Letters From the Road Podcast

Welcome back to LFTR. This week we’ve got a slightly different story for you - the first episode in our new Tales from the Road series. Every other week instead of a letter we’re heading back to one of our favorite spots to recall our time there and tell its stories, history and legends. This week Jamie brings the story of the Wild Horses of Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Back next week with a letter!

Thanks for listening! Please let us know what you think! You can find LFTR at http://lettersfromtheroadpod.com, and you can email us at [email protected].

Find LFTR Diaries on the LFTR YouTube channel.

Find us on socials @lettersfromtheroadpod (on hiatus)

If you feel like kicking us a few bucks you can Become a PenPal and chat with us and others in the PenPals Discord.

The first letter of 2025 is about how to not get buried, figuratively or literally.

Thanks for listening! As always you can find LFTR at

http://lettersfromtheroadpod.com, and you can email us at [email protected].

Find LFTR Diaries on the LFTR YouTube channel.

Find us on socials @lettersfromtheroadpod (on hiatus)

If you feel like kicking us a few bucks because you like what we do you can Become a PenPal and chat with us and others in the PenPals Discord.

Well we disappeared for a bit there but we’re back with our 2024 Highs and Lows and some exciting 2025 plans! Back next week with a letter!

00:00 Intro

02:27 Drink - Deschutes Black Butte Non-Alc

03:31 Does Rainier count?

05:56 Airstream is done but not home!

11:10 Touring is skiing but harder

24:06 Touring gear rundown

25:46 Winter break hermit mode

27:28 2024 Highs

35:19 2024 Lows

41:37 2025 Goal: Get out every month!

42:44 2025 Ski Week: Whistler

45:14 2025 Spring Break: Tahoe

46:54 2025 Summer: Road to Redemption

53:40 2025 Fall Tentative: Washington Nat'l Parks

55:00 Discarded Plan - Surfing in Westport, WA

56:57 High & Low - our house

59:04 2025 Content Plan

1:00:17 Get in touch with LFTR

Thanks for listening! As always you can find LFTR at

http://lettersfromtheroadpod.com, and you can email us at [email protected].

Find LFTR Diaries on the LFTR YouTube channel.

Find us on socials @lettersfromtheroadpod!

If you feel like kicking us a few bucks because you like what we do you can Become a PenPal and chat with us and others in the PenPals Discord.

LFTR Episode 83 - welcome back to our snowy Cascade home! We talk Jamie’s first ski trip of the season, Thanksgiving and Saying Yes!

Highlights include:

* First ski trip of the year!

* Dairy Free Thanksgiving at home

* Airstream update - no sun in Portland

* The joy of driving teens around

* Being bad at things is good

* Doing it scared is part of the fun

* You’re never fully done!

* Goat mascot snowboarding

* Warning: Yes often = $.

* Saying yes first to the kids

* Saying yes at work

Links:

* Mt Baker Ski Area

* Rossignol Rallybird 104 ti

* Chair 9 Woodstone Pizza & Bar

* Stevens Pass Ski Resort

* Dairy Free Dinner Rolls - kitchen treaty

* Dairy Free Pecan Pie - godairyfree.org

* Slow Cooker Turkey Breast - recipe tin eats

* Taxa Mantis

* Puffs

* Wicked the Movie

* Snowboard turtle

Thanks for listening! As always you can find LFTR at

http://lettersfromtheroadpod.com

, and you can email us at [email protected].

Find LFTR Diaries on the LFTR YouTube channel.

Find us on socials @lettersfromtheroadpod!

If you feel like kicking us a few bucks because you like what we do you can Become a PenPal and chat with us and others in the PenPals Discord.

LFTR Episode 82 - we’re still here, thanks for being here too. This week we talk about The Next Right Thing.

Highlights include:

* How to do election night like tired millennial parents

* Can’t process catastrophe

* Jamie’s (actually) 39

* Moving to Scandinavia?

* The ongoing love affair with niche personal sports data tech

* Backcountry skiing safety - get some friends!

