5 camper van firsts in 2025
Camper Van Beethoven at O’Leno State Park in Florida, where we woke up to a quiet, cool day after Christmas.
At its very core — at its very best, travel is about having a new experience. Shaking off your day-to-day and maybe even stepping outside your comfort zone.
Even a trip to a repeat destination can be new again, if you switch things just up a little. Try a different restaurant. Hike the trail loop the opposite way. Stay in a different area or campground.
It’s not just fun. It’s good for you.
Psychology Today writes that the simple act of doing something new can boost confidence, reduce stress and keep your brain healthy.
So, if you’re not having any firsts when you travel, as Taylor Swift says about being crazy in love: You ain’t doin’ it right.
I design most of our camper van trips for newness and novelty because I know that’s what lights me up.
Seeing something for the very first time just hits different.
There’s more wow in the waterfall the first time you hike to it. More awe in the view sweeping across the mountain range the first time you see it.
Not that it’s not amazing the second, third or fourth times. It just has less impact because you’ve been there, done that.
Standout moments from our 2025 camper van trips
In 2025, we had a slew of firsts on our camper van trips, which made me oh-so-happy. They were all meaningful in their own way, but here are five of the more impactful ones.
1 Camper van tire blowout
I-70 in Illinois
Seeing Camper Van Beethoven go up on a tow-truck bed in May was not my favorite part of 2025, but it was a reminder that staying flexible is just part of travel.
Mishaps can happen during travel, so not every new experience is going to feel warm and cozy. But, they’ll still deliver some brain-boosting benefits as you learn to navigate what’s probably a messy situation for the first time.
For us, in 2025, we had to navigate a blown tire on the freeway.
We thought it’d be as simple as calling roadside assistance through our insurer, Progressive at the time. We’d get our camper van towed to the next town, Vandalia, Illinois — just a few miles away — and buy a new tire or set of tires.
Our guy at Van City RV in Saint Louis recommended this combined ladder and spare tire mount, which I ordered shortly after blowing a tire on the freeway.
However, at the 2-hour mark, they called and lied, saying no tow trucks were available. We should find our own, and they’d reimburse us afterward.
What they really meant to say was, no tow trucks will accept our $100 payment.
The third towing company we called was ready to come get us. They’d already talked to Progressive and turned down their $100 twice.
Their rate was $185, which we paid and Progressive later paid us back for.
What we got from all this newness
A newfound respect for towing companies and tow truck drivers — absolute heroes
A new insurance company — bye, Progressive
4 shiny new tires
A nifty ladder and spare tire mount — the van didn’t come with a spare, and we hadn’t added one yet
First viral moment on Instagram — 2 million views and 460 comments, mostly people sharing their roadside woes but also a few nasty trolls, to date
An article on MotorBiscuit — they came across our Instagram reel and wrote about it
2 Dipped our paddles in Kansas
Lovewell State Park
Paddle boarding is even more fun with friends, which we found out in June while exploring Lovewell Reservoir.
Let’s move on to something more chill, shall we? In 2025, we paddle boarded in Kansas for the first time. That makes five states where we’ve launched our boards and paddled out.
Even more special: We camped and paddled with friends who met us for two nights at Lovewell State Park in Webber, Kansas.
The park’s campground hugs the shores of Lovewell Reservoir, which is both a source of recreation and of water for nearby farms.
Talk about a wow moment for human ingenuity and engineering. Lovewell Reservoir is one piece of a massive surface-water irrigation system. Its canals span hundreds of miles and support tens of thousands of acres of farmland.
More than 30 black squirrel statues, each standing around 5’ tall, make Marysville worth a quick stop on a Kansas road trip. This one greets visitors at the Pony Express Barn & Museum.
It’s not a free-for-all water supply. But, rather, a carefully managed and monitored system allowing farmers a certain amount of water per acre each growing season.
What we got from this first-time experience
A newfound appreciation for irrigation canals
Time in nature with friends we love who make really, really good tacos — possibly even a new tradition
A spontaneous stop on our journey there to Marysville, Kansas, known as Black Squirrel City — we saw an actual black squirrel, went to the dog park and walked around town to view the Black Squirrels on Parade statues, all because of signs we saw leading into town
A pint at Irrigation Ales in Courtland, a town of fewer than 300 people known as the Irrigation Capital of Kansas
3 Rolled into Oklahoma
Pawhuska and Osage Hills State Park
Bison help shape the landscape at Joseph H. Williams Tallgrass Prairie Preserve through natural grazing patterns.
In 2025, we took Camper Van Beethoven to Oklahoma for the very first time — it’s the 25th state we’ve been to in the van.
As soon as we crossed the state line from Kansas (this was following our paddle board trip), the Sooner State released one h*ck of a thunderstorm. We could see it building as we drove down I-135.
And, when it hit, it hit. I’ve never heard rain beat against the van quite like that before.
At the next exit, we made a hasty retreat from the freeway.
The Pioneer Woman Mercantile anchors Pawhuska’s Main Street, drawing visitors from across the country to this once-quiet Oklahoma town.
Vehicles were already sheltering below the overpass. We drove past the gas station, instead choosing the higher ground of the casino parking lot to wait out the storm.
Later, when we were back on the road, my parents texted, “Power out.”
The storm had also unleashed on Osage Hills State Park in Pawhuska, where we were meeting up for the weekend. My parents rented a cabin, built by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in the 1930s, and we had a campsite.
Once we arrived, too, we shared a meal of cold-cut sandwiches by flashlight for dinner.
The next day, we all piled into my parents’ minivan to see the sights of Pawhuska. Something my mom had wanted to do for years because of The Pioneer Woman, whose empire is based there.
