Adventure Garage to the Rescue
Wrench Time in the Valley
This episode opens with a trip back to River Outdoors’ Adventure Garage in Phoenix — their shop where all the work on my Moonlander comes together. The Frontier rolled in dusty, tired, truly broken, and by the time we were done, it rolled out better than new.
We ditched the broken awning and bolted on a fresh replacement. The batteries came out, got new custom mounting hardware, and went back in solid. The wiring got stripped, rerouted, and tightened down until the whole setup was dialed. We even added charge ports right next to the Anker EverFrost fridge so I could stop running cords across the truck bed.
I stress-tested everything before leaving: ran the batteries hard, cycled the fridge, flipped lights on and off just to see them work. For the first time in a while, I didn’t have to cross my fingers or constantly check everything a second or third time.
A Conversation with Louie
While the truck was getting buttoned up, I sat down with Louie from River Outdoors for a quick interview and a recap of everything that had led to this point — the highs, the breakdowns, the lessons learned so far living full-time out of the Moonlander.
Talking it through reminded me why this trip is worth it, even when things break. Louie’s perspective as someone who’s built a lot of rigs helped me see the long view: every build has teething issues, but once you dial it in, it becomes second nature. You learn what works, and cut out everything that doesn’t.
Water, Dust, and First Slow Miles
With the rig dialed, I headed north, stopping at Oak Creek to fill the LifeSaver Jerrycan — something about filtering my own water right out of the creek felt like getting back to basics.
That night I camped outside of Williams. No big plan, no rushing to the next place. Just me, the new awning, a little wind, and the first taste of what slowing down might look like. The forest was quiet, the night cool, and I woke up not to alarms or to-do lists, but to light.
Gear in the Field
Between camp setups, I put the Wanderful Camp Clean Shower Curtain through its paces — compact, fast to deploy, and a surprisingly good way to rinse off a day’s work. Paired with the LifeSaver Jerrycan, it meant I didn’t have to find a campground shower or buy plastic water jugs.
Why It Matters
Episode 06 was about turning a corner. Getting the gear right, rebuilding confidence, and setting the stage for what comes next. Sitting down with Louie gave me a chance to reset my head, too — to look at the trip so far as one big learning curve rather than a series of bad breaks.
Out of the garage, into the woods, and for the first time in this trip — actually starting to slow down once again and settle into the rhythm of the road.