* The propane regulator might be the cause for the Airstream’s tankless water heater not heating well

* The hidden overheight parking at SeaTac

* Airport lounges? y/n

* More ruminations on towing with electric trucks

* Econ 101 with Jamie

* Why do people help a neighbor but vote against their rights?

* Upcoming camping plans

* A new writing project!

* Practice how you’ll respond to “casual hate” in the places you live. If you don’t have a response it’s easy to just laugh uneasily.

Links:

* Carv Ski coach

* Airstream Adventures Portland

* TSA PreCheck By Clear

* F-150 Lightning

* RAM Electric Trucks

Thanks for listening! As always you can find LFTR at http://lettersfromtheroadpod.com, and you can email us at [email protected].

Find LFTR Diaries on the LFTR YouTube channel.

Find us on socials @lettersfromtheroadpod!

If you feel like kicking us a few bucks because you like what we do you can Become a PenPal and chat with us and others in the PenPals Discor

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LFTR Episode 81 - While we are all about stories and encouragement around here (and don’t worry this episode has both) even we have Rage. 

Thanks for being here, friends, you keep us doing this! [One of my favorite episodes to record in a while (Clay)]

National Domestic Violence Hotline: 800-799-7233 or text BEGIN to 88788

Highlights include:

* Please go vote! It does matter!

* Halloween in Leavenworth

* Our first ever snow tires

* Test driving an F-150 Lightning 

* Debating whether to switch to an electric tow vehicle

* Frunk-gating?

* Who was watching “Jamie’s kids” when she was on business travel??

* A strong handshake, “for a girl”

* “The 19th amendment could be repealed…”

* How can we move forward? There’s no spell to be broken.

Links:

* Yonder Cider

* Bridgestone Blizzak snow tires

* F-150 Lightning

* Charging a lightning at a Tesla supercharger (YT short)

* Edmunds towing road trip with a Lightning and a Rivian (YouTube)

* Our Cougar is for sale and ready for winter camping

* RV Out West Podcast

* Vote.org

Thanks for listening! As always you can find LFTR at

http://lettersfromtheroadpod.com, and you can email us at [email protected].

Find LFTR Diaries on the LFTR YouTube channel.

Find us on socials @lettersfromtheroadpod!

If you feel like kicking us a few bucks because you like what we do you can Become a PenPal and chat with us and others in the PenPals Discord.

LFTR Episode 80 - We finally hiked in the Enchantments and we saw the larches!

Highlights include:

* Adventures in bartending and stein-holding competitions

* The alpine lakes wilderness that’s right by Leavenworth!

* Realized we could send satellite messages with iOS 18 and it worked

* What to take on a day hike

* Jamie and Frankie took a camping trip to Portland (for Airstream service yet again)

* The way it’s easy to ignore the news when you move every day

* Voting in central Washington is weird - good in some ways and less in others

* Holding both feelings at once

* 10 years ago us would have so many questions

* I ban your book ban!

* What Germans thought of Leavenworth

* Please go vote! It does matter!

Links:

* Colchuck Lake Trail, Alpine Lakes Wilderness Wenatchee Okanogan NF

* Vote.org

Thanks for listening! As always you can find LFTR at

http://lettersfromtheroadpod.com

, and you can email us at [email protected].

Find LFTR Diaries on the LFTR YouTube channel.

Find us on socials @lettersfromtheroadpod!

If you feel like kicking us a few bucks because you like what we do you can Become a PenPal and chat with us and others in the PenPals Discord.

LFTR Episode 79 - We continue our love letter to fall as the leaves are yellow. (Finally!)

