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

Explore the studio in my van! 

Today we’ll go over the trials, tribulations and joys that come with hosting a podcast from my van. 

We will describe my setup, share stories, and explain why I would change a thing. 

As always, we'll answer listener questions - which include: 

• Is Marco Island the best place to find Florida Burrowing Owls? 
• Do you prefer darker stories like Salem and The Donner Party over lighter ones? 
• Do you and Noodles ever have to get towed? 
• Just listened to the Jesse James episode, you mentioned that the house felt more like a museum, does that downplay the historical significance in your mind? 
• Will you ever do longer series? 
• Did you enjoy visiting Donner Lake? 

Links to equipment mentioned:

Microphone: 

• https://www.amazon.com/RØDE-Microphones-NT2AANNIV-Studio-Solution/dp/B004L06ZCM/ref=sr_1_2?crid=21KXEAEDZRSXO&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.iM3Spt-8xvB7B-HmmP5r6l43TKexhHh_FJL7tPaeWLThRimQ2tVhzxkqQeipB7ABym6hfHZ36n_Mw96k9V2vfVdyNn6V0piTAIZahid7eYr_-qdgFIVPd7LRe-ZTCfk0D7WJTX_9x04p_fSS4jkkq_lP8KbNrkr4xBZOhZKKalts7gC1RZ6I0bcO1QMrktCshKqgR_72YSmX7EIbSm3Pd0BbRTnBvxu_7qgJsxnc1EcoMNTtO6YZo01KNCMGElS4fGfldg8X-UCdLHLrbTxv_vAoB0FyvkKC2jR2w-RPJog.xnNMgL9AwydlSHVEyXIgT0Byy2M_IT0Xa1gCQWushYw&dib_tag=se&keywords=Microphone+Rode+NT2+-+A&qid=1715831150&sprefix=microphone+rode+nt2+-+a+%2Caps%2C147&sr=8-2&ufe=app_do%3Aamzn1.fos.c3015c4a-46bb-44b9-81a4-dc28e6d374b3

Mixer: 

• https://www.amazon.com/Rode-Rodecaster-Podcast-Production-Console/dp/B0B17V8NGX/ref=sr_1_5?crid=1G4K7NGKEAFLM&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.wwYILicwnbN62A-D9Zlf5DeHS6FbhQQ_mtvb5Fe7-OYaDQ3tCfNfO5Y0trSdUfegGxm7vOsWwklkGFKhEYamJS5KgHbSQyddecrZT3pgyqFbeHAaKYlwGTVjBvtb-jirfPqWVqwPFH_v6PC1nJSdACs5WGlCcZ-O5gQDQsprlFBTfQkOnsW5vpic8GeXs6SJu3SC4ItDG7bd-Rq0kbcJsxRAYK6BYD7v07ZJ5Jt1Gc5rDsTqdUIlhm56wkyEi1axPgsEHE7H0uREI5jWcjFc19bluUgIvV4Mrv8IaF_O1pg.AYvU5fX2TBABwBQOXM8_lTerdyjTasCn8WWG94n1RA8&dib_tag=se&keywords=roadcaster+pro&qid=1715831187&sprefix=roadcaster+pro%2Caps%2C114&sr=8-5&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/

 Marco Island is home to a group of residents that are unique and altogether unexpected: The Florida Burrowing Owl.

Athene Cunicularia Floridana - or the Florida Burrowing Owl … is 9 inches and 5 ounces of wonderful oddity... Noodles and I visit Florida to learn about the owl, those that protect it, and much more!

Works Cited:

https://www.audubon.org/news/where-burrowing-owls-are-your-neighbors

https://www.audubonwe.org/owlwatch

https://ccfriendsofwildlife.org/faq/starter-burrow/

https://fsjconservation.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/burrowing-owls_-scrub-work-group.pdf

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/

 DON'T CRUSH PEOPLE WITH ROCKS!! 

Also, 

I share my top 5 picks for the best audiobooks to listen to while driving.

We’ll also take listener questions at the end - including: 

• Would you recommend going to Danvers instead of Salem? 

• Do you think something like the witch trials could happen today? 

• Can you do an episode on your van? 

• What’s the legacy of Salem today? 

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/

The thrilling conclusion to the Salem Witch Trials is explored... 

At the location where the first accusations of witchcraft were made, Noodles and I tackle popular theories, forgotten history and overlooked locations.

Although,  it’s temping to attribute one cause to the Salam Witch trials - the reality and it’s implications are much more complex.

What happened in Salem Village in 1692 is both strange and familiar, ridiculous and understandable, outlandish and conventional. 

