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I was born and spent my early years in Blackburn, Lancashire, an industrial town in the rather damp north west corner of England. World Superbike champion, Carl Fogarty, grew up in the house opposite. I’m sure he often repeats his claim to fame that he sat on a swing with me when we were both aged nine.

Blackburn is not pretty, but has incredible natural beauty on its doorstep. It’s a short hop from the Forest of Bowland, the Pennines, and three national parks: the Yorkshire Dales, the Peak District, and the Lake District.

My Dad was a keen mountaineer, who instilled within me a great love of the outdoors. We spent many weekends and every school holiday in a remote Lake District cottage, scaling some of guidebook writer Alfred Wainwright’s favourite summits. (Wainwright was another of Blackburn’s famous sons!)

It was there we met Bob Orrell: author, TV presenter, and smallholder. He moved in next door when I was in my early teens.

Bob has written several books about his amazing life. Saddle Tramp in the Lake District, documented his journey following ancient pack pony routes with a brace of fell ponies, Thor and Lucy. Fell ponies are one of the nine native British pony breeds, and a favourite of the late Queen Elizabeth II.

As it happens, Thor and Lucy had a profound effect on my literary career!

Aged 14, Bob took me and a couple of other young lasses on a four-day trek across the Lake District along old pack pony routes. The plan was for me to ride Thor, who was solid and dependable. His summer coat was shiny black, and he was built like a mini carthorse, with shaggy hair or ‘feathers’ on his heels. His rump and back were as wide and flat as a table. Sometimes, I would lie on him and sunbathe!

In the honeyed golden hour of many a summer evening, I would stand for hours with my arms draped along the top of his field gate. Thor would clop over slowly and rest his head in my embrace. Often, I would feel him release a deep sigh of contentment, or nuzzle his whiskery muzzle into my neck.

It was love.

Unfortunately, at the last minute, the promise of a loan pony for Bob fell through. This meant Thor became Bob’s mount, and against my will, I was forced to ride Lucy on our trek. Besides being much more lightly built, Lucy was a bit of a handful. On Bob’s original quest, Lucy had been led, bearing the pack saddle.

There is a saying, “A hundred falls make a rider.” Lucy contributed generously to my total. On every practise outing, she threw me, and on the first morning of our expedition, on the way back from collecting her from her field, she launched me over her head. I swear she was grinning haughtily at me down her slightly Roman nose as she contemplated me sitting squarely on my backside in the middle of a freezing stream!

After subjecting me to this humiliation, I think Lucy felt she had asserted her dominance. Thankfully, she and I arrived at an uneasy truce. Since we had to navigate steep mountain passes together, this was just as well, although Lucy certainly added extra colour to what was already a wonderful adventure.

Each evening, after we’d set up camp, Bob encouraged us to write about our experiences. Then, he entered our scribblings – my first ever memoir – into a national competition open to all age groups.

I’m very proud to say, I won second prize!

It was my initial foray into keeping a travel journal, which has since become a lifelong ritual. These diaries led to my blog, which I ultimately honed into a manuscript for my debut travel memoir, Fur Babies in France.

Fur Babies follows what happened when my husband, Mark and I quit our jobs, accidentally bought our first ever caravan (RV trailer), then decided to rent out the house, sell most of our possessions, and tour Europe full time with our four dogs.

Since then, I’ve published six light hearted travelogues in my Adventure Caravanning With Dogs Series. They have all received multiple five-star reviews, been category bestsellers on Amazon, and my third book, Dogs ‘n’ Dracula, won a Chill With A Book PREMIER Readers’ Award, and was a finalist in the Romania Insider Awards. The British Ambassador to Romania and Prince Charles (now King Charles III), who has a special connection with Romania, both have a copy! 

Currently, I’m just launching volume seven, Building The Beast, which documents how we upgraded our caravan to a 6×4-wheel drive 24.5-tonne army truck we bought sight unseen from the internet to convert into an off-grid tiny home on wheels.

Thank you Bob, Thor, and Lucy.

Without you, this might never have happened!

Connect with Jackie on her Website | Blog | Facebook | X | Instagram | Bookbub | Amazon | Goodreads

About the Book

The true story of how one married couple made an impulse purchase blind off the internet: a 24.5-tonne vintage army truck. Their plan: to convert into a unique off-grid tiny home on wheels ready for an expedition to Mongolia.

Bulding the Beast: How (Not) To Build An Overland Camper The Wayward Truck Book 1 by Jacqueline Lambert

Genre: Comedic Travel Memoir, Nonfiction Featuring ‘The Beast’, an expedition truck, as seen on TV*

A Vintage Truck: An Amateur Team: An Immovable Deadline
The Comic Memoir of a Crazy Idea

In this captivating true story, join an intrepid married couple as they take another wild leap into the world of nomadic living.

Four years previously, Jackie and Mark gave up work to embark on a permanent road trip with four dogs. However, one Friday the 13th, forces beyond their control cause them to throw caution to the wind and buy a 30-year-old army truck sight unseen from the internet.

Their goal: to create an expedition truck fit to drive overland to Mongolia.
Follow them as they dive headfirst into the daunting but thrilling task of converting this rugged vehicle into a perfect off-grid tiny house on wheels.

Yet their first ever DIY van conversion proves to be a rollercoaster ride, when they sell their house to fund the build, and Friday the 13th comes back to haunt them.

Is their confidence that, ‘there’s always a solution,’ misplaced?
With their relationship, sanity, and finances on the line, can they navigate the pitfalls of their first-ever build and avoid becoming homeless?

Filled with quirky van life friends and unexpected twists, this is an inspiring tale of perseverance, friendship, and finding the courage to conquer the challenges that face those who dare to chase their dreams.

Available for .99 cents

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About Jacqueline Lambert

Jacqueline (Jackie) Lambert is an award-winning travel writer, adventure traveller, and dogmother, who loves history and curious facts.

BC (Before Canines) she rafted, rock-climbed, and backpacked around six of the seven continents. A passionate windsurfer and skier, she can fly a plane, has been bitten by a lion, and appeared on Japanese TV as a fire-eater.

AD (After Dog), she quit work in 2016 to hit the road permanently with her husband and four pooches. Initially, they were Adventure Caravanners, who aimed To Boldly Go Where No Van Has Gone Before.

Now, they’re at large in a self-converted six-wheel army lorry, with Mongolia in their sights.

All her books and the anthologies that include her travel stories are available on Amazon:

Photo: Mark, Jackie and The Fab Four with The Beast. Photo courtesy of @Liveration, who made a short film about the crew and their lifestyle on YouTube.