Though I grew up riding in trucks and swamp buggies around the Everglades and have never stopped camping, taking the unpaved path was something I rarely did in my early adult years. For years my vehicle was my means of getting to work and transporting my children to school and innumerable activities, as well as the as-frequent-as-possible family trips. However, things changed the day my youngest began to drive himself and I was freed of the vehicular constraints that were, in hindsight, more self-imposed than real.

As my children began driving themselves I was able to swap my Pathfinder for a lifted & built Land Rover Discovery II, the perfect match to my husband’s recently acquired classic Defender 90. With our family's love of the outdoors, we immediately began taking advantage of the opportunities for exploration that these new vehicles afforded us.
After meeting like-minded locals in various parking lots in town (built rigs do tend to draw overlanders like moths to flame) we learned of several nearby events where we could put our rigs (and ourselves) to the test. Our first event, at the same venue where I would later meet Cara, was a Land Cruiser event (Cruiser Crawl) where our Land Rovers were accepted with the obligatory good-natured ribbing. I had never driven on anything close to what I experienced that first weekend, but could not get enough.
The exhilaration of getting my truck through or over something that would have led me to turn around, if I had not had experienced drivers with me to assure me of what was possible, was exhilarating! I began practicing around our hometown, taking weekend trips out into the National Forests, looking for challenges, and honing my skills. We would return to that ORV park often, and seek out others in the ensuing years.

Of course, we paired this with long-distance technical trips to some of the most beautiful and remote areas that I never would have been able to access otherwise. We are all blessed to be a part of a community of like-minded outdoor enthusiasts who are built upon shared experiences and the help and assistance given to strangers (soon-to-be fast friends) on the trail. The freedom granted by my truck and my newly developed skill set have enriched my life beyond measure and has given me the confidence that I can go anywhere…and now I spend most of my time doing just that.
-Danielle
