World Wide Walkies

Overland Adventures with Dogs – Guest Post for Nomadic Retirement Travel

If you dream of a nomadic retirement, but feel overwhelmed by all the information out there and don’t know where to start, then Peta and Jonas’s Nomadic Retirement Travel blog is an excellent place to start!

Peta and Jonas are a location independent couple who made the big decision to minimise their belongings, retire early, and embrace a nomadic retirement lifestyle. Since 2018, they’ve explored over 80 countries, prioritizing travel and inspirational experiences over material possessions.

Their Nomadic Retirment website shares tips, resources, and stories to help you confidently embark on your own nomadic retirement journey!

Not only that, their Life Chapter 2 section shares inspirational stories from others who have taken the leap. The most recent post is about us!

So if you want to find out about our Life Chapter 1, how drunken conversations can change lives, the ups and downs of a nomadic retirement and our best advice if it is something you’re considering, you can read the full post here:

Overland Adventures with Dogs – Nomadic Retirement

If you want more advice and information on what it’s really like to live a nomadic life, check out my Top Tips page which has Tips on RV Travel Tips and Going Full Time and How We Did It, as well as my Wuff Guide to Travelling with Dogs.

Come Truckin’ With Us – Get Outdoors Through Your Inbox!

Wishing Shelf Book Award Finalist – Building The Beast: How (Not) To Build An Overland Camper

Amid a rather turbulent period in my life, (my husband skied off a mountain and was airlifted to hospital on my birthday!) an author friend, Alison Ripley-Cubitt, sent me some very welcome good news!

She told me my latest memoir, Building The Beast: How (Not) To Build An Overland Camper has been chosen as a finalist in the Adult Non-Fiction section of the Wishing Shelf Book Awards!

With everything that was going on, I had completely missed it.

I am so THRILLED!

The winners will be announced on 1st April 2025.

However, for li’l’ ole me to get this far in an international book award is enough. Anything else is purely icing and cherries on top!

Building The Beast has also been awarded a Readers’ Favorite 5* Seal and was a finalist in the memoir section of the Page Turner Awards 2024. Click HERE to read the Readers’ Favorite review.

The Wishing Shelf Book Awards is run by award-winning children’s author Billy Bob Buttons (Edward Trayer). It is recommended by ALLi, the Alliance of Independent Authors, and also supports a very worthy cause, Blind Children UK. If you are an author, you can enter the 2025 Wishing Shelf Book Awards here. It costs just £59/$75 to enter the awards, or £109/$140 if you want feedback, quotes, and reviews on Bookbub.com and Goodreads.

I am pleased to say that I am working very hard on the sequel, More Manchester Than Mongolia, and hope to release it later in 2025.

Reviews for Building The Beast

Are You Ready if Disaster Strikes? 12 Tips on Handling an Emergency Abroad

Unfortunately, our travelling lifestyle, which we chose in order to insulate ourselves from the many stresses of modern life, gives us no immunity from disaster.

Disaster struck recently, when Mark skied off a mountain on my birthday and was airlifted to hospital.

As a lover of aviation, I was quite cross that HE got a helicopter ride on MY birthday!

I also felt it was an extreme way to get out of buying me a birthday dinner.

Fortunately, given the nature of the accident, he broke only his tibia, and quite cleanly, so he should make a full recovery. However the whole experience has thrown into sharp relief some of the issues you might face should an emergency occur while you are travelling at home or abroad.

Here, I share twelve important lessons that this unfortunate experience has brought to light.

Read on to make sure you are ready if disaster strikes.

Mark, remarkably still smiling as he is taken away by piste rescue after skiing off the side of a mountain on my birthday

2025 UK Van Life Festivals, RV, Caravan, Camper, Motorhome, Overlanding & Self-Build Events

It’s February. It’s the start of Festival Season! So get your diary out…

For those considering buying or converting a van, visiting shows or meet-ups is a brilliant way to get ideas, see what options are available, meet suppliers and manufacturers, and chat with experts and other like-minded people.

If you already own a van, it’s just a fun thing to do!

In the UK, there is a full calendar of vanlife shows and get togethers. Most are annual festivals that take place over weekends, although day tickets are often available.

There are two types of events:

Trade Shows & Self Build Get Togethers, which are more product and information oriented. The largest shows featuring all the mainstream manufacturers are the two at the NEC (National Exhibition Centre) in Birmingham in February and October.
The Campervan Festivals are more social, music, and fun, although there is obviously an overlap, with many festivals now featuring self-build displays and talks.

I have tried to make this the most comprehensive guide to vanlife events, but if I have missed any major annual events, please let me know and I shall add them.

Britain has hundreds of brilliant and bonkers Other Festivals, which are ideal to visit in your van, so as a bonus I have also included some links for you to search directories of music festivals, air shows, floating markets, independent and green festivals to help you find the festival for you, although do see my Note on Dog Friendliness.

If you want to try vanlife but don’t yet have a van, I’ve included Motorhome & Camper Rentals, and a link to sample Sample Virtual Vanlife Via YouTube.