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00:00Do you trust me?
00:01Do you trust me?
00:02And we're off.
00:04Imagine starting your life all over again.
00:06Where is Ben?
00:08I'm needed.
00:08Ben, you're needed.
00:10Leaving behind everything you know.
00:12Just a bicycle, suitcase, no money.
00:15That's all I had.
00:16For something completely different.
00:18Number nine, let me take this off.
00:20Number nine, number nine, number nine.
00:22I'm Ben Fogel, and over the next few weeks,
00:25I'm going to live with the incredible people who've done just that.
00:29I'm a born fighter, and that's what I do get a kick out of.
00:33For a long time, I thought I was stupid.
00:36But I'm a good salesperson, and I'm selling this mountain hard.
00:40In some of the most remote places on Earth.
00:43There is no restaurants, there is no bars, there is no nothing.
00:47You know, we didn't think that we were going to come up here
00:49and not see humans for three to four months at a time.
00:52And see what it takes to live a new life in the wild.
01:00That is a quick way to take down a tree.
01:08This week, I'm meeting Randalin.
01:10Do you love animals?
01:12Yes, my boy.
01:13An intriguing wild woman on a perpetual journey across America.
01:17I am charting unknown territories.
01:20This will be the first time on my wild adventures
01:23that I'll be walking the open road myself.
01:25Good boy.
01:27Where I'll learn how Randalin has tailor-made her bespoke nomadic life.
01:30So this is green living quarters.
01:32And I sleep in here.
01:34Wow.
01:35While also experiencing the perils that come with it.
01:39You know, I've done some dangerous stuff.
01:42This is ridiculous.
01:50I'm venturing nearly 4,500 miles across the Atlantic Ocean
01:55to the landlocked state of Missouri.
02:00Like many of its neighbours, Missouri is a land of striking contrasts,
02:05bustling cities set against vast wilderness.
02:11It's a big state, roughly the size of England and Wales combined.
02:15But while those countries pack in around 1,000 people to every square mile,
02:20here it's closer to 90 per square mile,
02:24leaving plenty of space to live as you like.
02:31This is the moment at which I start to get a little bit nervous
02:34because I'm just on the cusp, on the boundary of entering her world.
02:39I know very little about Randalin.
02:41All I know is that she lives a nomadic life.
02:45Over the years, I've visited people that live in camper vans,
02:48cars, lorries, buses, canal boats.
02:52So I'm anticipating her to have some mode of transport.
02:57But what that is, I have no idea.
03:02Expect the unexpected.
03:04That's what I've learnt.
03:06My instructions are to follow this road
03:09and then onto a path that leads into a woodland
03:13where Randalin is parked up.
03:21This has to be her.
03:24Randalin?
03:26Hello.
03:29Wow.
03:31Hi, Randalin.
03:32Hello.
03:33I'm Ben. So nice to meet you.
03:34Nice to meet you.
03:35Who's this?
03:36This is Pandora.
03:38Hi, Pandora.
03:38She's kind of the welcome committee around here.
03:41Wow.
03:42I don't really know where to be.
03:43There's no one.
03:43Who's this?
03:44So this is Roadhouse.
03:46He gets friendlier the more you touch him.
03:49Before you know it, he'll be following you around.
03:51Oh, so sweet.
03:52Can I have a little look around your camp?
03:54Yes, yes, sir.
03:5940-year-old Randalin grew up in suburban Missouri.
04:03After college, she worked in a number of jobs
04:06while raising her three children.
04:08But when they eventually flew the nest,
04:11Randalin felt lost.
04:12Unsure of what came next,
04:15she decided to simply walk.
04:17Across the country,
04:18with no fixed destination in mind.
04:21Five years on from that life-changing decision,
04:23she's still on the move,
04:25but with a donkey-pulled wagon.
04:27Among other things...
04:34This is quite something.
04:36So, Helen, have we got pigeons in here?
04:38Yes, there's pigeons all over, really.
