The Life of a Digital Nomad: Taking Remote to the Next Level

Last month, I took my remote work to the remote area of Bella Coola, BC.

On September 1, I woke up about halfway between Squamish and Bella Coola, in Lac La Hache. I love camping. And I love road-tripping. So this started the month very nicely.

I continued on to Charlotte Lake. Another Canadian hidden gem, where I met my good friend Aude for more camping. It was unusually hot for September, and being by a crystal blue lake was perfect.

Beautiful Charlotte Lake

The next day, I drove the last stretch to Bella Coola, where I'd be spending 5 to 6 weeks.

The Bella Coola valley is a few kms long, but is still quite vacant. So housesitting opportunities are not that common, and are more of a word of mouth thing. I had planned ahead and had posted my intentions to visit and stay a while in the local Facebook group, back in August. The supporting community responded with a surprising number of offers for accommodation. From a room in a house, to an off-grid cabin, to a Sprinter and a truck camper. Some with a fee, but a couple free in exchange for some work or help around the property.

I needed electricity and wifi to continue to work, so kindly declined the off-grid options. And I did what I always do: I went with my gut.

A glimpse of the mountains in Bella Coola

One offer was for a truck camper, with the basics, on a man's property, in exchange for some work. This wouldn't be my first work exchange, and it wouldn't be my first time living out of a truck camper. Perhaps it was my positive experience up in the Yukon but something was telling this would be the best option. At least to start. I could always keep the other offers on the side, in case I needed.

So, on September 2, I had somewhere to go. I would be staying in Firvale, about a 20 min drive from Hagensborg, which was the "busier area" outside of Bella Coola.

With work starting on September 3, and at the increased capacity of 4 days a week, I quickly unpacked and settled in.

Then the remote experience began.

Weak wifi. Scrambles to move the router. Hunts for a newer router. Tests with phones. Tests with my old laptop. Moving from one end of the property to another according to my meetings schedule. And all this in an area with no cell service.

It was exhausting. It was stressful. But it got resolved. And after the first work week, I was able to hold meetings and do all my work from the comfort of my little camper.

A month of abundance after all

Yet, 10 days into my stay, when Aude offered me her trailer while she was housesitting, I packed a bag and "moved" to Hagensborg. It was about three times the size of my camper! But also colder and more humid.

It was nice to be in the middle of the few activities happening in town. I could walk to the nice cafe, to the art gallery and the organic shop. I could walk to the bi-weekly pizza night. And all the amenities available in Bella Coola were so much closer.

It was great. Until my laptop completely stopped working!

After phone calls to Apple and countless attempts to recover my hard drive, I had to face the facts: I had 2 days to get a new laptop before having to start my work week. And I was hours away from the nearest electronics shop. "Normal life" suddenly felt very out of reach.

Then the laptop saga started.

Who had what in stock where? Who could deliver the best option the quickest? Should I just leave and find a housesit in Vancouver? Should I cry curled up in a ball on the ground of a trailer that isn't mine, with no real home to turn to?

In the end, I will not name names, but I chose the worst store to order from. They cancelled my order every other day without notice. And stole hours of my time as I was on the phone with them every day for the week.

It was too late to drive the 5-6 hours to the nearest shop (and then back!). But a friend of a friend lent me his old laptop and saved the week. So I pushed through the challenges and the feelings of helplessness, and finally got confirmation that a new laptop would be delivered to me 10 days after my old one broke.

In hindsights, those hard moments often seem so silly... having nothing to do with the true meaning of life!

Still, I made the most of my "social time" in Hagensborg but was happy to return to Firvale after the eventful week. I still hadn't received my new computer by then though. So I found myself commuting to Hagensborg for half of the following work week, to use the borrowed laptop.

Boat life...

At last, it all seemed to have settled by September 25.

Then the reality of remote camper life settled in.

Emptying out my grey water every other day, into the septic tank. Power outages. Wifi outages. Endless mess. Stuff everywhere. Boiling water for the never-ending dishes. Fetching drinking water from the main house. Timing my laundry in the house with the sunshine (when possible). Walking across the field to the main house to shower. And most memorable of all: emptying my own black water (number ones only, thankfully!) out into a bucket, and carrying it to the septic tank, without vomiting.

What a life! There is something about going back to basics that makes every day feel so alive. And I am smiling as I write about these latest adventures.

I can laugh again at friends complaining about having to empty their dishwashers. Or having to do laundry from the convenience of their homes. Or having to cook with the convenience of an oven. Or having to vacuum their big big space.

Winter wonderland in Tweedsmuir

Through it all, I still managed to fit in a couple of hikes, a boat tour, a river drift, quality time with my friend and meaningful conversations with the property owner here.

I woke up on September 30 on Nuxalk and Ulkatcho territory. I ended the month as I started it: camping on our beautiful Earth. But this time, instead of the unusual hot weather, I woke up to snow!

Although there was no snow in the valley, up on the plateau where we had come for a weekend adventure, about 1500m higher, winter had come early. It was beautiful. But it was also disappointing to not get to see the Rainbow Mountains... until next time.

I extended my stay in Bella Coola into October. So I get to savour this life a little longer...