The founders of EXPLORIST.life have created the first-ever DIY Solar Summit. It is taking place in Steamboat Springs this week with a goal to inspire others to get off-grid and learn what it takes to get wherever their camper van, or recreational vehicle, can take them.

“We’re going to be setting up today and tomorrow, but basically we’re doing seven live electrical builds,” said Grace Coomaraswamy, director of digital media and marketing for EXPLORIST.life.

“The mission of EXPLORIST.life is to get people off-grid with their electrical systems in camper vans, RVs, motor homes and even off-grid cabin folks as well,” she added.

Organizers say the four-day, DIY Solar Summit at the Meadows parking lot at the base of the Steamboat Resort will bring together off-grid electrical enthusiasts, do-it-yourself builders and industry leaders for live solar installations, hands-on workshops and community networking.

The event, which will kick off at 10 a.m. Thursday and run through Sunday, offers two different levels of passes to access the Solar Summit.

The $20 day pass includes access from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. to all events and access to limited on-site parking. The $20 cost of a pass will be donated to the local nonprofit Routt County Riders to support the group’s efforts.

The event also offers a full-access pass for $99, which includes all the events, onsite parking until 5 p.m. and access to “fireside chats” where industry professionals will host conversations for those looking to turn their hobby into a career. The event also offers a limited number of camping options and will have food trucks on-site.

Coomaraswamy said there will be an additional 140-150 Recreational Vehicles and campers on-site, as well as vendors like Victron Energy and Battle Born Batteries.

The event is hosted by EXPLORIST.life, a Steamboat Springs company that specializes in designing mobile, marine, and off-grid electrical systems for camper vans, recreational vehicles and converted school buses, often referred to as “Skoolies.”

The company, founded in 2018 by Nate and Steph Yarbrough, started with solar tutorials for van-dwellers and expanded in 2021 to offer DIY electrical components for mobile, marine and off-grid electrical systems.

They’ve since simplified the process of purchasing camper electrical parts, making off-grid living more accessible. Coomaraswamy said the company has grown into a community-driven brand offering education, resources and products for sustainable, adventurous living. This week’s event in Steamboat will offer a peek inside that life.

“We are really trying to educate and empower people,” Coomaraswamy said. “We have basically an online trade school on YouTube that we’re in the middle of creating, and then we also have all of these tutorials to kind of take your van from an empty van to a fully functional van for you.”

She said the company wanted to create the DIY Solar Summit to create a new kind of event, where those interested in experiencing life off-grid could learn and meet with similar-minded people.

“So we’ve gone to a lot of different van events and things like that,” Coomaraswamy said. “We have a show van that we converted, and we were going to things like Overland Expo … We really wanted to do a new kind of event where people were coming to learn, where they weren’t being inundated by salespeople at every turn, but there are workshops, or a live demonstration happening at every corner, at every moment. We just really wanted to push education, since that’s kind of what we’re doing on YouTube every week.”