04:42Friends?
04:43Friends and food.
04:44Friends and food.
04:47So, you've talked me through all of this.
04:49This is amazing.
04:49It's so colorful.
04:50It's a little bit messy today.
04:51We've had a lot of rain this week.
04:53Yeah.
04:53But I actually sleep in here.
04:56Everything goes in here while we're moving.
04:59This is kind of how I've started to give myself
05:01a little freedom away from debt
05:03and, you know, the crazy world
05:06that everybody's living in.
05:09It might be crazy out there,
05:11but right now,
05:12I'm trying to make sense of this reality.
05:15Dogs, chickens, pigeons, donkeys.
05:21So, this is your main...
05:23Main living quarters, too.
05:24Oh, there's another dog in here.
05:26Yeah, I have six dogs.
05:27Six dogs.
05:28Who's guarding your bed right now?
05:30This is Blessin.
05:30She's a little shy,
05:31but she's the wagon guardian.
05:33She was born to the wagon life.
05:35She keeps anybody out of the way.
05:37And we have another little chihuahua there.
05:39He loves everyone.
05:40That's Emilio.
05:41Yeah.
05:42Wood-burning stove,
05:43is that where you cook?
05:44Yes.
05:44Or is that just for heating?
05:45For heating, it's for cooking.
05:47I also have a grill and things like that.
05:50A little outdoor camp.
05:51Yes, sir.
05:52So, I can see kitchen, bedroom, storage, bathroom.
05:57It kind of depends.
05:59Sometimes...
06:01Or just putting a tarp around the base of the wagon,
06:04going under there.
06:05You just got to get creative.
06:09Randalin lives with very few modern conveniences,
06:12except for a mobile phone
06:14and a solar charger that keep her connected.
06:18How would you describe this and your lifestyle?
06:22Basically, a modern-day pioneer, I'd say.
06:25Very simple living and charting unknown territories
06:28and seeing what's out there.
06:35Wow.
06:39I have so many questions,
06:42but it's more about logistics, really,
06:46because I've never really seen this kind of setup.
06:49It's kind of a cross between a pioneer
06:51and a gypsy lifestyle in the UK.
06:56And what I can't even begin to imagine
06:59is how she moves all of this
07:03on sometimes a daily basis.
07:10You obviously love animals.
07:12Yes, yes.
07:13He's my boy.
07:15See, I do all the work.
07:16I couldn't do it without me.
07:18I carry all this stuff.
07:19He's loving that.
07:21I know you don't ever have a particular plan,
07:23so I'm always wary of being that person
07:26who says, what are we going to do now?
07:28Well, so we've got to do dinner tonight.
07:31Yeah.
07:32And that involves, unfortunately, pigeons.
07:34Mm-hmm.
07:35I think I might leave you to the dispatching yourself.
07:38Oh, I understand.
07:39While I still eat meat,
07:40I think it's more ethical
07:41than just going to the grocery store.
07:44And yeah, you never have to look at it
07:46and you don't have to face it,
07:47but are you putting other things through a hard life
07:51so that you can feel better about something?
07:54That's where I'm at with it.
07:55So I try to make sure I'm aware of what I'm eating
07:59and how it's living, if I can.
08:03I don't eat much meat these days,
08:06but I admire how Randalline takes responsibility
08:09for the animals she consumes,
08:11while also sourcing birds that have been raised outdoors.
08:15OK.
08:17Hi, baby.
08:18Who taught you how to dispatch of a pigeon?
08:21No one.
08:21I learned 13 years ago
08:24how to butcher a chicken from YouTube.
08:30And so I've found the fastest way
08:33is usually to just cut their heads off.
08:36It's a lot less suffering.
08:38I don't want them to suffer is my main thing.
08:42Do you remember the first time you did it?
08:45Yeah, you remember every time you do it.
08:53I would offer to help,
08:55but I think I'll be more of a hindrance.
08:56You're making fast work of these birds.
08:59Yeah, they're not too hard to process.
