How the Tankesleys Accidentally Became Overlanders

White Rim Trail probably shouldnt have been our first overlanding trip. It definitely wasn’t supposed to become our first recovery operation. Looking back, it was the perfect introduction.

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If you had told me a few years ago that I’d be spending weekends exploring backroads in a Tacoma, I 100% would have believed you.

When I met my now-husband in 2022, my dream was to travel and live in a van (they can still go through a drive-thru… priorities). At first, I hated his Tacoma. It made me sooo motion sick. It was completely ridiculous. We’d both hate car rides in it because I’d be miserably sick, and he’d just be miserable because I was so miserable.

Both of us have been camping for as long as we can remember, but neither of us considered ourselves “overlanders.” We just enjoyed getting outside, exploring new places, and really finding an excuse to locate a body of water to kayak and fish.

After getting married in May of 2024, while standing at a Maverik gas pump, my husband texted me and said, “Let’s do White Rim in Canyonlands.” We called his dad, the 4×4 pioneer of the group, and asked if he’d be down. With mixed emotions, he said yes, and my mother-in-law agreed because it was only going to be one night.

I immediately started looking for a rooftop tent.

Apparently our trip planning process is to commit first and figure out the details later.

With nothing but a roof rack, bed rack, two fuel cans, one water can, a CVT tent, and a diesel heater we still have never used, we took off for Moab in December.

Looking back, that was probably an ambitious choice.

There was also one small detail: I was 20 weeks pregnant.

The day we left, I had an ultrasound appointment. The technician couldn’t get the images he wanted because my bladder wasn’t full enough and left me legitimately concerned that Stevie (our daughter) might fall out. Naturally, this made the highway drive a bit edgy.

Once in Moab, the energy provided a solid distraction. After finding out the Shafer Switchbacks were closed due to snow, Potash it was. Although it was about a 20-mile detour, it was absolutely beautiful.

The trip was finally shaping up to be exactly what we’d hoped. The scenery was incredible, the weather was freezing but gorgeous, and we were driving along completely blissful, feeling pretty proud of ourselves for making it this far on our very first overlanding adventure.

Then the radio crackled.

At about seven hours in, or roughly 50 miles (we were taking our time), my father-in-law keyed up and casually said, “I think I broke something.”

My husband and I turned around to look at their truck, and the driver’s-side front tire was running nearly perpendicular to the body of their 2003 Tacoma.

We stopped to see what was going on and quickly realized this wasn’t going to be a quick fix, though there was a valiant effort involving a hitch pin.

About a mile from Gooseberry Camp, a ball joint had failed on his truck.

Just like that, our first overlanding trip became our first recovery operation.

Instead of continuing the White Rim Trail, we turned around and headed back toward Moab via Potash Road. After loading gear and two more humans into an already squatting Tacoma, we started to execute Plan B.

Big shout-out to the O’Reilly Auto Parts in Moab for delivering two new ball joints to the hotel we had booked and arrived at around midnight.

At the time, it felt like a disaster.

Now it’s one of my favorite memories from the trip.

We set our alarms for 3:30 a.m. and re-hit the trail.

I think that’s when I learned what overlanding actually is. It’s not perfectly curated campsites, expensive gear, or flawless itineraries. It’s solving problems, adapting when things don’t go according to plan, and finding grace at midnight when the chicken nugget munching in the backseat is almost unbearable. Now, I’m just thankful the Moab McDonald’s was still open.

Even with the breakdown, the extra miles, and the unexpected detour, we came home completely hooked.

Since then, we’ve continued building our Tacoma and figuring out what works for us. Some of our gear is budget-friendly. Our roof rack and bed rack came from Amazon and have served us well. Other items, like our CVT rooftop tent, CVT awning, and Joolca shower setup, were things we felt were worth spending a little more on.

We’re not interested in having the most expensive setup on the trail. We’re interested in having a setup that works for our family. Efficiency is life.

In April 2025, our daughter joined the adventure, and now we’re learning how to balance overlanding, parenthood, and everyday life. We’re not full-time travelers, and we definitely don’t live out of our truck. Most of the time, we’re balancing work, family, home projects, and all the normal responsibilities that come with life.

This blog is where I’ll share our trips, gear reviews, mistakes, lessons learned, and everything we’re figuring out along the way. If you’re new to overlanding, traveling with a family, building your rig one piece at a time, or wondering whether your setup is “good enough,” you’re in the right place.

Trust me—we didn’t know what we were doing on White Rim either.

Yours Truly, The Tankesleys