We are Evan and Alexandra. We have an energetic son, Little Man. For 18 months between August 2017 and March 2019, we were on an extended road trip visiting the US National Parks in the West.
The first leg of our adventures included Yellowstone National Park, the Mighty Five in Utah, Monument Valley, Petrified Forest National Park, and Grand Canyon National Park.
After a winter break, we went back on the road in February 2018, traveling through Arizona, Nevada, California, Oregon and Washington State. After a quick visit to our family, we left for more adventures, returning to some of the locations we loved the most and discovering others we had missed during our first two trips.
As of early March 2019, we have hiked 950 miles (1530 km) and visited 22 National Parks!
We are currently living in Idaho and we keep exploring public lands near and far regularly.
Follow our adventures through our YouTube Channel, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
Why did we decide to visit the American West in our 30s?
After living a routine life in Washington, D.C. for five years, which felt like being in a hamster wheel, we were ready to get out of our comfort zone.
We lived far from family. Our son was not yet in school. Evan worked remotely. We didn’t want to wait until retirement to discover the US National Parks.
So we took the decision to discover the natural beauties in the USA without further ado.
How did we travel?
We packed the car and got a rooftop cargo carrier. We mostly stayed in places found on Airbnb or VRBO so we could have Internet access for work and posting our videos.
We also stayed at hotels during the low season when it was cheaper than renting a place.
We occasionally camped along the way, which was really just an excuse to make s’mores!
Why hiking?
We enjoy hiking. We have been on short hikes or day trips with our son since he was born. We did not train at all before the road trip trip and gained endurance through months of hiking.
At first, we mostly carried him in a baby carrier. We also used an umbrella stroller when possible. As our son grew up, we used the backpack only for long hike and encouraged our son to hike on shorter, easier hikes. After months and months of “threenager” attitude, he now loves hiking and is excited to go on hikes every we go.
Our favorite trails are lightly trafficked, moderately challenging and with a great view along or at the end of the trail. There is a bonus for trails that our son can hike!
Which cameras are we using?
We have documented our hikes with photos and/or videos.
We take ALL the photos and videos we post on this blog, social media, YouTube and in our store.
During our road trip, we used a Nikon D610 for photos. Since March 2019, we have upgraded to a Nikon Z6.
From August 2017 to October 2017, we took videos with the Nikon D610 or our Canon PowerShot S110. Afterwards, almost all videos were filmed with the Yi 4k+, on an EVO GP-PRO Gimbal. We occasionally filmed with the Nikon D610 at that point.
Since March 2019, we have been filming with the Nikon Z6, on an FeiyuTech AK2000 Gimbal.
Why this blog and who is it for?
We wanted to share our road trip with family, friends and people who are thinking about going on an extended road trip with their family and or friends. We also wanted to show how stunning the Western landscape is and most places we have visited are easily accessible.
We post photos of places we discover and rediscover. We post videos of our hikes on our YouTube channel, to which you can subscribe for free.
We hiked almost everyday during our road trip. We keep on sharing today our favorite hikes, our tips and mistakes on traveling thousands of miles and hiking almost a 1,000 miles with our young son.
We would love to receive feedback from you. Please leave a comment when you read our posts, contact us or YouTube channel, or even come say hi on social media. Our newsletter is in the making.
We hope you enjoy this blog as much as we enjoy sharing our adventures with you.
Thank you for reading and we will see you on the trail!
Alexandra, Evan, and Little Man