09:02I'm beginning to understand
09:03by dragging the little carts with your pigeons,
09:08that's your form of refrigeration,
09:10keeping them alive.
09:11Yes.
09:12And just dispatching them when you need them.
09:16Yes.
09:20It's good.
09:22The older I get,
09:24the more squeamish I've become about killing animals.
09:27But there's an undeniably organic feel
09:30to the lifestyle Randalline has created.
09:34There you go.
09:37Pandora, can I sit on your seat for a little bit?
09:40This looks incredible.
09:43Smell is amazing.
09:52Wow.
09:54It's really good.
09:57Is cooking something you actually enjoy?
09:59Yes, I do.
10:00I like to cook for people especially.
10:02Honestly, when it's just me,
10:03I eat snack foods a lot.
10:06Or I cook a meal,
10:07but it lasts me like three days.
10:09As much as I'm busy,
10:11especially when I move every day,
10:14but I've tried to make a system
10:15to where I can kind of enjoy
10:16a little bit of time.
10:20Because the whole point of this lifestyle
10:22is to slow down.
10:30This is definitely not what I was anticipating.
10:36She's very philosophical and thoughtful,
10:40and she is a very chilled individual
10:44that I feel really comfortable around.
10:46But I don't think anything can quite prepare you
10:49for how unusual her choice of lifestyle is.
11:06It's my first morning
11:08in the woodlands of Missouri.
11:10Morning, donkeys.
11:12Hello.
11:13I'm here with Randall Lynn,
11:15a self-professed modern-day pioneer.
11:17Good morning.
11:18Who roams the country
11:19with an assortment of wagons and animals.
11:22Hi, Randall Lynn.
11:25Hello.
11:25Oh, look at that.
11:27How many dogs have you got in there with you?
11:29Oh, the puppies.
11:30Say hi, Amelia.
11:32Would you like some coffee?
11:33I'd love some coffee.
11:34Awesome.
11:35So cool.
11:36I love this.
11:37It's kind of like from a children's book, almost.
11:41It's kind of picture-
11:42Oh, look at this.
11:43Randall Lynn.
11:44I love you.
11:45This is amazing.
11:48We're packing up and moving on today,
11:50but before any of that,
11:52it's feeding time.
11:55They say they're ready to eat, too.
11:57Yeah, everyone's ready to eat.
12:01Chickens, I'm not sure that that is your food.
12:05This is for the puppies.
12:07Hello.
12:08Hello.
12:09Good morning.
12:10Come and have that over there.
12:11There you go.
12:11In the morning, it's pretty much a ruckus.
12:16This is one of your big expenses, is it?
12:19Yeah, my biggest expenses are feed and phone.
12:22Probably $60 to $70 a month for dog food
12:27and maybe $40 for the chicken food and pigeon food.
12:31Randall Lynn pays for this and any other costs
12:34by making leather goods, which she sells on her travels.
12:38Do you enjoy the responsibility of looking after so many animals?
12:42Most of the time.
12:43When does it get on top of you?
12:46In the winter, I worry a little more, you know,
12:48with weather and temperatures.
12:49Even people in houses lose animals, you know.
12:52It often drops well below freezing in this part of America.
12:55Three contented donkeys.
12:57So it's easy to see how caring for the animals
12:59she relies on for company and sustenance
13:01could weigh on Randall Lynn's mind.
13:05It makes me curious about why she chose to live like this
13:08in the first place.
13:11So have you ever had a kind of conventional job?
13:14Yeah, I spent my early years as a house person.
13:23I've been a veterinary technician, machine operator
13:27and an aircraft mechanic.
13:29So when you say veterinary technician, I see that.
13:32You love animals.
13:33Yeah.
13:34But an aircraft technician, highly sophisticated, complex work?
13:40Yes.
13:41I find that hard to see you in that environment.
13:44It was a different life.
13:47And in an aircraft industry, it was mainly,
13:50I was always skilled with my hands and figuring things out.
