Few things in life are more liberating than a roadtrip to an unspecified location. A month ago I got in my car and started driving. My plan, like the majority of my Jacksonite brethren, was to flee the frigid temperatures of the Tetons and head somewhere, anywhere really, that I could wear flip-flops. That plan lasted all of 45 minutes. Just 15 minutes past Victor, ID I pulled over for my first photo op,  left my car lights on while photographing and killed my battery. Sweet, 40 miles into my three week road trip I found myself sprinting down a dirt road at dusk frantically trying to flag down a pickup for help. Lucky for me I was wearing my florescent hunter orange baseball hat that reads “Elkaholic” (a recent purchase from the Daniel, WY gas station) or I’d never have been picked up. Small talk with the the two hunters giving me the jump quickly turned awkward when I reluctantly confessed that I’ve never hunted in my life and my wardrobe choice was more for dramatic affect than any type of manly bloodsport. Thoroughly emasculated, but feeling giddy about my rescue, I returned to my Japanese wagon, cranked some shitty pop music, opened my atlas and chose Stanley, ID as my first destination. That night I slept in my car at the base of the Sawtooth Mountains inside a 10 degree down sleeping bag with a 32 degree synthetic bag over top. It was two weeks before I got to wear my flip-flops. It just goes to show you that planning is waaaaay overrated…

My Route:

Jackson, WY – Sawtooth Mountains, ID – Crater Lake, OR – Oregon Coast (traveling South from Bandon, OR on Route 101) – Redwood National Park, CA – San Francisco, CA – Yosemite National Park, CA – Death Vally National Park, CA – Las Vegas, NV (Not pictured. Warning: Cheap hotel prices don’t necessarily make for an inexpensive evening!) – Grand Canyon National Park, AZ – Monument Valley, Navajo Nation AZ – Mesa Verde National Park, CO – Great Sand Dunes National Park, CO – Denver, CO (Not pictured. Watched my Chargers beat down the Broncos at Invesco Field!!!) – Arches National Park, UT – Canyonlands National Park, UT – Monument Valley, Navajo Nation AZ (Just had to go back.) – Grand Canyon National Park, AZ – Havasupai Indian Reservation, AZ – Santa Fe, NM (Not pictured. Brunch at Pascals. Amazing.) – Back up to Jackson, WY. The End.

I did my best on this trip to travel small two lane highways and stay off of major thoroughfares. Although I had no plan when starting out, it didn’t take long for me to gravitate towards the inescapable beauty of the American West. The following is a visual essay of (some of) what I experienced…