Stats & thoughts from a 4-month US road trip
Oops, I did it again - another Tacoma tour
I just returned from a four-month US road trip. I left Tennessee at the beginning of May and finished the long, meandering loop in late August.
I spent much of my 20s road tripping the US. I designed this year's trip to go through places I'd missed on previous routes, and to revisit a few of my favorite places too, sprinkling in stops to see friends when I could.
If I combined all my long-stint trips together, I've now spent more than one full year of my life in non-stop travel mode.
In this post, I'll share stats from the road and a few thoughts and reflections. But first, stats!
Here's a detailed video tour of my minimalist truck camper.
The best parts of my route
An unexpected magical stop in west Texas Guadalupe Mountains
Exploring the high desert, forests and towns of north Arizona
Visiting friends in Austin, San Diego, SLC & Denver
A backpacking trip in the Eastern Sierras
Cruising north along Cali's stunning Highway 395
Bouncing around parts of beautiful rural Idaho
A whole month exploring Colorado and visiting friends there
Ending the trip with eight Phish shows in Michigan, New York and Delaware
And of course meeting so many awesome people along the way!
Distance & beds
I drove 11,937 miles. My 2007 Toyota Tacoma averaged 18.53 mpg on 645 gallons of gas, with $2,380.57 spent on fuel.
I had 34 nights of free camping, 24 nights of paid camping, 19 nights in hotels and 10 nights in hostels.
I also stayed with friends for 21 nights, but five of those nights I slept in my truck on their property, because the weather was nice & cool or I had to avoid the midnight wrath of Party Marty - the world's most insane, but lovable dog that never sleeps.
I slept in my truck 63 out of 108 nights. 99% of the time I was cozy with comfortable temps. My hottest night I snuggled with Saguaro cacti outside of Tucson, Arizona. My coldest night was a frozen potato slumber near Stanley, Idaho.
I don't do much urban camping. Almost all camping I do is either in the backcountry in national forests or BLM land or at a campground in a beautiful location. I did crash for two nights in downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan in a metered parking spot after Phish concerts. Billy Strings made me do it.
I slept one night in a 24-hour gym parking lot in Ohio. I asked to pay for a day pass the next morning so I could workout and shower, but they let me in for free despite my attempts to hand over cash. Maybe the gym owner thought I was a desperate houseless person, or maybe he hadn't had his coffee yet, or maybe he didn't want my dirty hippy money. I liked him - we chatted about alligators invading Lake Erie.
Saving a few bucks
For all the gyms I used, I paid for a day pass less than half the time. Turns out that gym staff are generous & welcoming to travelers. This includes a cross-fit gym class in Park City, Utah. Friendly fitness folks!
At every hotel I stayed at, I asked for 10% off and free parking if they charged for it. Works almost every time. I can only remember one instance in Bishop, California when I got a funny look, and she said "Nah, we don't do that sir." That hotel didn't have HD TV - a grainy blast from the past. I can only hope the 10% they kept will eventually fund an upgrade of their ancient tech. I watched the Boston Celtics win the NBA Finals in heavily pixelated picture.
Free ice & water
I carried one tiny cooler on this trip. Big enough to fit a few drinks, oranges, blueberries and the occasional burrito to go. That means a giant bag of ice is too much for me.
This is how to get unlimited free ice, legally. Buy the biggest fountain drink cup you can find. Fill it with ice. It will cost you 69 cents. Drop it in your cooler. The next time you fill up gas, pull out the cup, dump the melted ice water (or drink it), take that cup inside the store, and fill up ice for free. Every single convenience store allows this. Bring your own cup, get free ice. It's a one-time purchase, and you save dozens of plastic cups from being thrown away.
What about water? I carry a 5-gallon jug and a 1-liter water bottle into the store. I use the bottle to fill up the jug. Water is the same as ice - free for you and free for me. Truckers do this often. No need to buy bottles of water if you have your own, and water from the soda fountain is often ice cold!
Nods from God
I was in Austin, Texas on my birthday. I drove past a church with one of those digital signs that rotate between different messages. The sign said "Happy Birthday Logan!"
I sat on a park bench in Ouray, Colorado reading a book I snagged at a library sale. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a little black Scottish terrier. He had no leash, was by himself, nobody walking him.
I thought, "That's funny, looks like the dog my Dad had as a kid - Pepper, the black Scottish terrier."
I look back down at my book and read the next sentence. The woman says she's in Mexico, and she met a black Scottish terrier named Pepper. My jaw dropped, and I looked back over at the dog, but he was gone. So then the next obvious thing to do was to call my Dad.
Ouray is a little mountain town in the heart of the San Juan mountains, which means St. John, like John the Baptist. I’m trying to find a spiritual connection with this black dog. Any clues?
Idaho's finest
Early afternoon, I'm waiting for a coffee & warm pastry at Odd Fellows Bakery in Salmon, Idaho. My second time there that day. The same old man sitting by himself, holding the same mug he had that morning. I ask if I can sit with him. He lights up, shakes his head Yes.
He's in his 90s. A retired airline pilot - retired for more than 30 years. This man retired in 1992, the same year I was born. I ask him what that's like, to wake up every day with no agenda. He laughs and talks about when he used to take care of his mom, before she passed. Those were his happiest years.
I ask if he has family. He has no spouse, no siblings, no children. But, shockingly, I swear this man is the happiest dude I've met on my whole trip. He's sharp & quick. He's lost some hearing, but he is more present than many people my age.
He quit drinking before he retired. Nearly four decades, no booze. He eats whatever he wants. He takes daily walks & socializes every day. He says that's what keeps him in good health.
He wishes he could fly again. If there's someone in Idaho with a small plane, please go find this man and take him soaring around the Sawtooths!
Big cities or small town USA?
Talking to a guy I met at my hostel in Denver, him and I are on two completely different tours of the US. I have a truck, I camp often, I visit remote wild places and small towns & small cities. The occasional big city too - Nashville, Austin, San Diego, Denver.
Originally from the Philippines, he lived 10 years in NYC and doesn't own a car. He's flying around the country to many big cities - Seattle, Chicago, Portland, Denver.
I love how massive this nation is. You can bounce around staying inside the bubbles of cities. Or you can drive across the beautiful, vast landscapes and hit small town America all along the way. Both options are awesome, just depends on your personal preference!
This might be fiction, and maybe I'm making this up, but I think too many Americans avoid small towns and only visit large cities or mid-size cities.
What's even crazier is large swaths of Americans that have never visited the South even once, because they just assume it's full of people they don't want to be around. I'm always shocked when I hear takes like this.
I've visited 40 of the 50 US states. People in the South might be the friendliest people in the US. Utah and Colorado are also friendly places. Maybe my friend Jake was right when he said in one of my recent videos, "Mountain people are just the same everywhere you go."
Leave a comment, ask me questions. There's so much more I could say about this summer's trip, but I'll stop here for now.
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Nods from God❤️❤️❤️