13:53So it was a stark contrast.
13:55But I've used that lifestyle a lot
13:58to help make this lifestyle possible.
14:01It's what gave me the ability to, like, build wagons, for instance.
14:04But despite the fact that I was excelling in my job,
14:07I struggled a lot with the pressures of, you know, providing for children,
14:12not being home as much as I'd been when they were really little,
14:16and just not feeling like I was giving, you know, my children and my farm adequate time.
14:24And I decided in late 2014, I just didn't want to keep chasing the rat race.
14:32My son had moved out.
14:34He had come to age and wanted to go out and be a man.
14:37And you have to kind of step back and let them do that as a parent.
14:42As much as I wasn't really fond of it, you know, you can't hold them back.
14:47So empty nest syndrome kind of got me.
14:51I'm not quite there yet, but my kids are just a few years away,
14:55and I'm already dreading it.
14:57Yeah, it's hard.
14:59That's kind of part of what sent me into travelling.
15:03You know, when your kids come of age,
15:05and your entire world's been kind of centred on them
15:08and trying to make a life for them,
15:11and then you're like, wait, who am I?
15:14What have I been doing for the last 20 years?
15:16Do I even know anymore?
15:18And I woke up one morning,
15:22and I just, I couldn't handle it anymore.
15:26So that's kind of the day that I decided I was going to do this.
15:31I didn't really have a plan at all.
15:34And got dropped off in a Walmart parking lot,
15:38about 30 miles from where I was,
15:40with my dogs and a garden cart.
15:44I didn't even have a tent, just a couple tarps and a sleeping bag.
15:48And the world was an open place,
15:51and I had nothing left behind me.
15:54And you kind of just look forward to what can happen.
15:57How far did you make it on that first day?
16:00Two, maybe three miles.
16:02And where did you stay?
16:04In a ditch, between the highway and a sawmill.
16:08Literally in a ditch?
16:09Yeah.
16:12You know, one of my family was trying to figure out, what are you doing?
16:14One of my aunts just asked, you know,
16:17when was the last time you did something for yourself?
16:19And I was like, when I was six, in my stick fort.
16:25This camp, this is your stick fort.
16:29This is my stick fort.
16:33She's such a complex individual.
16:38So kind of thoughtful and philosophical and full of surprises.
16:43I always try not to judge a book by its cover,
16:46but she surprised me that she worked as an aircraft mechanic.
16:52The empty nest syndrome was obviously huge,
16:55but I think it's all about how you cope with the pressures of modern life
17:00that distinguish us one from the other.
17:03And I've met a number of people who have tried to kind of cure
17:09or treat a period of confusion with nomadism,
17:15and she was able to embrace this extraordinary lifestyle.
17:19Oh, good boy.
17:24Randalin visits her three adult children whenever she can.
17:28But with winter fast approaching,
17:30she's eager to head south.
17:33It's a bit different to packing up the car
17:36with my children and dogs and things.
17:38Everything must slot into these wagons.
17:41Just set it right here on top of that feed there.
17:43Make sure I get all the kitchen beds.
17:45Somehow.
17:46You can get the puppies.
17:51And can you go inside?
17:52Oh, will you come out?
17:53Come on.
17:54Come on.
17:58So we've got one donkey at the front.
18:01Uh-huh.
18:02Where the other two donkeys are at the side.
18:03Next donkey's going to go here.
18:04Yeah.
