Backroad Odyssey : Travel Stories, Van Life & Road Trip Oddities

Throughout my over TWO years on the road, I’ve had many ups, many downs and everything in between… 

Every experience has led me to embrace one - inescapable reality of Van Life:

80 percent of your time on the road will not resemble the curated photos and videos circulating online. 

You’ll instead explore the parking lots, rest stops and Cracker Barrels of the Nation … BUT! 

It’s this “less-than-ideal” time that makes remaining the views, hikes and experiences worth the effort.

Today we talk about this appropriately named “80/20 rule of Van Life”, and share three stories on the road that support this rule. 

As always, we’ll also take listener questions at the end, which include: 

 - How often to do drive to different cities?

- Would you consider Thoreau a philosopher? 

- What takes the longest to do when making an episode? 

- What's your favorite state? 

- What makes Thoreau looking into? 

Noah and Noodles here!

We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to every listener of Backroad Odyssey.

Your support fuels our passion and inspires us to keep sharing stories and discover overlooked locations.

Follow each adventure visually at:

https://www.instagram.com/backroadsodyssey/

Two years. Two months. Two days. 

This is the time spent by David Henry Thoreau along the shores of Walden Pond. 

We now look into his self-proclaimed “experiment in living simply” and ask ourselves two short questions:

What exactly did Thoreau do during this time? And maybe more importantly, what did he hope to accomplish while residing at his fabled secluded cabin in the woods? 

Works Cited:

https://www.amazon.com/Civil-Disobedience-Henry-David-Thoreau/dp/1619490927

https://www.amazon.com/Walden-Henry-David-Thoreau/dp/1619493918

https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/thoreau/

https://www.jstor.org/stable/461300?read-now=1&seq=4#page_scan_tab_contents

https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctvrs90hh.12?searchText=henry+david&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dhenry%2Bdavid%26so%3Drel&ab_segments=0%2Fbasic_search_gsv2%2Fcontrol&refreqid=fastly-default%3Ad123667cd32b752e3fcd984b64929d40

https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/j.ctvrs90hh.12.pdf?refreqid=fastly-default%3A90df29e6fe53afc4ccdf61e002a28f6c&ab_segments=0%2Fbasic_search_gsv2%2Fcontrol&origin=&initiator=&acceptTC=1

https://www.walden.org/education/for-students/myths-and-misconceptions/


https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/henry-david-thoreau

https://www.nps.gov/places/walden-pond-in-the-walden-pond-state-reservation.htm

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Henry-David-Thoreau/Legacy

https://www.boston.com/travel/travel/2017/08/09/heres-why-you-should-wander-walden-pond/

https://www.walden.org/education/for-students/thoreaus-place/

https://blogs.uoregon.edu/environmentalliterature230/2012/10/15/the-awakening-hour/

https://nautil.us/the-deep-time-of-walden-pond-237054/

https://daily.jstor.org/myth-henry-david-thoreaus-isolation/

https://www.jstor.org/stable/2379656?read-now=1&seq=11#page_scan_tab_contents

Noah and Noodles here!

We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to every listener of Backroad Odyssey.

Your support fuels our passion and inspires us to keep sharing stories and discover overlooked locations.

Follow each adventure visually at:

https://www.instagram.com/backroadsodyssey/

Today we listen to untouched "on location" recordings.

We break down everything that goes into recording (sometimes re-recording), editing,  and reflecting upon each documentation that later is featured in episodes of Backroad Odyssey.

As always, we’ll also take listener questions at the end, which include: 

• Do you have any Stories from the road that you’ll remember? 
• Do you think you would have been friends with Walden? 
• What do you do when you get stuck on the road? 
• Do you believe in fairies? 