More than anything - the story of the trials, with its showings of fear, courage, cruelty, unpredictability, -  showcase the deepest parts of human nature in us all.

works cited: 

https://www.jstor.org/stable/42909493?read-now=1&seq=13#page_scan_tab_contents

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/a-brief-history-of-the-salem-witch-trials-175162489/

https://daily.jstor.org/caused-salem-witch-trials/

https://salemwitchmuseum.com/2023/05/17/debunking-the-moldy-bread-theory/

https://www.coursehero.com/lit/Salem-Witch-Trials-Documents/plot-summary/

https://www2.tulane.edu/~salem/Chronology%20of%20Accusations.html

https://salem.lib.virginia.edu/n92.html

https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/first-salem-witch-hanging

https://salemwitchmuseum.com/locations/bridget-bishop-home-and-orchards-site-of/

https://salemwitchmuseum.com/2023/05/17/debunking-the-moldy-bread-theory/

https://www.history.com/news/notable-women-executed-salem-witch-trials

https://www.sausd.us/cms/lib/CA01000471/Centricity/Domain/457/hysteria%20or%20psychedlics.pdf

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’ll be discussing everything involved with raising a healthy dog on the road. 

(We talk a bit about my dog van-dog Noodles, as well) 

We’ll also take listener questions at the end… 

Including: 

•      Why don’t more people visit the Salem you went to?
•      Have you heard of the ergot theory? 
•      What’s your least favorite town you’ve been to? 
•     What do you use to write? 
•     What was one thing that surprised you when recording the Salem episode?

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/

Ever want to visit the real Salem? 

Join Noodles and I as we visit the location responsible for the start of the infamous witch trials.


----

A small shop is filled to the brim with sage, tarot cards and spell books. 

Thick incense obscures eager shoppers and visiting tourists. 

In the bustle, a  small book captures your attention

“The Witches - Salem, 1692” 

The story contained within its pages begins NOT in the bustling modern town of Salem with its shops and attractions, but miles inland in the small house of a pastor. 

The first accusations of witchcraft are made inside its walls, stoking the fire of communal hysteria, religious zealotry and and ultimately the conviction and execution of 20 individuals. 

We visit the dark stone foundation far from the attractions of Salem. 

works cited: 

https://www.jstor.org/stable/42909493?read-now=1&seq=13#page_scan_tab_contents

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/a-brief-history-of-the-salem-witch-trials-175162489/

https://daily.jstor.org/caused-salem-witch-trials/

https://salemwitchmuseum.com/2023/05/17/debunking-the-moldy-bread-theory/

https://www.coursehero.com/lit/Salem-Witch-Trials-Documents/plot-summary/

https://www2.tulane.edu/~salem/Chronology%20of%20Accusations.html

https://salem.lib.virginia.edu/n92.html

https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/first-salem-witch-hanging

https://salemwitchmuseum.com/locations/bridget-bishop-home-and-orchards-site-of/

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/

We discuss my struggle with ADD. 

I don’t share this story lightly - in fact it’s incredibly hard for me - but I hope that, if you’re listening and can relate, you'll benefit. 

We’ll also take listener questions - including: 

• Did the Healing Springs water actually taste good? 
• What's your studio setup? 
• Do you have nicknames for Noodles? 

Grab a drink and let's hang out! 

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/

Battles rage throughout the 13 American Colonies … 

In rural South Carolina - on what is now called Slaughter Field - two British soldiers lie dying from their wounds. 

Death is but a certainty …  

Ancestors of the Wassamasaw Tribe carry the soldiers to a spring known for it's healing properties. 

6 months pass, the soldiers - assumed dead - walk back into the barracks in perfect health. 

How?

Noodles and I visit the springs to find out.


Works Cited: 

https://www.gowinlaw.com/blog/2018/6/25/the-deed-to-god

https://www.southcarolinapublicradio.org/sc-news/2020-10-21/the-legend-of-healing-springs-keeps-pilgrims-coming-back-for-more-water

https://www.carolana.com/SC/Revolution/revolution_slaughter_field.html

https://theclio.com/entry/15013

https://www.scpictureproject.org/barnwell-county/healing-springs.html

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’ll be discussing three methods I use to find offbeat locations. 

No edits. No Script. 

We’ll  take listener questions at the end… 

p.s.

For whatever reason, I’ve never been interested in what’s the popular thing to do - it might be the crowds, the conformity of it all or just a general lack of interest… 

But because of this, I’ve always searched for what’s off the beaten path - particularly when it comes to traveling. 

Over the years I’ve narrowed down my approach to three methods that are effective in finding interesting locations that people might not actively seek out…

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/

The Donner Party gaze upon a path whose crossing grows less likely with each passing day. 

Death by cold or slow starvation is now - very much - a looming reality. 

Less than three miles from the summit, two frightening options become apparent:

• Abandon your remaining supplies and brave the grueling 10 day snow-laden trek across the mountains… 

OR

• Choose to retreat and wait out for a clearing in the weather. 

Neither, encourage optimism. 

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/