18:04and the next donkey's gonna go back here yeah and then we're gonna have a dog back here
18:11wow and then the other dog runs loose runs and then the little ones all go inside
18:17you're giving me heart palpitations what about the rocking chair should i bring it over yes
18:22yes thank you we're gonna slip these two under here like that yeah yeah there we go you don't
18:30sit on this do you no all the animals are in place and suddenly it clicks
18:40it's an impressive setup but there's still one piece of the jigsaw missing
18:45that looks like everything but the pigeon coop yes um i'm gonna have to have you probably help
18:52me with that one okay it's a new addition and going down a steep hill am i being a donkey
18:57yeah everybody works around here i'm very happy to do it but if i wasn't with you what would you
19:03do
19:04i'd wait till somebody come to help me oh would you really yeah you just gotta humble yourself
19:07sometimes i haven't seen many people passing through here that could be a long wait yeah it
19:12could i might call somebody i know in the area i meet people you'd be surprised there are lots of
19:19people in the uk that dislike donkeys being used for any sort of manual work yeah everybody's
19:27different not say all donkeys like to work but this particular donkey likes his job and i know what
19:33signs to look for when something's too much i wouldn't want to put him through anything i wouldn't want
19:38to go through we about ready okay wagons loaded animals attached pigeon coo puller in place
19:49easy forward let's roll it's time to hit the open road good boy
20:00good dunk dunk dunk dunk dunk dunk
20:06easy forward come on
20:09try it's quite something cars coming past slightly incredulous they know quite what has hit them
20:33i think uh i think uh i've seen a vision of my next few days pulling pigeons
20:40who'd have thought that eh but randolin's kind of reading the road
20:46and it feels like we're kind of getting into a bit of a zone
20:55we'll be off these back roads soon buddy it's like crossing antarctica but with pigeons
21:05good job you got it you got it the longer we walk the more i settle into the rhythm
21:14i've always found walking meditative i've just never done it quite like this before
21:28we've been walking along quiet back roads for about two hours
21:32easy but the traffic is starting to pick up
21:37so many things going through my mind right now one of which is that i didn't
21:42have pulling a cast of pigeons on my bingo card today
21:47i don't really like eating pigeons i don't like petting pigeons i don't like killing pigeons
21:55and yet i'm dragging them up a u.s highway behind a little caravan of donkeys and dogs
22:06wow don't do this at home boys and girls
22:11but just when i thought nothing could surprise me thanks randolin turns to go onto the actual
22:18highway i can't stop the convoy in the middle of the road to question the route
22:22so i'm just following and trusting randolin
22:28so this is the slipway onto the highway
22:32cars behind us trucks going
22:36just when i thought i'd seen it all
22:40we're gonna go until i find somewhere wide enough to pull off
22:43okay forward
22:46fanny back up come here come underneath you
22:49uh randolin randolin one of the dogs is off
22:55whoa hey go stand hey freda freda come
23:01i see yeah her clip broke you take this and i'll i'll go get it okay
23:08so we're on a slipway
23:13there's a big truck coming
23:16all right you good yeah big truck coming
23:27i can't quite believe how calm randolin and animals are
23:31benny come on i have a friend who was struck and nearly killed on the side of an american highway
23:40so for me the danger just feels uncomfortably close
23:48you know i've done some dangerous stuff
23:51this is ridiculous along a highway
23:57i i'm really torn because i really admire what she's doing but this just seems ridiculous
24:07and then i suppose and the thing about randolin is that she's trying to
24:13live in the past but we're in the future and uh wow
24:26for one of the first times in my life feels a bit too much really
24:33it's been closing in fast i'm just going to try to pull over here soon
24:38in this next exit okay the next exit is about half a mile away
24:46but before we can even reach it we're stopped
24:54stand
25:13not your typical uh early morning camping view
25:17before i've just spent the night in a tent outside a gas station in missouri
25:27last night was nuts walking along the highway
25:32rush hour trucks whooshing past just feet from us and then a police car came along
25:40i thought that was it i was going to end up in a cell
25:43and a big cheery face went is everything okay can i help do you need anything
25:50and he basically just offered just to keep an eye on us just while we walk that final distance
25:55until we got off the highway
25:58it's just bizarre that's the only way to describe this life because