Link to my on-location equipment: 

https://www.amazon.com/Zoom-H8-Podcasting-Headphones-Windscreens/dp/B08RG4WCC6/ref=sr_1_39?crid=17E3IIUFBJ2B3&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.nTt0WjKQ7LYyB-Vz6TZW1A9HvlI0R_FPSCXQSHA0lErPJ8raFCUvuEdCGRETB0uphi1zwEVWYSG3pwdksSqf-k3h1EzRR9TbR5QPZ8Pt17TkUQ1lXR-LNaVRrUBNqAhs31a8Cdz1HXcDKLEHjM1k5O_RynJA_8B9prgYMsZpsJNHFAcnpQx5pftyCoowNiXgeMAyiomFqJvI_6SUzvjR5yA_eNRelDlF_OFGNNcCen7s_Sex5eQcPi-DUIaEJPAT_FmzMTNCfuWYMPzBIhjwXuirv_jbuR7AKgKz1ZepCR0.oexrZHdY_hG_qYQe4B6NjA5X612JB_tfWLXkQJ0-JGA&dib_tag=se&keywords=zoom+4+channel+recorder&qid=1722543840&sprefix=zoom+4+cahnnel+recorder+%2Caps%2C122&sr=8-39&ufe=app_do%3Aamzn1.fos.2b70bf2b-6730-4ccf-ab97-eb60747b8daf

Noah and Noodles here!

We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to every listener of Backroad Odyssey.

Your support fuels our passion and inspires us to keep sharing stories and discover overlooked locations.

Follow each adventure visually at:

https://www.instagram.com/backroadsodyssey/

Rising out of a relatively flat sea of prairie in North East Wyoming, "Devils Tower" - is - to put it lightly - undeniably unique. 

Noodles and I explore its peculiar plentitude of pillar-like features which baffle geologists attempting to decipher The Towers exact origins. 

The site remains significant in stories and spiritual traditions of the Crow, Cheyenne, Arapaho, Kiowa, Lakota and other plains tribes… 

Works Cited:

https://www.jstor.org/stable/26446668?read-now=1&seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents

https://aktalakota.stjo.org/lakota-legends/devils-tower/

https://alpinist.com/features/in-the-bears-lodge/

https://www.nps.gov/deto/learn/nature/tower-formation.htm

https://www.britannica.com/place/Devils-Tower-National-Monument

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gwy7GqE-G9o

https://www.britannica.com/event/Battle-of-the-Little-Bighorn

https://travelwyoming.com/article/bear-lodge-the-sacred-history-of-devils-tower/

https://docuseek2.com/bf-dt

https://pluralism.org/sweat-lodge

Noah and Noodles here!

We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to every listener of Backroad Odyssey.

Your support fuels our passion and inspires us to keep sharing stories and discover overlooked locations.

Follow each adventure visually at:

https://www.instagram.com/backroadsodyssey/

Today we explore three methods for staying nights in your van - as well as dive into WHEN each method might be necessary. 

Learning how, when and where to camp on the road is essential in happily and safely living from your van.

So let's dive into it, shall we? 

As always, we’ll also take listener questions at the end… which include: 

• What are some good camping meals? 

• Which cryptic would you bring in the. Can with you for a co/host travel buddy for an episode? 

• What's the most beautiful campsite you've been to? 

Noah and Noodles here!

We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to every listener of Backroad Odyssey.

Your support fuels our passion and inspires us to keep sharing stories and discover overlooked locations.

Follow each adventure visually at:

https://www.instagram.com/backroadsodyssey/

Walden Pond - just 22 miles away from Boston Common - has become synonymous with solitude, retreat and thoughtful reflection. 

Henry David Thoreau  famously builds a log cabin along its shore and describes the assertive tranquility of the water and surrounding area as “Lower Heaven.” 

It’s here where the Thoreau pens the now classic work, Walden

 It’s here where, Ralph Waldo Emerson reflects on the national world. 

It’s here - where people continue to make the pilgrimage to it’s calm shores in the hopes of finding similar solitude …

But the real story of Walden Pond is surprising as well as thought provoking; it provokes our settled assumption of Thoreau as a hermit poet and of the lake as his impenetrable retreat. 

Works Cited:

https://www.amazon.com/Walden-Henry-David-Thoreau/dp/1619493918

https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/thoreau/

https://www.jstor.org/stable/461300?read-now=1&seq=4#page_scan_tab_contents

https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctvrs90hh.12?searchText=henry+david&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dhenry%2Bdavid%26so%3Drel&ab_segments=0%2Fbasic_search_gsv2%2Fcontrol&refreqid=fastly-default%3Ad123667cd32b752e3fcd984b64929d40

https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/j.ctvrs90hh.12.pdf?refreqid=fastly-default%3A90df29e6fe53afc4ccdf61e002a28f6c&ab_segments=0%2Fbasic_search_gsv2%2Fcontrol&origin=&initiator=&acceptTC=1

https://www.walden.org/education/for-students/myths-and-misconceptions/


https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/henry-david-thoreau

https://www.nps.gov/places/walden-pond-in-the-walden-pond-state-reservation.htm

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Henry-David-Thoreau/Legacy

https://www.boston.com/travel/travel/2017/08/09/heres-why-you-should-wander-walden-pond/

Noah and Noodles here!

