Road Tripping

Dear Traveler,

I grew up on the road with my family. We flew sometimes, sure, but most of my childhood was spent in the backseat of a car heading somewhere — weekend trips around the Northeast, camping across New York, long drives that filled our summers. With both my parents being teachers and me in school, the road became our seasonal home. We’d pick a place, pack up, and go.

With nothing but a Walkman, a book, and the scenery sliding past the window, I learned early how to drift — how to let my mind wander as the world moved around me. At night, I’d lean over a paperback lit by a dim flashlight while the car hummed through the dark. Those hours shaped me. So, when I got older, it made perfect sense that my friends and I would do the same: hit the road with no destination, drive across the country, or just take off on a whim to see where we’d end up. That feeling of wandering — of searching — has always tugged at me. Maybe I’ve spent my whole life trying to find pieces of myself out there in the world.

Every summer, that restlessness returns. Real life — work, family, responsibilities — doesn’t leave much room for spontaneous road trips anymore, but Crystal, Will, and I still manage to sneak away on random weekends to explore someplace new. The trips I really dream about, though, are the long ones: weeks on the road, heading west, taking our time. Whether they’d actually enjoy being trapped in a car with me for that long is another story. Their patience for endless driving isn’t exactly high, but they’re troopers. One of these days, we’ll make it happen.

When I sat down to write this, I didn’t have a direction — which, like any good road trip, can lead to a rambling, meandering mess. So, I figured I’d touch on a few places that have stuck with me over the years. I’ll keep each one short. Take whatever you want from it. Just get out there and explore. Nothing opens your eyes or breaks you out of the daily grind like seeing the world for yourself. We’re not as isolated as we think; we’re all searching for our own version of peace.

One of my favorite destinations out west — a place I visited as a kid and returned to several times as an adult — is Utah. Back then, we’d usually be on our way somewhere else, stopping at one or two parks before continuing on. Today, that route has a name: Utah’s “Mighty 5” Loop. Depending on where you start — Las Vegas or Salt Lake City are the usual big-city entry points — the loop connects Arches, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef, Bryce, and Zion. I always remember continuing on afterward, heading toward the Grand Canyon, but that’s a whole different story.

For my travels, we often began in Arches National Park. So let’s start there.