQuake Brewing, Crescent City; The Hermit’s Hut, Redding; Trinidad Memorial Lighthouse Park; and Empire Mine State Historic Park, Grass Valley. (A few favorites — Vita Cucina and the Crescent City Crab Shack — were closed or uncertain during COVID; call before committing.)

May all of our traveling dreams return safely and swiftly. It’s always a perfect time to scheme and plan for your next adventure.

(Podcast) Misadventures in Tahoe, CA-NV

Season 1, Episode 11.

Tahoe Misadventures. Well, nothing like arriving in an area and nearly leaving your mark on the landscape… literally! Be careful driving with your RV in the Tahoe area, and remember: if you are coming from the West/North, go clockwise around the lake and save the pretty scenery for a time when you are not pulling a trailer.

There are a lot of great campgrounds in the Tahoe area, and with a little planning ahead you can stay at one of the stunning State Parks that surround the south side of the lake. Or if you are looking to be closer to the action, you can even find some great spots in town to set up camp.

Whether you are looking for food, gambling, outdoor adventures, or just stunning scenery, the Lake Tahoe area can give you memories that will last a lifetime. There is a reason this has been one of America’s Playgrounds for more than 150 years! Ever since the Gold Rush, Americans have been coming here in search of escape and exciting adventures.

Advice we would give when visiting Tahoe… Enjoy!! AND DON’T GO THE WRONG WAY AROUND THE LAKE!!

(Podcast) Great Basin National Park: Wild, Beautiful, and FREE

Great Basin National Park needs to be on your must-see list. It is stunning, diverse, remote, and free to visit!

So much history and raw beauty that this episode went way longer than we thought!

This was our first cold camping experience this season, in September, and we learned that our memory foam mattress doesn’t like the cold. From hiking to high alpine lakes to learning about some of the oldest living things on this planet, you can find it all at Great Basin National Park! It’s hard to emphasize how incredible this place is — enjoy.

(Podcast) Magnificent Moab, Arches & Canyonlands National Parks, & Mountain Biking Heaven

Season 1 Episode 15, Magnificent Moab, finds us having way too much fun in Moab, Utah, exploring Arches National Park, partying with the Adventure Mamas Initiative during their Dirtbag Family Bash, and hitting the trail on some fantastic mountain bikes near Canyonlands National Park!

We talk about the Trail Forks App that helps you find fantastic trails with ratings, pictures, and off-line available maps so you don’t get lost.

For you hikers and runners out there, AllTrails is another app that we have found to be super useful when you are looking for some awesome hiking trails.

Of course, that doesn’t replace local knowledge, and you can get the best local knowledge for biking at Chili Peppers Bike Shop or Poison Spider Bikes (sweet name btw).

Hiking, climbing, camping, or need to do some laundry? Then Gearheads is your shop!

They even have free filtered water. We picked up a 5-gallon Scepter water container and flow-control spout to keep in the truck: it is great to have that added water insurance on our back country adventures. I can’t tell you how many times that has come in handy.

Moab is an unparalleled adventure locale for everything from climbing, 4X4 adventures, mountain biking, hiking, canyoneering, and of course whitewater paddling!

I have to admit, I found it very difficult to find an outdoor itch that you can’t scratch in this adventure mecca of the American West.

We even got to catch the Banff Mountain Film Festival (Eric’s first in-the-theater experience).

Referenced in this episode: Arches National Park, Canyonlands National Park, Adventure Mamas Initiative, Chili Peppers Bike Shop, Poison Spider Bikes, Gearheads Outdoor Store, Trail Forks, AllTrails, and the Banff Mountain Film Festival.

(Podcast) The Wonder of Monument Valley, Valley of the Gods, Bears Ears National Monument, + Durango, CO

Season 1, Episode 16.

As we move on from Moab, we head to Bears Ears, Monument Valley, Valley of the Gods, and Natural Bridges National Monument, then on to Durango, Colorado.

If you’re going to visit this area, be prepared to be in a very remote place — pack accordingly and fuel up whenever possible. It’s a stunning part of America that’s only now really getting a lot of attention, with big vistas and natural wonders around every turn.

We boondocked at an abandoned airstrip we found using the Campendium app — what a great find: beautiful, uncrowded, with a view of Bears Ears and Natural Bridges. To be clear, it’s only a place to park your rig — no electricity, water, or septic — so come prepared to be self-sufficient.

Monument Valley is a Navajo Tribal Park, not a US park, with fantastic tours, hikes, and history; their website is the best resource and lists current conditions and closures. John Ford and John Wayne helped put this area on the map with beautiful old Westerns, and it’s continued into modern films — it’s one of the most iconic places in the American West. Valley of the Gods (not to be confused with Garden of the Gods in Colorado) is a stunning, often-overlooked area that’s free and accessible via a 17-mile gravel road, with remote camping, hiking, and photos galore. Just be very aware of the weather: it’s prone to flash flooding, which can come from rain falling miles away, uphill in the mountains. As always in country like this, take more water than you think you’ll need — enough for a couple of days if necessary. It can make the difference between life and death.