26:01yesterday i saw the very wild side of uh randolin's life in that slightly idyllic setting now i am in
26:11a drainage ditch not probably dissimilar to where she spent her first night
26:17i thought i'd seen it all till last night that's for sure
26:22morning randolin
26:24knock knock good morning hey how are you doing i'm doing all right is it nice and warm in there
26:30yeah
26:33i i'm fascinated by our interaction with with the police because i'm not going to lie i saw a
26:40police cell no i've never been arrested i've been doing this five years so that's no typically they're
26:46there to help so what's your legal right with uh well so the u.s constitution um kind of protects
26:52the right for equine travels that's kind of how this country was founded but you go 15 miles that
26:59way there's quite a heavy amish population so generally people kind of know how to drive around
27:05wagons in this area it felt quite vulnerable out there well if you're not used to it you know
27:12sometimes perspective is just something that's different for different people
27:18to me vehicles aren't all that safe of an answer either but i'm kind of going two miles an hour
27:25in something that people don't see every day so they're a little more aware of me on the road
27:30because not only is it a wagon but this is a very bright one so what's the plan today more
27:35highway yeah
27:36we're going to be just going down a stretch of highway probably find somewhere to park off the side of
27:41it let's get going yeah it'll help us warm up yeah there's a lot less to pack up this morning
27:49and it
27:50isn't long before we're back on the road today we're doing about nine miles along here it's not quite the
28:00rush hour of yesterday but it's noisy bits of gravel get flicked up
28:09and we've got cars and trucks traveling at the national speed limit out here
28:16i don't think i'll ever shake the inherent danger of traveling like this
28:21but the longer we keep going the more a kind of pace and momentum settles in
28:27as randolin said maybe i just need to get used to it
28:35and yet it doesn't take long before i'm brought sharply back to earth with a bump
28:43we've now got a car in the hard shoulder just ahead of us i don't know what randolin's going to
28:47do
28:47whether she's just going to edge out into the road or try to get the car to move
28:54these are the really really dangerous moments
29:02the car is abandoned so we've no choice we have to go into the road and around it ready let's
29:10roll
29:15oh my god my heart is racing
29:22wow it's dangerous incredibly foolhardy but this is what randolin does
29:32we stopped for a break and a moment for me to settle myself
29:38is this a typical typical day yeah pretty much you don't get scared no
29:45i find it quite nerve-wracking but i'm trusting you i don't trust the drivers though
29:52i do it's a good point it's a good point yes you are
29:57randolin you are you're challenging me and testing me today
30:03we carry on
30:06shoveling roadkill out of the way as we go
30:09until we finally reach a stretch with enough space for all the animals and wagons to pull aside
30:16the process of unpacking and feeding starts all over again but thankfully randolin seems happy to
30:23stay put here for the next couple of days what percentage of your movement is on highways like
30:29this for this season it's going to be a lot because we're trying to get south and we're trying to
30:34get
30:35there quick i still find it difficult to find enjoyment as big trucks and lorries
30:41are going past yeah i've gotten to where i kind of zone out all this
30:48it's kind of like when you live in the city and you got to get used to all the noise
30:51this is the only city i live in
30:55randolin has compared this way of life to the amish who live nearby
31:00but while they're part of a community she's doing this entirely on her own
31:06having spent a little bit of time walking with you it feels like this would be easier with someone
31:12else it would definitely be easier with someone else it's a it's a lot of work by myself
31:17do you enjoy the company of others i do um when i originally got started i was much more of
31:25an
31:25introvert why is it do you think that you felt introverted or shy um i had had some things happen
31:35in my childhood
31:38and uh it was you know something that had happened while i was in child care one of those things
31:45you know that we all wish never to happen to our children
31:52i'm sorry
31:55sorry that happened to you do you do you talk about it have you talked about it
32:01you know i've talked to quite a few people about it over the years but when i travel it's
32:06you know i'm sometimes kind of a therapy for people they'll tell me things they don't tell other
32:12people you know
32:18sorry
32:18why is that the emotion the emotion attached with another person being hurt almost hurts me more
