Overland Expo first had the pleasure of meeting the Lin Family (a.k.a. “The Mali Mish Family” – more on that nickname later) at Overland Expo West. We were so amazed by their story we requested they join us at Overland Expo Mountain West 2022 to teach classes and lead roundtable discussions. Dan, Marlene, and their three children have been living on the road, working remotely, and exploring the world via their home on wheels since 2008.
Unlike today, where overlanders new to this way of life have social media networks, 4G LTE, and events for overlanders like Overland Expo, the Lin Family had to learn everything for themselves. There were no shortcuts for figuring out “how to overland.” No how-to video tutorials, no downloadable e-books or courses, just a handful of other full-time traveling families posting their travels here and there on their hand-coded websites. So Dan and Marlene say they “did what they had to do, figured out what worked best for their family, and did it.”
In the first ten years, they zigzagged across North America for a quarter-million miles and visited all the 49 continental U.S. states, most of Mexico, and all provinces in Canada. In 2018, they shipped their self-built Sprinter 4×4 across the Atlantic to Europe to explore countries in Europe, Africa, and Asia.
READ MORE: Check Out the Awesome Educational Programs at Overland Expo Mtn West 2022
A total of 14 years and 41 countries later, the Mali Mish family is still hungry for adventure and exploration, but they have graciously taken a break from the road to share their hard-earned knowledge and teach the following classes at Overland Expo Mountain West:
- Best Routes For Overlanding Europe: For 6 Months, 1 Year, or 2 Years
- How We Raise Our Children Around the World
- Preparing For a Multi-Year Overland Trip Across Europe
- DIY Solar and Lithium Power For Your Vehicle
To learn more about this fascinating family, please continue reading below.
First, how did you become known as the “Mali Mish Family”?
The name Mali Mish (pronounced ‘Mah-Lee Mish’) is Croatian for “Little Mouse.” It’s a name bestowed on Marlene by her grandmother, and we chose it to be our blog name. Little did we know that the age of social media was on its way and that we would be known as the Mali Mish Family to all who follow our adventures.
Tell us about your rig(s):
We have traveled in 5 different rigs. For the first seven years, we lived in a 2007 25 ft Airstream trailer as we explored North America. In 2015, we downsized to a Ford F-250 Crew Cab Long Bed Super Duty 4×4 with a Four Wheel Pop-Up Camper Grandby Silver Spur with a front dinette. We explored most of Mexico and the rest of the Canadian provinces to the east that we had not yet visited. Since 2018, we have been traveling the world in a 2017 Mercedes Sprinter crew van 4×4 with a 170-inch wheelbase. It is a DIY build to accommodate our family of five.
All-time favorite campsite?
Shadow mountain in the Teton National Forest has been our favorite for a long time. It has gotten a lot more popular lately, and it’s hard to have the place to yourself anymore, but it holds a great spot in our memory. Playa La Pastora in Baja
California Sur is another favorite of ours. Camping right on the beach with good surf and good friends is a tough combination to beat.
READ MORE: Parties, Food, and Fun at Overland Expo Mountain West
What’s your go-to overlanding meal?
We make a lot of food wrapped inside a tortilla. Obviously, quesadillas, tacos, and fajitas are some of our favorite go-to meals. However, we love making what we lovingly refer to as “egg-adillas.” It is just an egg cracked in a pan with some cheese, and a tortilla slapped right on top. Give it about 30 seconds and flip it around to toast the other side. In less than a minute, we have a delicious breakfast with minimal dishes to clean. We also enjoy making stews and chowders since they are hearty, one-pot meals that don’t require a lot of dirty dishes. Perhaps there is a theme here somewhere.
Best silver-lining story?
Our visit to Alaska in 2015, the last continental state we visited, was a life-changing one. We had a lot of breakdowns that required welding, late-night parking lot wrenching, and parts to be shipped in from the lower 48. But our time there was so inspiring it made us realize that we wanted to downsize to a smaller and more capable vehicle and travel to even farther away places.
What is an area of overland travel that you think you have nailed? And what is an area of overland travel that you feel you could use some improvement in?
We have been living minimally as a family for 14 years, so our comfort zone and strength on the road is adapting to all types of environments. We can make small spaces very comfortable for a family of 5, and our resources stretch a long way. However, we still need to improve at slowing down our pace to enjoy more of our current surroundings. We are so used to being on the move that we often can’t stay for more than two or three days before we get the itch.
What do your kids think about traveling around the world? Since they have been overlanding since birth and don’t know really anything different, do you think they would experience reverse culture shock if you were to settle back into a stationary life in Ventura, CA?
We meet as a family each year to make sure that everyone is still on board with our nomadic lifestyle. Since the kids have been living this way since they were born, we always have a consensus to continue exploring as long as there are more exciting places to visit. As they are getting older, we are more aware of their desire for external interactions and educational needs. Fortunately for us, modern technology has made a lot of these available from anywhere. We have just been stationary for a few weeks in southern California since returning from Europe back in May 2022. We have definitely experienced some reverse culture shock. It feels good to be back on the road again this summer.
What does your “division” of labor look like while traveling?
I (Dan) do pretty much all of the driving, most of the cooking, and all of the vehicle maintenance. We usually grocery shop together because it is often a break from a long drive to stretch our legs a bit. We both update our social media channels, but Marlene is more involved with Instagram, while I am responsible for making all of the videos for our two primary YouTube channels. The kids help with keeping the van tidy and getting it ready for driving. They are also responsible for setting up and breaking down camp when we arrive and depart from a new location.
You can learn more about and follow the Mali Mish Family via the following links:
