10 Years On The Road Full Time! First as Adventure Caravanners – Then as Grumpy Old Truckers…

Today is a very special day. It is our 10 year Vanniversary! On 10th May 2016, a month after we accidentally bought our first ever caravan, Mark, The Fab Four and I hit the road full-time, and set off on a three year trip around Europe…

It all started when we went out one day to ‘just to look’ and accidentally bought a caravan. We already had a trusty tow vehicle and toy box, Big Blue – and couldn’t fit all our windsurfers, bikes, SUPs and skis in a motorhome!

We figured that if we rented out the house and moved into the caravan, we might never need to work again… And that’s how we went from first timers to full-timers in two bottles of champagne!

The Fab Four have been with us from the start. They are the BEST travel companions.

Jackie & Mark Lambert with The Fab Four cavapoos posing in front of the guard towe at Agadir Id Aissa, Amtoudi, Morocco — Family shot at Agadir Id Aissa, Amtoudi, Morocco

Jackie & Mark Lambert on a blue staircase with The Fab Four dogs in Chefchaouen, Morocco — Family shot at Agadir Id Aissa, Amtoudi, Morocco

We decided to do caravanning – but not as you know it.

Here crossing the Carpathian Mountains in Romania on one of the world’s ‘most dangerous roads; It’s also Jeremy Clarkson’s favourite road. Knowing how much he loves caravans, we did it in his honour

Jacqueline Lambert's van, Big Blue, towing Caravan Kismet on the hairpins of the Transfagarasan, Romania's second highest mountain pass — Big Blue & Caravan Kismet on the Transfagarasan, Romania’s second highest mountain pass & one of the world’s most dangerous roads

We called our travels Adventure Caravanning, because our aim was: To Boldly Go Where No Van Has Gone Before.

And that included a footpath, a few cornfields, as well as mountain hairpins.

Showing a caravan being towed through a cornfield — Towing across our second cornfield

Jacqueline Lambert's van Big Blue towing Caravan Kismet along a footpath — Towing across our second cornfield

After 5 years, we decided to upgrade our ride to head beyond Europe’s borders to Mongolia.

Meet The Beast…

A 6×4-wheel drive ex army truck we bought blind off the internet to convert into a new off-grid home-on-wheels fit for a trip to Mongolia.

Jacqueline Lambert's truck, The Beast, next to her van, Big Blue — The Beast, next to Big Blue

She didn’t look too homely inside when we bought her…

Interior of the Beast's metal cargo box before conversion — How she was when we bought her

But our first ever DIY van conversion didn’t turn out too badly in the end! You can see a slideshow of how the conversion turned out HERE, or have a full tour with the video made by @Liveration HERE

The Beast is fully self-sufficient off grid for up to 6 weeks!

Jacqueline Lambert's truck, The Beast, in the snow. — The Beast is self sufficient off grid for up to six weeks – in all conditions!

Due to war and geopolitics, we haven’t made Mongolia yet, but we’ve visited 29 countries!

Screenshot from Polarsteps app showing the destinations visited by Jacqueline Lambert on her travels encompassing 29 countries in Europe and Africa

And rescued a few dogs on the way!

Meet Blade, the Transylvanian street dog who now lives with our friends in The New Forest!

Mark holding a black dog in his arms - Blade the Transylvanian street dog we rescued — Blade – The Vampire Slayer

And Iskra – ‘Spark’, the sweet little girl who trotted down the road in a Bulgarian village and rolled over for a tummy tickle.

We were never leaving her behind!

She now lives with friends in Lancashire.

A very mangy stray dog eating. Iskra, the stray dog we picked up in Bulgaria — Iskra the day we met her

Black and tan dog in Mark's arms in Bulgarian vet — It took 2 months & 11 vet visits to get Iskra healthy enough to have her rabies jab

Three people sitting outside a cafe in Plovdiv Bulgaria with 5 dogs: The Fab Four and Iskra — It took 2 months & 11 vet visits to get Iskra healthy enough to have her rabies jab

And Max – Maximus Decimus – who we found abandoned in Morocco near where they filmed Gladiator.

The head of a golden puppy in front of the movie poster for the film Gladiator at the Atlas Film Studios in Morocco — Max, The Gladiator

The sandy coloured Moroccan puppy Max with his passport & papers for Europe — Max got all his papers to travel from Morocco to Europe

Max the sand coloured puppy in a field of flowers — Max got all his papers to travel from Morocco to Europe

We’ve stayed in some beautiful places…

Front of caravan on ocean shoreline with sunset, just feet from the Adriatic on the Island of Krk, Croatia — Kismet, just feet from the Adriatic on the Island of Krk, Croatia

Volvo N10 truck, The Beast, parked on the shore of Lake Ohrid, Albania, with a rainbow behind — Kismet, just feet from the Adriatic on the Island of Krk, Croatia

Met some interesting people… we even made a cameo appearance on Ben Fogle’s ‘New Lives in the Wild’!

They say don’t meet your heroes, but yes – Ben is just as lovely as you would imagine! You can read about the filming for New Lives in the Wild HERE.

Jacqueline and Mark Lambert with TV Presenter Ben Fogle in front of their truck, The Beast

Without our travels, I would never have started my blog – and would never have written my books, which I’m amazed and delighted to say have won multiple awards!

The covers of all 9 of Jacqueline Lambert's travel books: The Adventure Caravanning with Dogs series, Wayward Truck series, & Never Mind The Baltics series, with awards.

And aged 59, I would never have got my truck licence! (To read about how I became a Trucking Belle, click HERE.)

To uphold the corner for the ladies, I’m pleased to say I passed first time…

Jacqueline Lambert standing in front of a truck with her certificate after just passing her truck test — I qualified as a grumpy old trucker in a truck called Grumpy!

And after 10 years on the road, I can’t see us quitting any time soon.

So I raise a glass of The Wanderer wine to all my fellow trail seekers and campfire dreamers, however you enjoy the road: caravan, van, camper, MoHo, or truck – and whether you’re full-time or just love the odd night or a weekend away in your van.

Bottle of The Wanderer wine and 3 glasses on the worktop of The Beast, Jacqueline Lambert's expedition truck. — A bottle of The Wanderer wine, just waiting to be quaffed in The Beast!

Thank you for following our adventures… and YAPPY TRAVELS!

Come and See Us! The Beast On Show

The Beast will be on show at the Vanlife Festival in Shrewsbury at the end of May 2026, and at the Adventure Overland and Campervan Show on 13-14th June 2026 at Stratford-upon-Avon Racecourse, where I shall be delivering not one, but two talks…

So if you’re going, please come along and say, “Hi!”

We can’t make all the shows, but if you want a list of other festivals and shows, check out my post 2026 UK Van Life Festivals, RV, Caravan, Camper, Motorhome, Overlanding & Self-Build Events

A volvo N10 and Zil overland truck conversion adjacent to each other — The Beast and a Zil on show at Vanlife Shrewsbury last year

Find My Books!

If you want to read the full story of how we went from Wage Slaves to Living The Dream – it is all documented in my series of fun travel memoirs.

Adventure Caravanning With Dogs is my first series, and The Wayward Truck and my latest release, From B to A: Britain to Albania (the first in my Never Mind The Balkans series) follow life with The Beast.