At 9 a.m. I was on the road again, past Houston where for what must have been 100 miles you’re in 3-6 lane traffic, half of it semi-trucks transporting all kinds of goods from the gulf. I-10 here is maddening, nothing but warehouses and billboards, and Texans with oversized tires…

800 miles is a long way to drive when pulling a trailer. It’s a long way to drive anytime, but when you’re pulling a trailer, if you’re relatively sane, you’ll keep it a little slower, around 65, maybe 70 if it’s completely calm and the roads are good (maybe even…

It’s funny, but when I started this trip, in my first and second week, I started dreaming of a larger camper than my R-pod 179. Whenever I had to be indoors (for work and/or weather), I felt frustrated and slightly suffocated. Early on in the trip, I was also the…

The Conecuh National Forest campground at open pond started to turn over today, as several of the people I’ve come to think of as “long-termers” left. It’s kind of sad, in a way. I’ve been here 12 days, and all 3 were here when I arrived—the max stay is 14…

A couple in their mid-60s or so stopped by to chat with me today as I sat outside working. They asked how I liked my R-pod camper and said they met 30 years ago and were tent camping then and they’re tent camping now. They were on their way to…

Today was an unmitigated disaster. I essentially drove 200+ miles through a monsoon to eat a $50 lunch. The trip to see my friends included a ferry ride… long story short, I didn’t make it the whole way, grabbed some sushi and a bloody mary at a restaurant after giving…

Today I walked past a guy who said he caught 20 fish here yesterday. He was sitting in the grass along the shore fishing with his wife, and he was hooked up to an oxygen tank, likely for congestive heart failure. Fishing is a good way to spend your days…

I made red beans and rice for dinner tonight, in an ode to New Orleans, which I’d planned on seeing but which I think now that I’ll have to skip. While there are plenty of places to camp around New Orleans, there aren’t many with availability unless you planned in…

Open Pond Campground at Conecuh National Forest is really a prototypical campground experience. There’s a forest, and a lake, and some camping spots tucked in around the shore of that lake. There are some hiking trails, but nothing strenuous, and lightly trafficked roads for biking. But there’s nothing “big” around…

This morning was another perfect day at Open Pond Campground, Conecuh National Forest. At 74 degrees and sunny, I took my morning coffee on the dock, casting and sipping.  A father and his young son (7 or 8) were also fishing, the dad spending most of his time setting up…

Today was a quintessential day of camping. I laid in a hammock. I went fishing. I went on a bike ride and a hike. I grilled a steak. I went fishing again. And now I might have a fire. It was 75 and sunny, with hardly any bugs. While fishing…

A guy at this campground at a spot across from me has a leaf-blower. I can’t stand leaf-blowers even in a normal yard-care environment, but I don’t know where to begin when it comes to bringing a leaf-blower camping. There is no more annoying sound than the high pitched scream…

First thing this morning, the time-traveling guy walked over. I saw him coming and from 100 feet away he started talking, “You know, I aught to have let you have that spot last night, I’m sorry. I should have,” he said. He gets extra points for his kindness after the…