Denied Entry to Mexico in a School Bus: Two Border Crossings, Zero Stamps, One Hard Lesson A cautionary tale about vehicle weight limits, bureaucratic technicalities, and the humbling perspective that comes from standing at the wrong side of a border. When people asked us about our adventures after we returned to Maine for the summer, they expected the highlights reel. And honestly, we had a spectacular one. We could have talked about Base Camp — the school bus we'd bought from the local district, gutted, and rebuilt into our rolling home after our sailboat Tiny Bubbles II sold. We could have told them about the manatees that joined us while we swam in the crystal springs of Florida, floating alongside us with the serene indifference of creatures who have never once had a schedule to keep. We could have described the world-class bouldering at Hueco Tanks , 32 miles northeast of El Paso — a 4,000-year-old landscape of pocketed syenite rock that climbers fly in from...

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase through these links, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. We only recommend gear we actually use. Thanks for supporting Nomadventure! Costa Rica Surf Spots: The Complete Family Guide to Beginner, Intermediate & Advanced Breaks Costa Rica Surf Spots: The Complete Guide to Waves, Wipeouts & Why Our Kids Are Now Better Surfers Than Us In 2016, we made what we thought was a brilliant family decision: pack up and move to Costa Rica for its nature, warm climate, and family-friendly Pura Vida lifestyle. What we didn't anticipate was that our children would immediately become obsessed with surfing while my wife and I remained exactly where we started: firmly planted on our rears in the sand, nursing margaritas and documenting our failures on GoPro. Now, eight years later, our family can't imagine life without surf forecasts dictating our weekends. Somehow, between the escalating ...

How We Infiltrated Mexico Twice from a National Park (And Why You Should Too) A Complete Guide to Crossing into Boquillas del Carmen from Big Bend — With Burros, Bureaucracy, and a Four-Year-Old in Full Firefighter Gear The border crossing that a U.S. Customs agent couldn't get through without laughing. I have now led my family across the Rio Grande into Mexico twice. Once on a spontaneous Sunday in 2019, in the middle of a minivan circumnavigation of the United States, with three boys, no plan, and a four-year-old dressed head-to-toe as a firefighter. And once in 2022, without our beloved overloaded skoolie (converted school bus), which had been diplomatically informed by the Mexican border that its presence was not required. Both times were absurd. Both times were wonderful. Both times ended at a video kiosk where a U.S. Customs officer in El Paso had to compose himself before clearing us back into America. This is the story of both crossings —...

If you've spent any time on trail forums, you've seen the diet: Pop-Tarts for breakfast, Snickers at every mile marker, ramen at camp. It technically keeps you moving — but it also wrecks your gut, crashes your energy, and leaves your joints running on empty by the time you hit the Sierra. There's a better way. Disclosure: This post contains Amazon affiliate links. If you purchase through these links, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. All recommendations are based on genuine trail experience and research. The Pacific Crest Trail demands somewhere between 3,500 and 6,000 calories per day depending on your pace, elevation gain, and pack weight. Most hikers target 1.5 to 2 lbs of food per day , which means every ounce needs to earn its place. The candy bar crowd isn't wrong about calories — where they go wrong is ignoring protein for muscle repair, fat quality for sustained energy, and micronutrients that keep you healthy over a months-lo...