The Moki Dugway is about as treacherous a road as you’ll find — the most dangerous in Utah: narrow, with very tight switchbacks, and all gravel. It descends 1,200 feet from the mesa rim to the valley floor and will absolutely get your attention. Beautiful? Yes. Dangerous? You bet. Do not attempt it with large vehicles like RVs or while pulling a trailer.

Natural Bridges National Monument is one of the oldest national monuments (Theodore Roosevelt, 1908) and was once very hard to reach, until better roads were built in 1977. People have lived here since around 7,500 BCE — a stable desert water source with overhangs where they could build dwellings and granaries made it a good place to survive and thrive. Challenging hikes and beautiful rock formations make it a great place to explore.

Bears Ears National Monument has gotten a lot of press over the last few years, and was unfortunately reduced in size by 47% — a real shame. And then Durango, Colorado stole the show.

(Podcast) Santa Fe, NM: Adventures in a City Different

Season 1, Episode 17.

The last episode in Season 1 finds us in the second-oldest city in the US: Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Santa Fe is like an onion — so many layers it’s easy to get lost — but the heart of town is the Historic Plaza: food, history, mystery, and more, a great place to start your Santa Fe adventure. Visit the Loretto Chapel and wonder at its Miraculous Staircase, go hiking in White Rock, stretch the boundaries of your imagination at Meow Wolf, and push your mountain biking to the next level with a trip down Windsor Mountain (thanks to the Mellow Velo bike shop).

While this might be the last stop on this road trip, the adventures continue in Season 2 with a whole different kind of adventure. We hope that, over the last 17 episodes, we’ve inspired you in some small way to pursue an adventure of your own — we’d love to hear about it! The similarities between RV life and sailing life are, in some ways, shocking. Until next time, remember: when life throws you a curve, the keyword is adventure!

(Recipe) Campfire Stew: Simple, Quick Comfort Food

A camping recipe made easy — warm on cool nights, fast after a long day out, with easy ingredients that travel well and plenty for everyone.

Yes, this is an adventure recipe blog. Aren’t all the senses involved in exploration and delight? If you’ve listened to our podcast, you’ve probably noticed that we love finding interesting places to enchant our sense of taste — sometimes we seem to eat our way through new places (like Key West, Florida).

Today’s post, though, is meant to bring a little culinary comfort whether you’re camping out or just needing some easy satisfaction at home. The whole “chicken soup for the soul” idea definitely applies when someone talks about their favorite food to cook while camping.

For me, this campfire stew brings to mind camping along a cold river as a nine- or ten-year-old boy with my family. After a day of paddling on chilly spring-fed water, we’d light a fire and cook this super-simple, one-pot meal — warm and filling at the end of the day. Since then, I’ve shared it with others, and they’ve shared their own campfire stew recipes with me. What’s most consistent is this: the ingredients matter less than the warm feeling served up at the end of the day while camping under the stars. Felt as both a reward and a comfort, it’s these small things that create good memories when we’re young.

My campfire stew has lasted a lifetime and will outlast me, because my son delights in cooking it too. The ingredients are purposely simple: a can of cut green beans (not French-cut), a can of diced new potatoes, a sliced smoked sausage, and a little Cavender’s Greek Seasoning. Once everything’s in the pot, add water and bring it to a boil — the boil draws the oils out of the sausage and gives the stew most of its flavor.

Like any food cooked outdoors, I think it always tastes better over a campfire. But it’s become a favorite cold-weather recipe for our family, giving us that little taste of the outdoors even when we feel trapped inside. We usually have the canned items in the pantry anyway and keep some sausage in the freezer.

Campfire Stew

1 can cut green beans

1 can diced new potatoes

1 smoked sausage, sliced

About 2 cups water

Season to taste (I like 3 tsp Cavender’s Greek Seasoning)

Bring to a boil for 5 minutes, then serve it up. Add your favorite crusty bread or crescent rolls to round it out.

Classic campfire comfort food might even include those Americana favorites: s’mores and hot cocoa. Would you believe I keep packets of hot cocoa in my kayaking gear? I’ve done it as a day-saver, or in the case of a really cold swim for myself or anyone with me. It helps warm the body’s core, the chocolate helps release endorphins, and the sugar gives a little extra carb kick to recover from the cold. With a Jet Boil or another micro-cooking system, it’s an easy, packable part of my emergency kit.

It’s just another example of how the right food at the right time makes a difference. It helps on three fronts. First, warmth — one of the hardest things for your body to regulate outdoors, and in the case of an unexpected cold-water swim, it can literally be a lifesaver. Second, the chocolate releases endorphins for that “feel good” lift while your body temperature climbs back up. Third, it gives your body some sugar to burn, for a much-needed energy boost to finish recovering.

