This woman finds freedom and flexibility by living out of her vehicle

If you love to travel, then it might be time to heed the call of the open road and live in a home on wheels! That’s what vehicle-dweller Lyne does, and she says it has changed her life for the better. In this episode of In The Know: Extreme Minimalists, Lyne explains how she traded her home for a car and has been traveling across America for the last two years!

“Vehicle-dweller is basically a person that has decided that they don’t want the traditional dwelling of a home, apartment, or whatever,” Lyne tells In The Know. “So they just outfit their vehicles, make them really comfortable, livable, and we live in them.”

Lyne decided to live in her car full time in 2020 in order to go hiking more often and see more of America. Since then, she has traveled to Maine, New York, Texas, and Florida. “My favorite spot is the gulf of Florida,” she explains. “I love it. White sand beaches, the water is almost clear, and you can see the dolphins.”

Becoming a vehicle-dweller was bittersweet at first. Though she craved the freedom living in her car would provide, getting rid of so many possessions was difficult. “I got rid of about 95% of my belongings,” Lyne recalls. “It got a little emotional, but at the end of the day I had to realize I can’t take it with me.”

Now, Lyne has adapted to living in her car and enjoys her minimalist lifestyle! Having fewer possessions, she says, means fewer decisions—especially when it comes to fashion. “I am glad that I downsized because the reality is this is what I have, this is what I can wear, so let’s go for it,” she explains. “Pick through the box [of clothes], and that’s it.”

In addition to a box of clothing that stands in for a closet, Lyne has crammed a full-size mattress and a camping stove into her car, in order to create a “bedroom” and “kitchen.” She says that cooking in her car is surprisingly easy, and there’s no limit to the kinds of dishes she can make with just a simple camping stove! “So cooking in my car is not hard at all. Some people advise, don’t cook in your vehicle. I feel safe enough with the windows rolled down, so it’s quite alright with me,” she says. “I’ll do eggs, I’ll do spinach. Just whatever strikes me.”

Living in her car has taught Lyne that the concept of “normalcy” is overrated. “I think I’ve learned that there is no normal,” she says. “I may have felt like I was giving up what was normal, but now I realize there’s no such thing as normal, only things we allow other people to put on us.”

And for anyone who is considering a life on the road, Lyne has one simple piece of advice: “Do it!”

“When I first started, I felt like, ‘Oh my god, I don’t have money, I can’t get this, I don’t have that.’ It’s not as expensive as YouTube makes it [seem],” she says. “All you need is what you have.”