One Year

[Fishinmission]

Alright, got a weird one for you guys.

Long story short, I am 25, dropped out of high school at 15 and have been working full time for my family business ever since (dont regret this at all) . I have been running pretty hard and have realized that I haven't really done anything aside from work and haven't traveled pretty much at all. I love what I do and all that, but I need to take some time to do something for myself before I blink and I am old. I am going to put my house up for rent and drain the savings account and travel around the U.S and Canada for 12 months. Going to build out a Leer122 camper shell on a 6-3/4' bed f250 to camp in with some basic amenities, and stay in the occasional air BNB, hotel, staying at friends houses when I am near them and whatever else. Will mostly be staying in the truck

My goal is to hunt, fish and hike as much as possible but the budget definitely isn't unlimited in that regard as far as charters/guides go.
I plan on hitting as many national parks, spending time out west, badlands etc.

I plan on being able to hit pretty much every state aside from Hawaii (Yes Alaska is on the list) so my main question is for you well traveled folk:

What can I not miss?


Definitely open to advice or any other random info you think could be helpful. This is brand new to me. PM me if you would rather do that.

For those who will question the ability to have a decent setup in a camper shell:

[Mars Bluff]

You either picked the worst time in our history to do it or the best time.

Nothing to add except go for it. Keep us posted on the journey.

Oh, and the education will be much more than you coulda got in those last three years of school.

[murraywader]

Good for you man, live it up.

Do you have a gohunt.com membership? Its got some pretty good intel for western big game hunting.

[JABIII]

That sounds awesome. I look forward to following your adventure.

[BuckyTownsend]

Hike the Appalachian trail then spend the last 6 months touring the country and whatever Canada you want to see. Can't many people say they've done the whole trail. Start at the top and go down then hit road out west.

[Fishinmission]

You either picked the worst time in our history to do it or the best time.

Nothing to add except go for it. Keep us posted on the journey.

Oh, and the education will be much more than you coulda got in those last three years of school.

Yeah. thats for sure the feedback I have gotten from most people at work that I have told. Hoping it turns out to be the best time. Will definitely be nice to not have phone reception half the time and no ability to watch the news or other shit shows happening in the world.

[Fishinmission]

Good for you man, live it up.

Do you have a gohunt.com membership? Its got some pretty good intel for western big game hunting.

I dont yet, but I will now. Thanks for that.

[MolliesMaster]

I'd be at the corners of Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana in the fall. Hit Yellowstone. Elk hunt one of the states. Find a bird dog and chase an upland slam. Head over to Jackson Hole for either hiking or skiing, weather dependent.

[Gut_Pile]

I have zero advice...but wish you the best of luck. Sounds fun

[JABIII]

Plan your route carefully, but make one across Canada to AK, and another across the northern tier states South of the border because it may not be open to you. If it is, the trip South out of Alaska through British Columbia will be pretty sporty...

[Fishinmission]

Plan your route carefully, but make one across Canada to AK, and another across the northern tier states South of the border because it may not be open to you. If it is, the trip South out of Alaska through British Columbia will be pretty sporty...

Yeah I have my Route roughly planned out, but will have to watch that northern border for restrictions and may have to make changes to get up there before a closure if I need to. One place I have actually been for work is British Columbia and I swore I would go back, honestly one of the places I'm looking forward to the most as long as I'm allowed in. Plan is to take the ferry from Vancouver up the interior of Alaska to Juneau and spend some time with a friend up there.

For anyone trying to plan any kind of road trip, this website is really cool.
https://roadtrippers.com/r-1/?utm_ex....google.com%2F

[JABIII]

That sounds like a solid plan.

[Shallow Minded]

Sounds like a damn fun trip

[2thDoc]

i went out west for three months after my first year of dental school. took my girlfriend at the time. she had been a park ranger at Arches, so we spent 4-5 days there. we hit a bunch of national parks and slept in some shady spots with some odd people. this was before the internet. yes, there was a time where you had to ask for directions and use a pay phone to call collect to let your parents know you were still alive. we had some AAA "trip tix" if anyone remembers them....(its a type of map). I think the national parks have reservations these days. dont "schedule" yourself too much though. it can be a hindrance when you "have to" be at the next park in a certain number of days but are having too much fun where you are.


anywho, get a good samaritan card or whatever it is that lets you stay in good sam/KOA campgrounds all over the country and get the "golden eagle" pass that gets you into every national park. google will help.

you cant mess this one up too badly.....

[Gregory]

Safe travels and send us updates. I wish I had done that.

[Fishinmission]

i went out west for three months after my first year of dental school. took my girlfriend at the time. she had been a park ranger at Arches, so we spent 4-5 days there. we hit a bunch of national parks and slept in some shady spots with some odd people. this was before the internet. yes, there was a time where you had to ask for directions and use a pay phone to call collect to let your parents know you were still alive. we had some AAA "trip tix" if anyone remembers them....(its a type of map). I think the national parks have reservations these days. dont "schedule" yourself too much though. it can be a hindrance when you "have to" be at the next park in a certain number of days but are having too much fun where you are.
anywho, get a good samaritan card or whatever it is that lets you stay in good sam/KOA campgrounds all over the country and get the "golden eagle" pass that gets you into every national park. google will help.

you cant mess this one up too badly.....

Thanks. It seems like all the advice I have gotten from people who have done these types of trips are to just have a rough schedule. Like I know the rough line I want to take around the country, but I am not setting any time limits. Only thing that I will really set a schedule for is the Alaska trip just because of ferry schedules and weather. Other than that I plan on hunting seasons/weather/dates be what determines how I move.

I will definitely plan on getting the goodsam pass. Hadn't heard of that before but seems well worth the money after looking into it. That national park pass is only 80$ which is awesome. Appreciate the tip.

[Fishinmission]

Safe travels and send us updates. I wish I had done that.

Yeah I will definitely have to get better at posting photos and all that on here. I will definitely keep you guys updated. Going to be hitting the road in February.

[smitch320]

Pretty awesome idea. I’ve toyed with the idea of doing something similar.

[trkykilr]

My grandfather and I did 4 weeks in Alaska in an RV 4 straight years from the time I was 11-14. There was a thing called “Milepost Magazine”. I’m sure there’s some online version now, but it told you where to stop, camp, fish, what you’d catch, etc. It was amazing for Alaska. I drove a 29’ RV on a mountain road around an inlet 200’ below me when I was 12 while he napped. That’s livin

When you cross the pass west of Jackson heading toward Salt Lake, get a Huckleberry milkshake.

Breathe some clean air, build lots of fires, eat fresh things, and enjoy.

I’m envious and selfishly can’t wait to hear about it.

ETA: my distant relative is Martin Buser who lives in Eagle, AK and has won the Iditarod a few times. He’s a big deal there and we spent a few days with he and his dogs

[Ring King]

Let me know if you hit Northern California. I’m about an hour and a half north of San Fran in the edge of wine country. I have kayaks and a bass boat if you want to hit some of the local waters out here. We can even run the coast for rockfish, lingcod, horseneck clams, and dungeoness crabs.

The Badlands are pretty sweet. Yellowstone is worth a drive through. Obviously the Grand Canyon is a must see. Don’t speed through Wyoming at night or you likely won’t make it without hitting a mule deer or a prong horn antelope. If you’re not on an interstate they are everywhere and love to stand on the white line at the edge of the blacktop! Texas is bigger than you think and if you use I10 is unbelievably boring to drive!!

Enjoy the ride. I’ve gone coast to coast almost a dozen times and there’s always lots to see especially if you have time to stay off the interstates!