The great thing is you don’t have to have a cold swim or a brush with hypothermia to get that boost. It can rescue a kid’s day, too, when they’re cold, tired, or irritable after a lot of sledding or hiking. Sometimes children get down or feisty when they’ve burned through their energy reserves and are getting “hangry” (hungry + angry). I won’t say adults get that way too, but we all know the truth. Lift the vibe quickly — and look like a seasoned superhero — by whipping up a little hot cocoa. Not only does it create another good memory, you might just start a new tradition.

20+ Essential Items for Your New RV

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You just got home with your new RV, and now you’re wondering about all the items you should add — but not too many! — to be officially set up for your first camping trip. It can be a little overwhelming to realize that outfitting an RV or camper is a lot like outfitting a new home. Rest assured, though: you don’t need nearly as much “stuff” in your RV as you have in your house. Better yet, a great goal is to lean toward the minimalist side.

We do our best to pack a week in advance, and then we sit with it. That may sound strange, but it gives us time — as we stock the fridge and put clothes away — to admit that we don’t need four seasons of clothing and 25 books for a week-long trip. In fact, we keep a laundry basket on the sofa that, little by little, gets loaded with the items we’ve changed our minds about, and those go back into the house before we leave. It helps with both weight and clutter.

With our tendency to overpack acknowledged from the start, here are 20 items that have become essential from the moment we take off — plus a few bonuses.

Tire blocks. No one wants to roll away just as they’re getting ready to make dinner.

Drinking-water-safe hose. Always bring your own and keep it clean — this is where the water you drink, cook with, and bathe in travels.

Adjustable water pressure regulator. This small gadget saves us from big headaches when a campground’s water pressure is too forceful for typical plumbing.

In-line water filter. This sits between the spigot and your drinking-water hose. It keeps most particulate out of your RV lines and improves the taste.

Disposable gloves. Because handling the sewer hose isn’t always an art form.

A separate rinse hose (not drinking-water safe). This one hooks to your black-tank cleaning port. Just to be safe, keep it separate.

Surge protector (30-amp, or 50-amp if your rig requires it). RVs have a lot of electronics and appliances these days — not to mention the ones you bring — so protect them from unexpected power surges.

Rechargeable LED flashlight. At some point you’ll want to go outside at night to check on something, and a good light (with rechargeable batteries to cut waste) is just a good idea.

Welcome mat. This might not seem essential until your first rain. As you track in sand, mud, and leaves, you’ll think back to this list and say, “ah, I get it.”

Nesting pots and pans. “Nesting” is key. The first time we traveled, we just grabbed pots and pans from the home kitchen. Nesting sets saved weight and precious space we could then use for other kitchen items.

Unbreakable dinner plates. “Unbreakable” is key here. Melamine is a great option, and we also love reusable wheat-straw plates that act like plastic but are earth-friendlier.

Ceramic knife set. We like these so much we’re planning to replace our kitchen knives at home with them. They hold their edge incredibly well and won’t rust.

Flexible plastic cutting board. Talk about space-saving — we now use one at home, too. Easy to clean and can be stored anywhere.

Can opener. Yes. Because we’ve forgotten one before and spent a whole weekend opening cans with an old military-style survival opener.

Shelf and drawer liner. This goes with all the “unbreakable” items but adds another layer: things stay put on this non-slip, non-adhesive mat. It’s important in cabinets and on shelves, and we’ve even left a basket on a piece of liner on the counter — hundreds of miles later, it hadn’t moved.

Electric water kettle. We love our coffee, tea, and cocoa. Nearly-instant hot water in the morning — at the temperature you want, with auto shut-off — while you feed and walk pets and cook breakfast feels pretty luxurious. Ours is insulated, too, even when the dogs take their time.

Synthetic towel set. Damp, stinky towels are unpleasant, and in humid places it happens fast. Synthetic towels are still soft but dry quickly, so they avoid that stale smell.

Black-tank toilet pods. If you don’t use these, you’ll understand why people do after a couple of weeks. Black tanks get smelly with use, and these pods help.

Wine opener. We did say these are essentials, right? A screwdriver just isn’t the same.

Unbreakable wine and water glasses. See above.

And a few bonus items:

Small hand vacuum. Tracking in dirt is inevitable, spills happen, and indoor life is more compact in an RV. This little vacuum helps keep your sock bottoms clean.

Hanging laundry basket. Unless you have a washer/dryer on board, laundry has to be mobile. This basket stays out of the way and is easy to carry to the laundromat.

Reusable shopping bags. These become more multi-use than almost anything else in your RV: groceries, picnics, the post office, dirty things — it’s good to have spares.

First-aid kit. We always hope we never use it, but it’s nice to have a basic kit on hand. More often than not it’ll be a neighbor who needs a bandage, but at least you can help.

RV toilet paper. We all have a favorite brand, but things will… flow… better if you use paper that starts to break down while it sits in the tank. Think of it as a safeguard.

Did we miss anything in this round of essentials? What would you add for your travels?