How it started

While it all seems kind of comical to think about now, prior to the pandemic, there was a sense of burnout in life and work as we moved from one project and party straight into the next without much of a pause.

Naturally we would daydream and fantasize about the possibilities of stepping away and living in a van, or a cabin, or traveling the world, but the sense of place and responsibility seemed to have too much of a stronghold on us. So work and life and parties continued, and our dreams were nothing more than that, DREAMS...

Fast forward to March 2020.  COVID-19 hits.  And we are like, oh it is fine.  And then it wasn’t fine.  Bradley’s real estate pipeline came to an abrupt halt, and my hotel career was a dumpster fire due to the lack of people traveling.  We were in this strange spot where both of our jobs were in jeopardy.  WTF were we going to do? 

Insert our wild dreams to escape to the wilderness.

Over Memorial Day 2020, we went to Monroe, Louisiana to visit Bradley’s parents for some R&R.  We took The Real McCoy, the McCoy’s 1950s houseboat, out for sunset cruises each night. 

Pure magic.  

I turn to Bradley and say, “What if we boat The Real McCoy up the Mississippi River?” I saw the lightbulb in Bradley’s head illuminate. 

“Well, this classic probably wouldn’t make it 10’ on the Mississippi, but what if we found a houseboat where the Mississippi River begins, and boat it down to New Orleans.”  

omg.

The Tuesday following Memorial Day, Bradley goes on a craigslist hunt for a houseboat without telling me.  And, YAHTZEE, he finds her in Winona, Minnesota.  

Holy sh*t.

Bradley calls up Elizabeth, who owns this 1973 beauty, and she is beyond kind.  Turns out, she purchased the boat with the intention to have it end up in New Orleans.  

WHAT?!
Yes.  I know.  It is true.  

She came with her church to help rebuild after hurricane Katrina, and saw all the devastation with the boats and our community.  Her dream was to refurbish a vintage boat, and make the trip from Winona, Minnesota to New Orleans, Louisiana with her husband. 

When I heard this, I got chills down my spine.  Ok.  This is it.  We are going to do it.  Let’s do it.  

“I’m in.”
”I’m in, too.”

A week later, Bradley flew up to Minnesota in the midst of tropical storm Cristobal to see the boat in person.  The surveyor (kind of like a home inspector) didn’t recommend moving forward and said 99 out of 100 people would walk away from the boat due to the rotten transom and other issues.  I guess we’re that 1 out of 100, because we made the executive decision to make her ours.  

And, we did it. We boated I’m on Vacation from Winona, Minnesota to New Orleans, Louisiana. You can check out our YouTube channel, Instagram and Facebook to live the adventure with us. It was life changing.