Highlights include:

* A night out in Leavenworth with Jesse & Rachael

* A beautiful mountain hike where we sensed but didn’t see a bear

* Bear spray is also useful on the man

* Discovering self-preservation instinct as a mom

* Fall vibes - football, camping, chili

* Our favorite fall camp spots: Wisconsin/Minnesota, Medora ND, New Mexico (the whole state), Flagstaff, Sedona and Grand Canyon areas in central and northern AZ, Florida, Savannah/Tybee Island, GA

* Dumping cassette toilets

* Wishing a speedy recovery to those impacted by Helene

Links:

* Anchorage Brewing Company

* @thetasteforadventure on Instagram

* Larch

* Sauer’s Mountain trail

* Fox Canyon, Foothill and Luci’s trails loop, Ojai, CA

* LFTR Episode 3 - Bears

* Riverfront Rock Gym

* Interstate SP - WI/MN

* Theodore Roosevelt NP

* City of Rocks SP, NM

Thanks for listening! As always you can find LFTR at

http://lettersfromtheroadpod.com

, and you can email us at [email protected].

Find LFTR Diaries on the LFTR YouTube channel.

Find us on socials @lettersfromtheroadpod!

If you feel like kicking us a few bucks because you like what we do you can Become a PenPal and chat with us and others in the PenPals Discord.

LFTR Episode 78 - It’s fall! That means back to school, fall Dutch Bros drinks and of course fall soccer, something we never did while we were on the road. We discuss what we’ve been up to in Leavenworth, and what it means (and doesn’t mean) to be in our soccer mom era.

Highlights include:

* A tea kinda night (again)

* Slowing down the content schedule in the “off season”

* Jamie’s riding the chairlift and hiking the pass in the summer

* Accidental trail angeling 

* Instant friendships on the trail/road

* The act of faith in humanity it takes to live on the road or do a thru hike

* The screw loose in mountain climbers and hikers

* Clay’s adventures were in North Carolina - hit a climbing gym and brewery with a surprise hike and concert

* Stumbling back in the dark on a hiking trail in the rain with a phone on low battery

* Everyone told me not to take the red eye 

* Kids sports can totally take over - don’t let them but also don’t completely opt out if your kids want to play

* Any routine feels better when you intentionally choose it

* Freeing yourself from being defined by work and accomplishments. Also therapy.

Links:

* Stevens Pass

* Wild

* North

* The Sun is a Compass

* Hidden Lake Trail

* The ‘59er Diner

* Old Pipeline Bed Trail

* Riveter Climbing Gym

* Sierra Nevada Mills River Taproom (Asheville, NC)

* Lettuce

Thanks for listening! As always you can find LFTR at

http://lettersfromtheroadpod.com, and you can email us at [email protected].

Find LFTR Diaries on the LFTR YouTube channel.

Find us on socials @lettersfromtheroadpod!

If you feel like kicking us a few bucks because you like what we do you can Become a PenPal and chat with us and others in the PenPals Discord.

We wrapped the summer, so we have re-entered the season of anticipation. In this case for ski season, but in general for plans! We recount our subdued Labor Day trip to B.C. and discuss why we love looking forward to things.

Highlights include:

* My new favorite NA beer

* Jamie’s second local job

* More Airstream problems (solar this time)

* Repeating one of our favorite full hookup campgrounds from the way up to Alaska

* Campground music/ac wars

* Surprise! A restful weekend!

* Canadian schoolteacher Elvis

* We love Canada 🇨🇦 

* Battleborn customer service / tech support is the best!

* Frankie is recovering from his procedure, thanks for asking!

* All the ski bums are getting pumped

* Winter sports Jamie has returned even though it’s still in the 80s (F)

* In Iowa, winter is dreaded, in central IL it was meh.

* In the mountains winter is celebrated!

* Ski resorts always need help in the winters!

* Living in the future and planning is part of the fun

Links:

* Deschutes Black Butte Non-Alcoholic

* Stein

* Fort Camping at Brae Island Regional Park

* Trading Post Fort Langley

* Sushi Hinode Fort Langley

* Battleborn batteries

* Tiger Run Resort Breckenridge

* Mission Ridge Freedom Pass

Thanks for listening! As always you can find LFTR at http://lettersfromtheroadpod.com, and you can email us at [email protected].

Find LFTR Diaries on the LFTR YouTube channel.

Find us on socials @lettersfromtheroadpod!

If you feel like kicking us a few bucks because you like what we do you can Become a PenPal and chat with us and others in the PenPals Discord.