We made a day of it.
Breakfast and shopping at The Pioneer Woman Mercantile in town. Then, out to Joseph H. Williams Tallgrass Prairie Preserve to watch the buffalo roam. And, finally, a stop at Drummond Ranch Lodge, where Ree Drummond films her The Pioneer Woman show for Food Network.
The campfire heats up as the sun goes down behind a historic stone-and-timber, CCC-era cabin at Osage Hills State Park.
Dinner was back at the campsite: my favorite Snake River Farms wagyu beef hotdogs on the grill.
What this first-time destination left us with
A newfound appreciation for The Pioneer Woman and small-town tourism
More awesome memories with my parents, who showed me the joy of exploring and discovering new places and things starting at a very young age — there’s a picture of me using a potty-training toilet on the side of the road
The awe of seeing bison in the wild for the first time — I would’ve been happy watching them all day
A should-I-be-doing-this moment when I walked across the swinging bridge over Bird Creek before leaving town
4 Celebrated Christmas on the road
Alabama > Florida
We got festive fast with help from our rechargeable camping lights at O’Leno State Park on Christmas night.
Yet another novelty in 2025, we spent our first Christmas in Camper Van Beethoven.
It was a travel day that started at Cracker Barrel in Montgomery, Alabama. Sadly, they weren’t open for breakfast, but we’re glad their team had the whole day off.
Before leaving Montgomery, we had another unexpected first: Stopping at an emergency veterinarian while on the road. We’re glad it was for a minor issue (hot spot on Clyde’s toe) and that it was a pretty quick stop.
Then, we grabbed a Starbucks, which was open, and hit the road with Clyde wearing his new Christmas cone of shame.
The day ended at O’Leno State Park in High Springs, Florida. We arrived after dark, driving past other campers who had decorated for the holidays.
After walking the dogs and setting up the van for the night, I felt my spirits drop a little, wishing we had decorations, too. The other campsites were so festive.
Then, I remembered, we did: These rechargeable string lights that roll up into a plastic case, perfect for travel.
A simple, fast and totally satisfying campground Christmas dinner: Hazy IPAs from Side Project Brewing in Saint Louis and Buc-ee’s mac ’n’ cheese — brisket and pulled pork.
I got them out, changed them to the blinking colored lights setting and draped them over the fence behind the van. Instant Christmas!
With our campsite decorated, I fixed, err, microwaved Christmas dinner.
The day before, we stopped at a Buc-ee’s travel center for the first time — the one in Athens, Alabama on I-65. To our luck, there was no traffic backup on the offramp and no line to get into Buc-ee’s, as we’ve seen at other locations. (Hence why we hadn’t stopped yet.)
We refueled Camper Van Beethoven, walked the dogs then went shopping, with one thing on our list being Christmas dinner. J-Wo selected their brisket mac ‘n’ cheese, and I got the pulled pork option.
Our dinners warm, we ate outside, under the towering trees and a sky full of stars — our Christmas lights adding cheer in place of a campfire. We struck out on trying to find firewood at the gas stations near the state park.
What we gained from these first-time experiences
An appreciation for the team at VCA Carriage Hills Animal Hospital in Montgomery
A reminder that we’re capable of solving problems and improvising while on the road
Validation that Buc-cee’s is worth a stop
The joy of a quiet, serene, no-frills holiday in nature, our favorite place
Confirmation you can let something be an obstacle or an opportunity — the choice is yours
5 Saw a disappearing river
O’Leno State Park, Florida
The Santa Fe River has a secret: It vanishes right here at O’Leno State Park before reappearing miles away. The river’s not-so-appealing color comes from decaying Cypress needles and other leaves.
We hit quite a few new-to-us hiking trails in 2025 — Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Missouri, Oklahoma. But, one of the year’s final hikes really stood out.
The day after Christmas, we walked the dogs across the suspension bridge over the Santa Fe River at O’Leno State Park. Then, J-Wo and I continued on about another half-mile to see that same river disappear.
At one point, the river widens slightly into what appears to be a pond. And, that seems to be that — the river’s end.
A tree line suggests the river can go no farther. Yet, it does — underground.
There are no clues that the river’s dipping below the surface to flow through Karst limestone caves.
No roaring sounds as it dives down. No visible rapids or currents.
Another view of the river sink at O’Leno State Park — the river seems to end but actually changes its course to flow underground.
It just slips away quietly and without notice, nature’s form of an Irish Goodbye.
What’s more, as you walk over the land bridge atop the submerged river, there are no trickling sounds indicating that water flows below.
It’s just gone.
Until three miles later, when it reappears at River Rise Preserve State Park, also in High Springs.
We didn’t take time to see the river ‘rise’ or ‘resurgence’. But, from the pictures I saw, it looks more or less exactly like the river ‘sink’ or ‘swallet.’ It seems to be just another chill pond, flipped the opposite way as where the river goes underground.
We’ll catch the river rise some other time — a first for another year.
What we got from embracing the new
A deeper appreciation for the people who build and maintain hiking trails that make nature more accessible
Proof that there’s even more wonder in this world than meets the eye
Confirmation that J-WO is an excellent gator spotter, which he continued to demonstrate at other stops in Florida
A reminder to stop and notice the magic all around us
We’re grateful we experienced so many sights, experiences and destinations for the first time in 2025. It made the year so much more enriching.
We’re excited for all the firsts to come in 2026 — new states, new roads, new trails and even new friends as we continue building our outdoors and van community.
And, more time with you. Thank you for reading Super Cool Van Trips. We hope you’ll come back, follow us on Instagram and sign up for our monthly road trip and camper van newsletter.
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