Jenna Nienhuis

nature writer | artist | mother


  • Roadside Support

    Roadside Support

    *Featured in Bradt Travel Guide’s 2025 “Kindness of Strangers” story collection. Every teen driver in my hometown dreaded the name Jack Lithgo, a timeworn gatekeeper who stood between us and the open road.  Before surviving a five-lane freeway merge, we had to endure his driver’s ed classes, infamous for all the wrong, soul-crushing reasons. On Continue reading

  • Surf & Turf

    Surf & Turf

    *Featured in the October Issue of Wildsam Magazine. Set sail: A classic camper with nautical roots. Renowned boat manufacturer Jensen Marine of Costa Mesa, California, decided to get into the booming RV scene. Their designers imagined a rig tough enough for seafaring, but made for the road. The Balboa Motorhome debuted as the first B+ Continue reading

  • Just Jeff

    Just Jeff

    “I’m going to charge you for making photos of my restaurant,” smirks a Dutchman, swinging the service door open and stepping out beside us onto the sidewalk. A waft of coffee beans and the sound of clanking dishes escape narrowly with him. He is outfitted in all black except for the colorful sleeve tattoo running Continue reading

  • Girl in the Water

    Girl in the Water

    I tiptoe through the shallow waters, clench my arms to my chest, and squeal as whitewater crashes into my bare stomach. I wait for an unbroken wave to arrive and then— sink under like a desperate prayer. Saltwater rushes around my ears, into my nose, down the back of my throat. It soaks my day-old hair into submission, sweepsmy body into Continue reading