Gear for a Central California Coast Road Trip
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Get $10 off • click here or use code JOURNALOFLOSTIME at check out for $10 off your next order of $100 or more on Simpler Ways
Essential gear for road tripping down the California Coast ahead of the vanlife and overlanding events BuenaVantura & Weird Wild West
Sēkr
As we drive down California’s iconic Highway 1, our excitement is through the roof thinking about the upcoming vanlife and overlanding gathering in Ventura. Being a few days early, we open the Sēkr app to check the few overnight spots we’ve saved ahead of the trip. We see that a few other attendees are in the area, so we decide to camp together near the beach outside of town, with Hines peak on one side and the Pacific Ocean on the other side.
Sēkr is the only app to connect you with community and resources. With this complete resource for life on the road, you can explore every type of campsite, chat and plan camping trips with friends, discover outdoor events, or find people nearby. All for free.
Go Power
As soon as we park at our campsite, we set up our portable solar kit to take advantage of this blissful SoCal sun before we head to the beach. This Go Power kit has been vital in keeping us operational for our remote jobs and powering our everyday life on the road. Lightweight, easy to store and use, it’s been the perfect portable all-in-one solar charging solution for us.
DuraLite solar kits feature integrated kickstands and rigid plastic handles with built-in USB chargers, and convenient magnetic closures. This comes with all you’ll need to charge your batteries, including a 30-amp charge controller, cables, and an array of connection options. *Best paired with 200Ah of AGM Battery Power, or 100 Ah of Lithium Battery Power.
Rux
We’ve been alternating long morning drives and afternoons of work for a few days now, and we’re looking forward to spending an afternoon of much-deserved lounging at the beach. Our camp spot is close enough to the beach to walk, but far enough that we want to take everything we might need with us - if not more. No one wants to walk back and forth to the van because they keep forgetting things. We grab our 70-liter RUX all-in-one storage system, the perfect solution to transfer everything and beyond to our beach camp spot.
RUX is an all-in-one system to pack, move, and use your valuable gear. Its tri-fold lid increases ease of access while keeping the rest of the RUX contents protected from the elements which makes it perfect for beach excursions.
LAVA LINENS
We take our books, sunglasses, and other beach necessities…we’re ready to lounge on the beach. We grab our Lava Linens beach blanket which also serves as a quick-dry towel, picnic blanket, and bath sheet! Why did we choose Lava Linens? The mother x two daughter team founded this company with the planet top of mind. If we are going to wreck natural, wild places to produce adventure gear, then where do we go to adventure? Lava Linens is committed to using climate-friendly plant-fiber textiles and working with artisans to create heirloom pieces that can be used for a lifetime of adventuring.
Lava Linens is a Boulder, Colorado-based mother x two daughters team inspiring adventurers to get outside more often while leaving behind a smaller footprint by opting for durable, beautiful plant-fiber outdoor gear. You can find a selection of their products optimized for life on the road on Simpler Ways.
Lava Linens beach blankets and towels made of ultra-durable hemp and flax fibers
Go Sun
On a sunny day like this, we never hesitate to bring our portable solar oven. In the past, we’ve cooked fish or meats, and we’ve even had our Argentinian friends boil water for their afternoon mate. But this afternoon, we’re slow-cooking vegetables for tonight’s meal. We’re in awe that this happens just sitting in the sun, while we lounge right next to it!
GoSun builds solar appliances to help you live with more independence and resilience. Using only the Sun, now you can cook, cool, charge, light, or purify water. This solar oven and accessories bundle includes the Go Solar Oven, a cleaning brush, four silicone baking cups, a tilt stand, a sundial, and a drawstring bag to carry it all on the go.
Go Shower
As Ventura steps into spring, the days get warmer —warm enough to use our single most luxurious item on the road: a Go Shower portable hot shower. We hang it outside our van and connect it directly to our water hook-up. On a day like this, after a memorable sunset overlooking Pierpont Bay and the Santa Monica mountains in the distance, we’re happy to rinse off the sand and start the evening clean and refreshed.
Go Shower is a California company created by a surfer and Westy owner and enthusiast, which allows you to convert your City Water Hookup to a hot shower rinse.
Omnia stovetop oven
We’re both enthusiastic cooks, and since we’ve had our cooktop oven we’ve been able to take our cooking to the next level. It’s perfectly designed to prepare everything you can think of with a traditional oven. Cakes, bread, steamed fish, chicken—you name it. We place our slow-cooked vegetables with ravioli inside and let the magic happen for our favorite pasta gratin for tonight’s potluck - to the delight of our friends.
The oven for the ovenless: Omnia is a three-part stovetop oven that utilizes the heat from the stove and generates both top and bottom heat. A must-have for all cooking enthusiasts on the road, the oven and its myriad of accessories open a whole new world of possibilities.
Trippy Outdoor
The food is hot and the beers are cold. With our plates in one hand and our Tripster chairs in the other, we walk over to our friends’ van where the potluck’s happening. Given this chair’s unique look, we’ve gotten used to getting many questions about these chairs. The way they fold, the locking mechanism, and their sturdiness - they definitely are the center of attention around the campfire!
With the Tripster chair, you’re looking at 8 lbs of rad that supports up to 1000 lbs of adventure. Handles make it easy to bring along to catch the surf, climb the crag, or simply gaze up at the stars around a campfire. Even if all the smoke blows your way, you'll still have the best seat in camp.
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