I had some really unfortunate life events all happen within a very short time frame. The kicker being a person I had been dating for 5 years coming home from a work trip and kicking me out of her house with no explanation and gave me a very short amount of time to sort things out. With that, I packed all of my stuff into a storage unit, built a makeshift sleeping platform in the back of my Sequoia, and took off on a road trip of a life time.
I did 10,000 miles, 2000+ of those off-road, 11 states, 12 national parks, 20+ national forests, 200+ miles of hiking, did my first "14er" in Colorado, hiked to the top of a couple volcanoes, got 1 flat tire, the back hatch stopped opening, and saw a ton of friends along the way. Camping out among the stars, being alone, and getting away from all the noise really helped me figure out what I need to focus on, what priorities are really number 1, and so on.
The Sequoia was a tank and gave me very little issues outside of the back hatch just freezing shut. It developed a nasty vibration at 55-65mph and would go away above or below that which I've yet to figure out what it is. Inner tie rods are good, lower ball joints are good, etc. Power steering pump, which is only a year old took a crap on me too, but nothing that put me down on the trip. I would trust it to do another 50k miles like that without hesitation.
National Parks Hit:
- Great Sand Dunes
- Black Canyon of the Gunnison
- Rocky Mountain National Park
- Grand Tetons National Park
- Crater Lake
- Lassen Volcano
- Redwoods National Park
- Pinnacles
- Zion
- Bryce Canyon
- Arches
- Canyonlands
Anyways here are just a few of the photos I snapped. The quality is crap bc of how I have to transfer them to my work PC at the moment. I'm also back on my feet, taking baby steps, and a place to call home.
Sounds like you made the best of a bad situation! Nature has a nice way of resetting and cleansing the mind.
TJL (Forum Supporter) said:
Sounds like you made the best of a bad situation! Nature has a nice way of resetting and cleansing the mind.
Sounds like he maximized a great opportunity.
When life hands you lemons and all that. It was great that you were able to do that. I know for most, being kicked out like that would be a very bad situation.
Awesome pictures.
Now that you've taken a step back and had a good think, you can go forth in a good way, I bet. That's a win!
Now that's how you do it!
Scotty Con Queso said:
When life hands you lemons and all that. It was great that you were able to do that. I know for most, being kicked out like that would be a very bad situation.
Awesome pictures.
Yea, she literally gave me two days to get out. I know I have tenant rights and all of that but, with that kind of attitude and the way she was treating me, I knew it was best to just get out and be done. The thing that sucks is that it was just as much of my home as it was hers even though her name was on the mortgage. I paid half of everything and dumped over $25k into repairs and upgrades over the last two years. I'll never get that or the equity back, which I really don't care all that much about considering I lost what I thought was my best friend. No indications, no warnings, everything seemed great, just a JDAM right into my heart lol.
Nature has a great way of doing its thing to you. I'm lucky I had the PTO built up to go do such a thing to in that moment, also the budget, even though my biggest expenses were only gas and food. I stayed in hotels every so often just to get a hot shower and do some laundry, but I flexed my frequent travel points to get some free stays.
I also stopped in Bend, OR to get some gas, dinner, and re-supply. As I was pumping my own gas in that state, I noticed a Blockbuster behind the gas station, and it was the last remaining one. I indulged and bought a ton of swag for nostaligias sake, all the memories it elicited of my childhood when I walked in was wild.
Good for you - you made the right call.
Excellent move, taking time away to just get away. How long were you gone? What camera(s) did you use during your trip? Just cell phone or something else as well?
Fingers crossed on more healthy forward progress.
pres589 (djronnebaum) said:
Excellent move, taking time away to just get away. How long were you gone? What camera(s) did you use during your trip? Just cell phone or something else as well?
Fingers crossed on more healthy forward progress.
I was gone for about 6 weeks. I did some work stuff on the front, middle, and back end so I didn't blow through all my saved PTO. I used my iPhone 13 Pro Max for all of my photo/videos. Given the situation I didn't even think to pack GoPros or my DSLR. It was literally a sleeping platform with a 5 inch memory foam mattress topper, some pillows, clothes, hiking gear, tools, and a camping stove, oh and some books to read as I cut out all social media, and left my phone in airplane mode most of the time.
You took lemons and painted that E36 M3 gold.
ShawnG
MegaDork
11/19/23 5:35 p.m.
Awesome man, well done. Sounds like quite the adventure.
Sorry for your surprise situation. Sounds like you used the opportunity to take an epic mind clearing adventure.
FWIW.. Those iPhone photos are phenomenal - particularly the evening shots.
I'm sorry for the hurt I'm sure you are feeling or felt, but man, I've rarely heard of someone who did the exact right thing in that moment. You obviously did. Maybe in a few years you'll be able to thank her for making the cut so harsh and clean that you forced yourself to do this.
Welcome back! Thanks for sharing your adventures, and glad to hear you are moving forward. 
OHSCrifle said:
Sorry for your surprise situation. Sounds like you used the opportunity to take an epic mind clearing adventure.
FWIW.. Those iPhone photos are phenomenal - particularly the evening shots.
It is absolutely incredible what the phones can do now a days. Just took a tripod and a 30 second exposure and got some great night shots, even with all the noise and artifacts in them, for a phone, I'm impressed.
That, my friend, is exactly how you do that! Well done and what an adventure! I cant wait to see more photos!
That's a hell of road trip!
I can say my ex-wife asking for a divorce was at the time rough, but in hindsight, one of the best things that ever happened to me.
z31maniac said:
That's a hell of road trip!
I can say my ex-wife asking for a divorce was at the time rough, but in hindsight, one of the best things that ever happened to me.
Hoping that one day I can feel that way. This one stings bc we were best friends and respected each other immensely until that. Life's gotta go on tho. The incident did help patch up my relationship with my ex wife but we were also dealing with my house flooding in Orlando, which she resides in with my kids. Everything was a complete loss...
Anyways here's a few more pics.
This is a rough outline of the path I took. Once I got into New Mexico on the way out, I avoided all major highways, took backroads, off-road trails, etc. The goal was to see this country and not from a interstate. My favorite section of this whole drive was the trek from Boise to Leslie Gulch to Bend and into Shasta-Trinity National Forest. Going from high desert, to badlands, to lush evergreen forests, and into the volcanic rim was....well I have no words.
Next time you get tossed out, let me know. We'll hit Mexico together!
That was insensitive. In all seriousness, good for you for making the best of a sh-tty situation.
