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In 2015, Ashley Kay’s father died and She inherited her home in childhood in Waterford, Wisconsin. At the time, she was 27 years old, worked in corporate healthcare and moved on to consulting work, where she worked from 80 to 100 hours a week.
“I worked from home so I just left my bedroom to my office to the kitchen and repeat,” says Kay, who is 36 years old, “CNBC tells. “In those days I was a zombie.”
As he was traveling, Kay met someone on a honduras diving trip, who helped her realize what she wanted was to leave her career behind and travel full -time.
“We just hit him and talked all the time when I was there. We talked about the worst of the worst, the best of the best and best,” Kay says.
“He told me that he wanted to do it earlier because it was so easier and more cheaper than you think. It changed everything for me. I got home and worked more and more until I left next year.”
Since living in the truck, Kaye has traveled to over 20 countries.
Ashley Kay
Kay spent the next three years traveling during the Covid-19 pandemic. While on a trip to South Africa, she received unexpected news that her aunt was sick and would have to fly home to Wisconsin.
“This flight was probably the moment when no ounce of my being was like” Yes, I go home. ” It was like, “I don’t want to be here.” I like to be on the islands. I like to have the ocean near me. This took the hesitation I had in previous years for the sale of the house. “
As Kay returned home, taking care of her aunt, she prepared her home for sale and considers her next move. She was thinking a lot about trying Van’s life and lived and traveling with her dog.
“Traveling by plane with a dog just sounded like a terrible idea,” she says. “I do a lot of photography, so I knew I wanted something where I could reach more destination.”
As she waited for the sale of her home to close, a couple turned to Kay on Instagram to ask about their time in South Africa. They shared their experience exceeding Toyota’s truck with a camper in the truck’s bed.
Overlanding is a form of self -traveling, which includes adventures to remote destinations, usually in a vehicle of some type.
Kay estimates that she has spent over $ 50,000 on repairs.
Ashley Kay
After doing some of his own research, Kaye was all-in and purchased a Toyota Tacoma truck for $ 42,934, according to CNBC reviews, did it.
Kay raised the truck in South Dakota and took him back to Wisconsin to finish the packaging of his home when he officially sold in March 2023.
“The plan is that there is no plan”
Now that her new home was the truck, Kay went on her first adventure: driving to Baja California, Mexico. She stayed there for three months and was planning the repairs that would have to make the truck more like.
“My life is something like” The plan is that there is no plan. ” Most people have been planning this type of adventure for years. “It was very upright at the moment, so I had to pause and understand things.”
As she lived in Mexico, Kay found an American company that made the truck’s bed replacers to provide external storage and make it easier for her to live and travel to Toyota Tacoma. But the installation could not happen until September.
Kay took things from his home in childhood to use in a camper.
Ashley Kay
In the meantime, Kay learned as much as he could about the truck and the type of camper he would need. She estimates that she has spent over $ 50,000 on repairs.
Costs included buying a camper, adding solar energy, replacing the truck bed, upgrading the suspension, new tires, personalizing armor and installing an electric cooler.
When the truck was ready, Kay decided to travel with the Pan -American highway, starting from Denver. The highway extends from the Bay of Prudho, Alaska to Ushuaia, Argentina.
“This is a really incredible way to travel because you can set your own pace and if you find it somewhere that is beautiful and peaceful, you can stay as long as you want,” Kay says.
“But there are advantages and downsides for every travel mode and many bureaucracy and logistics limits. This can be exhausting, especially when you are alone. You have to find a balance that works for you, but in general, this is definitely one of the most big adventures of my life.”
Kay’s lesson # 1: “Life is too short so just live”
After living and traveling in a full -time truck, Kay visited Mexico, every country in Central America, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Chile and parts of Argentina. So far, it has been in over 20 countries.
“I don’t want to be a cliché and say it’s a dream life, because it’s a lot of work and there are many things you need to care for and maintain,” she says.
“But it’s really amazing to be able to wake up and just look at the card and say,” Should I sleep in this volcano or go to the jungle or go to the beach? “You have a lot of really beautiful options, so I really can’t complain.”
Ashley Kay has been living and traveling to his Toyota truck since 2023.
Ashley Kay
After all this time on the road, Kay says that the biggest lesson she has learned is that life is too short.
“Ever since I started traveling (I learned), life is too short. You don’t have to go and leave your career to travel the world, but whatever your dreams and goals are in life, just start now and everything else is just to come up with a goal,” she says.
Kay says that when she was younger, it was her father who taught her that she was capable of everything.
“I grew up with my father who was raising me and told me every day” You can be everything you want when you grow up and you can do anything, “she says.” He was 57 when he died, so he didn’t even have to retire. His passage taught me how to live life because you never know how long you have in life. “
Kaye purchased Toyota Tacoma for $ 42,934.
Ashley Kay