The global economy and peoples desire to travel and explore has led to the explosive growth of alternate living arrangements. From the tiny house movement, to living in boats people are finding ways to cut their housing costs by avoiding the traditional rent or mortgage setup and using those savings to travel. Because Jeeps are such capable vehicles they have long been a popular choice for overland adventure travel especially after the intro of the JKU. With more and more people looking for vehicles to live, sleep and travel in, Jeeps were bound to get in on the action.
Here are 3 inspiring travelers who are all living out of their Jeep full-time so that they can travel the world and call a new place home every night.
Jake Wettern “aka” IamJake
Born and raised in Wisconsin Jake wanted to explore and found himself living on a sail boat in a small marina near Astoria Oregon. With the goal of seeing as much of the the US as possible Jake started living in his Jeep full-time, not long after hitting the road he embarked on what he has coined “the fifty state road trip” where he travels in a state for around a month and explores it’s backroads while getting to know other overlanders and Jeep enthusiasts along the way. In each state he hosts a Jamboree where followers can come meetup, spend some time on the trail and each participant is asked to bring some canned food to donate to a food bank.
Not long after hitting the road he added an adorable co-pilot Annie to the mix.
His Jeep “Jade” has an iconic look, as Jake has slowly transformed the TJ into a YJ looks wise.
After two years his setup has changed a lot, from starting out with a simple cot in place of a passenger seat, to a loaded roof-rack with a pup tent. Jake has been documenting his travels on his YouTube channel with nearly daily vlogs for years. With plenty of content to binge watch you can start from the beginning or just pick a few of his top videos.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbjw-VrJCUb8PTGoiDI2UMw
Dan Grec
Dan Grec is currently on an epic adventure circumnavigating Africa in his 2011 JKU. Several years ago he traveled from Alaska to Argentina in a 2000 TJ, which is where his life of adventure really started to take off. He has written several books about his travels and regularly posts updates to his blog and YouTube Channel.
Dan completely transformed his 2011 JKU into a true long term overland rig that is completely self sustaining and can travel over 600 miles without having to refuel. He sleeps in his Ursa Minor sleeping platform that essentially removes the OEM Jeep hardtop and replaces it with a new roof that looks nearly factory but comes with an integrated popup bed that can be accessed from inside the vehicle. We have loved following his Journey deep into Africa and can’t wait to see where the road will take him next.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkyky5zC8R1Gi6YeeCR6BDg
Chris Shontz
Chris has been travelling off and on for the past few years in his Jeep Rubicon. Originally from Pennsylvania he kept an apartment for the first year of travel and then decided to not renew his lease to save money and spend more time exploring North America. This past summer he spent multiple months traveling all the way to Alaska and back. Chris like Dan and Jake mostly travels alone but does meet up with other travelers to share in parts of the journey.
Each week Chris publishes a video on his YouTube channel documenting his week. Each episode showcases stunning locations and fun adventures. Chris’s videos move at a different pace than the other two but are very enjoyable. He truly has a love of the outdoors and adventure and often takes viewers on hikes, and trips in his Kayak. Chris also utilizes an Ursa Minor poptop tent to sleep. While his build is not quite as as extensive as Dans, he has an incredibly capable rig suited for long term adventure travel. Chris recently announced he will be settling down for a little bit to spend time with family. He has not outlined exactly what that means but we are certain his life will still be filled with plenty of incredible adventures.
https://www.youtube.com/c/venture4wd
Are You Next?
After watching just a few of their videos I am ready to pack up our Jeep and hit the trail full-time. Would you live in your Jeep full-time if you could? Know of another adventurer travelling the world in their Jeep? Let us know in the comments and we can share their story to.