32:25sometimes thinking about the things people go through does that make it worth it for you knowing
32:31that they can open up to you well and a lot of people really feel they can open up and
32:37so it gives
32:38them a shoulder to cry on big part of my journey is become being there for a lot of people
32:46i'm just
32:47there to give them a hug and have somebody to listen to them i try not to give too much
32:52advice
32:54do i get a roadside hug yes
33:01perpetual movement is one of the great healers not many people are talking about it
33:08because it's quite a complicated way
33:11to choose to live most of us need bricks and mortar we need stability in our lives but there are
33:18plenty of people here in the united states and all around the world who have been able to
33:24escape break the manacles of an unhappy life and find happiness
33:33i think what's really beautiful about randolin's story is that what started as necessity has now
33:39become pure lifestyle
33:44i've got a pretty good idea there might be some over here looking at some of these trees
33:50these things yeah yeah actually that's exactly so these are hickory nuts here and these are really
33:57sweet nuts that have a lot of different uses somewhat like a walnut is foraging a big part of
34:04your life i'd say over the years i've gotten maybe a little more wild or some people say feral
34:10it's hard to go back to some societal norms when you spent this much time just kind of living in
34:18your
34:18own authenticity i'd say you are pretty wild is there another level to go though definitely i'd like to
34:24see this go more primitive a little bit so that that's the optimal goal
34:38they're small pieces but they're really tasty and it doesn't take much to add to many meals yeah
34:45do you like thinking back to how people once lived and did stuff i really do because i think it's
34:52important to like who we are as humans to go back sometimes because with so much convenience we
34:59forget how to use our brains and do things you know this like teaches me how to go slower
35:06to slow down to not just bust through everything you know and just focus
35:14people do a lot of things and they're just reactionary
35:18they're not really paying attention taking it all in i'm wondering about your lifestyle though
35:26generally are you a prisoner to this lifestyle now in that is there any way back well i could sell
35:33all
35:34these things and probably buy a really nice car maybe get into an apartment but
35:42i don't see that happening anytime soon could you stop traveling and talking to people that easily
35:49it'd be really hard to just go home and sit in an office wouldn't it it's it's a very good
35:55you'd be like
36:04so do you think maybe you're kind of starting to get an understanding of why i choose to do this
36:10randolin i i guess almost every aspect of your lifestyle i think the thing i still find quite
36:18hard is that almost everything you do is like dream life style in my book the only thing
36:27that i i'm still struggling with is this that we're on the side of a highway but i under what
36:31i do
36:32understand is that it's a means to an end that if you want to live this lifestyle and be able
36:36to
36:37find land to graze your animals you're limited to the land on which you are permitted or i'm permitted
36:45so so i do get it but i still i'm still going to worry about you sorry i've got a
36:52lot of moms all
36:53over the country a lot of little old ladies worried about me well you can now add a 52 year
36:59old brit
37:00on on the worry list we'll all be uh back at our homes worrying about you but maybe the karma
37:06of all
37:06that worry will keep you safe
37:19i'm in missouri learning how randolin does everyday tasks while parked up on the side of a highway
37:29i put the water on the boil like you asked what are we cooking this time we're not cooking you
37:35kind of
37:35look like you need to wash up honestly yeah well this is bent knight clay yeah i don't use shampoo
37:42or any
37:42those things they're bad for the environment and people you use clay yes it's a powderized clay
37:48so you're just going to dust this in your hair while it's dry yeah and then you're just going to
37:53simply rinse it out and that's all this is how like native and indigenous tribes have been doing
37:58it for thousands of years they take clay wash their hair it's a normal thing i imagine they weren't
38:04doing it on the side of a highway with tons of cars streaming past you got to get the experience
38:09this is so will you if you have to actually wash would you say that's one of the hardest things
38:15about
38:15being on the road yes and no honestly there's a lot of friendly people and you know if i just
38:21say i
38:21don't want to be a dirty person most people are happy to have me not smell i think so are
38:26you
38:26are you saying people will invite you to use their their bathrooms their showers yes i've actually
