Road Trip Series |*|

An Exploration of Landscapes

The mountains are Home.

(Click the mountains to return to the RTS home page)

The Economics of this Trip &

An Inventory of Things

  • Reason for the Trip:

—Why not?*

 

  • Opportunity Cost:

—78 Days without earning money and missing out on things back home.

 

  • The Flipside:

—78 Days of Possible Struggles and Bliss.

 

  • Risk:

—All Things That Could Possibly Go Wrong.

 

  • Reward:

—The Possible Discovery of Something Previously Unknown.

 

  • Review of Risks:

—Performed.

 

  • Sensible Risk or Stupidity?

—Sensible (Necessary) Risk.

 

  • Gut Check:

—Passed.

  • # of Months Planning, Preparing, Saving:
    • 10
  • # of Months of Daydreaming About the Trip
    • 11
  • # of Months of Actual Planning:
    • 1
  • # of days on the Road:
    • 78 (11 Weeks)

 

  • Expenses:
    • Lodging
      • $ 3,503.71 (77 nights)
    • Gas
      • $ 1,016.79
    • Food, Supplies, & Coffee
      • $ 1,649.51
    • Others (Showers, laundry, carwash, car maintenance, parking fees, entrance to other parks/museums, books, Stuff for friends and family)
      • $ 380.59
    • Travel Insurance & AAA
      • $ 252
    • Gear (Tent, sleeping bag, etc.)
      • $ 200
    • National Parks Pass
      • $ 80
    • Parking ticket
      • $ 15
  • Total Expenses:
    • $ 7,097.60
    • I spent a lot on coffee trying out different local coffee shops, splurged on some hotels and gear, and did not push through with sleeping at Walmart parking lots like I originally intended. I was not as spartan as I would’ve liked to be. Others could have done this cheaper, but just as fun and adventurous, if not more.
  • Average Cost of Lodging per Night:
    • $ 45.50/night
  • Average Cost of Trip per Day (Excluding insurance, gear, parking ticket, and stuff I bought for friends and family):
    • $ 84/day

 

  • Miles
    • 12,060 miles
  • Average MPG
    • 36.5mpg
  • Longest Drive:
    • 9.5 Hrs., Denver to Zion
  • Ran Out of Gas in the Middle of the Desert:
    • Almost 1
  • Car Maintenance Required:
    • 1 Oil Change, Tire rot.
  • Car Troubles:
    • 0, Thank you Honda Fit

 

  • National Parks Explored:
    • 11
      • Sequoia, CA
      • Kings Canyon, CA
      • Redwood, CA
      • Crater Lake, OR
      • Glacier, MT
      • Yellowstone, WY
      • Rocky Mountain, CO
      • Badlands, SD
      • Shenandoah, VA
      • Zion, UT
      • Yosemite, CA
      • Grand Teton (Just drove by; not explored ☹)
  • Nights Camped:
    • 34
  • Nights slept in car:
    • 1
  • Nights slept in a Tiny House:
    • 1
  • # of Trails Hiked:
    • At least 40
  • Bear Encounters:
    • 1, maybe 3
      • (x1) ~50 ft. away, bear did not see me, I think.
      • (x1) Bear/s most likely lurking behind vegetation, I did not see them.
      • (x1) Bear, maybe, circling my tent in the middle of the night.
  • Dangerous-looking-relatively-harmless Snake (Close) Encounters:
    • 2
      • Turns out they were just garter snakes
  • Longest Streak Without Shower:
    • 4 Days

 

  • Highest Elevation Reached by Foot:
    • 11,800 ft. (3,600 m.)
  • Highest Elevation Reached by Car:
    • 12,180 ft. (3,712 m.)

 

  • Top Five Drives:
    • 1) On I-5 N on the first day, driving off into adventure without a care in the world.
    • 2) Along Oregon’s Coast
    • 3) In Glacier National Park
    • 4) Through the Desert in Nevada
    • 5) Columbia River Gorge Scenic Byway
  • Top Five Hikes:
    • 1) Grinnell Glacier in Glacier, MT
      • ~13 miles RT; Peak at ~6,500 ft.; Elevation gain of ~1,600 ft.
    • 2) Chasm Lake in Rocky Mountain, CO
      • ~8.2 miles RT; Peak at ~11,760 ft.; Elevation gain of ~2,400 ft.
    • 3) Swiftcurrent Valley to Devil’s Elbow in Glacier, MT
      • ~13 miles RT; Peak at ~6,800 ft; Elevation gain of ~1,600 ft.
    • 4) Sky Pond and Lake Glass in Rocky Mountain, CO
      • ~9 miles RT; Peak at ~11,000 ft.; Elevation gain of ~2,000 ft.
    • 5) The Narrows in Zion, UT

 

  • # of Pages Filled in Journal:
    • 107
  • Moments of Troubles, Unexpected Problems, Anxieties, Self-Doubt, Panic, Boredom, Loneliness, Cold Nights, Sore feet under Hot Sun:
    • —Many
  • Worth it for the Rewards?
    • —Hell Yes.
  • Soundtrack:

Now or Never Now by Metric, Anticipate by Metric, What Would I Change It To by Avicii (feat. AlunaGeorge), Didn’t I by Darondo (Esbe Remix), (Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay by Otis Redding, These Arms of Mine by Otis Redding, Easy by Sky Ferreira (Baby Driver OST), You Make My Dreams by Daryl Hall & John Oates, Spirit in the Sky by Norman Greenbaum, Breakdown by Jack Johnson, January Wedding by The Avett Brothers, Don’t Know Why by Norah Jones, Six Weeks by Of Monsters and Men, These Days by Bamboo, As Far As I Can See by Phantogram

*Clearly this is not the complete answer. It’s not as simple and easy as I make it sound when I say “Why not?” But stripping away all personal reasons, when it comes down to it, it is still a valid question—why not? And one that might lead you to re-consider and examine your own personal reasons for holding back on that trip you’ve always wanted to do—or for that matter anything that you’ve always wanted to try out. Shake up your routine a little bit; shift your perspective. I heard it’s good for you. If the opportunity is there, why not grab it? If it is not, then why not make one for yourself and claim it at some point in the near future? Why not? What do you have to lose? What could you possibly gain? You can’t receive anything if your hands are already full; let go.

 

. . .

 

Thank you.

Author’s

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The mountains are Home.

Author’s

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Bona fide hustler I’m making my name.

And I’d appreciate your help by sharing!

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