We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to every listener of Backroad Odyssey.

Your support fuels our passion and inspires us to keep sharing stories and discover overlooked locations.

Follow each adventure visually at:

https://www.instagram.com/backroadsodyssey/

Anxiety can be heightened, suppressed, multiplied, or straight up non-existent on the road… 

I’ve lived with anxiety WELL before I hit the road -  so are some stories and reflections from living with that anxiety while living in a van.

 The positive, negative and everything in between. 

As always, we’ll also take listener questions at the end, which include:

What do you do for internet? 

Where do I park to see the lone toilet? 

What episodes are coming up? 

Where you do record your podcasts? 

What’s the most interesting fact about Gettysburg you’ve found it your research? 

Noah and Noodles here!

We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to every listener of Backroad Odyssey.

Your support fuels our passion and inspires us to keep sharing stories and discover overlooked locations.

Follow each adventure visually at:

https://www.instagram.com/backroadsodyssey/

Today we dive into both oral and written Fairy Tales inspired by our last episode on The Fairy Door in Minneapolis.

-


For a large portion of history, 

Tales and fables were passed down - not in writing -    but through the spoken word ….

Changing inevitably and often irreversibly with each retelling. 

A story might be tweaked to satisfy a particularly difficult audience - or changed entirely by a rebellious storyteller … 

It was alive - always adapting and growing … 

Noah and Noodles here!

We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to every listener of Backroad Odyssey.

Your support fuels our passion and inspires us to keep sharing stories and discover overlooked locations.

Follow each adventure visually at:

https://www.instagram.com/backroadsodyssey/

SAFTEY FIRST! :) 

Van life can be freeing, relaxing, and forever memorable but it doesn't come without risks. 

Today we explore methods I've found - after two years on the road - effective in making you feel safe and comfortable as you travel America's highways and byways in your moveable home. 

As always, we'll take lister questions - which include: 

• Just listened to the owl episode - how many owls live in one burrow? 
• Do you ever get anxious on the road? 
• What did you go to school for? 
• What do you spend on gas? 
• Did you leave anything else in The Fiary Door? 

Noah and Noodles here!

We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to every listener of Backroad Odyssey.

Your support fuels our passion and inspires us to keep sharing stories and discover overlooked locations.

Follow each adventure visually at:

https://www.instagram.com/backroadsodyssey/

Just north of Minneapolis, Minnesota lies a well-kept wooden door at the base of a large tree.

Those passing by leave notes, sweets and various presents as offerings. 

For what - or rather, for who - is an interesting story. 

A tale of magic, tradition and culture that transcends living memory. 

Join us as we travel THROUGH THE FAIRY DOOR! 





Works Cited:

https://www.jstor.org/stable/25057792?searchText=the%20origins%20of%20fairies&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dthe%2Borigins%2Bof%2Bfairies%26so%3Drel&ab_segments=0%2Fbasic_search_gsv2%2Fcontrol&refreqid=fastly-default%3A72522dc3d6533569a459300965ee7714

https://www.britannica.com/topic/lauma

https://www.groveandgrotto.com/blogs/articles/178895815-the-lore-of-fairy-doors

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/elf-door-at-demings-height-park

https://www.wildernessireland.com/blog/irish-folklore-fairies/

urban-fairies.com 

http://urban-fairies.com/background.html

https://www.crowsbone.com/blogarchive/the-otherworld-spirit-realms-of-celtic-lore

https://www.minnesotamonthly.com/travel-recreation/neighborhood-gem-deming-heights-park-in-minneapolis/

https://www.omega-mgt.com/blog/finding-fairy-houses-in-the-twin-cities/

https://www.today.com/home/fairy-doors-t101165

Noah and Noodles here!

We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to every listener of Backroad Odyssey.

Your support fuels our passion and inspires us to keep sharing stories and discover overlooked locations.

Follow each adventure visually at:

https://www.instagram.com/backroadsodyssey/