38:31i've been in thousands of bathrooms across the country that really shows the generosity of people
38:36yeah i found randalyn to be very softly spoken at times you're going to do the honors yes sir
38:43but being welcomed into so many people's homes tells me she's a lot more outgoing than her reserved
38:49nature might suggest so that's clay there's loads of it powder it's not really a lot that was less
38:56than a teaspoon it's just very very fine yeah and you'll just rinse your hair off just rinse it off
39:04is the clay not going to set in my hair no that's why you're going to rinse it
39:09it's a little too cold to strip off for a full wash not that i'd want to in a place
39:14this exposed thank you
39:22even making leather pouches to sell is something randalyn has to do under the gaze of passing drivers
39:29i carry some of these dyes and things to that's what i made the little flower with here so you
39:34just
39:34push that onto the leather you take it and you'll just that's clever hammer it and you got to make
39:40sure
39:40you hammer it real good around because this kind of wiggles with so much of her life on show
39:45i can't help wondering what her family think of all this i'm curious to know a little bit more about
39:51your your children what do they make of of your lifestyle well mom is eccentric they'd probably say
40:02what's your relationship with them now um i'm pretty close with them what did the kids think when
40:09you first moved away five years ago were they resentful they weren't really too upset because
40:16anytime they wanted me to come back i come back they know they can call on me they come to
40:21me with
40:22their things they can't tell everyone else you know could you ever imagine a time when any of your
40:28kids might embrace a lifestyle like yours now um well not too long ago my youngest daughter actually
40:36asked me how much a tiny home would cost to build and then my middle daughter has been more cautious
40:41of what she's eating and what she's taking in so i'd say they've definitely had a lot of good things
40:48come
40:48from it it's just in the day and age we live in things like that are kind of ostracized and
40:54people
40:55don't understand it and so it's just taken a while for everybody to see that i wasn't going to kill
41:04myself i wasn't going to you know they they imagined me being eaten in the woods by a bear or
41:09you know when
41:10i first started traveling the highway i didn't come from a farm background i was a girl from the suburbs
41:18so when i first said i was getting driving horses and donkeys and different things they were like
41:26what are you doing but i've not had any big incidents whether or not people agree with
41:34the risks randolin takes i do know there are very few who could continually do what she does
41:42myself included verdicts they're all a bit wonky but i've done that on purpose it looks great yeah
41:51and i've no doubt that there's still a lot more to discover about my nomadic friend
41:57after all i've only walked a few miles on the highway of her remarkable life
42:05this is a one-off and it's an extraordinary world to spend a bit of time in because everything's going
42:12on
42:13around us but for these few days i've been in randolin's world it's all about the journey there is no
42:22destination she's just trying to make the most of every single step that she and her animals take
42:33and there's something really admirable about that this is not for everyone
42:40but there are other people who may have experienced some of the same things that randolin has experienced
42:47maybe other people that have experienced the emptiness syndrome who are feeling that their lives are a
42:54little bit empty i might not recommend you take to the motorways but maybe you just want to shake up
43:03your life a little bit like randolin randolin is calling in a friend to help hold a spare wagon until
43:12her other donkey's trained up goodbye my loves look after yourselves stay safe which means for now
43:20my days of dragging pigeons across missouri have come to an end oh pandora goodbye look after yourself
43:33i don't i don't need to say that so i hope that doesn't sound condescending and uh keep doing
43:46what you're doing you are an inspiring individual thank you maybe i'll bump into you on some highway in
43:53future yeah i'll look out for the legendary randolin it'd be nice i'd like to see you again someday
43:58something tells me uh this is not the last time we'll meet is emilio there yes emilio bye emilio
44:06a place of pilgrimage for nomads on this side of the pond is stonehenge and weave secrets of the new
44:27stone brand new next tuesday at nine and there's more off-grid adventures from all over the planet
44:32pick anywhere on a map and stream ben fogel new lives in the wild now on five drama next as
44:39the curfew continues
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